Highway 17 pt. 1
Damn it.
You didn't want to be right. You'd half-jokingly considered just writing off that Grief Seed as probably lost to enemy action already - and it is. Or maybe it is. You don't know for sure that the Clear Seed was taken. Kazumi just said Niko's things were taken, and she's still babbling at you-
You transform in the familiar blaze of light. Magic and adrenaline burn through your veins, scorching through the haze of sleep and leaving you alert and awake in that state of limpid, too-sharp clarity. You catch her fluttering hand. "Kazumi, slow down," you say in as firm a tone as you can manage. "Slow down. Breathe."
Mami hurries over to join you - you can all but feel the tension jolting through your body, an echo to the alarm singing with your blood. You release Kazumi's hand, your arm instead going around Mami's waist to pull her close. It's almost an automatic reaction at this point.
Kazumi shudders, but obeys, gulping convulsively and nodding. "Can you send us back?" she asks. "I'm sorry to cut the visit short, and I'm sorry it's in the middle of the night, but we need to get back and look after Niko."
"Of course. And I'll do you one better," you say. Your mind whirls with plans and ideas. "I'll bring my friends, and we'll help sort this out, if you want? I- I need to figure who can come, who's willing to come, but first, breathe? We can't panic, right?"
Kazumi nods, her expression already settling. You can't help but notice the way Umika and Kaoru take her hands, one each, and the way she clutches them tight.
"I'm going," Mami says.
"Let's figure out what's happening first," you say, managing a quick, worried smile for Mami. You take a moment to look over Umika and Kaoru. They don't look any less rumpled than Kazumi, clear worry shining through the haze of sleep. And if you look carefully, you can see the nearly imperceptible jaw motions that come with subvocalization.
You're taking charge again, you note distantly. You do that a lot, but here and now, you don't see anyone else stepping up to do it.
"You're on telepathy with Niko, right?" you ask. "Is she alright? Unhurt? Or- could you put us through?"
Kazumi nods sharply, expression firming as she meets your eyes. "Niko is fine," she says. "Dazed, but fine."
"-talking to Miss Sabrina right now," Umika's voice echoes inside your head, telepathic connection snapping into place mid-conversation to spin rapid-fire babble into your mind. You can feel Mami and Kazumi and Kaoru and Umika and four more girls you don't recognise. The rest of the Pleiades, you suppose.
"Calm down, Mirai," Kaoru pleads. "Niko's alright, and we're coming soon."
"I'm almost there," a new voice says. "Niko, keep Mirai calm?"
"Yes, of course," someone else says. You recognise Niko from the one time you'd spoken to her, but she sounds focused now. "Thanks, Saki."
"Just reached the lab." Another unfamiliar voice that turns soft and cajoling. "Mirai, sweetheart, could you let me through? I can't get through all the bears."
So by simple elimination, that last voice would be Satomi.
"I'll get her to let up," Niko promises.
"Girls, um, this is Sabrina," Kazumi says. "She needs to ask a few questions?"
"Er, yes. Hi everyone, I apologise for interrupting," you say. "Right, so, yes, I'll be sending Kazumi back soon. But I want to help you girls sort this out, so would you be alright if I bring some of my friends to help?"
"I'm OK with it," Kazumi adds in support.
"Then we're fine with it," Saki says. "What do you need to know, Miss Sabrina?"
"Alright... Niko, are you hurt? What actually happened?" you ask, only to be interrupted by a quiet wail.
"One moment," Satomi says, and drops from the call. Moments later, so too does that last presence - Mirai, then, who seems to be panicking rather too much.
"I'm fine," Niko says, a trace of annoyance creeping into her voice. "Whoever it was got the drop on me and knocked me out. It was something intangible and contactless. Whoever it was ransacked my lab, I don't know what was taken yet."
"And then Mirai found her during one of her check-ins," Saki adds, voice turning chiding. "Probably worried when you didn't come to sleep."
"I know," Niko says. "I know."
"So no one's seriously hurt. And this hasn't happened before, right?" you ask carefully. "Sorry. I know that might be a dumb question, but I need to check."
"Of course not," Saki says. "We're the strongest magical girls in town."
"... no, we haven't been robbed like this before," Niko says.
