Flail weakly. What is going on here?!

Cling to their leg, bite and scratch at it.

>Got it?
Um, yes. Sitrep?

You find yourself slowly regaining strength in your limbs, even managing to keep yourself standing with your own legs. You manage to turn yourself a bit as well, taking a better look about you at the mostly empty room. It seems to be used for storage, but you gather that whatever was stored in it has since been removed. You take a moment to suck in a few more lungfuls of air before you return your attention to the man, ready to ask your question.

"U-Um, yes... What is going on here?!"

The man looks like he's in pain a moment before he shakes it from his face and grasps your arm again, pulling you more gently towards the door.

"No time to explain. I'm sorry, we were hoping this would go more quietly and we'd have the time to get you situated slowly. But we have to move."

He leads you out the door again, this time guiding you along the corridor to a door that leads out onto a bridge of some kind, extending over a courtyard filled with men and women fighting openly. The shouts of anger and pain reach you again, tugging at your heart, demanding... something... but you don't get much of a chance to contemplate the feeling as you continue to be tugged along.

A sudden shriek fills your ears, and for a moment you think you've imagined it until the man suddenly spins and shoves you backwards, shouting something sounds like RPG. You don't get the chance to react, as the bridge gives from under you and you fall into the courtyard heavily, you forehead bashing against the cement ground. Pain spikes through your skull, and for a moment its excruciating, before something surfaces in your mind, demanding your attention, consuming your thoughts.

This is who you are. This is the power that suffuses your being, and grants you the strength to fight, whether for humanity, for a nation, or for yourself.

A power you inherited from one before you, and one you shall pass on to the next.

You are:

>Sol, Daughter of the Sun, empowered by acts of self brilliance and singular glory. Your magic shines brightest, and is made up of powerful, yet power-hungry, spells.

>Luna, Daughter of the Moon, empowered by acts that reflect the radiance of others. Your magic is quiet, unassuming, serving best to redirect and augment the magic of others.

>Stella, Daughter of the Stars, empowered by acts that embody the strength of the many. Your magic is weaker than others, but can be used much more frequently, and in rapid succession.

Stella. Machine gun bullet hell magic, go!

Yours is not the power of the stars

Yours is the power of the planets

You are the enlightened corruption

that can save the universe

Orbis, daughter of the Planes

Your magic is THE weakest

it must be shared

it must consume many to save all

(Taking a fourth option here)

In your dazed and concussed state, you believe your name is Orbis, that you somehow draw powers of the celestials from the terrestrial, and that two plus two equals kome. Shaking off your disorientation, you remember your name is Stella, and you are a daughter of the Firmament.

Stella. Many shall be our acts of greatness, as countless as the celestial lights of space...

stella, we will ORA ORA ORA our magic.

Daughter of the Stars ??? 2015/10/04(Sun)20:25 No. 674892 ID: 120a13
File 144401552398.jpg - (555.50KB , 800x464 , 2659207603_a108e98de7_o.jpg )

Stella.

Daughter of the Stars, you know that you gain strength primarily through acts that draw others to your ideals. The more people that believe in your cause, and in you, the more magical power you can draw from the Stars above. All that remains is trying to remember what you once represented, or perhaps selecting a new cause to fight for.

Power flows through you, magic filling your senses to the brim. While currently still too weak to wield it, you can feel that as your strength returns, so to does the strength to properly wield the magic within your soul. Somehow, though, you feel as if you are weaker than you once were. You aren't sure why, but you know that you are. Still, you find your attention torn from your lack of power when the men and women around are finally dispatched, someone placing well aimed shots through each. From the smoke and chaos the seems to blanket the courtyard emerges a figure, dressed in some sort of military uniform, a really fancy one, if somewhat lacking in medals. They slide to the ground next to you and you get a good look at their face, realizing they are in fact a woman, who face looks incredibly concerned, with visible relief staining her expression upon seeing you.

