Waking up as a baby was hard enough, but learning that I was living in a world of superpowers, Heroes, and Villains was a hard pill to swallow. What made it even worse was that this world wasn't any of the better, more light-hearted places, no I was living in Worm. Funnily enough as the big brother to Vista.
I looked at one of the calendars. It was kind of cute. Instead of starting at the beginning of the year, someone changed it so that it started in the month we were on, March 2011. Only a month until it starts, right. I sighed, moving on to the next aisle, I felt a little guilty leaving Taylor to trigger, but what could I do? Currently Missy and I were at a grocery store getting some items for our mother.
"Oh, hello there, shopping for your parents?" A cute asian girl with pink hair asked smiling, with an unsaid 'too' to her words. The words sounded like the kind of words you expect from a kind, old granny, but instead I got a vaguely familiar, cute, Japanese girl.
"Ah, yeah. My mother wanted Missy and I out of the house getting groceries for her. Ah, Missy is my little sister. I told her to look at whatever and scream if she needed help." I explained Looking at her now, there was something oddly familiar about this young girl. She appeared to be about fourteen and her eyes were pink with accents of gold here and there. I squinted at her. "I'm sorry, but do I know you? You seem familiar. My name is Alexius, but everyone just calls me Alex."
"No, This is the first time I've been back here in, well, years. So I doubt it, sorry." She apologized, but continued with a smile. By how old she looked, the last time she would have been here when she was only a child. "Also, I'm not supposed to hand out my name to just anyone, you know?"
"You're Japanese, right?" At her nod I continued. "How about I call you Homura? I'm pretty sure it means fire in Japanese." She tried to keep a straight face for a second, it was obvious that the name amused her, but quickly began to giggle.
"That's kind of funny. Homura is the name of a friend of mine, but sure you can call me Homura." She told me giggling and said as an aside "I mean Homura-chan is pretty cool."
"Ho~ What's she like?" I asked curiously. I motioned her to follow me, so we could shop while we talked.
"She always acts so seriously, but once you get past her shell she gets all cute and sappy. I mean I remember when she was all cute with her glasses and twin tails." The person she was describing was oddly familiar to me, but I couldn't figure out why. There was an itch in the back of my head. "She gets all worried sometimes when she hasn't seen me in a little while, the look on her face is always so cute." We continued to talk about her friend Homura for a little while with a couple jokes thrown every so often.
"Ah, enough about me and my friends. What about you? Is there someone you care for a lot?" Homura asked after she finished laughing at my latest joke, toying with her pigtail held up by a singular red ribbon. Red Ribbons, they- I mean it seems so familiar…
"Missy! My little sister. She is just so cute! She tries to act so serious sometimes and gets this cute grumpy face when you treat her normally." I enthusiastically squealed, trying to ignore my unease, putting the hand not occupied with carrying my grocery basket to my smiling face. Nearby Missy squeaked in mortification.
"That's only when you do it! Alex! You act like I'm a child playing dress-up!"
I could hear her run away from us in embarrassment. I continued to extoll onto my new friend about how great my little sister was. My unease was somewhat forgotten as I gushed about my sister. Ahh~ Life can be so great.
Homura and I talked while shopping for another couple of minutes. We covered multiple topics like how she was on vacation and my thoughts on the heroes and villains of Brockton Bay.
"I mean Armsmaster means well and he is a good hero, but you can easily tell he's not a very socially inclined person. Aside from him, the local protectorate is actually pretty sociable and nice, from what I can tell." I extolled my views onto my new friend. We continued speaking for another couple minutes before I had got the groceries I needed.
When I was about to go to the register for purchase, Homura pulled me aside.
"It's been a while since I've made a new friend, so I wanted to thank you" She said with a soft smile.
"It was fun talking to you too," I agreed, smiling.
"I want you to have this" She continued, pulling out a stylized dagger pointed at me handle-first. There was something grand, something magical about the dagger. It seemed to be made out of a material other than steel. It was a black-obsidian color that had white engravings along its fuller in a language I couldn't identify. The dagger had a feel to it that I couldn't describe.
