The cold of the floor on the soles of my feet does not bother me anymore, but I should turn on the shower soon or they will start asking.
However, I do not move. The reflection in the mirror is like death, each day it becomes more evident.
This is an ordeal, it needs to be. I have talent, determination... maybe if they had not encouraged me. Too late, I did not choose this path, it chose me, nobody understands. Nonsense, if it were a ordeal, there would be a purpose, at least someone would gain something from it.
The reflection tells me everything. I continue to hear, like whispers, the curse I carry. It has already consumed all the love and compassion.
I hate God, but I must not hate Him, so I hate myself.
The cold scissors blade still bothers my nipple. My hand is shaking and the fingers on the handle are tired of keeping the tool open. I close it slowly, always dreaming that there will be no pain, but the blade was not sharp enough and my skin molded to it.
I have determination and I do not have time. I cover my mouth with my other hand and close my eyes. I do not want to think, I do not want to hear the whispers, just prove that I am not weak. I try to close the scissors at once, but the pain comes, excruciating. I force my jaw to trap the scream in my cage of teeth.
I drop the scissors and it looks like it makes everything worse. My body collapses and my back hits the wall, I slide slowly until I sit on the cold. I open my eyes and see the scissors still stuck in the wound, my nipple was still there too.
I kept my mouth covered and opened the scissors quickly, slow was always worse. A shock came, then the pain pulsed again, letting the blood escape and bath my belly. My mind empties through tears and in that valuable moment of silence I wonder what I am doing.
Naturally, in His silence I cannot find the answers.
I take a whole roll of toilet paper, I could tell them it was my period, and head for the shower. The water burns and my sin runs down the drain, the sound helps to keep the silence.
Despite this, I know that the reflection is still there, its whispers louder and louder.
Purge
"Hail Mary..."
Alice was bored. It was another day in that 'classroom', or another night. After weeks without seeing the sky, it lost its meaning.
"... blessed art thou among women..."
Praying with Madre and the novices, Maya was relieved. That room was the only room she was ever comfortable with. It reminded the school, in fact it was even better, without stupid boys, without 'who's dating who', without drugs, without bragging, without people asking for copy... Just peace and discipline. Who knows, she might finally be able to make friends here? If there were windows and a landscape, it would be perfect.
"... and blessed is the fruit of thy womb..."
Madre watched closely the novices standing beside their chairs. Always with a serene look, she made sure that none of them had their mouths shut.
"... pray for us sinners, now and in the hour of our death."
"Amen." All said in unison.
Which pleased Madre. "You can sit down now."
Maya obeyed, but not before picking up the notebook and the pencil with eraser on the chair, courtesy of the Sisterhood. She did not even realize she was smiling.
Taking advantage of the movement to sit on the chair, Alice looked back to know exactly where that pale girl was sitting.
Partly because Madre had limited knowledge and partly because there was an age difference between the novices, the classes presented basic notions of mathematics, grammar, geography and history, there were also calligraphy sessions. Maya and Alice had mastery over those topics, especially Maya, and it only served to pass the time.
What was really interesting were the classes on magical girls and witches.
Madre began to write on the blackboard. "Today we're goin' to talk about the classifications that the Sisterhood has defined regardin' witches."
"But ya still call them witches," A novice commented, soon regretting a little for the intrusion.
"Hmmm... Yes, most of the time, as it's the term used by the Incubator." Madre turned to the class. "Howevah, the Sisterhood has the challenge of bringin' togethah magical girls from different backgrounds and cultures, who use colloquial terms. With that, the need for a standard arose, and these classifications are useful when it comes to teaching about what we're facin'. Any questions?"
The room remained silent, some novices shook their heads.
"I know that for some this is a recap, but I want ya to pay attention." She returned to writing on the board. "Our classification uses the Greek alphabet, startin' with alpha, which are the familiars, but not any familiars but those who live within the barrier of their respective witches. Those who stray from the witch barrier we classify them as beta and they have an important relationship with the delta class, which are the witches themselves. Have any of you ever been in the situation where ya defeated a witch and she didn't drop a grief seed?" She stopped and looked back.
Maya did not remember something like that happening, maybe her best friend knew more.
However, another novice had already started to speak. "Y-Yes! I fought a witch and I didn't get a seed, but Kyuubey said it's normal..."
"Yes, it's normal." Madre began to draw on the board. "Since ya didn't fight a witch, but a familiar, beta class."
"Huh?" The novice was astonished. "B-But she had a barriah! And there're many familiars with her."
"Uh-huh..." Using arrows and symbols, she had drawn what looked like a cycle. "Familiars, in most cases, leave the witch's barrier in packs, usually creatin' a smaller version of the barrier around them. They search for negative emotions, makin' victims during this process. One of them ends up absorbin' so much grief that it grows, changes its shape, just as its barrier also grows. An inexperienced magical girl would easily mistake this for a witch and her familiars."
Interested in the new information, Maya carefully copied the drawing on the board in her notebook.
Meanwhile, Alice kept her notebook closed. She tried hard not to yawn, it was too much talk.
"Nevertheless, this isn't the critical point in the relationship between the beta and delta class," said Madre, already facing the novices, "you have already learned about what happens when the soul gem is destroyed, but for the grief seed? What happens?"
"The witch, or delta class, whatevah, dies for good, yeah?" Alice replied with some irony.
"No..." Madre paused, examining the reaction of the novices, before continuing, "the moment the seed is destroyed, a beta class, the strongest among them, will become the witch. At the end of the process, it'll have the same seed that had been destroyed."
Maya stopped blinking her eyes, that knowledge was terrible and illogical, just as witches were.
"That's why a defeated witch in one city can be found in another city, or even in another country. This depends on the nature of each witch, none is the same as another. Some are more centralizin', their familiars protect them or go out in search of victims to brin' to the barrier, like bees to the hives. While other witches travel the globe, spreading their minions wherevah they go." Madre raised her index finger to represent a number. "But there's somethin' in common in all of them: there'll always be only ONE grief seed. So write it down, if there is a grief seed, even if the witch is dead and there's a beta class strong enough, nothin' will happen. Howevah, as soon as it's destroyed, one of the beta class will react immediately, no matter the distance. We already tested it."
The new novices took notes in their notebooks, each in their own way. Even Alice wrote it down with a simple sentence.
Witches are fucking shit to kill.
