No one said anything at first. It all happened so quickly. One minute Sayaka and Kyoko were at each other's throats. The next minute they were far away from each other with Homura in between them. When Kyoko tried to attack Homura for interfering, she had suddenly appeared behind her without anyone noticing. The same thing happened to Sayaka, only this time she was struck down by her.
"Sayaka!" Madoka cried as the barrier disappeared allowing her and Mami to run over to her.
"Don't worry Madoka. She's only been knocked unconscious." Kyubey assured her.
"Man you are one strange case aren't you?" Kamina spoke up. "Why is it that everywhere we show up with Madoka, YOU just so happen to show up minutes later?" The expression on his face turned very suspicious. "There was only cannon fodder here as well! So why the hell did you show up?"
"Something's way off about you." Kyoko added much to Kamina's surprise. One minute she was full of anger and fighting spirit and now she suddenly cooled down. "Haven't I seen you somewhere before?"
"Maybe you have and maybe you haven't." Homura replied, in her usual emotionless tone. She then walked over to Madoka and Mami over Sayaka's body after Kyoko wall-jumped out of the area.
"What the-?!" Kamina shouted, shocked at her sudden departure. "Get back here you! There are a couple things I wanna ask-"
"How many times do I have to keep warning you?" She asked. Kamina stopped and turned around and looked at her as she spoke to Madoka. "How much more foolish can you get?" Her cold dark purple eyes gazed into Madoka's. "I've told you many times in the past. If reasoning with you won't work. I may have to take more drastic measures." She turned around and faced Kamina as he spoke up.
"Like hell you will!" Kamina retorted. "I don't know what exactly your problem is, but don't think you can threaten a friend of team Dai-Gurren and get away with it!"
"I'm not threatening anyone." Homura replied. She walked past Kamina and started to exit the area. Kamina growled. All of these damn secrets everywhere were really starting to piss him off. He sure as hell hated it when he had to use his brains more than his brawn! Kyoko was hiding something, Homura was hiding something, and most of all that damn white fuzzball was hiding something! Kamina had had enough.
"That's it. They want to play hide and seek so badly?" He thought to himself. "Fine then. Ready or not here I come!" Kamina and Mami both took Madoka and Sayaka back to their homes, but before they headed back to Mami's apartment, Kamina spoke up. "Hey blondie, you know that redhead chick really good right?"
"You mean Kyoko?" Mami asked as she hopped inside Lagann after dropping Madoka off at home. "Yes, I remember telling you that we were good friends before. Why Kamina-san?"
"I got a couple questions for that chick! Something's been bugging me about that fight she had with Sayaka, and I want to get to the bottom of it!" He replied. "So, any idea of where she might be?"
"There is one place she told me she likes to go to by herself in this city." Mami replied. Her expression on her face started to turn sad. "We might find her there, but listen to me Kamina-san. She is almost like me. She has no family or friends to go to." Now that surprised him. How could anyone go walking around with a mug like she had when she had no parents or friends? He remembered how depressed Simon was most of the time when his parents died in that earthquake. He would have been an emotional wreck his entire life had Kamina not have been there for him. So what was keeping that girl going?
Mami moved a bit faster with Lagann through the night. They went down various streets and turned past many different corners until they came across a strange place. To Kamina anyway. There were flashing lights of different colors everywhere. Strange noises were blaring from all around. Weird machines were set up with different images showing on them.
"This is an arcade." Mami stated. "People come down here to play different games with each other. Kyoko told me she liked to come down here by herself a lot."
"Sounds like my kind of place!" Kamina declared with a smile on his face. But he didn't forget the task at hand. Mami and Kamina looked all around them for any sign of Kyoko. Kamina had to literally force himself not to get distracted at all the interesting things around him. He made a mental note to come back to this place once he figured out everything. They continued to walk around in Lagann looking for her, until they finally found her. She was dancing on top of one of the machines. She had also apparently heard them coming. She stepped off of the machine and faced them.
"Well look who's back!" She stated. "Did you come back for more "magical boy?" She took one look at Lagann and laughed. "Is that the so-called "Gurren Lagann?" Did you wish for your action-figure to come to life or something?" Kamina grit his teeth and got out of Lagann hearing that.
"Don't you go insulting what my bro Simon dug up! This here is Lagann!" Kamina retorted while slapping the side of the mecha. "Listen here you redheaded chick! There's something that was bothering my gut about you ever since that little show you put on earlier!"
"Is this about me handing that Sayaka girls ass to her? You got a problem with that?" She stepped closer to Kamina and put her face close to his, grinning.