"This doesn't look cheap, tinker made probably. Why are you giving me this?" I asked, hesitantly taking the proffered dagger. It looked as though it was heavy but holding it in my hand, it felt weightless.
"It became mine when its previous wielder died and no one else had any claim to it. She told me that 'This dagger is able to cut even gods.' I wanted to give it to someone like her to honor her memory." She explained without her usual smile.
"What was her name?" I asked softly.
"Gwen. Her name was Gwen." Homura told me sadly.
"Well then, I dub this knife, Gwen, The Dagger That Which Cuts Even The Gods, what do you think?" I joked softly, getting a smile out of Homura. When I named the dagger it felt like something had happened, but I couldn't see anything. Ehh, probably the Tinkertech.
"Good, that's Good. She would have liked that name." She giggled sadly unshed tears in her eyes. There was a heaviness in the air, a heaviness that made you think that everyone nearby was grieving or sad.
"Hey! Alex, it's about time to go!" My sister cried out somewhere behind me. I turned to look at her.
"Kay! Make sure to be near the front. Just give me a sec!" I yelled back. Turning back to apologize to my new friend, I only found empty space.
"Huh, that's odd. Maybe she realized she had to go?" I muttered quietly, the dagger still in my hand. I pocketed it before heading to check-out. Maybe she ran to go cry away her sadness in peace?
As soon as we got out I began to play with my new knife. There was just something familiar that I just wasn't remembering. It was like a whisper that I just couldn't hear, nagging me until I understood its words. I looked up to the sky to get my mind off of what was starting to become a headache. Huh, It looks like it's going to rain soon, lots of clouds in the sky.
"Where'd you get that?" Missy asked, growing amused at a thought which she then vocalized. "Did your new girl-friend give it to you?"
"Yes, I-I mean no." I stuttered. "I mean yes, she gave it to me, and no she is not my girlfriend."
"Besides, you have no ground to stand on with your crush on Dean." I shot back at her. "I don't even think of her like that."
She spluttered, denying me incoherently.
We were most of the way back, until we reached a street that was oddly empty and noticed someone in front of us. She had pink hair, a pigtail tied with two white ribbons and in a somewhat intricate white dress, with golden eyes. She looked so familiar that I could swear I've seen her somewhere before.
"A cape?" Missy asked before pointing out. "Hey, that looks like your friend from before!"
A white dress, gold eyes, talks about a good friend named Homura, and her general disposition of course I recognized her. That sounded like Madokami, which was impossible. The show hadn't come out yet on Earth Bet or Earth Aleph, so it couldn't be a cosplayer. Which means that she had to be real. Which is also impossible, Madokami shouldn't even be able to exist inside the universe aside from as the Law of Cycles. Concerned, I started walking towards her. I was missing something, something that was probably obvious.
"Hey, what are you doing?!" My sister hissed, following me. "Walking up to a cape that looks like that could get you killed! She's not even wearing a mask!"
"If I may ask, what do people call you? I'm sorry I didn't ask before." I politely inquired after I came close, my eyes shifty.
"I have been called many things, but most just call me the Law of Cycles." She replied amused, confirming my suspicions, I sighed.
"If I may ask, Why are you here, Lady Goddess?" She became even more amused at my question. My sister, growing confused at our words, made a sound of general confusion at our conversation, which was at odds with her view of parahumans and how they act towards normal people. I winced, thinking myself an idiot for letting her come with me. Maybe something had gone wrong with her wish, or her duty… I don't know.
"To fight good fights, I was thinking of fighting the protectorate and the wards both at once."
I froze, I was truly a fool. This wasn't Madoka, or at least not when she was human. Something had truly gone wrong. Had another person's wish interfered with hers? Had something happened with the casualty of Her Law? I need to get Missy out of here.
"Lady Goddess, before anything happens could you please, please spare my little sister before any fight breaks out?" I pleaded with a cracking voice full of fear at this god, which looked and sounded alike to Madoka but her personality was so different, so very different. My sister freaking out that her nonchalant brother was now suddenly pleading for her life and the girl's casual declaration of war, that she did not even think to use her parahuman powers.
