Takako shook her head, eyes wide. “What the heck was that?” She shuddered in revulsion. “Ugh, he had hairy legs and everything. He could have at least shaved. How did someone like him become a magical girl!”

Nothing remained of the second floor after the magical girl’s assault. The entire area had been vaporized. The gang members of Lotus Butcher cowered in terror, fearful the girl might unleash her wrath on them next.

“They’re gone, yet I still detect that strange presence.” The fairy said, turning his attention towards the frozen Seina. Sweat trickled down her brow, realizing how helpless she was at the moment.

“I feel it too.” Takako twirled the guns in her hands in thought. She sent a frosty glare in Seina’s direction. “You must be the real magical girl.”

I need to do something. If they’re evil, I can’t fight while frozen. An idea popped into the magical girl's head.

“Hey, can you unfreeze me?” Seina whispered towards Masato, who trembled in terror. “We might be next. She really hated your boss. Who knows what she’ll do to his men!” Seina wasn’t being entirely truthful, playing on his fears, but she needed to free herself somehow. Much to her relief, the thug nodded.

“I can! Please save me! I don’t want to die!” Masato whimpered pathetically before striking Seina in the neck. Much to her relief, movement returned to her body. She released the thug’s arm. Her grip had left a nasty purple bruise, leaving Seina a little guilty, promising to be more gentle with normal folk in future. Even if this one had sort of deserved it.

“Why didn’t you do that sooner? You could have saved yourself from getting thrown into a cement pit. I would have saved you.”

The thug blushed embarrassed, before coughing into his fist. “Didn’t occur to me. But hey, now you can defeat that evil magical girl! We had a deal!” Masato ran behind Seina, using her body as a shield.

Takako watched this entire exchange in amusement. “So you’re the magical girl of this universe? So lame. You allowed a bunch of thugs to get the better of you!”

“Very lame.” Her fairy said, nodding in agreement.

Seina grunted in annoyance, not liking their tone. “Who are you, anyway? What do you want? What do you mean the vampires should be running the planet?”

Takako rolled her eyes, exasperated. “You don’t get it? Did your partner not explain anything?”

Seina bunched her hand into a fist and opened her mouth for a nasty retort, but two newcomers paused her words.

“Seina, thank goodness you’re okay!” Colten said, landing on her shoulder.

“Sorry we’re late. Those thugs gave us more trouble than we expected.” Mr. Kiyojiro said. “We saw the strange explosion.”

“Seina, who are these people?” Colten gave the new magical girl a wary eye.

“Call me, Lily Annihilator. Just the baddest, most evil magical girl around.” Takako spun her weapon around and ended in a stylish pose.

“Nier, partner to her badness!” Her fairy added.

“Why did you defeat the vampires? Explain.” Takako asked.

“Because they’re bad guys, and it’s the right thing to do?” Seina replied. It still shocked her that this girl had proclaimed that magical girls existed to cause suffering. The world was terrible enough already. Why add to it?

“The right thing?” Takako broke into mocking laughter, unable to believe her ears. “Don’t tell me you’re one of those lame hero types. How embarrassing!”

“She even looks lame. Who wears pink?” Her fairy companion added.

“Pink is my favorite color,” Seina replied, her tone terse. What was with this girl’s attitude?

“Too bad. Now I’m here to fix things.” Takako said. “At least someone is taking our magical girl duties seriously.”

Seina clenched her teeth. After spending a moment to regain her composure, she gave Colten a meaningful look, pleading for some answers. Were magical girls just villains all along?

“Not, now.” Colten’s little voice broke. Guilt washed over his tiny features and he turned aside. “We need to deal with her first.”

Takako snorted and slung one of her pistols over her shoulder. “If you can. I’ve been a magical girl for almost three hundred years. You’ve been one for what? A few weeks? You can’t compare to me.”

“Well, uh, wait, what?” Seina asked in alarm.

