Yahallo!

Last chapter was one of those where I was nervously refreshing the review page waiting to hear how it was received! Stressful, stressful. So an extra special thank you to everyone that reviewed!

We now present part 3 of episode 2. Hope you enjoy! Sorry, I couldn't resist some more action . . .

Our Magic!
Episode 02: Luna Nova Over Capacity
Part III

By the third day without magic, every witch at Luna Nova was at their wit's end. Thankfully, that was also the day when Diana had come up with a plan. The issue was too much magic, so they just had to do something with all that extra magic. The solution: a campus-wide gravity spell designed to safely catch falling witches from brooms.

The ritual was very pretty and involved multiple professors joining in a circle with Diana at their center. Surrounded by blue crystals, Diana's voice rose above the chorus of her teachers to cast the spell she had designed with Chariot's input.

It lasted for about 3 seconds.

Afterwards, anyone and anything not tied down for a mile from their circle began to float in midair.

With a pained expression on her face, Diana canceled the spell and broke the circle's magic. She fell to her knees. Chariot landed nimbly and rushed over to console her. Diana pounded the ground in frustration, "It was just too much magic."

"It wasn't a bad idea, Diana, but we can't control magic the way we're used to. Not even you have any experience channeling that much magic."

"No, but you do. We should have had you at the center," Diana was glad for something to take her mind off her failure, and analyzing the results was enough for her to detach the emotional centers of her brain.

"We went over this already Diana, we needed me in the circle to guide the other professors."

Diana chewed her thumb in a rare display of public frustration, "If we could just sap the Stone's power enough to temporarily work magic normally, this ritual would work!"

"Yes, I agree, but we don't have a way to sap the . . . " she trailed off in thought.

"What is it? Do you know of a way to absorb the magic?"

Chariot shook her head, "It's not something we can do anymore, but if we had the Shiny Rod, it could absorb magic and work as a portable Sorcerer's Stone. Not something we have as an option now."

Diana nodded, "True, but it is still worthwhile to know that would have been an option. What about an artificial Shiny Rod?"

"Croix—well, I wasn't supposed to take her out last time, so I burned some of my bridges with her facility. I doubt they'd let me speak to her about making an artificial Shiny Rod, and it's not like the last time was a rousing success or anything."

By this time, the other professors had collected themselves and joined Chariot and Diana. Their platitudes washed over her, but she ignored them, seeking out the red eyes she knew would be watching her. Akko frowned from the shadows of the dormitory building. Diana blinked back tears and shook her head.

ФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФ

"Well, this sucks!" Amanda grumbled for all of them, red, green, and blue teams altogether in their misery, sitting in the cafeteria after lunch. "I can't believe that didn't work."

Akko shook her head, "But it's not like not using magic is all that bad, right? We're learning a lot of theory after all."

"Are you still suffering from the effects of my poison, Akko?" Sucy asked her.

Akko shook her head violently, "Um, I thought we agreed not to bring that up?"

Hannah laid her hand on Akko's hand. Barbara's head whipped around and her gaze locked on the movement. "Akko, don't you think it's about time you told everyone?"

Diana placed her hand over Hannah and Akko's, "I agree, Akko. You have delayed for nearly ten days."

Akko swallowed nervously, "Like, all of it? I already told everyone I wasn't allowed to use magic."

"Yeah, which is why you're not bothered by the rest of us not being able to use it."

"Of course I'm bothered, Amanda!" Akko refuted, "I want everyone to love and use magic!" Diana looked at her unblinkingly. Akko nodded and both Diana and Hannah gave her a squeeze before withdrawing. "The truth is, I am not allowed to use my magic—even though I had previously actually totally lost it and just got it back and it's even more amazing than ever—because Diana and Chariot and Croix think it might—mumble mumble." She trailed off so no one could hear her.

"What was that, Akko?" Barbara asked. The least she could do is answer completely after Hannah and Diana held her hand.

"I SAID IT MIGHT KILL ME!" Akko shouted loudly.

The rest of the cafeteria looked over at the disturbance, saw who was making it, and went back to their meals and conversations.

