Prose Magica: The Ballad of the Seventeenth Part 9

So much rain. Always rain. Odette stared up at the night sky, ignoring the water droplets hitting her face. Waiting for Lotte to finish scouting around the club had ended up giving her some much needed time to think. Her back pressed against the cold steel hide of Sleepy Sue, she idly pondered her position in life. The one word that really seemed to sum it all up was 'shitty'. Granted, things were starting to look up, but it was still a turd no matter how much she tried to spit shine it. That just made it a turd covered in spit.

Inside, the two younger Eversors had managed to rope the warmaster into a game of Go Fish while they waited. It took a few rounds for Meg to get over her fear of winning against Therese, but she managed to come around soon enough. Odette cringed once more as she heard the tiny girl sound another victory cry from within. She was still a bit sore about finding someone the same size as her with such a nice figure. It felt like every one of her shouts was something personal.

Odette looked up and down the streets for a moment, then cautiously pulled a pack of cigarettes from her pocket. After Freddy had told her they came in flavoured varieties, well, she simply had to give it a try. For some reason she felt an obligation to fit her new grumpy, brooding image. Holding a protective hand over the smoke, she managed to get it lit and took her first puff-

-then immediately spat the whole thing out of her mouth on reflex. She coughed and hacked, a fist pressed to her chest. It didn't taste like cherry. It didn't taste like cherry at all.

"Odette, are you okay?" Therese asked as she poked her head out of the armoured car's turret.

The coughing girl simply gave a thumbs up, unable to speak through her wheezing.

"Is- Is that a lighter?" The warmaster asked in an accusatory tone. "Were you SMOKING?"

Odette shook her head, quickly stashing the lighter back in her pocket. "No, ma'am," she wheezed out.

Therese huffed and pouted, shouting, "Fine, but if I catch you smoking I'll- I'll-"

"I get it, Terry," Odette groaned, still trying to catch her breath. "Go play cards."

The warmaster conceded with a sigh and receded back into the armoured car. Once again, Odette was left alone with her thoughts. It seemed that she'd have to settle for sweets and poetry instead of smoking and drinking. But then again, she thought to herself, it wasn't as if people like that really existed. It wasn't healthy to romanticize that sort of thing.

More and more, Odette found herself feeling lonely when she was left alone like this. She used to relish the chance to just be able to sit and think. Now it felt more and more like a punishment. She could have gone in to play cards easily enough, but... It just seemed like her presence would make things awkward. It was like going out for drinks with your boss. Except, she wasn't their boss. Not anymore, at least.

The world melted around her as she looked over into the eyes of the girl in the hat. Her presence would normally put Odette on edge, but for once she just welcomed the company.

"Come to laugh at me?" The one-eyed girl asked.

"A little," the one in the hat conceded. "But I don't think I need to. Seems you're doing my job for me these days."

Odette nodded, at a loss for words. For the time, she'd just let the other girl speak her peace.

"You've noticed it yourself, haven't you?" She asked, leaning her head against Odette's shoulder. "The North Wind is blowing again, just like our dear Charlotte said. But why was she keeping it a secret, I wonder."

"Does it matter?"

"No, no. I suppose it doesn't," the girl in the hat laughed to herself. "A few weeks ago you couldn't even remember Miss Valnikov's name. Imagine my surprise when you were telling stories about her earlier."

Odette nodded again, this time a far more shallow one.

"Wouldn't it be nice to have those times back..." It was less a question and more simple wishful thinking. "You have a good reason to take your post back now, don't you? Hid it under your bed, hm?"

The one-eyed girl took a deep breath. She just couldn't get the termination order out of her mind. She'd shoved it under her cot while she thought about what to do with it. Should she talk to someone about it? Would it be better to confront the incubator directly? Odette just couldn't sort her thoughts out and the hat wearing ghost certainly wasn't helping.

"I think I'll leave you on a better note this time," the girl said, adjusting her baseball cap. "Good luck with finding this monster. And take care of yourself. I know you don't like to admit it, but I really do care about your well-being."

Odette smiled gently and muttered, "I know you do."

Some time passed before Lotte finally arrived. The Callidus found Odette humming some unheard tune, smiling with her eyes closed as she did. For a few minutes, Lotte simply stood and watched the girl revelling in the rain. When Odette finally opened her eyes, she found the blonde looking on thoughtfully, with her hand on her chin.

"How- How long have you been there?" Odette stammered.

