(MGG - 21) "Mom Come Pick Me Up"

“How very astute.” The words came out dryly due to my parched throat, but the tone I took could easily be taken as sarcastic or annoyed, dep

“How very astute.” The words came out dryly due to my parched throat, but the tone I took could easily be taken as sarcastic or annoyed, depending on the listener's bias. My heart gently beat in my chest, serenely, as though all was within my purview.

Such a thing was not true. The metallic floor, the grown adult staring me down, despite how open the area was, it felt extremely claustrophobic.

I’d beaten adults before, though very rarely. This, on the other hand? This was a grown woman who was dangerous, and even though I’d gained a slight edge, I wasn’t sure my knife would be enough to counter the walking super weapon in front of me.

However much to my surprise, it wasn’t the fleet commander who acted first, but one of the others standing nearby. Bullets fired and bombs exploded, and the gust nearly knocked my weakened form over. 

I stood strong in the face of the blast, but it certainly wasn’t easy. Of course, my opponent was unharmed as though anything had changed, and I heard someone grumbling behind me with the words 'worth a shot,’ leaving their mouth.

My opponent was unarmed and gave a smile that quickly turned sour. 

“Really? Stay in your lane, kid. This battle is between a couple of actual monsters.” She dropped to a knee, a long breath leaving her mouth, and with it, faint black smoke. “It’s been a long time since I’ve used this. I wouldn’t save it for anyone else.”

Her blade ignited in black flame, and the air around her began to distort with the heat.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” I would. I REALLY WOULD. I clutched the nail tightly in my hand, and my eye began to glow red. However, my opponent didn’t even notice. She was fully concentrated on whatever she was doing.

Then I came to a ridiculous thought.

What if I activated Stealth?

I had about half a second; that was the last of the energy I had remaining. It would be more than enough. 

One step forward. My heart slammed in my chest.

Two steps forward. My hand tightened as my weapon slipped slightly from sweat.

Three steps forward. I pivoted to cleave.

Four steps- My heart stopped. I was out of energy. My blood flow began to cease. I had experienced this before, and I knew I could force my body to restart.

I just had to end Stealth. But I couldn’t do that. So many things went into finishing that final step, and the cleave that followed.

Mom. Utena. The friendships I started to kindle, and the city behind me, and of course falling over like an idiot right at this very moment . . . that wouldn’t be very chunni of me, now would it?

I flipped the nail around, the long end held in hand as the head of the nail slammed into the side of her head like a battering ram. Shadowy flames burst outwards in an explosion as she fell over from the strike.

I let out a sputter as I nearly fell to a knee, but I caught myself with my nail. I straightened my back and took a deep breath. I was all out of juice. 

But luckily, she was dead on the floor- Wait. Where is she? I lightly turned my head, a very pissed off shadow fire cat person thing was hanging in the air as time seemed to slow down. I waited for my death.

I’d done everything, given it my best shot, and it didn’t matter.

Well dammit. This is it. 

You know. Wait, this is taking a long time? I knew my senses were enhanced from something, but seriously?

“Do SOMETHING!?” It was the cloak girl, her ears bleeding as her shadow extended into the woman, holding her in the air. The woman was bleeding heavily from the side of her head, and the purplish blood dripped down onto her own shadow.

The shadow seemed to be struggling violently against the heavily weakened woman.

“You are already dead.” 

The words flowed out of my mouth as I stared directly into her widening eyes. Terror blooming, as though she knew what was about to happen before whatever I was about to activate took effect.

Then I snapped my fingers, and the sound of a nail piercing her shadowy flesh rang out across the battlefield as a nail of pure shadow careened out of the other side of her head and dug deep into a wall on the other side of the hangar. My fellow rogue, whom I now held some respect for, collapsed after her welcome display of saving my ass.

My eyes slowly moved over to the last conscious girl in the room, who was slightly sputtering after a moment, and let out an aggrieved groan.

“What the hell do we do now!?”

I have no idea!?

