Chapter 163 - Please Let Me Be This
Burns made awful wounds. Kyoko knew this well enough. She never had any herself, she healed too fast for any injuries she got to ever turn into something lingering, but she saw them on other people. If you were a normal person, burns never healed right unless you could afford special attention. Not once they got bad. If you were lucky all it ended up as was a patch of skin that wasn't the right color and tore easily. Not everyone was lucky. The bad burns left black marks across flesh, scooped away sections of skin and whatever was under it leaving holes and divots in people's bodies. They weren't clean either, the way some people might have thought. Whenever Kyoko caught sight of somebody out on the streets with a visible burn, she couldn't help but watch. Because as awful as burn marks could be, they were nothing compared to watching it happen in the first place.
Kyoko didn't know Sayaka very well. She first saw her through the eyes of a monster wearing her skin, too distracted by the gaze of pain and screaming to form clear memories. But the impression she'd formed was clear. She was Mami's new student, Kyoko's replacement, and a perfect fit for the role. Brash and energetic in a way Kyoko might have been once, but so much more naive. Not blind, the girl had seen too much to not know what this life was really like, but she was still seeing heroes everywhere. Maybe on her own she would have gotten herself killed, but with Mami and X and everyone there she probably would have done pretty well.
The flames cut her off halfway through calling out to Kyoko. Worry was replaced with agonized screams in an instant. Her attempt to stand faltered as the fire clung to her, showing no mercy to the kid who had rushed into this with only a blind intention to help. Another burning body to join Kyoko's family. She wanted to look away, but she didn't deserve to. She wanted to close her eyes, to block out the sight, but she didn't have eyes anymore. Just a mess where a face would be on a person. It didn't matter. Kyoko knew the image wouldn't disappear anyways.
The puppets paused their assault to watch Sayaka burn. They circled around the fallen Magical Girl, watching as her twitching slowed and then stopped. Her screams cut off without warning. Kyoko wanted to scream, to wail, to cry at the cruelty of it but the only thing that came forth was another torrent of fire. More puppets had gathered, lining up just past where the flames raged to watch her.
"Looks what you've done. You should have known." a voice said. Kyoko couldn't tell whose it was anymore. Her father? Her sister? Mami? X? Sayaka? It all just blended together. "You always do this. To everyone you are selfish enough to care for, and everyone who is blind enough to care for you."
Cerulean light flared across Sayaka's body, and for a split second she was whole again. She struggled to stand, screaming in pain all the while, but crumpled back to the ground a moment later. Kyoko reached out to catch her on instinct, but recoiled. What could she really do? This was all her fault. She was the one killing Sayaka, and she couldn't just fucking pull herself together even when someone's life depended on it.
Another scream of agony alerted Kyoko to Sayaka's third try at standing up. The blue gleam held around her body, painting back over her scorched skin and bones just enough to move. Her hands shoot wildly as she pushed herself up, fumbling against the ground before collapsing again. The light around her faded. Was she..?
Had Kyoko killed someone else?
"All you are is a burden. A stupid, selfish girl who never has the courage to accept the punishment you always deserve." the voice continued. Kyoko nodded without a word. How could she deny it? The proof was seared into the world everywhere she turned. All of it burned away, leaving her untouched.
"But there's still one thing you can do to make it right." One of the puppets stepped forward, the spear in its arms gleaming in the firelight. Kyoko hardly noticed another puppet dragging Sayaka's burnt body up off the ground and holding her upright, tilting her head to give a clear view of the first puppet approaching Kyoko.
"One way to make sure you never hurt anyone every again."
The Distortion's gaze fell on the puppet's spear. Its tip was bright and untarnished, clean and clear compared soot-stained implements already driven into her back. The way the light from the fire caught on its surface was almost hypnotic.
"You know what the right choice is."
Kyoko's forelegs buckled and she knelt, exhaustion and acceptance together bringing the Distortion to her knees before the assembled marionettes. The first puppet rose its spear and thrust it into Kyoko's chest. Molten glass spilled from the wound, drawing a horrible grinding scream from her mouth. The spear pulled away, a gout of liquid fire pouring out behind it. Kyoko's screaming continued. Even if the glass was just a casing, she could still feel it being ripped away. Another puppet joined in, stabbing another hole through Kyoko's unresisting body.