"Now I'll talk about the epsilon class." The red-haired woman walked up and down the room, slowly, as if she wanted to hear each of her steps on the hard floor. "It's possible that you have heard this saying: witches hunt people like magical girls hunt witches. An experienced magical girl, with a fresh soul gem, manages to defeat most witches alone, some will even try to run away from the girl. Howevah, there're witches with dangerous artifices or combative behavior. In addition, any witch who has magical girls in her history of victims automatically becomes an epsilon class. So, when someone mentions that you're goin' to face an epsilon class, be extra careful and you bettah do it in a group." She stopped and waited for the novices to finish writing in their notebooks before proceeding. "And finally we have the omicron class, which are conglomerates of witches that act as a single entity. Usually, when a witch meets another witch, they fight each othah to the death. We have no idea how this works, but in some cases they decide to come togethah, perhaps in an alliance or the stronger one absorbin' the weaker one. When a large number of witches come together, they become a true leviathan, who doesn't hide in a barrier because they fear nothin' and they have absolute destruction as their only goal. Fortunately, this class is rare. You may have heard of Katrina, the omicron class who was defeated in the Bastion of New Orleans, where Generalíssima fought and became a heroine."
A novice raised her hand. "Is Walpurgisnatch an omicron class?"
Maya and Alice looked at each other, puzzled by that name.
"She could be..." Madre opened a smile. "There was a lot of discussion about it and it was agreed that Walpurgisnatch would have a class of its own. The sigma class or, unofficially, enigma class, due to our inability to locate this witch and find out where she'll attack again, which can take decades to happen. More questions?"
Another novice, making a face, ventured to ask, "Is there an omega class?"
The woman shook her head. "Fortunately, no. Omicron class is already a big enough threat to our world."
"Isn't killin' witches a sin?"
Everyone in the room turned their attention to a novice, who was surprised by the repercussion of what she had said.
"Why do you ask that?" Madre nodded. "Proceed."
The girl took some time to find words. "It's just... Magical girls become witches, so wouldn't we be killin' them? Is there no othah way?"
"God judges wisely," stating, Madre's expression transfigured into something less maternal, "if there's anyone who must answer for his actions, that someone is Incubator."
／人 ◕‿‿◕ 人＼
Arriving at the refectory, Invader sighed, a little for the relief of the place being empty and a little more for disappointment. She walked through the room, to an adjacent open space. It was the entertainment area, with various types of games on shelves to be picked up and used by bored members.
However, the person that Invader was looking for was in front of the television playing video games, sitting on a pillow, her white fluffy tail, and headset in her human ears. "Hello."
Lucky turned her head, taking off the headset. She was very excited. "Ah, g'day! I can't believe ya came!"
"You keep insisting..." The Asian girl approached the television. The screen showed a warrior girl in a forest, fighting enemies that looked like colorful gummy candies with cute faces. The game box on the floor had its title in Japanese. "'Magica Frontier'. Is this the game you want me to play with you?"
"Yeah... but not with me. Hehe..." Embarrassed, Lucky opened the biggest smile she could. "Only ya can help me now, ya know. I wanna complete this game 100%, befoah the world ends if it ends, of course."
"Don't let Generalíssima hear this." In a quiet voice, Invader asked, "Just to be sure, do you want me to use my magic to enter the game and complete it for you?"
"Naaaah~" The bunny girl winked. "It's just a score achievement."
Invader rolled her eyes and turned to leave, but her leg was hugged.
"Please! I stay one hour in the security room in yah place!"
She took a deep breath and tried to pull her leg.
"Two! Two hours in the security room!"
She tried again.
"Wadaya think I am?! I won't sell my soul gem!"
After pressing her lips and raising her eyebrows, Invader said, "Okay, I'll do it."
"Really, REALLY?"
"Yes..."
"Yaaay!" Lucky let go of the other girl's leg and made a gesture with her hands, forming a heart with her fingers. "I knew Invadah had a heart of gold."
The ballerina magical girl looked at the bunny. "Four hours in the security room."
"Hmmm..." Lucky kept the gesture, but she was not so happy. "Silvah heart."
"Let's get this over with, I can't leave the security room empty for too long." Invader's gem shone. "Remember, you won't be able to communicate with me directly, even by telepathy, so use the microphone."
"Gotcha." Lucky pulled the microphone of the headset closer to her mouth and had the impulse to thank her again in a very special way. "Arigatow kawaii desu~!"
"Gozaimasu..." Invader's image became fuzzy and transparent, and her body dissolved in a clear blue light that entered the video game console.
The TV screen went black and the logos of the companies that produced the game appeared, announcing that it had been restarted.
Lucky got the controller. "Just give me a moment." She accessed the character selection screen, which now had a new option. "Holy crackers! These're the cutestest pixels I've evah seen!"
A text box appeared on the screen, accompanied by the pixelated portrait of Invader.
I'm not wasting my magic for this!
"Hey, I'm going to start." Lucky waited for the loading screen to finish, and to appear Invader on the street of a destroyed metropolis, before she abandoned the controller. "From now on, ya should be able ta do everythin' yahself."
The girl in the game turned around. A new text box, now with her frightened portrait, appeared.
Where's the forest? And those colorful creatures?
"Ah, that was the tutorial." Lucky smiled. "Magica Frontiah is about magical girls against an army of killah machines. This is the penultimate level. The last one isn't even difficult, the final boss is a jo-"
WHAT?!
Seeing the angry portrait of Invader, she said, "Calm down! If ya die, all I have ta do is restahrt the game and everythin' will be fine, right?"
Still, it's not cool to have your body dismembered by cannon fire and I'm going to have to spend more magic.
"Don't be silly! I'm sure the othah characters are nowheah near as strong as ya are. This'll be a piece of piss."
I don't see anything.
"Huh?" She scratched her head. "Are ya blind?"
It's not that, the programmer of that game must have implemented trigger events for enemies to emerge.
"Oh, I don't understand anythin' about this esotericism..." Lucky adjusted the headset on her head. "But then I'll be yah copilot! I already memawrized this level so much that I know that three missile drones will come as soon as ya take the first steps."
Let's see.
Lucky saw the drones appear as soon as Invader started walking. She also already expected the attack that the girl would use, extending her long sleeves even more and using them as whips. What surprised her was the fact that the drones were sliced in two in a single stroke. "Yikes! This isn't good, ya need ta do combos."
Combos?
"Ya need them ta get a highah score and fill yah special bar at the top of the screen."
I have no way of paying attention to it when I'm face to face with things trying to kill me.
"At least try ta use weakah attacks." Lucky pressed her temple. "And now... eh... there's gonna be a battle tank."
Don't you remember?
"Of course I remembah! Watch out for the spike armor." After seeing Invader dispatch the enemy easily, she felt more confident. "20 hits. Noice! Now there'll be a tank and two drones."
"And now a big robot with flamethrowah."
"The next enemies are two tanks, watch yah back!"
