2:47 pm, 15th of September, The Sakura Church, Kazamino, 4 months after the Fall of Walpurgisnacht
The Angel pulled open the heavy door and entered the church. The place was a ruin, barely a shell of its former glory. Ivy snaked up the walls and weeds were pushing their way through the wooden floor. But as much as nature had tried to reclaim it, it couldn't hide the scars of the fire. The walls were blackened from the flames, the skeletons of pews laid in lines across the space. The roof had collapsed and buried half the room in debris. Several of the beautiful stained glass windows were shattered, their intricate details lost to time. It was just as she remembered it.
The last time she was here felt like an age ago to her, even if it hadn't really been that long at all. She pulled her hand away from the door, and saw that her palm was now blackened with soot. She closed her hand. Every part of this place was sacred, and she would disrespect those that had died here by trying to brush it off, even as it blackened her hands and stained the whiteness of her robes.
As she walked through the burned pews towards the altar, she ran a hand over them. She closed her eyes. She could almost hear them, just on the edge of her perceptions. She could hear the flames climbing up the walls, and the screams as the three within were consumed by the fire. They were in heaven now. They were with God.
The Angel did not dwell long on those feelings, though. She was here for a reason, with a purpose, and the longer she was away from her mission, the more innocent people she would fail to save.
She approached the altar. It was a simple stone platform, nothing special. She had seen many others like it in the other churches dotted around this country. The only thing that made this one different was that it was his. It was truly a miracle that the path laid out to her by God had taken her to this place again. She was here to find someone, and the Sakura Church, a centre of faith and a conduit for the Soul, was the best place in the area to make herself known. It was surely fate that her search had led her back to this church! Clearly, it was the Will of God.
The Angel placed her hands on the side of the altar and knelt before it. She closed her eyes and reached out to the gem below her neck. With a little concentration, she opened herself up to the Soul Gem, and let the magic flow through her and into the air around her. The church seemed to hum with power, amplifying and broadcasting her presence like a beacon. Then, almost in a trace, she began to pray as she waited.
She didn't have to wait long.
The door crashed open, the sound of the heavy wood echoing through the space. The Angel turned, and saw a girl with purple hair enter the church. She was dressed in a grey and white cloak that covered most of her body, and below her neck was a glowing gem holding the cloak around her body. She was already transformed, and judging from her scowl, she wasn't happy.
The Angel shook her head. It wasn't her.
"Leave." She said as she turned back to the altar. "You cannot be here."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" The magical girl snarled. "Did you think I wouldn't notice another magical girl blazing her presence while on a witch hunt? This is MY territory!"
The Angel stood. "You are not the girl I am looking for. I have no desire to fight you."
The other Magical Girl grinned and summoned her weapon. A pole appeared in her hand, easily three metres long, with an ornate blade on the end. A glaive.
The girl swung her weapon in front of her. "Tough."
She leapt at the Angel, the glaive aimed right for her heart. Time almost seemed to slow for the Angel as the sharp edge drew closer. It was a shame. A true shame. They were the children of God. They were supposed to be united in their purpose to fight off the darkness and despair that filled the world. How so many of them had fallen from the true path, she did not know. All she really knew was that so far, she was the only Puella Magi that had stayed faithful to the cause. She hoped that every encounter she had with other Magical Girls that would change. The blade drew closer, and she sighed. Evidently not. "So be it, then."
And then the Angel revealed her wings.
The girl blinked. One second, the blade had been heading towards her adversary; the next, a huge white mass slammed against it, driving it into the ground. Before she could recover from her confusion, the mass collided with her and flung her back into the nave of the church. The girl grabbed the top of a pew and flipped herself, landing on her feet.
The Angel unfurled her wings, their length stretching across the room. With a powerful set of flaps, she rose several metres into the air. She outstretched her arms and opened her hands. Two swords materialised in her palms, their ends bent back like a hook and their insides blunt. She swung them out to her sides. The girl raised her glaive, bringing it away from a thrusting position and into a more defensive posture. Smiling, the Angel flipped in the air and dove at the girl.
A metallic clang rang out as her swords collided with the shaft of the glaive. The girl grimaced, ashes flying around her face as the Angel's wings blew them into the air. She twisted her wrist and forced the Angel back. The Angel flew back a few metres, barely dodging the glaive as its point swung past. The glaive suddenly stopped its motion and came towards her in a sharp thrust.
The Angel halted her wings mid-flap and dropped below the blade. She landed on the church floor in a crouch and flipped her swords. At a distance, she was at a disadvantage. Time to fix that. She leapt at the girl, one blade high, the other low. The girl swung her glaive again, but this time she was ready. The pole collided with the blunt inside of her swords and she immediately caught it in the hooks. She rotated the position of her arms, and the glaive was pulled out of the girl's hands, clattering on the ground several metres away. The girl jumped back, wrapping her cloak around her. The Angel lunged after her, aiming the inside of her blades at her neck.
The girl vanished. The Angel's blades flew through the space that she once occupied moments earlier. She looked around, but the girl was gone. Her glaive was gone too. The Angel smiled. This was her opponent's magic, then? Invisibility? She stood up and lowered her blades, watching her surroundings carefully. The girl had retrieved her weapon, she was about to strike. Silently, she asked God for his guidance, for a sign.
The ash four metres to her left shifted.
The Angel spun towards the spot, blades flashing. There was a ripping sound, and suddenly the girl was there, her white cloak caught on the hook of her one of her swords. Before the girl could react, she swung her wing and hit the girl in the chest, throwing her into the air. The Angel leapt up, wings moving. She hooked her blades under the girl's shoulders and flew up, out of the church and into the open sky.