"Thank heavens, you're fine, my lady. I'd feared the worst. Quickly, we have to get you inside and away from the fighting. It's too soon after awakening for you to be in combat as you are."

You find yourself being tugged to your feet again, and are mildly annoyed about this whole getting dragged around thing. Still, it's not like you have much idea what going on. The woman leads you into another room, just off to the side, rather unsurprisingly another storage room of some kind, although this one holds boxes of what looks like various articles of clothing. The woman tuts slightly as she takes in your naked form, before prying open a box and extracting various articles, throwing them at you to put on.

"I know this is confusing, my lady, but we have little time. Now, I need you to think. Can you remember your name?"

You stare at her in confusion, pausing in the middle of slipping on the pair of pants she'd given you to do so. Your name? Your name is Stella. You know this. It was given to you by your predecessor. Why wouldn't it be- A sharp, needle like pain suddenly assaults your skull, and you almost fall over at the suddenness of it all. But as it recedes, you recall more, as if memories and knowledge are returning slowly.

Stella is the name you were given, yes, but it is a sacred name, to be given only to others of your kind. To most, to those not blessed by the Celestial Heavens, you had another name. A common name.

You speak it as it comes to you, solidifying it resolutely within your mind as who you are to those who know you personally.

>Input Name

Phoenix "Fi" Iridium

Call me Ishmael.

>>674900
Fiona Iridium

Magelle Amar, but they call me just another "Pearl of the Stars" or Pearlie to try prove my sweetness. Some lonely musicians on silly planets even made my kin songs by that title.

lily

"Lily Iridium."

The name solidifies completely in your mind. Yes. It feels right. Somewhere in your memories you remember a loving, maternal voice croon the name to you from before thoughts could be thoughts. It is your's, and you refuse to simply let it be taken from you again.

Lily Iridium.

The woman in front of you smiles, joy clear on her face, and she lets out a breath you hadn't noticed she was holding. She places a hand on your shoulder comfortingly, or at least you think that's the intent, before turning away to let you finish dressing and cover the door.

"It's good you remember, my lady. We haven't much time, the terrorists are intent on stealing you away. Hopefully, the distress call we sent out has rea-"

An explosion rocks the room just as you finish pulling on a jacket, nearly knocking you from your feet. The woman seems far more calm, although the look on her face speaks of the growing concern the situation is demanding.

"They must be getting desperate. We didn't think they'd hit somewhere this protected. My lady, follow, quickly."

The woman leads you from the room, and you follow blindly, still unsure of what's going on. You make your way through more corridors, this time noting the others in now military uniforms, firing through open windows and doorways at those in the ragtag assortment. Eventually you reach what appears to be a hangar, within which a fierce battle between the two sides is taking place. You spot the man from before, holding off the uniformed men from reaching what appears to be a transport vehicle, jet engines roaring as they prepare to take off. Another vessel, occupied by the military forces, is also powering up, likely preparing to take you elsewhere. The woman ushers you along towards it, clearly intent on reaching it and the safety it most likely supplies, but as you being the trek, a burst of light explodes in your vision, and you feel yourself lifted off your feet and thrown through the air. You collide heavily against a stack of maintenance equipment, once again finding yourself prone on the ground. This time, however, the pain is more of a slight discomfort, as a shimmering, dim light fades from around you skin. Your magic is weak, but already reacting to danger. Good.

As you sit up and pull yourself to your feet, your eyes see a sight before you that you find familiar yet hard to comprehend. Two woman, one in a military uniform and another in what appears to be a frilly, girlish skirt and shirt, are practically dancing around the battlefield, hurling bursts of magical energy at each other. The military one fires beam after beam of white hot light, carving deep gashes into the cement of the hangar and disintegrating anyone and anything it touches. The frilly one, however, seem to be there to stop it, redirecting those blasts of magic through magic of her own, appearing as silvery disks that act as both mirrors and shields, frequently sending the beams back at the other or those dressed in the military uniforms. Special attention, however, seems to be played by both to defend their aircraft, each frequently sacrificing something else in favor of keeping the vehicles from harm.