"Long enough," the Callidus answered, grinning. "You're such a cutie~"

"Oh shut up," the one-eyed girl groaned. "Did you find anything?"

"Oh yeah," Lotte answered with a grin. "Come on, let's round up the gang."

✱✱✱

Ten minutes later, Odette peered around the corner of a building in a darkened alley. Two men were guarding the club's back door, unarmed, but with a pair of metal pipes conveniently leaning against the wall by the door. Odette turned to Mona, who leaned against the wall beside her, and informed her of the situation.

It had been agreed that the two Eversors would break in through the back while the other three tried to get into the club's VIP lounge. Lotte had reasoned that Helk had to be in one of the two locations.

"I'll take care of these two," Odette whispered. "Wait here."

The tall girl nodded, shifting into her costume in a flash. Odette, on the other hand, refrained from doing so. Instead, she simply walked out into the light and strode up to the men, making sure to look as unimposing as possible - not difficult task given her stature.

As she neared them, both men stepped up to her.

"Hey, little lady," one of them called out, "looks like you're a little lost. Y'shouldn't be here."

Odette continued walking, only stopping when both men put their hands on her shoulders.

"I guess you didn't hear m- GHURK."

The man gurgled as a spear shot up through his throat, just as one did to his partner. Odette withdrew her two spears from the men as her cloak unfurled down from her shoulders. Mona let out a low whistle as she stepped out from behind the building and admired Odette's handiwork.

"I'd heard stories about the Silver Lady," she said, a distinct tone of admiration in her voice. "Meg wouldn't shut up about you. Guess she wasn't lying. You sure as hell look the part."

Under her cloak, Odette's costume was not entirely unlike a traditional magical girl outfit, albeit a bit more armoured. A banded platinum metal breastplate wrapped around her meagre chest atop a frilled top with equally frilly shoulder straps. Delicate white gloves stretched all the way up to the middle of her upper arm adorned with shining vambraces, matching a pair of pure white thighhigh stockings with plate greaves on her legs. A delicate white pleated skirt hung from her waist under a set of faulds, completing the ensemble. The entire costume conjured images of warrior-princesses, and Mona could only marvel at the sight of the fabled Winter Warmaster herself.

Odette let out a short breath of laughter as she flicked the blood from her two spears. Each one had a dark wooden haft and an intricately designed silver head, matching the platinum metal of her armour. She twirled them about for a few moments, getting herself used to the feeling once more. Both spears were perfectly balanced, equally good for throwing as they were for melee combat. Odette had always preferred spears over other weapons. They could be thrust, swung or thrown and were easy to use for a novice, yet deadly in the hands of a master. Satisfied, she gave Mona a nodded and motioned for the door.

"Quick and efficient," Odette said. "No dawdling. We clear one room, we move onto the next. These asshats are responsible for selling soulgems as fucking accessories. Remember that."

"Don't think I'll forget. Glad I have a competent leader," Mona laughed. "You're the boss."

They broke down the door in short order, hurrying through to the other side to find a trio of men playing cards at a table. The men looked shocked at the sudden appearance of the magical girls, scrambling for their weapons. Odette impaled the first of the thugs and gave a hard push downward, driving the spear into the floor. The second barely had time to react before Mona's buckler smashed into his face with a sickening crack as her rapier ripped through his chest.

The third man backed up against the far wall and made for a gun at his waist, but was stopped as one of Odette's spears soared through his ribcage and stuck him against the wall. The gun clattered to the ground as his hand went limp.

The one-eyed magical girl cocked her head at the gun. "Take it."

Mona raised an eyebrow and looked utterly baffled. "What for?"

"Might be useful," Odette laughed. "And you can get that whole pirate-swashbuckler thing goin'."

The taller Eversor shrugged and conceded, picking up the gun and stashing it in her inventory. "You're the expert."

"Damn straight."

Thankfully, there was only one door leading out of the room. The two girls nodded at each other and Odette waved a hand at it. Mona grinned and violently kicked it down before dashing through. There were only two goons this time, though, both were armed and ready after the commotion

Without a second thought, Mona charged the closer of the two, who held a revolver in a shaky hand. His hand dropped to the floor with a wet thump, followed by his gun. Spinning around to recover, the Eversor drew her sword across his throat in a spray of blood, splattering her costume. Odette had already taken care of the other thug - she leaned an elbow on the end of her spear, which was currently occupying the fallen man's chest cavity.