They quickly rose above the ground, the girl shrieking as they went higher and higher, with demands to be let go amongst the incoherent noise. Smiling despite herself, the Angel moved her hook blades slightly and allowed the girl to slip out of her precarious position, falling towards the ground. The Angel swooped down below the girl and outstretched her hand, grabbing her by the wrist.
"I GIVE UP!" The girl screamed. "YOU WIN! I SURRENDER!"
"I am looking for a girl with black hair." The Angel said. "She has a shield on her arm, and can move faster than you can see."
"She doesn't live in Kazamino!" The girl yelled, panic still in her voice. "She's in Mitakihara, the next city over!"
The Angel smiled. She may have gotten the city wrong, but she was close, so close. It had been right to come to Kazamino. "Bring her to me."
The girl spat at her. "Do it yourself!"
"Mitakihara is a cursed city." The Angel replied, ignoring the liquid as it flew past her face. "It has been sealed by its protectors. I cannot go there."
"Screw you!"
The Angel sighed, and released her grip. The girl screamed as she fell again, the ground rushing up to meet her. This time, the Angel waited a second or two before catching her, this time by her ankle. "Try again."
"FINE! I'LL DO IT! JUST PUT ME DOWN!" The girl screamed far louder than was necessary.
Smiling, the Angel grabbed the girl by her shoulders–with her hands this time–and flew calmly down to the church. When they were a metre above the ground, she released the girl and let her drop to the ground, gasping. She herself flew a little farther, landing at the altar exactly where she stood before. "Go, and never return to this place."
The girl replied with a word that had no place in God's House, before scampering out the open door.
The Angel knelt down before the altar again, her wings vanishing. Placing her hands on it once again, she closed her eyes and resumed her prayer, as if nothing had happened.
12:49 pm, 16th of September, Mitakihara Middle School, Mitakihara
The city of Mitakihara had seen better days. Much of the city laid in ruin, and construction crews flooded the streets every day, filling the city with unmoving traffic. Despite the construction workers best efforts, the docks had sunk beneath the waves and were lost to the sea. The economics that were the city's lifeblood were running dry, and many of the city officials worried that at any moment, the support from the prefecture government would stop, and they would be left to fend for themselves.
But it was obvious to any passersby that Mitakihara was on the mend. Most, if not all of the minor and surface damage had been repaired. Brand new skyscrapers rose out of the decimated downtown area, their half-finished forms standing defiantly against the destruction. The areas that had once been flooded were now drained, and with every passing day, more and more of the rubble was cleared from the streets. Even the school had been reopened, to at least try and return some semblance of normalcy to the youth of the city.
Mitakihara was slowly recovering from one of the worst disasters Japan had ever seen. It wouldn't be long before the once shining city would shine again.
What was not obvious were the glowing lines in the sky above the city. They twisted and turned, forming arcanic circles and sigils of unknowable design above the city. They had appeared a few months after the Mitakihara Storm, not long after a food and supply shortage had sparked a riot that many outsiders feared would destroy what little order remained. Soon after the glowing lines appeared though, a shift came across the people of Mitakihara. It was a small change, barely noticeable on its own, but slowly, the people of Mitakihara began to put aside their differences and come together to rebuild their fair city.
Most couldn't see the lines. The few outsiders that did gave the city a wide berth, recognising that a powerful force resided in that city, one that they would be wise to avoid. After all, anyone who could slay a Walpurgisnacht was a person that was capable of defending their city, and was best to just leave them alone.
Within the city itself, only a select few could see the glowing lines. Most had the same power within them and had a hand in its creation. Only one did not. She could see the glowing lines in the sky because she had asked to be able to see them. They unnerved her. She was scared by them, but Madoka Kaname preferred being scared by what she could see rather than what she could not.
"Hey, Madoka? You still with me?"
Madoka blinked, then shook her head, her pink pigtails swinging with the motion. "I'm sorry, Sayaka. I was… distracted."
The blue-haired girl smirked slightly. "Always with your head in the clouds. I was saying, avoid the park when you come home from the mall tonight. There's a cluster of familiars in the area, and we think one is about to become a witch. Homura wants to observe it for a day or two, and I don't want you getting hurt."
Madoka nodded. "I'll be careful." Up here on the roof, they were alone. They could talk openly about these things without fear of being overheard. She picked up some rice from her bento with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth. "That path is used by a lot of students though. What about them?"
Sayaka waved a hand. "Mami passed on a letter from a concerned parent to her homeroom teacher. You should get a warning about the area after lunch."
"Gang violence again?" Madoka asked.
Sayaka nodded. "Yeah, gang violence. It really keeps the teachers on their toes, and insures that everyone is scared enough to avoid the area. It's getting old though, we might have to come up with something else. We don't want the teachers to ask the police to actually start looking for this phantom gang."
Madoka considered it for a moment. "What about a gas leak? With so much of the city destroyed, it might be plausible to the teachers."
"Maybe. I'll bring it up at Homura's place tonight." Sayaka turned to face Madoka with a bemused expression on her face. "Now spill, what's on your mind?"
Madoka blinked, then looked down. "It's… well…"
"What?" Sayaka asked, her expression turning to one of worry.
"It's just…" Madoka sighed. "It feels wrong."
Sayaka frowned. "What, lying to the teachers?"
"No…" Madoka felt her hands twist her skirt slightly, something she knew she unconsciously did while uncomfortable. "What you're doing… hunting down witches and familiars like you are."
