Libra's Lament, a Magical Girl Quest [Complete]

Ana yawns after you get out of the bath. You also see her shiver a little from the cool morning air that is still all around.

"Ugh... sorry about that, but there's a lot of stuff to do today. Do you think you can stay awake?"

Spring does not look entirely happy with what she has to say. Winter is already wandering off after giving you all a curt nod while Summer and Autumn hang back a bit. Ana just nods and turns to look back at Spring. "Can I help with something?"

"Yes, actually", Autumn interrupts with a glance at all of you. "The three of us have to check the city and mark where repairs have to get done... don't ask me what Winter is up to, probably something with the machines."

She shakes her head and gets back to you after a moment while you wonder why the Seasons have to do something that sounds so boring. "You're the only one with a proper life sense, so we need you to check the whole city for any enemies hiding out. If you find anyone, you can give us a call and... yes, Sun?"

Rico happily waves her arm a few more times and beams at the older girls. "Not necessary, we go with her and everything will be fine! Ana can show us the city!"

Autumn gives you a measuring look before shrugging... she does not seem to mind. "Sounds good to me. You don't mind them, Ana?"
Summer smirks behind her back for some reason, though.

Your friend only shakes her head in wonder and keeps looking at your sister. You smile, too. It is good to help someone you like.

Then Ana shivers again and looks down. "Uh... I want to get dressed first."

Spring smiles again and motions down the corridor. "Not a problem. Just bring the twins to the dorms proper; Chi should have marked whichever room they got by now... so you two can get settled in while Ana gets ready."

""'Kay!""
"Woof!"

Ludger almost jumps around you in eagerness while you say your goodbyes to the Seasons and follow your friend. Even he is looking forward to exploring.

And Ana looks a lot less sad than before.


Some quick sorting stuff out of your backpacks later, you are back out and transformed. The room they gave you is big, twice the size of your old bedroom back at home. There is even enough space for two single beds!

You move through the city carefully, oftentimes switching from the actual streets to wandering meadows; Ana keeps quiet most of the time, only speaking up to tell you about the buildings you pass. She concentrates on... something.

Your friend has no idea about some places, though. The one building where you saw Strength fight all those people for example; Ana said that is where the electricity comes from, but she does not know how or why. There are a lot more buildings than people, too; you see maybe a handful of girls on your way through -but everybody waves and smiles when they see you.

"Ana?"
"Hm?"
"Why are there so many houses and so few people?"
"And what are you concentrating on? How does your life sense work... and what does it do?"

Both of you are curious, if about different things. You get your own question answered first, too: "Um... I'm not sure why we have so many houses. Spring said they have them for when more people come... and so that it feels more like a city."

Huh...
"And I'm... uh... I can feel other living things around me? I just know they're there even when I can't see them."

Huuuuhhh... how does that work?
Magic is weird.

But it makes sense now. If Ana can feel everything around herself within some distance, soldiers that try to hide can't hide from her. So she goes all around town and makes sure there is no one hi- stop!

Rico's warning makes you stop in time to avoid running into your friend; Ana just came to a halt and has her head turned to the right. Looking that way... huh, you are in that place with all the domed buildings again. And the one she is looking at is... the one where all the carnage was.

"There's someone inside that place... only one."
Ana looks at you, a little lost for what to do. You just smile encouragingly at her and nod, with Rico speaking for the both of you: "Then we go and take a look."

Sneaking inside is... weird, though. You are both shining brightly, so anyone in the somewhat darker building will see you long before you see them. It is probably not going to work anyway, so you decide not to bother. Ana stays behind you just in case; you can not sneak, but she can.

The second set of doors is still broken down as you hover over it -you can see Ana looking worried- but the overwhelming smell of copper and iron is gone... okay, mostly. All the bits you saw earlier are gone, too... there is just some black sludge on the ground that stinks a bit. You put down your scepter and pick up Ludger; he just got cleaned up, no getting dirty again unless he has to.

With the light you bring inside and everything else being in dark colours, you can easily see the pale figure sitting on the ground towards the center. The only colours she has about her are her greenish hair and the few leaves growing from her body.

Once Ana sees the other Magical Girl, she relaxes and starts dashing through the puddles without a care for her clothes. Both of you follow her a bit slower... and the sound of your friend's feet on the ground makes her flinch and turn around.