"It's great ta see ya spin! It looks like ya're dancin'. Be careful that'll come a school of mega mecha sharks."
Mega what?! Will there be water here?
"Nah, they swim through underground."
As Invader overcame each new challenge, Lucky became more anxious about the score that kept rising. After the long-sleeved girl defeated five robots under an orbital bombardment of lasers, she was injured.
Doesn't this game have healing items?
Lucky shook her head as if the other girl could see. "Not in extinction difficulty."
I better stop asking...
Noticing the surly portrait of Invader, Lucky encouraged her. "We'ah almost theah now, we just need to beat the bloody boss, codename Stelaris."
In the game, the girl moved on, arriving on a great avenue when, suddenly, a huge metal ball fell from the sky, causing a crater.
Is that the boss?
The ball began to float and neon lights formed patterns on its surface, pointing at Invader.
"DODGE!" Lucky almost bit the microphone.
The sphere fired a devastating bolt, but Invader had already jumped and countered. Her sleeves whipped violently against the metal surface, however the sphere only vibrated slightly.
"It can handle a lot of beatin', just keep beatin'!"
The sphere fired lasers in all directions, living up to its codename. Invader managed to avoid the attacks with grace, however she had few opportunities to damage the boss, her sleeves ended up being burned and cut by the lights.
I can't destroy it.
Lucky was glued to the screen. "Use the special!"
How do I use it?
The freckled woman opened her mouth to speak, but realized that she had no idea. "Hmmm... eh... Try to imagine... the most powahful attack ya can do if ya don't care about yah gem."
Invader did not answer back, but she stopped attacking with her sleeves and looked for a more distant and safer position. Her gem then shone strongly.
The brightness took over the screen, leaving only the silhouette of the characters. Blinded momentarily, Lucky stepped back. "Whoah!"
Invader's silhouette deformed, with a wing sprouting from her back and growing. When the glow faded, she was flying and in a trance.
Ignoring that, the boss continued to attack, but the lasers fired at the girl curved and circled through the air, as if they were obeying her.
"Beautiful..." That was what Lucky could say when she saw the lasers hit the sphere and it exploded in a light show.
When the lights were gone, Invader was sitting on the ground of the destroyed avenue, breathless.
Is it over?
"Mission complete!" Lucky repeated the words on the screen while waiting for the final score. Her happiness was short-lived. "Oh, ya got the SSS grade."
It looks great.
"Yeah, bettah than I can, but the score to obtain the missin' achievement is SSS++. It must be because the game didn't count the boss's attacks that went against it as yours, so no combo. Nothin' ya can't avoid next time."
When the text box appeared, Invader's portrait was astonished.
What do you mean by that?
"It's pretty quick." Lucky took the controller. "I just need ta load my saved game."
Suddenly, there was only snow on the screen.
"Invadah?" Lucky watched the screen go black, except for the pixelated image of Invader who was looking directly at her. "Didya reset the game?"
Invader started walking as if she were going towards the camera.
Lucky smiled in the face of silence. "Hehehe. Ya're scarin' me now..."
The image grew and gained resolution, becoming more and more realistic, and making it clear how furious the girl was.
"Oops!" Lucky left the controller and got to her feet. "Generalíssima has just called me telepathically. It seems like it's just me and it's very urgent. Anothah time we talk about it... right?"
Invader reached out and her sleeve-covered hand crossed the screen.
"Eeeeekk!" Lucky ran away. "Cya!"
／人 ◕‿‿◕ 人＼
After the lesson with Madre, the novices had returned to the dormitory.
Not that it was a reason for Alice to celebrate. Lying on the bed, her yellow eyes focused on the gray ceiling, she vented. "Ah, what a fuckin' place. There's no mobes, no Internet, on TV ya can only watch old movies... How can someone live like this?"
Maya, who was sitting on the neighboring bed, replied, "Well, they said it's safer that way, or these new witches can find us."
Alice rose, punching the mattress. "They confiscated our belongings! This looks more like a prison." She pulled her uniform shirt. "Look at this! I want my clothes back."
"They said that there's no way to have a closet for each one of us and it could generate fights."
Alice shook her head at what Maya said. "Yeah, yeah, they say too much..."
"Ya should be grateful that there're tampons."
The blonde looked at her other bed neighbor.
The novice continued, smiling, "Didya know that ya are allowed to wear yah magical girl uniform? Ya just aren't allowed to carry weapons, only sisters can."
"Nah, my clothes are only for fightin'." Still, that information captured Alice's curiosity. "Have ya been here a long time?"
"I ain't a refugee like you, I was recruited by the Sisterhood before things got bad. Now I can imagine why they were recruitin'..."
Alice was somewhat offended by the way she had mentioned 'refugee.'
The novice continued, "Ya didn't have any seeds, didya?"
Maya was surprised. "How do ya know?"
"It happened all ovah the world," the novice gestured as she spoke, "first, out of nowhere, Incubator stopped makin' new contracts, then, ya now know, the population of witches started to decrease..."
Alice lowered her gaze, it was still difficult to admit that correlation.
"And now he hasn't even been in contact with magical girls anymore, it seems that he left the planet." The novice opened an even bigger smiler, but it only lasted a short time. "It would be almost good if it weren't for these new witches... They say that's why the witches disappeared so fast, they would be evolvin'." She raised her eyebrows and took a deep breath. "It's pretty scary."
"Have you seen any of these new witches?" Maya asked.
The novice just shook her head.
"Ya shouldn't be like that with rumors," Alice stated, soon followed by something she wanted to know for a while, "d'ya know where we are?"
The novice grimaced. "Not exactly."
The blonde rolled her eyes and snorted.
"Ehh... Hmmm..." Maya risked a question for the novice, "did ya also 'wake up' here?"
"Ah yes. Ya also gave yah gems to Generalíssima."
"Only aftah much insistence from that Madre, sayin' that they had a safe place and would take care of us, did she even purify our gems. How did I fall for this..." Alice mumbled some unintelligible words before speaking again, "as soon as we put our gems in the hand of Generalíssima, we woke up heah in this uniform. Like... 'What the fuck?!' We should nevah have trusted them."
Maya reminded her friend. "We're no longer findin' witches in the city and we couldn't go any further without our families knowin'. Our gems were too dark. I felt chills and I had no desire to get out of bed. You're also sick and tired."
"They had been purified." Alice looked at the gem in her ring. "We could find a way..."
The experienced novice nodded. "You're lucky ta have been found in time by them."
"Luck?" Alice gritted her teeth, letting out a whisper, "They even stole our freedom."
"What worries me most is what they may have done to us while we were unconscious." Maya hugged herself. "Did they implant somethin' in our bodies? Like a tracker, I think there's even a movie like that."
