Chapter Five: First Act

Although nobody knew it, Madoka had always been scared of crowds. It was fine when she was at school or shopping with Sayaka and Hitomi, because there you had room to move around, and nobody pressed in on you. In a tight crowd like the one quickly forming outside the Mitakihara Concert Hall, though, Madoka felt read to suffocate. She looked over at her mother, who was talking to a confused Tatsuya. "Mom, I feel a little sick. Is it okay if I go to get some fresh air?"

Junko handed Tatsuya to her husband and turned around. "Alright. Just keep your cell phone on, and don't wander too far. The police are here now, but I still don't want to take any chances." She gave Madoka a sympathetic smile. "I hate crowds like this too, but you look like you need a few minutes to yourself."

Grateful, Madoka turned and followed the faint night breeze that had penetrated the masses. Within a minute, she had reached the police blockade that was being set up around the building. She watched as the last of the shaken and angry musicians were escorted back to their hotels, and traced the movements of the officers coming in and out of the building. Faintly, she heard a short burst of static from a nearby police radio. There was a tap on her shoulder. "Excuse me miss, but you're a little closer to the police line than we would like. Would you mind stepping back a few feet?" As the woman said this, Madoka thought she saw a flash of red light on the roof of the concert hall. The policewoman noticed it too. "Don't worry, that'll just be a news helicopter coming to get the story. There's no way anyone could get onto that roof."

Madoka's curiosity had been raised, though. Surely it couldn't hurt to get a better view from a safe distance? Skirting around the barricade, she came to a stop outside a storefront directly across from the glass building. She was beginning to doubt the light's source had been so innocent. For one thing, it didn't make sense for a news helicopter trying to get a good shot to hover over the roof. And also, shouldn't the sound of a helicopter be a bit more obvious, even among the noise people were making? Madoka was debating whether or not she should just forget about it when she saw a blue flash from a nearby alleyway, followed by a familiar shout.

What would she be doing here? "Sayaka-chan?" she shakily called out. No answer. Her instincts were screaming at her to go and find her family, but something was pulling her forward, almost like a faint voice at the back of her mind.

As she came closer, she caught the sound of rushing water, and a green glow now mixing with the sky blue one. A brief cry of pain, the sound of footsteps, and a voice that was undeniably Sayaka's saying, "Yeah! Take that!" Madoka rounded the corner and came running into the alleyway, stopping at the sight of... what on Earth was Sayaka wearing?

It was definitely Sayaka, who raced over to Madoka instantly, alarm in her eyes. "I can explain!" she said. "Well, only sort of. It's gonna sound crazy, but it only just happened around ten minutes ago. We were all running out of the concert hall, then there was this weird white cat thing, and-"

"I can take it from here, Sayaka Miki." Out of nowhere, a strange creature appeared next to Sayaka. "Hello, Madoka Kaname." It looked directly up at her as it said this, and Madoka realized it was talking to her mentally. Alright, one more strange thing that would hopefully be explained. "I've had my eye on you for quite some time, so now would probably be best to explain all of this. Your friend Sayaka has already become involved."

"I-involved?" Madoka stammered. "What do you mean by that?"

The cat blinked, flicking its tail. "My name is Kyubey. I want you to make a contract with me and become a magical girl!"

"Magical girl?" The image of her fighting in a frilly pink dress with an improbable weapon, cute attack names, a talking animal sidekick, and a mysterious hero coming to her rescue filled her mind. "I don't think I'm the right person for that."

"You have a vast amount of potential. If you contracted with me, you would probably have enough power to achieve anything!"

Madoka looked up from the strange animal to Sayaka. The bizarre outfit, the sword clenched in one hand, the faint blue glow surrounding her, it was all coming together. "And you've already made this contract, Sayaka-chan?"

Sayaka grinned. "Yup! Like I said, it's only been for around ten minutes, but things have been really cool so far!"

"And there's a lot you need to learn. That was just a taste of what being a magical girl is like. You don't usually have to go after other magical girls, though. Your main prey are witches."

"Wait," Madoka said. "So you were fighting other people?"

Sayaka looked down. "Yeah, it did feel kind of wrong. But Kyubey said they were dangerous. Actually, he told me that you would be in danger if I didn't make a contract with him."

"And we're not out of danger yet," Kyubey chimed in. "Mami, what's the situation?"

A new, slightly older-sounding voice entered the conversation. "It's not good, Kyubey. This isn't just any rogue magical girl, it's Kyoko Sakura. I just saw her a few minutes ago on the rooftop. It looks like she provoked a fight with some of those other girls we were planning to approach."

