Annie was a relatively new Magical Girl, who had the unfortunate luck of having been contracted to a distracted Puchuu. She was operating as a lone Magical Girl in a small town without much monster activity, but she stayed back while others headed to more active places just in case. She was an average frame brown-haired and wide-eyed girl dressed in a little pink dress and wielded a large white wand with a heart on the end of it, doubling as a melee and mystic weapon. She wasn’t very physically strong but could hold her own in skill, and her Light-specialization ensured she wouldn’t miss any hidden dangers.
She stood atop a building in the night, transformed, looking out over her little town. There were many like it, but this one was hers. Sure, she had heard about the incident in Penrose, and she knew this was hardly a hot-spot of anything, but this was under her protection and so it should be. Not all Magical Girls had to seek to the greatest threat, some had to stay behind and protect the masses. So she reasoned, proud of herself, and resolved to protect her town by herself for one more day-
The energy expanded behind her became immediately apparent for the light-specialized Magical Girl, and she spun around with her wand ready, charging magical power to defend herself if needed. However, she found herself face to face with what felt like hundreds of tentacles made of darkness blurring forth at her with what felt like a silent roar. They moved to surround the magical girl, wrapping around where she stood and enveloping her. Her inexperience caused Annie to blank out in fear, and even if she had been fast to act her Light-magic was more focused on single-target elimination at a range… not for multitudes of tentacles appearing this close to her.
The lonely magical girl cried out in terror before being engulfed in tentacles grabbing her which then swiftly pulled her back through the portal they had come from, said portal quickly closing and leaving no trace either them nor the girl they had snatched had ever been there. The town was left excruciatingly silent, and without protector.
‘And that’s number three!’ Deni grinned, as another magical girl had been subdued inside a prison dimension reserved for goals of Asengav. Mariette had been granted access to it for the sake of this mission. Mariette, Deni and Eli stood currently in a dimension of darkness, right “outside” the prison where they had taken their prey for now. Mariette stood looking out into the aimless darkness, while Eli was writing down some data about the captured girl like a mission report on a notebook and Deni was just watching and grinning.
‘There we go. Annie Marchand, captured. Her blood will be provided for Justine…’ Eli grimaced with a hint of a smile in it, looking at her notebook. ‘What a terrible fate. She had her own life to live and all. Probably had a boyfriend, too.’
‘Nope! A couple of fake parents, a few friends, but otherwise alone. No boyfriend.’ Deni said. ‘Also, stalking Light-specialized Magical Girls only works when they’re not looking for me. As a personal preference, don’t make me do that again, if we can avoid it. It was only because of her inexperience she didn’t find me. Just a simple light detection-spell in my direction would have done me in!’ Deni grinned as she recounted her trials, but she had succeeded, so.
‘My apologies. She was simply such a perfect target. On her own, with a distracted Puchuu as patron, new so few would miss her, and…’ Eli sighed. ‘Light-specialization wasn’t optimal in prey, but with everything else aligning we made do. But, you did your job fine as a scout, Deni. Well done.’ Eli nodded to her twin, causing Deni to slightly awkwardly scratch behind her head.
‘Aw, shucks. That’s just what I do. Tihi.’ Deni replied.
So, this is what they had been doing for a while. Mariette had been using portals to go visit towns and cities fairly far away from Penrose while still being realistic targets to take Magical Girls from. Just in case someone tracked the losses, they also made a circle with a different city as the center, as if pretending that was their base of operations. When they arrived in any place, Eli and Deni sought out potential targets under the cover of Darkness, with Eli finding out their magic with Third Eye and then Deni finding out all their juicy little secrets through professional stalking. After having determined someone to be a good target, Mariette simply snagged her.
The key had been to overwhelm the young girl. Annie was fairly magically potent, had she actually fired instead of panicking she’d likely have been able to repulse the tentacles. Of course, had she managed to do that, then Deni and Eli would have ambushed her from behind supported by Mariette’s portals and tentacles, which would have been the end for her regardless. But, as it was, they had managed to claim her swiftly without a fight, which was optimal.
‘Where to now?’ Deni asked.
‘We have three more potential targets. There are two solo magical girls further north who only seemingly have one another, one’s an illusionist and the other’s a wood-brawler, check them out, will you? If we take them both, there’ll be nobody to miss them. After that, there was a moderately experienced mosquito monster girl in the middle of nowhere whose Puchuu has a lot of Magical Girls under his wing but she’s the most isolated one, nabbing her wouldn’t cause much of a disturbance…’ Eli explained.
