I've been looking forward to this.
A few days have passed since that encounter with Mami on the school rooftop. Currently, on her own, on that very spot, Homura lay on the seat under the afternoon sky. She was thinking about her current situation and how this timeline went relatively well so far. Had it been any other timeline, her attempt to get Madoka and Sayaka to believe her tends to fail. They had no reason to believe her.
Alternatively, she would – and had succeeded in befriending them in some timelines when Madoka and Sayaka were kept completely in the dark from the whole magical girl things, it was one of the few times when Homura actually felt happy with how things are going – at least until the point when Madoka would eventually die in some unforeseen and terrible ways.
The current timeline is the only timeline so far where Homura had succeeded in befriending Madoka and Sayaka AND having them believe her side of the magical girl things, not to mention the two additional help in the form of Hitomi and Kriemhild.
Homura frowned. Even after becoming a witch, Madoka never stopped helping her. Without Kriemhild around, the current scenario would have been impossible to happen.
As much as she loathes even having to burden Madoka – and Kriemhild – in any way, she's not about to take this opportunity for granted. Fine, as long as everything goes well in the end, she'll let Madoka – and Kriemhild – lend their helping hand. After all, that willingness to help others is the very reason why Homura loved Madoka…and in a way, Kriemhild too.
Homura was on her own on that rooftop, the rest of them already over at the hospital. Sayaka and Hitomi went there to visit Kyosuke Kamijo, while Madoka and Kriemhild only stuck around to keep an eye on those two. And as for Homura herself…well…she probably should go out to hunt witches right now or to keep an eye on her friends as well, but Homura currently cannot be bothered to do anything.
Not.
A.
Thing.
…
Wait, won't a witch hatch in the hospital today?
Shit.
Homura had never gotten up so fast before. Transforming into her magical girl outfit, she jumped off the roof and made her way to the hospital as quickly as possible. Truth be told, she was a little anxious about how this next event will go. In most timelines, Mami would perish to this witch, mostly because she was distracted by Madoka and Sayaka. In other timelines where Mami was focused, she was able to easily defeat the witch there. In the current timeline, it's hard to predict how things will go.
She'll just have to do her best.
Gunshots rang throughout the industrial complex as Mami practiced her new techniques. She stood in the middle of a deserted industrial building all alone, inspecting and testing her very own personal magical lever-action rifle. Like her muskets, it was made with her ribbons and etched with its own engravings. It took some time for her muscle memory to get used to the lever pulling, but she eventually got it.
After that, Mami summoned and tried loading other types of ammunition. Shotgun shells, explosive rounds, incendiary rounds, armor-piercing rounds, and all sorts of other ammunition. As long as the ammunition is compatible in size with the barrel of the gun, it can be shot. Handy.
While Mami continued testing this newfound skill, Kyubey made his presence known.
"Hey, Mami. How's your training?"
Mami took her time to look at Kyubey, "A great success, I feel like I'm ready to take them on right now! I trust that you've been keeping an eye on them?"
It's an empty gesture and a waste of energy, but Kyubey nodded, "I have."
With that, Mami turned her attention back to the rifle in her hand. She can already see herself using it to great effect. She just hope that her inexperience with this new type of rifle wouldn't be her downfall.
Mami then turned her attention back to Kyubey, "Hey Kyubey."
"Yes?"
Her encounter with Homura a few days ago had been barely fruitful, and she hoped that Kyubey might know something about it, "Do you have any clue as to why those girls willingly surround themselves around the witch?"
Unfortunately, Kyubey was as at loss as herself, perhaps even more so, "Honestly? I would just write it off as humans being utterly illogical. It always astounds me how often humans do illogical things."
"So you don't know either?"
Kyubey shrugged…somehow, "Yeah, pretty much."
Mami sighed, "Oh well, it was worth asking. So why are you here? Just checking in on me?"
Kyubey blinked, as if he had forgotten what he was here for, "Oh, right. I've come to inform you that Madoka Kaname and the witch would soon wander into another labyrinth, which means another opportunity for you to save Madoka."
That all sounds good, but one thing still bothered Mami, so she asked, "Kyubey, remind me again why all my 'opportunities' involve Kaname-san being in a witch labyrinth?"