One after another, the spears pierced her until her chest caved in. Flames poured from the gaping wound, and Kyoko's screams became weaker and more ragged. She would have wept if she could. The pain was indescribable. It was like being torn apart by that Abnormality a second time. But it would be worth it now.
Sayaka could have survived. Her transformation hadn't disappeared, so she could still be alive. If Kyoko died, the fires would stop. That would give Sayaka a chance. A slim chance, but she deserved it. And Kyoko deserved this.
Her sister's puppet pulled back its spear a final time, ready to put an end to it once and for all.
"NO!"
Somebody's cry shook Kyoko from the haze that had swallowed her. Some half-present instinct had her draw a spear from the flames nearby and parry what would have been a fatal blow. Part of Kyoko was already repeating her family's accusations of cowardice, cursing how pathetically she was clinging to life, but her attention was mostly fixed on the sight in front of her.
Sayaka, whole again but already burning, had skewered both herself and the puppet holding her with a single sword. A used Grief Seed fell to the ground beside her. With the sudden leverage and full weight of her body behind it, she threw herself and the gruesome mannequin to the ground. The sword disappeared and Sayaka sprang up, blue light flashing around her limbs to return them to functionality after what Kyoko's fire had done. She swung wildly at something above the downed puppet, but to no effect. It slammed an arm into the Magical Girl's chest. Worn down again by the burning, she crumpled immediately under the force of the blow.
But then a soft blue light ran over her ruined body, and she stood again.
"A burden? Selfish? The right choice?" she spat as she clashed frantically with the puppets advancing on her. "All I'm hearing is a load of bullshit!"
Kyoko could only stare in awe and horror at the sight in front of her. Sayaka stabbed clumsily at the puppets gathered around her, still aflame. Every time the damage built up to be too much, a flash of blue light would set it back. The puppets poked and prodded at her with their weapons, seeming more curious than upset.
"You know that these things were made just to screw with us, so why are you giving anything they say a second thought? You don't deserve this!" Sayaka shouted, stumbling back as her legs buckled beneath her. Her body snapped back together as she fell just in time to right herself and push back the closest puppet's follow-up attack.
"Because they're right! I killed my family! They all died because I was stupid and selfish and-"
Kyoko's self-recriminations were cut off as Sayaka slipped just barely past the descending strike of one of the puppets. The soft blue glow of her magic healing her mixed with the harsh orange and red cast by the flames as she dashed in and thrust her sword against the creature's chest. It sunk a few millimeters into the wooden flesh and then stopped.
Before Kyoko could continue, Sayaka's voice filled the opening. "That's wrong. I don't know exactly what it is that you're talking about, but I can put the pieces together. It had something to do with your Wish, right? Then it wasn't your fault!"
"Then who? I was the one who let myself get tricked. How is that not my fault?" Kyoko insisted. She had made the decision that doomed her family. She might as well have killed them all herself.
"Weren't you paying attention to everything X has been saying? It's Kyubey! He's the one who tricked you, so it's his fault!" Sayaka shouted back, failing to fend off another attack from one of the puppets. It lashed out with its arms like an animal, hunched over nearly on all fours.
"I should have known better!"
"How? How old were you? I didn't notice. Mami didn't figure anything out. What makes you any different?"
Twelve. She had been twelve years old. Not that it really mattered to Kyoko. But clearly Sayaka was too stubborn to understand it.
"What about when I left Mami? All because I wasn't good enough to stand by her and wasn't brave enough to say it! And then-" Kyoko coughed, more liquid fire pouring from the gaping hole in her chest. The puppets had given up on finishing her off, instead content on playing with Sayaka as she stumbled and swiped at them. "I let people die when I was a Magical Girl. Just for more Grief Seeds. Are you really saying that someone like that deserves to live?"
Sayaka's eyes widened and her head snapped back to where Kyoko stood. Disbelief shone in every part of her expression. For a moment Kyoko thought maybe she'd convinced the other Magical Girl. But then she was thrown aside by a clearly-telegraphed swing by a nearby puppet. Boiling rock cling to her body as she pushed herself back to her feet, using and discarding another Grief Seed before looking up with a determined expression.