"Right. Do you know when that was?" you ask.
"About... must have been two hours ago," Niko says.
"Alright. Just to be clear, do you need us there immediately?" you ask.
"Yes, of course-"
"No, not immediately-"
"We need to go back!"
Saki's response overlaps with Niko's answer which overlaps with Kaoru's outburst and Kazumi staring pleadingly at you, followed by silence, and then-
"We're all together now," Niko says calmly. "As you say, Saki, we're the strongest magical girl team in the city."
"But half of us are away!" Saki protests. "Kazumi's away!"
"Yes, of course," Niko says. "We're together. We can hold for a bit even against a legion of Witches."
"Sabrina, please," Kazumi says, clasping her hands, and you can read a touch of anger in Umika and Kaoru's eyes. "We- I need to be there for my girls."
"I-" you say, knuckling your forehead. You hold out a placating hand, and continue by telepathy. "OK, I put that badly, and I apologise, everyone. I am bringing Kazumi back to you. I wanted to know if we have time to sort out which of my friends are willing to go to Asunaro, or whether we need to leave immediately."
"There's- that's fine," Saki bites out. "Sooner is better."
"I'll go with you," Mami says, covering your hand with hers and squeezing gently. You smile softly at her, not answering for now - you have vague notions that she's already skipped school today, and shouldn't skip again. But that's an argument for later.
"Then one more question from me," you say. "And I'm sorry, but this is important to me. Niko, I know you can't do a full inventory right now, but can you tell if the Clear Seed was taken?"
"I'll check," Saki says. "Niko, where was it?"
You blow out a sharp breath. "I know you need to go back, Kazumi, Umika, Kaoru," you say. "But this - this I need to know, because I cannot have anyone abuse the Clear Seeds."
"I understand," Kazumi says, face pale but resolute.
"It's gone," Saki says.
Well.
Damn.
Voting opens
[] Write-in (word count limit: 200 words)
I'm sorry for how long this took for such a short update. Busy week so far.
Also, I've decided in retrospect that this is where I start the next chapter: Highway 17. (Mostly because I feel like it would be too long if folded into the previous chapter, so I decided to flex a bit.)
You didn't want to be right. You'd half-jokingly considered just writing off that Grief Seed as probably lost to enemy action already - and it is. Or maybe it is. You don't know for sure that the Clear Seed was taken. Kazumi just said Niko's things were taken, and she's still babbling at you-
You transform in the familiar blaze of light. Magic and adrenaline burn through your veins, scorching through the haze of sleep and leaving you alert and awake in that state of limpid, too-sharp clarity. You catch her fluttering hand. "Kazumi, slow down," you say in as firm a tone as you can manage. "Slow down. Breathe."
Mami hurries over to join you - you can all but feel the tension jolting through your body, an echo to the alarm singing with your blood. You release Kazumi's hand, your arm instead going around Mami's waist to pull her close. It's almost an automatic reaction at this point.
Kazumi shudders, but obeys, gulping convulsively and nodding. "Can you send us back?" she asks. "I'm sorry to cut the visit short, and I'm sorry it's in the middle of the night, but we need to get back and look after Niko."
"Of course. And I'll do you one better," you say. Your mind whirls with plans and ideas. "I'll bring my friends, and we'll help sort this out, if you want? I- I need to figure who can come, who's willing to come, but first, breathe? We can't panic, right?"
Kazumi nods, her expression already settling. You can't help but notice the way Umika and Kaoru take her hands, one each, and the way she clutches them tight.
"I'm going," Mami says.
"Let's figure out what's happening first," you say, managing a quick, worried smile for Mami. You take a moment to look over Umika and Kaoru. They don't look any less rumpled than Kazumi, clear worry shining through the haze of sleep. And if you look carefully, you can see the nearly imperceptible jaw motions that come with subvocalization.
You're taking charge again, you note distantly. You do that a lot, but here and now, you don't see anyone else stepping up to do it.
"You're on telepathy with Niko, right?" you ask. "Is she alright? Unhurt? Or- could you put us through?"
Kazumi nods sharply, expression firming as she meets your eyes. "Niko is fine," she says. "Dazed, but fine."