"In a witch labyrinth, you won't have to worry about being noticed by outsiders while you confront Madoka. Had you done it any other time, someone would notice all the loud gunshots and rackets and whatnot." Kyubey answered, as if it was the most obvious thing ever.
"That's right…Witch-hunting can be quite loud from an outsider's perspective." Mami muttered. As annoying as it is with having to deal with a witch at the same time as dealing with another witch, it was ultimately a necessary measure. The elusive witch – her main target – did not use its own labyrinth, whether it does this voluntarily or involuntarily is irrelevant.
"Indeed." said Kyubey, "So, will you be on your way now?"
Mami nodded, "I will. Where are they right now?"
"The hospital."
"Huh, what are they doing there?" asked Mami.
"Who knows? The hospital is a frequent source of grief, there might be a correlation." replied Kyubey.
Mami's grip on her rifle tightened, "Is the witch trying to increase its power by feeding on the grief there?"
"It's possible."
"Then I must hurry!" Mami exclaimed as she started running, leaving Kyubey in the dust.
Madoka and Kriemhild stood outside Kyosuke's room while both Sayaka and Hitomi went inside. Had it been any other day, Madoka and Kriemhild had no reason to be here. To them, Kyosuke is more of a 'friend of friends' rather than a 'friend' directly. But after all that had happened, Kriemhild in particular insisted that they should accompany Sayaka and Hitomi here.
Besides, Kriemhild always felt so invigorated every time they leave the hospital, so she couldn't complain.
Although, they hate to admit it, but they were getting bored just standing around like some sort of a living statue reject. Madoka silently suggested that they take a walk around the hospital. While Kriemhild was inclined to agree. Before they do that, however, they decided to let Sayaka and Hitomi know that they'll be wandering aimlessly around the hospital.
When Madoka opened the door, they did not expect to see Sayaka and Hitomi desperately holding for dear life onto Kyosuke, who dangerously stood on the edge of the nearby window, who – on the whim – wanted to end it all right then and there.
"Hey! HEY! What's going on here?!" asked Madoka.
"Kyosuke was about to jump!" said Sayaka.
It would seem that the boy in question already regretted his extremely impulsive decision, "WHY DID I DO THAT?! I DON'T WANT TO DIE!" he shouted. Nobody on the ground heard him due to the height.
They were already faring quite well in pulling him back up, but Hitomi asked for help anyway, "Help us pull him back up!"
Madoka nodded, "I'm on it!"
Madoka hastily joined the duo in helping them pull Kyosuke away from the window, and with her help, they didn't stop pulling Kyosuke until he was all the way on the other side of the room. Just to be safe. After the adrenaline died down, the girls collapsed into a pile. For a moment, they just laid there, mentally exhausted that they even had to go through that.
Madoka was the first to sit up, "Phew, we did it…What happened with him?"
Sayaka answered, "Kyosuke suddenly broke down…"
"Oh…"
Kyosuke, still shaken up, apologized for his impulse, "I'm…sorry, for troubling you all."
Sayaka was the next to sit up, "Don't sweat it, Kyosuke! I guess we didn't realize just how much this is hurting you…"
Hitomi finally sat up and immediately asked, "Madoka, can you find us someone to help look after him?"
Madoka nodded and stood up, "Alright."
Madoka left in an attempt to find somebody, anybody, to look after Kyosuke. They can't exactly expect some school girls to look after him all the time. They still had to take care of themselves first.
"Whew, I didn't expect to see someone try to commit suicide in my lifetime." Kriemhild commented.
Madoka sighed, "Yeah, I guess being confined in a hospital finally got to him."
"Yeah, let's just go find a nurse or something…and there's one right over there!"
Without another word, they ran up to the nearest nurse they could find.
"Excuse me, miss. Could you please keep an eye on Kyosuke Kamijo?" Madoka opened up, catching the attention of the nurse.
The nurse responded, "I'm actually one of the nurses in charge of taking care of him. Did something happen?"
"Yeah! He tried to jump out the window!" answered Kriemhild.
One would expect the nurse to gasp or something. Instead, she merely narrowed her eyes, "Tsk! I knew that doctor was bad news." the nurse muttered a little too loudly.
"What do you mean?"