‘Righto! I’ll be on it!’ Deni said, flexing her wings as if her gelatinous body actually had muscles. She then smirked. ‘Think Justine still wants them when they’re part monsters?’
‘… No idea.’ Eli shrugged and didn’t really care. ‘In fact, we don’t really know how Justine prefers her blood, just that it must be the blood of Magical Girls. Also, does it need to be fresh from the source? If we could set up some system where we don’t actually kill the girls, just drain some of their blood over time and storing it, that could be more efficient. But, perhaps stored blood is no good? Some more information would be helpful…’ Eli sighed, but ultimately resigned that it was information they likely wouldn’t get. Mariette, who had just been staring out in the distance for the moment, thought the solution to this problem was obvious. She took out the crystal, which she had been storing while Deni and Eli were scouting, and attempted activating it.
‘I call Justine von Visceral in order to ask a few queries about the state of delivery in which she prefers her blood.’ Mariette spoke in a neutral tone, causing both Deni and Eli to spin to look at her in surprise. They hadn’t considered that maybe it was that easy to reestablish contact with the executive of this operation.
For a moment, Mariette listened to the black crystal, waiting for a response. She was met with silence, until she heard the familiar sound of the crystal's humming.
The voice that she heard...It was not Justine's.
"Hello...Mariette~" The voice was young and sweet, belonging to a girl that seemed to be innocent and naive. However, the dark magical girl couldn't mistake the eerie tone of her voice, as if the girl wasn't completely stable; hidden behind the facade of cuteness was a void of emotion, replaced by insanity.
"Big sister...is currently away, but I'm...here~" She heard a giggle, low in voice but definitely unnerving.
‘Oh, my.’ Deni immediately commented, listening in from a bit away. Eli also listened, a bit wide-eyed. They stayed silent, leaving the conversation to Mariette.
‘I see. Will you be able to answer my questions about how the blood should preferably be delivered?’ Mariette asked, staying focused while making mental notes about the individual answering her call.
Another awkward pause passed as Mariette heard the girl's breath on the crystal.
"Oh...Mariette is bringing...Sweet...Red...to Caroline? He hee~" The girl seemed to be trying to hold her giggling in, for some reason. "Caroline loves...Sweet red...Fresh red...from new dolls...Can Mariette bring...new dolls? Caroline wants to...Play with them~"
This time it was Mariette that paused, considering what she had just heard. That answered a couple of questions, and gave rise to several more. It occurred to her that maybe she could gain information by asking this... "innocent" soul, who might not consider that it could be a bad idea to answer. On the other hand, that came with the risk of Justine learning she had done so, which could come with other terrible consequences. Hm. Regardless... this might be fun.
‘... That's right, Caroline.’ Mariette said, a small bit of bemusement entering her voice. ‘Mariette will bring you new dolls to play with. They're all fresh and lively. Do you have any preference in taste? There's so many to pick from, some are part-monsters, other are more magically potent than others while others are physically stronger, some older and some younger, some have blessings from gods or Puchuus or Beacons or none at all or otherwise... How'd you like them?’ Mariette asked, checking for preferences. Always nice to know what the customer wants before delivering.
Deni and Eli were slightly less comfortable with the conversation, Deni shivering a little at the statements while Eli had taken a new page to write notes of whatever Caroline might say on, though under a frown. Mariette wasn't really paying them any mind, she was way more focused on the soul on the other side of the crystal now.
"Caroline doesn't...understand..." The creepy girl seemed sad. "Does it...Matter? Sweet red...It's delicious...In all dolls..." Then, the girl seemed to have an idea. "Oh, I know! Bring me...Dolls with...Long hair! Caroline loves...Long hair..." Suddenly, Mariette heard a faint noise in the distance, as if a door was slammed open.
"Caroline, what are you doing?" She heard Justine's voice faintly, followed by an exasperated, surprised breath from Caroline before the black crystal suddenly shut down. A short moment later, it opened again, and the voice this time belonged to the crystal's true owner. "Please excuse my sister. She has a troublesome habit of meddling in affairs that don't belong to her. Was there anything you wanted to ask?"
Mariette was slightly disappointed at not being able to continue this conversation with Caroline, but very well. With that, she knew that it didn't necessarily matter what kind of girls she brought, but Caroline had a personal affection for girls with long hair. Hm.
