Magical Girl Quest - The Fire That Burns

[Rukia]

~Soundtrack~​

You grab Daiyu by the arm and drag her higher, until you are well and truly out of reach of anything on the ground. She shifts a little as you begin summoning spears, forming a slowly rotating ring around the two of you. Before you have the chance to open your mouth, you feel a sudden rush of warmth. When you turn your eyes to the side, Daiyu's hand is stretched in your direction, and you can just about make out a thin shimmer around you. You give her a nod in thanks as she shifts in front of you.

You flick your radio on, cutting through the orderly chatter. "It's too risky to go down there, I'm going to demolish the site from above." You see more of them creeping through the walls. "I'm nearly out of time here, you've got maybe two minutes before they get too out of hand." The line erupts into chatter as you get back affirmatives from the different group leaders.

You take a long breath as you look down, nearly thirty spears spinning around the two of you now. "Stay close, I don't know how fast they are in the air, but I know they can at least float." Daiyu nods as you finish your ring, a quiet crackling coming to life as armour of fire appears over you. Your ring slows as you divert your attention to forming your newest spell, you feel the massive amount of magic build up inside your chest, compressing it down further and further.

You raise your sword, staring down the top, it's almost shaped like sights. You narrow your eyes at the Incinerator, the building practically crawling as the dozens of skulls shift back and forth. You feel a gentle hand on your shoulder and let it shift your aim slightly to the side, then let the magic loose. There is a rush of magic through your sword, before a wall of magic explodes into existence with a sky shaking bang and races towards the ground faster than you can see. The dim skies light up a blinding blue, flickers of ethereal fire racing along it as the wave of magic hits the rooftop like a meteor.

(Juggernaut Wave: +1000 Base Damage, +47 Dice, +112 Spell Boost = 1159 Total Damage

38 Skull Wraiths: +0 Base Resilience, +0 Dice, -100 No chance to dodge = 100 Additional Damage

1259 Total End Damage

Intangible: 50% Reduction

629 Final End Damage

38 Skull Wraiths: 230 - 629 = -399

Incinerator Integrity: 1000 - 1159 = -158

Secret Underground Storage Room: 200 - 1159 = -959

Gas Storage: +2500 Damage = 2500 Total Damage)

The roof is smashed inwards as your magic levels the surroundings, the edge of your spell catching parts of other buildings and tearing them down with a roar. The wave impacts the ground with a deafening bang and you hear the screeching of metal before suddenly something explodes.

The shockwave radiates outwards from the ground, sturdy brick folding before it. Daiyu throws herself in front of you and a bare second later it hits you like a freight train. Most of the force breaks over Daiyu's shield, but the rest is enough to throw you another twenty metres in the air, your ears popping as they barely manage not to burst under the pressure.

When the dust clears slightly and you can finally see, you blink in shock. The entire area has been completely flattened, even the brick has been ground into fine powder, not a single thing remains standing over a foot. You hear the radio explode with questions as the shockwave reaches the owners, but you narrow your eyes, straining to see through the slowly settling cloud of dust.

When it does, you see roughly twenty ghosts rushing around wildly. They look to be in a frenzy, moving much faster than you've ever seen from them. They turn towards you as one, eye sockets flickering with black smoke as they begin floating up towards you, much slower than on the ground but still fast enough to make you uncomfortable.

Daiyu braces herself in front of you as you reach down, snagging one with a Halt before removing it from existence with a barrage of four spears. You grab another, and another, whittling down their numbers as fast as you can, but by the time you've run out of spears, there are still eight closing in on you.

You push off of a sword underneath you, grabbing Daiyu and dragging her upwards sharply as they close. A ghost floats into your path, Daiyu grabbing your shoulder and slamming her shield into the path of it's attack, claws skittering off of it harmlessly. Her momentum carries her around you, a raised hand guiding two spears to puncture the ghost that just attacked you as she bats another away with her bare hand, fist meeting its body with the sound of cracking glass.

She spins around, pushing against your back with her feet, letting another claw swing between you harmlessly as you drift apart. You Halt the ghost that attacked you as you grab Daiyu by the neck of her armour, dragging her back to you, a silent whisper guiding you to duck as another swings where your head just was. You hear Daiyu smack it away as you rapidly form a ball of plasma, spinning her behind you as you detonate it in bare feet from you.

(Plasma Sphere: +720 Base Damage, +11 Dice = 731 Total Damage

Skull Wraith 1-5: +0 Base Resilience, +0 Dice, -50 Cant dodge explosions = 50 Additional Damage

781 Total End Damage

Intangible: 50% Reduction

390 Final End Damage

Skull Wraith 1-5: 230 - 390 = -160)

The plasma flows off of you like water, Daiyu safely nestled behind you as the Ghosts catch the full brunt of the explosion. The ones within reach simply cease existing, but the plasma falls off before it can reach the remaining two.

Daiyu grabs your shoulder and pulls herself back in front of you, ignoring the heat radiating from your brightly glowing body as she sets her shield in front of her, staring over the top and panting slightly.

The remaining ghosts don't hesitate even slightly, apparently entirely unaffected by the loss of their fellows. One goes down, reaching for Daiyu's legs as the other goes high. You Halt the one below, letting Daiyu deck the other with her shield, sending it flying. You quickly form a set of spears, driving them both through the trapped ghosts head as Daiyu blocks another swing from the last survivor.

You let it close before you Halt it, four spears coming into existence as you stare it down. It manages to shift the barest of a centimetre before your spears tear it apart, the now three pieces rapidly fading away to nothingness as you let out a towering pillar of steam from your mouth. You quickly work to cool yourself down as Daiyu floats back to you, settling a hand on your glowing white hot armour and giving you a nod. You both watch the ground carefully, not seeing anything.

You pant a little as you frown, compressing your magic tightly as you search. Not this time, just level the fucking place. You take a long breath, re-summoning your sword, when did I drop that? Oh yeah, Plasma. You take aim, channel the magic and let it go.

This time, you aim it diagonally and the wave tears through three buildings before finally petering out. You summon a small ring of ten spears as you compress your magic, throwing it down at the camp again and again and again. Eventually Daiyu catches you as you nearly lose control of your flight, spears spluttering out as you pant harshly, barely able to see through blurry eyes. She holds you there as you rest, a minute later your eyes clear enough to see the devastation you have wrought.

The entire camp is gone. The waves of force have buried the brick from the fallen buildings and churned the soil, it looks more like an incredibly muddy field than the site of one of the worst genocides in history. You can barely make out the occasional cornerstone poking out from the ground, or a piece of metal that managed to weather the storm enough to stick up above the dirt.

Daiyu gently holds you as you shakily reach for your mic, moving a hand to stop you and flicking it on herself. You pant into the line for a moment, the frantic questions halting as you catch your breath. "The camp is... clear." You take a harsh breath as you swallow. "It's completely gone. Only way to be sure. Need to have someone check, I'm completely spent." She flicks it off for you as the leader from last weak speaks over the line.

