Chapter 23

There was a flash of light, and when it faded, Sayaka found herself in a completely different place.

The floor was moving, she realized. Conveyor belts were all over the place, and she had to move constantly to avoid being swept toward the large contraptions of wood and steel they passed through. In those contraptions was a massive steel press, moving up and down constantly. Getting caught under one of those would kill Sayaka instantly.

Even so, those presses were creating newspapers out of thin air, filled with unintelligible writing. Those papers would join those floating around the walls of the labyrinth, thousands of them creating a moving wall of paper.

Looking up, she saw storm clouds. No rain or lightning emerged from them, but they were darker than any storm Sayaka had seen.

That wasn't all she saw, though. Floating down was Flick's lifeless body. Her soul gem had repaired it, but Sayaka knew it was no more than a corpse. She knew that, yet she couldn't stop herself from turning into a wolf, leaping up to catch Flick on her back. Once she landed, she switched to her Magical Girl form, carrying Flick in her arms. Then, she looked up at the creature made from Flick's soul. Since it was three stories tall, she had to crane her neck to see the whole thing.

It was beautiful. An angel, pure white, with bright yellow wings to match its long, flowing hair. That was slightly off put by its face, which contained dozens of peering eyes from all sides. They were crimson, and Sayaka realized the presses had the same eyes on them.

The angel held a silver harp, adorned with red jewels. As all those eyes shifted toward Sayaka, making her shiver, the Witch began to play. Immediately, a wave of concussive force blew out of it, enveloping the entire labyrinth. Sayaka yelped, spinning in the air to catch herself. She was unable to keep her grasp on Flick's body, and it flew away from her.

Then, the Witch truly began its assault. A wave emerged from the harp, far less spread out than the last. Some of the newspapers floated in its path, and were ripped to shreds. Sayaka had a feeling she would meet a similar fate if she didn't move.

She jumped away, her body rattling from the force as the wave passed. Her eyes widened when she saw Flick was nearing one of those printing presses, hopeless as the conveyor dragged her along. Sayaka instantly transformed into a wolf once more, rushing to save her in time. This was Sayaka's fault, damn it! She wouldn't sit around and let Flick suffer for her!

Her will meant nothing, in the face of reality. The distance between them was too much, and though Sayaka pushed her legs beyond their limit, it wouldn't be enough. Realizing that, tears came to her eyes, the first time she had experienced the sensation as a wolf.

When Flick's body vanished, Sayaka's eyes widened, and she looked around wildly to see where it went. That was when she saw Homura Akemi. The girl whom Sayaka had foolishly despised had recovered Flick, and her steps brought her toward Sayaka.

Swallowing, Sayaka returned to her human state, accepting Flick from Homura. "Thank you," she murmured.

"Her body is useless now," Homura said. Something was off about her voice, but Sayaka couldn't pinpoint what. "An empty husk. We would be better off leaving it behind."

Those words were what let Sayaka figure out what was different. There was clear emotion as Homura spoke. Though she tried to cover the shaking in her voice, she couldn't entirely mask the pain within her words.

I didn't understand anything, did I? I had her all wrong. I was so stupid.

Seeing the remaining girls run in—Mami, Kyoko, Carmentae, and Pace—Sayaka made her decision.

"I'm getting Flick out of here," she declared, loud enough that everyone could hear. Her next words were far quieter, leaving only Homura to make them out. "I would probably just get in the way otherwise."

Homura met her gaze, and her eyes were missing their usual scorn. "Be safe," was all she said.

A flash of red appeared in the corner of Sayaka's eyes, and she saw one of Kyoko's barriers catch a concussive blast that had been aimed at Sayaka. More shot out of the harp, emerging at a faster rate than before.

Seeing that was enough to move Sayaka forward. Tightening her grip on Flick's body, she rushed out of the labyrinth. The press Familiars watched her every step of the way, their judgement making Sayaka's stomach clench.

Making her way out of the labyrinth, her eyes widened at who she saw.

"Madoka?"

"Sayaka?" Madoka rushed to her side. "W-what happened? Is Flick really . . . are you okay?"

Sayaka set Flick down as quickly as she could without being rough. Then, as the tears flowed from her eyes, she embraced Madoka, openly sobbing. Apologies sprung from her mouth, though she was blabbering more than anything. All she knew was that Madoka had returned her embrace, and was softly stroking Sayaka's hair.