Everyone began talking at once.

"What do you mean it might kill you?!"
"Magic is hurting you?!"
"What can we do to help?!"
"You drank a magic potion when you can't use magic?!"
"bzt—This is not good!"
"I've lost my appetite."

Everyone turned to stare at Jasminka at that declaration, and then their heads slowly pivoted back to Akko. Diana came to her rescue, "Yggdrasil itself is flowing through her directly. We do not know much, but the most apt metaphor I have found is she is a wax candle, and her accessing Yggdrasil is like placing that candle next to a roaring bonfire. Indeed, the candle will catch and provide some illumination, but it will devour her."

Sucy sniffled and hugged Akko, "You're too stupid! You need to tell us these things. I would have never given you that potion if I had known. What if it had needed your magic to activate?"

"Oh, I hadn't thought of that," Akko said nervously, now thinking about it.

Lotte hugged her from the other side, "Don't you trust us? Why didn't you tell us?"

Akko looked pleadingly at Diana, "My smile?" Akko nodded and Diana returned it, "Ahem, well. Since finding out about Akko, I have been—shall we say—depressed."

"It totally sucks, guys! She barely smiles and she looks at me all sad."

"You're dying! We're allowed to be sad," Amanda was the one that managed to say that through her tears. Constanze had her head down so no one could see her cry, but the soft whimpers she made were heard by everyone. Jasminka was not smiling, and she was not eating either.

Barbara glomped Hannah, "I can't believe you knew and had to go through knowing too. I'm so sorry for how jealous I've been lately."

"The thing is, I don't think I'm dying."

At that revelation, everyone turned to look at her and Sucy and Lotte detached. Barbara continued to hold onto Hannah however. Diana frowned at her. "Please explain, Akko."

"Well, I've been reading and stuff, and Yggdrasil isn't a fire. It's more like she's a river. Well, a bunch of rivers, spreading out all across the world, and the Grand Triskelion made all those rivers overflow so that water—that's magic I mean—is flooding everywhere in-between the rivers—which are the leylines."

"What are you in this metaphor, a lake?" Sucy asked.

"I'm like an otter that gets to swim wherever she wants now!" Akko offered helpfully.

"An otter?" Lotte asked, "Why an otter?"

"Indeed. What evidence do you have that you are swimming and not drowning?" Diana seconded.

"Well, like, it doesn't feel bad."

"May I remind you that you passed out hundreds of feet in the air the last time you used magic?"

"That was after using the Words! And a bunch of them! And back-to-back!"

"You can use the Words again, Akko?" Lotte exclaimed.

"It's like I don't even need the Shiny Rod, or more like, I am the Shiny Rod!" Akko was excited to share that bit of news.

"Enough! If we had the Shiny Rod the rest of us would be able to use the Sorcerer's Stone, you are desperate to prove me wrong for believing in you!" Diana stood and stormed away.

Akko gestured at Diana, "See, this is the sort of thing that made me hesitate to tell you guys."

Amanda jumped in, "Akko, do you really not see how important you are to her? To all of us?"

"Come on, when has anyone of us ever seen her react like that? This is killing her more than it is me. I just want to help."

Lotte hugged Akko once more, "Akko, just by being you, you help all of us. We wouldn't be where we are today without you."

"Yeah, but I want to help with magic."

Jasminka held out a cookie for Akko, and Akko took it and gulped it down. Jasminka smiled and held out another cookie. And another. "Alright, we should go before Jasminka drowns Akko in cookies," Amanda offered, "When she worries about someone she tries to feed them to death."

"She needs her strength," Jasminka cooed.

"I'm strong!" Akko replied, "I mean really, right now I have more magic than any of you, you know?"

ФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФ

Akko was up late studying again. "Lotte—do something, I need sleeeeep," Sucy called out from under her covers in bed.

Lotte peered over the side of her bunk bed down to Akko at her desk, "Akko, what are you reading?"

"It's a journal Croix-sensei left me," Akko replied distractedly.