"Hahaha! The Sisterhood would nevah do that," the novice said, "they'll require discipline and commitment, but they really want the well bein' of us all. During that time heah, I learned so much from the sistahs and became a much bettah magical girl."
"Throwin' yah life away at the same time?" Alice raised an eyebrow.
"UUUUAAHHH! I WANNA GO HOME! UUUHHhh..."
Maya and Alice looked at a group of girls circling a bed, where there was a novice who must have been crying for some time.
A novice was using a seed to purify that girl's gem. "We miss our families too, but no one here's alone. Ya can't go on like this..."
"Let her become a witch."
Alice recognized that damn voice immediately.
A little far away, the pale girl was resting on her bed, more focused on cracking the fingers of her hands. "It's bettah now than when we're asleep, and a new seed is always welcome."
The group of girls was silent, looking at her with contempt.
In a low tone, Alice asked the experienced novice, "What's her problem?"
"Ah, Evie?" The novice shook her head, smiling. "She's not very sociable, you bettah ignore her."
The blonde frowned. "Evie? Is that the name of that bitch? She looks like a bogan."
"She looks older than the other girls," Maya spoke.
"Yeah," the novice confirmed, "she was the first novice recruited ta be trained heah, that was a few years ago."
"So that's it..." Alice looked at Evie and declared, not caring if she would be heard, "she thinks she's the queen of novices."
"It's more complicated than that..." The novice began to whisper. "Didya notice the tattoo on her arm?"
No, Alice had not paid any attention to that, but seeing the tattoo would not be a difficult task, as Evie kept her shirt sleeves pulled up. On the right arm, close to the shoulder, there was the drawing of a snake, but cut at the bottom part.
"D'ya see that it's incomplete?"
Alice nodded, "Yeah, yeah, I noticed. I would ask for a refund from the tattoo artist who did this shit job."
"There marks the point of amputation of her arm."
With a wider gaze, she turned back to the novice.
"She arrived in this state heah. In fact, it was more of a rescue than a recruitment."
"How terrible." Maya lowered her head, her frightened eyes denouncing what she was imagining. "Did a witch do this to her?"
"No, it's worse." The novice lowered her voice again. "I heard some sistahs and rumors. Evie was part of a gang of magical girls who robbed people."
"I knew it." Alice clenched her fists.
"But it wasn't just anybody, only the ones they saved from witches. They took the opportunity while the victims were unconscious, I think as a form of payment."
"Payment?" She no longer hid her disgust. "Isn't seeds enough already?"
The novice shrugged. "I dunno, I just know that her gang has been in conflict with another gang."
Maya leaned over, more curious. "B-Because of territory?"
"Because of one girl who was datin' a boy of anothah girl. Hard to believe, right? And because of that, Evie's gang was slaughtered. Only she would have survived."
Maya clasped her hands over her anguished chest. "Oh my God..."
While Alice was not so impressed. "So does she have a trauma? This doesn't mean that she has to act like a moron. Don't they keep boastin' that in the Sisterhood you can start a new life?"
The novice nodded, but her expression was bitter. "I don't remembah Evie tryin' ta make any friends around heah."
"She doesn't really deserve it." Alice crossed her arms and lifted her chin a little, distilling her grudge. "Look, if there weren't so many cowards here, she woulda changed her personality very quickly."
"I warned ya, ya bettah ignore her." With that, the novice left. "I'm gonna the bathroom, excuse me."
Concerned, Maya sent a telepathic message. [Alice, do you intend to confront Evie?]
[No.] She glanced at the pale girl. [Only if she messes with us.]
Lucky ran to the dormitory and jumped, turned around midair, and landed looking at the tunnel she came from. She stood in that position for a few seconds, until she exhaled in relief. "Phew! Anothah day alive."
"Look, it's Lucky."
The bunny girl turned to a group of girls around a bed. "Hey! G'day, novices, what're the good news?" As she approached, she noticed the tears on the face of the girl sitting on the bed. "What happened?"
"She misses her family," a novice replied.
The novice who had cried then asked to the sister, "Do you miss yours?"
"Me?" Lucky pointed to herself. "I was nevah able ta reconcile my routine as a magical girl with the rest of my life. My mom kept sayin' she was gonna kill me if one day I came home preggo..." She smiled in nostalgia. "My dad lived more in his truck than at home. I think I was inspired by that and one day I decided not ta return home. Well, I have a new family now."
Another novice asked. "Is it true that you wished to have luck?"
Lucky put her hands on her hips, as if she were bragging. "Of course!"
"But luck for what?"
"Luck for... huh?!" She scratched her forehead. "I wished for luck, nothin' in particular."
"Do you think your wish has come true? With everything that's happening..." The novice grimaced. "It seems a waste to me."
Lucky narrowed her. "Ya think I was always a happy silly bunny, right? At the time I made my wish, I was very sad, I think I was really depressed, with suicidal thoughts."
The novice who had cried opened her eyes wide. "You?"
"Uh-huh! Uh-huh!" She nodded several times. "That's when we ask those questions without answers, like 'What is the meanin' of life?' Or 'Why am I heah?' And then a spark came ovah me."
The novices, so captivated by the sister, already formed a circle around her.
"A man ejaculates hundreds of millions of sperm, but only a few thousand arrive in the womb and usually only one fertilizes the egg. If this one had the Y chromosome, it's almost certain that I wouldn't be heah with you. And it has to happen at the right time! Otherwise, the egg won't implant in the uterus, it would end up in a dumpster or in the sewer, and I certainly wouldn't be heah. And there's more! The chromosome could be defective and I might not even survive pregnancy, and even if I was born healthy, I could be part of the statistic of babies who stop breathin' and die suddenly." Lucky opened her arms. "Look, I'm just talkin' about babies! We have the universe as an example."
The novices, some with their mouths open, nodded.
"We live on a planet full of life amid a lifeless abyss in all directions." Lucky froze for a moment. "I mean, now I know that Incubator is an alien, but at that time I didn't know. Whatevah, are you seein' the pattern? I had read a news story about scientists who believe that things can come out of nowhere, 'somethin quantum' I think, it's just a matter of probability. Imagine the universe originating from that. Madre will say that it was God who created everythin', but it doesn't mean that He didn't use a tool for that."
A novice, somewhat overwhelmed by that talk, asked, "Hmmm, luck?"
"Yeah! If ya stop ta think, it's clear as day. Luck is the most powerful law in the universe and I just wanna be on the bright side of it. Hehe, who wouldn't?" Lucky turned her attention to the novice who had started this subject. "And as for my wish ta have come true, I'm sure of that. That's how I joined the Sistahhood."
