Lily was excited upon seeing Vi-chan take to the stage, having been a fan of hers ever since she discovered her Glimmr channel. Sitting by Alex and Thalia, she felt like this would be the highlight of the entire night, seeing such a talented idol welcome her real fans. But it didn’t take long before her feelings of adoration were replaced by a storm of confusion and panic as her true colors were shown, and the rave had turned into a nightmare.
”Wh-What is this? Why is Vi-chan doing this?!” She asked out loud from Thalia, followed by a scream as she was shoved off her seat by a dark magical girl who happened to be tussling with another one and accidentally hit her elbow. Lily however made an expert recovery and performed a side roll, summoning her magical weapon as she stood back up, not affected by the smoke in the slightest. She saw as Alexander restored a girl who assaulted her out of her senses, and helped her back up. Just like always, she was quick on the uptake when the situation was on.
”Got it!” She shouted over the music, and saw as Thalia jumped up. She took the ring, and slipped it on the finger, cartwheeling to avoid a sword slash from a deranged magical girl as she initiated her transformation, knowing Alex would throw a shield around her.
”Let my spirit gallop across the clouds, and strike my foes down with thunderous applause!” Once Lily was ready, she made a sweeping kick to trip a monster girl about to bite her, and drew her bow. She was relieved, both from feeling Alex’ magic empowering her, and also by knowing the insanity could be reversed. She flinched as another attack came her way from yet another rave attendee, but a mysterious pair of red-headed twins had protected her with barriers.
”Thank you!” She shouted, and three lightning arrows appeared between her fingers. But then, she heard Sakura’s voice.
”I agree, we can't stay here!”Trusting Alex to cover her, Lily took aim at the stage, and shot a Barrage at Vi-chan at the moment a dark magical girl was about to drop an ice block on her; it was regrettable to attack someone who was only singing and dancing, but she could not risk the siren song playing any longer than it had to, lest even more people succumbed to it’s temptation. Then, after she had taken her shot, she grabbed Sakura, and slung her over to have her ride in a piggyback.
”I-I could try my Getaway spell to get us out of here!”She suggested jumping with Sakura to avoid a curse thrown at them.
”Never tried it before though!”
“Alert! Alert!” Sylvia called out through the audio broadcast network in the Beacon HQ as she ran to the teleporters. “Calling all girls for immediate rescue of Carinal Ishtar!” She arrived in the laboratory, where Janet and Jenna were, and briskly walked up to them. “This is an emergency! The Cardinal is under attack by Cindy Ford at Penrose Park!” She first grabbed Janet’s wrist, and then Jenna’s, lifting them up from their workstations. “You’re coming with me to save her, orders or not!”
Elvira had never felt as terrified as she did upon starting her performance, and seeing the absolute pandemonium that ensued. She saw as a girl frothing at the mouth was stabbed, creating a pool of blood that was illuminated by the floor-embedded lights. She saw as smoke and fire engulfed the hall, and how the panic-stricken retreated to the corners, only to get cut down by the mob, like lambs to the slaughter. And then, there were the meddlers. Some chose to wade through the crowd, like Eliza. Others, like Penny and Trixy, chose to take the high road, and attempted to shoot at her. Unfortunately for them, Elvira had planned ahead for such interference; she had invited her most loyal fans to the very front of the stage using a private Glimmr post, and asked them to keep her safe from stage intruders. These girls placed barriers and formed a defensive wall, their swords and guns drawn to intercept any who dared to run up to her. The barriers were broken by Lily’s barrage, shattering them to pieces. However, it wasn’t enough to deter them from sacrificing themselves for Elvira, as one girl jumped up and attempted to deflect Penny’s gauss cannon shot. She failed, and the shot blasted right into her, but as a result Elvira was spared from the attack.
As the song entered the breakdown part, Elvira went into a music-assisted speech of sorts. She saw Trixy aiming at her. In response, Elvira summoned her gauntlets and attempted to deflect the shot, only to end up tangled in roots that burst from the seed.