"You know what I think? I think a really bad person wouldn't sit there telling me all the reasons they deserve to die! I might not know what I'm doing here, but I'm not going to let you act like you're some sort of monster!"
"No, you didn't. You still don't know what you're doing," one of the puppets began, "and you're going to fail. You know, Sayaka, that you will never be-"
"Oh shut UP!" Sayaka roared, spinning with far too much grace for her ruined body. Her sword flashes a brilliant cerulean as it arced through the air, drawing with it the smell of saltwater. One of the more feral-looking puppets, apparently the one that had been talking, collapsed into the molten street in two halves. The severed ends of a set of red strings, nearly invisible against the firelight, floated to the ground around it.
"I'm not listening to a thing these fakes have to say! I meant I don't know how to help you, alright? I just know you're a good person." Sayaka said, panting shallowly.
Her victory was short-lived. The burst of strength faded as quickly as it had appeared. The flames still licking at the Magical Girl's body proceeded, and one of her legs buckled. Before it could heal, a flash of pink light from the observation tower far above them shone across the battlefield. An arrow struck Sayaka clearly through the throat, leaving her gasping and choking on nothing.
Another flash of blue. Sayaka's smile seemed wistful through the flickering flames as she stood again. "I wanted to be a real hero. The kind who could swoop in, beat all the bad guys, and save the day. Even more once I saw that it wasn't just a fantasy. I know they told me that it wouldn't be that easy. I know I'm not good enough to do that."
Sayaka stumbled again, and one of the puppets stepped forward to smear her across the battlefield again. But this time, the Magical Girl was ready. Her body was already knitting back together, stilted steps taking her out of the weapon's path by a hair. Sayaka's sword clanged against the melted pavement as she balanced against it in her shambling lunge, laying a forceful punch on the puppet's chest with her free hand. Blue light flashed and cracked, spilling out in ribbons as the creaking monstrosity's body twisted and it stumbled back.
"But even if I can't be that sort of hero, I still want it. I wanna save people, and I want them to feel safe just because I'm there!" Sayaka cried as her body broke and mended itself once again. She stumbled out of the way of another puppet's swing, responding with a clumsy slash that hit nothing but air.
"Please, just run away!" Kyoko begged. What was the point of all this? Why was Sayaka letting herself die here? She could have saved herself if she just left Kyoko behind!
But of course she wouldn't. She was too naive, too kind to survive. Not like Kyoko. She always crawled her way to life, no matter who she had to doom to do it. That's why she hesitated instead of just ending it like she should have. Even when watching somebody burn because of her, she couldn't take that one damn step that would fix things.
"No," Sayaka replied, not looking back at Kyoko as she spoke. "I know I'm not that person yet. And maybe I won't ever be a hero like they are. I'll just have to stand alongside them." she continued, head tilted down. But then the Magical Girl looked up, gleaming blue eyes locked with Kyoko's gaze and piercing through the haze of heat and smoke. "But even if it's kind of selfish, even if it might turn out to be a mistake, I won't back down! Because I can do something, and right now, that can be enough!"
"No, you need to run! You need to get away" Kyoko cried. "Please, I don't want anyone to get hurt for my sake!"