"How outrageously amusing and self-sacrificing as expected of someone I chose, I will grant you this boon as long as you will be my first fight." Laughing Madoka agreed. If I had to choose a person that she was acting like I would say she was acting a lot like she was bloodcrazed. I turned to my sister.
"Missy, you have to go," I patted her hair and hugged her tightly. "Remember that your Big Bro loves you. Now go! Go! You have to RUN!" Scared and crying Missy did not try to stop me as I pushed her away and overwhelmed she started to run home.
"Are you ready now, young one?" She asked as I came close to her.
"Yes, I shall be your first opponent." I stated, bowing slightly as I neared her and took a stance. She raised an eyebrow and then grew amused, smirking.
"You don't even believe you will win?" Her smirk grew as I confirmed her words with a nod.
"The time has nearly come. '' She mysteriously stated, smiling. "Come let us live a life we could not before." The clouds were gathering in the sky. Am I really going to do this?
I took out the dagger that she gave to me at the store and attacked her with a downward slash, which missed. Materializing her wooden bow out of nothing, our fight to the death began.
"I hope I don't disappoint." I grunted out while dodging all of the pink arrows she was suddenly shooting at me. It was likely the adrenaline giving me enhanced senses, but I was actually doing pretty well. I ran at her in a zigzag pattern dodging arrows all the way. I slashed again leaving a smile line barely breaking the skin, but I jumped back on instinct. Where I was standing before had a sword lodged in the ground.
"What will you do now, with weapons of countless magical girls aimed to kill you." She grinned while pointing an arrow straight at me. Dozens of weapons, swords, knives, polearms, naginata, muskets, and other various weapons were aimed at me. I jumped back and away from where she was pointing the arrow. I started doging the other weapons as much as I could. Barely getting out of the way from certain death multiple times with only minor wounds. Which would still kill me soon enough anyways if I kept getting them.
Running up to her I used my strength for a full power strike of the knife cutting a small line on her arm where she blocked me. I jumped back, one time, two times, dodging the multiple arrows and swords and weapons that impaled themselves on the ground.
I tried to grab one of the weapons stuck in the walls of the buildings and on the ground, but I couldn't pull any of them out. I tried pulling many different times with more and more strength, but no dice.
"It seems I'm not the chosen one, why, I couldn't pull a single stick from a wall. No less a sword from a stone." I quipped. Dang it, that had been one of my strategies. Of course I still had my dagger.
She politely giggled at my joke.
I have multiple bruises from blunt weapons and many bloody lines on my skin where bladed weapons just barely missed my body. Back at it, I guess.
I ran forward dodging three arrows and two different weapons. I sliced her with Gwen again, running down her shoulder, creating a small beeding line down it, before I abruptly jumped away. Just in time too as more arrows and weapons impaled the ground.
"You won't win at this rate." She frowned at me, clearly displeased.
I jumped back and dodged multiple strikes. This wasn't working. She was right, I would be dead way before she would be. I didn't have enough strength and time to cut her enough that she would die before me.
"I have to try, you're threatening to kill my sister!" I responded.
I needed a new plan. I ran to one of the swords on the ground where she cluster-fired many weapons and pulled as hard as I could. It slinked out of the ground too slowly, I had only gotten it about half way before I jumped away from the spot.
Running to the side to avoid even more arrows.
"Your sister? Why would you thi- Oh. Ohoho! She's one of the little heroes isn't she?" The Law of Cycles laughed as she realized why I was fighting her so ardently. "You are right, I would try to fight her along with the rest of the Heros in my search for a good fight."
I grit my teeth as I sprinted back to the sword. I managed to pull it out after a long moment. I moved to have another go at the goddess. I think the only reason I was able to pull out the sword was because she distracted herself, I would have gotten shot otherwise.
I held the one and half handed sword in a death grip. Focus with all my will to keep moving at the Law of Cycles and dodging everything I could, getting hit only twice.
Madoka was grinning at me as if I had just told her a funny joke.
I had gotten a feel for her fighting style, so I was going to-
Another sword like mine came flying at me, spinning. I moved away from where it was coming at me, but it redirected back at me, back at my new sword unerringly. I moved at the spinning sword hoping that it would fail to reprioritize on the sword, but it came down onto me unerringly. Defeated, I threw my new sword at the pink-haired goddess.