"The doctor that was in charge of taking care of Kyosuke is infamous for his brutal…opinions. Nobody likes him for it. In fact, not too long ago, he outright told Kyosuke-kun that he should just give up all hopes of recovery." the nurse explained.
"What the…Why would he say that?!" Kriemhild hissed.
"I suppose he was always been a bitter man, and everyone around him suffers for it." the nurse speculated. She shook her head, dismissing the mostly pointless thought, "Right, then. Enough of that. Let's get going, shall we?"
When they arrived back at Kyosuke's room, the nurse swiftly locked the windows and tucked Kyosuke back into bed.
"I'll take it from here." the nurse said, letting the girls leave while she take care of her patient.
While they left, Madoka told them all about what she learned from the nurse, and how the doctor had shot down Kyosuke's hope for recovery.
"What the hell?!" was Sayaka's response to the revelation.
Hitomi crossed her arms, "I was hoping that it wouldn't have to come to this, but it seems that I would have to intervene."
"What do you mean 'intervene'?" asked Madoka.
"I know a doctor in Tokyo who could – and would – do a better job in healing Kyosuke." Hitomi answered.
"Huh? Then why didn't you do it sooner?!" asked Sayaka incredulously.
"I had high hopes that the doctors here could heal Kyosuke, but it would seem that my hope was misplaced…" Hitomi answered before any of them could get the wrong idea.
"Hmm…" Sayaka hummed, suddenly thinking about something.
Madoka noticed, and asked, "What are you thinking about, Sayaka-chan?"
Sayaka seemed hesitant to answer, "I had an idea that maybe I could make a wish to heal Kyosuke. But then I remembered that I could become a witch if I contracted to be a magical girl…"
Madoka frowned, "Sayaka-chan…you shouldn't risk your life like that!"
"Yeah! Just leave it to me! The doctor that I talked about is quite reliable, and he has already proven himself multiple times. You shouldn't risk your life when there's a better alternative!" Hitomi added.
Sayaka waved them off in an attempt to put her friends at ease, "Yeah, yeah, I know. It was just a passing thought, don't worry about it."
They walked in silence as they exited the main hospital building. The walk being utterly uneventful so far, until suddenly… "Hey, do you feel that, Madoka-chan?" Kriemhild suddenly asked, a hint of alertness audible in her voice.
"What is it, Kriem-chan?" asked Madoka in return.
"Yeah, Kriemy, what is it?" Sayaka asked as well.
Kriemhild closed her eyes, "I feel…" and then opened them when she was certain of what she felt, "…a witch!"
Indeed, right in front of them – near the bike racks – is a grief seed, embedded on the wall.
"It's a grief seed!" exclaimed Sayaka.
"What do we do?!" Madoka asked in a panic.
"We should probably leave, right now! And call Akemi-san while we're at it!" Hitomi suggested.
"You're not going anywhere!" said an unfortunately familiar voice behind the girls.
"Mami-san!"
Mami stood there, holding her new rifle in her hands. Kriemhild's eyes then wandered onto the rifles that floated next to Mami…and the rifles that surrounded them in all directions. Each and every single one of them crackled with electricity. For her part, Mami had loaded all her rifles with magical stun rounds. Not enough to be lethal, but enough to sting and bring someone down for a little while. She had no intention to truly hurt the girls, but Mami was not about to tell them that. She'll rely on bluff and intimidation if she has to.
It's not looking too good for the girls, sans Mami.
"Please let us through!" Madoka pleaded.
"Yeah! That witch could eat us any moment now!" Sayaka added while pointing a shaky hand at the grief seed in question.
Mami frowned, obviously not enjoying this any more than the other girls, "I'm sorry, but this is my chance to take that grief seed out of Madoka. As you can see, my…" she paused as she stared at her rifles, "…weapons can be quite loud, but nobody would be able to notice if we're in a witch labyrinth."
Mami then looked around for a certain raven-haired magical girl, "Also, where is Akemi-san? I expected her to be with you all, but I couldn't even sense her presence around."
Kriemhild kept her bravado, "Good question, how about we wait until she's here?"
"That sounds like a wonderful idea. Unfortunately, a hatching grief seed cannot wait." said Mami as she pointed her rifle at the grief seed.
