The Badge and the Burden 3 - An Original Super Sentai/Magical Girl Setting
I now have a Ko-Fi for Donations. I don't take requests/commissions, but if you can support me through it, then it would be awesome.
Link: ko-fi DOT com /justbukharin
Two weeks.
It's been two long weeks ever since Kashiwa Komeko bowed her head down and started to train her butt into Magical-Fighting 101.
And she hated those fourteen days with a passion.
It wasn't like the girl didn't find a good reason to accept the tedious exercies as necessary, but that didn't mean Komeko planned to just roll with it without some inner whining as the exercises were downright torture to someone like her.
It was like standard P.E. but ten times more intense and with an unforgiving teacher with a shit-eating grin on his face whenever he saw her scowling due to the duress she went through.
That shopkeeper- he knew how much it unnerved her to be subjected to this kind of madness and... she couldn't help but still feel grateful for his help. He might be sadistic at times, but he didn't cross some lines that would make her outright hate the whole process. And the results she got after just two weeks were nonetheless impressive.
The first hint of change was a bit after the first week mark.
Before the training started, Komeko would usually end up waking late for school and having to go for one of those 'run and pray' kind of situations that would end up with mixed results.
Sometimes she would arrive just in time, others she would just fail to get there by a few minutes prompting her to get called out by the teacher.
One of the conditions of the training, which she had nodded at without thinking much about it was... sleeping early and waking up early. The girl just didn't notice that such an 'unhelpful' rule could lead to unquestionably good results.
It was during lunchtime when one of the girls in her classroom decided to approach her. It was a shocking development for sure, but Komeko felt most unsure on how to handle it. She wasn't part of any school's clique so... this was weird.
"Ne, Komeko-chan, can I ask you something?"
A bit sudden, but the girl smiled at that. "S-Sure?"
"I couldn't help but notice that you didn't skip a lesson for a full week and... did you mother actually go through the punishment she promised you a while ago if you skipped one too many times?"
A frown adorned the pinkette's face. "W-What? How- How do you even know of that?"
To Komeko, this was alarming. Paranoia was something deeply ingrained by Nakagome-sensei, so it was downright odd that a student she had no prior interaction with was just sprouting this sort of stuff. Yet, the response was a rather sheepish and very embarrassing detail the pinkette forgot on the topic.
"Well, it's kind of difficult to not hear her shriek at you about it."
O-Oh right.
Her mother had the tendency to screech at her over her habit. It wasn't her fault no one had told her on how she was supposed to function on her own, with a house mostly empty and... people knowing her as 'that girl with a loud mother'.
"Not really. I-I mean, mom is still out for the usual trip in Sapporo to check her workplace's other location, but... I guess I found a nice tutorial to get better with a healthier sleep schedule."
"Oh? Never fancied you someone that cared for it."
Oh dear, is there an end to that? Since when people wants to really talk with me?
"N-Not for the beauty part. I was trying to say that... it's healthy. And I have been feeling a bit unwell so I wanted to give it a shot."
"I see! Well, I guess the others were wrong then. Sorry, but it was a bit of a bet so... bye!"
Komeko didn't get further chances to speak up, seeing the 'faceless' girl retreat to the small group of friends that was chatting about other things, the conversation seemingly moving away from her from the looks of it.
A soft and quiet sigh left her lips, a bored look now aimed at the desk.
Maybe that's why I was so quick to accept Ruby's offer...
Ruby was her first friend. Ever.
For some odd reason, Komeko never had a chance to get anyone of her age close to her. It was an odd problem that was possibly tied to her mother.
Kashiwa Kagome was a renowned businesswoman. A model for young ladies trying to brave the world of business on their own and with a 'burden' in the form of a child to take care on their own.
If only many of those ladies knew that 'Kagome-sama' wasn't exactly around her daughter nowadays. She started to take leaves while Komeko was quite young, being frequently present until two years ago before she started to go out more frequently due to 'work-related stuff'.
'You are old enough to take care of yourself while I am out.' The cheerful tone used to relay this news just added a sour feeling to it. Even thinking about it put her in a bad mood.