"Don’t stand for oppression! Penrose is ours! Go out there, give them annihilati-!" She shouted in rhythm even as she struggled against her bonds, only to be silenced by Eliza’s muting curse on her microphone; she sweated, her expression one of pure dread as she saw pursuers closing the distance. But then, by pure stroke of luck, the spreading fire had reached the stage, burning the roots off.
Spurred on by her fortune, she fled; she made an exit stage right, casting some filament threads as trip wires behind her to impede any pursuers as she ran through an opened metal door that promptly shut behind her.
Though it seemed like the song would end after Vi stopped singing, the cold truth was soon realized by all; it started automatically again on the enchanted loudspeakers, complete with her singing; she had made a recorded copy of the song in advance, and made it loop, perpetuating the mental influence even as the Ascendancy had begun culling the crowd with cold efficiency. Those who were previously cured of the magic had once again been affected by it, while those already affected began suffering from more adverse effects; now all monster girls without protection or countermeasures were forced to act on their Mental Mutations, in any manner possible. As per Elvira’s instructions, the maddened crowd split; some stayed to fight the Ascendancy, while others teleported or zipped away with a Getaway spell, most likely continuing to cause chaos in Penrose at large.
Helga, like Valerie and Evelyn, also made an active effort to resist her Mental Mutation; she stomping on the floor and holding her head, though it wasn’t enough to keep her disguise on; soon enough, sharp claws emerged from her hands, and a toothy smile replaced her normal one.
“Su! This music, it’s...Driving me crazy! Literally!” She screamed, amplifying her voice so it carried through the cacophony. Then, remembering the battle with Endsinger, Helga performed a sound-muting spell on herself, placing her hands on her ears. She also reached out Valerie and Evelyn, applying the spell on them as well by touching their ears. Instead of complete deafness like last time, however, she was able to mute the specific frequencies of sound related to the song. It resulted in a crippled hearing ability, but it was an improvement over not hearing any sounds. Most importantly, the spell could no longer affect them. “Out, now!” She shouted to them, and headed for the nearest source of swirling wind; she already knew who attempted to clear the smoke from the area.
“Su! Where’s Mika?” She shouted to her, and used her claws to strike back against a dark magical girl with a scythe, kicking her away with a followup. “We gotta get her and run!”
FanFan and Leena, upon hearing Rachel’s order, immediately cast off their disguises, revealing themselves as agents of the Ascendancy. They summoned their weapons, ready to take on the hordes of the corrupted that snarled with bloodthirsty fury when Leena spotted Alicia running to a side corridor.
“Go after here, I’ll cover you!” FanFan shouted, and brought her mighty metal arms to bear, uppercutting a troll girl. Leena nodded, and took off
“Stop right there, corrupted scum!” She shouted at Mika upon spotting her creeping towards Alicia, having drawn her blades. “You make another move towards her, and I’ll cut you down!”
Justine’s lips curled into a delighted smirk upon hearing Veronica agree with her, seemingly ignoring the hand on her shoulder. Sonia’s eyebrows furrowed, but she found herself swept back by the shifting tides of ravers.
“So you know your place after all~,” she spoke with a bit more energy than before; though she kept her composure despite the song’s influence, a small part of her did come to change, most apparent in her widened smile and attentive gaze. But as Veronica continued…
“...!”Justine flinched from Veronica’s confession, giving the other vampire the chance to throw Betty right into her embrace.
“Mmmh!”Justine was surprised; anybody would be if they found their lips locking with another one’s without as much as a meaningful exchange in looks. The nails on her fingers extended into sharp points as they trembled on her fingers, and Justine’s eyes widened in shock.
Meanwhile, Sonia and Silhouette met. However, Sonia simply shook her head in response.
“It is a bit too wild for my tastes, especially now that the trap has sprung,” she stated, pointing towards a monster girl who charged at her with a lifted axe. Without another word, she summoned a taser in her hands and shot it at the assaulter, shocking her to the point she fell.
“If your plan is to obstruct me from my duties, I’m afraid it is a futile endeavor.” Sil then found herself under attack by another dark magical girl who had decided to summon her pistol and shoot at her at random. The next moment Sil turned back, Sonia had disappeared into thin air.