"-talking to Miss Sabrina right now," Umika's voice echoes inside your head, telepathic connection snapping into place mid-conversation to spin rapid-fire babble into your mind. You can feel Mami and Kazumi and Kaoru and Umika and four more girls you don't recognise. The rest of the Pleiades, you suppose.
"Calm down, Mirai," Kaoru pleads. "Niko's alright, and we're coming soon."
"I'm almost there," a new voice says. "Niko, keep Mirai calm?"
"Yes, of course," someone else says. You recognise Niko from the one time you'd spoken to her, but she sounds focused now. "Thanks, Saki."
"Just reached the lab." Another unfamiliar voice that turns soft and cajoling. "Mirai, sweetheart, could you let me through? I can't get through all the bears."
So by simple elimination, that last voice would be Satomi.
"I'll get her to let up," Niko promises.
"Girls, um, this is Sabrina," Kazumi says. "She needs to ask a few questions?"
"Er, yes. Hi everyone, I apologise for interrupting," you say. "Right, so, yes, I'll be sending Kazumi back soon. But I want to help you girls sort this out, so would you be alright if I bring some of my friends to help?"
"I'm OK with it," Kazumi adds in support.
"Then we're fine with it," Saki says. "What do you need to know, Miss Sabrina?"
"Alright... Niko, are you hurt? What actually happened?" you ask, only to be interrupted by a quiet wail.
"One moment," Satomi says, and drops from the call. Moments later, so too does that last presence - Mirai, then, who seems to be panicking rather too much.
"I'm fine," Niko says, a trace of annoyance creeping into her voice. "Whoever it was got the drop on me and knocked me out. It was something intangible and contactless. Whoever it was ransacked my lab, I don't know what was taken yet."
"And then Mirai found her during one of her check-ins," Saki adds, voice turning chiding. "Probably worried when you didn't come to sleep."
"I know," Niko says. "I know."
"So no one's seriously hurt. And this hasn't happened before, right?" you ask carefully. "Sorry. I know that might be a dumb question, but I need to check."
"Of course not," Saki says. "We're the strongest magical girls in town."
"... no, we haven't been robbed like this before," Niko says.
"Right. Do you know when that was?" you ask.
"About... must have been two hours ago," Niko says.
"Alright. Just to be clear, do you need us there immediately?" you ask.
"Yes, of course-"
"No, not immediately-"
"We need to go back!"
Saki's response overlaps with Niko's answer which overlaps with Kaoru's outburst and Kazumi staring pleadingly at you, followed by silence, and then-
"We're all together now," Niko says calmly. "As you say, Saki, we're the strongest magical girl team in the city."
"But half of us are away!" Saki protests. "Kazumi's away!"
"Yes, of course," Niko says. "We're together. We can hold for a bit even against a legion of Witches."
"Sabrina, please," Kazumi says, clasping her hands, and you can read a touch of anger in Umika and Kaoru's eyes. "We- I need to be there for my girls."
"I-" you say, knuckling your forehead. You hold out a placating hand, and continue by telepathy. "OK, I put that badly, and I apologise, everyone. I am bringing Kazumi back to you. I wanted to know if we have time to sort out which of my friends are willing to go to Asunaro, or whether we need to leave immediately."
"There's- that's fine," Saki bites out. "Sooner is better."
"I'll go with you," Mami says, covering your hand with hers and squeezing gently. You smile softly at her, not answering for now - you have vague notions that she's already skipped school today, and shouldn't skip again. But that's an argument for later.
"Then one more question from me," you say. "And I'm sorry, but this is important to me. Niko, I know you can't do a full inventory right now, but can you tell if the Clear Seed was taken?"
"I'll check," Saki says. "Niko, where was it?"
You blow out a sharp breath. "I know you need to go back, Kazumi, Umika, Kaoru," you say. "But this - this I need to know, because I cannot have anyone abuse the Clear Seeds."
"I understand," Kazumi says, face pale but resolute.
"It's gone," Saki says.
Well.
Damn.
Voting opens
[] Write-in (word count limit: 200 words)
=====
I'm sorry for how long this took for such a short update. Busy week so far.
Also, I've decided in retrospect that this is where I start the next chapter: Highway 17. (Mostly because I feel like it would be too long if folded into the previous chapter, so I decided to flex a bit.)
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