"Hell yeah I've got a problem with that! Why the hell were you holding back over there?" That question shocked both Mami and Kyoko as the latter stepped back one step. Why was he concerned with the fact that she was holding back against one of their own members? It didn't make sense at all to both of them. "The minute you said that you wanted to kill her is the minute you started holding back! I've been in a close-combat fight before kid, and I KNOW when someone's trying really hard to make you bite the dust!" He shot back at her, remembering his first encounter with Viral and his incredibly vicious offense. "So kid, why'd you say you wanted to kill her when you weren't trying to?" After hearing that, Mami got curious as well. She remembered Sayaka's wish, and then Kyoko's wish.
"Kyoko-san." Mami added. "Is this about the wish Sayaka made? Did you hear it from Kyubey?" Kyoko growled. She reached into a box she had in her hand and took out a small stick and started eating it.
"I don't know what the hell both of you are talking about." She angrily replied chewing on the stick. "I was putting everything I had into teaching that Sayaka girl a lesson! So what if I slowed down in the middle of it?"
"Kyoko-san, were you afraid of her ending up like you?" Mami asked her. Kamina looked surprised at that. What did her wish have to do with her not having a family like Mami?
"You listen to me Mami!" Kyoko shouted as she pointed her finger towards her and Kamina. "I told you already. The little team we once had is over. I'm using magic for myself and ONLY myself. I'm not fighting for justice or any of that other crap anymore! I don't know how many times I gotta smash that into your head!" Kamina noticed how quickly she responded to that. She said that immediately, and tried to drill it into their heads. She sounded almost panicked to him.
"Man, you're falling apart faster than an underground village during an earthquake!" Kamina shouted while smiling. "Come on, fess it up already. Why the hell are you so hell-bent on taking Sayaka and the mighty leader of team Dai-Gurren down?" He put on his glasses and started moving around in a fighting pose. "You really want to go through with it? We can go at it right now! Come on redhead! What are you a man or a mouse? Man or mouse man or mouse?" He teased, trying to provoke her. Mami was about to stop him before Kyoko would have a go at his challenge when someone else showed up.
"You can stop that this instant." Homura replied. Everyone turned to their left to find that she had sneaked up on them. "Kyoko Sakura is the most suitable person to be a magical girl in this city. Girls like Sayaka are not qualified." She continued while turning and facing Mami and Kamina.
"You again?!" Kamina shouted. "That's it, you've been keeping enough secrets missy! It's about time you fessed up to what you really want!" He pointed his finger at her.
"In two weeks, "Walpurgisnacht" will descend down on this city." Homura replied, making sure not to change her cold emotionless expression.
"Walpurgisnacht?" Mami asked.
"What the hell's a Walpurgisnacht?" Kamina asked as well, not understanding.
"From what I've heard, it is the most powerful witch any magical girl can face." Mami replied, her tone going cold and emotionless as well as she described it.
"Ohhhh, so it's like the big boss of the witches eh?" Kamina replied, grinning madly. "I've been waiting to take down something massive lately! So you're saying it makes all the other witches we fought seem like cannon-fodder?" He added as his excitement rose. He never forgot the feeling when he and Simon first saw the Dai-Gunzan.
Homura looked at Kamina with awe. He wasn't concerned about getting any Grief Seeds and was more excited about fighting something stronger than him. While keeping her composure under control, she continued her explanation.
"If you all want me to leave this city so badly, you will assist me in defeating Walpurgisnacht. You can take all the spoils of the battle. After we defeat it, I will leave the city."
"Is that really all of it?" Kamina asked, a confused look spreading across his face. "Look kid, team Dai-Gurren will hunt down all of the witches! You sure as hell didn't need to ask us that! If you wanted to join the team so badly all you needed to do was-"
"I have no interest in joining your group." Homura replied in her same deadpan tone. "My concern is only with the defeat of Walpurgisnacht." She turned around and walked a few steps away. "And Kyoko. Settle things with Sayaka as peacefully as possible and stay out of it. I will handle her."
"What do you mean by handle her kid?" Kamina replied. All of this cryptic information being tossed around was really pissing him off. She gave her no answer as she walked off and disappeared into the night. Kamina growled. He knew that if he chased after her she would just do her disappearing trick again. "Ugh, there she goes again."
"She truly does seem to be hiding something Kamina-san." Mami replied. Her expression changed from emotionless to somewhat sympathetic. "Although it might be just me, but I don't think she's as evil as I thought she was before. I just can't put my finger on it."