"I understand, can you make your way back to base or do you need a ride?"

Daiyu shakes her head at you as she begins floating back towards the base, pulling you along with her. "I will carry you, now rest, job is done." You tiredly nod as you rest your head against her arm, letting her shift you into a princess carry. You help her out by floating yourself, but you let her carry you all the way back to your base of operations, the two of you setting down on the concrete courtyard. A team of medics rush over to the two of you, but Daiyu waves them off. "Not injured, tired. Need rest."

A taller man, the commander of the base, you assume, nods at you and shouts something in sharp German. The people who were hanging around nearby quickly rush back to what they were doing, Daiyu supporting you as walk towards the briefing room, helping you sit down in a chair to your protest. She just shakes her head and plows through your objections, settling herself next to you as the commander waits for you to sit down.

"Just a quick mission review now, we can do a more complete one later." You both nod. "First, you believe that you have destroyed all of the ghosts?" You both nod again and he writes something down. "Second, you believe that it is safe to investigate the location?" You nod, Daiyu stretching her arms as the commander writes a long something before looking up. "Alright, you are free to go for now, I'll expect to go over a more detailed debriefing after you've had the chance to rest."

Daiyu helps you to your feet, the two of you making your way to the room you've been assigned. You both let your armour dissolve, almost missing a step as it makes your weight shift. Daiyu hits the door shoulder first, knocking it over and kicking it closed behind her, locking it with her free hand. You both make your way over to the bed, dropping down onto it fully clothed.

You barely last ten seconds before oblivion claims you.

/LINE BREAK\​

When you wake the next morning, you ache horribly everywhere and are buried half underneath Daiyu. She apparently shifted in her sleep, dragging your torso over hers as her arms clamp around your midsection. Despite the fact that you were chest to chest, you were actually pretty comfortable, and it didn't feel weird at all. Still, you sleepily bat at her until she pokes an eye open, sleepily grumbling as she releases you. You roll over, off of her, stretching your spine like a cat as Daiyu sleepily swats back at you.

It only takes her a minute to sit up, stretching her arms and back with a long line of cracking noises. You wince in sympathy, apparently you were kind of heavy. "Hey, shift over." She glances over at you, moving to sit facing away. You crawl over, gently holding her shoulders as you rest your knee against her spine and pull.

Her back arcs around your knee slowly, loud popping and crunching noises echoing out as each of her vertebrae are stretched and the tension released.

When you are done, she lets out a long moan topped of with a blissful sigh, practically flopping back onto the bed as you giggle slightly at her. She opens one eye, smiling at you before closing it again and resting as you shimmy off the bed towards the bathroom.

/LINE BREAK\​

Your trip back to England was uneventful, apart from an enthusiastic thanks from the team that you had initially entered the camp with, they had received your note and given you a souvenir. One of the patches they wore when in uniform, apparently fighting with them was good enough to be considered a part of their group.

You set it on your mantle place, leaning it upright against the wall, displaying it proudly. You nod at it as you step back. Perfect.

Una calls to you from the other room and you turn, walking to see what she wants, the small patch resting at your back. When you think about the mission, you feel a silent warmth, approval of deeds done. Lips gently smile at you as you hug your sister, letting her tug you towards a particularly interesting entry in her new encyclopedia.

/LINE BREAK\​

[] Take a day off to rest and recuperate. (No training allowed.)

[] Magical Training
-[] Medical Animal Testing
-[] Write in

[] Investigate Dragon(?) Mountain

[] Help the reclamation of England by killing nests
-[] How many/long?

[] Hunt Powerful Magical Creatures
-[] Unto Heaven and Earth - There have long been tales of some truly ancient creature living deep in the mountains of Switzerland
-[] Do Not Fear The Dark - Check the Concentration Camp is clear.
-[] A French Legend - Kill the Peluda once and for all.

+2900xp Killed 58 Skull Wraiths

 

[Rukia]

After the excitement of your last mission, taking at least a day off seems well deserved.

When you move around, you feel an frantic energy moving underneath your skin. Your magic is more active than ever, instead of a gentle movement, it is racing through you like lightning. Daiyu apparently feels the same, since she barrels into your room, grabbing you by the arm and dragging you back to hers while babbling in exited Chinese.

When you enter her door, you suddenly understand her joy. Just ahead of you, using the sofa as a stand, you see Cuifen shakily standing. She tenderly puts her weak leg forwards, placing more and more weight on it until she winces, but she remains standing. She turns to look at you, more specifically, the loud Chinese that Daiyu is still letting out. She smiles and waves you over, Daiyu gleefully dragging you closer. Once you are in range, she grabs you in a tight hug, Daiyu taking the chance to make it a threesome.

She eventually releases you from the hug, looking down at you with slightly teary eyes. "I... I believed doctor when said leg would return fully." She bites her lip and you can see her wiggling her toes slightly. "But, is indescribable to actually have back." She hops slightly, wincing in pain and nearly collapsing, but her smile stretches even further.

Given that she is actually mobile now, you don't feel so bad about your previous idea. "That's amazing, it's good that it's healing so quickly." You step back, out of her personal space. "Actually, do you have any winter clothes?"

She tilts her head and looks at you oddly, before shaking her head. "No, have no been shopping yet and did not take any with us."

You suck in a little breath, well, it's not that inconvenient. You didn't have any either, so you were going to have to use plan B. "That's fine, I was wondering if you wanted to come out with me today, I was going to see if I can't create a localised Winter." She makes an intrigued noise, so you continue. "I want to make up to Una for being away so often, so I thought that I could try and bring winter to her for at least a day."

She makes an understanding noise and nods, before glancing down at her leg. "Am not doing anything, am fine with coming, but do not expect much movement." Daiyu is already flittering around, looking for something, so you step out of the room and head back to yours.

Una looks up at you curiously from the table, evidently having seen you being dragged away, while Morgan just smirks at you smugly. Still, you step closer and gently pat Una on the head, letting her lean into you before speaking. "Una, I want to show you something today, you want to come and see?" She nods up at you from under your hand and Morgan also nods after you send her a glance.

Right then, Plan Surprise Winter is a go.

/LINE BREAK\​

Your group ambles into your training area, Una curiously poking you every few minutes as you go. You refrain from saying anything, but Daiyu keeps sending her amused glances.

Once everyone is roughly in the middle, next to a large crater from spell testing of some sort, you stretch out your thermal sense and focus. You carefully lower the temperature around you, reaching up into the sky as far as you can go. You make sure to let your guests feel the cold, but only a slight chill, rather than the sudden burst of sub-zero temperatures you were using. Slowly, ice creeps out around you and their breath forms large plumes in the air. While they were distracted with the ice creeping around their feet, you finally felt tiny little snowflakes begin falling from above.