As they were spinning at her they disappeared into motes of blue light. The goddess smirked and said- no she had started to chant.
"An Arrow of Hope: The Wish!" While The Law of Cycles chanted energy gathered around the arrow which looked to be straining itself to be fired. She could have done that without the chant I realized. Stunned, I only watched, before I realized too late that I had to dodge, that I needed to dodge.
SHINK
"Crap!" I grunted, coughing up some blood.
I was pushed back several feet and I was on my back. I got up from the pavement. I looked down, in my chest was a softly glowing arrow. "I didn't really need to use Words of Power did I? You were just standing there. Hehe. You know for a first fight you weren't half bad!" She giggled, disappearing the floating weapons and arrows.
This was going to kill me soon I realized. If Amy did not come and heal me fast enough, I was a dead man.
I grabbed an arrow out of the wall with my adrenaline fueled strength, while it was easier to take out the arrows, they were also correspondingly weak. I threw it like a spear, grabbed another and tried again. Using her own arrows against her, I tried to gain as much of an advantage as I could.
Deflecting and for some reason dodging the arrows Madoka seemed to smile in exhilaration.
"Even shot through, you still fight? Excellent, how excellent!" She exclaimed.
"You're supposed to be a magical girl, right? So, I'm doing as you do, I'm getting up as many times as is needed to stop you!" I replied. Something was staining my teeth, was it blood? It didn't matter, I needed to defeat her. If Madoka was being caused to do this from a wish then it should be possible to undo it by getting her to remember what she had sacrificed herself for and subtly reference the original fate of Magical Girls. Maybe. it was a good enough idea to try, but not really believe in. There was something scratching at me from my memories
I coughed up blood. My body was aching from both the pain and activity I've forced it through. I don't think I'll last another couple minutes.
I needed to kill her. I needed to save Missy. I…
I shook myself and got my head back in the game.
I took out Gwen again, and moved on her. I stumbled, I was bleeding heavily.
My vision was fading slightly as I came up to her and pulled as hard as I could with one hand on the arrow inside me. It started to slide out, but it wasn't enough. Drunkenly I stabbed at Madoka with Gwen as a small distraction for my new plan.
It was a foolish plan, I would likely die, but it was all I had.
"Yes, Lady Kanamae Madoka, it was a great fight." I grinned bloodily at her shocked look and hugged her as hard as I could. Pulling her closer and closer to me until the arrow punctured through her to where her heart was. After I let go and forced us apart, I backed slightly away.
Grinning at the new wound I had placed on her chest. I pulled on the arrow that was still inside me, again.
It finally came out of my chest. I immediately started bleeding even more profusely.
"How-? How did you know my name? No mortal should be able to know it." She was so shocked she barely even recognized I had hurt her and she barely even tried to dodge when I stabbed her with the enhanced arrow again and a couple more times, each time weaker than before.
"I knew of you in a past life. You could say." I weakly told her. I was too far gone to try and continue the fight, I was dying too soon. She wasn't dead yet. I dizzly went to my knees and then I fell onto my back. I needed to get up. The threat to my sister wasn't dead yet. I tried to stand- to finish killing her. I needed to- ahh, I've-I've lost.
The Law of Cycles wasn't dead.
I have failed at protecting Missy, my little spark, ahh. It's kind of funny how much she was both a younger sister and a daughter she was to me.
"It was a very beloved story to me." I said. "How could I forget it? Even when I did forget, I remembered it."
I was both saying more than I should, but ultimately it didn't matter. I was dying. I don't think even Amy could save me now.
I'm sorry, Missy. I love you, my little spark.
Laying down on the ground I was practically helpless, but Madoka graciously joined me. It seemed that she was being nice and not killing me where I lay.
We stared at the sky. My emotions swelled inside of me.
There were the sounds of sirens in the distance, the low roar of a motorcycle. Everything was slowly fading away.
"Ahh, I'm so sorry M-Missy." I choked up and tears formed in my eyes. " I-I don't t-think I can beat t-this." I chuckled sadly before looking to the side at Madoka, who was smiling softly. Gaining some measure of strength I said, "I-Is this how you expected your first fight to go? With your enemy laying down on the ground as he was dying without doing a single thing, l-like a fool?"
