Ace slumped on a couch, adrenaline flooding out of her system. All the soreness of the last day flooded back, her legs almost on fire and a million cuts stinging across her body. Her vision blurred for a moment.
"Yeah, jus' gimme a secon..." she slurred. "Lil tir'd..."
"Your mission is not to nuke the squid god." —Faramir"Looks lak'," agreed Tina. She glanced around the house, apparently in curiosity, although a careful observer would notice that her eyes were alert, and then plonked down on the couch. "Soo...where's ra Burrito? 'E called us 'ere fuir somethin' or 'nother."
Charlie Stross's cheerful, optimistic predictions for 2017, part one of three.Ace blinked a few times, trying to focus. Someone was talking to her, though Ace couldn't quite recall what they'd said.
"Whuh?" She tried to shift to sit upright, her muscles protesting the whole way. Her brain tried to reconstruct the question she'd missed. Something about if she was okay? "Mmh, tired. Sore." She scrunched her eyes closed. Her mouth was as dry as the Sahara and her headache was waging trench warfare on her brain cells.
"Your mission is not to nuke the squid god." —Faramir"Ach, Railgun oover there's 'ad a few too many," said Tina. "Miles oor pints, either or. Ah didnae expect a party, so 'fraid Ah cannae help." She shook her empty flask. "'Elped to skelpit that great ugly bastard in the fitba' pitch, but, an' 'er right near fallin' on 'er feet."
Charlie Stross's cheerful, optimistic predictions for 2017, part one of three.
Penelope smiled at the girls as they came in, sweetly listening to them speak whilst Burattino kept his eyes on Ace, twitching and physically struggling from moving whenever hearing an insult towards him. While Burattino kept himself angled away from sight, 'Liliana' mostly stood around confused and nervous about what to do with the others. Upon hearing the mention of a drink, Penelope turns her kind smile to the girl and quietly speaks "You could get your new friend here a cup from the kitchen, I'm sure they'll be okay with that honey." Not making more than a little squeak, Liliana heads towards the kitchen.
Turning to look at the girls with a smile on her face, Penelope claps once before speaking. "Alright, from everything I've heard, Burattino hasn't really told you girls much has he? He's quite a sensitive and silly little creature actually, so if he hasn't informed you too much he probably thought he was being offended somehow. I know for certain he hates being called a burrito though, so I would really advise against that. Otherwise, he's quite a charming little critter... And sad to be honest, though he doesn't like sharing those feelings."
That last line spoken sneakingly, Burattino practically becomes embarrassed and proceeds to cover his face with his paws in shame. Penelope nonetheless smiling cheerfully, she speaks up as Liliana comes out with a drink for Ace "Now, you girls probably have doubts about Burattino don't you? If you've been treating him like Kyubey, that'll have been really hurting him. He honestly is a good hearted creature and despite how he comes off, he does care about you Magical Girls. So, please, allow me to dispel any worries by asking anything you like."
"The Omniverse is the collection of all possibilities, and all possibilities must eventually come to pass."Ace took the cup with an unsteady hand and gulped the water down like it was an elixir of life. The cool water relieved her burning throat for a second, and she savored it for a second before finishing it. Her headache receded for a moment and she closed her eyes, trying to block out whatever sensory activity she could.
"Your mission is not to nuke the squid god." —FaramirRhea raised her hand, a deadpan look on her face. "So Burattino.. What are you going to do with that bracelet? And why did the Kache- whatever just turn into it? Do they always just form out of nowhere like that? If so, what would we do if one appeared somewhere we couldn't possibly knowabout/travel to?"
She paused.
"And what's a Kyubey?"
we will survive.Fort Bragg, Kechemetc Defense Corps HQ, 2:37 PM
A young, horned woman sat clothed in loose clothing on her cot, meditating as per the psychiatrist's recommendation. Bringing her mind "into the moment" and focusing on her breathing was supposed to allow Khole better control over her "condition." Mindfulness, they called it. It usually helped. Today...was a little different.