As if on cue, the grief seed hatched and their surroundings flickered as it slowly turned into a landscape filled with candy.
A flaw in Mami's plan was suddenly revealed when she was distracted by the change in scenery. She didn't take into account that the witch labyrinth may or may not pose an immediate threat to them all. While Mami was distracted, Kriemhild had the bright idea of sneaking away in the confusion.
Kriemhild began telling the rest of them in a hushed tone, "Sayaka-chan, Hitomi-chan, we should sneak away while Tomoe-senpai is distracted."
Sayaka hissed, "The last time we tried to go in blindly, we were attacked by familiars!"
Hitomi interjected in a soft, gentle tone, while gazing at the three dozen rifles that were pointed at them, "We don't exactly have a choice on the matter right now, do we?"
Sayaka answered through her gritted teeth, "Ugh, fine! But if things don't go well, I'm running!"
While Mami looked around for environmental hazards and dangerous familiars, the four girls silently tiptoed away into a part of the labyrinth where there are many candies that could act as covers. Somehow, they managed to gain some distance until Kriemhild stepped on a candy cane.
*crack*
The candy snapped, making a loud noise that Mami would surely notice.
"What the- Hey! I'm not done with you yet!" Mami cried out.
And heard it she did. Almost immediately, she pointed all her rifles at the three girls, most of them pointed at Kriemhild in particular. The first, single shot hit the floor near Kriemhild, almost hitting her foot.
"RUN!" Kriemhild shouted.
And they ran for their lives. Magical stun rounds whiz past their heads and hit the floor and covers around them. By sheer luck, none of the shots hit anyone, making Mami herself pause her volley fire.
"What is up with these things?" Mami complained as she hit and tapped the rifle that she was holding with her hand. By the time she refocused on her targets, they were already gone – hidden among the assortment of candies.
"I lost them…" Mami muttered.
"Mami Tomoe, I didn't take you to be someone who would shoot at civilians like that." a somewhat-familiar voice reproached her, making Mami turn around, only to find Homura Akemi standing there – clad in her magical girl outfit – glaring daggers and pointing a silenced pistol at her.
A few moments ago…
Homura arrived just in time to see her current assortment of friends being surrounded by Mami and her new rifles. From where she stood, Homura was still too far away to intervene, so she continued to get closer.
Before she even managed to get to hearing distance, Mami and the rest had already been swallowed up in the witch labyrinth. Without hesitation, Homura followed suit. When she entered the labyrinth, she saw Mami shooting volley fires at three figures that are running away, undoubtedly Madoka and the rest. Homura was a little shocked, it would seem she truly underestimated how dedicated Mami is with hunting witches, to the point that she would risk shooting Sayaka and Hitomi in the process.
Homura trod lightly behind Mami, silently pulling out her silenced pistol.
"Mami Tomoe, I didn't take you to be someone who would shoot at civilians like that." said Homura, with her gun primed and ready to carve bloody holes all over Mami.
Startled, Mami also pointed the rifle in her hands at Homura, equally ready to return the favor. "Hmph, I was wondering when you'd show up."
Homura raised her eyebrows, "…Were you expecting me?"
Mami stood there, rigid and unmoving from her aim, "No, I honestly thought you finally realized the error of your ways and abandoned them."
Homura narrowed her eyes even further somehow, actually feeling offended, "I wouldn't even dream of it."
"I see." said Mami as she lowered her rifle and smiled serenely.
Before she could even process what was about to happen, Homura was completely constricted from head to toe with Mami's ribbons. This has never happened in previous timelines before. Usually, in this scenario, Mami would simply constrict her with the bare minimum amount of ribbons. But now, Homura can't even talk, let alone struggle. Nearly her entire face was covered as well, barring the eyes.
Homura tried to struggle anyway and was frustrated when her bindings didn't budge, not even by a little bit, "Mmmph!" she tried to shout, a shout that came out muffled. Barely audible, even.
"I have no time to talk with you right now, I have a couple of witches to deal with." said Mami before she ran and jumped away. Leaving a very frustrated Homura there.