I could no longer move, She smiled tenderly at me, "like a fool, indeed. You have done well. Seek me out, you know where I will be. Oh, godslayer who has killed me. Fighting you again would be great fun."
With her shocking words finished she faded into an explosion of light. There was something odd about this whole affair, but my beleaguered mind couldn't process an answer. Afterwards balls of pink light came out of the explosion of light and came towards me.
Time passed, the roar of a motorcycle quieted out of nowhere. It felt like ages had passed already. There was a steady clunk-clunk of metal boots. There was something I was forgetting.
"Young man, you have to stay awake until Panacea gets here!" The distinct voice of Armsmaster shouted at me distantly. He kept shouting and yelling.
Ah, I think I remember what I was forgetting.
"Tell Missy that I love her." I mouthed out as best I could even as the pain assaulted me anew.
I smiled as everything faded away.
I woke up in a world of white light. Turning I caught sight of a young girl with purple hair, no she was a young woman. This! This was-! She! Pandora! As I realized this, I realized something else.
"I killed a god! I'm alive!" I started to laugh out of pure relief. Due to how hurt, tired, and weak I was I fell on my butt and then onto my back.
"Yes, yes you did, my newest son." Pandora's bubbly voice confirmed softly. I felt something shift, and then Pandora's grinning face popped into view. She had put my head onto her lap. "You already know everything you would need to know, any questions?"
"No, I… Actually how did I even keep up my speed the whole time? I don't think adrenaline really covers the whole fight?" I mumbled frowning. I mean it was a little odd, but not something impossible.
She giggled for a moment.
"The dagger that The Law of Cycles gave you. It responded to your willpower. It enhanced you so that you lived for slightly longer. When you began to bleed on it well, its magic began to respond to you very well."
That was… good to know? I guess. Probably best to get back on track.
Now that I'm thinking about it, another thing that was odd was the way that Madoka was fighting. She could have used something more obviously an authority. I mean other than the whole Unlimited Blade Works imitation thing. Honestly it was like she was fighting just on or just above my level.
Modaka was fighting on my level. That really didn't make sense, unless… I frowned. Divine Ancestors are made out of gods and goddesses who have lost most of their power and authorities, right? That… That was… I started laughing.
"Madoka truly is a kind person, she went easy on me. This is exactly what she wanted!" I exclaimed, laughing.
"In a sense you could say that yes she did that she could be said to have only fought as hard on you as what was required" Mother-Pandora confirmed seriously. "But in another sense you could say she went hard on you. She used her more mundane abilities and generally left her Authorities alone. The only Authority that she used for much would be all the weapon summoning she did. But that doesn't mean she was weak, no I don't think she was that much weaker than what she would be if she was using all of her Authorities."
While my new mother was explaining I forced myself to sit up and turn to her.
"She wanted to become a Divine Ancestor, didn't she?" I inquired. Pandora nodded.
"Yes, you will be able to find her in Mitakihara." She said with her bubbly voice. Contrary to Worm canon and what should have warned me was the fact that while Leviathan's attack on Kyushu had been horrible for Japan they survived it like any other natural disaster they had faced if slightly worse. Sure Japan had some financial difficulties, but its recovery had been supported by the U.S. and China.
Wait, My brows furrowed wouldn't she have a memory full of holes? I looked at Pandora.
"It is possible with your third authority to give at least some of her memory back, it would be mostly of her human life." She answered my unasked question.
"Godou's still a campione right?" She nodded. "And probably tougher because of how much devastation Levithan wrought and the higher amount of capes." I mused and she nodded again.
"Although it could be said that my young son still has his false-pacifism, it could also be said that he does not rest on his laurels." She explained to me.
There was something else I was scared to ask…
I didn't want to think about it. I didn't want to ask, but…
"The Original Path is no longer optimal, is it?" A sardonic smile graced my face. With everything changed like this, I had no doubt that the solution would never be the original one.
"It never was." The All-Knowing Woman replied.
"But- haa, would the King of the End be able to save us with his army?" My objection fell silent before it could even begin. Consigning so many to death, I just couldn't abide by it.