"Ana? What are you doing here?"
Her voice is quiet... but it still echoes a little in this large room. You can see how puffy her eyes are, she has been crying just like when you saw her before...

Ana comes to stand right before her and... you are pretty sure that she is smiling some more. "You're safe... I'm glad."

"I guess so..."

She turns back around to look at... are those bones in the sludge? You are not sure, they are way too big for anything you know. And it is just two or three, nothing else. "I'm glad you're safe, too. Who are your friends?"

"Oh, right."
Quick introductions are done, but she does not even look at you. Her shoulders are slumped and all. It is a little mean that she keeps looking elsewhere, but... you do remember what Summer told you. Whatever that was, it was probably her friend.

And Ludger is wiggling in your arms a little. Maybe it was a bad idea to bring him here.

"I... I'm sorry, but I don't feel like talking. Could you please leave me alone?"
Ana looks at you a little helplessly, so Rico nods at her and you both wave at Flower's back. "That's okay. See you later."

And you do leave; it is probably better to let her be if she wants you to.


"Hey, Ana..."
"Yes?"
"Is your belly getting smaller?"
"Huh? Oh..."

Rico...
Sorry?
...

You try not to grimace at your twin while Ana rubs her belly again. She is right, though... you are pretty sure that her belly is less swollen than it was when you went into the bath together. Your thought is interrupted by a gurgling sound and your friend sighing. "Ugh..."

Pushing the question about her being hungry already aside, your hands quickly find their way to her shoulder and squeeze gently; it makes Ana smile for a moment. Then she gets herself back together and shrugs at Rico in response. "I... I guess. Autumn and I... actually tested it. I can eat a lot of food and still weigh the same a day later."

That is... you are really not sure how that works. Is it even healthy?

Not even Rico has a response for that.


"Is that... a boy?"
Ana and Rico both turn towards where you are looking once you asked that... and there really is. At least you think it is a boy, seeing that the person driving the lawnmower wears no pretty or cute girl clothes and looks more boyish. Like the older boys at home and... oh, now Rico is sad because she misses her friends.

There there, Rico...
You're mean.

"I think so, but I don't know his name."
Ana has her brows scrunched in thought and seems to think. When the lawnmower passes by close to the three of you, all of you wave and the boy waves back; then he goes back to cutting the grass neat and tidy... and it smells like freshly cut grass now! You love that smell so much...

"Where do they get boys from out here... uh... actually, where are we?"
Ana just shrugs again and gives your sister a helpless look. "I... I think some of the older girls brought their... boy friends... along? That's what Spring told me."

Boy Friends... oh. Boyfriends! Hah, you understand it better than she does!
Resolving to explain what this is about to your friend later, you both nod in understanding and Rico reminds her: "And where are we?"

"..."
Ana keeps quiet and continues walking again after a few seconds; you catch up to her a moment later though. She stays silent a little longer before blushing and offering a response: "Kibo?"

"But that's the same name as the group, how does that work?"
You notice another person walking closer, though your friend does not see her... buh, she looks weird. All black and white and delicate, like a dolly. And... there is black stuff slowly seeping out of her eyes. Crystals clink to the ground from the hem of her dress, too.

"I don't know, but this is how they call the city."
"It still makes no sense! You can't call two different things by the same name!"

"Actually", the new girl interrupts both Ana and Rico with a... pretty high voice. "The city and the group are not really separate."
A really high voice, almost squeaky. It does not fit her creepy appearance at all.

"Hm? Oh, Sky. Hey."
Ana smiles once she sees who it is while Rico frowns at the new argument. You agree that it still makes no sense; a group and a city are two different things, they can not be the same... can they?

Maybe we go at it the wrong way?
...what do you mean?
Look, Rico... I think... she means that the word can mean both things. You have people that want the same thing and the city they live in and...uh...
Ohhhh! That makes sense!

You cut yourself off once your twin pokes you with awe and nods eagerly as you both look at the newcomer, who curtsies in your direction. "Good morning."


"...ah! E... uh... Moon, Sun, this is Black Sky. I met her on the way here."
Ana quickly does introductions and you take a closer look at this girl. She is taller than you and looks... sick. Her hair is all grey and black, her skin basically chalk white... but her smile is as vibrant as creepy with her having no visible eyes.