"Oh." Now it was Sayaka's turn to look away. "Yeah, I guess so. But it's necessary. You saw what happened after the storm. The Witch population exploded and fed off everyone's suffering. We had to step up our game."
"I know." Madoka replied. She had seen everyone's suffering first hand, she knew how bad it had been. Though she never mentioned it, she had considered making a contract to end it. Only her promise to Homura had kept her from reaching out to Kyubey. "It's just… they were all once people. Girls like you and me. And the four of you are just… exterminating them."
Sayaka nodded, her expression sombre. "I know exactly what you mean. You have no idea how close I was to becoming just like them. But… we have to do this. When we created the Sigils, we did it with the purpose of simply reducing their numbers, using them to just speed up the process of finding the problematic ones and take them out. But when we opened our senses, we saw the sheer number of Familiars hiding in the shadows, not making a sound. Every Familiar has the potential to become a Witch if left long enough, and there are hundreds of them, if not thousands, just hiding, feeding, until they grow strong enough to begin killing. There's enough familiars here to bring Mitakihara crashing back down. We can't just ignore that."
Madoka sighed again, before nodding. After a moment of silence, she decided to ask. "Do you feel guilty? Killing them?"
Sayaka looked away. "I try not to think about it. I guess so. We're not even hunting out of necessity anymore, not since Walpurgisnacht hit. It's just… slaughter."
Then a new voice spoke from behind them. "You need to remember what we're trying to do."
Both Madoka and Sayaka jumped, turning to find the grinning red-haired girl standing there. Sayaka scowled. "Dammit Kyouko, don't just sneak up on us!"
"How else did you expect me to announce myself?" Kyouko smirked, her form shimmering in the light. Madoka blinked slightly, before reminding herself of Kyouko's Enchantment magic and the illusions she could create. She wasn't really here, she was just creating an image of herself and projecting it across the city. Usually, this ability was limited by what she could see, but with the Sigils extending her awareness to the furthest reaches of Mitakihara, Kyouko had quickly discovered that her sight wasn't her limit anymore. It was an unintended effect, but Homura had welcomed the change. Being able to call on immediate help was extremely useful, especially against enemies as unpredictable as Witches.
"But back on topic…" Kyouko continued. "It really doesn't matter if these Witches were once people or not. They kill people regardless. If you'll allow me to echo Mami, by killing them, you are saving people. Soon, Mitakihara will be the only place on the planet that is free of Witches altogether. Keep that in mind, and you won't have a thing to worry about."
Sayaka rolled her eyes. "I know, I know, you've said this a hundred times."
Kyouko snorted. "Come on, even you can't have a morality crisis that often."
Sayaka ignored the jab. "What are you doing here?"
Kyouko smiled. "Homura wants to move up the meeting. One hour, her place."
The blue-haired girl scowled. "Tell the Transfer Student that just because she can get away with skipping school doesn't mean me and Mami can."
Kyouko grinned. "Mami's already left. Besides, it's not like you pay attention in class anyway."
Before Sayaka could respond, Kyouko waved a hand. "I'll tell Homura that you're on your way. See you soon."
"HEY! I said I–" Sayaka started, but the image of Kyouko had already vanished.
Sayaka let out a frustrated groan, before turning to Madoka. "I'm sorry, but could you…"
Madoka nodded. "I'll tell Saotome that you got sick and had to go home. I'll drop off any homework we get at your house tonight."
"Thanks" Sayaka said. "I wish you didn't have to do this, but Homura and Mami like their meetings, no matter how inconvenient it is for us all."
"It's fine. Don't worry about it." Madoka replied. She decided not to mention that Homura had sent her a text asking if she was free this afternoon and that she suspected that her girlfriend was trying to make sure nothing could interfere with their evening together. If she told Sayaka that, then she would tease Homura to death over it.
The blue-haired girl stood up and walked a few steps forward. She looked around briefly, making sure that they were alone on the rooftop, then sighed. "Guess I better get going then. I'll see you later."
She raised her left hand, the ring on her finger shining. Suddenly, a bright blue light shone and covered her body. Madoka looked away, shielding her eyes slightly. When she looked back, Sayaka was no longer wearing her school uniform. Her clothes were white and blue, her top shoulderless, splitting off at the waist with a short, angular skirt below it. Clasped to her neck was a white cape, covering her back.
Sayaka looked back and smiled, before leaping off the ground and over the high fence. She sailed through the air for an incredible, superhuman distance, before landing on the top of a nearby building and leaping again. After only a few seconds, she had vanished from sight.
Madoka let out a long sigh, before packing up her lunch. She needed to go to the nurse's office and write up a note for Sayaka before break ended, and the best way to do that without getting into trouble was during the school nurse's own lunch break, which would be ending in a few minutes. She needed to hurry.
As she stood up, she looked up again at the Sigils. The glowing lines in the sky looked back at her. Homura said that they were there to protect her. That they did more than allow them to see everything in the city. Even though her girlfriend was reluctant to specify exactly how they protected her, she was able to guess. After all, it couldn't be a coincidence that the same day they appeared in the sky, Kyubey had stopped visiting her to try and sway her from her decision to never become a magical girl.
She had asked Mami about it, and she had confirmed what she believed. While both she and Homura worked on the creation of the Sigils together, Homura's price for her help was for them to be used to seal the city from the creature's machinations for good. Mami was reluctant, but even she could agree that Kyubey was a dangerous influence that had to be stopped.