"Come find us in the alleyway," Kyubey instructed. "I have a new magical girl who just contracted that you'll want to meet. There's also a potential who's a friend of hers."

"Potential?" Madoka still wasn't sure she liked the idea of all this. "Do I have time to make a decision?"

"In this case, yes," Kyubey said. "Enough time to think of a sufficient wish, at least."

"Now, now, Kyubey," a new voice spoke up. A familiar-looking girl with curly blonde hair emerged from the shadows, giving Sayaka and Madoka a friendly smile. "Nobody likes a boy who pressures girls into things. I'm sure she must be feeling rather overwhelmed." She turned to where Madoka and Sayaka were standing. "I'm Mami Tomoe, by the way. As you can probably tell by the outfit, I'm a magical girl too."

"Sayaka Miki. Hey, I think I've seen you before!" Sayaka said rather randomly. "You're a third-year at Mitakihara Middle School, right? Hey, Tomoe-san?"

Mami had frozen in place, eyes narrowed. "Behind me, both of you. Now." In a brief gold flash, five muskets appeared in front of her.

"Wh-what's wrong?" Madoka stuttered, following the older girl's instructions. Sayaka quickly joined her, the three of them forming an odd triangle.

Without warning, all five of Mami's muskets went off at once, filling the alleyway with small bursts of yellow light and overwhelming sound. Seconds later, their surroundings disappeared, only to be replaced by... a beach? "Uh, what just happened?" Sayaka asked, echoing Madoka's thoughts rather well.

"We've stumbled into a labyrinth," was Kyubey's response. "My preoccupation in finding you two took priority over sensing the Grief Seed."

Mami closed her eyes, obviously thinking the situation through. "Alright, I want you two to stay very close. Miki-san, this is where magical girls typically fight. Each labyrinth is different, and anything can happen once you're inside, so don't run off on your own." As if to reinforce this point, what seemed to be a seashell with arms and legs began stumbling towards them. Mami held out her hand, and two gold ribbons bound it to where it stood, at which it fell limp.

"We're in luck," she sighed. "It looks like this witch is one of the more docile ones we'll encounter. Don't let that fool you into taking it easy, though. Every witch has the power to kill, and many magical girls have lost their lives because they charged in without thinking and expected it to be an easy fight." At this statement, Sayaka gulped. Based on the look in her friend's eyes, Madoka could tell Sayaka was starting to rethink making such a hasty decision. Mami turned around, looking the two girls over. "I can tell what you're wondering. Once you make the contract, you're in it for life. That's why I usually discourage contracting on a whim."

Running ahead, she gestured for Sayaka and Madoka to follow. "One thing all Soul Gems can do is illuminate the safest path through the labyrinth," Kyubey explained. "Yours should be working in sync with Mami's, Sayaka." Sayaka looked down at what Madoka now realized wasn't just an accessory decorating her stomach. The clear blue crescent was giving off a faint light that floated in the direction Mami was running.

"That's awfully convenient," Sayaka noted. Becoming a magical girl must have made her friend a better athlete, because Madoka was scrambling to keep up. Then again, her dress wasn't making things any less difficult.

"Kyubey, what's at the end of a labyrinth?" she panted in between breaths.

"A witch. They're the usual foes of magical girls. That's what Mami was talking about earlier. I've found that potentials seeing a battle with a witch is usually what convinces them whether or not they want to contract."

"Here we go!" Mami called from up ahead. Madoka felt a slight pulling, and suddenly all three girls shot forward down a long hallway of doors. In the distance, Madoka heard the roaring, crashing sound of waves in a storm. And the witch appeared.

The witch initially appeared to be a solid column of seawater, with a wreath of palm fronds where the "head" would be. However, sand began to rise up around the witch and morph into various weapons, while more attached itself to the witch's body to form arms. Madoka felt a slight sucking at her feet, and let out a yelp as she lifted her foot to find herself sinking down.

"Kaname-san!" Mami called out. Holding out her hand, a platform of golden ribbons appeared beneath Madoka, lifting her several feet into the air for good measure. "Stay there! Labyrinths tend to affect humans differently than they do magical girls! Miki-san and I will defeat the witch!"

Madoka nodded, her heart now pounding harder than ever. She would have been pulled under without even realizing it! What has Sayaka-chan just gotten herself into? This is no place for a human, magical powers or not!

Mami and Sayaka leapt into the air, forming a gold-and-sapphire spiral around the witch as their attacks slowly worked their way up and down its body, occasionally dodging the witch's attempts at hitting them. After a minute or so, Mami reappeared beside Madoka, frustration obvious in her eyes. Sayaka jumped down next to her, breathing heavily and looking disheveled.

