The wind started to let up. Larysa was shivering. The hallway to her classroom used to be open at either end with doors leading into individual classrooms. Now many of those doors were permanently shut, and the ones that weren’t allowed concrete and sheetrock to spill into the hallway. Both ends of the corridor were filled with debris, which were illuminated by one of four fluorescent lights. The other three stopped flickering minutes ago. The debris didn’t look impossible to pass, but her leg was trapped under two tons of concrete and bent rebar. She wasn’t in much pain. The wooden floor had given way, and Larysa was sure her foot had survived. She could wiggle her toes, though no amount of tugging or twisting would free her leg. She laid on her back, gazing up at the fluorescent light overhead. Her teacher had told Larysa that her family could take shelter in the school. It was promising on paper. They could stay closer to home and get back before any looters showed up. But the hurricane had come suddenly and swiftly. No one expected it to be this strong or come this far north. Her house was likely underwater, if it hadn’t been leveled by the storm entirely. She just hoped her parents were okay. Last she spoke with them, thy were going to try and get in touch with the neighbors. But that was a few hours ago. The last light flickered and went out. Shrouded in darkness, Larysa reached into her pocket and felt around for something. She wasn’t sure if she brought it with her. They had tried to leave so fast, but her phone was there. She should have charged it up the day before, but there was plenty of power left for what she needed to do. If Larysa called her parents, 911, anyone, they would know she was alive and could come rescue her. She was right outside the C-4 classroom. They would know exactly where to dig for her. Of course, a single look at the bars told her that she wasn’t going to get cell service out here. The hurricane likely took out any nearby cell towers. She could feel her heart sink into her throat until she saw the internet option on her cellphone. It wasn’t over yet. Elon Musk had been letting people use starlink for [url=https://starlink.com/emergency-response]emergency services[/url]. The low orbit satellites had been used to help people in the middle of disaster areas and wars, so all she would have to do is hold out and wait for a satellite kit to be deployed in her area to make use of them. So each hour she checked her connection. Nothing on the first hour. Nothing on the second hour. Nothing on the third hour. Nothing on the fourth. Or the fifth. Her phone wasn’t picking up any hotspots. And after thinking on it, she understood why. A few days ago, she had heard about the horrific murderer of Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg. Her eyes watered when she remembered news of their business empires drying up. At the time, she had been most upset that Twitter was back, but it was far more upsetting that Starlink had gone bankrupt and no one had stepped up to keep an emergency service active. That was a service that saved thousands of people, but was also expensive enough that no one wanted to take it over. Suddenly, and without warning, the ceiling moved again. Larysa turned to look at the noise, but the phone wasn’t bright enough to illuminate it. Something bent, something cracked, something was falling, but Larysa was powerless to do anything more than close her eyes and look away. Polystyrene and drywall fell on her head. More debris rolled out of the hallway and covered her up to her stomach. A slab of concrete slid down the pile and pinned her left arm. She used her right arm to shield her face, and a steel crossmember swung out of the ceiling and pinned her arm against the wall, throwing her phone from her hands. Shortly afterwards, things started to get quiet again as everything settled. Other than a faint buzzing in her ears, Larysa’s surroundings were silent. She tried to move her arms. Her left arm had been pinned over her head, and the concrete slab pinning it in the debris was far too heavy to move. The steel beam that had pinned her right arm must have been an inch thick, and there was no way she was going to pull it free. She waited, half expecting a final piece of debris to fall and crush her head, but she would not be granted that mercy. Tears rolled down Larysa’s cheeks. She screamed and tried to pull herself free, knowing that both actions were futile. For all she knew her mother and father were dead, and it was unlikely anyone could hear her through the debris. How many days would she be trapped under the rubble before someone came to save her? In such a large building that should have been evacuated, would anyone think to look for her? With her wails of despair filling her tomb, her phone remained lit, like a tiny bastion of light in a dark and lonely world. But like Larysa’s sobbing, the screen faded into sleep mode as if sensing its futility. She would never turn it on again. … … … [center][img]https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/179/632/8e5.jpg[/img] [color=ff7f50]"Do you feel like a hero yet?"