You carefully watch Una's face as she stares upwards, delicately guiding a falling snowflake with tiny thermals so that it lands gently on her nose. She lets out a surprised squeak and shakes her head, glancing around at the sudden downfall of snow. You were a little surprised yourself, you had barely managed to coax a light layer of snow out of the clouds above, but it was suddenly falling as thick as any snowstorm, only in your area though.

You try to sense into the cloud, but your efforts just frustrate you. You let out a huff as you hear a silent tinkling laugh, you glance around, but everyone else is pre-occupied staring at the sudden wall of snow. You try to sense deeper into the cloud but you feel the snow suddenly lessen in intensity, then a playful boop on your nose. You snort in surprise, looking around and seeing that the snow has settled into a large, foot deep layer, but only in your training area.

The fuck?

Any further thoughts are interrupted by Una, via snowball to the face. You blink in surprise as a tiny film of magic keeps the ice from entering your eyes, turning to look at where Una was standing, arm still outstretched. "You know of course, that this means war?" She has only a moment to regret her decision before you scrape a hand through the soft and fluffy snow, a pulse of reinforcement turning it from a poof to a mini-avalanche. She lets out a loud shriek as she is suddenly buried, and everyone stares at the Uni-cicle that you have created.

A little bit of effort from you keeps her from feeling the cold as she struggles, freeing an arm then the rest of herself. She ducks down behind the little wall you created and glances around the corner at you. "Challenge accepted."

/LINE BREAK\​

An hour later, you were tiredly juking through battlements and around castle walls as you dodge thrown snowballs. How does she have so much energy? She had teamed up with Morgan earlier, then Daiyu had betrayed you half-way through and joined their alliance, leaving you running around like a madwoman. Through all of this you were busy keeping the snow cold, keeping them warm and dodging snowballs, so you really didn't have any time to fight back.

You had just vaulted over a small wall when you come face to face with Daiyu, lifting a large chunk of poofy snow, aiming at your crouching form. You close your eyes as your inevitable loss flies at you, only for it to pass your head completely, nailing Morgan straight in the face. You blink up at her and she smiles down at you. "Cannot betray battle sister! Was ruse to ambush." She lets out a hearty laugh as she drags you to your feet, towards a secret stockpile of snowballs she had been collecting. "Come, I will show you their secret passages."

/LINE BREAK\​

You slowly creep up behind Una, looking down over her battlements as she is. You gently reach up behind her, dropping a formed ice-cube down the back of her shirt and making sure she feels the complete extent of the cold. The sudden cold makes her jump upwards, frantically shaking her shirt until the ice-cube drops out the bottom, leaving her staring up at your triumphant face.

You gently reach down, pressing a hand to her shoulder and flick your wrist. She dramatically falls backwards, into a carefully prepared pile of snow, as you speak in a deep gravelly tone. "Long live the King."

/LINE BREAK\​

When you are done, you carefully embed the scene into your memory. A full castle of snow, battlements and cover reaching across the area, holes drive through the walls in desperate escape attempts.

You slowly melt it down to water, then quickly to steam, and it is as if it never happened. The only signs being a very slight dampness of the ground.

When you get home, Una is smiling cheerfully constantly, but she falls asleep quickly. Must have worn herself out, no wonder with all the running she was doing. You gently set her to sleep, sharing a smile with Morgan as you quietly relax on the sofa together, tea in one hand and biscuits in the other.

Haaaa. You lean back in your seat, letting out a long relaxed sigh and getting a sideways glance from Morgan. You gently shake your head as you close your eyes, setting your empty mug down and curling up slightly.

She shuffles to the right, letting you stretch your legs and lay down sideways, gently shifting your head from the sofa to resting on her lap. She runs her fingers through your hair, gently murmuring inaudible things until you fall asleep.

/LINE BREAK\​

[] Magical Training
-[] Medical Animal Testing
-[] Write in

[] Investigate Dragon(?) Mountain

[] Help the reclamation of England by killing nests
-[] How many/long?

[] Hunt Powerful Magical Creatures
-[] Unto Heaven and Earth - There have long been tales of some truly ancient creature living deep in the mountains of Switzerland
-[] Do Not Fear The Dark - Check the Concentration Camp is clear.
-[] A French Legend - Kill the Peluda once and for all.

 

[Rukia]

Finally, you would get to test your idea of using your magic to heal someone. Honestly, it had felt like the world itself was conspiring to stop you from getting this chance, as soon as you were free for a moment, something else would need your attention. But now, sitting across from Morgan as she drives you to this 'retired' Enforcers house, you are going to get your chance.

You drive out of London for around twenty minutes, leaving out the forty it took to get out of London itself. Eventually, Morgan pulls into a gravel driveway. When you get to a gate, it opens itself for you, without any sort of electronics. Magic? I guess when you get to that age, you can care less. She slows to a stop by a small cottage, fields surrounding it, trees lining the edges of those fields. It felt like you had entered your own little world, there was absolutely no sound coming from the large road just outside. Magic again? You follow her over to the door, knocking three times before stepping back to wait.

It doesn't take long, the door opening barely twenty seconds later, a wrinkled dark skinned hand pulling the door inwards. You get your first good look at this farmer, and you have to control your reaction. He is horribly scarred everywhere and one of his arms is missing. You shake yourself away from looking at his injuries and look up to his impassive face. Must be used to that reaction. It's a little embarrassing that you were caught out like that.

He looks down at you with lukewarm eyes, wrinkles creasing under his eyes, his bushy eyebrows nearly hiding them from view. "You the newest frontliner then?" You think about his wording for a minute before nodding. He lets out a snort, stepping back and waving you in, speaking as he turns. "Startin them younger and younger I see." He tilts his head to look at Morgan. "I see what you mean, it's good you brought her over." You blink at his statement, but Morgan just nods back to him as you move through his house.

The walls are covered in dozens of knick-knacks and photos. In many of them the old farmer features, whole and healthy, surrounded by a group of similar looking people. His squad? You send a glance to Morgan but she shakes her head. No questions. You look at the dozens of skulls, fangs or claws scattered about the house. When you look back over, he is smirking as he looks at you through a reflection in a tiny mirror. Did he set that mirror up just so he could watch people do that? Clever.

He grunts as he waves to a knobbly table, the kitchen just as cluttered with things as the rest of the house. "Two sugars?" You nod, a little surprised he was able to guess and he moves over to his kettle. He twists his fingers strangely, a tiny waver of magic flickering between them and the kettle is suddenly full of boiling water. So that's how Karen does it. He pours everyone a mug, settling down on a very creaky chair as you take a sip. Mmm, good. You glance down at the table and chairs, seeing dozens of tiny little lines. Cuts? Did he make these himself?