"Pfft! Who cares about that walking mystery girl?" Kyoko responded. "All I care about is that there's going to be a big-ass witch in two weeks! So if we end up fighting it together, stay out of my way! You got that?"
"Listen redhead." Kamina responded. "I know you really don't want to kill Sayaka. So until you're ready to fess up to what your real problem is, stay out of team Dai-Gurren's way!" He added. He hopped inside Lagann along with Mami.
"Kyoko-san. I'm sorry we had to meet again like this." Mami added as she turned around and left the arcade.
"I STILL can't believe we wasted our time with this." Kamina stated.
The next evening; Kamina, Sayaka, Madoka and Mami were in the exact same area where Kyoko and Sayaka fought from yesterday. Much to Kamina's reluctance, Sayaka had been hell-bent on finding the familiar that Kyoko let get away. Kyubey had informed them that too much time had passed and there was no way to track down the same familiar. Sayaka had very reluctantly accepted that when Madoka spoke up.
"Um…Sayaka-chan, don't you think we'll run into the girl from yesterday if we keep on fighting witches like this? If we do, shouldn't you make up with her beforehand?" Madoka asked with a worried expression on her face. She hated seeing her friend fighting with someone that should be their ally. "I mean…I really don't want to see you two fight again like yesterday."
"You think that was a fight Madoka?" Sayaka asked, in an angry tone Madoka almost never heard her use before. "After the first few hits, we were both sincerely trying to kill each other." Kamina and Mami's eyes widened at that. With what they heard from Kyoko last night, they knew that was probably false.
"Hold up there Sayaka!" Kamina held his hand up as he remembered the events from last night. "Call it a hunch, but I really don't think that girl was trying to kill you!"
"He's right Sayaka!" Mami added. "I knew her once before! She may be letting familiars get away, but she would never take another person's life!" Mami was shocked with the sudden anger she saw in Sayaka.
"Somehow, I doubt that because I was trying to kill her!" Sayaka shot back much to Mami and Kamina's shock. "She let a familiar get away just so it could kill innocent people just for a Grief Seed!" She pointed a finger at Mami. "Mami-san and Kamina, you of all people should be agreeing with me! We can't just let a girl like her keep doing what she's doing!"
"There's always going to be some asshole out there that's got his own way of doing things." Kamina replied, remembering the priest back in that poor village underground. "But that's not what you should be worried about here! What matters is taking out the witches and the cannon-fodder! THOSE are the real enemies!"
"You should listen to him Sayaka-chan!" Madoka added as well. "She's a magical girl and not a witch! Her methods may be different, but maybe we could be friends if we tried to get along with her! I bet it would work the same with Homura-chan too!"
"That's impossible!" She yelled at her. "Listen Madoka, I didn't become a magical girl just so I could defeat the witches."
"You're right." Kamina responded, he put his glasses on to hide the look in his eyes as he frowned. "You made the contract so your friend's hands would start working again. You only thought the witch-hunting with the rest of us was like a bonus." Sayaka looked at Kamina with a shocked expression.
"T-that is not true! I became a magical girl so I could protect those I loved! If there are humans out there that are worse than witches, then I'll take them down too! Even if they are magical girls!" Sayaka shouted at Kamina, who grunted. He was starting to see her go down the wrong path.
"Listen kid, you need to get a grip on what you really want out of life!" He pointed his finger at her as he looked down on her. "You need to understand that not everybody's going to follow your own set of rules! Forget about the paths others are taking and just keep going down the one you believe in!"
"But this IS what the path I believe in!" Sayaka shouted again. "I'm not going to let innocent people get killed. I'll kill all the familiars, the witches, and the magical girls that get in my way!" She then ran off on her own.
"Sayaka-chan! Come back, please!" Madoka cried.
"Don't worry about her Madoka." Kamina replied, smiling at her. "She just needs time to cool her head, that's all." On the inside though, Kamina didn't know what to think about Sayaka. The fight was with the witches not with each other! If there was one or two girls out there that didn't play by the rules, then why was she focusing on them more than the real enemies? Those thoughts rang through his mind as he and Mami took Madoka home. They decided to fight the rest of the witches by themselves tonight. They looked hard, but all they fought was one familiar. They saw how late it was and decided to call it quits for the day.
"I don't get it." Kamina said to himself as they walked back towards Mami's apartment during the night. "I don't get one damn bit of it! Why the hell is Sayaka so focused on fighting that redhead when our real enemies are the witches?!"
"I was surprised at her attitude as well." Mami replied. "But…I can see where she's coming from. She looks up to both of us for wanting to be allies of justice. But she thinks that everyone who doesn't share the same view on what justice is to her is her enemy."