"Don't you get it? I'm not just doing this for you! I'm doing this for me, too!" Kyoko couldn't see Sayaka anymore through the haze of fire and smoke, but her voice still rang clearly through the wasteland. "We all are! X, Mami, Madoka, Homura, Yuma, everyone wants to help you for their own sakes, too! You didn't make us want to help you. If anything, you're fighting me on it right now. So just let me having this moment and let me help you, okay? Because I…"
A glimmer of cerulean erupted, becoming a brilliant flash that cast the smoke and fire away and bathed the battlefield in calm blue light for a moment. It was like somebody had paused the chaos and noise of the burning battlefield to cast a spotlight on the moment of peace that had forced its way into existence. The puppets stared frozen, weapons raised and ready, at the figure in the center. For that moment, the fires had gone out. Sayaka's feet clattered against the ground, covered in gleaming silver armor. Something about her had changed. A deep blue cloak replacing her cape was wrapped around her, its surface shining with colorful glints and ridged as if it was covered in scales. It seemed more liquid than solid the way it rippled in the air, edges rimmed with white seafoam. The hood hung down just above Sayaka's eyes, leaving her determined smile clearly visible. Bits and pieces of bright silver armor were affixed to her outfit beneath it, shining proudly in spite of the scratches and scrapes across its surface. The damage extended onto the fabric as well, tearing it open to reveal fish-like scales where Sayaka's skin should have been. They formed a thin ring around her throat, thickening right in the center where the arrow had pierced her body. She looked beautiful. The air rippled and trailed around her body like water as she drew her hand back, dragging a long spear out of the air like she was pulling the weapon from the sea. Its shaft was a clear silver save for a pattern of diamond-shaped red marks along its length. The pattern ended near a trigger resembling a rifle's that connected the shaft to the point at the end. The blade could have been a sword in its own right, the dark blue steel gleaming in the orange light. At her arm was a small rounded shield the same color and texture as her scales.
"…can't save you on my own!"
Then the spell was broken, and the mayhem crashed back in. Flames licked at Sayaka's body, but this time she simply gritted her teeth through her smile and smoothly leapt away from the arrow that pierced the ground where she had been standing. The molten pavement splashed up in a burning spray which Sayaka took immediate advantage of, swinging her new weapon through the boiling rock and splattering it against the first puppet approaching her. The molten liquid had no effect on the puppet, but it clung to the strings extending from it and painted them clearly in the air. She spin the spear around to strike the puppet with the back end, then reversed the swing and cut the now-visible strings in a single clean swipe.
The puppet stumbled back on its few remaining strings. Sayaka moved to pursue it, but a thin green field suddenly appeared to block her off. It shattered in a single strike, but in that time the grim marionettes had managed to assemble into a loose formation. No further words were said as they rushed forward with movements more like animals than people, the gashes in their wood flesh opened like hungry mouthes.
"So come on! Get back up!"
Kyoko shakily rose to her feet. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. Sayaka had been good for a Magical Girl with only a few weeks of combat experience. Just a few moments ago, she'd been pushing herself even further. Kyoko wouldn't have been able to stand fighting like that. But now? Now she was something else entirely. Every movement was fluid and flowing, graceful in a way that was both beyond anything a person should have been able to do and yet completely human at the same time.
Kyoko's lack of control had finally melted the open ground surrounding the observation tower into a lake of liquid stone and asphalt. The only spots of solid ground were chunks of crystal that had fused with the city to mark the Abnormality's influence. Sayaka danced between them, her feet hovering just barely above the molten flow and stirring it into waves with every swing and thrust like it was water and not a mass of liquified rock. A wave of her hand unleashed a torrent of water that forced the puppets back before boiling into steam under the heat. Kyoko stared awestruck on as Sayaka dove back and her legs fused together for a brief moment, a long finned tail pushing her through the air and out of danger before splitting back into human limbs. She opened a hand and a sword formed in it only for her to fling it toward the puppet closing the distance, keeping it back in the ideal distance for her spear. Every time one of the puppets managed to land a blow, the wound closed before it was even finished opening. It was truly, utterly amazing.
But it wasn't going to be enough.
They were being played with before, that much was clear. The puppets had been tough to fight before, but now they were relentless. But more than that, they were fast and they were coordinated. They moved with a mechanical efficiency that reminded Kyoko of Homura, only guided by something more animalistic than her fellow Distortion. They didn't care about injuries. They weren't getting tired. In fact, they'd started using magic. Kyoko wasn't sure how and knew she didn't want to know the answer, but she had seen enough Magical Girls in combat to know what their powers looked like. Every time Sayaka made an opening, she would be cut off by a glowing green shield. Every time she took the advantage, she was taken off-guard by a blast of ice or a lightning strike. And the archer in the tower took every spare moment to snipe at the empowered Magical Girl. And maybe Sayaka could have handled that all if it weren't for one thing.