"What's going on?" Madoka asked.

"I wasn't expecting it, but the witch has a sort of armor made up of shells and rocks under that water," Mami murmured, eyes clouding over in thought. "Alright, here's what we'll do. First, we're going to attack the same point on the witch together. Then, I'm going to blast a hole through the witch's armor with an extremely powerful attack. Miki-san, the second that's done, you're going to go in and start slicing with your swords before the witch can regenerate. I can only use this attack once, so neither of us can afford to hesitate. Do you think you can do that?" Sayaka looked hesitant, but she nodded after a moment.

Mami summoned up ten rifles, and fired them at a spot roughly in the center of the witch. Sayaka followed the bullets, cutting into the witch with her blades wherever the blasts didn't hit. "Miki-san, get out of the way!" Mami shouted above the noise. As Mami pulled the necktie around her throat loose, Madoka couldn't help but gasp as it morphed into an enormous gun-cannon. The curly-haired girl winked at her companion, then called out, "Tiro Finale!" A beam of golden light shot straight towards the witch, tearing a gaping black hole right through her. Sayaka charged - but was thrown back by a sudden swat from the witch! "No!" Mami and Madoka both cried.

Forgetting the danger, Madoka jumped down from the platform to rush to her friend's aid alongside the veteran magical girl. Sayaka was laying sprawled out on her back, hand over her stomach, teeth clenched in obvious agony. The light from her Soul Gem - was it just Madoka, or was it starting to look a little dimmer? - was frantically weaving in and out of the blue magical girl's body. "What's happening to her?" Madoka half sobbed, half shrieked.

"Healing magic, nothing to worry about!" Mami called back, kneeling down beside Sayaka and holding her spare hand. "I'll try to send her some too, so she doesn't exhaust her Soul Gem too quickly!" The gem decorating her hairpin began to glow in harmony with Sayaka's.

Madoka briefly glanced back towards the witch. The hole in its center was still mending, although it was now a lot smaller. If Sayaka was even able to get up, could she still hope to fit inside?

Out of the corner of her eye, Madoka saw a red flash, followed by the world turning scarlet for a brief moment. The roaring sound intensified to where Madoka thought she might go deaf - and nothing. Opening her eyes, she saw they were back in the same alleyway, with a new magical girl in a blood red overcoat bending over to pick something up. Mami moved in front of her, looking as though to protect her.

"Kyoko Sakura. What brings you back to Mitakihara?"

The new girl turned around, something small and black now held in her hand. "Actually, you. Although I see you have company. More competition?"

"You and I never did see eye-to-eye on sharing territory." Mami shook her head, a look that almost seemed to be sadness in her eyes. "I haven't seen you in over a year. I doubt you came back just to say hello."

"Sharp as always," Kyoko said. "Although I'd rather we talked about this privately." She gave a very clear glance towards Madoka and Sayaka.

"I don't see the harm in discussing it here," Mami replied. "One is just a potential, and the other is so injured she can barely move. What could they do with whatever information you seem to have?"

Kyoko sighed. "Alright, you win. There are some new magical girls in town giving off magic energy I don't like. But the thing is, I just fought a few of them off, and they were complete amateurs. It doesn't match up, and I figured you might know something since you have been at this longer." Her tone made it clear she meant that Mami should hope she knew something.

"Were they wearing outfits will sailor collars?" Mami said. Kyoko nodded. Mami thought for a moment, then held her hand out. "I'll tell you what I know in exchange for what you have there. If things haven't changed, you should have some spare ones wherever you're living while you're here?" Kyoko looked down at the thing in her hand, scoffed, and tossed it towards Mami.

Catching it, the yellow-haired girl turned and bent down over Sayaka, swiping her hand over Sayaka's Soul Gem. Madoka saw something small and black fly into Mami's palm, but the lighting in the alleyway was too dim to get a good look at whatever she was holding. Turning back to Kyoko, Mami continued, "I found myself in a tricky situation in a labyrinth this afternoon. One of them showed up and defeated the witch. If she hadn't, I think it would be safe to say I wouldn't be standing here now. But you're right, she seemed to have no idea what the witch actually was. She even left the Grief Seed for me to take, despite the fact that it was her kill. And there wasn't any sign of a Soul Gem on her."

"Then it's the same," Kyoko affirmed. "What do you think, Kyubey?" Madoka looked around, having almost forgotten the white cat was there. "Well, as much as the idea contradicts the contracting system, it might be more logical to assume that these newcomers are a different type of magical girl than you or Mami. There's no record of Michiru Kaiou ever being contracted, and I remember every girl I've ever come into contact with."