Almost at the same time, you hear two voices call out, both somewhat familiar, at least as familiar as they can be.

To your left, held in check by another soldier, is the woman who'd clothed you, calling your name.

"My lady Iridium! Please, hurry, this way! We must get you to safety!"

To your right, the man who was there when you woke up, firing with his rifle even as he calls for you.

"Lady, we gotta go! We don't have much time before the bomb goes!"

>Input

uhhh... what is the choice here? they are both saying it's time to leave...

Haha, I was afraid of that. They're on different sides, aren't they? I'll bet if you look they're wearing opposing uniforms.

From what little context we have, the woman seems to be with the defenders (who were holding you here / protecting you while you were in stasis?) while the man appears to be the attackers (attempting to break you out / kidnap you for their side?).

You're being asked to pick a side, and who to trust, with no information.

...or maybe not. Your magic, it depends on connections to others, right? One of them should really believe in you, care about what happens to you. The other just trying to use you. Which connection is stronger? Has your magic booted up enough to tell?

(Or if the magic can't tell, from what little clues we've got, I would guess the woman is the right choice. She let more emotion show).

If I've read this completely wrong and they're on the same side, just follow whoever has the higher rank insignia, and grad the other along.

I apologize for the confusing choice. Hopefully this'll help rememdy that somewhat. Entirely my fault.

Indecision plagues your mind, so little information does little to help you make a decision between the rag-tag and poorly dressed man, or the military and formally dressed woman. Still, there is one thing you can go to when you need a guiding hand.

You reach into yourself, seeking out the center of your magic, coaxing it from your soul that you might feel those around you. The magic naturally gravitates to those that you are most familiar with, gauging their souls against your own and delivering feelings to you that you may use to make your decision.

The woman feels... far more familiar to you. As if you've known her from somewhere before. She believes strongly in you, and you are certain she cares for you very much, although in what way you cannot say. She does not, however, seem overly concerned with anyone outside of you, as her focus seems to be entirely set upon you and your welfare.

The man cares for you as a soldier might care for his weapon. But yet, at the same time, he cares for something far greater than himself. Every person around him that dies is a knife edge against his soul, scraping away at his conscious. He cares deeply for those that follow him.

>Do you follow the woman, who cares for you and no one else?

>Do you follow the man, who cares so deeply for those that choose to follow him?

>>675070
The dame was desperate. Hard to find a stray thought in the middle of a gunfight, where supposedly the bullets chisel your identity until all that's left is the soldier. They don't; they chisel away parts of you period, until something you never even knew existed pokes its ugly, tiny head out of the holes and brings forth the beast of war. But WHAT beast, that was the $32,000 question.

You knew instantly that hers was the power of darkness.

Given that you were giving off a beacon, not of peace or hope or some other pathetically naïve sentiment, but of loot and power, a cloak of bad friends may have been just what you needed.

Dang. We have to choose between betraying loyalty and idealism. It will hurt whomever we walk away from- either he spent those precious lives for nothing, or she watches someone she cares about leave her. (And we probably turn a friend into a recurring boss in the process).

...I think we have to make the harder choice. You don't want to hurt a friend, and you want to go to her. (I want to go to her). But you're Stella, and you can't put a star above stars. A cause outweighs an individual. You fight for the many, not the one.

...We go for the man. The woman...I feel like if we go with her, we end up honored, and perhaps even worshipped, but away from the people that we would need to work with.
The man, has more of a 'comrades versus the empire' feel...
And besides, it'd be nice to have the frilly costume that moon-mirror chick is using, and she'd probably be a better companion than that grandstanding sun-amazon.

we have to go with the man, we fight for the many, not the one.if the woman truly believes in us, she will understand that.

Remember the woman's name. Call out to her to come with us as we join the righteous cause. The rebels will need us, and we need to be needed.