Madoka dropped her gaze away from the Sigils and walked towards the stairwell. The Incubator had been banished from Mitakihara. She was, at last, free from him.
She just hoped that the price wasn't too high to pay.
3:13 pm, Akemi residence, Mitakihara
Kyouko stood on top of a radio tower. From this height, she could see the entire city. Far below, the cars looked like toys and the people like ants. They were all so small, almost insignificant. It was hard to imagine that they were all living, thinking people. Yet, if she closed her eyes, she could hear them all.
She wasn't just on top of the radio tower. She was also on the end of one of the many cranes out in the ruins as it moved materials to rebuild the city. She was in a schoolroom, listening to the teacher talk about logarithms and exponents, endless equations that held no meaning to her. She was in an apartment, surrounded by the sounds of two adults yelling at each other about small things, while a young child played with her toys and pretended that nothing was wrong.
Is this how it feels to be God? If she wished to, she could be anywhere and see anything, and no one would be the wiser. With a small pulse of magic, she could affect things on the other side of the city. A simple spell, and she could break up the fight in the alley five blocks away, or stop a drunk husband from beating his wife. She could help the starving find food, and teach those that horde it a lesson in sharing. She was everywhere.
"Kyouko, what's your opinion on the Familiars in the mall?" Mami asked.
Kyouko's vision flashed red and shattered. All at once, she was back in the too bright room that was the bulk of Homura's home. She tried to regain her concentration, but it was too late. Her duplicate vanished from its perch, fading into nothingness. She grimaced and shot Mami an annoyed look.
"What?" Mami asked, a confused expression on her face. Sayaka and Homura were looking at her too. It felt odd to her having them present. Back in the old days, these meetings would be private affairs with just her and Mami, with tea and cake in hand as they discussed their battles. Homura's meetings were entirely different. They sat in a circle around the table in Homura's main room, constantly discussing strategies and patrol routes, as if they were in a military camp. Homura was even transformed, as if she was constantly preparing for a fight. While she knew all this was important, it was also incredibly dull.
Another difference between Homura and Mami's meetings was the presence of the dark force approximately four metres below them. That part always unnerved her.
"Nothing." Kyouko said, sighing. "I was just practicing an old spell."
Mami smiled. "Oh really? Tell me, how is old Rosso Fantasma? Still effective?"
Kyouko groaned as Sayaka chuckled at the name. "Can you please not call it that? It has never been called that!"
Homura cleared her throat. "As useful as it is to use the Sigils to project your clones anywhere, could you not do it while we're talking?"
"Whatever." Kyouko stretched her arms out, feeling her back pop slightly. She'd been relying too much on her clones to do her fighting for her lately, she really needed to exercise more. "What were you saying?"
Mami sighed. "There are a dozen familiars hiding in the mall area. Sayaka tried to get rid of them, but their labyrinths are sealed. None of them appear to have matured enough to begin drawing in victims. Until they do, we can't touch them. Unlike the park though, the mall has a large number of people moving through it constantly. If we let them get to the point where they begin hunting, then we might not make it there before they kill someone."
Kyouko scowled. "This was easier when we couldn't see them."
"Indeed." Homura replied. "The Sigils may have given us more than we wanted, but we all decided to act upon what we saw."
Kyouko shrugged. "Well… I would suggest that we just leave them alone and act when they finally show themselves, but you'd all just object to that plan."
"Of course we would!" Sayaka growled. Kyouko grinned to herself. She was so easy to wind up.
"I have a possible solution." Homura said. She reached under the table and pulled out a rolled up tube. She unrolled it and spread it across the table. Kyouko leaned forward to get a better look. She recognised it. It was the map of Mitakihara she and Homura had gone over so many times in the days leading up to Walpurgis Night. She almost chuckled. That map was sorely out-of-date now.
Homura reached into her shield and pulled out a pistol. Ignoring the rest of the group's confused glances, she pulled out the magazine and removed four bullets from the cartridge. Then she slid it back into the gun and put the firearm back into that impossible storage space. Then she cleared her throat.
"For the last three months, we have been able to observe the behaviour of witches, where they go and where they hide. However, there are four places that they seem to avoid. Those places are,"
She placed the first bullet on the map. "The downtown housing estate."
She placed the second bullet. "An apartment complex in the residential district."
She placed the third bullet. "Mitakihara Middle School."
She placed the final bullet. "And here."
Homura paused for a few seconds as Mami and Sayaka's eyes widened. "All these place share a common trait. One of us lives there, or spends an excessive amount of time there. My theory is that witches avoid places where Magical Girls reside to try and avoid a confrontation."
"Makes sense." Sayaka replied. "They don't like us attacking them, I'd stay away from us too."
Mami nodded. "I've never sensed a witch near my apartment once in all my time as a Magical Girl."
Kyouko rolled her eyes. "So what's your point?"
Homura pointed at the map, where the mall was. "If one of us stays in the mall as much as possible, keeping a constant presence in the area, the familiars should clear out eventually. Not only will this keep the people in the area safe, but if one of those familiars matures and opens a labyrinth, one of us will be on hand to immediately deal with it."
Kyouko nodded. The plan was simple and seemingly effective. She couldn't think of any reasons why it wouldn't work.
"So, who should stay at the mall?" Sayaka asked.
Mami clasped her hands together. "It can't be me or Sayaka. School just takes up too much of our time. Kyouko, you don't go to school, and Homura, you've pretty much stopped going altogether."