"A different kind of magical girl?" Mami said, her face a mixture between disbelief and thought. "That would explain a lot..."

Kyoko tossed her head. "Well, I don't care what kind of magical girls they are. They're still threats in my book. That reminds me, there's another girl who's definitely one of us with me tonight. She sneaked inside the concert dome, but-"

"I am here." Madoka whipped around, feeling like she had heard that voice before. In the entrance to the alleyway stood a dark girl who seemed to have materialized out of thin air.

Something clicked in Madoka's mind. "Wait, you're the new student who transferred into class last week! Akemi-san, right? You're a magical girl too?"

"That is correct." She strode past Sayaka, who was beginning to sit up, glanced at Mami and Madoka (had her gaze lingered for just a bit longer on her, Madoka thought?), and stood beside Kyoko.

"Well, one thing seems clear to me," Kyoko declared. "We've got nine magical girls we know nothing about, and for now we should assume them as a common enemy. Although I'd rather not hang around for any longer than I'd like, three extra magical girls could come in handy."

"Two," Mami interjected, gesturing to Madoka. "Kaname-san is still a potential. She only just became involved tonight."

"Alright, two. That could still come in handy if a counterattack gets launched. Assuming they find us, of course. I guess the goal is to get to them first. Unless there's anything you want to add?" Kyoko turned to Homura. The dark magical girl looked as though she thought something over, but then she shook her head. There was no doubt about it this time though, she had definitely looked Madoka's way.

Mami looked ready to decline, but Sayaka managed to stand up and say, "I think we should take them up on that, Mami-san. This Sakura-san is powerful. She took out that witch with one hit. What harm could teaming up for a couple days do?"

Madoka looked towards Kyubey to see if he offered an opinion, but the white cat seemed content to watch. Mami still seemed uncertain, but slowly nodded. "Great," Kyoko sighed. "Then I guess we get to be stuck together like old times."


At the moment, Makoto Kino was both extremely angry and extremely in pain - a dangerous combination for the Senshi of lightning. After a trip to the hospital that had resulted in fifteen stitches in her leg and orders for Makoto to stay in bed and do nothing for at least half a week, all ten of the girls and Mamoru had regrouped in Michiru's hotel room.

To say morale was low would have been an understatement. "We went down entirely too easily!" Haruka declared, too caught up in her own anger to notice Minako proclaiming the exact same thing.

Ami nodded at Setsuna, who drew in a deep breath and faced her fellow guardians. "Alright, I won't try to deny that was a complete failure. We all made mistakes, so let's not take it out on just ourselves or one other person. This has highlighted some issues we need to take care of before getting into any more battles." She first turned to Usagi, who still looked a bit pale. "Usagi, I know you had good intentions, but you can't use the Legendary Silver Crystal so carelessly next time. You need a way to channel its energy, trying to use it in its purest form nearly killed you. Maybe you could try to create a new weapon since the Eternal Tiare was destroyed inside the Galaxy Cauldron?"

Usagi looked unsure, but Mamoru took her hand. "We'll find a way," he said.

"I'll leave that to you two, then." Setsuna looked down at her own hands, then back at Ami and Hotaru. "As for the rest of us, we were foolish to split up like we did. We underestimated our enemy, and our princess was endangered because of it. Unfortunately, save for Haruka, Hotaru, and I, most of you aren't equipped in your Senshi forms for the type of combat we were engaged in. In short, we not only need to develop a new fighting style, we need to develop one fast. There's no telling when or where these other magical girls may try to pick a fight again, and none of us can afford to be caught off guard as severely next time." Sitting down, she looked around at her companions. "Does anyone have thoughts they would like to add?"

Makoto gave a grunt from the bed to get everyone's attention. "Yeah, I have a couple. For one, does anyone actually know who these girls are? Or anything about the reach of their powers? The girl that rushed me was summoning a ton of swords out of thin air, but she also had some effect on the water around us, kind of the same thing Ami-chan and Michiru-san have. She sliced open a pipe with one of her swords, and sort of directed the water to hit me in the face with another. Then she managed to cut me while I couldn't see. The only reason she wasn't able to do more was because Ami-chan countered with Mercury Aqua Rhapsody. She created some mist, and we managed to get away. We met up with Michiru-san and Setsuna-san at the emergency exit, and that's when everyone else got there."