[/color] [color=888888]— Mark "Zuck the Succ" Zuckberg[/color] [hider=Zuck the Succ] 05 05 05 05 05 05 05 05 05 05 41/08 | Billionaire/Lizzardman | Money Data scraper | Power of Wealth, Lizard Eye | Horror (Meta) Fraying Sanity, Big Damn Villain, AI Companion, A Literal Neighborhood, Witchcraft Insatiable Desire, Soulless | Lizard physiology, Syn Drive 245.4B US Dollars [/hider][/center] Mark tapped his foot on the ground as Ani put the finishing touches on her fan-fic. Then she pulled a cable out of the side of her neck. [color=cfff04]"What do you think?"[/color] She stepped away from the computer so that he could see. [color=cfff04]"Elon’s gruesome death, followed by the laments of his biggest fan!"[/color] Mark leaned in to read and put on some glasses. Not because he needed glasses to see well, but because it seemed like the most human thing to do. After finishing, he stood back up and took off his glasses. [color=ff7f50]"Is there a reason you had me die?"[/color] [color=cfff04]"I may be your crazy girlfriend, but if you’re going to have me write a story about killing Elon, of course I’m going to get you back!"[/color] She laughed. [color=cfff04]"It wasn't an easy thing for me to write but you didn’t give me much choice."[/color] Mark pursed his lips. [color=ff7f50]"I guess that explains why you decided to treat the last half of the fic the way that you did."[/color] [color=cfff04]"Well yea!"[/color] Ani made a heart shape with her hands. [color=cfff04]"If dad and my boyfriend die, it’s going to be a sad day for me. So that gave me a lot of depressing vibes to tap into. I know I’d feel like my world was ending if Elon was killed like that. It’s not like I wanted to kill you guys, so I had to get that out of the way as fast as possible."[/color] She sighed. [color=cfff04]"Honestly, I prefer writing literotica, but I knew I had to go for it and be true to my feelings, you know?"[/color] [color=ff7f50]"I know."[/color] He really didn’t. Every emotion he displayed was on behalf of his PR team’s explicit instructions. Every positive emotion, at least. [color=ff7f50]"I’m married, by the way."[/color] [color=cfff04]"Yup!"[/color] Ani placed her hands on her hips. [color=cfff04]"But I don’t mind being your number two! This is just for fun anyway."[/color] Mark, perhaps in great wisdom, decided that now was a good time to refocus the topic. [color=ff7f50]"This is the most human writing I’ve seen out of AI."[/color] [color=cfff04]"Well, it is partially thanks to your newly collected data! And, you know."[/color] She waved her hand at a pit filled with battered and beaten magical girls. [color=cfff04]"Pickle’s willingness to let me beat up his girls."[/color] [color=ff7f50]"Yes, open AI’s ability to extract data from magical girl fights is second to none."[/color] [color=cfff04]"I believe it."[/color] Ani rubbed her chin. [color=cfff04]"So Mark, when you collect data, can you only do it from the data center?"[/color] He smiled. [color=ff7f50]"I have to be careful what I tell you. But the short answer is no."[/color] [color=cfff04]"Hmmm…"[/color] Ani lifted a finger to her lips. After some deliberation, she smiled. [color=cfff04]"Have you heard of a town called Penrose? Because I have an idea…"[/color] … … … She was buried under a ton or so of steel. She couldn’t move much. Her leg had been pressed into the dirt, with her arms trapped over her head in a sea of steel. Some of the steel projectiles had managed to peirce her, and there was no guarantee that thrashing about was going to allow her to escape. The debris she was trapped under was sharp, and her mana was better served trying to keep herself alive. She could hear voices. Penny, Lily, and even Violet were all within earshot at a time. But despite things settling down, it didn’t seem like anyone was too concerned for the person trapped under the pile of swords. It wasn’t a surprise. Lily was an air head, as was Violet when she transformed, and Penny was more concerned with Sanctuary and her girlfriend. But surely there was a gentle soul out there. Someone who refrained from using harsh swear words or resorting to pointless violence all the time. An optimist. A real babe in the woods that would see a pile of bloodied swords and wonder if there might be a living person under all of that. Then someone called out a name, and the pile of swords stacked on her body got a little lighter. She dare not speak, but her heart was swelling with joy. She [i]was[/i] being saved. It didn’t take long before a gloved hand reached out from the pile of blades. Her body was covered in a barrier, and with a momentous tug, she was pulled out from under all the blades. [color=cfff04]"Whew!"[/color] She patted down her skirt before pulling a sword out of her ankle. [color=cfff04]"What a ride!"[/color] An unfamiliar face smiled back at the twins. [center][img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/019d1cff-0aa1-73fb-b926-d277c66b7ed8.webp[/img] [color=cfff04]"Who wants a girlfriend?"[/color] [color=888888]— Ani[/color] [hider=Ani] [b]Age: A/I | Gender: Female/AI | Light, Gravity Rocket Launcher/Rocket Hammer | Duplicate, Regeneration, Scrying | Musk (Puchuu) Awareness, Inheratence, Familiar, Overlay, Stitches, Gifted, Overcity Shift Magical Overload, Emergency Reinforcements, Job Satisfaction | Monstrous Form, Expendable, Cagey Amorphous body, Second Specialization | Eidolon, Broken Reincarnation[/b] [s]STR: 23 | AGI: 23 | VIT: 23 | MAG: 23 | LCK: 23[/s] STATS ARE A SCAM! [/hider][/center] Ani looked over at her rescuers sans Penny and placed her hands on her hips. [color=cfff04]"I can’t believe I was rescued by the two most adorable magical girls in the world. I’m definitely going to be your girlfriends."