"Hehe, I guess you two are Ana's friends? She told me about you, I'm thankful you did so much for her."

""It was nothing"", you both answer her without pause before you turn to the taller girl. "Um... can I call you Sky?"

She absently nods at you, but is more busy watching Ludger sniff the crystals she loses. At least he does not try to eat them... he just sniffs and then goes away to look at other crystals. You watch him for a moment as well, but then get back to asking your question: "Say, do you know where we are?"

This gets Sky to turn back to you, too. "Ah, was that what you were talking about before?"

The three of you nod as one this time, looking up at this unsettling face. She is creepy... but Ana likes her, so you will definitely not look away. Everyone here is different in a way, you just have to accept them.

We're different, too. Life-linked and together like this.
That's true. But... our magic did something good for us, didn't it?
...point.

"Let's see... someone told me that we are in Vol... Vol... ah, Volgograd."
Sky is looking in-between you and Ana, her brow creased in thought and her thin hands fiddling with each other. "Russia, I think."

She nods a few times before offering you a smile. "I'm sorry, but that's all I know. The library should have maps, though. You can go take a look later."

Hm... you do not like how she said that. Why just you three? "Aren't you coming, too?"

Sky shrugs before wiping some black stuff off her cheek. "I... can't really do that."
She motions with the dirty hand and then cleans it on her dress. "I would leave ichor all over the pages... and they don't have anything in Braille."

"Braille? What's that?"
Maybe a language from far away?

Ana flinches for some reason... ugh, you did just ask something rude again, did you not?
Sky does not seem to mind, though. She might have seen your friend's reaction, too; at least that is what you guess from the weak smile she offers her. "It's really fine, Ana."

Then she turns to you and... pushes a finger into her eyesocket. The wet sound it makes is ugh and you can see more black slush run down her arm. When she pulls it back out, everything goes back to normal really quick while she wipes off the stuff again. "I was born blind and... I still am blind outside of my transformation. What I have like this is the closest to working eyes I can ever have. Braille is... basically a type of writing that you read by feeling it with your hand. It's the only kind of writing I can read... but now that I can see, the other girls are teaching me, so I'm catching up."

"So... your magic did something good for you?"

For some reason, her face falls over your question. Ana looks like she wants to say something, but she does not when Sky nods slowly. "Yes. Yes it did."

"You two really shouldn't say things like that..."
"Huh?" "Hm?"

You both turn to Ana, who has her eyes on the ground again and -is she trembling? "Looking at you, you're some of the lucky girls that didn't get weird stuff for their magic."

"Ana..."
You quickly give Sky a sign to stop talking. Her brows scrunch for a moment, but she does seem to trust you that much. The two of you give each other another look over realising that this could be a problem later. Your friend thinks that you got not-weird magic in a world where almost everyone does get some of that.

"You say that we got nothing weird-" "-but we totally did."

Your words flow from one to another easily; you did not do that often before, but it feels like a natural thing. Ana finally looks up while you intertwine your hands and show them to her. ""We're together forever. Our magic linked our lives and our minds are joined.""

Rico giggles over the baffled looks both girls give you. Then you both draw each other a step closer, light playing over your body and being bounced back. "I think that counts as weird-" "-but we like it-" "-so it's a good thing for us."

And then your tummies growl in synch, making you both blush a little. It takes a moment, but Sky's lips curl upwards and she starts giggling. It only gets worse when Ana's tummy agrees with another gurgling sound and your friend sighs again. "I... guess its time for breakfast?"

That sounds like a great idea.
You pretend not to see the contemplative looks you get from your friend as you walk.


"You missed breakfast", is what Sky tells you while you enter the cafeteria; there is no one else here at the moment, so you have the whole room to yourself. "That's why no one's here."

Is it that late already? You had no idea... going around with Ana was... not really fun, but nice. Your friend is already at the head of the room and taps around on some kind of screen. Once you get closer, you can see that it has lots of words in big squares... which Ana can just move up and out of the screen by dragging her fingertip over it.

What's that? How does it work?
Watch her!

You both eagerly observe how your friend goes through lots of words. You can tell that some of them are names of food, but not much else. After a while, she sighs and presses a big button on the screen's side that has all the words change into pictures of food.