>>675076
what? who are you talking about?

Motion for the woman to follow you. We will go with the man, use his ranks to bolster our powers.

>>675130
I mean "I vote we go with the girl".

Your confusion and uncertainty gives way easily as you comprehend the loyalties of each of those you know. You are a Daughter of the Stars, Stella, you served the needs of the many, not the needs of a single woman. While it pained you to make such a choice, you had to side with those who needed you, more than any one person. Even as you make the choice, you feel a tingle run up your spine. Your magic was returning even faster than before, strength flooding into your limbs.

You glance back at the woman as you turn towards what you can only assume are rebels of some kind. The look of hurt as she sees your decision pains you, but you refuse to let your will falter. You do, however, gesture for her to come, to follow you, even as you struggle to find a name to put on the face. The look of surprise she has is genuine, and for a moment you see hesitation and uncertainty in her posture, but she seems to overcome it and pushes past the line of soldiers that surround her, intent on making it to your side. Bursts of magical energy still hurtle around the hangar, however, and it is unlikely she will make it very far unassisted, even if one were to discount the soldiers that are armed and will eventually notice your follower and likely work to prevent her from reaching you. Nor does it appear the Daughters in combat around you are much concerned with her well being, or even attempting to fight around her.

It seems you will have to retrieve her yourself.

Deep within yourself, you can feel your magic, infused by your new cause and those that believe in it, readying to shape to your desires, becoming a magic you can wield freely. You don't have much time, but you can feel two possibilities easily achieved in such a short span of time. It will lock in the choice, at least for the moment, but you will be able to use the spell without draining your magical reserves to greatly.

>Blink: A flickering of your form, followed by your sudden appearance a short distance away. Range is limited, and it cannot be easily used in quick succession, nor does it allow for interception of someone else mid movement.

>Comet: A burst of movement, leaving a trail of stardust in your wake. Longer maximum range than Blink, and capable of stringing together to achieve long distance travel more easily. Can be used to intercept others as well, however you can also be halted mid movement.

>>675189
Question: Can you carry people with your blink? If yes, then I vote for blink; cooldown speed should be "fast enough".

Our whole purpose here is to intercept someone moving, and then repeat in succession to still reach where we're running. To double back and double back again. Blink will get us to her, but not get us home- comet will get us there and back again.

The risk is if she chooses to try and arrest your movement when you go to her (if her immediate loyalty is to uniform or orders, rather than your decision. Or if she simply doesn't trust your decision). She could interrupt and stall us.

To try and prevent this, speak when you intercept her. "Trust me". Or if you can force yourself to remember in time, "Trust me, <name>".

Neither choice will be penalized in this scene. Both can reach the woman and pull her to safety.

It is more a stylistic choice then anything, as well as opening up certain avenues for how your magic progresses, and allowing for certain actions to be taken.

Example: Comet will allow for independent travel across nations and continents and the like when it's been upgraded enough. Blink, on the other hand, can be upgraded to allow for things like slipping through defenses entirely and ignoring supposedly "warded" barriers.

I hope that helps. You'll have to forgive me, I'm a bit new to this particular medium.

>>675193
This is not a battlefield of clashing swords and arrows that can be blocked or dodged, this is a warzone with stray bullets and explosions and hazardous materials, all ready to take our squad out if they move out of cover for even the blink of an eye.

Blink may be less reliable but it will allow us to move from cover to cover without getting hit by the sheer overkill of bulletstorms and environmental damage. If Lily had lightweight but bulletproof armor for her torso and head then we would have an outright obligation to choose Comet.

>>675197
We don't need body armor, we got magic shields. (Or something like one, that kicked in when we took a hit in the middle of >>675028 ).

>>675196
Well, if it's just style, I still say comet. I don't think we're going to be much about subtly or sneaking. We be flashy and overt and ora ora ora. Interception takedowns instead of appearing behind their back.

Blink will draw less attention. Or at least put you in harm's way less.

blink, like the twinkling of the stars, being there and not there at the same time.