"I like that she's willing to smash through whatever obstacle that's in her way, but she's confused on the difference between what's in her way and what isn't!" Kamina replied.
"I know Kamina-san, but we should still try to understand her so we-"
"Mami-san, Kamina!" Madoka's voice rang through their minds. "It's Sayaka! She's in trouble!
"Oh that's just brilliant. What's going on?!" Kamina telepathically replied back. He had to admit, that was one handy feature that fuzzball gave him, as much as he hated to admit it.
"She's getting into a fight with Kyoko again! Please hurry! They're on the highway bridge near Sayaka-chan's house!" Madoka replied, the voice in their minds sounding more and more panicked.
"Right. We're on our way!" Mami replied. Stopping everything, Mami turned around in Lagann and ran as fast as she could in the machine.
"Dammit, I told that redhead to stay out of our way!" Kamina shouted angrily. "This is only going to make matters worse with Sayaka!" As Mami drove Lagann as he thought this, he wondered to himself. Was this what Homura meant by him being unable to save Sayaka? Was she going to get herself killed in a battle with her? Like hell he'd let that happen!
"I can see the bridge Kamina-san! I can see Madoka and the others there too!" Mami replied. She looked closer. The expression on her face quickly became shocked along with Kamina's as they saw what was going on.
Sayaka was lying on the ground. Motionless. Madoka was over her body trembling and sobbing. Kyoko had been grabbing Kyubey by the throat. Mami and Kamina quickly got out of Lagann as soon as they arrived at the scene.
"What the hell happened here red-head! You didn't actually go through with it did you? Did you kill Saya-"
"She did not kill anyone Kamina." Kyubey replied. "Madoka did. She threw Sayaka's Soul Gem off of the bridge. A truck came along and it fell on it. I was just telling them here what happens when your Soul Gem is more than one-hundred meters away from your body. You know what happens right?" The creature stared at Kamina.
"What is he talking about Kamina-san?" Mami replied, worried as well. She had never had her Soul Gem away from her before. "What happens when you lose your Soul Gem?" Kamina remained silent. There was no more hiding it now. He had to break it to her.
"Blondie. When you made the contract with that fuzzball, he took your soul out of your body and put into that Soul Gem of yours." He said softly while glaring daggers at Kyubey for not telling the girls any of that himself. Mami of course, was shocked at this.
"What? K-Kyubey! Why didn't you tell me that?!" Mami shouted at him. She wondered why what she considered to be a good friend wouldn't tell her something as vital as that.
"You never asked." The creature bluntly replied. Kyoko tightened her grip on him.
"Didn't ask?! You're saying the reason you didn't tell us that turning us into magical girls would make us zombies is because we DIDN'T ASK?!" Kyoko shouted at him.
"You rarely have an accident like this." Kyubey replied, his tone not changing at all. "I tell you to always keep your Soul Gems with you, as it is the source of your magic. It's like I told you. Your real bodies are your souls, which we put into compact forms so you can fight the witches easier. You have experienced this first hand, but you have the uncanny ability to resist it the more you push it."
"I don't believe this!" Mami replied in shock. "You knew about this too Kamina-san? Why didn't you tell me earlier? He basically just said that I'm dead right now! I'm the very thing I wanted to avoid!" After Mami said that, something flashed through Kamina's mind. An image of a horrifying sight that he came face to face with inside Gurren back on his home world came into his mind as Homura appeared with Sayaka's Soul Gem.
"Damn this fuzzball." Kamina thought to himself. "I thought they would find out eventually but I didn't expect for them to all find out at once." He glared daggers at Kyubey. Fixing up the emotional wreck these girls were in was going to be harder than he thought. There was no way in hell he was going to just let these girls think that they were just skeletons laying in the ground! He was going to do everything in his power to convince them that their souls were always with them no matter what!
DAMN. Man this was a hard one to write. This was one of the major scenes in PMMM, so keeping everyone in character in this part was a nightmare. But I think I got everyone correctly. I think.
Anyway though, a couple announcements. One, I'm not going to offer a preview of the next chapter title anymore. Coming up with those on the spot is incredibly tiresome and I find it easier to call a give a chapter a title after I'm finished the chapter.
Second, I know I've been updating this like a madman, but starting tomorrow, I'm going to be busy with various things, so they might slow down a bit. How slow? Eh….I'd say about maybe two chapters a week. But this story is my No. 1 priority right now and I WILL finish this! I have great things in mind for this fic and I'm not letting them go to waste after all the positive feedback I've received!
Until next chapter!