“Okay, how about this?” Himari smirked, knowing she’d gotten her partner’s rapt attention. Surely, this would impress Emiyo enough to get the lieutenant off her backside. She paused for dramatic effect. “We steal the paper towels from bathrooms! That way, it forces the person to either dry their hands on their clothes or use those stupid air drier things.”

“Pure evil, Himari! And Emiyo says you know nothing about spreading suffering!” Liam replied, bobbing his massive head. He sipped on his root beer float as they spoke.

Around them, magical girls went about their business, their partners not far behind. Starlight Dream was a bustling metropolis, as usual. Its crystal buildings sparkled in the midday sun. Nobody paid them any mind, seeming to avoid Himari on purpose. Despite being the most friendly magical girl around, bizarrely, they never showed her the same courtesy. Their loss, she supposed.

“Actually, I might have an idea,” Liam said. “What if we set alarm clocks, so they buzz five minutes ahead of schedule? Our victims will be super cranky from the lost sleep!”

“That, my friend, is true suffering!” Himari scooped a generous portion of her chocolate parfait into her mouth, squealing in delight at its favor. Vine, the fairy who owned this establishment, prepared the best ice cream treats.

As the pair exchanged ideas and suggestions for their next schemes, a figure passing by caught Himari’s attention. The black-haired girl stared at the surroundings, awe-inspired by Starlight Dream, the jewel of the multiverse. The newcomer smiled, absorbing every little detail about the city’s ever-bustling metropolis. Himari noticed the girl was missing her right arm. How had that happened?

“Who’s that, I wonder?” Himari asked. “She looks new.”

“Yep, she looks pretty green to me too,” Liam said, nodding.

“We should say hello!” Himari beamed. She loved meeting new people. She’d enjoy showing her new friend around Starlight Dream. Besides, there was something Himari found odd about the girl. Her eyes contained a warmth the others didn’t possess. With luck, she wouldn’t be a bully like the others. Himari tried so hard to be friendly, yet the other magical girls continued being jerks towards her.

“Let’s talk to her!” Himari had a good feeling about this, certain they’d become the best of friends! Perhaps this girl would appreciate her cunning, evil plans.

---

“Wow, how far does that tower extend?” Seina’s head spun as she stared up at what Nier called the Pin of the Cosmos.

“No one’s really sure,” Nier replied. “Some magical girls have tried for years to climb it, to no avail. Legend says that it stretches across the entire multiverse!”

“Wow.” Seina continued to stare, mesmerized. She realized it made her look like a tourist, but she couldn’t help herself.

“Remember why we’re here.” Nier coughed, getting her attention.

“Right, of course. Lead the way!” For being a den of evil, Starlight Dream was prettier than she’d expected. For all its glamour, though, Seina sensed a distinct wrongness about the place. There wasn’t an obvious source, but it permeated the air like a dense fog cloud. It made Seina feel unclean despite Starlight Dream’s impressive spender.

Nier led towards what appeared to be the ruins of a once-great castle. Little remained of the once polished stone beyond the moss-covered rubble. The buildings consisted of little besides some pillars and support walls.

Still, Seina relaxed as she stepped inside. The evil that choked Starlight Dream wasn’t present here. It was a holy place, the remnant of glorious days long since passed.

“What is this place?” Seina kept her voice low, wanting to avoid any prying ears.

“It’s the remains of the wicked queen’s palace,” Nier replied. “She ruled the fairies with a cruel, iron grip until the Devil Princesses saved us.”

“What?” Seina couldn’t keep the pure incredulity from her voice.

“Yeah, she treated us like slaves.” Nier caught Seina’s skepticism. “Or so the legends tell. She lived many generations ago. These ruins are the only remnants of her legacy.

“And Charity is the only survivor?” Seina asked.

“Yep, the Devil Princesses purged everything else,” Nier said, nodding. “Though I suppose with everything I know now, those legends might not be accurate.”

“Obviously.” It sounded like the junk the vampires tried to spill upon her people. Garbage that preached that human lives had vastly improved now that the vampires ruled them. What was it called again, propaganda?