Comet.
We work via strength of many...I don't see an army being particularly sutible. And Blink...While neat, I can't help but think our thing wouldn't be piercing defenses, so much as siege-style wearing down an opponent over a long period of time, and things like that.

Comet!

>>675219
except blink would let us get insdie the fort and open the gates for our allies. while comet would not. it lets us get anywhere we want to go, by ourselves, we can't take the army with us while using comet.

>>675274
Neither description mentions what or how much we can carry with us. Presumably each can take at least one person (in order to rescue little miss military uniform). And since the clarification said there would be later upgrade paths, transportation of others or groups is a plausible option for a transport ability, eventually.

>>675276
it's not a matter of mass, it's how you grip it. carrying one person is easy. but how do you carry fifty people? ball them up?

>>675289
>how would area of effect teleportation even work
The flippant answer is literally magic. :v

In light of what actual lore we have, our power is based on connections between people. To transport multiple targets without physically touching them, I imagine we would reach back through the same connections to others that power us. We'd just have to use the magic / mental / emotional link to establish something equivalent to touch for the purposes of the spell, and dump in enough power to move them.

I imagine a Luna would have an easier time transporting others, as their power is all about buffing and redirection, and this would qualify as both. Sol would probably brute force punch a wormhole thought space.

>>675293
for blink, sure. but comet is just moving really fast. so blink still synergies better with a lot of people.

>>675294
I don't see how it makes a difference. For blink, you'd just have multiple fades. For comets, you'd just have multiple beams. (Or maybe they blend into the stardust tail, and it gets longer? Or the comet gets bigger and there's a room / interior where the massed group being moved is housed).

Arguably, blink's main application is for stealth or infiltration, where large groups would run counter to that, anyways. (Strike teams could work, but an army would give itself away pretty soon).

If the tied vote is keeping us from continuing, I'll cave and change my vote to blink. >>675201

It's not worth deadlocking this over teleport style.

I'll say comet over blink for being the more overt, over the top option.

>Comet Selected

Power flows, and magic shifts within your soul. Your legs tense in expectation, then you leap, a shooting star across the hangar, your light catching the attention of all as stardust trails behind you. The single leap takes you halfway to your destination, mostly because you had not expected as much power as there was and nearly collided with a stack of crates. A simple adjustment, however, and a second leap takes you to your destination. The woman's surprise at your sudden arrival is palpable, but she seems happy your came for her anyway.

"My lady! You shouldn't- It's dangerous to show your power so suddenly in front of-"

A sudden burst of light suddenly explodes from across the hangar, heading unerringly towards you, and you react without hesitation, wrapping the woman in your arms and leaping backwards, flying back across the hangar and landing much closer to the resistance group. The burst of light you'd just evaded explodes, incinerating the area with the sheer intensity of its brilliance. You spot the military woman growl in annoyance, and already magical light begins to build in her arms, but you are already leaping again, intent on reaching the safety of the resistance group, and its fellow Daughter.

Another burst of light comes from behind you as you skid to a halt, your stardust trail disappitating behind you, and you brace for the impact, intent on taking the coming attack in place of the woman in your arms or the people who stand around you. The attack never hits, however, as another burst of silvery light explodes into existence and reflects the attack, sending it careening into the base proper. It seems your fellow Daughter has chosen to protect you.

"You made it! And you got a prisoner. Excellent."

"No. A friend."

The words come unbidden but welcome. This woman believed in you, and you wouldn't let her come to harm. Not while you could help it. You would help their cause, but they wouldn't touch her. The man seems a bit surprised, but behind you comes the sound of a giggle.

"If I didn't see before, I'd almost believe she was a Lunar. Get her onto the shuttle. We gotta go."