The woman’s body faded away into embers of black fire, and my eyes opened wide in confusion. What the hell was that in her chest? It was a mix of green and black, with the symbol of a lion engraved upon it. It was a chip, a computer chip, and it was the size of my hand.

I leaned down with great difficulty and picked it up, inspecting it for a moment before tossing it to Leoparde.

“You will need this for upcoming battles.” 

She caught it, her eyes flicking over me and blue, before she paused and stared at me.

“How the hell do I use this?”

I was half tempted to shrug, but the chip glowed and seemed to get absorbed into her hand. Nothing seemed to happen for a moment, and she spoke up with a stupefied expression.

“Alright, what now- Oh, it's hitting.” Her eyes rolled up, and for a moment, she started to drool before she too collapsed unconscious on the ground.

I was the only conscious one now, and I too felt that fading rapidly. Black spots appeared in my vision, my eye was still active, and it sustained my consciousness as always. Though I knew of the recoil that would soon come.

You really are a reliable Demon Eye.

[Defeat Ultimatra Fleet Commander Leocalla]

[Harvesting excess energy in order to complete repairs]

[You may now exit at your leisure.]

I frowned at the “reward” in front of me. It didn’t give me a damn thing!? The walls started to break apart, the world collapsing around me and my companions. A thought occurs. If Leoparde could absorb whatever that thing was, can I . . . do some looting?

I grabbed the laser sword, and alas, I fell over. Nearly impaling myself, but I managed to just barely heave myself out of the way as I clutched the large lightsaber-like weapon.

It was just too badass to leave behind in place like this.

Also, how could I call myself a chunni if I didn’t take the lightsaber?

Damn it, I wasn’t supposed to want to call myself a chunni!

Whatever. I’m getting the hell out of here, lightsaber in hand.

I held onto it tightly, and once again found myself at the old factory. The unconscious girls were just lying uselessly on the floor. I should take them to a safe place.

So I took a step forward. Then I frowned. I SAID I took a step forward. 

“. . .”

My body still didn’t move.

Goddamit. 

I plopped on the ground, luckily falling onto a girder and taking a seat on it. I think I’m going to take a break here. But first, I slightly lean forward and take a relaxed pose with my fist holding up my head. Alright, my consciousness is fading.

Hopefully, no one questions why I don’t say anything- either way, I’m sure they’ll have bigger problems. I instantly felt myself stumbling over, and being face down on the ground was imminent. I knew this plan wasn’t going to work.

But what the hell do I even do?

Wait. I have an idea. I fished Kiwi’s phone out of her pocket, the downed girl practically at my feet, and dialed Mom. Even if I didn’t have a phone, there’s no way I’d forget her number in case of an emergency.

“Who is this-”

I peeled my mask off my face as she spoke, her response practically instant.

“It’s me Mom, I’m at the abandoned factory outside of the city. Can you come pick me up? I’m about to drop unconscious-”

Then lights out.

I’d just have to put my faith in Mom. 

Things were going to be fine . . . at least on my end.

Hiiragi Utena POV

Things were not going well. Kiwi had gone missing, and we couldn’t find her. Our foes seemed disoriented; they’d seemed to have fled in order to regroup and had delayed their plans. Did they kidnap Kiwi? Did they . . . no. I refused to believe it. But they were killers, weren’t they? 

Kiwi wasn’t exactly a Magical Girl, but . . . I shook my head. I wouldn’t believe it until I saw it. I just had to save Kiwi from their clutches. That was something I could do; I had to. I knew Sister Gigant was being taken care of by Tres Magia, and while Loco Musica and Leberblume were nowhere to be found, I knew Kiwi wouldn’t let them go without big injuries.

So that left me with the Big Boss, Lord Enorme. Of course, I had Korisu-chan backing me up, Bubbling Shadow of course scouting around in the meantime, but what Venalita said next surprised us. We were going to go fight Lord Enorme, but a portal opened wide, and it snapped shut with their next words.

“Something is distorting space near us. Going through that portal might have ripped you apart.” 

“What?” I looked at them, shocked. “We can’t just leave Kiwi with them, what if she’s being held hostage? What do we do then?”

