Force of Magic
By Ewen "Blackbird" Cluney
Chapter 8
Candy Rose was awakened by someone lightly kicking her in the
ribs. With some effort she turned herself over so that she was
lying on her back. Her head felt fuzzy, and her stomach... if
there was anything in it, she would've thrown it up in short
order. She risked opening her eyes, and closed them again against
the harsh light.
"Still in shock from the teleport." muttered a woman's voice
from above her. "That can happen on the first time."
Rose forced herself into a sitting position, and held a heavy
arm up to shield her eyes before opening them. She was only
barely able to make out a tall, slender woman who wore a purple
and black uniform. She found herself being pulled to her feet,
and blinked, trying to chase away the black spots that danced in
front of her eyes. Her legs felt wobbly, but they managed to hold
her up.
"What's your name?" the woman asked gently.
"Haruko... Hayashi."
"No, no. Your magical name."
She rubbed her forehead. That was it. "Candy Rose..." She was
Candy Rose. Queen Artessa had done just as she'd said. Which
meant that this was the Crystal Crown Training Grounds. A quick
glance around removed any doubts. They were in a massive glass
dome, filled with buildings that looked to have been carved from
gemstones. Hundreds of figures -- probably all magical girls --
variously milled about, ran, stood in neat rows...
The strange woman was frowning at a book she held, bound in
red leather. "I see." Abruptly she snapped the book shut and
tucked it under one arm. "Well. I'm General Violet Blossom.
Welcome to the Crystal Crown Training Grounds. You and your
teammates will be assigned to Sergeant Crystal Moonlight. Any
questions?"
Rose nodded. This was too much. Only there seemed to be little
hope of escape. "Has anyone ever been forced to be a magical girl
before?"
"Not by Chrysalia." replied Violet Blossom. A look of worry
came over her features, and maybe a trace of disgust. Her voice
became hushed, urgent. "Listen. Believe me, please; when I heard,
I tried to convince the queen to change her mind, but she
wouldn't listen to me. I'm _going_ to keep trying, whatever it
takes, but..." She took a quick glance around them, then added,
"You have to do as you're told here. Otherwise you'll get hurt."
Candy Rose swallowed, and tries to push down the rising
feelings of despair, sadness, and anger. They made a hurtful knot
in her stomach, but at least they couldn't touch her face.
Rationality took hold, mostly. "What are we being prepared for?"
The General blinked, taken by surprise. "Sorry but..." She
paused again, looking to see if anyone was watching. "I'm not at
liberty to discuss it."
"We're attacking Krystlan."
She looked nervous, and glanced around yet again. "I don't
know how you found out, but you mustn't tell anyone. It's
classified information; we'd both end up in the brig. Or worse."
Rose nodded. "It's an awful thing to keep secret."
Violet Blossom rested a hand on her shoulder, and started
walking. They'd been on a large stone disc carved with odd
symbols, and now they walked along a path made of stones that
sparkled every color of the rainbow. "I know. I was opposed to
the plan from the beginning. But Her Majesty intends to go
through with it, and if we do, secrecy is _essential_. Trying to
carry out such an operation with the enemy knowing our intentions
would be disastrous."
"Okay. What about Piyo?"
"Your companions are resting at the Crystal Citadel with the
others. Piyo... wanted me to tell you he's sorry."
They continued walking in silence, until they came upon a
group of magical girls standing in neat rows. The General led
Rose to her place among the ranks, with Shining Midnight and
Pretty Cherry. She repeated her warning about obedience before
hurrying off.
The magical girl -- actually more of an adult -- that came
before the assembled group was unlike any Rose had seen before.
She wore a simple black and dark blue blouse over spandex marked
with mystical symbols, an outfit apparently designed to show off
her well-toned physique, which made her look more like a pro-
wrestler than a magical girl. She spoke in thunderous bellows,
explaining that she was Crystal Moonlight, and she would turn
them into effective warriors whether they liked it or not. It
took three tries for the cries of "Yes Ma'am" to be loud enough
for her satisfaction.
"Better!" she shouted, pacing up and down the ranks of magical
girls, seemingly looking for a victim. She pointed a finger.
"You!"
Pretty Cherry jumped.
"Yes YOU! Come here!"
Cherry stepped forward reluctantly. "Y-yes?"
"Attack me. Now."
Pretty Cherry fidgeted. "But..."
"NOW! Your best spell!"
She took a deep breath and raised her wand. "Final Cherry--!"
She stopped short as Moonlight grabbed the arm with the wand and
twisted in around. Cherry was brought to her knees, wincing at
the pain, but Moonlight held her in the iron grip, even as the
girl started to cry.
"Rule One!" announced Crystal Moonlight. "The enemy does _not_
always hesitate and you should not, EVER!"
Rose saw Shining Midnight gritting her teeth out of the corner
of her eye, clenching her fists in indignation. Moonlight saw
this too and halted.
"Do you have something to say?"
Midnight nodded and replied through clenched teeth. "Let. Her.
Go."
She laughed, rolling her eyes, and locked her gaze on Candy
Rose. "Perhaps this squad's leader has something to say too?"
Rose lowered her eyes and shook her head.
A small twist of Cherry's arm brought a cry of pain. "Nothing
to say, huh?"
Midnight replied, her voice rising to a scream. "What the HELL
do you know?!" You have no fucking clue what we've been through!"
She trembled with rage. "More than the rest here put together,
and I'm not going to take any more from you!"