“We can ask Charity about the queen!” Seina giggled with giddiness, knowing her instincts had proven correct. “Let’s go!”

Nier guided them across the stone debris and towards the shattered remains of a staircase leading deep underground. The structure didn’t seem particularly solid, but Seina didn’t care. If the entire building collapsed on her, it’d be only a slight bother to dig herself free. After stepping down a few steps, someone challenged them.

“Hold it! What are you doing here?” A girl said. “The Devil Princesses ordered this place off-limits to everyone.”

“Yeah, buzz off before we get angry!” The girl’s partner said.

“It’s just me, Azumi,” Nier said, flying up towards the pair.

“Oh, it’s just you. Back again, are we?” The guard’s voice became bored, disappointed that the intruder hadn’t come to cause trouble. Seina supposed guarding Charity must be pretty dull.

“Yep, I wanted to ask the prisoner more questions,” Nier said, hiding his deception with impressive ease. He briefly introduced Seina to the two guards.

“And her?” Azumi gestured towards Seina.

“She’s my partner.” Nier replied.

“Uh, hi!” Seina said, fumbling over her own words. She winced, catching the expression of the other magical girl and her partner, Cerbi. Instead of suspicion as Seina feared, Azumi’s expression turned predatory. The guard had found someone she could easily bully. The girl would delight in tormenting Seina for her own amusement.

“What happened to your arm?” Azumi gestured towards Seina’s missing right arm. “What a pathetic specimen. Where did you find this whelp, anyway?”

“You see.” Seina coughed, regaining her confidence. She refused to permit this girl to bad mouth her. “I got it while wrestling a bear!”

“What?” The guard replied, flabbergasted.

“Before I became a magical girl, it’s a hobby of mine!” Seina said.

Behind Seina, she heard Nier put his paws into his face. He spoke so quietly, only Seina heard him. “Wrestling a bear, really?”

Seina froze, realizing how stupid that lie had sounded. “I had to tell her something to impress her. Make myself sound tough!” She whispered back.

“Just,” Nier grunted in frustration, burying his face into his paws deeper. Seina’s cheeks flushed, realizing how silly her impromptu lie was. Darn it, why hadn’t she explained she’d lost it in an accident or something? The mocking laughter of the guard and her partner only heightened Seina’s redness.

“I can tell,” Azumi said, unable to stifle her laughter. “Great bear wrestler.”

“How scary! Just looking at her terrifies me!” Cerbi added. The two rolled on the floor, unable to control their mirth.

“Can we see the prisoner?” Seina asked, trying to force the topic back on track.

“How can we refuse?” The guard replied. “I doubt we could stop the great bear wrestler if she tried breaking in!”

“Yeah, yeah.” Seina followed the guards gloomily, downtrodden that she’d made such a terrible first impression on the first magical girl she’d met in Starlight Dream. Just her luck.

Their guides led down a cold and clammy corridor that smelled of mildew. They passed several barred-off rooms. Each was empty, unoccupied for many years. Did this strange prison only hold a single inmate?

“I’m impressed you got the prisoner talking, fairy,” Azumi said as they passed more empty cells. “We waterboarded her for hours and she didn’t even make a peep!”

“Yeah, no kidding!” Cerbi grunted in annoyance. “Torturing’s the best part of the job. What’s the point of being a guard if you can’t enjoy torturing your guests?”

“I totally agree, fellow magical girl! Torture makes being a magical girl fun!” Seina said, forcing a smile. “I sure love the torturing! It’s my favorite thing to do!”

“Get her talking some more. Perhaps we can learn the best way to pump some fun from her.” Azumi appeared giddy with excitement at finally having something to ease her boredom.

“Yep, sure can do!” Dear goodness, Seina would enjoy teaching the girl a lesson later. And she’d thought Emiyo was an unpleasant individual.

As they arrived at a far cell, they found a fairy standing by the bars waiting for them. Her eyes shone with a wild intensity, pupils wide as saucers. Nier wasn’t wrong about her shattered mind. While the unnerving display disconcerted her companions, Seina only pitied the poor fairy and wished to help her.