"WHAT?!" Sucy sat straight up in bed, "Why are you reading that?"

"Found it!" Akko shouted enthusiastically.

"What did you find, Akko?" Lotte asked.

"Well, I was really curious when Diana said if we had the Shiny Rod you'd all be able to do magic, so I was reading this journal she left about her research into the Shiny Rod—although she calls it the Claiomh Solais all of the time," Akko said slightly annoyed. She picked up a cookie from her plate full of cookies and spoke while munching through it, "Dif you know fuh—swallow—the Shiny Rod can absorb the magic out of the Sorcerer's Stone?"

"Wow, too bad we don't have the Shiny Rod right about now," Sucy said as she rolled back into her blankets and snuggled in.

"But we do! Guys, I'm our Shiny Rod!" Akko announced.

Sucy's eye popped open in terror, and Lotte was right behind her as they thought the same thing. Akko thinks she can save the school. If Akko uses magic she could die or burn out. Stop Akko!

Lotte jumped off the top bunk to try to grab Akko, but Akko slipped away from her grasp. The distraction was enough for Sucy to throw a mushroom at her, which bounced off her head before multiplying and cascading down on the hapless witch.

Except, Akko was really the only witch in the room with the Sorcerer's Stone cut off. Akko in mouse form darted out from under the mushroom avalanche and popped back into her natural shape. The ethereal visage of the Shiny Rod appeared in her hands, and she waved it at the mushrooms as she bolted out of the room.

Instantly, the mushrooms resumed multiplying and both Sucy and Lotte were quickly buried. "Arae Aryrha!" was dimly heard from outside.

Lotte struggled to the door, worming her way through the mushrooms filling the room, "It's blocked! Probably by the Word,"

"Lotte, can you still call spirits without the Sorcerer's Stone?" Sucy asked, struggling to breathe under the weight of the mushrooms.

"I think I can!"

"Tell everyone! They have to stop Akko!"

ФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФ

Akko faced down the two witches she was most worried about without magic, the strongwoman Jasminka and the technowitch Constanze. "Phaidoari Afairynghor!"

A huge scythe appeared in Akko's hands. "I don't want to break your toys, Constanze!"

Apparently, Constanze did not feel the same way, as she gave the order to charge. The bots were mowed down mercilessly by the sweeps of Akko's scythe. Constanze frowned in concentration and began firing one of her bots converted into a gun.

Akko dodged away, doing a backwards somersault when Jasminka began throwing tables at her. With a wave of her scythe, the tables turned into balloons, and Akko used the confusion of their appearance to bolt from the hallway.

ФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФ

Amanda tackled Akko from behind, bringing them both down. Akko began struggling, but only managed to turn around in the larger girl's arms. "I've got you Akko, you're not going anywhere!"

Akko struggled more in her grasp, managing to get her legs around the Amanda's waist and rolling her so she was on top. "Tia Freyre!"

"That spell doesn't work without a broom—whoa!" Amanda released Akko suddenly as she began to float into the air. Akko jumped off of her floating friend and left her stranded midair. "Let me down! I can't believe you rode me like a broom!"

ФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФ

Akko bolted out the doors of Luna Nova towards the tower holding the Sorcerer's Stone. Hannah and Barbara were waiting for her at the outside gate. Barbara commanded, "Stop, Akko!"

Hannah followed up with, "Akko! Think about what you're doing to Diana. She's going to be crushed!"

"I know what I'm doing!" Akko shouted, "For once in my life, I know exactly what I'm doing. I'm thinking before leaping! Let me pass!"

Hannah shook her head and Barbara followed suit, they linked arms, blocking the pathway. "That's not going to stop a witch! Sybilladura Lelladybura!"

The Shiny Volley took form in Akko's hands, and she wasted not a second before leaping astride it and flying over Hannah and Barbara's heads and out the gate.

ФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФ

"Vega Varulus!" The spell was a surprise, but the kick launched by her idol was a bit more of a surprise. Akko dismissed the Shiny Volley to avoid it, then hurriedly summoned it back into existence and resumed flying ten feet lower.