Suddenly, two sharp fangs punched Betty’s lips, paralyzing her on the spot as dark magic flowed into her veins. Justine closed her eyes, savoring the bloody kiss that ensued. Betty’s expression had changed after Justine removed her lips; she had a blank, hazed look in her eyes, and a trickle of blood bled from her lips, staining her chin.
Justine gigled afterwards, wiping her mouth with a handkerchief.
”Mm...It has been quite some time since I have last fed on something so fresh,” she simply stated, and offered her turned hand to Betty.
”Thank you for the gift, Veronica; it was very thoughtful of you to give me a new servant.” in response, the katana-wielding bodyguard clasped her hand over it; her mind had been taken over by Justine, and no longer answered to any mental communication.
”In the past, my heart might have been wrenched by such false romance. But now, it is only true love that may sweep me off my feet.” The elegant monster girl turned to see Eli disappear into a well of darkness with a look of disappointment.
”You have only delayed the inevitable, Vermillion. Mariette will answer for her crimes soon enough.” She scoffed as noises came from the rave entrance; they saw a squad of Ascendancy girls rushing down.
“Anyway, I would love to stay and chat more, but I am afraid this party has turned a bit too frantic for my fancy. Toodles~” Sonia teleported next to her, and took Justine’s hand; in the next blink of an eye, the two of them had disappeared before their very eyes, taking Betty with them.
As the Ascendancy squad came closer, Veronica saw who the members in it were; at the front with her shield raised and lance pointed was Juliana and Sharron the rapier-wielding girl, followed by Delphi and Violette, their weapons glowing with blue and purple hues as they prepared powerful spells. “Surrender now!” Violette screamed out over the music. “Or face judgement by the sword!”
Another Ascendancy squad crashed through the ceiling, as Paula the metal fist-wielding girl made a dramatic fist-down tripod landing right in the middle of the main hall. She was followed by Vivi who slowed her descent by blasting water from the soles of her feet, and the triplet girls, who acrobatically swung down from the rafters, with one staying up there. “Lower your weapons or die!” Vivi shouted in turn, and glanced up; a careful eye could see the glint of Kai’s scope as she aimed down from the crack in the ceiling.
Outside, Rachel listened as the announcements came; they also worked as code phrases for when they would enter the warehouse. She nodded to herself, and closed her eyes as she held her hand out. After a deep breath, she intoned the prepared spell:
“Gibbet.”A great magic circle appeared, surrounding the warehouse. Up from the sigil, a wall of light began rising from all sides, until they closed up to a point at the very top, surrounding the warehouse in a magical dome and sealing off the surface exits. This was not your average magical barrier, but a mighty cage capable of withstanding attacks that could decimate a city block. Only a large group of magical girls who repeatedly unleash their most powerful of assaults can hope to breach such a defense.
Afterwards, Rachel turned and saluted a saluting Beckoners.
"Inquisitor, there has been a change in mission parameters," it stated, and after some whispering Rachel nodded. "Understood. I will let out agents know." She put a finger to her comms unit. "Attention agents. A girl in a bunnysuit named Sakura and her entourage are to be rescued from the scene. Over."
Kimble was taken by surprise by the ambush that burt from the ground, her face painted with shock. “Aaah!” She was hit by the sleep-inducing bomb, but the ShineSpark had protected her, guarding her mind with a flash of light that repelled the vines away with explosive force. However, the attack still distracted Kimble, and she didn’t see the followup spell. Aurelio came to her rescue in the form of a clone that took the hit, dropping the grey slime in its tracks.
“Thanks, Aurelio!” She shouted, and smiled as she felt his empowering magic boosting her.
“Now let’s teach these thieves a lesson!”
A whirlwind of green gales erupted from her feet as she lifted up to avoid the initial wave of grasping vines. “Too slow!” She mocked, and using her sickle, performed a spinning combo; empowered by Aurelio, she shot out cutting winds with every rotation, extending her reach to sever the forest of vines, like a scythe that repas through fields of wheat. Then, seeing the wooden assailant exposed, she launched a cross-shaped projectile of cutting wind, aiming to cross-slash Esther and cut her into pieces. “Oniii Girii!”