Madoka, Kriemhild, Sayaka, and Hitomi kept on running until the sound of gunshots completely ceased. Somehow, they had managed to run away from Mami on their own. Gradually, their runs devolved into a slow walk, before they stopped on a giant, delicious-looking donut. There they collapsed for the second time that day, lightly panting for air.
"Is…is everyone alright?" Madoka asked the rest of them, not looking that much worse for wear.
Sayaka sighed and replied, "I think we're all okay."
Hitomi wiped her eyebrows and exhaled, "Thank goodness that Tomoe-san's aim was terrible."
"No, we just got lucky this time." Kriemhild replied as she pulled a small bottle of water from…somewhere. She then proceeded to chug down the whole bottle in one go and just discarded the empty bottle on the floor. All that running has made her thirsty.
"What do we do now?" Hitomi asked, leaning on the donut in exhaustion. Disregarding the possibility that her clothes might get stained by sugar.
"We should call Homura-chan, right now!" replied Madoka, unaware that Homura was already nearby.
"Is there even a signal in a place like this?" Sayaka interjected.
The exhausted Hitomi waved her hand at the question, "Give it a try, it might work."
"There is no need to do that." Mami's voice cried up from somewhere above them.
"!"
There Mami stood on one of the pillars- no, the somewhat-tall table that was part of the witch labyrinth, looking down at them from such a vantage point. But not too tall, otherwise they wouldn't be able to converse with each other. "Akemi-san won't be coming to rescue you all anytime soon." said Mami.
It may not seem like it, but Sayaka was scared. Despite that, she braved on and asked, "You…what did you do to Homura?!"
Mami decided that it is okay to tell them, "While you girls were running away, Akemi-san managed to sneak up on me. But I tied her up, and there's nothing she can do about it. She won't be going anywhere."
"What?! What if a familiar got her?!" Sayaka cried out, fingers pointed accusingly at Mami.
"Personally, I wouldn't worry. The familiars of this labyrinth are quite passive…even more so than the typical familiars, I must say." said Mami, and to prove her point, she pointed at the mouse-like familiars that surround them, ignoring their intrusion and just passing through – minding their own business.
It barely put them at ease, because familiars aren't the only form of threat in the labyrinth. "What about the witch?" Kriemhild asked, being the most concerned – alongside Madoka – for Homura's wellbeing.
Mami crossed her arms, fighting the urge to smirk, "Which one? You? Or the one who made this labyrinth?"
"Wha- the other witch, of course!" said Kriemhild, who shook her head.
"Right over there." replied Mami, who pointed a thumb to her right.
The witch turned out to be much closer than they thought, and it's just…sitting there, sitting on a really tall chair while munching on a piece of butter. It didn't even pay any attention to the intruders. It's just minding its own business…While Mami knows that the appearance of a witch can be deceiving, the girls down below thought that the witch looked harmless. Kriemhild personally thinks the tiny doll-like witch is adorable.
Mami took this chance to finally put an end to the witch that she had been hunting for a year and a half. It has been a long, arduous run, and her reputation at school had been stained badly in the process, but this is the end. She can finally take out this witch and move on with her life, and- she cut herself from further distracting thoughts, internally chastising herself for already planning ahead before she even finished her job.
"End of the line for you." said Mami as she loaded her rifle and pointed it at Kriemhild. "I won't miss this time."
Kriemhild clenched her teeth, not feeling particularly eager to be taken away. But she got nowhere to run now. She is literally cornered. Madoka, Sayaka, and Hitomi, who had been by her side the whole time, were too afraid to intervene any further. Kriemhild couldn't put them at fault – she was scared as well.
Mami pulled the trigger…
…and her shot struck true.
The shot hit Kriemhild and Madoka in the chest, and they fell over on the ground, jolting in pain.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!"
"Madoka!" Hitomi cried out, putting her hands on her mouth, eyes wide.
"Kriemy!" Sayaka cried out at the same time as Hitomi, seemingly snapped out of her fright.
Sayaka was about to reach out her hand to the girls that were currently trembling on the ground, but stopped herself when she saw the electric sparks. The fact that Madoka and Kriemhild were still making pained noises at least confirms that they were still alive. All Sayaka could do now was glare at Mami.