‘There were no problems. I called to ask if there was any particular way you'd prefer to receive the blood, if you'd like the girls themselves along with the blood for instance, or if any kind of girls were of preference or to be avoided.’ Mariette responded.
"Hm hm, that matters not. As long as they are magical girls, their blood will suffice. Of course, I would prefer the blood to be as fresh as it can be, so it would be optimal if you were to bring the vessels themselves." She paused for a short moment, and then continued. "Oh, and apparently Caroline is also enthused by the idea. So, if you do as she has asked, then there will be a little bonus for you, hm hm~"
‘Alright. Then I know all that I need. An ample shipment of Magical Girls should be available within the intended time-schedule, blood and vessels. Should be plenty for Caroline to play with if permitted.’ Mariette told, confident about her part of the deal. Then, there was no need to hold back. Collect the Magical Girls she could reach, and have a significant preference for long-haired girls. Should be simple enough, assuming no complications.
"Excellent. Until then, goodbye~" Justine said in a surprisingly kind tone, and turned off the crystal.
"Mariette brings Caroline dolls...Dolls with long hair..." She heard her sister whisper as she went back to the shadowy corner. A smile was painted on her rose-colored lips. "Indeed. As many as you ever wish, my dear sister..."
On the other side, Mariette stood silent, gazing at the crystal as it turned off, satisfied with the conversation as it became.
‘Whelp. The world just became a bad place to be a long-haired Magical Girl in.’ Deni commented with a minutely concerned look.
‘That clears things up. She wants to play with the actual girls, and the kind of girl doesn't matter although she has a preference for long hair. We need not actually concern ourselves of their blood. We just kidnap them.’ Eli summarized, writing a couple of notes in her notebook.
‘Sooo. We're hunting long-haired girls?’ Deni turned and asked Mariette, a curious look on her face now. Mariette turned to look at her with a slight smile, nodding.
‘Yes. The longer the better. Include this factor in your choice of girls in the future.’ Mariette told, before turning around and opening a portal to exit this particular dimension and return to the real world. Behind her, Deni raised her eyebrows, specifically looking at Mariette's unnaturally long white hair reaching past her knees...
‘I'm pretty sure we're exempt from that.’ Eli commented, noticing Deni's gaze.
‘Yeeeaaah, but, heh...’ Deni grinned. ‘We might wanna be careful so Caroline doesn't get too many good looks at our mistress, she might get the urge to "play" with her, haha.’ With Deni's spoken words, Eli turned to look at Mariette a little extra, before nodding.
'Noted. ... But it wasn't like we weren't going to act like we expected them to betray us at any point we're no longer needed anyway.’ Eli responded.
‘True!’ Deni grinned a bit more. ‘Alright, let's catch ourselves some long-haired girls, then~!’
With that the two slimy harpy-girls went after their mistress, intent on continuing their mission.
As Ilia and Umeko passed through the cages of the zoo, they heard a strange sound coming from one of them; at first it sounded like the roar of a lion, then it was the bellow of an elephant, and then the cries of multitudes of birds from across the world. When the two went to investigate they found Helga swinging on a tire, pounding her chest and mimicking a gorilla as she made big leap, punching through the roof of the cage and landing there, her claws gripping the cage before her like a fearsome quadrupedal beast.
"Man, these critters are living a life of luxury! They get comfy living areas, free food, and no predators in sight! So boring...Oh, hello there!" The girl jumped down form the cage, and landed a good ten meters or so away from the two. Then, she lifted her palms up, as if warning them. "Now I know what you're thinking, but I wouldn't do any hasty moves if I were either of you." She grinned, baring her shark-like teeth. "Cause I ain't here to fight you fools." She made a strangely flourished bow, spreading her claws as if they were a fan. "Name's Helga, and I'm a magical girl...well, maybe monster girl is the better word. Know what I'm saying, Snek Boi?" She giggled with a hand over her mouth, and continued smiling eerily.
A small smirk appeared on Ilia's face as he found the girl's cheekiness a bit amusing. The boy then reared up, elongating his body and dripping a bit of poison to make his scales slightly shimmer, before making an equally as boastful bow. "You have it all wrong my dear girl. I , we, are in the business of making allies". Ilia then lifted his head, before starting to leisurely circle both Umeko and Helga. "We are all friends here right, we all fight for the same cause, don't we? I'm sure of that." It was at that point Ilia had comepetely circled around the both of them, and Umeko put out her hand to impede his slithering and as a signal to cut his antics. "I'm sure all the present company can get along."