The pair scanned the room, spotting two doors. Mona glanced at the silver-haired girl and cocked an eyebrow.

"Which way, boss?" She asked.

Odette waved a finger back and forth. "Eeny, meeny, miney, this one," she chanted before rushing to the door on the right side of the room.

The other door led to an L-shaped hall, with one man in clear view at the opposite end. A spear sailed through his mouth and burst through the back of his skull.

"Nice throw," Mona whispered.

The blood-soaked magical girls continued down the hall, ignoring the bathroom doors, until a second man sprung out from behind the corner, bringing down a tire iron from above his head. Mona deftly shoved it aside with her buckler, then pulled the pistol with her free hand and fired a shot up through his chin.

Odette nodded, clearly impressed. "Nice shot."

After turning the corner and smashing through the next door, they were greeted by a single man. He was greeted by a rapier to the lower intestine. There were only two doors, one on the left wall and another that seemed to lead into the club proper.

The next room wasn't entirely what they expected. It looked like a hastily put together teenage girl's room, with a cot instead of a full bed and poorly painted pink walls. On the far side of the room was yet another door with faint traces of blood stained on the floor.

"Guess this is it," Odette mumbled.

Mona nodded without a word and the duo stepped up to the door. With great care, the one-eyed girl quietly turned the knob and peered through. A darkened staircase led down from the top, with absolutely no care taken to clean the dried blood off of the steps. The pair looked at each other and shrugged before cautiously descending.

The room at the bottom was simple and square, with a single light dangling from the middle of the ceiling. Blood covered the concrete walls, which were pock-marked with holes and dents. Directly under the light was a battered and bloodied fellow duct taped to a cheap plastic chair. The two girls approached and Mona's eyes widened as she noticed the freshly reopened hole in his palm.

"Rossi?!" She cried out.

With a groan, the man looked up and stared at her with one eye, the other swollen shut. He grinned maliciously, a couple bloody holes in his gums where teeth once were.

"Heya sweetcheeks," he said in a voice barely above a whisper. "Long time no see."

"Caught you snitching, eh?" Odette asked, circling around him.

"Pretty much," he answered. "They're not here, if you're lookin' for 'em."

"Then where are they?" Mona asked, seizing his hair and pulling his head up.

"Helk's haulin' ass out of town," Rossi moaned. "He should already be at the airport by now."

"And Fennel?" Odette asked as she paced around the bound man.

"Fennel? That her name? She's off making one last hit. She figured you'd be here, Odette," he sneered. "Looks like you cleared out the welcoming party, just like she said."

"Where is she?" Odette hissed, suddenly holding a spear to his throat.

"Funny story," he laughed. "I thought I recognized ponytail here. You're Bernard's kid, aintcha?"

The corners of Mona's mouth contorted as she bore her teeth at the man. "The hell does my father have to do with this?"

"Oh? Oh you don't know?" Rossi let out a sharp laughing followed by a fit of coughing. "Yer dad's been gettin' in with the wrong crowd. He's been lending money to some baaaad people. He was on Helk's hitlist anyway, but when I told him that it was his daughter that got me," the bloodied man snickered, "well, Helk thought he might want to bump him up the list a bit. You'll probably find the Wolf at your place."

The tall girl's rapier clattered to the ground and vanished in a torrent of sparkles. "No... No..."

The two ran up the stairs, the one-eyed girl chasing after Mona. Odette pulled her cellphone and hit speed dial. After a few rings, Therese picked up.

"Odette? Did you fi-"

"HE'S AT THE AIRPORT," Odette shouted. "Send Lotte around the back, tell her to follow the bodies. Fennel's going after Mona's dad."

"What?!" Therese screamed. "We're on our way!"

✱✱✱

Therese and Meg had rushed out of the club without a second thought. The two stood at the street corner, Therese tapped her foot impatiently as she thought.

"Megan? It was Megan, right?" She asked the other girl.

"My friends call me Meg-"

"Do you have a ride?" The warmaster snapped.

"Y-yeah!" Meg answered eagerly. "We can take Gold-Mane! But... don't you have a company car?"

"I kind of," Therese looked away as a bit colour rushed to her face, "got mad at it. And stuff."

"O-okay," the smaller Eversor mumbled.

The golden motorcycle appeared beside her and revved impatiently. Meg mounted up with Therese clinging to her shoulder with one hand and brandishing her hammer in the other.

"Let's ride," the warmaster grinned, a manic gleam coming to her eye.