It was far more than Sayaka deserved.

I should have killed her.

Mami hated herself for the thought, but the truth couldn't be denied. Flick was a monster now. Those dreams she had spoken of would never come true. Instead, she would die—perhaps by Mami's hands. The only difference between now and the other night was that Flick might take down one of her friends before falling.

Why? Why did it have to turn out this way? We only wanted to save people!

Tears were in her eyes as she summoned an arsenal around her. Picking up each gun, she fired multiple shots at Flick, aiming for the eyes covering her head.

Those eyes squeezed shut, a red barrier not unlike Kyoko's stopping the bullets from striking. Yet they clearly weren't Kyoko's as they were transparent. If they weren't so obviously durable, Mami would have thought them to be made of stained glass. Kyoko's barriers weren't absent from the fight, however. Kyoko was throwing them up around the harp, attempting to limit the angles in which they could be attacked.

Still, some concussive blasts slipped through, and Mami had to swing away to avoid getting hit. This wasn't like other labyrinths, were her durability would come in handy. Taking one of those things head on would be instant death.

Bullets weren't doing much. Mami tried aiming for the Witch's torso, and while the bullets connected, it hardly seemed to notice them. Homura must have seen this, because didn't bother with guns. Instead, she tossed an explosive at the Witch. It would have connected, had the Witch not sent out another concussive force, punting the explosive back toward its sender.

As Homura vanished, the ground around where she had been blowing apart, Pace moved in. She threw two knives at the Witch, which actually struck its leg. Upon contact, they blew up, making the Witch shift back.

Explosions, then. Mami leaped into the air, summoning her largest gun.

"TIRO FINALE."

The blast which followed struck the Witch's face, strong enough to make it stumble back. That stumble only lasted for a brief moment, however, and it seemed to encourage the Witch to play its harp faster. Concussive waves flooded in all directions, weaving around Kyoko's barriers to lock onto their targets. Mami's eyes widened, and she jumped away too slowly. The edge of one blast caught her arm, tearing it right off.

Mami screamed, more from frustration than pain.

Their shouts both irritated and pleased her. Finally, they were beginning to understand the truth. Beautiful despair taught them all they needed to know, yet it wasn't enough. No, only in death could one avoid ignorance. She would gladly bestow such a fate to these girls. Then, she would search for others who were blind. She would lead the way for them, and they too would find answers.

In the back of her mind, she knew her name was Fortuna. Such trivialities meant little to her now. Her Sia Presses were continuing to fill her labyrinth with knowledge far more important than a name. They too could free these girls, if they chose to accept an end through them.

"—lease, stop . . ."

Even now, she was constantly gaining information. Using it, she was able to create another spread out force of energy, strong enough to shatter the walls around her instrument. Though circumventing them was a simple task, the time spent doing so gave her students time to react. Of course, seeing them figure out the best way to dodge made her proud. After all, seeing them stagnate would be against what she was trying to do.

Yes, this truly was a wonderful task. Sharing her despair was as liberating for her as it would be for them. Holding it all for herself made her soul cry, but passing her truth onto others would appease it.

She didn't know where she remembered the saying that ignorance is bliss, but she knew how false that was. Hiding away from the world meant letting the pain of others go unnoticed. That was cowardice, a crime which could not be forgiven.

"Flick—"

The girl cradling her arm, she had tried to hide, had she not? Nearly, she had kept Fortuna away from this existence, one where she was finally no longer confused. Remembering that, Fortuna sent more attacks in her direction. It didn't bother her when the black haired girl appeared in time for a rescue. Eventually, they would all understand.

More pricks assaulted her body, as the girl with her spear charged in alongside the false angel. Both their weapons dug into her, and annoyance flared up inside of her. What was it going to take for them to stop their resistance?

"—ou can't—"

The girls were still trying to assault her. Her harp was fine for dealing with them, but she decided to raise one hand regardless. She slammed it into the ground, creating a shockwave which knocked them all off their feet.

It left them open to the next barrage. Though the barrier user managed to form a shield around most of them, the werewolf-Heretic was caught by a concussive force strong enough to tear off bits of her skin. Only the girl's werewolf durability and regeneration kept her alive, but she was unconscious.

"No! You're going to kill—"

Only three combatants were truly still a threat. As the unconscious girl drifted toward a Sia Press, she was stopped by a ribbon swooping her up, forming into a shield around her. As for the girl who had protected her, she was creating more ribbons around Fortuna's arm. Moving at all would slice the limb.