He interrupts your thoughts after he sets his mug down. "First, you can call me Gilbert." You nod and he continues. "Right then, little missy here says you want to try out some kind of healing magic?" Your eyes move to his injuries involuntarily, but he doesn't react.

"Yes, I can heal myself somewhat, I thought it would be a good idea to see if I could apply that to someone else."

He grunts, flopping an arm down across the table, just in front of you. "Well, get to it then." You look up to him with slightly wide eyes as you shake your head.

"No--no, my magic is kind of dangerous at times, I wanted to test it on animals first."

He stares you in the eye for a long moment before nodding and withdrawing his arm. "Good, not stupid are you? Never toy with magic, otherwise it'll tear you a new asshole." He scratches his side with his one arm. "I don't suppose any of those lazy shits over there have bothered tryin'a teach you anything? Just leave you to get to it?"

You nod, surprised at his words. "Kind of? I got some basic lessons for my sword and hand to hand."

He lets out a loud huff, shaking his head as he leans back and speaks to himself. "What're you playin at Karen? This aint the time for your dickwaving contest." He continues before you can say anything. "Right, whatever, follow me." He grabs his mug with one hand, leveraging himself out of his seat with a long groan. You follow him out the back, moving along a fence line before arriving at a large wooden building, hidden from the road by the cottage. Barn? He leads you into it, moving through the dirt and stopping at a particular door. You see that it has a tiny flicker of magic in it, which folds inwards at his approach. He swings the door open, unveiling a horse. It's lying on it's side, breathing laboured as it huffs loudly.

"This is Stace, she's not long for the world now, I'm gonta put her down later today. If you're going to practice, she'll do just fine."

You nod as you step forwards, dropping to your knees next to her. "I don't know how well my magic works on sicknesses, does she have any injuries I can try it on?"

He lets out a long breath. "No, give me a second." He leans down next to you, doing something sharp with his magic before pulling back. When you look at that area, there is a very small cut in its side. "Don't worry, she didn't feel a thing, hardy thing she is." You nod as you bring your magic forth, focusing on how you heal and pushing it through your hands into the injury.

There is a small resistance, a tiny flicker of something that you crush as you press forwards, spreading your magic through the wound. You feel it working, speeding up the healing process and knitting the tiny wound together rapidly. You sit up, looking over the horse. She is still breathing, but she doesn't look any better than she did before. Maybe if I try her entire body? You send a glance back to Gilbert. "Is it fine if I try to heal her entire body?" He nods sharply, watching your movements with a careful eye.

You turn back, taking a deep breath as you gather your magic together. Alright, lets do this. You push forwards through your hands, absent-mindedly pushing the tiny resistance aside as you spread your magic through its body. When you are covering everything, you try to start healing. You feel the magic working, speeding up the healing, but it doesn't seem to be getting any better. The longer you try, the heavier it's breathing seems to get, breaths coming shallower and shallower with every passing moment. You lean back, looking down with confused eyes.

You hear a sigh behind you before Gilbert taps you on the shoulder. "It's alright, I'm guessin you heal by makin the body heal faster?" You nod. "Her body has already given up the ghost, 's just shutting down, healing like that won't do anything but make it go faster." He steps past you, gently running a hand down the injured animals face and neck. He closes his eyes. "'S alright now girl, you've earned your rest." He wavers his magic slightly, before you see the horse's breathing slow to a stop, passing gently.

You quietly step back out of the room, waiting next to Morgan. A minute later he steps out, looking a little down, but he nods at you. "I've got to take care of this, best you skadoodle." He pauses before turning to look at Morgan. "Don't forget to come visit, it's been too long." Morgan nods with a warm smile. "Bring your friend with you next time, I bet we've got a lot to talk about." You blink as Morgan gently tugs on your arm, leading you back to the car.

"Who was that?"

She buckles herself into the car and pulls out of the drive. "An old family friend, he used to take care of me when I was younger sometimes." She takes a right turn. "I guess you could call him an uncle of some sort?"

You let out a hum as you settle back into your seat, turning your eyes to the hedges along the roadside. "He felt strong."

She nods. "He used to be one of the strongest in the world, but his time has passed now. He spends what is left of his time relaxing and taking care of his farm."

Mmmm.​

/LINE BREAK\​

When you show up at one of the main bases of the Enforcers working on finishing off the clearing, you are greeted by wide eyes and whispered words. You ignore them as you make your way over to the commander of this section of Whales. "Morgan should have called forwards, I'm going to be taking care of the Scamp infestation?"

She looks up from her pile of paperwork, waving a younger woman away as she nods at you. "We got word, we'll be leaving this one to you, good luck."

You nod at her, taking flight slow enough for Daiyu to keep up. You fly across the sky, idly spinning or playing tag with Daiyu until you arrive at your destination. You float above them, looking down at the clearing. A cordon has been established to keep the stray Scamps from leaving the area, though the Enforcers have moved to a much bigger ring after you arrived.

You send a look at Daiyu as you extend your sensing range. "I'm not sure if you are going to have anything to do today, this is mostly clean-up."

She nods resolutely, still floating between you and the forest. "That is fine, time with you is time well spent."

You feel a little blush come to your face, so you turn away and focus on the area below you. Please don't say such embarrassing things like that. You distract yourself by forming a large Plasma Sphere, taking a minute to compress it as much as you can, before idly letting it fall from your hands. It slowly moves towards the ground, contact expanding into an enormous fireball. Man, when you are up close you don't really get a good view of just how big the explosion is.

You take the fires and spread them around your range, burning it hotter and hotter as you absent-mindedly rotate yourself, lying back on air and letting your magic hold you. You burn the area until you are burning the ashes of the ashes, not bothering to set down and investigate. If anything had survived that, there was no way you'd find it with your eyes. You'd just tell the commander to have a Scout poke through the area.

/LINE BREAK\​

You set down back at base, idly scratching your exposed thigh as you think about what to do. Might as well keep going I guess? Not like I've got anything else to do. You make your way through the semi-crowded corridors and pop back into the commanders office, nodding at her as you enter. "Got anything else for me? I incinerated the entire place, you should send someone to check that I got them all."

She blinks up at you before shaking her head with a silly smile. "We've got one other problem here, a breeding ground for Rougnniks. They are all young enough not to be a massive issue, but we can't get too close without dragging them on a merry chase through the forest. If you could deal with that, we can finally move past that entire area without having to tip-toe around it." She lets out an 'Ah' right after she finished. "Oh, and don't worry about the Mother, it has already been dealt with."

You nod, accepting a map and stepping back. "Right, we'll be back as soon as we are done." You take off towards the nest, flying for around an hour before you recognise a landmark on the map and float yourself closer. Once you lock on to their heat signatures, a lot hotter than a normal creature, you notice they are all looking up at you. They all rapidly congregate beneath you, looking up at your distant forms with glowing yellow eyes. Ok, that is kind of creepy.