"Are ya gonna tell that story again?"
Lucky looked at the novices around her. "Who said that?"
They smiled and whispered, "It was Evie."
"Ah ok, duuh..." Lucky pulled her rabbit ears to hide her face. She then went on, "After I left my home behind, I started ta have a nomadic life, ya know. I ended up crossin' paths with anothah magical girl and we became friends. She thought I was supah cute and she was very good with daggers, she could hit a target from miles away. She always told me that she didn't need luck..."
Someone in the group said, "Was she from the Sisterhood?"
"Nah, we didn't even know what that was. Our business was ta get a quick cash and live with very little. There were times when we spent the whole night on top of a buildin', lookin' at the stars and talkin' bullshitery that we didn't even remembah the next day. Those moments with her made me feel more alive than all my years with my old family." Lucky realized she was smiling, but she knew she could not go on like this. "We invaded a territory without knowing it and we were captured by a group of magical girls. They tied us up and started torturin' us, cuttin' our bodies bit by a bit."
"But can't ya block the pain?"
"Oh yeah, I wasn't aware of that, but we end up blockin' it out of instinct. Howevah, what those girls wanted was ta make our gems wear out tryin' ta heal us, until we became witches and they got the seeds." Lucky's eyes widened. "It was then Revah appeared and she vanquished them all!"
The novices were amazed. One said, "Are you talking about Revenant? Alone? How many girls were in this group?"
"Seventy!" Lucky affirmed.
"Seven..."
Lucky and the novices saw Revenant approaching.
The black woman continued, "Seventy wouldn't be a group, it would be an army. And I wasn't alone, theah was Madre too."
Lucky protested, "Ah, but what she did was just heal."
"Hey," a novice asked, "what about yah friend?"
Lucky replied, "Ya're holdin' her."
The novice frowned her brows and then looked at grief seed in her hand. On the dark surface of the seed body was a metallic ornament in the shape of a dagger.
"I had luck..." Lucky's mouth smiled, her face did not.
"Enough of stories, I have a job fawr ya." Revenant pushed some novices slightly, giving the clue that they should disperse. "Inquisitawr went ta the purification room, so I want ya ta go and collect the used seeds. There must be some with Generalíssima, Nano and Matrysomethin'..."
"Matryoshka!" Lucky took her friend's seed, then came close to Revenant and shook her ass, brushing her fluffy rabbit tail on the black woman. "Silly."
"Hurry up, drongo!" The muscular woman gave a hard slap on her back.
The sound of the blow was so great that some novices could almost feel it too.
"Owowowoww!" Lucky gave little hops, but then she turned around, winking and smiling, "Oh, I'm kiddin', it didn't even hurt. I know Revah wouldn't really hurt me, because she loves me."
Revenant opened her mouth to give an answer to that, not that she had any idea how, but Lucky was already running for the exit. Hearing whispers and giggles, she covered her face with the palm of her hand.
The bunny girl went down the long spiral staircase, reaching the intersection with the wide dark corridor. She went to the corridor where the sisters' rooms were.
Right at the first one, numbered 00, she stopped and flicked the metal door. [Are you there, Generalíssima? Can I bother you?]
[The door is unlocked.]
With the confirmation, Lucky only had to press the big button on the electronic panel for the door to slide.
Generalíssima's room, even though she was the leader, was like those of the other sisters. There was little space and furniture. The bed was a mattress on concrete and the owner of the room was sitting on it, next to a board.
"Playin' chess alone again?"
"Yeah."
Lucky approached, looking at a panel on the wall with a mosaic of photos, one of the few personal touches in that dull space. They were pictures of the leader in various locations of the world, many of whom she had no idea where it was from, but the most important photo was the one that had the sisters gathered, except Inquisitor, as he had not yet contacted to be brought to the base. Among the sisters in the photo, there was one in which her current whereabouts were unknown. Even if it were useless to hope, Lucky would not remember Valkyrie as someone who was gone.
"The seed is on the shelf."
Generalíssima's statement brought Lucky back to the present. "D'ya know?"
"I know that Inquisitor went to the purification room and I see the shape of a seed in your jacket pocket."
"Wow, I didn't even notice that ya looked at me..." Lucky started to pay more attention to the board. "I dunno how ya can play like that."
Holding her chin, Generalíssima looked at the pieces. "Just follow the rules and always try to make the move that you believe is the best possible. Think of it as a puzzle."
Lucky gave a smug smile. "To be honest, I was gonna cheat at the first chance~"
Finally Generalíssima moved a piece, it was the black queen.
"Hahaha!" Lucky did not hold herself. "What a stupid move, now the bishop can eat the queen."
"Don't you see development?" Generalíssima pointed out. "Do you see this black rook? If I use the bishop to capture the queen, the rook can freely attack my pawn line on the king's side. The only piece I could use to eliminate this threat on the next turn would be the king itself, but in that case the black knight would be able to fork between it and-"
"Okay, okay, okay, I got that it'll gonna be shit!"
"If I don't do anything against the rook, it would also be a disaster for white, even if they still have the queen. The king would be exposed and it's important to remember that each pawn is a potential queen. Hmmm..."
Lucky saw Generalíssima move the white queen closer to the bishop. "Ah..."
"See? Now the pawn line is better defended and..."
Lucky found that sudden silence strange, but then she saw her move the black knight. "Oh noes, in the next turn the knight will be able ta threaten the bishop and the queen at the same time, ya'll have ta choose."
"This is a fork." Generalíssima rubbed her face. "This is what happens when you make a too conservative move."
"Ya can use the bishop ta remove the knight."
"And the black queen is going to capture the bishop. The threat to the pawn line will continue, but it's the white queen who would be stuck with the task of defending it." Generalíssima got up from the bed and took the seed from the shelf, handing it to Lucky.
She did not understand. "Aren't ya gonna continue?"
"I'm going to eat something." Generalíssima went to the door and, while waiting for it to open, looked back and smiled. "As long as I don't make a choice, anything is possible."
Lucky nodded. "That's freedom, right?"
Generalíssima said nothing and left.
Alone in the room, Lucky returned to examine the board, trying to imagine a way for white to get out of that difficult position. As Generalíssima had said, white was playing defensively while black was controlling much of the board, not bothering to sacrifice some pieces for that. Apparently, black would win.
"Will she remember? I think I can help, hehe..." Lucky brought her hand up to the black rook, with the intention of leaving it in a less favorable position.
[Do not touch the pieces!]
"Ahh!" Being startled by the voice of Generalíssima in her head, she left the room quickly.