Kyoko was still there. The city was still on fire and Sayaka was still burning. She was hiding it well, but whatever inhuman state she had entered before that let her ignore the feeling of her body turning to ashes was gone. The flames clung to her body in a thin sheen, fighting the gentle azure glow that shrouded Sayaka's form. And to make it worse, Kyoko could see her healing slowing down. Wounds that had vanished in an instant now lingered before closing. Scales peeled off along with faint clouds of ash to reveal raw flesh underneath. It was a losing battle, all because of Kyoko.
Sayaka was still talking, but Kyoko could no longer hear her over the roar and crackle of the fire. The sounds of the battle felt distant in comparison. Suddenly, something landed next to her and sank partway into the melted asphalt next to her. It was one of the puppets' spears, still untarnished. Its bright silver tip gleamed ominously. Without even realizing it, Kyoko reached for the weapon. Then she stopped. What was she going to do? It was obvious, wasn't it? If Kyoko wasn't here, Sayaka could have a chance to win. To survive! But that wasn't what Sayaka wanted, was it? It wasn't what anyone wanted. Except Kyoko, because she was the only one who knew what she deserved. Didn't she? The spear was sinking, she didn't have forever to decide.
"So what do you want to do?"
Everything went silent. The already distant-sounding battle was a world away. Kyoko was alone with her thoughts and the voice that had come from nowhere.
"I don't know."
"Don't you? You seemed so insistent before. Did you change your mind?" The voice sounded soft and warm, not at all like the harsh flames Kyoko let out.
"I haven't. I still know what I deserve, it's just… I don't know if dying would actually fix anything. I've already made such a mess. What if I just fuck it all up worse?"
"And if you could die to fix everything? Is that what you want?" the voice asked.
Kyoko nearly cried out her answer without even thinking. Yes, that was what she wanted. To disappear along with all the damage she did.
But she remembered dinners with her family, back before everything fell apart. Her father was so proud of how well his preaching had succeeded, and they all celebrated his success. Kyoko took her private pride in the fact that it was her Wish that had made people listen to him. His words, his message, because she had helped. They laughed and joked and thought of the future they would have together.
She was still just a child when she met Mami. The older Magical Girl was amazing in a way Kyoko couldn't begin to replicate. But she'd still wanted Kyoko around for some reason Kyoko never understood, and she looked so happy. Even if Mami had never liked Kyoko the way Kyoko thought she might have liked Mami, that still mattered. It had hurt to leave, even if it was for the best.
When she came back, Mami had a new apprentice. One so much nicer and more heroic than Kyoko. She had friends. She had a family, and why would she need Kyoko to be a part of it? But for some reason, Mami still wanted her. They all wanted her around, even when she could barely even pretend to be human. X, who seemed like she knew everything, thought it was best for Kyoko to be around the people she claimed as her children. She and Mami both said they didn't care what Kyoko deserved. And Kyoko…
"I want to be part of a family again."
"Is that really your choice? Even if it hurts those very same people?"
"No." Kyoko answered immediately. She didn't want to keep hurting people because of her own failures. "Maybe I'll find people who I can't hurt. Maybe I'll find a way to stop screwing up in ways that hurt people."
"You don't really think that's possible." It wasn't a statement of doubt or an accusation. The voice was just telling Kyoko what she already knew she thought.
"Probably not. But I still want to try. And hey, I've been wrong before. I'll have plenty of people to help me along the way at least."
"Are you sure that's what you want to try? Even if you have no idea what'll come of it?" The voice sounded skeptical, warning, but Kyoko was certain. Whatever came next, whatever regrets she would have in the future, whatever mistakes she made… this wouldn't be one of them
"Yeah. I don't need to know for sure what'll happen. I think I'll be alright." Kyoko said before picking up the spear.
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The world fell back into focus. Kyoko took a deep breath, and all at once the fires disappeared. Cold and darkness rushed in to fill the space where heat and light had just been. No longer ignited, the lake of liquified rock that had been a clearing in the cityscape began to slowly cool and harden. The flames weren't gone, though. Kyoko could feel them just under her skin, ready to burn if she slipped again.