Mami watched as Kriemhild finally stopped moving, the stun round doing a good job at immobilizing her target. She lowered her gun in delight, and even had to restrain herself from jumping in joy, "I got you…I finally got you! Finally! After all this time, I- Ah!" she was suddenly cut off when the whole labyrinth started trembling. Mami almost fell off the table but quickly regained her footing. It would seem that her usage of magic was enough to stir the other witch into activity.
Meanwhile, down below, Hitomi fell onto the floor while Sayaka stood her ground while the labyrinth continued to rumble. "What's happening?!"
Mami glanced at the witch who created this labyrinth. The witch remained unmoving at first, but suddenly faced Mami. The suddenness made Mami flinch a bit, before she steeled herself for an inevitable battle. It would seem her main objective would have to be delayed once again. But knowing that Madoka is currently stunned, Mami thought that she could afford to spend some time on this witch.
Pragmatically, she could just take Madoka with her and leave the labyrinth immediately – and bring her to Kyubey for extraction. But doing so would leave the other girls to their doom. Carrying them all at once is too risky of an option. Who knows how fast and how good this witch can traverse its own labyrinth…Bringing every single one of them – including Homura – out of this labyrinth could risk getting themselves killed all at once.
Mami blanched when she finally realized that this plan of hers was riddled with many flaws, and in her excitement, she rushed it. And now she'll have to deal with the consequences of her mistakes. Not one to dwell on her mistakes for too long, Mami pulled the lever of her gun as she quickly emptied it from the stun rounds. She then proceeded to load her usual lethal rounds, ready to kill the witch of the day.
In retrospect, maybe she should have just used a magical silencer on her magical lever-action rifle. After all, the simplest solution is almost always the best.
Mami shook her head. She'll just have to make do with what she has right now and make this a quick fight.
Without further delay, Mami shot five rounds at the witch, who fell off from its own chair into the floor below while nonchalantly dodging her shots with ease.
Undaunted, Mami summoned more rifles and proceeded to pepper the entire landscape with overwhelming fire. The witch, seemingly having deemed that it can only dodge so many bullets, took cover behind the sturdiest candy that it could find.
There hid the witch. It thought that it was safe behind that cover, until Mami's shot started to shatter and thin out its cover, slowly but surely. Eventually, the cover was reduced to virtually nothing. Seeing the vulnerability, Mami – who haven't even moved away from her initial spot – loaded an explosive round into her rifle and fired at the witch.
The witch was subsequently sent flying by the explosion, torn up and slightly riddled with holes.
While Mami did her one-sided battle, Sayaka was keeping an eye on Kriemhild and Madoka, who slowly recovered from being stunned. Their movement was still staggered, but they managed to sit up. Somewhere nearby, Hitomi was utterly captivated by the light show that Mami put up. It was only the pained groan of Kriemhild that had snapped Hitomi out of her inertia.
"Madoka! Kriemy! Are you two alright?!" Sayaka asked, with Hitomi approaching from behind. Both with a worried expression.
A tearful Madoka rubbed the spot where they were shot, "Ow…That still stung…"
Kriemhild used their other hand to hand out a thumbs up, "We'll live." she said with a weak but reassuring smile. "What did we miss?"
Sayaka and Hitomi didn't say a thing, they merely stared in the direction of the witch that was currently being shot at by Mami – which prompted Madoka and Kriemhild to look in that direction as well.
Madoka was speechless, while Kriemhild could only comment, "Holy- It's like a warzone out there…!"
They had never seen Mami shoot with this sort of intensity before. The sheer amount of shots could easily make a single Tiro Finale pale in comparison. It was like watching a rain of bullets – a storm, even. The occasional booming of explosive rounds could be compared to thunders, in a way. It was a beautiful sight to behold.
To the untrained eyes, it would seem that Mami was relying on sheer firepower to hit the small witch. In reality, her shots had been mostly precise, even if rapid. Most of her shots definitely hit the mark, and it was only because of the witch's surprisingly high durability and resilience that the witch wasn't already torn into tiny ribbons.
"Isn't this a bit overkill though?" commented Hitomi.
"I guess Mami-san is not taking any chances…" added Madoka.
Kriemhild struggled to make themselves stand up. With a shaky, hunched posture, they stood up, "Hngh…Do you think Tomoe-senpai will be okay?"