Still, the progress wasn't just limited into social life. No, something else had changed after just so little had gone through that kind of training.
The 'horrendous' P.E. schedule that would always leave her out of breath at roughly half-way the session now saw her smoothly go through all needed exercises- she ended all exercises barely winded. It stunned her, and the teacher, Sakuya-sensei, was quick to praise her good effort and impressive display.
"Excellent form, Kashiwa-san."
Confusion sparked at this unexpected 'growth' as Ruby explained how, by becoming a Magic Gal, some of that magic that was now in her body helped her 'grow' faster and better. It still required her to put some effort to generate that kind of self-improvement, but the change was non-negligible as far as she could tell from how little training she picked up.
Another week, and her improved self started to become less... 'troubled' by the tiring school days.
Komeko felt energetic, she felt like she could do more than the usual. And she also had little trouble to go through homework as she felt her focus was now easier for her to control. Discipline, that's how the pinkette highlighted that development - or how Nakagome-sensei had defined it.
The training had made her less 'distracted' and able to put her attention in a single place at once to not lose her mind with each exercise. Two weeks had gone out without any hassle, leaving the girl to happily deal with her normal life before she actually had to face a serious threat.
It was about the time she was to get back home from school that the pinkette ended up stumbling on a familiar face. Or mask. Or just something else that was slightly uglier than both considering the familiar entity she was getting bugged on by.
It was the same bug-like individual as before, the monster that had attacked her a long time ago and... it looked the same. Except... she didn't feel that frightened about his sudden appearance.
"Fufufu! It would seem I finally found you, little weakling!"
A blink, Komeko just had a brief moment to appear surprised before the lessons tjat Nakagome-sensei drilled into her mind snapped her out of the shocked demeanor. Silently, Ruby prepared for the occasion, skulking slightly due to a radical change in their usual transformation.
Lengthy transformation are detrimental. Go for a quick and immediate one all the time, regardless of the occasion.
Komeko quickly gave way to her alter ego, with Magic Gal Strawberry forming with a determined look on her face. There was no flashy dancing, no delay- she was already in her powered form within mere seconds.
"Yes, yes! Finally I shall have my revenge, for my name is..."
There was a pause, the bug-like monster glaring at the girl for some odd reasons.
"What?"
"What is my name, human? Surely you remember the name of the one that got close to slay you in your first battle."
Wait, he really wants me to... hold up. What is his name?
"Oh? You are..."
No, seriously. what was his name? Something about...
"Buggy?"
The monster snarled. "Yotei's name is not Buggy, you insufferable human! How could you forget the name of the one that was so close to devour your carcass?"
"...I-I don't mean any disrespect but you really are not that... memorable?"
...
"YOTEI SHALL DEVOUR YOU AT ONCE, YOU UTTER BRAT!"
The beast jumped forward, roaring for a battle. Panic finally flared within her brain, but the pinkette's focus didn't budge away from the improvised plan that she had developed from the many advices she got from Nakagome-sensei.
If you think you are on equal ground to your opponent, then 'refuse' any direct confrontation. If you are as strong as them, then understand that any close engagement will result in wounds for both. So... make sure the bastards pay the most. Starting with a-
"Cherry Stun!"
Komeko's shriek surprised the bug-man as it saw the pink sphere blast away from the tip of her wand and soar to its... left. It had gone on the side- well away from the monster.
"BAH! YOU MISSED ME-" KABOOM!
Its words were cut short when a moderate explosion unfolded as the ball curved back into his trajectory and slammed onto the side of his head.
Oh, and never name your attacks for what they truly are.
Smoke instantly projected outward shortly after the blast. The girl darted to the side and got some distance from her foe to avoid any surprises. The next moments were fairly tense as the bug-man didn't make any move and...
...
Uh?
As the smoke started to settle, her gaze was suddenly taken by quite the unexpected sight.
The bug-man, the one that had given her so much trouble and that had bragged about its strength and might, was on the ground and... he was now missing a head. And part of its charred upper body.