“You’re back! Charity knew you would be! Charity has been eagerly awaiting your return!”

“She’s talking again,” Azumi said, unnerved. She coughed and regained her composure. “That makes things easier. I can cook up some hot pokers. We can have the newbie test her mettle!”

“Good idea!” Seina said, hurrying both guards down the corridor. “While you fetch our torturing supplies, we’ll interrogate the prisoner. Get her talking, so the torture stuff is more fun!”

The guard smiled, giving Seina a slight nod of approval. The newbie had redeemed herself somewhat in the magical girl’s eyes. It made Seina sick to her stomach, but needs must.

“I thought she’d never leave!” Seina said, relieved to be finally alone. She redirected her attention towards the fairy they’d come to rescue. “Hello, my name is Seina, and we’re here to rescue you!”

Charity cackled in delight. “Charity knows this! Charity knows all. She’s glad to meet you, Seina Kamiyama. You’re Starlight Dream’s best hope for redemption. Charity has seen this!”

“Really? I was hoping you could help us defeat the Devil Princesses!” While somewhat unnerved that the fairy seemed to already know everything about her, Seina was glad to have a new friend and ally.

Much to both their surprise, Charity shook her head. “There is a greater evil than that. They’re the ones who turned Mei towards darkness and brought suffering to all!” The fairy’s expression turned sad and remorseful, pain evident in her features from ancient memories.

“I’m sorry!” The intense pain and regret broke Seina’s heart. Her arms reached around the bars, squeezing the fairy in a well-needed hug.

Charity sniffed, tears trickling down her cheek. “Thank you. Charity hasn’t touched anyone in many years. You are too kind.”

“It was my pleasure! Let’s hurry. We can talk later!” And share a bento box once they get home. Charity deserved a good meal after everything she’d suffered.

“Wait, Charity pleads we don’t leave Starlight Dream yet. We need to retrieve something first!”

“What?” Nier asked, perplexed.

“The old queen’s wand.” Charity replied. “It will prove most useful in the days to come.”

“No! That’s a terrible idea. Breaking Charity out was risky enough.” Nier said, putting the kibosh on such a reckless plan. “We can’t afford to get caught! We’ll come back later for it.”

“No, Charity said we need it. You need to trust Charity.”

Seina weighed her options. Her companion wasn’t wrong. It sounded like a terrible risk. They might run into someone beyond their capability to fight. Yet Charity’s confident, warning words stirred something within Seina.

“Okay. We’ll do it.” Seina said, coming to a snap decision.

“Seina!” Nier said, voice tinged with worry.

“But only if it’s doable,” Seina said, making a compromise. “If it’s beyond our reach, we’ll leave it for later. Is that acceptable?”

The ancient fairy nodded. “Charity finds this acceptable. Break these bars and Charity will lead the way.”

Seina scanned the obstacle that kept Charity captive. While they seemed like normal steel bars, she sensed some magical protections within them. No doubt to stop their prisoner from escaping with her magic. They, however, didn’t appear tough enough to stop a magical girl from breaking them.

“Don’t worry, I got this.” Even with only her single remaining hand, the bars bent like tinfoil under Seina’s mighty grip. Within moments, a gap appeared, and Charity slipped free.

“Charity is free.” Gentle tears slipped down her tiny fairy face, overcome with emotion. Despite her prophetic powers, it probably still seemed unreal to be finally free from her captivity.

“And you always will be.” Seina gave the weeping fairy another well-deserved hug. Tears stained the shoulder of her dress. “Come here and join us, Nier.”

“What? Must I?” The skull masked fairy said, taken aback. But he relented, embracing the group hug.

Charity sniffed. “Thank you. Charity appreciates your kindness.”

“Let’s go. We shouldn’t linger,” Nier said. Were those tears in his eyes also?

“What are you doing, newbie?” The guard dropped the bucket of hot coals, which spilled everywhere on the prison floor. Gripped tight in Azumi’s hand was a hot poker.