“Uh, did I forget to mention that magical girls are immortal and don’t age?” Colten gave a nervous laugh.

“Colten!” Was she stuck in a ten-year-old’s body for the rest of her life? She didn’t want that! Humans just got the ability to drive cars again. They’d never allow her behind the wheel now!

“Now’s not the time. Evil magical girl!” Colten said, pointing towards their common foe.

“Okay, you’re right. But we’re having a serious decision after this.” Seina let out a breath, centering herself. She couldn’t afford any distractions. After extending her hand, she summoned her staff.

Takako blinked before she snorted, fighting back laughter. “Is that a bubble blower, really?”

“It’s a staff, and it’s a perfectly valid weapon.” Seina straightened her posture.

“You’re a strange one.” Takako tilted her head. “Your aura is bizarre. I couldn’t even tell you were a magical girl at first. Ah, well. It’s about time I kick your butt.”

“Yeah, you’re about to die, poser!” Takako’s fairy friend said.

Here it comes. Seina tensed. This was her first fight against someone on her level. Could she win this?

“I’m getting out of here!” Lotus Butcher’s thugs ran for the hills, fleeing before everything got out of control. The dark magical girl didn’t bother stopping them. Instead, Takako focused her attention on Seina, mouth extending into a confident smirk.

In an impressive display of skill, Takako spun her guns around before pointing them at her opponent. “Goodbye!”

The walls around Seina exploded, leaving nothing but rubble and an enormous crater. None of the bullets, however, even touched Seina.

“... Ha, very impressive! You have some guts. I admire your gusto, newbie!” Takako said, puffing out her chest, though Seina detected some red on her cheeks.

“You’re just saying that so we don’t notice that you completely missed her. Can you even aim with those things?” Colten replied.

Come to think of it, when she shot up Dreven, she just shot in his general direction not really aiming at him.

“Shows what you know! I never miss!” Takako shot back. “You’re just too lame to see it.”

Now’s my best chance! Seina darted forward, catching her opponent completely off guard. Takako howled in pain as her staff struck against her chest and sent her flying across the city.

Seina blinked. “That was easier than expected. I hope I didn’t hurt her too badly.”

Several minutes passed, and Seina feared the worst. Thankfully, a bloody Takako dragged herself back to the scene of the battle. It took several minutes for her to reach Seina, her limp making it difficult to walk.

“Lucky shot.” Takako’s voice was ragged and held a great deal of pain. “Nothing compared to me of course.”

“Are you okay?” A concerned Seina asked.

“Wow, we hurt her pretty bad. Maybe you should run off somewhere and treat your wounds?” Colten said.

“You don’t know who you’re messing with. No one can defeat me!” Much to everyone’s shock, the dark magical girl turned her white pistol against herself. “Healing shot!”

Green light surrounded Takako. Like magic, all her wounds disappeared. Her breathing returned to normal, appearing good as new.

“How did you do that?” Seina asked, amazed.

“It’s my power,” Takako replied. “I can make my bullets do whatever I want. Creating a bullet that completely restores my health is nothing. Your little lucky shot was worth nothing!”

“Magical girls are amazing!” It made Seina feel stupid that she could only smack things with her staff. Takako was on another level entirely.

“Seeing how you’re quaking in your boots, how about you run off and cry somewhere?” Takako said.

“Uh.” Seina blinked, unsure how to respond to that. Did the magical girl think she was winning already?

Takako snorted and twirled her twin pistols around. “Well? Ready to run, or what?”

“We could not fight? We could be friends instead?” Seina asked. Despite everything, she was grateful that the magical girl had saved her from Dreven. The situation might have turned nasty if she hadn’t arrived.

“You don’t want to fight, huh?” Takako puffed out her chest. “Already lost the will to fight, have you? You aren’t worth bothering with. Let’s go, Nier.” Without another word, the magical girl vanished, leaving a baffled Seina behind.