You focus down on them, gently heating the area just around them until it's a blazing inferno. They don't even try to escape the flames crawling over them, they just stare up at your stationary forms with hungry eyes. Ok, that is really creepy.

You make sure to incinerate the bodies before you float back to base. I've had quite enough of creepy things coming back to bite me in the ass. Do it right the first time.

/LINE BREAK\​

You depart from the Welsh base a little bored and feeling slightly guilty about that. You were being a massive help to the Enforcers, it's just that their problems were just so simple for you to deal with. You literally spent more time flying around than you did fighting, if you could even call the extermination you did fighting.

You stop halfway to the next base to have lunch with Diayu, you find this lovely little bakery in a village you were passing over. Their pastries were amazing and the old woman who owned the store just extruded warmth from her every action. You are on your last bun when you see Daiyu staring at you imploringly. You break it in half with a sigh, passing her the other half and hiding your smile as you chew the pastry.

You tactfully ignore the cooing from the old woman in favour of enjoying your food.

/LINE BREAK\​

You stop by two other bases that day. Only actually eradicating one other nest, everywhere else was pretty much done already. There probably would have been more to do a couple of days ago or so, but they had made a big push recently. All that was left was eradicating a few stragglers further up north.

You spend the time floating home poking your sword with your Aura, it flows into your sword easily enough and when you float down to test it on a tree, the entire thing bursts into flames rapidly. Huh.

[] Magical Training
-[] Write in

[] Investigate Dragon(?) Mountain

[] Hunt Powerful Magical Creatures
-[] Unto Heaven and Earth - There have long been tales of some truly ancient creature living deep in the mountains of Switzerland
-[] A French Legend - Kill the Peluda once and for all.

+108xp Killed 36 Scamps
+50xp Killed Big Scamp
+48xp Killed 6 Baby Rougnniks

Spoiler: Western Rougnnik

 

[Rukia]

Since there wasn't really any pressing matters to attend to, you decided to dedicate the next few days to training.

On Thursday, it was trying to see if you could improve your flight somehow. It was mostly trying to improve your agility by jumping from platform to platform. You had frustrating lack of progress until you had a sudden realisation. You could Halt yourself. You smiled a little as you tried your next jump, making it to the right position and casting on yourself.

You instantly stop dead, stomach lurching for a singular moment, before the momentum from that is also stopped.

You hang there in the air for a brief moment as you feel a crushing sense of trapped begin to set in on you. You struggle against your own bindings for a moment before you remember to release them, dropping to the ground with a thud that cracks the concrete. You stay there, panting as your heart races, until Daiyu walks over.

She gently sets a hand on your shoulder. "What is wrong?"

You shake your head as you control your breathing. "N--" Deep Breaths. "Nothing is wrong, just a little out of breath." She doesn't seem impressed by your expert acting, gently pulling you to your feet and walking you to the cafe on the training ground. She makes sure you sit down at a booth, walking off to order for the two of you.

When she comes back, tea and cake in hand, she settles across from you. She doesn't say anything as you drink your tea, taking little nibbles of your cake until your heart has stopped beating frantically. You look at her, waiting for something, but she just smiles at you and takes a sip of her black tea.

After several minutes of silence you let out a frustrated sigh and dip your head, but before you can say anything she shakes her head. "Do not need to tell now, later if want." She nods firmly at you. "Calm now."

You stare at her for a second before leaning back, a tiny soft smile playing across your lips as you rest your head on the seat behind you.

Some things are better left forgotten.

​

/LINE BREAK\​

The next day, you claimed a room in the Gym and locked it behind you. You didn't want any distractions while you were working on this, it would be hard enough on its own.

You settle down in the middle of the room, getting comfortable on one of the mats. Then, you gently pull your magic back from where it waits. You pause halfway through, metaphorically tilting your head as you look at it.

You try, but you can't really make sense of what you are seeing, only that it is big.

The second you think that you feel slight flick to the side of your head. It startles you enough that you lose control of your magic, a massive clump of it rushing out before you can corall it back. Once you have everything back under control, you start on figuring out what the fuck that was.

Something similar had happened the other day with the snow and you were getting a little worried now. You carefully follow along the same steps you had before and look at the nonsensical layers as you think. Is this sentient somehow?

It took you all of two seconds after having that thought, along with a tiny thrill of foreign amusement, before you got it.

Gaia

"Oh shit." The words slip out of your mouth without thinking as you hear a silent hum.

You look around you, but you are still alone, it was just you and the fucking planet.

[] Ignore Her
[] Engage Her
-[] Write In...

 

[Rukia]

You shift from side to side on your knees, trying to sense for any sort of disturbance around you. The longer you look, the more that silent amusement grows. You very carefully don't let your thoughts show on your face as you slowly stand, carefully settling your magic as you feel her all around you, it's like she is everywhere.

I guess she is though.

You look towards the wall, seeing at nothing in particular, mouth moving without thinking. "Are you watching me you pervert?"

The room is filled with a sudden silence. Before when you were alone it was quiet, but now, not even the insects were breathing.

The silence lasts for a long moment before you feel the air gently rumble, enough that your teeth rattle, then it calms.

When you look around, the feeling is gone, but so are you.

Before where there were bare concrete walls, now there was blue sky. Beneath your feet, the mat you had taken with you was replaced with soft earth and grass.

You are already transformed and armed by the time your heart beats next, kicking off of the ground hard enough to send waves of soft loamy dirt flying in every direction. You halt yourself in the air, frantically looking around as you bring as much magic to bear as you can, waiting for an attack.

Instead you feel a featherlight touch, gentle fingers running down your cheek. It is such a small thing that you barely even noticed it, if not for the sudden weakness it left in it's wake. You feel your body fall limp, magic slipping through your fingers as you de-transform, your weapon fading away. You drop quickly, the magic holding you up gone, ground approaching rapidly. You barely even have a chance to reflect on your fate before a pair of soft arms catch you, gently guiding you into their embrace.

You lie there, held up against the body of this woman. You struggle to lift your head, muscles feebly twitching until a pale hand tenderly guides your head upwards, resting your chin on the top of her breasts. Your eyes struggle for a moment, blurring before you can see again. She looks... incredibly normal. Dark brown hair, light blue eyes and soft white skin. Even the chest you were resting on was average, yours was almost the same size.

The moment the thought crossed your mind, one of her hands moves in a blur and gently flicks your ear. You are still completely drained, so you barely manage a feeble twitch of surprise before she's settled her arm on your back again. She takes the opportunity to rest back against the grass beneath her, propped up by a solitary tree behind her. She shifts you onto her lap, letting you lean backwards against her, the back of your head resting on her shoulder.

Wha--what's happening

You somehow feel her smiling gently at you, one of her hands gently toying with your hair as the other smooths out the ruffles in your clothes from your abrupt movements. You hear a quiet humming noise vibrate the air as a sense of peace falls over you. You feel your eyes slowly closing, muscles relaxing into her hold as your breath evens out unwillingly.