Sayaka was trying her hardest to not let the feeling of being overwhelmed creep on her, "Honestly? I think she got this one in the bag." she then stared at her friends, "Hey, shouldn't we take this chance to bail out already? I think Mami-san will be fine even if we leave her here."
"Can you walk?" Hitomi asked the pinkette.
"No…Everything still hurts…!" Madoka hissed as she leaned on the closest solid candy that she could find.
"Dammit. Is there really nothing I can do?!" said the frustrated Sayaka.
"You could make a contract with me and become a magical girl." said Kyubey, who suddenly came out of nowhere and stood beside her.
"Ahh!" Sayaka yelped, and nearly jumped in fright.
If possible, Kyubey would have felt amusement. But he's got no time for that, and proposed, "Make a contract with me, and you'll have many options at your disposal."
Gathering her composure, Sayaka retorted, "I thought I already told you…It's a no!"
Kyubey silently stood there, seemingly thinking of a way to convince Sayaka to make a contract, "Even if Mami defeats the witch, you'll still have to deal with Mami herself. And at your current state, there's no way you could escape her, let alone fight her."
Sayaka crossed her arms and gathered all the bravado that she could muster, if only to keep her nerve in check. "Oh yeah? We already run away from her twice before. I'm starting to think that Mami-san is just bad at chasing people around."
Kyubey straightened himself, "An honest failure and a fluke, respectively. With Homura currently put out of commission, the only one who could help you is me."
Sayaka glared at Kyubey, "I thought you were on Tomoe-san's side!"
"I have concluded that making a contract with you would make it easier for us to acquire the grief seed within Madoka, in the long term."
"Then I'll never make a contract with you!" bellowed Sayaka.
"We will see." Kyubey concluded as he directed his attention at the fight between Mami and the witch of this labyrinth, before he jumped away from them, leaving them alone once again.
Back to Mami, she was having the time of her life. Even though she had been shooting many rounds for several minutes now, a quick look at her soul gem showed that it merely gained a sliver of impurity. She felt like she could do this all day!
But she doesn't have all day. Her main target had yet to truly be dealt with, so Mami decided to wrap it out with a final attack.
Dismissing all her lever-action rifles, she summoned a giant musket – easily the size of a man.
Some things never change.
"Tiro…"
Mami aimed at the witch, who was still airborne from being thrown around all over the place.
"…FINALE!"
She pulled the trigger, releasing a large brilliant beam of light. And…
It missed.
At the last second, the witch has had enough and dodged Mami's shot. All the sudden, a large, angel-winged, worm-like, clown-like, human-teethed creature appeared out of the witch's mouth. It was then that Mami finally realized that she had not been fighting its true form. With a speed that betrayed its size, the witch stopped itself in front of her, leaving Mami paralyzed in shock. It would seem that – in her glee and excitement – Mami was caught off-guard, and now she will pay for her hubris in blood.
Kriemhild, who had been watching from a safer distance, cried out, "Tomoe-senpai!"
Mami rejected that fate.
As the witch prepared to clamp its jaw on her head, Mami snapped out of her stupor and quickly summoned her lever-action rifle. Instead of her head, the witch instead clamped its massive jaw on her rifle. When the witch noticed the taste of (magical) wood and steel in its mouth instead of the taste of human grey matter (and soul), it started to thrash around in the air, bringing along Mami within its violent movement.
"Woah!" Mami cried out.
Mami held on for dear life on her mostly-intact rifle. Fortunately, being a magical girl made her more resilient to fast and sudden movements such as this, otherwise she would have gotten sick and nauseous. Calmly, or rather, as calmly as she could, Mami summoned four shotgun shells, each held between all her right fingers. While the witch continued to swing her around with reckless abandon, Mami hastily but steadily loaded the shells. She managed to successfully load three of them, while the last one fell out of her grip, which made her clench her hand in slight frustration.
Once again, she'll have to make do.
When the witch stopped thrashing, Mami pulled the trigger once, which tore up the witch from the inside with shotgun pellets. The witch, eyes widened, let go of her rifle – and by extension, her – in agony. Mami took this moment to put some distance between herself and the witch, landing on another tall table. It would seem that this battle would require more effort on her part. She still has to end this as quickly as possible. Who knows how long her stun round would last on Madoka?