“Eh?” Did I lose? What was with that bizarre tough girl act?

“What a weirdo,” Colten said, flying up to her.

“Seems like you scared her away.” Though Mr. Kiyojiro seemed troubled and Seina could guess why. Did this mean more magical girls would come to fight them?

“Let’s round up the rest of Lotus Butcher’s gang and return home,” Seina said. Colten still owed her some serious explanations, but the bad guys came first. The vampire’s gang had vanished. Only Masato remained, huddling in a corner.

“Who is this Lotus Butcher, anyway? We owe them a butt-kicking for impersonating you!” Colten said, his tiny mouth twisting into a snarl.

“Uh, I’m sure you’d believe me if I told you.” Before Seina explained further, Takako appeared from nowhere above her and fired her pistols upon her. Much to Seina’s surprise, the bullets exploded into nets. They wrapped around her, fastening themself to the stone floor.

“You again?”

The evil magical girl smirked and flicked her hair. “Did you really think I would leave with defeating you? I knew if I made you lower your guard, you’d be easy pickings!”

“That’s just dirty.” Seina struggled against her bonds. Despite her enormous strength, they proved too difficult to break.

Trapped, again! I need to stop dropping my guard.

“You got her, great!” Nier said, hovering around Seina’s head.

“Emiyo will be most pleased,” Takako said.

“Seina!” Colten’s tiny paws pulled at the nets engulfing his partner, but they proved too difficult to break. Mr. Kiyojiro stood to the side, helpless.

Takako’s black pistol fired again, and a further net appeared, trapping the fairy alongside his partner. “Colten!”

“I’m sorry.” The fairy looked down. “They’re going to take us home, a place I never wanted to return.”

“Too bad, traitor!” Nier said. “I’m not sure how a lowly fairy like you created a magical girl, but you know the consequences of betrayal. The Devil Princesses’ retribution will be quick and merciless.”

“Seina.” Colten sniffed.

“Never!” Seina refused to allow these Devil Princesses to harm a hair on her new friend. Despite what Colten may think, he’d brought nothing but good to her life. Because of him, she’d tasted freedom for the first time in her short life.

“Huh?” Takako screamed in pain as Seina suddenly threw herself forward, striking her opponent’s face with her forehead. Despite the force of the blow Seina remained trapped in the netting.

“Hey, I can move a bit!” Seina hopped around the empty warehouse. She wasn’t completely helpless!

“You little!” The evil magical girl wobbled on her feet, grimacing in pain.

“I’m not finished yet!” Seina bent down and threw her body headfirst towards Takako’s torso. Her opponent gave a strangled cry and disappeared into the distance.

“Takako!” Her fairy partner flew after her.

“Oops, I might have overdone it.” Seina hadn’t intended to hit the other magical girl that hard. She still had a million questions that needed answering. Much to her relief, the bounds around her body disappeared moments later.

“Uh, you think she’s okay?” Seina gave a pensive look to a distant point on the horizon. Despite her claims of being the most evil being around, Seina detected no malice from the boastful magical girl. It left her very confused.

“Oh, she’s fine.” Colten waved a dismissive paw. “Magical girls aren’t so easy to kill.”

“She’ll be back, and she’ll bring reinforcements.” Mr. Kiyojiro gave Colten an icy glare. “It seems you haven’t been entirely honest with us.”

Colten tensed before sighing. “I know.”

“We aren’t angry with you, Colten.” Seina grabbed her partner’s paw and squeezed. “Just tell us the truth.”

“Okay.” Colten’s expression turned pained. He wouldn’t enjoy what he’d say next. “The truth is, fairies are creatures of great evil. Magical girls are their instrument of destruction. They enter dark pacts with evil-minded girls to spread their horror and terror. They live in a world between reality called The Starlight Dream.”

“Hold on.” Nothing about this story made any sense. “You aren’t evil!”