“This is a prison break!” Seina rose to her full height, puffing her chest out,

“Charity will never be your prisoner again!” Charity said with feeling.

The hot poker in Azumi’s hand quivered with pent-up rage. “Traitor!”

“Traitor!” Cerbi echoed.

“Ha! Wrong there! I was never on your side! And the way you treat your prisoner is horrible! You should be ashamed of yourself!” Seina said in her most scathing tone. The girl deserved it.

“Who is going to get past me?” The guard said, tone smug. “You? The dreaded bear wrestler?” she scoffed. “I might be in disgrace, but I’m still no joke. Call me, Marigold Ruination.” Azumi tossed aside her poker and summoned a leather whip to her hand. Its thirteen tails had shards of broken glass attached to their ends. A horrible instrument meant to tear flesh and cause untold suffering.

Seina stood her ground, expression impassive. She readied herself for whatever attack the other girl might manage.

“Yeah, kick this self-righteous fool’s butt!” The guard’s fairy partner cheered.

“Bring it.” Seina placed her remaining hand on her hip.

Annoyed by her opponent’s lack of fearful reaction, Azumi whipped her weapon at lightning speed towards Seina’s face. With casual ease, Seina caught a tendril with her remaining arm.

“What the?” Surprise entered the guard’s expression, which heightened when Seina’s grip proved impossible to break free from. Azumi yelped in surprise as Seina used her tremendous strength to pull her towards her. Seina whipped her head forward, and their skulls collided with an impact that shook the building.

A strangled cry escaped Azumi’s lips before she slumped to the stone floor unconscious. Seina blinked. That was easy.

“No, Azumi!” Cerbi flew back towards the waiting door across the corridor, but Nier blocked the fairy’s path.

“You aren’t going anywhere,” Nier said.

“You can’t do this to us!” The fairy said as Seina threw Charity’s once guards into their prisoner’s old cell. With some effort, Seina reset the metal bars in place.

“No, Charity thinks we can.” Charity said, taking some satisfaction that their situations had reversed. “Charity thinks it will take days for your partner to escape these bars. She isn’t as powerful as Seina here.”

“No!” Cerbi cursed up a storm, but his obscenities only met silence as they exited the prison proper.

“So, where to next?” Seina asked. Behind them, the guard fairies’ curses echoed through the stone ruins of the prison.

“Ah, Charity has bad news.” Charity squinted as sunlight struck her tiny face. She spent a moment basking in the sun, enjoying its warmth. “Our next destination wouldn’t be so unprotected.”

“I figured,” Seina replied, but remained unafraid. She was ready for some action, payback for how terribly they’d treated her new friend.

“Where is it?” Nier didn’t sound thrilled, but he wouldn’t argue.

“The center of the Devil Princess’s cathedral, the Hall of Pain.”

---

“Such odd decor,” Himari said, marveling at the ruined castle’s park. Stone curved at sharp angles, dipping up and down at odd intervals. One stone structure arched high into the air before sliding down at almost a ninety-degree angle. Moss and foliage covered the remains of stone architecture. Various weeds grew from cracks in the concrete.

“It must be some type of modern art architecture,” Himari said, after some consideration. The park had proven traitorous to navigate. Her foot had struck a damp piece of grass while going down an arch, causing her to slip.

“Makes sense to me,” Liam replied. “This place is pretty cool. Why haven’t we come here before? We could have a picnic here.”

Her partner was right. Nobody came to the old castle anymore, said to be bad luck. Some even claimed the Wicked Queen’s ghost haunted the place. Which was nonsense, but the castle grounds had an aura to them. It was like walking through a gentle rainstorm. It was a nice place to escape from the other magical girls.

“Why are they here, I wonder?” The newbie and her partner had vanished, leaving Himari to wander around to find where they’d disappeared to. And she couldn’t fathom why they’d come to such a lonely and remote location.

A muffled conversation caught their attention. The new girl and her partner exited a stairwell Himari had overlooked. A wild-eyed fairy in rough shape flew out behind them. Some instinct told her to hide, so she dragged her partner behind some foliage.