You know...you know...you know..., a voice whispered inside the hybrid's head. They...humor you...destroyer...constantly watching...waiting for an opportunity...then...oh, then.... The voice trailed off, cold laughter taking its place as Khole opened her dark eyes.
She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, scratching absently at the silver band encircling her left wrist. Eleven others just like it were clamped along her extremities. Mana suppressors, created from her own flesh, were contained within the bands and usually kept the more negative effects of her "condition" at bay. Most of the time.
Just as Khole had settled down to resume her meditation, an alarm blared. "SQUAD ZERO, SIGHTING REPORTED IN INDIANAPOLIS. REPORT TO HANGAR IN TEN," a mechanical voice intoned. Her eyes snapped open once more, thoughts of meditation forgotten. Thank God they caught me on a good day, she thought to herself. Standing, Khole stripped off her loose clothes and began to outfit herself in her gear. Black boots, pants, a form-fitting shirt, and fingerless gloves, all bearing the insignia of the Corps covered her pale, lithe form. She sprinted toward the hangar, smiling.
Hopefully, they'd use the new plane.
Lucas Oil Stadium, Indiana, 3:57 PM
Khole strolled among the wreckage near the stage in the stadium. Others in her team, all young women, examined footage or interviewed those present when the Kechemetc appeared. Although they'd received word shortly into the flight that the beast had apparently been neutralized, though they weren't entirely sure how. Attendees claimed to have either been ushered out by the police or were hopelessly confused at the mention of young women defeating the Kechemetc. Either way, their accounts conflicted with the recordings. A group of young women had taken that thing down relatively quickly. That damnable fox had snatched the bracelet dropped by the nightmare made flesh when it died. Fuck, Khole thought. A rogue group of magical girls. We can't have that.
A few members of the Indiana Kechemetc Defense Corps were shooting furtive glances toward the pale hybrid. Khole rolled her eyes. You'd think they'd be used to things like me by now, she thought.
Oh...but no.... The voice from earlier had returned. Never accepted, only tolerated...no way to live, no, not at all.... It began to laugh coldly, fading slowly as it did.
Khole shivered in the late afternoon air. She reached up to her ear, activating her comm unit. "How soon can we locate those girls?"
edited 9th May '15 9:12:27 PM by Collinicus
"Aye, yin wee tosser isnae orr-dinar' fae crayture, that's certain," said Tina, and only the most perceptive listener would have noted the flat lack of affect in her voice. Somehow her bag had shifted again now that Burattino was in the room again. "So. 'E's the one whae gav' us these?" She lifted her bracelet between thumb and forefinger, giving Ace a sidelong look as she did so, and dropping her voice considerately. "How many ither folk wi' these, 'round the world? Ace, lass, ye need quiet tae help ye sleep, say the wuird."
Charlie Stross's cheerful, optimistic predictions for 2017, part one of three.Introductions? Is that what we've been doing?
"I am Alessandra, the Pawn Priestess," she said, following Lilith's example.
Her battle dress faded into a grey hoodie with purple designs and a crisp-looking skater skirt.
"I would like to shake all your hands, but that seems a little silly in this situation. As for our furry friend, I would first like to know why he's named after something that means 'puppet' in my language."
This is a good a start as any, I suppose. In terms of identification all I've got are Liliana (probably a stage name), Lilith, Justice Rook, Swords, Having-a-little-too-much-drink, Earthspike and Almost-dead. I guess that makes me 'Prisms'.
edited 10th May '15 6:54:41 AM by Thanatologist
This is my siggy. It says: This is my siggy. It says: This i—*crash**bang**smash*—*silence*—

The corner of Alessandra's mouth twitched upwards in a half-smile at the Scottish girl's observation.
True, more than half are American, by their accents. The boxing girl sounds... Australian? English?
"To be fair, it seems we were gathered here for convenience."
This is my siggy. It says: This is my siggy. It says: This i—*crash**bang**smash*—*silence*—