Rico squeals in delight and you have trouble stopping her from pressing all the buttons. No, bad Rico! We can eat all of it, but not all at once!

Naw! I want Ana's superbelly!

You giggle at that, even though you know it is rude to say things like that. The other girls watch you for a moment before Ana turns back to the screen and taps on some kind of bread a few times, followed by salad and meat and juice.

Then she presses a green button on the screen before getting a pinging noise.

"This looks neat! How does it work?"
Sky giggles and shrugs while pushing a few crystals aside with her foot. "No idea, but we can have a lot of different food. It's your turn now, I already ate earlier."

So you get yourself sandwiches and scrambled eggs... and hot chocolate, just because. Oh, and a big piece of meat for Ludger of course... for whatever reason they have raw meat in that menu. Everything comes out of the wall on big plates just a few minutes later.

Sky gets herself some coffee -urgh, it even smells bitter- and just sits with you as you eat.

...
Eva?
Yes?
Why is Ana... eating so much?
Uh... maybe her magic again?
Hm...

You spend half the time watching your friend. Anastasia already finished her first plate when you just got started, chewing and swallowing at a speed you do not think you could reach no matter how much you hurry. Then she got seconds... and thirds. By the time she is done, you barely just finished yourselves.

Good thing she was so focussed on eating... I'm sure she didn't see us watching.

You do not answer your sister outside of a mental hum. Not that you need to.


"This is it."
Once Sky stops you, you look up at the three-storey building in admiration; it gleams like polished metal in the sun... okay, it is polished metal, but that is why it looks so impressive!

""...It's pretty!""
"You're right, it is."

The older girl motions for a bench nearby, though. "I doubt Strength needs to see me, so I'll be waiting out here with your little friend. Go ahead."

Seeing that you can not just take Ludger into an office, you are glad that at least Ana stays with you... you are still a bit scared of Strength. She was nice the last time you saw her, but- Rico pokes the thought away and drags both you and your friend along inside.

There is a large, open room with a bright green carpet coming first. Lots of chairs... ugh, that reminds you of the waiting room for the clinic back home. Actually, maybe it is a waiting room?

Ana knocks at the door on the other side quietly; you take her ignoring the stairs as a sign that the upper floors are not important right now.

"Yes? Come on in!"

Once the door is pushed open, your friend holds it and lets you go inside first. Strength sits at a massive wooden desk, watching you enter while pushing some papers aside. You see her squint for a moment... Rico is lighting up the whole room. "Ah, its you two. Sun and Moon, was it?"

You nod and quietly follow her motion to the chairs in front of her desk. Ana takes the third one without a word, too. Strength looks between you and sighs before pushing a bowl your way. "You girls really know how to bring a rainy mood... cheer up a little."

In that bowl is candy. Brightly wrapped and... is that okay? You see Ana take one -her fingers twitch back for a moment-, so you do the same and take one each. The sweets do help you relax in the Japanese girl's presence.

"...still can't believe that actually works... anyway. Found anything, Ana?"

Your friend shakes her head and swallows before answering: "Nothing... but Flower went back to her garden... Strength, how bad is it?"

She waves off the question, but you can see her grimace a tiny bit. "I'll tell you later, together with everyone else. But for now... I want to know what happened last night. Tell me everything you saw and did."

So... you do. You tell her in as much detail -and as coherent as possible, without switching who talks all the time- what you did and why. Ana does not look happy when she hears how you got hurt a few times.

Strength only listens. She does not say anything, though there are a few notes made on a somewhat full sheet. Once you are done, she nods at you. "Okay then, thanks. What about you, Ana?"

The somewhat okay mood is gone in an instant; your friend looks down at her lap and stays quiet. But Strength does not press her and in the end, Ana does start talking.

"I... when I heard the guns, I just ran out to help. I... uh... I tried to find out what's going on, but the first time I saw people was at the training place. And they had Arc..."

The training place? Huh, you were there just a bit ago, it was one of the places you did not get to during the fighting.. Now it makes sense that your friend got so gloomy over there and stopped talking to you entirely for a bit.

