The stars were strange here, Marisa noted, sketching away the vast night sky into her grimoire. Laid back on a rooftop, far from the industrial cities of the Outside World she knew, the stars shone brightly above her.
She knew every star by name, every constellation and how they had come to be placed there by the gods a myriad years before her time, their stories forever told and retold by humans. She wondered where these stars had come from, what legendary heroes had been put there in commemoration of some great deed. She wondered if it got dull up there. Maybe she'd ask one of the Celestials the next time she saw one.
Being put up among the stars was not for this witch, though. Being immortalised was enticing, but there really wasn't any point if she was stuck up there forever. Heck, did someone really still count as human if they did that?
She chewed on some bread she'd borrowed. The legends themselves, on the other hand, they were always interesting.
On the quiet streets below, IDW regarded the figure in front of her. The human girl wouldn't stop crying, regardless of how IDW tried to console her. She wasn't really equipped for this, but she couldn't just leave the poor girl. She dug around in her bag, finding some lollies that she'd been saving for later. She'd been looking forward to them, but still...
"H-hey, nya. You can have these." She crouched down before the girl, holding the candy where she could see. "Go on."
Hesitantly, the girl's tiny hand closed around the sweet. She fumbled with the wrapper for a moment, the candy almost dropping out of its packaging before IDW caught it.
"So, nya, where are your parents?"
The girl popped the lolly into her mouth. "I dunno… They said there were monsters out this late, so I shouldn't stay out so late. You don't think they got eaten?!"
"No, no, no! No way!" IDW saw the tears rising in the girl's eyes, and tried to reassure her in any way she could. "Look, I'll help you find them!" She put on a toothy smile, and the girl had no choice but to smile at the goofy grin. As she took her hand, IDW led her down the street.
She'd been walking for over an hour now. She needed a break, and so did the girl, so the two of them found a bench to sit on. She wished the rest of her team were there. She wasn't a smart cat, and she knew it. Lee Enfield would have thought of some great plan, or perhaps Welrod would have already known where to go. She could almost hear Bren chewing her out for being so stupid, starting something she couldn't deal with and then getting lost in this weird town. Some tea, maybe? That sounded like something L85 might do at a time like this. It was better than anything IDW could come up with, so she rummaged around in her backpack for her tea maker.
The tea was warm, though she had to wait a moment for it to cool down before she gave it to the girl. The steam brought a nice sensation to the air, and gave the two of them some time to think.
"Do you think my parents are worried about me?"
"Nya? I mean, yeah, of course they are! They're probably out looking for you. I'm sure if we keep looking, we'll find them."
"But there are monsters at night! That's why they said that I should never ever go outside when it's dark."
"Nya!" A chill ran up IDW's spine. "B-but monsters aren't real, right? That's just a story, right, nya?"
The girl looked at her with an expression that was like those she had often gotten from the other girls around the base.
"S-seriously?"
The girl looked worried now. "H-hey! Don't worry! Did I ever tell you that I'm a pro bodyguard? I've protected all kinds of people, even the Commander! I'll keep you safe, I promise! Next morning, we'll find them for sure. Don't worry about a thing." She let her mouth split into a happy smile. After a moment, the girl returned it.
"That's terribly sweet," came a low, feminine voice from behind them, "but I'm afraid neither of you will see the sun's light ever again."
IDW turned, tucking the girl under her body as she drew her weapon. "Hold it!" she yelled. "I'll shoot you!"
A pair of red eyes loomed from the darkness. While she was extravagantly dressed, IDW didn't detect any weapons on her, other than the parasol hung over her wrist. She didn't have anyone else helping her; it was just the woman, alone. Her shoes clacked against the stone paving as she approached, unblinking eyes locked on to IDW.
She didn't flinch as IDW fired her warning shot. "I said not a step closer! Who are you?"
"Ah, how rude." The smile on the woman's face began to show her teeth. "Yuuka Kazami. Professional monster."
"I'm gonna need you to be real quiet for a moment," IDW whispered to the girl. "And be really brave."
Magical bolts flew towards them, slamming into the bench and tearing it apart as IDW ducked out of the way. Steadying herself, she raised her gun, only for Yuuka to appear much closer than she'd expected. Her parasol came down in a savage arc. IDW jumped back nimbly, the girl still under one arm. The blow shattered the paving, sending chunks of rock into the air. IDW opened fire, the bullets only grazing Yuuka as she stepped to one side with a speed that belied her stature.
IDW kept moving, taking the opportunity to put some distance between them. She leveled her weapon, putting a burst of accurate fire into the woman's midsection. She fell to one knee, and for a moment, IDW thought she'd brought her down.
Yuuka pushed herself up, uncaring of the pain, her body lurching forward as though propelled by some malign force. Her first swing forced IDW back, followed by a kick that caused her to cry out in pain as her arm buckled under the force of the blow. She couldn't move freely, and felt her arm loosen its grip on the girl, servos flicking bits of fluid from her torn flesh as she willed them to move.
IDW screeched, emptying her gun into Yuuka's grinning face. The bullets mangled it, but to her horror, were soon pushed from her flesh as it reformed once more. Yuuka grabbed the gun, crushing it under her grip, parts clanging off the pavement.
"Run!" she yelled, biting down on the hand that held the parasol. She couldn't see what the girl was doing behind her, but saw the parasol fall from Yuuka's hands as the woman's face twisted into a mask of disgust. Then, IDW felt herself lifted, before she was smashed into the ground.
The girl ran, screaming, as red eyes emerged from the smoke.
"Nights are such a tiring time," Yuuka mumbled. "And children's cries irritate me." She picked up her parasol, lazily raising it towards the girl. "The night is for sleeping. Time to put you to bed."
Light shone from the parasol, illuminating the park and the surrounding streets with a massive rainbow beam of magical energy. The girl ran, the light consuming everything around her.
IDW, her body falling apart, threw what she had left at Yuuka's arm. The light disappeared. Even if she didn't remember this when she next woke up, she knew she had to do it. Yuuka shook her off.
"You humans are certainly tenacious. As a reward, I'll obliterate you thoroughly."
IDW could do nothing but watch as Yuuka turned her parasol upon her.
The light filled the world once more. IDW's optics readjusted, her sensors telling her that yes, she was still alive.
"Move, and I'll shoot!" The witch's voice echoed through the silent town, the girl huddling behind her cape. "Ah, crap, I messed up my entrance again."
"You're meant to say that BEFORE you shoot me," Yuuka growled.
"Wasn't me," Marisa insisted unconvincingly, magical energy still radiating off her mini-hakkero. "Anyway, I got things to do, so how's a 1-hit KO match sound?"
"That one didn't count."
Marisa shot another beam at Yuuka, who was decidedly unamused.
"First to three?" Marisa suggested.
Author's Notes
I suddenly had the urge to write a thing for Marisa, and ended up writing about IDW again instead. I do quite enjoy doing stuff like this with a freeflow story, though. IDW's really taken off as a character after being a meme for so long, what with the VallHalla collab and her neural upgrade story. Marisa will probably have to wait a bit longer to get her own focus. Or until next chapter, if I decide to write a fight between her and Yuuka.