“If they somehow figured out how to interfere with my portals, then they wouldn’t have taken Kiwi hostage.” Venalita gently floated in front of me, and surprisingly didn’t smile. They looked somber. “They would have killed her.”

My heart skipped a beat. Kiwi was practically my best friend (Aki, of course, not counting). I’d grown a lot closer to her over time, and she got along with Aki decently well. I really cared about her. Despite her constant flirting, I knew she didn’t do it out of lust, but instead love. She wasn’t the greatest person, but she was my friend. If she were dead . . . I started breathing faster, my breath continued growing erratic, my arms started shaking, and then I felt a slight tug on my dress. It was Korisu; she looked conflicted as she spoke, but she spoke nonetheless.

“The last Bubbling Shadow saw of Kiwi, she was near Veil.”

What?

“What?” My fist clenched as anger overtook me.

If he hurts so much as a hair on her head- I’ll crush him.

I let out a jovial laugh that turned into a sadistic smile. Well, I was going to do that anyway, but for now, the hunt begins. I knew he was stronger than me, but I cared about Kiwi more than I cared about myself right now. Veil was strong, but we would win. We had too.

I’ll find that fucker, if it's the last thing I do.

It had to be. Right?

. . . 

I was exhausted, I’d cried a lot, searched a lot, and rampaged a lot, but still we couldn’t find Kiwi. She really was gone. Korisu gently whispered in my ear, and I followed her advice. I was too exhausted to do anything else.

“I shall continue our search, even as the sun falls. Recover yourself, for our foes are many, and will take advantage of your weakness.”

I had to see Aki.

I had to recharge.

But I should have been more careful with my transformation.

Something I’d only learn later down the line. Something I’d come to greatly regret.

Ms. Inoue POV

My son was an idiot despite his monstrous intelligence. I pulled up in my car at the scene, an old hoodie and an old Halloween mask on from many years ago. Latex gloves slid onto my hands as I exited the vehicle. To think I’d be using my skills for this sort of thing?

How times have changed. 

I walked over to the ‘mysterious figure Veil’, who was my disguised darling son and I started wiping his blood off with a towel. Didn’t he know that he could be identified with DNA evidence? It’s not like the government would be able to do anything, but his enemies, whoever they may be, might be able to.

I didn’t want to put myself at risk with my relation to him, but more importantly, I worried about what might happen to him if he was put in danger he wasn’t aware of. I grabbed the oil I’d brought and prepared to burn the area to the ground after setting my son gently in the backseat. The small phone in his hand became my next target after I’d had this handled.

Unfortunately, there were two glaring issues with this plan.

I silently moved the unconscious girl to the side with my foot, then let out a sigh. I usually wasn’t the one lifting still breathing people out of an area, but I would do anything for my son. These could be his friends, or perhaps terrorist magical girls who would blow up the city. I couldn’t tell, mostly considering they looked like civilians at the moment.

Whatever mystical power hid their identity in magical girl forms made it impossible to tell which side they were on without them being transformed.

A true shame. Either way, I moved the two girls out of the way, then set a small fire where my son once lay injured and unconscious. 

It angered me greatly that he was hurt, but it also deeply saddened me. He was a good boy, of all the kids in the world, why him? Why did he have to be burdened with this?

I took out the phone he used to call me, probably belonging to one of the other children, but that didn’t matter.

Evidence had to be destroyed. I took a pause and chuckled. I seriously never imagined myself saying that. 

I popped out the SIM card and crushed it. Then I tossed the phone into the fire. Just another lost phone of a middle school girl, the company would have no reason to look into it without a tip, and I was certain they wouldn’t be getting one from a child like this.

I watched as the fire slowly dwindled, and I peeled off my mask, slightly brushing sweaty hair out of my eyes. Someone would see the smoke near a forest and call the fire department, but it wouldn’t be me. There was no real danger, but I’m certain these girls will be found soon enough.

I let out an exhausted sigh.

Today was a hard day being a single mom, but that didn’t mean I was just going to roll over and leave my son to fend for himself. It had been good while using these skills, but at least I knew exactly where he got his intelligence from.