Back at the intersection, Lucky went to the descending staircase. After hundreds of steps, she arrived at yet another metal door that needed a password. After going through the door, she only needed to go down a short flight of stairs to reach a long corridor, where the options were left or right. There were three colored strips painted on the wall. On the green strip was written in white 'Generator Room', black was 'Purification Room' and dark blue was 'Silo'.
"Hmmm, how am I gonna do this..." Lucky reasoned out loud, "if Inquisitor is already in the purification room, then if I go ta Nano first and then Matryoshka, I'll have an excuse ta be able ta see him three times. Yeah, this is what I'm gonna do!" Decided, she hopped down the corridor towards the silo.
However, a blue ballerina materialized out of nowhere.
"GGGYYAAHH!" Lucky fell on her ass on the floor.
Without showing any expression, Invader watched that girl, practically a grown woman, start to whimper.
"Oh no... Please! Oh lady with ice eyes, as beautiful as they're cruel." Lucky raised her hand, as if offering something. "Have mercy and just take one of my seven lives..."
This was not the first time and it should not be the last, Invader said, "You're not a cat."
"Ah... That's right..." Lucky jumped to her feet, all smiling. "So it's okay! Hehe. What passed, passed. Huh? My platinum-hearted friend."
The Asian girl did not confirm, seeking to address a more relevant subject. "Since you owe me, I would like to collect Nano seeds personally."
"Ah, of course! Ya wanna visit yah little sistah."
Invader looked down. "She's a friend."
"Look at the age difference!" Lucky put her hand on the ballerina's shoulder. "Ya don't hafta be ashamed ta admit that ya wanna adopt a little sistah."
"Nano spends all of her time working alone and Generalíssima only thinks about the completion of the project." Invader shuddered. "She and I worked together, I improved the intelligence of her machines. I can't ignore this, so please..."
"Haha! Ya don't hafta beg." Lucky gave a shrug. "If it's less work for me..."
"T-Thank you." With a slight smile, Invader walked towards the silo, but stopped. "I almost forgot, but I have to say that I deleted all your achievements from that game."
"WWWWWHHHHHAAAAAA?!" Lucky opened her mouth and pulled the tips of her fluffy ears.
Invader tried to smile more, but she had been startled by that reaction. "This is just a joke."
Lucky was a statue with a gaping mouth.
Invader's fair skin reddened. She became more serious, bowing. "Forgive me, jokes aren't my forte."
That unfrozen Lucky. "Phew!" With a mischievous smile, she rubbed her gem on her jacket. "For a moment, I thought ya wanted me ta become a witch."
Invader closed her eyes and shook her head, then she left in a hurry.
"Ya're still my supah friend!" The bunny continued to smile at the ballerina's innocence. In that she remembered something and said to herself, "Do I still owe those four hours in the security room? I'll hafta negotiate, but now..." She did a pirouette and pointed to where the green strip on the wall led. "Let's see what Matryoshka is up to!"
The path in that direction was not that long. At the end of the corridor was a huge reinforced metal door, with some warnings of danger and radioactivity. Before the door there were two others, one on each side of the corridor. One was the reactor substation and control room, while the other was the one Lucky was interested. It was supposed to be just a pantry where spare parts were kept, but it ended up becoming the 'Matryoshka's room'.
As the door opened, Lucky felt a chemical product smell, or at least that was what she thought it was. The room had many labeled boxes that served as counters for flasks containing exotic substances, and cylinders of various colors.
There was a table in the middle of the room, where Matryoshka was working, carefully pushing metal bars around an also metallic sphere, but it seemed to be of a different material. She made constant measurements using rulers and a handheld device that made some low crackles sounds.
Lucky has met many magical girls and peculiar garments, but Matryoshka was a case apart... Or maybe it was something common in Russia. She had no idea how many clothes that person was wearing, but she could see a heavy brown leather coat that covered up to her knees, with a proud flag of her country emblazoned on her right arm and on her shoulders were mysterious tap handles. Under the brown coat was a dark blue hoodie that covered her head, while there was also a green skirt that was barely longer than the coat, and under the skirt were a few flexible metal tubes. Below all that, she wore a kind of orange plastic protective clothing, covering from head to toe, even her boots were wrapped in a plastic bag. Her face was completely covered by two masks, one was of rubber, with visors, and the other over it was made of fabric, covering from nose to below chin. The coat had a collar with a large opening, through which transparent tubes came out and disappeared under the fabric mask. In each tube there was a different substance, solid, liquid or gaseous, waiting to be consumed.
Sensing that she had not been noticed, Lucky waited for the door to close before speaking, "G'day!"
Without reply, Matryoshka continued with her meticulous task.
And that was one of the few things that made Lucky anxious. "G'daaaay!"
Matryoshka passed the device close to the sphere, it made more frequent crackles, then she made notes on a piece of paper on the table. Only after that, she left the device on the table and looked at the visitor, while hiding her hands in her coat pockets. "Good day, крольчи́ха."
If it were not for the quite cutesy voice, she would be as scary as a witch's familiar. Lucky did not know if it was the accent or the masks, but it looked like that person always had something stuck in her throat. "Whatcha doing, a model?"
"Model?" Matryoshka placed her hands above the sphere. "No, no, I'm checking the criticality threshold for this pure plutonium-239 nucleus. It's not every day that I can play with..." She suddenly pulled her arms back, as if in a fright. "Do you understand what I'm talking about?"
"Sure! I'm not stupid, am I?" Lucky looked at the sphere, which must have been no more than four inches in diameter. "I know what plutonium is, it's radioactive, isn't it dangerous? And there's this thing of critical hits..."
"It's fine! It's fine!" Matryoshka walked around the table to be able to stand in front of the visitor. "Generalíssima sent you, yes? So I want you to tell her EXACTLY what I'll say."
Lucky nodded. "Yup!"
"Perfect…" Matryoshka continued, "say: the fuel for the radioisotope thermoelectric generator is almost ready, there's only a few tests needed as a safety measure. Can you remember those words?"
"Actually..." Lucky smiled. "Generalíssima didn't send me. I'm heah because of the seeds."
"Seeds? Seeds...Oh!" Matryoshka started to press her coat, trying to feel what was underneath. "Not here... Ah! There!" She then pointed to some boxes, where the seeds were on top. "I always forget that I don't keep seeds that aren't mine."
"Noice! I take the seeds and pass the message ta Generalíssima." The bunny girl put her hands together and smiled more. "But ya could return this favor, right?"
It was a moment of silence before Matryoshka said, "How many?"
"A pint is fine."
"Right." Matryoshka unbuttoned her coat to put her hand inside it and started to search. "Hmmm... No, too small ... No... Not this one either... This..." She then asked the other girl, "it doesn't have to be a glass, yes?"
"Whatevah."