Homura nodded. "If we take turns, it shouldn't be too hard. The real issue is time. Going off Sayaka's contract date and when we created the Sigils, all the familiars left the area around her apartment within three months. We could be guarding the place for a while."
Kyouko grinned. "As long as you give me enough change for the arcade, I'm good."
Sayaka opened her mouth, probably intending to rebuke her preferred pastime, but Mami cut her off. "It's settled then. What else is there, Homura?"
Homura pointed to other areas on the map. "There is a Familiar hanging around the construction housing area, and it just opened a Labyrinth earlier today. I believe that there is a high chance that it will start hunting when the construction ends for the night. It needs to be eliminated before then. There is another two in the industrial district and the ruins."
"Why is a Familiar out in the construction housing area?" Sayaka asked. "It's hardly a prime hunting spot."
"Many of the workers lost everything to Walpurgisnacht." Mami replied. "I imagine that the stress is too much for some of them. That makes them prime targets"
Sayaka nodded. "The construction housing area isn't too far from my usual patrol. I'll start early today and take it out."
"I'll take out the one in the ruins then." Mami replied. Kyouko nodded. The destruction had come very close to where Mami's apartment was located, stopping short by only a few blocks. If she was reading the Sigils right, the soon-to-be-Witch wasn't that far away from her. It made sense that Mami would chose it. She opened her mouth to claim the remaining Familiar.
"I'll take the industrial one." Homura said before she could speak. Kyouko frowned, and gave Homura a look. That Familiar was far out of Homura's way, her own patrol was much closer. Homura always prized efficiency over all else, why did she want to kill this Familiar herself? Kyouko could see that Mami and Sayaka were confused too, but they didn't say anything, no doubt because they knew that Homura always had a reason for her actions, and it was best to not question them.
If Homura noticed their confusion, she didn't show it. "That is everything I wished to discuss. Thank you."
No one made a move for the door. There was still one topic that everyone wanted to know.
Finally, Sayaka broke the silence. "What about that girl who tried to enter Mitakihara yesterday?"
Homura frowned. "What about it?"
Mami folded her arms. "You went out to meet her. What did she want?"
The raven-haired girl waved a hand dismissively. "Her name was Kiskei Yonai. She was from Kazamino and wanted to know what the Sigils were about. Simple curiosity, nothing more."
Liar. Kyouko's eyes narrowed. She knew Kiskei, she'd fought her to make sure she was strong enough to control her former territory. And she knew her well enough to know that she didn't give a damn about Mitakihara, she just needed a place to hunt after she was kicked out of her own city. Not to mention that there had been a strong presence emanating from Kazamino for the last twenty-four hours. Homura was hiding something.
The other girls didn't pick up on it though. They simply nodded and stood up. Sayaka pulled out her phone and checked the time. "School would have ended by now, it should be ok for us to walk around in our school uniforms."
"What time will you be back at my place, Kyouko?" Mami asked.
Kyouko smiled and stood up. Whatever Homura was hiding, it could wait. She would tell them all when she was ready. "I should be there by nine, after my patrol. What are you cooking?"
Mami smiled. "I'm thinking Omurice. Maybe a cake for dessert?"
Kyouko grinned. She had to admit, even if they didn't see eye to eye on a lot of matters, moving in with Mami was one of the best choices she'd made in years.
Then Homura spoke. "Kyouko, could you stay here for a moment? There's something I want to discuss with you."
Kyouko frowned, then shrugged at Mami. Guess she'd be getting her answers now. "I'll see you tonight. Be careful."
"We will." Mami replied, glancing at Homura suspiciously, before leaving with Sayaka, the blue-haired girl saying something to Mami about spoiling her with too much good food.
Once they were gone, Homura stood up and nodded her head towards a door at the back of the room. Frowning, Kyouko followed her out of the too bright room. They entered a bare room, lacking a lot of personal furnishings and hallmarks of a home. At one end of the room was a bed, next to it a bedside table with a clock, above it a shelf with a few books, and in the corner, a computer. This was Homura's bedroom. Kyouko almost laughed. She didn't even think that this place had one.
Homura gestured towards the chair in front of the computer. Kyouko pulled it out and sat on it backwards, resting her arms on its back, while Homura sat down on her bed. She had to admit, Homura's bedroom, while a bit of an odd location, was much better suited for meetings than the main room. She could actually see more than a few metres, for one. Clearly, Homura brought her here because she wanted her full attention. "Right, so what did Kiskei actually say?"
Homura looked away. "Tell me, have you been keeping up with the news over the last few months?"
Kyouko rolled her eyes. Homura seemed to be allergic to straight answers, and always insisted on a roundabout way of answering. She decided to indulge her tangent though. "I catch the odd address from the mayor, but only to keep track of things."
"I meant the national news." Homura said. "In particular, have you heard anything about a vigilante the media is calling Angel?"
Kyouko raised an eyebrow. "A few reports about arrests related to Angels, yeah. What do you mean, vigilante?"
Homura ran her hand through her hair. "In the middle of May, a warehouse in Osaka was burned down. The media didn't pick up on it, their eyes were focused on the growing humanitarian crisis here. Soon after, all over the country, similar incidents began to occur, alongside reports that people on the missing persons lists were appearing all over the country. Linking all the events were the Yakuza Families."
Kyouko frowned. "The Yakuza? Why are those crime lords involved?"
"The Yakuza owned each place that was attacked, and each of the missing people that turned up testified that they had been kidnapped by the Yakuza." Homura replied. "Eventually, the police managed to get a low level Yakuza thug to testify. They are under attack. Someone is dismantling their operations."