Because he certainly didn’t get it from his Father . . . though with a costume as renegade as that, and how I’ve seen Veil act before, I can’t help but wonder if he gets my Intelligence, and that man’s Cutthroat nature.

I gently peeled the mask off his face and cringed at his pained expression underneath, which moments later settled back into a soft slumber. 

He would be alright, of that I would make sure. I slowly pulled into the garage and practically dragged him into the bathtub. He could heal himself, I knew that, but he deserved to at least be clean when he was awake. 

Then the doorbell rang. I frowned immediately. I didn’t have time for this. I promptly ignored it. Then it rang again. Seriously? Aki wouldn’t be able to peacefully rest with this annoying little- it rang again.

I gently set his bloody body back into the tub and cracked the door open after taking off my gloves.

“Who-”

The little girl staggered back, her eyes widening. She had been crying before, if the tear stains were any indicator, but more important were the next words out of her mouth.

“W-why are you covered in blood?” She then paused with a gulp. “Where’s Aki?” She rushed inside, but I couldn’t stop her as her small form bolted past with fright. The girl was Utena; she was clearly stressed out, and what she was about to see only made it worse.

“Aki?” She cracked open the bathtub, and there she saw my bloodied child lying unconscious.

“Who did this?” The air seemed to hum with power. Ah, so this girl was Magia Baiser? My son had already figured it out, courtesy of his conspiracy board, but this may as well confirm it.

“I’m not certain. His wounds don’t seem to be that bad, but he’s certainly been roughed up quite a bit. Perhaps it was all the chaos happening in the city, a clash between Magical Girls and that Veil individual perhaps?”

His wounds were terrible, but stable. I knew he would heal. He just needed time. Utena didn’t need to know that, though. 

Then her phone rang, and I nearly let out a sigh of relief. Her eyes widened as she listened to the speaker, and she let out a massive sigh of relief.

“I’ll be right there.” She briefly turned to me and gave a small apology as she clung to my son. “I have to go, I’m sorry for bursting in.” I didn’t speak as she turned back to my son, because I saw the look in her eyes and understood it well. She was on a mission of vengeance; someone had wronged her, and she was intent on getting justice.

“I’ll be back for you, my Aki. Sleep well.” She gently caressed his face before running out the door, and with a shout of Trans Magia, she outed herself to anyone with a brain. 

Just because I can’t see you, I still recognize your voice, and you're the only one out there! 

I smiled faintly in the direction she ran, nonetheless. She really cared about Aki. My smile grew brighter. She was quite the possessive girl.

I know for certain they’ll give me wonderful grandkids someday.

She should really be more careful, though, you never know who's watching.

Whatever, I’m sure it's fine. Her magical disguise should protect her anyway.

Grey Goo Guy Number Eight Hundred and Forty Three POV

As a minion of Mistress Enorme in my position, I had but one job. Be a sneaky fellow who spied on our enemies. I was made of grey goo and a dream, and while I may be slow, I was quite sneaky. Truth be told, I didn’t get many wins as a pile of grey goo, but today was a big day.

I’d seen Magia Baiser transform as she ran out of a small tea shop!

Today is a good day to be a pile of grey goo, but it's a better day to be informing the boss of my findings.

In the words of the Mistress, it's hostage time!

Though for now, it’s probably just best if I do a stakeout. It's pretty hard to take hostages if you don’t know who you are supposed to kidnap, even if you do!

Minion Eight Hundred and Forty Three, this is your ticket up in the world!

AN: It’s back, and we get a MOM POV, shocking, I know. I wanted to expand more on her character and past, so here we are. Additionally, we finally wrap up the Dungeon Break and are starting to get to EVEN MORE COMBAT! 

Utena will soon rampage, and it will be glorious. Praise be to our Yandere Demon Queen. It would be a shame if someone kidnapped a weakened Aki as well . . . oh no, what a travesty.

Anyways, I’ll see you all in the next one. If you enjoyed the read, feel free to drop a comment or question down below.

As always, thanks for reading!