Matryoshka brought a small glass jar with a volume meter stamped on the surface.
Lucky picked the jar and continued to wait. She watched Matryoshka press her finger against her clothing at certain points and heard the sound of switches, then saw her turn two handles on her shoulder, making the sound of gas escaping followed by a bubbling sound.
Matryoshka extended her left arm, leaving her hand over the jar.
Lucky paid more attention to the thick leather glove she wore, and there must be more underneath it. Thin transparent tubes ran from the sleeve to the fingertips, and under the wrist were tubes too, but they were wider. From one of those wide tubes, a crystalline liquid came out and poured into the jar.
Seeing the jar almost full, Matryoshka turned the handles again to stop the flow.
"Cheers!" Lucky closed her eyes and turned the jar over her mouth, drinking all the liquid at once.
"Go slow, крольчи́ха."
"Aaaahhhh..." With a flushed face and eyes shut, Lucky praised, "This vodka is so good that I almost feel drunk."
"If you want to get high, why don't you stimulate your gem?"
"It's not the same thing." Lucky offered the jar to be refilled.
However, Matryoshka pressed other switches under her clothes before turning the handles. "I'll share with you."
Lucky saw one of the tubes that went to the mask emptying of a clear liquid and be filled with another of the same color.
With the jar and tube full, Matryoshka closed the handles. When she pressed a switch, the liquid in the tube moved, disappearing under the fabric mask. "Hmmm... Talking about not being the same thing... This synthetic vodka doesn't carry the taste of my land."
Before taking a sip, Lucky said, "If this alliance between Souls' Sisterhood and Motherland Union works, I'll wanna meet yah Russian friends."
"You would feel at home in Chelyabinsk-66, we have perfect accommodations for magical girls of your kind there. Then we could take an excursion to Lake Baikal, the scenery is stunning and you could practice deep diving."
Lucky was excited. "It's always hot heah, I really wanted ta cool off!"
"Ah yes, it's a very chilling experience..."
Lucky would take another sip, but she was surprised by a flash of bluish light that lit up the room. "Wha-"
"ЧТО ЗА ХРЕНЬ?!"
She saw Matryoshka turn around and violently knock the metal bars off the table, making a tremendous noise. After that, the blue light was gone.
"КАК ЭТО СЛУЧИЛОСЬ?"
Her voice was so angry that Lucky felt it was better to say nothing. Wide-eyed, she drank what was left in the jar.
Matryoshka had her hands very close to the sphere. "Жаркий... Жаркий... Жаркий..." Still with a quick breath, she picked up the device on the table and read it, "a peak of 27 sieverts."
She sounded calmer, Lucky asked, "What does that mean?"
"Nothing, we're magical girls." Matryoshka dropped the device on the table, but ended up missing it, it hit the edge and fell to the floor. She went back to the visitor and took the jar unceremoniously. "You may feel dizzy today or notice that your gem has darkened a little. In fact, you shouldn't worry, as my body has shielded you from radiation."
"So this is radiation..." Lucky raised her eyebrows. "I thought this was invisible."
"You better go." She put the jar inside her coat and buttoned it. "I have a mess to clean up now."
"Of course." Lucky went to the seeds.
"Do you still remember what you have to say?"
"Radioisotope thermoelectric generator," Lucky spoke proudly, "didya know that I remembah difficult words bettah than simple ones?"
"Good, good." Matryoshka nodded. "You're very smart, Motherland Union always values that."
"Ya hafta teach me Russian someday." Lucky went to the exit. "Byeee~"
"Goodbye." Matryoshka put her hands in her pockets, waiting for the door to close. "Глупая крольчи́ха."
／人 ◕‿‿◕ 人＼
After parting with Lucky, Invader had a long way to go. First, she passed a T-junction. There was a short corridor that led to a vestibule with the safe and the purification room door.
Inquisitor was there, looking in the direction of the security camera.
Invader moved on. The corridor made a light but long descent, until it reached a curve. She arrived in a room that served as a scrap yard, for discarded stuff during the execution of the project. Considering the scale of the work, the amount of material was small, all thanks to the efficiency of Nano.
She passed through the room and entered another long corridor. By making another turn, she could see the destination.
A heavy double door of metal and there was a humanoid robot that resembled a little girl, its cross-shaped 'pupils' emitting white light. As soon as the robot saw who was arriving, it greeted, "Hello."
"Hello..." Invader found that odd. It was Nano's voice, but it did not have the warmth of her friend's welcome. "Is everything okay?"
"Password."
"Excuse me?" Invader frowned.
"Incorrect password, proceed to termination." The eye lights turned red and the robot stretched its arm, and the hand get inside it, becoming a cannon.
She narrowed her gaze, her gem shining. Becoming a blue light, the magical girl entered the robot.
The machine had some spasms until the light of its eyes became turquoise. It looked at the arm that had become a weapon, undoing it, and went to the electronic panel next to the double door. Without having to press a button, the password was entered and the thick doors began to slide slowly, separating from each other and opening the way.
The robot entered the silo, a tower with huge concrete walls, more than a hundred of meters. All that space was needed for the rocket that was being built there.
A swarm of drones, with their active sensors, approached the robot. Automated forklifts ran from side to side, carrying all kinds of material. Next to the rocket, a large bipedal robot, with a cabin between its legs, was welding a helium tank. It stopped what it was doing and walked towards the invader, making the ground tremble with each step.
The humanoid robot waited.
Being close, it stopped and the cabin descended between its legs like an elevator. As soon as the cabin opened, a child jumped out, wearing a white tight suit. Her right hand was a gauntlet with red clay color and black, wires was coming out of it, running up her arm and shoulder, and ending at the nape of her neck. Her hair was light brown, short in length, but with thick locks, well separated from each other. The skin was fair, but her forehead emitted a glow that was shaped like electronic circuits. Her yellow eyes also glowed, in the shape of a cross.
"Nano." The robot, now with the voice of Invader, placed its hands on its waist. "Was this supposed to be a joke?"
The child smiled. "Eeeehhh... Kinda."
"It seems that today everyone wants to play a prank."
Nano was curious. "Why?"
"Forget it..." A blue light left the robot and reformed itself into a ballerina. Free of control, the robot returned to the silo entrance without delay.
Nano raised her gauntlet and her tight suit dissolved into a metallic cloud. Soon after, the cloud became a casual clothing, appropriate for the hot climate. "Well... It's just that GeneralÍssima asked me to put a robot to guard the entrance, just to intimidate. I was testing this."
"Why would she want that?" Before receiving an answer, Invader already had an idea. "Inquisitor? He already knows what is being built here."