Your thoughts are a confused jumble as you just barely make out her head tilting downwards, soft smile stretching across her face as you sleepily succumb to the inevitable, an invisible weight lifting from you as you let go.

/LINE BREAK\​

Where am I?

...

[HOME]

...

...

Who are you?

...

...

[GAIA]

...

...

Why?]

...

...

...

...

...

...

[LOVE]

...

...

...

[] Open Your Eyes

[] Listen Longer

[] Rest]

 

[Rukia]

It is quiet for a long time, but it is a comfortable silence. You don't feel the urge to speak out, you just... exist and wait.

Eventually, there is a shifting, a crack in your little world. It grows, spreading across everything until it halts, frozen in place.

The gentle humming returns, and the cracks slowly recede, creeping backwards until they are completely gone.

The soft little tune reverberates through everything and nothing, gently coaxing you forwards and nowhere. You follow it and remain still, letting it guide you.

You pass a tiny crack, impossible to see, but still knowing it is there. Your guide draws you around it, the soothing whisper dances, and it is finally gone.

/LINE BREAK\​

You open your eyes slowly, cocooned in a warm embrace, your heart beating lazily in time with another.

A thumb gently strokes your shoulder, a soft hand resting there, radiating a comfortable warmth. You turn your eyes to the sky, watching the clouds slowly drift by as you listen to her sounds.

The two of you stay there for an eternity, her gentle ministrations keeping you on the verge of sleep.

...

...

[ANGER?

There is a long silence after your question, until you feel her body vibrate, her humming interrupted by a gentle laugh.

She tenderly runs a hand down your cheek, the gentle rise and fall of her chest rocking you slightly.

[LOVE]

It was everything that could be said, in ways that words could not.

But despite your paradise, something tugged at you, a part of you screaming and roaring quietly in the background.

[SISTER]

It felt wrong, but it felt more and more right the more you sleepily mulled the thought over.

Mother sighs slightly, halting her gentle movements as she gazes down at you.

You meet her stare, until her smile returns, hands returning to their tasks.

You follow her gaze when it turns to the sky, looking deeper at her gentle encouragement.

Far in the distance, beyond the sky and in another, you see them. Cracks, dozens of them, slowly spreading across that sky. It was almost covered.

You turn your gaze back to her, a question in your eyes.

She closes her own, a long moment passing before they open.

She stares into you, looking past and seeing.

You see them then, Demons.

But you see further, Deeper.

She leans down to you, voice softly whispering the first words you have heard from her.

[Be strong and remember, I am always with you.]

As her sentence ends, so does the world. Everything slides sideways, falling apart at the seams as your mind falls into the abyss.

/LINE BREAK\​

You slowly open your eyes, a muted hush falling over the crowded room as you take your first breath.

Your reprieve lasts barely a second before your sister hits you like a missile, throwing herself at you and pitching you both to the ground. Her rapid babbling echos out and she squeezes you tightly, her voice jolting the rest of the room into action, masses of people closing towards you with shouts flying everywhere.

There is an enormous slam that shakes the room and suddenly Daiyu is standing before you, fully transformed and with her sword planted into the ground. Her glare wards off the Enforcers who were approaching as Morgan crouches at your side, quickly looking over you for any injuries with worried eyes. It is only then that you see the bags lining them and her general aura of exhaustion, she looks like she is just about ready to keel over. You reach up to her at you hold Una close, Daiyu moving to kneel by your side with stiff, but rapid movements.

She clutches your hand, dragging herself closer until her forehead is touching your shoulder. Daiyu sets her hand on your other, occasionally looking up with a stony face whenever she spots anyone closing, despite her stoicism, you can see that she has worse bags under her eyes than Morgan does.

You feel a wetness on your shoulder and look down. Morgan looks back up at you, tears escaping from the side of her face openly and she presses herself into your side.

You try to speak, by your voice cracks and you begin coughing. It lasts a long enough for Daiyu to start gently stroking your shoulder. When it stops, Morgan looks up at you and shakily speaks. "We thought you were gone forever, she just took you." She buries her face against you again, her voice muffled as she speaks. "We couldn't get you back."

You try to form words as Una shivers on your chest, but your voice refuses to co-operate with you, something straining as your magic fluctuates wildly. Morgan eventually just shakes her head, reluctantly moving back to her knees and wiping her face with her sleeve. One of my hoodies.

Daiyu carefully helps you stand, holding your shaky form up as you use the last of your strength to hold Una. She gently takes your weight as you begin walking, Morgan walking closely on your other side, hands fumbling with themselves uselessly.

A man with a red cross, a medic, tries closing when you reach the door. Daiyu sharply turns her head to look at him and he backs down quickly, holding both of his hands up as he rapidly retreats.

They help you back to Morgan's room, Cuifen quickly looking up from where she is doing something at the table, dropping whatever it is and rapidly making her way to her feet, rapidly shuffling along with the help of the furniture. They guide you over to Morgan's bed, moving to rest you against the headboard as Morgan quickly runs through the house, returning with a glass of water that she nearly throws over you at her rapid stop.

You take a long gulp, tilting your head back further and further until you finish the entire glass. You swallow with a gasp, trying to catch your breath as Daiyu stands resolutely at the end of your bed. Cuifen settles herself down on a nearby chair, leaning over to speak as you shift Una a little.

"Know what happened?" You nod a little slowly. Some things were a little hazy, but you remembered everything fine. She breathes a sigh of relief and continues. "Were gone for six days, just gone. Said felt big burst of magic from you, then just disappeared into thin air."

Your magic finally settles down somewhat as Morgan claims the floor next to you, Daiyu still standing guard, but her ear is turned towards you.

[] Tell them that Gaia took you.
[] Lie

 

[Rukia]

You open your mouth to speak, but what comes out isn't what you had intended.

[GAIA

Everyone in the room flinches backwards, Una practically tearing herself from your chest as the thing echos out. It's clumsy and half-formed, nothing at all like what you knew it should be, but the mangled mess was more than enough to rock everyone in the room. Not that it didn't hit you just as hard, you felt something twist and crunch horribly as the taste of blood bloomed in your mouth. You curl over, just about resisting the urge to make another sound as crippling pain wracks your body.

Eventually you feel the pain recede somewhat as your magic goes about healing whatever damage it caused, but there was still a lingering echo of something. You slowly sit up, turning your eyes to where the occupants of the room were slowly regaining their bearing. Daiyu had already steadied herself and had drawn her sword, looking around frantically before settling on you, calming when you look fine. Slowly, the other occupants of the room regain their standing, though Morgan looks like she's been hit by a truck. When your eyes cross Una, lying limply at the end of the bed and gently crying, you feel your heart tear in two.