She shook her head slightly. "Once this was made public, the attacks increased. They are almost weekly now. And with it have come witnesses. Stories of a large shape being spotted moving through the sky just before an explosion and of a person with wings began to circulate. They began to name her The Angel."
"Her?" Kyouko asked.
Homura gave her a look. "How many people do you know that have wings naturally? This has to be a Magical Girl, there's no other explanation."
"I see your point." Kyouko replied. "Why would a Magical Girl be wasting magic on the Yakuza though? It can't be efficient for her."
Homura shrugged. "Every girl has her own motivations. Whatever her reasons, she appears to be at least moderately good in combat. I doubt a self-righteous rookie would have lasted this long without that skill."
"Well, that's all well and good for her. Less Yakuza means less crime, and everyone can rest a little easier knowing that their kids aren't going to just vanish one day." Kyouko replied, almost sarcastically. She had never really thought much of the kidnappers and thieves running Japan's underworld. She knew that there had once been a number of them in Mitakihara, but it seemed that they lost most of their resources to Walpurgisnacht, so they were practically a non-issue now. "But what does this have to do with Kiskei coming to Mitakihara?"
Homura ran her hand through her hair again. "She was attacked by a much stronger Magical Girl, a girl with wings. Defeated her almost instantly. I believe that her attacker and the Angel are the same person."
Kyouko sucked in a breathe. Kiskei was a veteran, she's been around just as long as she had and had just as much skill. The Angel really must be strong if she was able to best her. And now she was in Kazamino. That… wasn't good.
"Thankfully, Angel isn't interested in seizing control of Kazamino." Homura said, as if reading her thoughts. "Instead, she sent Kiskei here to deliver a message."
Kyouko frowned. "What kind of message?"
"The Angel wants to meet with me." Homura said. "According to Kiskei, she also appears to be aware of my magic and doesn't want to enter Mitakihara."
"So you have to go to her, on her terms." Kyouko finished. "Clearly a trap."
"Indeed." Homura replied. "However, from the description of the girl that Kiskei gave me, I don't know why she would want me or know about my magic. I've met many Magical Girls during my struggle, and she isn't one of them. I don't know what she's capable of. I don't like it."
"Then don't go." Kyouko replied. The implications of the situation weren't lost on her. Allowing an enemy magical girl to reside so close by was dangerous, but that didn't mean they had to be stupid about it. "Let her wait in Kazamino forever. Eventually Kiskei will get tired of her and force her out one way or another. Even if she got beaten once, she's capable of learning from her mistakes and will have a much more effective strategy in mind now."
"Maybe." Homura said. "Waiting her out is probably the safest action to take."
The two girls were silent for several seconds.
Kyouko sighed. "But you're not going to do that, are you?"
Homura shook her head. "A potential enemy is camped just outside the gates. It would be foolish to let her stay there. After all, power invites challenge, and we are anything but weak. And…" Homura looked away. "I am uncertain if the Sigils can survive a direct attack. There should be countermeasures, but a skilled Magical Girl might be able to dismantle them."
"Bullshit." Kyouko replied. "You're just being paranoid again. No Magical Girl has your skill with magic. Seriously, Mami is the smartest girl I know, and she doesn't have a clue what any of those symbols mean, or even what's keeping the spell from unravelling itself the second you untransform. There is no one in this country that can even hope to attempt what you did."
"But I don't have skill." Homura replied, eyes hard. "I don't have a talent or a knack for this. I learnt how to bend magic to my will through sheer effort, experimentation, and time, more time than you could possibly know. I can't even cast these spells on my own, I need the support of the rest of you to make it work. If I can figure it out, anyone could. All another Magical Girl has to do is examine my handiwork, and they'll have a good head start." She shook her head. "No. This girl cannot be allowed to undo everything I have worked for. She has to go."
Kyouko rolled her eyes. Paranoia. "So, you're just going to charge into her trap then?"
Homura shook her head. "No. If she knows my powers, she probably knows how to counter them. It's too risky for me to go."
She didn't have to say it. With her claiming the Familiar in the Industrial District, it was obvious what she was planning. "Oh no. No no no no no. This is your fight, not mine."
Homura narrowed her eyes as she stared at her. "I need you to do this for me, Kyouko. I need your help."
"Then get Mami to do it for you!" Kyouko yelled. "Look, we're allies, but I'm not willing to just walk into a trap just so you can continue to act all high and mighty. Quit wasting my time."
"I was going to ask Mami to do it, actually." Homura replied, calm in the face of her yelling. "However, last night, during my investigation into this girl, I came across a piece of evidence that made me reconsider."
Homura stood up and walked over to her desk. She opened a draw, and pulled out a piece of paper. "I stole this from our police station. It's only a photo of the real evidence they found, lying on the ground after a firefight. The police don't know if it's relevant to the Angel, or if one of the Yakuza dropped it. I believe only you, me, and maybe Mami would be able to discern its true meaning."
"Gimme that." Kyouko said, snatching the photo away. The sooner she blew off Homura, the sooner she could-
Then her mind stopped.
The photo showed brick pavement, and in the centre was a metal pendant. It had a point at the bottom, then moved up for a centimetre or two. Then it split off into two curves, bending out for a little bit before bending back in, meeting at a loop with a simple cord running through it. Between the curves was a red shard of glass, jagged and rough, connecting the loop to the point.
Kyouko's hands shook. It was crude, inelegant, clearly pieced together from whatever metal the maker could find. But it was unmistakable. She knew it.