Umeko retracted her hand and put it by her chin,her signature pose, as Ilia called it. She wondered what would be the best way to squeeze as much information from Helga as they could while revealing as little about themselves. "We are just two weary travelers, looking for friends in high places."
"Great! I'm glad you guys are of same mind, playing the same tune, hee hee~" Helga clapped her claws together. She didn't seem to give any attention to the monster boy's movements, her irisless eyes mostly focused on Umeko; though her gaze did shift on Ilia's backside, giving a creepy smile. "Nice tail, handsome. I could ride on that all day, ha haa!"
Then she returned her attention to Umeko. "Alright, let's cut the prelude, and get to the main act. You two are pretty high on Beacon's wanted list, ain'tcha? Those loony whackjobs are a pain, especially to our kind. And wouldn't you know, it, there's not one, not two, but three of the blinkers right here in Penrose. Not only that, but the little birds told me," she continued with a lower voice, using her clawed hand to quieten her voice, "that they even got an ally now, and a strong one too if I'm not mistaken."
She returned back to her loud voice, and clapped her claws once more. "They know that you're here, you know, and are hunting for you right now. If you're not careful, your heads might be their next ornament over their mantles! So, let's squash them before they can do that, hee he hee!"
Ilia gave a quick wink. Umeko on the other hand still seemed unconvinced. This Helga girl seemed to have researched the Beacon quite a bit and if she knew about the duo, Umeko would have to do a bit of digging on Helga before jumping into anything. "You would be right: the Beacon is one to hold a grudge. It is not our fault they seem to underestimate us. Since we are talking shop, what would be the terms of such an alliance?'
Helga's smile turned sinister. "Terms? Oh, I just like to see those zealots dead. I'm sure you would too, if you knew how many innocent monster girls they have slaughtered. One would have to wonder who the real monsters are!" Helga then walked closer with a slight hunch, her claws close to her chest. "So if we just work together for long enough until they're rid of, then that would be all I'd want from this little venture, eh?" She extended a claw forwards. "Wanna shake on it?"
Umeko let the girl's claw hang in midair before continuing her prying. "The Beacon being two-faced murderers is news to no one but themselves, but the will to end them is not enough to take them down." With her hand still cupping her chin, Umeko began to tap her finger on her chin, as her mind raced to carefully craft her next few words. "For now you may call us allies, but once we find our footing in the city we will be in touch." Umeko gave a small curtsy but still chose to not shake the girl's hand.
Helga retracted the sharp appendage, and gave an amused grin, her teeth bared in a silly fashion. "Super! Just as I expected from you two! Alright, now that you're onboard, I can let you in on a little secret: those Beacon goons are gonna be at the hospital tomorrow, at sundown. So get ready to jump them, he hee!" Helga took a hop backwards, and gave a cute pose, peeking through her claws in a V-sign. "I'll see you there! Buh-bye!" Then, she jumped away, giggling madly as she did so.
"An eventful night, wouldn't you say, Ilia? It would be best if we also made our leave." Ilia nodded in agreement with Umeko before once again opening a rift to his interdimensional home. From there the snake boy once again slithered to the kitchen where he began to snack on a few things. Ilia seemed quite pleased with how things were turning out, and a small grin was on his face as he loved a good chance to show off abilities. Umeko plopped down onto one of the couches before exclaiming, "I'm sorry to burst your bubble but Helga is still not to be trusted, she seemed too tight-lipped for my liking. Tomorrow we will begin to gauge how much pull she has in this city and where her true motives lie."
Alexander Shields
"O-Oh, okay then..." Lily responded to the short girl, a bit unsure of how to take it; she didn't seem disturbed in the least that she was tarred. Well, putting that aside, Lily listened to the exchange between her and the mysterious eyepatch girl. She blushed intensely at what she heard, shaking her arms comically. "EEEHHH!? Don't get the wrong idea! He's not my boyfriend or anything!" The two of them fortunately didn't seem to care, as the white-haired girl then went on a long-winded explanation, shockingly revealing that the meeting was intended to fail from the start.