Not to be dissuaded, Chariot shouted, "Belga Veeda!"

The blast of energy followed the Shiny Volley as Akko took it on twists and turns. The tail end of the blast caught the Volley and Akko was thrown from it, rolling across the ground. Chariot rushed over to check on her.

"Belga Veeda!" Akko had never cast such a spell before, but knowledge from Yggdrasil filled her upon hearing the spell for the first time. Akko put just enough energy to knock Chariot away. She did not bother to check on Chariot, knowing exactly how much magic had been behind the blast. "Sybilladura Lelladybura!"

Summoning the Shiny Volley once more, Akko raced through the entryway to the tower of the Sorcerer's Stone and began flying straight up.

Finally, she reached the room holding the Sorcerer's Stone. Diana waited for her.

"Diana." Akko dismissed the volley and dropped lightly to the ground.

"Akko."

"Believe in me, please. Trust that I know what I'm doing."

Diana gave a smile that did not reach her eyes, filled with tears as they were, "Akko, do you see what is around me?"

Akko looked uncertainly at the ground, magic crystals in a circle with Diana at their center and ancient script ringing around both of them. "The, the broom catching spell?"

Diana nodded, "I believe in you, Akko. I will support you. If you are sure you can do this safely, I will cast this spell the moment you get the Sorcerer's Stone back down to normal levels. You draining the Stone would only work temporarily, but the ritual will continue to act and drain it to acceptable levels."

Akko smiled and Diana could not help but return it. "Alright! Dokidoki no wakuwaku time!" My heart is pounding even more now than it was when I was fighting Chariot—holy crap, I fought Chariot! "Wait a second."

"Akko?" Diana asked uncertainly.

"How was Chariot—Ursula-sensei casting spells?"

"Akko, don't you have more important things to worry about right now?"

Akko flushed, but shook her head, "I'm thinking before leaping right now, if she's accessing magic then maybe my thought process was wrong."

"The Sorcerer's Stone is isolated from the school and is still absorbing the magic of the leyline, so there was no extra. Is that what you mean?" At Akko's nod, "The rivers are flooding Akko, the stone is past its maximum capacity and more magic is coming through. Right now, the only thing stopping everyone outside this room from using magic is their belief they can't use it."

"Ah OK, thanks for clearing that up!" Akko spun her hands as though the Shiny Rod was in them, and moments later it appeared. "Let's do this! Phasansheer Shearylla!"

The Seventh Word rang through the room like a thunderclap, and a branch of Yggdrasil popped into existence in its wake. Grabbing the branch, Akko shouted "Phasansheer Shearylla!" once more before clutching it to her heart.

The branch sank beneath her clothes and skin and the Shiny Rod exploded.

When Diana could see again, a twelve-foot transparent Shiny Rod in its cross form had wholly enveloped Akko, who was floating off the ground at its center. The Sorcerer's Stone began spinning angrily and magic lanced off from it to strike the cross containing Akko.

Akko began to scream.

"Akko!"

Akko gritted her teeth through the magic storm and held up her hands, "Diana!"

All at once, all the magic of the Sorcerer's Stone leapt through the air to be absorbed into the cross form of the Shiny Rod, the room dimmed, the cross dissipated, and Akko slowly slumped to her knees on the floor.

Diana did not break the circle, instead throwing her concentration into her spell. Ritual spells needed at least three witches to bring into existence, but with Akko kneeling outside and the Sorcerer's Stone hovering in midair, Diana thought she could work her way through it.

A long stream of syllables began escaping from Diana too quickly and melodiously to make out, the Sorcerer's Stone began to weakly pulse as it began to refill with magic and fell into rhythm with the magic of Diana's spell. Akko watched Diana wordlessly.

The magical energies pushed and pulled on Diana at their center until finally the spell was complete and all the magic in the room winked out.

It was Diana's turn to fall to her knees. They were left in darkness.

ФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФЖФ

Thanks for reading! Hope to hear from you!

Next time we'll have the Episode 2 epilogue.