Her fairy friend gave a weak smile. “I’m just some weirdo without the stomach to do anything bad. Back home, fairies hated and bullied me about it. I ran away to be anywhere else. That’s how I came to your universe.”

“Oh, Colten.” Seina gave her friend a well-deserved hug. “I think you’re fantastic.”

Mr. Kiyojiro nodded. “You’re better than any of them.”

Colten sniffed, tears welling in the corner of his eyes. “Guys.”

Masato gave his own empathic nod, patting the fairy on the shoulder. “Sounds rough. I wasn’t too popular with my family either. My folks kicked me out when I couldn’t live up to their expectations.”

Seina jerked. She’d totally forgotten the thug was still here and glared at him. “Get out of here! You aren’t part of this conversation!”

“Yeah, leave! We don’t care about your backstory!” Colten said, flying around in an irritated, erratic pattern.

“I’m leaving.” The enormous man shrunk under the magical girl and her bodyguard’s angry glares and slunk away, ashamed.

“Still though, it still stuns me you even became a magical girl, Seina. I’ve always been told only evil girls can become one. When your brooch appeared, I feared the worst, wondering if you were as wicked as the others, but you proved me wrong.”

“Why did you leave out the genocide in my transformation chant?” The sudden inclusion of the horrible word had shocked Seina when Takako had used it.

“It was in the vain hope transforming into a magical girl wouldn’t turn you evil.” Colten gave a pained smile. “I’m not very knowledgeable about any of this magical girl stuff. I’m no one special back home.Still it amazes me how powerful you are!” Colten said, flying happy loops around his friend’s head. “I was certain we were a goner when that evil magical girl showed up. There’s something about you.”

Mr. Kiyojiro gave a thoughtful look. “That girl mentioned someone named Emiyo. Who is that?”

Right, I’d forgotten about that! “And what did Takako mean when she said vampires should be running everything? Did magical girls cause vampires here?” Before the darkness’s arrival, the monsters had only been a myth used to scare children.

“I’m not sure. Maybe?” Colten replied. “I’m not privy to the higher echelons’ plans. But I know who Emiyo is. She’s a lieutenant of the Four Devil Princesses. They rule Starlight Dream with their fairy companions. They’re bad news. Their powers are beyond anything we can face. Takako and Nier were only minor minions. I’ve heard stories that they can shatter entire universes!”

Seina looked down. “So, more magical girls will come to fight me.”

“I’m afraid so. They’re probably going to kill us and destroy this planet to make an example of it.”

Much to Seina’s surprise, Mr. Kiyojiro’s expression hardened. “I refused to allow that to happen.”

“Huh?”

“There’s an old gym a couple of miles from your apartment.” Mr. Kiyojiro replied. “It’s the perfect place to train.”

“Eh?”

“We’ll show these princesses we aren’t such easy prey.” Mr. Kiyojiro’s voice held a remarkable intensity. “Those monsters won’t touch you or our world.”

Seina stared for several long moments before nodding in agreement. She couldn’t afford to get sloppy. If those monsters wanted to hurt her world, they’d have to pry it from her cold, dead hands first. Somehow, she’d win this!

---

Lilha yawned. As usual, the hateful sun blazed over her, making every moment its own torment. But it didn’t make her days any less uninteresting. Few people had approached her for ice cream, leaving her with little to do.

She listened to some passersby jabber on about nothing in particular, laughing to themselves, and Lilha hated them for it. How dare they enjoy themselves while their rightful queen suffered so?

I could murder them on the street for fun! She imagined people screaming in delightful terror as her victims’ blood spattered the pavement below. Her wonderful, imaginative image shattered when reality struck hard.

And Seina would come and kill me. Lilha sagged and allowed her potential prey to pass unmolested.

A strange sound caught her attention. The ex-vampire queen glanced up to see a figure hurtling towards a nearby beach.