Barely able to keep her hands steady, Kyouko quickly undid her hair. As her hair fell around her face, she pulled out her hair pin, holding it next to the picture. Hers was missing the jewel, as her soul gem was on her finger, but otherwise they were identical.
Kyouko looked up, her eyes dark. "Ok, how the hell did you know about this?"
Homura stared at her, unblinking, her expression almost asking why she was even bothering to ask.
Finally, Kyouko broke her gaze. "Right. Of course. I suppose I told you all about it, didn't I?"
Homura nodded, sitting back down on the bed. "It took a lot of persuasion, but you eventually told me the entire story. I felt the information might be useful to know one day."
Kyouko swore. "How the hell is this possible. My father is dead. His church, his beliefs, and my magic died with him. All the followers that stuck around abandoned his teachings years ago. This..." She scrunched up the paper in her fist. "…is impossible!"
Homura ran a hand through her hair. "That's why I thought I should ask you first."
Kyouko's eyes flared. "Who else knows? The others? The police?"
Homura shook her head. "I kept what I knew to myself, out of respect to you. As for the police… while that is a symbol of the Sakura Church, it isn't the official one. That remains a cross, of course. They haven't made the connection. Even if they do, I doubt they would investigate further. While it is a rare symbol these days, once they were around the necks of people in every city in the country. I doubt they'll think of it as anything more than a trinket a Yakuza happened to have on him."
Kyouko breathed out. "That's a relief. The less people who think about my father's teachings, the better." Then she shot a dark look at the raven-haired girl. "I swear, Homura, if you're lying..."
"I don't know for certain if she's actually connected." Homura admitted. "However, the place that she's chosen to wait, the place where she fought Kiskei, is your church. I doubt it's a coincidence."
"No, I suppose not…" Kyouko swore again. She knew what she had to do, and she knew that Homura knew that too.
"Listen." Homura said. "You don't have to face this alone. Say the word, and I'll summon the others back here. She might just want to talk, and this will all be resolved peacefully. And if not, we will take her on together."
Kyouko closed her eyes. It would be better to accept the help. She and Kiskei were pretty evenly matched in terms of fighting skill. If the Angel could beat Kiskei, she could probably beat her too. It was dangerous to do this on her own.
But she had to. If this so-called angel was still a follower of her dad's beliefs, then she was still bewitched by her enchantment magic. And that made this her responsibility.
Kyouko shook her head. "No. I don't care if she wants to fight you. This doesn't concern you, or anyone else. I'll meet with her. Alone."
"As you wish." Homura replied. Kyouko caught the barest hint of a smile on Homura's face. She'd gotten exactly what she wanted, a way out of the trap set for her. She hated being used like this, but at the same time, she couldn't let it go or allow someone else to do this. It had to be her.
Still, she couldn't have thought of everything. "What happens if the Angel decides to go after you directly? Trap or no trap, she still appears to be a formidable opponent."
The raven-haired girl didn't even bat an eyelid. "I've arranged to be in a public place all afternoon. As powerful as the Angel seems to be, the bio that the police have made of her suggests that she avoids dragging innocents into her fights as much as possible. A strong moral code."
Kyouko snorted. "A weakness for you to exploit then."
"Only to ensure she doesn't attack me openly." Homura replied. She looked at the clock on her bedside table, before standing up. "Speaking of which, I should be going soon."
Kyouko looked at the clock too. Three forty-five, right about when students would begin leaving school and walking home. Interesting. "This 'public place' you intend on being in… it wouldn't happen to be with a certain pink-haired girl, would it?"
"I don't know what you mean." Homura replied, suddenly looking away and transforming out of her Magical Girl uniform, but not before Kyouko spotted the barest hint of a blush.
She smirked. "Oh really? Maybe I should send a clone over to the school and ask what she's doing this afternoon. She mentioned once that she's never been to Kazamino. I could take her with me, show her the sights, treat her a bit, have a good time…"
Homura looked back at Kyouko, giving her a death stare. "Don't you dare."
Kyouko laughed. It was so easy to get Homura flustered, once you knew which buttons to press. "So, anything else you wish to share before I blunder into this trap?"
"The most effective weapon against me is binding magic. You should expect something like that." Homura replied, pulling on a light jacket over her casual clothes. "However, with your Enchantment magic growing stronger, you should be able to break yourself out of any trap she springs. How many clones are you able to create now?"
"Three at the moment." Kyouko replied. "Four, if I'm able to focus without distractions. I was able to make thirteen clones in the heat of battle once upon a time, I'm still a long way off from being at full strength. It should be enough though." She smiled. "If this Angel really is as strong as Kiskei, let's see how she fares against four versions of me."
"Good. I'll take care of your patrol, so you don't have to worry about holding back magic for that." Homura said. "What about your Soul Gem? Do you need to visit the Heart before you leave?"
Kyouko shuddered, almost feeling the dark presence below them surge just at its mention. "I'm good, thanks. My gem's clean. Besides, I still have a few Grief Seeds left over from the old days. If she puts up a fight, I'm covered."
Homura nodded. "Alright." Then she looked straight at Kyouko. "Listen, don't take any unnecessary risks, alright? You don't need to fight her, just get rid of her. If things get rough, call us."
Kyouko stood up and walked towards the door. "I'll do whatever I see fit."
And then she was gone.
4:03 pm, The Sakura Church, Kazamino
The Angel was still kneeling before the altar. She had not eaten, she had not slept. Yet she did not feel hungry, nor tired, for the power of God sustained her. She could fast for days, weeks if she had to, and she wouldn't feel a thing. The concept of it was almost alien to her. She had spent so long ruled by her hunger and her exhaustion, not knowing when her next meal would come or when she would be able to properly rest. Now it wasn't even something she had to think about. Truly, it was proof of the greatness of God.