You ignore the lingering pain and lunge forwards, scooping her up in your arms and gently curling over her. Your magic hangs heavy in the air, cracks racing along the wooden panels of the bed as you bring everything you have to bear around the two of you. You hear distant shouts as you focus on the only thing that matters to you, shutting out the world as you frantically race magic across her skin, not quite daring to reach into her after what your magic had caused.

Eventually, you feel a tiny twitch in one of her arms and your eyes jump to her face. A single eye is open, just enough for you to see it unclouded and focused clearly on your face. You let out a sigh of relief as you slump, Una's arms shakily grasping you. You slowly let your magic dissipate, the rest of the world coming into focus as you sit up, gently draping Una across your lap and holding her close.

Daiyu is the first to close, dropping to a knee with a harsh thud of her armour. "Sister! Are you ok?"

You manage a tired nod as Morgan gingerly leans against the wall, bloodshot eyes looking you over. "What was that?"

You reflexively open your mouth to speak, but quickly close it again, looking around for something to write on. Cuifen evidently gathers your intents and reaches over to the table beside her, grabbing the first piece of paper and pencil she can find before handing them to Morgan, who sets them on your lap.

You start writing, holding up your sheet when you are done. Word but not a word. I don't know what it was. You quickly scribble out your next sentence. Gaia spoke it.

When the rest of the room reads your words, the silent tension that had already been there grew thicker. Morgan practically growled as Daiyu tightened her grip on her sword. You cast a confused glance over to Cuifen as the sole calm person in the room. She frowns slightly as she looks sideways at her sister. "Clocktower was convinced of death, said gone beyond where could be found. Thought might be Gaia." Her frown deepens as her lips tighten. "They try to convince Daiyu to take your place. Una not take it well."

You tighten your grip on Una as your thoughts race. Trying to replace me in just six days? A deep frown splits your face as you turn your eyes to your... friends. Morgan is muttering something over and over to herself while Daiyu is staring at you with a sharp intensity. You see her eyes twitch, holding her eyelids open with pure willpower, but her focus is absolute. Una shifts in your lap, eyes dry as whatever you had done faded.

You want to stand up, find Karen and try to find out what the fuck she was thinking, but Una is more important now. You have a brief thought of writing down what had happened but... you were never going to be able to forget what had happened. Just the thought of that felt wrong.

You settle back against the bed, gently resting Una against you again as you keep your mouth shut. You awkwardly scribble out your words. I want to talk to her, as soon as Una is asleep I'm going. Cuifen, can you watch her?

She nods at you, Morgan slowly nodding as well, almost falling with the movement as she forces her eyes open. She much be exhausted. Cuifen leans in from her chair to whisper to you. "Morgan only get hour of sleep at a time, whenever she pass out in middle of research." You turn your eyes to her as her lingering frown grows stronger, hands gripping the chair tight enough for the wood to creak. "Daiyu stand guard over disappearance place. She not sleep."

You feel your breath catch in your throat as you turn to look at your friends, completely dumbfounded at the lengths they had gone through to try and get you back. Morgan is quickly sipping from a cup that you had assumed was tea, but when you look closer you see Coffee, and she hates Coffee. Daiyu looks absolutely shattered, but is still standing strong, ready to defend you.

Even as you look, Morgan struggles to stay awake, eyelids fluttering constantly as she slowly leans against the wall next to her. She eventually loses the fight, eyes sliding closed as she falls asleep, standing against the wall with her mug of Coffee still held steady. Daiyu still stands ready, fully transformed and looking to you for direction.

Why do they try so hard? Why do they care? You repress the urge to cry, nodding solidly at Daiyu as she waits for you. Let Morgan sleep, we will go. She nods at your words, not moving from her spot.

It doesn't take Una long to fall asleep, a combination of gently stroking her hair and your warmth later and she's out like a light. You gently shift her off of you, leaving your hoodie wrapped around her so she can sleep properly as you stand, armour and weapon forming around you as you go.

Daiyu walks alongside you as you make for the door, your movements syncing together as you take step after step.

[] Find Karen and talk
[] Find Karen and talk

+25xp Met Gaia

 

[Rukia]

When you open the door, you come face to face with a small crowd of people. You step backwards and Daiyu steps forwards, shield raised over her body. The people beyond don't have a chance to make a sound before she narrows her eyes at them and leaks her magic. It crashes into the world in an inaudible crunch, smothering any chance words may have had to be made. "Stay silent, sister is sleeping."

They let out shaky nods as you step through the door with her, closing and locking it behind you. Daiyu moves forwards with you, the crowd scattering before her as she moves. The hallways are large, perhaps three metres across, but it almost looks like they are trying to make them larger by how strongly they are pushing against the walls.

You pass in silence, the only noise the clinking of your armour as the plates touch. You don't meet anyone else in the corridors, the entire base seemingly empty. They can probably feel us coming. You reach Karens room in two minutes, opening the door without knocking and stepping forwards.

Karen is sitting in her chair, trying her best to look unruffled. She is doing a pretty good job of it, you might be convinced if not for the fact that you can feel the pathetic effort of her magic pushing back against Daiyu's. She stays quiet, waiting for you to speak first, her customary greeting and offer of tea nowhere to be found.

You stop next to Diayu, harsh frown on your face. You desperately wish you could just fucking shout and let her have a piece of your mind, but you don't trust your... voice not to do that thing right now. You raise your piece of paper and write out your words instead. You tried to replace me after six days? You are quietly frustrated at how difficult it is to convey 'WHAT THE FUCK' and 'FUCKING WHY' in a written sentence.

She seems to get the idea though, because she shakes her head smoothly. "Gaia is not known to return things that she takes, the last Magical Girl that I met went away in a similar manner. She was never seen or heard from again." She lets out a practised sigh, apparently it was too much effort to keep Daiyu at bay and keep her perfect persona up. "I understand why it looks bad that we tried to have Daiyu take over your position so fast, but we needed her right now. We still need you right now."

Daiyu makes an unhappy sound, but remains silent, letting you write your response.

And what was it that needed her right now? So much so that you couldn't even bother trying for a week?

Karen lets out a very small sigh, the only sign of her frustration. "We were still looking for you when you came back. But I was preparing for the worst in case you didn't." She shuffles through a paper on her desk and holds up a picture. It takes you a second to understand what you are seeing, it's an aerial view of a village of some sort, only it's been completely destroyed. Every building has been burnt to the ground or smashed into a dozen different pieces. You can see bodies, more human sized lumps of carbon at this point than corpses.

"This is why we need you right now. It turns out that the idiot who provoked the Peluda was a part of a cult who believed that they could gain immortality by dying in it's flames. The problem is that they decided to extend this 'gift' to a nearby village at the same time as them." She drops the picture back to the table and rubs her face. "Now it's running wild within the area we've trapped it, destroying everything indiscriminately. So yes, we need you right fucking now."