What the heck is that? Had that been a person? Lilha ignored it, turning back towards her ice cream stand. It was probably a dumb vampire thinking they could pick a fight with Seina and now paying the price, their tradectory certainly didn’t seem under their own control. Presumably they’d been sent flying by one of her nemesis’s blows.There probably wasn’t much hope for them if that was the case.

Still her stand was empty of customers, and the fool might not be dead. She might gain an ally. Anyone powerful enough to survive an encounter with the magical girl must be someone worthwhile, right?

After some searching, Lilha found a deep skid mark on the ground, flowing towards an empty beach. What the vampire found at the end of the trail shocked her. The young girl wore a similar dress to Seina, except this girl’s dress was black, and wore skull-shaped earrings.

For crying out loud! Not another one! Or was this some sort of copycat? Lilha hid behind a nearby trash can as the girl stirred. A moment later, a black fairy in a skull mask flew down to help the magical girl.

“Takako, are you okay?” The fairy said in alarm. The magical girl sported a nasty bruise on the head, bloody oozing from her mouth.

With a shaky hand, the girl raised a pistol to her chest and shot. “Healing Shot!” Much to Lilha's astonishment, the magical girl’s injuries healed like they’d never existed. The black magical girl whirled on the fair.

“What happened, Nier?” The girl said. “How is she so powerful?! She crumpled me with a single hit!”

Huh? She isn’t a friend of Seina’s?

“I don’t know, Takako!” The fairy threw up his tiny arms. “Her fairy was just some peasant! Not elite cool people like ourselves!”

The black magical girl crossed her arms and looked away, a pouting expression on her face. “This is so lame. Next time, she won’t be so lucky! She just caught me off guard! ”

What was going on? Were magical girls not the pillar of goodness Lilha had believed?

“Next time?” Nier replied. “You’re not thinking of facing her again? We need to get Emiyo. We can’t defeat her by ourselves!”

Takako whirled on her fairy companion, pointing a finger into his chest. “No, we’re doing this alone. I refused to return to Starlight Dream, begging for help. I have a reputation!” The magical girl’s jaw firmly clamped shut, refusing to argue on this subject.

“Fine.” The fairy sighed, landing on a nearby rock.

If they’re also fighting against Seina, then they’d be useful allies. Lilha might be finally rid of that hateful girl forever!

“Well, if you’re an enemy of Seina, perhaps we can help each other,” Lilha said, leaving her hiding spot behind the trash can.

“Who are you?” Takako raised an eyebrow at the newcomer.

“My name is Lilha. I am the Queen of Vampires.” She replied, standing up proudly.

“Really?” The magical girl’s skeptical eyebrow rose even higher, eying Lilha’s ice cream vendor uniform.

Lilha’s face burned hot, fighting back her embarrassment. “It’s a disguise. It helps me blend in so Seina doesn’t recognize me.”

“She has an evil aura, so I don’t think she’s lying about being a vampire at least,” Nier said, flying up to examine the newcomer.

“Why do I need some vampire’s help?” Takako asked. “You’re the one so incompetent you couldn’t stop a single girl from taking the world back from you.”

Excuse me?! Didn’t you just lose to her too?! After taking several deep breaths, Lilha calmed herself, remembering the bigger picture. Too much was at stake. She couldn’t afford to lose a valuable ally.

“Nevertheless, you’ve seen her power,” Lilha said, crossing her fingers, praying this would work. “Without a solid plan, you won’t be able to defeat her. Seina can’t be defeated through brute force.”

“She might have a point.” The fairy replied, nodding.

“Okay.” Takako rolled her eyes. “I refuse to lose to that goody two-shoes loser again. Besides, a sidekick wouldn’t be too bad.”

Sidekick?! Again, Lilha fought back her annoyance, forcing a smile. I hate magical girls so much!

“Good, I think I know someone that might help us. Together, Seina doesn’t stand a chance!” Besides, even if they failed, another magical girl would eventually arrive and put Seina’s head on a pike. Either way, vengeance would soon be hers!