The dreadful silence saw the Magic Gal stare intensely at the situation and frown.
'What happened?' and 'How did that low-power blast cause this much damage?' were among the many growing questions within her mind and... then, as she looked back at what she learned with Nakagome-sensei, Komeko raised her guard up as she realized that this could have been a trap.
"Is he really down for the count, Ruby?" She asked the mascot, and she felt the critter think about it.
The mascot was quiet for a while, but she could feel the 'warmth' tied to Ruby slowly disappear from her as the little pet floated over the unmoving figure and... grimace at the scene.
"...I-I think you killed it, Meko-chan."
...
"Oh."
She should have been shocked- no, she was shocked and yet she just couldn't believe that she had done it. Yet, something was different about that victory.
As much as this was good news in terms of how her Sensei told her this would have been the right way to deal with this kind of threats, the pinkette couldn't help but feel dreading at the news. She killed something- a creature capable of speaking, talking, feelings-
So, why does it feel like I have just crushed a tiny bug with my shoe and nothing else?
It was meant to horrify her, to stun her into a fright, to make her reluctant to feel happy for this sort of news and-
If the bug dies before it leaves, then the big bad 'queen' will not know what happened and plot your next foe on your known weaknesses.
Komeko closed her eyes, took a quick breath and tried to calm down.
It worked... in most part.
She broke the transformation, saying nothing as she decided to walk away as the deceased enemy started to 'decompose' in dark mist, leaving nothing on its wake. Ruby trailed rapidly behind her, going back to her 'storage item' before speaking up once more.
"A-Are you alright, Meko-chan?"
"...Yes."
Liar.
When did you even say that?
If you're not up to a heavy trouble, then don't expect to have an easy life with it. Talk with someone, don't allow anything to end up bottled up or I will just stop training you. I don't need any edgy emo apprentice to deal with.
Oh right.
So, it all felt quite natural as she walked around and made her way... towards his shop.
Not at home. Not to her bedroom. Not to place her pillow on her face and bawl her eyes out at the horrible bile filling up her throat. Him.
It felt necessary. Surely he knew what to do to handle that kind of horrible emotion currently ravaging her chest.
A few minutes later and, after being subjected to a quick glance from the man as she entered the mostly empty shop with the overall emotional package of a crying puppy, Komeko quietly sat by chair he offered her.
She was soon given a worn-off jacket that rested on her shoulders while her hands were rendered busy as the girl held a medium-sized cup filled with sweet strawberry milkshake which she was slowly sipping. She felt pathetic, yet the brew gave her a degree of... delight. And she enjoyed the delicious flavor. And the distracting calm that was the store's overall atmosphere. The straw was soft and the flavor was... soothing.
The pinkette had expected more. Much more. She felt like... she deserved beyond just that. And as the shift went on quietly and the man ignored her general upset mood while he finished his tasks, she ultimately decided to question him once his work was done.
"W-Why?" She asked, stuttering like a child that just learned that her baby fish had just died. "W-Why is this so... odd?"
"War is ugly," Nakagome-sensei replied, stunning her into silence with that response as his green eyes were soon aimed at her. It felt oddly pleasant. It was stern, no doubt in that, but his stare was also so 'in control' and caring in its own rough manner. "This training is meant to protect you and those that you have a duty to protect - those that are too weak against the malicious entities that will keep on coming for that power on a frequent basis. It's not nice- it's never nice... but it's best that one of them is dead and you're alive."
The worst part of that ugly truth? Komeko could only nod at it, aware that this wasn't something she could just ignore.
And as the somber mood shaped the girl's mind to be more careful from that day onward, Tekkan could only shake his head in disappointment as it became clear that his padawan needed some 'Mental Fortitude 101' to live through this crazy experience.
Such were the struggles of being a teacher and a student respectively.
AN
And as Komeko slowly sinks into the right mindset to handle this incredibly stressful line of work, she is soon to encounter someone that will make her understand how 'lucky' she truly is... and how easy it is for the wrong mindset to cause quite a lot of trouble.