"Maybe, but this isn't the time for maybes." She said.
"This is another plot of hers isn't it?" Sudden vitriol filled my voice. My hate was of restriction, of being told what to do, how things would be better if they could just!
No. There was no point to this line of thinking.
"Yes, Madoka is a god of pretty much everything, but only where magical girls are concerned. The Idea was to make a campione and then feed that campione many heretical gods. To put such a campone in a position of power and authority that they could command the others." Pandora explained to me. But…
"Why me?! Why make a new campione when you could just give that power to Godou or one of the other campione?!" I asked, turning a little hysterical.
"If Madoka's first focus was as a goddess of Hope, then her secondary focus as a goddess was Time and Fate. So, she looked and looked… and then she found you!" Mother-Pandora exclaimed.
"Me?" My voice trailed off, I wasn't any one special. I just had the chance to remember some things that were precious to me.
"One large problem she had was that she needed someone who wouldn't abuse the power they gained as a godslayer. Someone who would cause a large enough change in fate. A person who was willing to save Humanity. When you became a Campione in her visions of the possible future no matter the god you become great. You become yourself and not the shadow you were before." She explained.
I winced. What she was saying wasnt untrue. I'm not interested in doing anything big, no. I wasn't interested in becoming anyone big. What would be the point? Even if Scion miraculously died and Earth Bet was saved, I had already lived my life. The only reason I had been living this life was because of Missy, my little spark. She deserved to live a better life than she had in canon. No, even better than the one she has now.
I guess you could say I got attached before long. Haa~
"So, basically fight and kill some hertical gods, team up with the other campione and The King of the End?" I confirmed tiredly. She nodded. Haa~ This was all so serious. I need to add some levity.
"So, you're my new mother, right? That's how this goes if I remember correctly." I changed the topic of conversation after we both went quiet. Not replying like I expected, she tackle-hugged me while releasing a squeal of joy.
After spending a little longer talking with Mother-Pandora the white void of the Netherworld slowly turned as if into smoke or perhaps I was the smoke. After saying my goodbyes to Pandora, I finally fell back to sleep.
Or was I really awakening?
Seven individuals took notice as once more the birth of a new campione echoed throughout the world.
In the middle of a Hunt a young man with silver hair and glowing green eyes abruptly turned to the west and sharply smiled.
Startling awake, a beautiful martial artist stared out of one of her grand windows to the east, her beautiful silken hair slightly messy.
Walking between one time and another a girl with nun-like robes gave the sky a surprised and considering look.
A young man, with black hair and black eyes, paused while he was sipping his tea. Getting up as he stared out of the window of his mansion.
Walking out in the daylight, just past noon, a girl with red hair and blue eyes stared east.
One young man grinned at the thought of a new fight.
Finally, Just as he was getting his morning absolutions done, the last, the seventh, closed his eyes in both hope and exasperation.
AN: Haa~ This was honestly a bit of a slog for me to finish. But what did I expect when I haven't really written in like 3-4 years.
This fic was really just a plot bunny that got really out of hand. I got another couple chapters with basic outlines, so…
Anyway, this fic is a cross between Campione, Worm, and Puella Magi Madoka Magica. I was just going to sleep when I had this idea. I really just couldn't not write it.
I don't know how fast I might be in updating this as when I was making this chapter tons of things came up and had me push this back. But I do know I'm going to keep up with this for at least a couple more chapters.
Hopefully with the summer I'll have more time to work on this fic, I've already got a lot of ideas.
There were two- I men three main things/reasons why I actually wrote this and didn't just think of it as a passing fancy. One: Seerking's Campione of the Raging Tides. Two:The sheer plot-bunnyness forced me to write. And mainly Three: BloodWolfXIII's Blood and Steel with a Touch of Insanity.
It wasn't so much that I like his fic that much and more of the fact that I'm his beta. When given much of a chance we love to talk and discuss the future of his fic and more recently this one.
So I'm bullying him to become my beta! Muhahaha!
Until Next Time
Beta Note: It was a blast to beta this chapter! Hopefully FightingDragon will be able to continue this story into the foreseeable future -BloodWolf