"But he doesn't know for what purpose, nor do I know exactly..." Nano then whispered, "but I think it's because of Matryoshka."
The Asian girl weirded out. "But she's a member of the project!"
"And she doesn't belong to the Sisterhood," the little girl continued to whisper, "I think Generalíssima fears a sabotage."
Invader shook her head. "What would Motherland Union gain from this?"
Nano opened her arms and shrugged.
"Generalíssima is very stressed with this crisis..." Invader sighed and looked at the rocket. "How much is left?"
Nano looked at it too. "You could say it's ready, right? But I found out that the more it looks ready, the more stuff has to do. I would say two or three weeks, not counting the silo elevator test."
"I hope the completion of this project will calm down Generalíssima," after that comment, Invader said, "I came to get the seeds."
"Ah yes!" Nano moved the fingers of her gauntlet and a drone appeared, carrying a tray of grief seeds. "Just let clean a bit." A lid at the top of the gauntlet opened, revealing a compartment through which a gray gem in the shape of a pentagon rose.
"Nano!" Invader scolded, "you have to be more careful with your gem."
"I have an alarm if it gets too bad." Nano used a seed on the gem, and it returned to have an intense white glow, before returning into the compartment and the lid closing.
"Even so, you're using a lot of magic to keep all of these machines working. When the alarm goes off, it may be too late..." Invader lowered her head. "I feel helpless because I'm no longer useful here." Then she saw the child hold her hand covered by the sleeve and deposit the seed in it.
"You make me happy for visiting me," Nano said and hugged her, "when I touch my machines, I know they don't feel anything."
Invader bent down so she could return that gesture, stroking the little girl's big locks. "When you're done here, I'll want you to visit me in the security room from time to time. Personally, no robots."
"No robots." Nano crossed her fingers.
"Right." Invader took the other seeds and went to the exit. "I need to go back or they'll ask questions."
"Ah, already?" Nano said, pretending to be surprised, "next time bring me a chocolate!"
She jokingly replied, "I'm going to think about your case..."
Invader had to return the same long way to the purification room. Coincidentally, she spotted Lucky arriving at the same time.
Inquisitor was waiting in the corridor, an empty cloth bag in hand. "Were you two tasked with bringing me the seeds?"
"Yeah, teamwork, right?" Lucky winked at Invader.
The man looked at the ballerina. "Shouldn't you be in the security room?"
"I asked Revenant to stay there while I was away."
"Revah's theah?!" Lucky did not hold her laughter. "Hahaha! Does she have a debt with ya too?"
"Debt?" Inquisitor frowned.
"It's nothing." Invader deposited the seeds in the bag, then she stepped back and bowed to him. "I'll return now." She flickered like an image a few times, before suddenly disappearing.
"'Nothing'?" Lucky raised an eyebrow. "Uh-huh, suuure..."
"Inside joke?" Inquisitor offered the open bag to her.
"Yeah, like that." She put the seeds in the bag without taking her eyes off him. "Here's what ya wanted~"
"Thank you." The man shook the bag and felt its weight, then noticed that the freckled girl was still looking at him. "Something else?"
"Hmmm..." Lucky pressed her lips together and looked up, before saying, "No, I'm very free now."
Inquisitor nodded. "Then look for Generalíssima for a new task."
"Yeah..." With her fingertips, she started playing with her own hair and that gave her an inspiration. "Hey, didya notice that the color of our hair is similar?"
"It's a common color." He replied promptly.
That talk wasn't going anywhere, but Lucky already had a better idea. She opened her jacket more, pulling it back, exposing the curves of her body, accentuated by the tight yellow suit. "It's hot here..."
Inquisitor blinked and looked away. "It's always hot."
That was a good sign. She continued, "D'ya want me ta help ya in the purification room?"
He looked at the bag. "No, you'll end up getting hurt."
She smiled at his consideration. "Ah, but I've lost count of how many witches I've killed. It's no accident that I'm a sistah."
"I'm not talking about witches. In addition, it would be less efficient."
She insisted, "I can just watch it then. Cheering for ya."
"No." He looked at her. "But I thank you for your... offer."
"Too bad." Lucky straightened her jacket and stepped back slowly. "But..." She raised her eyebrows slightly. "If ya change yah mind."
"Lucky."
"Yes?"
"The wall."
She looked back, seeing that she was about to hit it. "Ah, t-thanks!" She looked at him again and held a giggle as she hurried out. "We'll talk, okay?"
He nodded. However, when she left, he closed his eyes and exhaled as he went to the purification room.
Inquisitor stopped in front of the safe, which was a metal cabinet with an electronic panel similar to those on the doors.
"L'Eterno è il mio pastore, nulla mi mancherà..."
He typed the password, unlocking the door. Inside were shelves with more seeds. He put everything in the bag and went to the reinforced door, which was the entrance to the room where his work would begin. He flicked the switch outside, turning on the lights inside.
He entered the room and closed the door, pulling six levers, one for each lock. The walls were dark with fire marks and the weak light was diffused through small, thick glass bricks, with their melted surfaces.
In the middle of the room, with the silence for company, he left the bag on the floor and picked up a handful of seeds. Looking at them, Inquisitor's face became more tense. His breathing became erratic and his body shuddered.
"Papà..."
A black aura formed around his body, as if it were the result of perspiration. As he gritted his teeth and his veins jutted out, he saw that darkness was absorbed by the seeds.
Soon relief came. Inquisitor gasped and tears streamed down his face, while the seeds in his hand pulsed a brilliant light. He threw the seeds, which bounced across the floor of the room.
Then he took another handful of seeds and repeated the process, with the same expression of pain, with the same darkness...
"HHNnngg!"
The seeds began to emit light and he threw them, while the seeds he had previously thrown were already beginning to spread their dark roots over the surface.
And he continued with the ritual. During the time he sowed the room, the walls began to distort and disappear.
Now he was in an immense world, with different terrains and skies, like a patchwork. Disconnected voices were heard and the corners of his eyes saw bizarre beings. Amalgams of familiars, fighting among themselves to see who would own most of their doomed bodies.
Pain, pain, despair. It was the promised hell.
Inquisitor saw colossi coming towards him, made of fragmented hopes and realized nightmares, a mockery to God's creation.
He took the silver cross from his belt and turned it so that it was horizontal. While one hand held the head of the cross firmly, the other held the body.
So he parted it.
The head of the cross was the hilt, the arms were the wrist guard, of a whip with metal wire, while the body of the cross, a faithful stake. While the shadows of the colossi covered the man, the wire of the whip took on an incandescent red hue.
There was no one in the vestibule. No one to hear the sound of the struggle against the horrors behind that reinforced door.
Next chapter: Red earth