She stepped forward on two legs, not four. Her glassy flesh had felt so perfect before. All jagged and sharp edges, a broken mess making itself look impressive from a distance but wounding anyone who got anywhere near it. Easy to hurt but impossible to break because there was nothing left to be broken. That feeling wasn't right anymore. It wasn't who Kyoko was. But it wasn't gone, either. It was a dress, a coat, a robe wrapped around her. Still as sharp and fragile as before, but not everywhere. Soft red fabric wove beneath the patches of fractured mosaic adorning it, glowing with heat from underneath. The dress that formed was short and mostly undecorated save for the clusters of glass that formed bits of armor or simple flair along the edges. They rose up into a jagged collar behind her, a transparent silver veil hung on their tips and over Kyoko's face. The weapons stabbed into her back fell away and sank into the molten concrete. Those were old wounds. Kyoko didn't need to hold onto them any longer.
"Kyoko!" Sayaka's voice rang across the battlefield. She turned back to smile at the other girl, only for her attention to be demanded back by the halberd-wielding puppet swinging at her.
There was no more time to waste. Kyoko charged in at full speed, only to be shocked by the sound of hooves hammering into the ground. She glanced down to see that below her waist, her body had changed. Or more accurately, it had reverted. She didn't have time to process whatever emotions might have come, however, before she was in the fray and on two legs again. Heat erupted from her open hand before cooling and hardening into a spear. No, not a spear, but Kyoko's spear. It was more jagged than before, but still hers. An ID card hung off the handle by a simple silver ribbon, reminding her for a moment of a rosary. She thrust it forward, smashing through the magical shield that interrupted her attack and blasting the offending puppet back. She twisted, spinning her spear around to slam into the puppet's side even as it flew backward. It landed in a crumpled heap in a puddle of burnt concrete.
"That's my name." Kyoko said confidently. She forced aside another puppet, which Sayaka pierced with a jet of water. The other girl shot Kyoko a thumbs-up, and she felt a rush of energy flood her body as Sayaka's Magic took effect again. It felt different this time, more than simple strength. It was alive and encouraging, as present as the girl beside her.
"I was a bit worried for a second there. When the fire stopped, I thought…" Her cheer dulled, thinking of what could have happened.
"What, that I actually kicked the bucket? Well I thought you would prefer not being on fire. Did ya not have faith in me?"
"I did! I was just worried about you! It surprised me!" Sayaka shouted, indignant, as she deflected an arrow into one of the approaching enemies.
"Sorry." Kyoko said immediately, feeling the shame wash over her. Now wasn't the time for that, though, so she donned her smile again. "If we're talking about surprises, I didn't think you knew how to swear!"
"I can swear just fine! I just don't like to!" Sayaka said.
"Whatever you say. You sound like Mami. Now duck, newbie!" Sayaka dove to the side to allow Kyoko to blast back a puppet which had risen up behind her. She sprung back, a playfully indignant look on her face.
"Hey, I'm not a 'newbie'! I've got plenty of experience with this sort of thing, you know!"
Kyoko smirked and slammed her spear into another puppet, pinning it down. "Yeah? You've been at this for a couple weeks at most. I've got years of practice under my belt."
"Well did you get any actual training that whole time?" Sayaka shouted back before lashing her spear at the immobilized puppet's strings. One of its fellows tried to move to intercept the strike, but Kyoko summoned up a second spear and batted it out of the way. Sayaka's blade screeched as it struck the strings, slicing some in half but only pushing most of them away. She grimaced as the puppet tore free of its restraints and crawled back into position.
Kyoko wasn't deterred, though. "Oh, just Tomoe Mami, strongest Magical Girl ever. And I know she hasn't been training you much-" she bragged as she lashed out a chain at one of the puppets and dragged it out of position. Another puppet struck the chain and shattered it, but that left them both separated from the group. "-because I haven't heard you yell a single attack name the whole time I knew you!"
"Y-yeah, well," Sayaka sputtered, having clearly not been prepared for that response. But she regained her composure quickly. "I got trained by a legendary warrior from another world!"
With that declaration, Sayaka thrust her spear into the air before slamming it down. A towering wave curled up from behind her, seawater gleaming clear blue tinted orange by the light of Kyoko's fires. It crashed down a moment later, flowing around Kyoko without even a drop touching her while crashing into the puppets relentlessly. The two out-of-position puppets were sent to the ground while the rest were dragged back as the wave drained away. The two former Magical Girls charged together as one, red and blue flashes over the darkness. The downed puppets went limp, severed strings falling to the ground.