Rose wanted to agree, but she intended to follow orders. This
was bad enough; no need to make it worse.. If she could've, she'd
have curled up and hid, but she pushed that impulse down and
stood like a statue.
Crystal Moonlight's smile was sarcastic, malicious. She let go
of Cherry and took two strides closer. "Oh, but you _will_. You
may not like it, but you'll survive." She paused and looked at
Rose again. "Still nothing to say?"
She shook her head.
"Why is that, I wonder?" she stepped closer. "Is this squad
being led by a coward?"
Maybe. Or maybe she was just sensible, just didn't want to be
killed.
"You don't know a damn thing."
Moonlight lifted Rose's chin with one finger, and looked into
her eyes. "Why are you holding back? Come on! Attack me!"
"Is that an order?" asked Rose, her voice just above a
whisper.
She took a step back and nodded. "Yes! It's an order. I
_order_ you to attack me!"
That knot in her stomach seemed to come untied. Anger. Anger
filled her. In a distant corner of her mind a small voice wept,
crying that this was wrong. The want -- she didn't realize she'd
had it -- was in her hand. Action came unfettered by thought. She
pointed the want at Crystal Moonlight. A rainbow-striped beam of
energy caught the sergeant in the side. Moonlight fell to the
ground, and a sickly-sweet scent of charred flesh filled the air.
Shrieks of terror rang out.
"Pretty candy beam." muttered Rose. "Was that good enough?"
Crystal Moonlight winced at the least attempt at movement,
looking up at Rose with a mix of shock and anger.
Despite Crystal Moonlight's demands, Candy Rose and her
teammates were not put into the brig. When general Lovely
Guardian questioned Candy Rose, Rose meekly explained with
downcast eyes that she had simply been following orders. Crystal
Moonlight had ordered an attack, and was obeyed. The general
seemed a bit amused at Moonlight's misfortune, and the fact that
she'd be spending a week getting healed. But that still left the
matter of who would be training Rose's team -- she flinched at it
being called "your team" -- and the General assigned them to
Lovely Power.
The group, which numbered well over a hundred, was arrayed in
neat rows, waiting for the sergeant to arrive. Even so, they
chattered, and gossip flew from one corner of the group to the
other and back again. They'd been separated out for a suicide
mission. They'd been separated out to decide if they were
suitable to fight in the first place. A war was coming. A war had
started. Lovely Power -- nearly any description imaginable was
ascribed to her, each more terrifying than the last.
What they didn't expect was a happy, manic magical girl clad
in a frilly pink dress. She skipped into place and grinned at her
new charges. She spoke with a mad light in her eyes and giggled
constantly.
"All right _everybody_!" she announced. "I'm Lovely Power!
We're going to have fun and learn to fight _icky_ youma and use
magic to its full effect and fight for _Love_ and _Justice_!" She
paused, giggling, and started posing with every other word.
"We're going to _learn_ and _grow_ and _have_fun_! Not only is
there _lots_ to do here, but if you _don't_, I'll _bweak_ your
widdwe _bones_!"
Several gasps rose up from the crowd. Candy Rose frowned and
felt a bit queasy. Lovely Power was insane.
Piyo flitted through the Royal Gardens of the Crystal Citadel,
where plants of every description competed with stone and crystal
carvings for surpassing beauty. The Citadel seemed oddly quiet of
late, and he feared it was a symptom of the brewing storm.
The sundial on which he landed had been carved from clear blue
stone by a master sculptor, a true work of art with its delicate
curves. Before him was general Violet Blossom, one of the eight
Shining Generals.
"General, may I have a word?"
She let out a sigh and nodded. "Piyo, if I recall correctly. I
suppose you want to know what's happened to Candy Rose?"
"What's happened?"
"Well you see, she's been reassigned. To Lovely Power."
"_The_ Lovely Power?" He'd heard of her, seen her once. The
most brutally effective trainer Chrysalia had to offer, but she
wore an unbearably cute facade and was probably mad. "Why? What
could have possibly happened to warrant _that_?"
She smiled faintly. "From the report, apparently Crystal
Moonlight was blustering as usual and ordered Candy Rose to
attack -- the usual thing where a drill sergeant demonstrates how
the recruits can't possibly oppose her. The result was a direct
his with a Level Three Chromatic Beam. Ten minutes into training,
and Moonlight had to be sent to the healers for a week."
That was the last thing he'd expected from her. And to manage
a blast so strong, she'd have to have been very emotional. Angry
enough to kill... "By the Creator." he muttered.
"I've seen such things before," she added, "though not often.
Some people are like that, exploding out of nowhere. Not a good
way to live, though."
"Not many people are trying to defy the queen." he said. Candy
Rose was out of his hands for now. He could only pray she would
be all right.
Violet Blossom ran her fingers down her side and shuddered.
"No." If she'd been hurt, magical healing would've likely left no
scars, but that would do little for the memory of the pain. And
if Artessa was lashing out at the Shining Generals... "If there
is a way," she whispered, "I'll do it without hesitation."
Piyo nodded. "Perhaps we should talk more often."
She cast a glance in his direction and nodded. "Yes. In
private. If you'll excuse me."
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Ewen "Blackbird" Cluney blackbird@earthdome.com
Blackbird's Domain http://www.geocities.com/tokyo/6127/
Knight Kevlar of the Immortal Frog Silver Knight of Mihoshi
"Be nice to me; I might just develop
psychokinetic powers and destroy Tokyo!"
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