Her words take a little bit of the wind out of your sails, but to be fair, you really don't give a shit. Not my problem. You can see her almost start gaping at your response. Were you going to keep your end of the deal with Una? You threw me away so quickly that I really don't know if you would.

"Yes! Of course I would." She almost rises from her seat as she raises her voice. Her response surprises you, it's by far the loudest and most energetic you've ever heard from her. She drops back into her seat with a long sigh, settling herself as she rubs her forehead. "Yes." She starts more quietly. "I uphold my deals, especially regarding children." Her statement hangs for a moment before speaking again, softer. "Do I come across as that sort of person then? A backstabber who betrays everyone whenever it's convenient to her?"

You grit your teeth as you grudgingly respond. No. She would never have made it to her position, let alone hold it, if she constantly lied and betrayed people. But that does not mean that you don't make exceptions. You wanted to trust her, believe what she was saying. But you'd seen her type before, she was a good person, but she would make the hard decisions. The ones that got people killed and betrayed promises. The perfect military leader, but not the one you could ever trust absolutely.

Karen lets out a long sigh as you look at the still silent Daiyu. You weren't sure, but you were fairly confident that she agreed with you, and that she would side with you whatever you decided. Karen closes her eyes, staying still for a long moment.

When she next opens her eyes, they are cold. The real Karen looks out at you and speaks. "You knew this when we made our deal, but I will keep your sister safe as long as I can if you die, that is a promise I will not break." You feel an ugly churning in your gut as you reluctantly accept her words. Why the fuck do I want to believe you. A little part of your mind whispers back to you. Because you know what it's like to make those choices.

She continues. "But, regardless of that, there is a bigger problem." She glances down at the picture. "This needs to be stopped before it carves a path through half of France and exposes magic, we are already going to have to try to make a village and everyone who lived there disappear. If this lasts much longer, there won't be a masquerade to uphold."

You press your lips together as you stare her down. You really don't care about her problems right now, but if the masquerade breaks you have no idea what could happen.

[] Accept her mission
[] Refuse her mission

And so, it begins

 

[Rukia]

A man sits in the corner of a lonely coffee shop, quietly sipping his drink as he stares down at the messy collection of papers before him.

He tiredly runs a hand through his hair, wiping away a light layer of sweat as he shifts through his work.

Quite possibly the most important discovery in mankind's history and here he sits, preliminary ideas scattered across the table, hidden from prying eyes as his eyes move from page to page.

He can see the connections, where the different parts connect somehow, how it just works.

If this works...

No.

I know this will, am I just afraid of the consequences of finding out?

He lets out a light chuckle as he stares down at the papers beneath him. His life's work, every little scrap of information he could gather, the possibilities laid out before him.

He finishes his drink, gently setting the empty mug on an empty section of table.

He lets out a long breath, rubbing a weathered hand with another as he procrastinates on a decision already made.

I've gone too far to stop now, not when I'm so close.

He slides the front page of his discovery to the top of the pile, staring down at the title emblazoned across the top.

The Interaction of Reality and The Mind
"A treatise on the ability to manipulate the quantum layer of reality with nothing more than one's own willpower." ​

 

[Rukia]

You blow a harsh breath through your teeth as you reluctantly nod. This was a pressing issue, Karen being a bitch could be dealt with later. Fine.

She nods quickly, tossing the folder to you as she pokes through her desk. "Take that and go, there will be a driver waiting for you in the car pool." You nod and turn to leave, but remember something. You turn around, scribble out a note and drop it on her desk before leaving. The Barrier is breaking.

The two of your rush through the corridors at full speed, Daiyu running through any doors in your path as you make for the Car Pool. You burst into the room in a hail of splinters, doors of a very expensive looking car already open for you. You throw yourself in the back, Daiyu a second behind and reach across her to close the door. The moment that you do, the driver floors it.

A path through London has somehow been cleared for you, the roads in your path completely empty as you race through the city. You move out onto the motorway and the car goes even faster. You manage to catch a peek at the speedometer and the little indicator was pushing well over 200mph. Jesus Fuck. You let the G-Force push you back into your seat, not bothering with a seatbelt, it wouldn't save you at this speed and you were wearing your armour anyway.

The next twenty minutes were a blur, literally, you were moving so quickly that the empty roads around you seemed to blur into each other. Eventually the driver pulled off of the Motorway, dropping down to only a hundred and fifty as he races through the incredibly narrow side-roads.

You arrive at the Airbase in record time, but it takes you a moment to realise that this isn't the Clocktowers. You are waived through the heavily armed military checkpoint with all haste, your ride accelerating across the tarmac towards a fighter jet of some description.

The driver turns his head back to you and shouts. "End of the line! Get out!"

You both clamber out the back on slightly shaky legs as a man in uniform walks up to you hurriedly, constantly glancing between you and the jet next to you. You heard him muttering something about insanity before he waves you over. "Right you two, you know the plan?" He doesn't give you the chance to respond before spinning on the spot, jogging towards the fighter quickly. You follow him, just able to hear his words over the fighters engines spooling up.

"You lot are fucking nutters, but we've got your platform secured." He waves a hand at a small cradle that is attached to the bottom of the fighter. "When you need to eject, just pull this lever here, and you'll slide out the back."

Wait what?

He waves you forwards and you are already half-way strapped under one wing, Daiyu under the other when he leans forwards smiling. "Good luck you crazy lunatics."

You don't have a chance to respond before the jet suddenly lurches forwards with a roar, shooting down the runway and into the air. Once it's in the air, you see the pilot glance down at you before nodding. You hear a quiet whine building, before you are slammed back into your harness, the Jet suddenly accelerating at full speed.

You can just about see through the plexiglass panel in front of you, the land beneath you rapidly turning into ocean as it goes faster. The ride only lasts several minutes before you see a small green light appear next to the lever, when you squint closer, it spells out the word 'Eject'.

Fuck my life.

You pull the lever and the floor beneath you shoots backwards, literally throwing you out of the back of the jet. Good thing, you learned that your voice was back. Bad thing, you learned it because you were screaming your lungs out. The jetstream washes over you, throwing you every which way before you can get a hold of yourself.

Daiyu catches herself a good hundred metres below you and you float towards each other. You turn your eyes towards the ground and gasp. Everything is just ashes, fires rage across the countryside wherever they can catch. It looks a lot like your handiwork to be honest.

As you were staring, you feel a tickling at the base of your neck, a feeling you had associated with magic. You look around yourself quickly, ready for any sudden attacks. Five seconds later, you see an enormous orange flash from below. You quickly spin to look at it as every magical sense you have is blaring in your head at the same time. A small wave of magic bursts outwards, orange tinted with blood red, on the tip of the crescent wave was a large furry thing.

It is carried by the wave for a good thirty metres before it manages to slide off, not looking any worse for wear, letting out a loud hissing noise that reaches you over a mile in the air.

The fuck?

[] Battle Plan