"She had no golems anymore and they tried to take her away, but I stopped them... I tried to."
Strength is taking notes, but her brow is furrowed and she slows down with each too-long pause between words. She gives Ana a long look before tapping her finger on the table, the knocking sound enough to get your friend's attention. "You don't have to continue if you don't want to."

Ana thinks about it for a moment and deflates in her seat. "I'm sorry..."

Rico takes her hand and squeezes carefully to show she is there. Ana is not alone right now. Strength, for some reason, smiles. "It's okay. You had to hurt people to protect your friends... feeling bad about it just shows that you're a good person."

"...I don't feel like one..."

Your twin is probably the only one who heard that whisper. Strength does not seem like she heard it, anyway. The Japanese girl gives you all a round of curious looks before turning to Rico and you fully. "That aside... sorry for the harsh welcome, you showed up at exactly the wrong time. I'm Transcendent Strength."

She offers her hand and you both shake it, one after the other. "We're Primordial Sun-""-and Moon. Nice to meet you."

Strength smiles back and leans back in her comfy-looking chair. "Likewise. Welcome to Kibo and all that stuff... just so we're clear, you are planning to stay, right?"

Huh... you have to think about that for a moment, but there is no answer besides yes. Knight told you to go here because just staying in New York would have been no good, so here you are. Where else could you go?

So you both nod your heads and get a nod in return. "Good. Here, take these."

With that, she puts some weird stones on the table. They are grey and feel a little gooey when you take them, but Strength does not seem to mind your confused looks. "You have to detransform and put them in your ears, then those little things let you talk to and understand anyone, no matter what language they speak. They stay active even if you transform again.

Ohhhh!
You both quickly undo your transformations and put them into your ears, where they seem to melt over the skin and leave nothing left. Strength's eyes are on you and she shakes her head for some reason.

Once you pay attention to her again, she gives you both pointed looks. "Yeah, no denying that you two are Vescovis. You look exactly the... same."

She pauses for a moment, but then finishes with an unreadable expression and closes her eyes for a moment. Her weird look goes away quickly, though. "... Not that I mind, I get along with your sister... speaking of, do you want me to tell you when she's calling, so you can talk to her?"

It takes a moment for her question to register. When it does, you look up at Strength with wide eyes and so much happy surging through you that you might burst. The older girl chuckles. "I take that as a yes."

""Thank you! You're the best!""

The only thing that stops you from jumping over the desk to hug Strength is Rico stopping you from standing up. She is no less happy than you are and even Ana smiles a bit.

You can talk to big sister sometime soon! This is great!

"Hehe, I know I am. Anyway, can you calm down again? There is some more stuff to talk about."

You quickly straighten up again and wait eagerly for whatever comes next. It does not matter what it is, nothing will get the mood down anymore. "Schooling is mandatory here. We had no classes today because of what happened, but you two will join Ana and everyone else starting tomorrow."

...


Rico is still sulking a bit when you say goodbye to Strength and make to leave. For some reason, Ana has trouble not giggling over that.

The older girl looks about as mirthful, too. "Ah, one more thing. You probably want to talk to Chi...tin Dancer sometime soon. She needs your measurements if you don't want to run around in those old clothes all the time... and she's still not happy about all those spiders you blinded with your lightshow, Sun."

At least Rico is a bit sheepish over that.

---

Now that you are done with that, what do you do with the rest of your day? Choose two:

[] Spend more time with Ana, she is better off not being alone right now

[] When checking the city, Ana went around the accessible part of the sewers and would not say why. Time to explore!

[] Talk to Black Sky some more, she seems interesting

[] Go visit Chitin Dancer; you ought to apologise for hurting her spideys

[] Strength seemed to be bothered by something; that and she seemed to be doing a lot of paperwork; you think it is time for a break

[] Actually, the training field sound like a good idea; go train a bit
-[] Train what?


[] EXP Plan
-[] Write-in what to buy
-[] Save it


+2xp The Aftermath
+5xp Met Black Sky

EXP gained: 7 + 7 = 14
Total EXP: 67


(Unlocked Level 0 Character Sheet: Magical Girl Black Sky)
(Unlocked Level 1 Character Sheet: Magical Girl Transcendent Strength)
(Shop Item Unlocked)

And with that, I am now going to compile the questions asked for the Q&A. No more may be asked.