*
"Ahmm!" (Lastia)
"Hey you should try this flavour instead! Say ah~" (Arin)
"Ah~" (Lastia)
"Hey! I was feeding her!" (Sariel)
It was a peaceful evening. They had gone on a couple more rides, with the high speed ones leaving them fatigued with tension. They sat on two benches with Yggdrasil sandwiched between the two, taking turns to put spoonfuls of icy treats in her mouth. They had all gotten a few flavours of dessert, and she supposed this was the next big activity they were preoccupied with.
Mebi gulped at the sight, prompting a light giggle from Corrine. In the distance, the guys were sat around a round table eating late snacks. They found a spot at the edge of the food centre as they looked on enviously.
"... Uahh must be nice." (Tinsel)
"Hmm? I could feed you if you want." (Calamine)
"Aghh... No thanks." (Tinsel)
Simultaneously, there was another conversation just next to them.
"Hey, those terrorists... There won't be any more of them, will they?" (Aloysius)
"... Wouldn't another magical girl just appear to save us then?" (Jianmi)
He sounded partially confident, partially joking. After all, the theme park was a palace for enjoyment, not worries. His short blond hair reached over his ears while the top was swept, exposing his forehead and eyebrows. He preferred keeping to himself but he didn't hesitate to join the group or take care of others, he likely had siblings and was good at being an older sibling.
"Speaking of which, I wonder how she's doing..." (Terrin)
"Oh~?? Is someone lovestruck?" (Aloysius)
He teased his well toned friend with a mischievous grin. Softly poking his wrist while he was at it.
"Oh come on! It's normal to admire the strong, especially with such beautiful muscles!" (Terrin)
He protested with his own honour, which didn't mean much to the others.
"I mean... Were her muscles really that built up? Only her forearms were visible and it was hard to see if she had anymore exposed skin in the dark..." (Eichiro)
The other blond of the group joined in. He was slightly taller, and a little ditzy. He was always accompanied by Jianmi who could make sure he was okay. Sometimes he came off as crude or rude, but Jianmi would concur that he was a good person.
"Yeah... Her arms looked normal, perhaps a little thin. It's not the lean kind that you're familiar with, it was almost skin and bones." (Aloysius)
However the sparkles in Terrin's eyes never dimmed. They didn't really understand his obsession with body building so they left it at that.
" Hey! Do you want to try that? " (Mebi)
A pair of navy blue twintails bobbed in excitement, seemingly having a life of their own. They perked towards her library club companion, the same person who had raced Lastia and had to call the ambulance. She was about a head shorter, barely enough to get on the particularly dangerous rides. Maybe she wanted to prove that short people could enjoy exhilarating attractions as well. She seemed especially energetic today.
"Ughh!! Could we perhaps go on something... Slower?" (Corrine)
Her companion didn't share the same sentiment. She looked to the other 3 for comfort, hoping at least one of them would save her.
"Uhm... I'm getting a little tired too..." (Lastia)
"Oh come on! She's just saying that to be nice!" (Mebi)
Lastia smiled sheepishly in response, in truth she really was exhausted. Yggdrasil was capable at possessing a corpse, stagnating it in time, and accessing the powers of a magical girl through it, but acting all day? It was spiritually exhausting... She felt like her sanity took a dip everytime she got onto a ride, or maybe Yggdrasil was a little afraid of heights after everything that went down.
Just then, the world slowed to a grey. Stark reality crashed into her enjoyment as colour was no longer present in her surroundings. It's as if the sky was screeching at her for peacefully biding away her time.
"Haa~ now of all days. When was the last incident?" (Lastia)
She grimace with a slow seeping fury. Her anger couldn't be detected in her voice, but the end of her patience was practically surging out through her body posture.
"It sure has been a long time. Maybe a month?" (Arin)
She estimated with a defeated tone, her eyes remained relaxed as it stared straight through the sky, pinpointing the opponent before its arrival. Her senses were sharper than anyone else's, already detecting the spike in magic before the world reacted with an 'Event'.
"It's not impossible, or maybe they're finally back after their boss got defeated." (Sariel)
She was slightly optimistic, after the ordeal with the super sattelite calamity, she devoted herself to training almost everyday. The magic enhancements of transformation worked in that it amplified a magical girl's inherent abilities with a finite multiplier, ignoring certain exceptions. It was far more efficient to train her muscles while she was normal than transformed.
She faced muscle aches every now and then, resolving to not rely on her transformation just to remove muscle fatigue. The transformation might heal any ailment, even prevent aging while it lasts. How does it then determine what is the natural state of a magical girl? In which direction will her flesh heal? How much is considered healed? This was all determined by the last recorded instance of full healthiness, from before her muscle training started. So if she transformed, the effectiveness of her training was going to be curbed on the spot.
However, she still had the burning desire to redeem herself. She hadn't had training for a few days thanks to the school trip anyway. A burst of light flashed the surroundings as a dark blue comet flies towards the sky. She {Swapped} the position of the air above her with her localised coordinates, shifting closer to the enemy. A bird shaped Trace sporting drills on all of its appendages and beak.
It squawked loudly as it noticed the distance between it and Sariel changed in an instant. Before it could shield itself or attempt any magic, Sariel lands her fist and unleashes sound waves at the point of impact. She retained a tiny bit of the calamity's granted powers, physically she could still conjure it at a slight distance away to bypass any tough hides, scales or thick skin. Naturally, this distance was so short that it would only be effective when she makes skin contact.
The Trace cries out in ear scratching pain, desperate, it wriggled and shook vigorously in an attempt to shake Sariel off and gain altitude. At this point, Sariel was still below it and it had endured one of her attacks, it still bore some hope.