“Where to next?” The new girl asked.

Grim-faced, the wild-eyed fairy answered. “The center of the Devil Princess’s cathedral, the Hall of Pain.”

“That’s insane!” The black-colored fairy said. “Are you trying to get us killed? The old queen’s wand can’t be worth such a crazy risk!”

“Charity has spoken her piece.” The other fairy said.

“It will be!” The newbie said, beaming with excitement. “It must be important if the Devil Princesses are keeping it safe.”

Huh? Himari blinked. Were they talking about opposing the Devil Princesses? Nobody would be that crazy.

“Think about it, Nier.” The new girl said. “We’d be striking right at the heart of the Devil Princesses! We’ll teach them they aren’t so unbeatable!”

Oh, never mind, they are. Have they lost their senses?

“Seina, please tell me you aren’t planning to pick a fight with them?” Nier put his face in his paws. “You don’t stand a chance! You just got lucky with Emiyo. The princesses are beyond anything you can ever imagine.”

“I know that.” The girl, Seina, shook her head. “I only won against Emiyo because of Takako. I’m only a useless, one-armed, magicless magical girl. But we can’t afford this excellent opportunity to slip by. If it means saving my universe, I’ll do whatever it takes!” The sheer conviction in the girl’s voice took Himari’s breath away.

“Okay, you’re right,” Nier said, also swept away by his friend’s passion. “But no stupid risks!”

Seina nodded, allowing Charity to guide them across the ruins into town. Himari stood by and watched, trying to process this unexpected turn of events. Was it her imagination, or had Charity turned back and winked at her?

“They beat Emiyo? H-how is that possible?!” Liam stammered, mouth agape. “It can’t be true, right?”

“I think they’re telling the truth.” Himari could sense no lies.

“We have to warn someone!” Liam flittered around in the air nervously. Himari opened her mouth to agree, but froze mid-word. Should they?

No, what are you saying, Himari? You’re a loyal subject of the Devil Princesses! You didn’t throw those rocks through all those windows of condemned buildings for nothing!

Yet, Himari still hesitated. She wasn’t naïve, knowing exactly what the other magical girls did to spread suffering. It was real suffering, not the more acceptable version Himari liked to cause. Deep down, she despised Starlight Dream and everything it stood for. But she was powerless against the system, too afraid to step out of line. She admired Seina’s boldness to challenge the Devil Princess’s head-on.

“Himari?” Liam asked, concerned.

“I can’t do it,” Himari admitted, feeling downright miserable. “The thought of reporting her makes me ill.”

“I understand.” Liam put a comforting paw on Himari’s shoulder. “Hey, with any luck, Seina will knock them down a peg!”

“Let’s hope so.” Himari paused, considering the conversation she’d overheard. “You think this wand is as powerful as they say?”

“Maybe,” Liam said. “Some fairies say the Wicked Queen created Starlight Dream, so she must have been really powerful.”

“It’s worth a shot at least.” No, Himari. You aren’t considering what I think you’re thinking, are you? It was insane and bound to get her and her best friend killed! Yet, Himari found she couldn’t just abandon Seina to her fate. This mysterious stranger had sparked something within her she couldn’t ignore.

“We should help her retrieve this magical wand!” Himari said, speaking words she couldn’t recant. Despite their seeming insanity, they made her feel alive, freed from the burden of living under the Devil Princess’s thumb. “We don’t need to fight or anything, but we could at least watch her back!”

Was she really suggesting turning against the Devil Princess? It wasn’t like she owed those jerks anything, but still…

Darn it! I can’t let her die! She’s the nicest, most heroic magical girl I’ve ever met!

“I agree!” Liam beamed, also feeling the spirit of hope they’d almost forgotten existed.

“And hey, even if we die, at least we won’t be forced to do evil things anymore! Let’s go!”

Funny, it seemed she’d be getting that new friend after all. And hey, it’d all work out, right? This Seina wouldn’t do something completely crazy, right?

Dear God, please let this not get me killed!