It was at that moment when the rest of the Beacon squad had shown up, Sally with them. They were distracted by the sentries that were summoned around the area, however, so they have yet to reach the battle. “Hang on, Aury-poo!” Sally screamed out, letting her Shamrock Shooters sing.
Fabio managed to run and avoid the attacks of the two dark magical girls, using the small spaces in the warehouse like between crates and under shelves to his advantage. However, the two girls were crafty, and managed to trap the poor cat in a corner. “There! Shoot it!” One of them called out. The other took aim, and-
*CRUNCH*
At that moment, a giant white tiger had suddenly leapt from a portal, ambushing the gun-wielder and pouncing on her. With another crunch, the limp girl was thrown away. The
other girl swung down with her sword in an attempt to decapitate the tiger, only to be met by Amaryllis’ knee of justice; she had struck the flower embedded in the girl’s eye, sending her flying back against a pile of crates that toppled over her.
“Ngh…Ajna!” She cried out, followed by cutting through the crates. “Set the place to blow!”
She then lunged forward with her blade, followed by another strike; Amaryllis found her opponent skilled in both the blade and footplay, elegantly flowing from one swing to another.
“Who’s there!?” Amaryllis heard a familiar voice, coming below from a nearby descending staircase; it was Sammy. “Get me out of this den of mobsters!” Amaryllis and the white tiger heard footsteps: the patrollers would soon reach the interior.
Cindy was the first to reach Penrose Park, where Ishtar was; she was kneeling on the ground, praying with her eyes closed. “Ishtar the Vile!” Cindy called out to her with a pointing finger. In response, Ishtar lifted her head up, seeming confused.
“Oh...You must be Cindy Ford. May I ask why you’re here?”Cindy was followed by Reaver and Ronin, who had reached the Park by this point.
“Of course you’d know my name, you treacherous snake!” A snap of electricity ran across the ground around her vicinity, as she walked towards the Cardinal.
“You attempted to assassinate me with a cruel cloak and dagger! How dare you!”
Ishtar’s mouth opened in surprise.
“What? You must have misunderstood-”“Oh, so I misunderstood the attempt on my life? You would claim it was an accident, or mere jest?” Cindy grit her teeth, and for a moment they resembled vertical waves of electricity.
Now Shane had reached the Park followed by Goblina riding the centaur girl.
Ishtar kept her hands clasped, but her eyes had now opened; everyone present who looked at her would feel a great sorrow welling up from within themselves, and tears beginning to form in the corners of their eyes.
“I have done nothing of the sort, Cindy. I only wish to bring peace to this city.”Cindy, however, was not convinced. “Peace? PEACE?”
By that point, anyone else who followed Cindy into the tunnels had reached the Park.
“My people have suffered as they have been hunted and slaughtered like mere cattle, and you call that peace!
I have seen how the weak and helpless have been scattered aside like mere trash on the side of the pavement! Is that what peace means to you? You’re only satisfied once all of us abnormal folk are swept under the rug, enslaved or six feet under! But no more! We have a right to live!”
She charged up energy in her hand, and Ishtar stood up, looking concerned as she gazed at Cindy.
“For your crimes against the magical kind, I sentence you to die!”
Ishtar held a hand out.
“You’re making a mistake! Cindy, please, stop this!” Cindy stomped the ground, and caused a thunderclap.
“Beacon’s campaign of oppression and tyranny ends tonight, Ishtar! Off with your head!”
She then launched her projectile, and Ishtar jumped back to avoid it. However, the projectile was aimed to hit the ground right at her feet, and it exploded, sending her back.
At that moment, a squad of Beacon girls had teleported in; Sylvia, who had summoned a gatling gun, accompanied by Janet and Jenna. “Cardinal Ishtar!” She yelled as she saw Ishtar lying on the ground, and turned her gun on Cindy; she grit her teeth in anger.
“Get away from her, you bitch!” She then yelled, and opened a hailstorm of bullets at Cindy and her companions.