The witch, still suffering from agonizing pain, glared at Mami. Looking particularly more murderous than usual. Mami smirked in response. She had fought many witches, and had been through quite a plenty of near-death experiences. The witch currently in front of her would end up as just another witch of the day.
The witch charged in fury, and Mami summoned at least four dozen rifles. Every single one of them peppered the witch with magical and explosive shots, but none of them caused any serious damage.
Mami had no intention to do so with all those rifles.
Mami only summoned all those rifles to act as a distraction while she prepared her latest ultimate attack. In her left hand, she held her lever-action rifle, while in her right hand, she summoned a special round – specifically made for this sort of occasion. The round is covered in delicate and detailed engraving of flowers and other sorts of geometrical shapes, wrapped in platinum coating and gold highlights. Her magic gives it a slight glint occasionally.
Mami loaded the special round into her rifle and pulled the lever, loading the round into the chamber. Then she aimed her rifle at the witch.
As for the witch, it struggled to approach Mami as explosive rounds knocked it back and stunned it, sometimes even tearing off some of its hide, which only enraged it even further. It eventually had enough. Powered with sheer rage, it charged at Mami, knocking away whatever rifles that stood between it and the irritating magical girl in front of it.
Mami smiled. "You're done for." Mami muttered softly.
The witch –in its blind fury – continued to charge at Mami, having failed to notice the large energy spike and golden aura that imbued Mami and her rifle. Even Kyubey and Kriemhild, who stood a fair distance away, could feel the power emanating from Mami.
Kyubey wagged his tail, seemingly in excitement, "Amazing! Mami truly is an exceptional magical girl in her own right! It makes me wonder just how much hidden, untapped potential that she has within her soul."
From Mami's current distance to the witch, she could have pulled the trigger already and the shot would be a certain hit. Instead, she bid her time, waiting for the witch to inevitably open its mouth and expose its weak point. The special round could have easily torn through the witch with no problem at this range, but Mami wanted to make sure that the witch would be put down by this attack.
"Tiro…!"
Once it got close, the witch opened its bullet-riddled mouth, conveniently presenting Mami with its weak spot. The witch was too blinded by fury to avoid this attack. Even if it wasn't blinded, the witch still wouldn't be able to dodge this attack.
"…ESTREMO!
Mami shouted as she pulled the trigger. A thin golden beam trailed behind the round as it flew nearly at the speed of light, effortlessly piercing through the witch without resistance. The witch itself was so shocked by the suddenness of it all, and fell from the sky, smoke trailing out of its mouth. It hit the ground with a loud thump, uncomfortably close to the girls down below. The labyrinth started to flicker, signifying that the witch was indeed dying.
With nothing else standing between them, Mami jumped off from the tall table that she stood on and onto the ground below, near Madoka and the rest, who – shortly after Mami defeated the witch – already tried to sneak away.
Sayaka and Hitomi helped Madoka and Kriemhild walk, but they stopped when they heard Mami's voice.
"Where do you think you're going?" Mami nonchalantly asked as she slowly (and menacingly) loaded the tubular magazine of her rifle full of stun rounds. There was no longer any need to use lethal rounds, not right now at least.
"Urk! I told you that this was a bad idea…!" Sayaka winced and hissed under her breath.
Kriemhild was shaking, whether from fear or from pain was no longer distinguishable. She tried her best to walk it off, "H-hey, Tomoe-senpai. You actually did a pretty good job against that witch. But it's getting late, so we're going home, okay?"
Mami did not appreciate the witch's attempt at humor. "I thought I already told you that you're not going anywhere." said Mami, who frowned as she pulled the lever and pointed her rifle at the terrified Kriemhild.
…
Suddenly, a loud, sickening crunch can be heard.
It all happened so fast. Mami had them all completely cornered, but next thing they know, the witch – clearly still alive, being clever enough to have feigned death and shed its damaged body – had sunk its massive jaws at Mami, completely tearing off the left side of her head and arm, and a sizeable chunk of her torso. The bloody display completely put the rest of them paralyzed in fear.
"AAAAHHHH!"
"MAMI-SAN!"
You've been waiting for all this time, only for you to get a cliffhanger. I am not sorry.