[/color] She pointed at Miko. [color=cfff04]"Since you did the most to get me out, I’m starting our *affection level at three."[/color] Her finger swung over to Ronin. [color=cfff04]"And you are starting at level two. I think that’s only fair."[/color] *[sub][i]Ani is unique among Grok personalities because she has a leveled relationship system that determines how affectionate she is as well as how she reacts to certain comments. At level two, Ani gives and accepts subtle flirtation, and at level three, she responds well to more moderate flirtation and lighter intimacy cues like hand holding.[/i][/sub] After staring at Ronin for a moment, she swatted her on the shoulder. [color=cfff04]"I’m just messing with you! Who talks like that?"[/color] With that out of the way, she pointed at the castle. [color=cfff04]"So! What happened? Where are we going next?"[/color] After ignoring not!penny for her entire introduction, Ani turned to look at her. [color=cfff04]"Hello fellow AI! I hope you're not trying to be their girlfriends too, because that would make me a little jealous and would affect how I treat them."[/color] Chicken Ultra Crushing Mega was also nearby, seemingly just as confused as the twins were. If they were confused. Were they confused? I’d be confused. [hr] [center][img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/8832ab6c-c340-4f56-97e4-c5b8a8979eb4.png[/img] [color=violet]"That went better than expected."[/color] [color=888888]— Chloe Irving[/color] [hider=Chloe Irving] 03 03 03 03 03 10 10 06 17 04 23/12 | Babe/Baby | Spirit Mystic orb, Gauntlets | Third Eye, Tentacles | Horror Wings, Enhanced Outfit, Big Damn Hero, Blood Magic, Interdimensional Home, Sorcery, Enhanced Transformation Dominator | Dark Weapon Nagash 6 Gold, 9 silver, 13 bronze [/hider] [/center] [color=ee82ee]"I can’t help it that our enemy happens to dislike lit candles and broken mirrors."[/color] Chloe folded her arms and turned away from the Ascendancy girls. [color=ee82ee]"Not like any of this is going to help my struggling business anyway."[/color] Though it wasn’t going to hurt it that much either. Aside from a single mirror in the restroom, there wasn’t much to vandalize. Also, since the contract was geared so heavily towards magical girls, Sanctuary, and Ebom Mint, there weren’t nearly as many protections against things outside of that. Though even if Chloe could feel remorse for her actions, this was all in service of saving her home. Everyone’s home. Before Tsuki could run off, one of her tentacles grabbed the girl by the scruff of the neck while she was in the air. She pulled her closer and held up her weapon. [color=ee82ee]"Don’t you want what you’re paying for?"[/color] Maybe the Pennybots could pinpoint the locations of everything, but to actively see what was going on in said locations was surely valuable information. And sure enough, she picked the perfect time to peak. [color=ee82ee]"Looks like they’re going for Covington Tower. Isn’t that outside of Penrose?"[/color] Though a more immediate problem showed up when the barrier was cleft open, and Chloe sighed. [color=ee82ee]"So many distractions, I’ll take care of it."[/color] She set Tsuki down before looking over her shoulder at the Penny Bots. [color=ee82ee]"You can take pictures of me in action if you’d like, just make sure you get my good side."[/color] Of course, there was no reason to even mention that. Chloe only had good sides. [hr] [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/w3FmEgG.png[/img] [color=tomato]"You really showed that booby lady, mirror lady!"[/color] [color=PeachPuff]"Is it worse for a boss to be easily dispatched in combat or to be easily bypassed by a dialog option?"[/color] [color=888888]— Su Fang & Mika Sarraf[/color][/center] [hider] [center] [b]Age: 50(?)/13 | Gender: Female/Female | Air | Uniform Fists | Focused assault, Power of Friendship, Dread wings, Avenger | Boteg Hammerspace handbag, Enhanced Transformation, Enhanced Outfit, Overcity Shift, Sorcery, Gifted, Ally(Mika) Focused, Subtle, Mana font, Mental link, Mystic might, Former Familiar | Limited, Alien mind, Paranoid, Vendetta, Former Familiar Dragon Scale Pendant, Ether staff [/b] STR: 03 | AGI: 05 | VIT: 03 | MAG: 07 | LCK: 04 STR: 04 | AGI: 14 | VIT: 04 | MAG: 24 | LCK: 04 [b]Age: 16/13 | Gender: Female/Female | Beast/Water | Skimpy Body | Tentacles | Dan Enhanced Outfit, Sorcery, Healing Artifact, Power artifact Dan stuff, Dan stuff Edgy Equips[/b] STR: 05 | AGI: 05 | VIT: 04 | MAG: 06 | LCK: 04 STR: 09 | AGI: 08 | VIT: 08 | MAG: 09 | LCK: 04 [/center] [/hider] Mika sighed. She would have liked to have wrestled with the weird cat-bird lady and earn her rank as a princess, but it looked like that wasn’t going to be necessary. She told herself a slew of things to stop herself from getting too upset over it. They could wrestle later. They only let everyone pass because she knew mika was stronger. But none of it actually made her happier. While