"The girl I fought had even stranger powers," Hotaru chimed in. "At first it seemed like she just had a gun, but when I went to attack her, she literally vanished into thin air. Then she reappeared behind me not even a second later! She blasted me with some kind of magic, and that's how she managed to knock me out."

"Could super-speed be a possibility?" Ami asked.

"I don't think it's that simple," Haruka murmured. "She got me with the same trick too. If she had been manipulating the air in any way, I of all people would have been able to tell."

At this statement, Setsuna opened her mouth, as though she had an idea, but closed it a moment later. She knows something, Makoto thought. Maybe she's seen something like this in the past? She has been Sailor Pluto for thousands of years.

Makoto turned to Setsuna to ask this, but at that moment, Usagi gave a whimper. "Usa!" Mamoru cried as she collapsed in his arms.

"It's my chest," she cried. "It feels like I'm burning from the inside out!" Without warning, Minako swooped down and ripped the pendant containing the Legendary Silver Crystal from Usagi's neck. Sure enough, where the Crystal had been resting on Usagi's collarbone, there was an angry red burn mark.

"Ah!" Minako shouted, dropping the Crystal onto the floor. "It feels like I just pulled it out of a fire!"

"I'll contain it!" Setsuna said. Transforming, she pointed the Garnet Rod towards the Crystal, encasing it in a small pink bubble. At this point, the Crystal had begun to dimly glow. "That should keep its power at a stable level," Setsuna sighed, returning to her civilian form. "Good job getting it away from the princess, Minako-san. If given a few more seconds, the Crystal's power could have killed her, and potentially us as well."

Mamoru knelt down next to Usagi, gently shaking her shoulder. "Usa? Are you alright?" Usagi didn't stir.

"Usagi?" Rei said, rushing to her princess' side. "Usagi, wake up! Now isn't the time!" Still nothing. Then, Usagi gave small breath, causing some of the hair that had fallen in her face to flutter. "Usagi!" Rei looked on the verge of sobbing. "Why is everyone just standing there? Someone call for help!" she shrieked, half hysterical.

Michiru was the first to react, diving into her purse and emerging with a white smartphone in hand. Dialing the number for emergency services, she let out a cry of relief as someone on the other end picked up almost immediately. "Hello? Yes! My name is Michiru Kaiou! I'm staying at - yes, that Michiru Kaiou - I always appreciate fans, but - I really don't think this is the - THERE IS A GIRL HERE WHO HAS COLLAPSED, YOU ARE BEING PAID TO SEND AN AMBULANCE TO MY LOCATION, AND I WILL CERTAINLY NOT BE SENDING YOU MY AUTOGRAPH AFTER THIS SERVICE!" Taking a quick moment to inhale and exhale, she returned to her phone with her typical expression back. "Now then, I am staying in Room 396 at the Mitakihara Grand Hotel, and is there anything we should do for her while we're waiting for the ambulance? Alright, thank you!" Hanging up, she looked around, seemingly surprised at the shocked faces staring back at her. "They put a different operator on," she explained.

"Give the princess some space," Setsuna said, helping Rei up. "I'll see to it that the Crystal stays secure." Makoto could already see blue lights flashing outside the window.

What nobody saw was the thin, almost invisible crack that had blossomed from the top of the Crystal.


Homura acted swiftly, seizing Madoka's wrist and pulling her to the side while Mami, Kyoko, and Sayaka went ahead to make sure nobody would see five battered teenage girls wandering out of an alleyway. Nobody was in the mood to be questioned by the police for another two hours (or, in Kyoko's case, stay there waiting for a bail that wouldn't come). "Ah!" Madoka said. "What was that for?"

"I apologize if I hurt you, but it is imperative that you know the risks of being a magical girl," Homura responded. "You see, magical girls-"

"All clear!" Kyoko called from the street. "Sheesh, what's taking you two so long?"

Madoka turned to Homura, smiling. "Akemi-san, I appreciate it, really. But I saw what happened to Sayaka-chan in the labyrinth. As much as I want to help her, I just don't think I'm cut out for that."

Homura sighed with relief. This universe seemed to be on her side so far in terms of keeping Madoka safe. "That's good. Because no matter what that thing - Kyubey - (it hurt to say the abomination's name) tells or offers you, you must not make the contract. Do you understand?" Madoka seemed startled by the intensity in Homura's voice, but she nodded. Homura let her go. "Good."

As Madoka left to join the others, Homura turned around to be greeted by none other than Kyubey itself. "Interesting. You can sense the insane amount of power she has, can't you? All the more reason to keep an eye on you, Homura Akemi."

In that moment, Homura had never wished harder that killing an Incubator was as easy as killing a witch.