Her fingers were free to pluck at her harp, however, and the force that emerged struck a ribbon, snapping it in half. That would do.

"STOP THIS, FLICK! STOP HURTING YOUR FRIENDS!"

Memories assaulted her. She saw herself yanking the blonde girl away from the jaws of a beast. She saw that same girl, along with two others, holding her as she wept.

A scene of school came next. Her first meeting with the liar. The hope for a friend she had felt at the time mixed with the betrayal she felt now.

There was more. Talking on the school roof. Trying to be a proper mentor for the youngest of the girls. Gaining curiosity in a fight with a strange red-haired girl. A practical stranger explaining all she knew about the universe. Comforting a girl who had been suffering for far too long.

Feeling as though she had failed them all.

Stop it, she sent to whatever power was tormenting her with these worthless relics. I don't want these.

"No! Remember, Flick! This isn't you!"

The next memory was of a child. That child had woken up from a nightmare, going to her parents' room for comfort. Her mother had awoken, and, knowing what she wanted, gave the child a nurturing hug.

Mom. The unfamiliar word rang in her mind. It was a force of its own, pulling her from her task.

Her fingers brushed the harp's string at random. The concussive blasts which flew out of it went everywhere, her aim long forgotten.

Focus. Despair was calling her, reminding her of its place inside her. She drew upon it, letting it guide her fingers.

All the while, a voice continued to scream in her soul.

"What the hell is happening?!" Kyoko yelled as she jumped away from a random blast which had strayed near her. "Is she getting even crazier or something?"

"How would I know?" Carmentae snapped, rushing in to attack while the Witch was seemingly distracted.

Homura put them both out of mind. Her focus was entirely on the Witch, one she had never seen before you.

This is your despair, then, she thought as she threw another explosive at the Witch. Whatever was distracting it kept it from noticing in time, and the explosion forced it to momentarily stop its assault.

Before long, Homura would run out of explosives. Pulling out a machine gun, she sprayed the Witch with bullets.

Was this how it would feel if she attempted to fight Madoka's Witch. Would this hole in her heart be even larger? Would her quiet sobs grow loud enough for all to hear?

When had Homura begun to cry, anyway? Flick Chambers was gone. This Witch was just another prey. So why did it feel as though she was the one being shot with a seemingly endless supply of bullets?

You know why. It's because you had hope for once. You fool. Why wouldn't it be ripped away from you?

It was Homura who had told the other girls, as they ran, that calling out to a Witch was worthless. She had made it clear that once a soul gem transformed into a grief seed, there was no going back. Therefore, even she was shocked when she shouted at the fallen angel attacking them.

"You promised you wouldn't leave me alone!" Homura sobbed, her voice mixed in a hail of bullets. "Didn't you believe me about the past? Then why did you let this happen?!" She hurled the gun aside, pulling out a smaller, simple pistol, and firing with her eyes squeezed shut.

"I'm not strong!" Homura yelled through her tears. "Don't you get that? I can't keep going on like this by myself! It hurts so much! How can you expect me to continue now? When I . . .

"When I need you?!"

The Witch's fingers continued to stroke the harp, and one of the random shots from it landed in front of Homura. She had to shield her eyes, as dust rose up. In the same motion, she wiped the water from her eyes.

"What am I doing?" Homura asked the Witch. "This is the fate we'll all meet someday. You can't be saved."

"No. Flick Chambers still has a chance."

Homura spun around, toward the source of the voice. It came from a girl Homura had not seen in person, only heard about. Knives flew from that girl's hand, landing near each of the Magical Girls. A green mist rose from them, and as it reached Homura herself, she felt her stamina be restored.

As for the girl who had thrown the knives, she stepped forward, right in front of Homura. She was wearing a black cloak, with a white soul gem on the clasp. Currently, her hood was down, exposing hair the same color as Homura's.

Even though the truth was standing before her, it took Homura a moment to accept what she was seeing. The way this girl was holding herself, the look she gave the Witch, Homura recognized them. Those were the actions of a girl who had slain countless Witches in the past. Yet had she been keeping this secret from Flick since the day they met?

In that case, I should have looked into her sooner. I could have learned from a Heretic who is also one of us.

To think Flick's classmate, Avalon Sinclaire, was a Magical Girl.