Still, while her physical needs were cared for, she was finding it hard to keep her thoughts focused on her prayer. Maybe it would be better to go after the girl with black hair directly. She had thought it was a sign that her search had lead her so close to this place, but it was always possible that it was only her own feelings that made her think that, and not the guidance of God. She had already made a mistake in assuming that her location was in Kazamino, would it be better to enter the sealed city and find her herself?
She quickly pushed those thoughts out of her mind. No, she had been warned that to go to Mitakihara was to court disaster. The seal placed on that city had been made out of sin, and as such turned the entire area into a bastion of sin. It was better to wait for the girl with black hair here, well outside the reach of her power. But… it had already been a day, and she had not shown herself. Maybe it was her execution of the plan that was flawed…
That girl she fought, she said that she would do as she asked, but she was a Godless girl, devoid of the righteousness of their cause. Would she really stick to her word, or would she betray her? The Angel considered it for several moments, before dismissing it. She was occupying that girl's territory, and proven herself to be a formidable opponent. That girl would want her gone, so would likely jump on the chance to get someone else to do the work for her. She would be coming. Sooner or later, she would come here.
Reassured, the Angel returned to her prayer with new vigour, firm in her belief in God's guidance.
The light had shifted to a bright orange when she sensed someone approaching. A few seconds later, the door opened and the person entered. "So, you're the Angel."
It wasn't the same girl as last time, it was someone new. The Angel frowned. That voice…
She stood up and turned. The girl was in casual clothes, short pants, a thin shirt with a green hoodie thrown over it. Her hair was long and red, held up in a messy ponytail. Her tone was angry, but her expression was… sorrowful. It couldn't be…
"You follow in the beliefs of this church, don't you?" The new girl snarled, even as her expression remained the same. "I bet you think my father was the holiest of all. How little you know."
The Angel didn't respond, her words caught in her throat.
"You know, most people gave up on my father's beliefs when he died. Some though, they refused to see the light. I had to set them straight." The girl sighed. "Homura, the girl you so desperately want to fight, wants me to just get rid of you, to just drive you off. Me, I know that's not going to happen."
The girl raised her left hand, and her ring shone. Her body was suddenly covered in red light, floating into the air slightly. Red clothes appeared on her body, a long garb that started at her shoulders, flowed down her body, before breaking off into a dress. On her chest, the cloth split and left a gap, a gap filled with a shining red jewel staring back like an eye.
She extended a hand, and a segmented spear formed within it, swirling around her before snapping into a pole. Her feet touched the ground, and she swung her spear out. "My father is dead. His beliefs are dead too. They should stay that way."
The Angel stared at her.
The girl frowned. "What, nothing to say? That won't protect you, you know."
She was right. She had to speak. She had to know. "You're… you're Kyouko Sakura…"
"Huh, the Angel can remember me after all this time. Go figure." Kyouko responded.
"That's… that's not my name!" She replied quickly. This was more than chance, it was fate! "My name is Asuka! I'm…"
Then she fell to her knees and lowered her head to the ground.
"I am your servant, Filia Prophetae!"
4:34 pm, The Outlier Districts, Mitakihara
An old woman sat on a bench in a park, watching the sunset. Her face was covered, wrapped in a Niqab to hide the scars time had left on her body. From a distance, her clothes looked simple, but up close one could see intricate patterns woven into the fabric. Around her aged hands were rings and various pieces of jewellery of middling value. Her eyes were sharp, alert, and staring out at the city in the distance, the buildings cutting rays in the intense light.
A few metres away, a child was playing in the sand near a swing set. The old woman had been watching him play for some time. He had spent a serious amount of time pushing sand over to his spot and flattening it out. Now he was drawing on the relatively smooth surface. First he drew a circle, then within the circle, he drew more, smaller circles. Then he ran his finger between each one, connecting each with a series of lines.
The boy didn't know why he was drawing it. The lines and circles were just… there. When he closed his eyes to go to sleep, he saw them. Sometimes when he looked up at the clouds, he imagined them covering the sky. He didn't think much of these things though. He liked to draw, and that was what he felt like drawing, that was all. Then he heard his parents calling from across the park, and he took off back to them, barely giving the picture a second thought.
The old woman stood up and walked over to the sand, looking down at what the boy had drawn. She pulled a notepad out from one of the many folds in her garb and, amongst the calculations and the equations within, began to trace the Sigil drawn in the sand.
This is it. Project Kriegsgeschichte, after over 2 years of planning, has finally been posted. However, things haven't quite gone according to plan on the writing end. As in, this was supposed to be ready in May, with about 20 chapters behind it ready to post weekly. At the moment, I have about two thirds of the next chapter written, and only a few paragraphs of the third. Turns out, I'm not very good at writing :P
This story will be getting updates. Definitely, no take backsies, will absolutely get more chapters. But I can't promise it will be timely like I planned. If you are interested in seeing more, please do follow and/or favourite. The more people I know are interested, the more guilty I feel when I don't deliver (and guilt is a hell of a motivator :P ).
If you want to be critical and tell me everything I'm doing wrong, feel free to leave a review. I'm always learning, so all criticism is appreciated. To yell at me directly and get semi-regular updates on my progress, follow me on Twitter ('at'Axius27 or click the link on my profile).
Thank you all for reading.
~Axius