"Damnit, that is pretty good." Kyoko swore under her breath. "Alright then, veteran girl, mind giving me a boost here? There's something I need to take care of."
"I'm already 'giving you a boost,' but whatever." Sayaka said. Kyoko felt a sudden rush of power. It wasn't the surging energy that she had thought it would be. It felt like hunting with Mami, knowing that there was no Witch strong enough to beat her. Like X reaching through the monster's flesh to pull her free. Like sleeping in a bed she could call hers with two sisters and a parent in the same house.
Kyoko roared, and the world burst into flames. The fire swirled in impossible whirling patterns, shifting between flowing flames and solid weapons like the two were one. They brushed close to Sayaka, but not a single ember reached the other Magical Girl's body. It wouldn't always be this easy, Kyoko knew. She wouldn't always be able to just choose not to hurt people. But she'd at least be able to try.
The storm of fire solidified into a lattice of glass chains holding the puppets in place and dragged them forward. Their strings were snapped one by one until only a single one of the morbid things remained. A tall puppet, still clutching its spear.
"Runn-ing away ag-again," the thing rasped. "You k-know what you deserve-ve-ve. You are a-". Its voice nothing like Kyoko's father's. But she could hear his scorn, his hate in its words.
"Maybe I am. But punishing myself, paying for what I've done… it won't make anything better." Kyoko said to the puppet. Her voice lacked its usual energy or sharpness. "You can say it's cowardly to not accept punishment. But all I'd be doing is running away if I did. 'Cause I was scared of making another mistake. But I'm not gonna be afraid anymore. Not when I've got so much worth being brave for."
She raised her spear and slashed it through the puppet's last strings. It went limp.
"I hope you're at peace. Wherever you are."
The chains melted away. Freed of their strings, the puppets tumbled to the ground completely motionless. As the fires died down, Sayaka walked up behind Kyoko.
"Do you… wanna talk about it?" she asked hesitantly.
"No." It came out harsher than Kyoko intended. Sayaka flinched. "Sorry, I- sorry. I think I would rather talk about anything else."
"Okay." Sayaka said. The pair stood in silence.
"So if you were trained by Mami, does that mean you've got attack names?"
"What?" Kyoko said.
"Attack names. You said you knew Mami didn't train me much because I don't use them. So what about you?"
Kyoko's face turned nearly as red as her new uniform. "Hey, we've gotta hurry here! There's still a whole tower left for us to get through!" she insisted, having very masterfully avoided that subject.
"Oh? Are they not cool enough? Do you want help thinking of new ones? Kyoko!" Sayaka teased as the two made their way towards the tower's entrance.
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"Are you sure? Damage to a Soul Gem is typically fatal. Almost immediately, in fact."
"I'm not letting you poke around in my soul!" Ashley insisted as she was half-dragged half-carried through the Emerald City by the alchemist. It was terrifying being so close to a creature that even the Wizard was cautious of. The offer was tempting, though. Ever since that tiny scrape was made, Ashley had felt like her body was made of lead or trailing through water. Every movement happened a second after she wanted it to. Even her blinking was too slow. But giving an Abnormality permission to modify her Soul Gem? Ashley wasn't going to fall for that.
"Soul Gems aren't properly your soul, you know." the Alchemist stated calmly. "They're a secondary body stored externally which your consciousness is focused in. The closest analogy would be a cloud file, but for a person. You still exist within your body, but you're also kept safe within the Soul Gem in case it gets damaged or lost."
Ashley didn't know how to respond to that, but she didn't have to. The Alchemist stopped before a terrifying scene. A field of smoking ruins, dotted with rubble that she could hardly begin to imagine was ever composed into buildings. Ash filled the air in thick clouds, but instead of feeling dry it was instead almost unbearably humid. At the center was a lopsided tower, thoroughly scorched and covered in holes.
And if Ashley's eyes were as good as X's, she would have seen two tired girls sitting in the burnt-out balcony and smiling.
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Porccubus' Sapling - Observation Level 2/3
Schadenfreude's Sapling - Observation Level 2/3
CENSORED's Sapling - Observation Level EXPUNGED/REDACTED