"Huh? Who are they? What plans? Wait, don't go!" She already took a step, intending to follow after Mariette through the portal. But, she looked back to Alex, and for the second time, she hesitated. And in that moment, the two strange girls were gone, as if they have never been there. "Mariette Pedersen..." She repeated the name a couple of times, as she looked towards the city, contemplating her words. "Is she one of them? But if she is...Why did she tell us that?"
Lily moved to the edge of the rooftop, and sat down on it, letting her feet dangle. She was holding her head on her hands. "Hey Alex...You heard what she said, right? That we need allies...We might need to decide between being friends with monster girls, or the Beacon...And frankly, I'm not comfortable with either option..." Then her eyes lit up. "Hey, I think I know someone...I'll try and call her." Then, Lily took out her phone, and made a call. "Hey, Shannon, are you there? It's Lily. You're coming to Penrose, right? Beacon wasn't behind Victoria's death...It's something worse."
"Sol doesn't really like Beacon right now," Alexander told her. "I told him what happened at the meeting...and he didn't like it. Sol seems to be someone who judges people based on their actions, rather then what they are, which doesn't sound like Beacon at all. And it sounds like that really bothers him, especially since they seemed affiliated with light like him. I'm not sure if hearing that they weren't behind the attack will change his opinion of them, but it couldn't make it worse."
Her phone ringing, Shannon answered her phone. "Hi Lily... Yeah that's the plan... Worse? I didn't think that sounded like the Beacon. What's going on exactly?" While she held her phone against her shoulder she stored her bag in the bus undercarriage.
"Well, I actually don't know, but I met up with someone called M-mmm...Nevermind. Well, the point is, there's an evil group of magical girls in Penrose, and they are planning something. Let's group up at the hospital roof to talk about this more, ok?"
"Sure thing. We just stopped off for a bit so I was already on my way. I should be there in... five-ish hours." There was a pause as she recalled how far out they were. For here there was nothing to do but sit and wait as the bus moved along. "Can't wait to see you again. It's been a while hasn't it?" Despite the circumstances Shannon still had her upbeat tone. Sometimes it was hard to tell when she was sad, if she ever did get sad.
"Yeah...See you there." Lily then stopped the call, and took Alex' wrist. "She's not going to be here until sundown, so let's make one last trip, ok?" With that said, the two went off, with Lily troubled by her earlier conversation. "Just what kind of girl is she...Mariette..."
As it was about to turn into evening, the two decided to go to the hospital, and wait for Shannon's arrival. But, to their shock, they found the place under attack; there were strange creaures running amok, resembling mechanical dolls with turning cogs or turnkeys on their backs, and clattering jaws of a nutcracker. These minions were all over the place, some dashing through the streets, some jumping into the building's windows and kidnapping sick people.
Then, as they came closer to the rooftop of the building, they saw Minnie: waving her arms around like some sort of conductor, the gothic lolita girl smiled, and then waved at Lily and Alex.
"Oh hello there! Hmm, looks like the wrong audience arrived. Well, no matter; you're just in time for my newest performance: A Grand Tragedy!"
With a clap of her hands, she jumped off the back of the building, disappearing out of view. Then, nearby mechanical minions leapt out, and began attacking the two with small swords and muskets with long bayonets attached to them. It was a chaotic situation, and the fighting was sure to attract the attention of every magical girl in the city.
Once more, Alexander wished that his magic was more destructive then it really was, since blasting that girl would have felt better then he was comfortable with. 'A hospital...who attacks a hospital!?' Alexander quickly threw up four layers of full strength barriers around him, he then applied a force-field to Lily, and started strengthing her with his magic. "Lily. hit this bitch once for me." The fury in his voice was very clear. "Alright, it's go time!" Lily responded, and drew her crackling, shining bow, sending volleys of arrow fire into the enemy ranks. "I'll be done with these little tin soldiers before bedtime!"
Meanwhile, the Beacon girls were suddenly visited by their Beckoners, who spoke to them: "Monsters have attacked again! The Beacon won't stand for this terror upon their beloved people! So head forth at once to Penrose Hospital, and put these foul fiends to the sword!"
@Shifter_Master I also like to add, if it wasn't already clear, that the Beacon was fully aware Penny's a monster girl, yet are desperate since they did accept her, and the source of it is that someone managed to nullify the Spark with Stephanie.
@Card Captor I would like to introduce you to Warhammer Fantasy and Tzeentch, the Chaos God of Change and Scheming.
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