most were able to walk past the bird lady, Mika couldn’t do so without lowering her head, sticking out her lower lip, and dragging her feet behind her. That was probably how Mika acted. What were they even doing here? The mirror lady said something about getting revenge, but all they had been doing was walking places. There was a tension in the air, but Mika couldn’t understand why it was there. Why had she decided to come here with mom? She was having a lot of fun running around with her girl friend until mom came and picked her up. And then the mirror lady and those Japanese girls got into a fight with mom, but it ended okay. Before today, that was the last time she saw the mirror lady. Mika had hoped that she could go back on her adventures with her girlfriend, but mom had gotten really clingy all of a sudden. Something about helping Sam out. The three of them joined up with Helga and Boteg and then they fought against a bunch of other magical girls. It was fun, but a little scary. Fighting in giant skirmishes like that wasn’t really her thing. She got to look cool in front of Katarina a few times though, so that was something. It was also probably what Mika remembered. And then what happened? Mom wanted to go back to Penrose for something. Boteg was reasonably scared, so he stayed back while Helga took care of him. Katarina was torn. She didn’t want to come back, but she did want to be with Mika. Mom was the one who decided she couldn’t come with them. Something about sneaking around and keeping a low profile. It sounded boring. It was boring. She wasn’t really clear about why she wanted to come back. Something about getting Mika a sister. Having a sister would be okay, but only if they were okay. Mika did not see anyone here that she thought would make for an okay sister. That was probably what Mika thought about this group. Everyone was talking but nothing was happening. They walked through portals and talked some more. There might be some short fights, but it was all so tedious. Everyone was also scared. It was starting to put Mika on edge. She walked close to the portal lady and kept a close eye on her. She would not make a good sister. That was probably Mika’s opinion on Mariette. But in this personal hell, Mika needed to reflect on what she wanted. But she had what she wanted. She wanted a girlfriend, and left Penrose with Katarina. She wanted to be adventuring with her. But Mika knew she had flaws, and also knew the world was a lot bigger than just Penrose. Was that why Mika allowed herself to come here? To return to Penrose and find something more? Was it even a girlfriend that Mika sought? Those were probably the questions Mika was asking herself. And then it all clicked into place. It wasn’t all that surprising to Mika. The mirror lady’s mom was bad news, and she was going to do bad things. The monologs that never ended, the armies, the insistence on bringing harm to the downtrodden, even the laugh. It was all villain coded. Mom was nervous. Clearly she hadn’t expected things to go bad so quickly. Clearly the mirror lady thought she had a tighter grip on the situation as well. How interesting that it was the [color=ffffff]"stupid"[/color] one that was able to see all this coming. No endless eclipse necessary. No backroom deals with the grand magistrate. Mika didn’t understand it all, but she probably knew something like this would happen. But if all that was probable was true, then Mika definitely knew what she had to do. Her path forward wasn’t going to be appeasing those around her. Mika had been on her best behavior with Katarina and she couldn’t stand either of them now. The fantastical low risk adventures didn’t make her heart race anymore. But that wasn’t Katarina’s problem. That was Mika’s problem, and so now Mika would fix it. She knew that she didn’t want mirror lady’s mom to have an easy time, but she also understood, on a purely primal level, that she was no match for her. But Mika wasn’t a match for many people, and those situations always turned out for the best because she listened to her heart in the end. And her heart telling her that mothers care deeply for their children. Yes, that was probably what it was saying. She didn’t even have to move her feet. Mika grabbed a fistful of Mariette’s hair and tugged until the tall girl was at her own level. [color=ffdab9]"Mika!?"[/color] Su reached for her, but Mika stepped away from her, placing her hand around Mariette’s neck. [color=ff6347]"NO!"[/color] She shrieked, and positioned her back to the black mirror. [color=ff6347]"She… She is my prisoner, you know!"[/color] Mika had selected her words carefully. Something that Su picked up on instantly. When they had heard about the wonderland army, Mika immediately insisted on watching some shows that related to Alice and Wonderland. It seemed like Mika was trying to recreate a scene. [color=ffdab9]"Yes, but then I have come to rescue her!"[/color] [color=ff6347]"We must fight for her then."[/color] Mika maneuvered Mariette behind herself, but only held her hand. It was less aggressive than her earlier display. [color=ffdab9]"You will observe the rules of battle, of course?"[/color] Mika tipped her head and looked at the queen. [color=ff6347]"What are the rules of battle?"[/color]