The man nods at the Daughter behind you before gesturing towards the shuttle. You hop on, the woman close behind you, and you take a seat quickly. Others of the group hop on as well, quickly taking seats as the engines start to whine louder, pushing out more power for takeoff. The man is one of the last to get on, dragging an injured man with him, before the shuttle pulls away from the ground and pushes itself out of the hangar, taking off into the sky and speeding off. You glance out of window at the hangar bay and see another shuttle take off, as well as two smaller things slip off in opposite directions, the two Daughters if you had to guess. Likely making their way out on their own power. A few minutes after you pull away, a bloom of fire signals an explosion, and you frown slightly. Many must have died in the blast. Something in you cries out against such death, but you push it down. Now isn't the time for that.

The men and women that sit within the shuttle alongside you keep their distance, while the woman you'd saved keeps close. The man gets the person he'd saved situated in a seat, then makes his way over to you, rocking with the shuttle as it shakes along with the turbulence.

"Pleasure to have you with us. It really is. Don't know what we would have done if this had been for nothing. My name's Emett. Jacob Emmet. I don't think I caught your name?" Emmet extends his hand, clearly offering a handshake. You almost take it, ready to give your own name, when the woman at your side cuts in, her tone biting and uncompromising.

"Caelestis Bellator don't just hand out their names to anyone. You should know that, Emmet."

The man retracts his hand, looking slightly surprised, then grows serious, although from defensiveness or professionalism you can't say.

"I suppose you're right. Protecting their identities and such. I suppose she'll have to come up with something to use among the rest of us. You are Captain...?"

The woman flinches slightly, hand coming up to brush the insignia on her shoulder before dropping it into her lap again.

"Captain Annette Barker. Former Captain now, I suppose."

"Fair enough." Emett seems to accept the answer, at least for the moment, before turning to you, sighing slightly. "I know this must seem like a lot to take in, especially so fast. We didn't mean to wake you back there, not like that anyway. If you have any questions, I'll do my best to answer them, though I'd leave any questions regarding what you are and what it means to those more knowledgeable than me."

>Input

Yay, not dead yet!

>I'd almost believe she was a Lunar
I suppose that's a compliment coming from her, and it confirms our earlier guess. Although maybe the Names aren't so sacred if she's using one openly?

>[Heavenly Warriors] don't just hand out their names to anyone
We don't? So then we'd have a sacred name, a secret common names, and, uh, an operational codename, I suppose. That gets kind of complicated! (I suppose "Phoenix" is good and codenamey sounding, to fall back on an earlier idea).

I think we might bend or break that rule later (maybe wait to see how the other Daughter is behaving?), but I don't want to challenge it now. She's clearly being defensive and lashing out- we did only ask her to betray everything she was a part of for us.

>If you have any questions, I'll do my best to answer them, though I'd leave any questions regarding what you are and what it means to those more knowledgeable than me.
The situation, please, if you would. We seem to be at war, my memory is full of holes, and I need to know what is going on. I need to know who is fighting, and why.

I don't know if you're the type would try and spare me, but no white lies or omissions about myself, please. I'm not so blind that I can't tell I just defected.

Sitrep- why are you two fighting? Make sure they both get a chance to speak and don't talk over eachother or interupt. Why am I a valuable asset? Both sides seem to have their fair share of magic. Again- no interuptions or antagonizing eachother. We're hear together so we need to be willing to work together. Call me Star as a nickname for now until we feel it's safe to give our name

Important question: Why were you in cryo?

Also, you'd like a review of global events for the past ten years.

get both sides of the story, anyone interrupts they get a bop on the head and told to wait their turn.

You pause a moment, giving yourself the time to organize your thoughts, get your questions in order. Both Emett and Annette are watching you now, clearly waiting for the questions they expect to come roaring out of your mouth. Something tells you, though, that smooth and steady would be the better way to go. And perhaps a reminder that they don't need to be at each others throats. Not right now.

"Before I begin, any questions I ask, you both get fair chance to answer. Take turns, or I swear I'll bop you both on the head and make you start over."

Emett quirks an eyebrow, and Annette allows a small grin, before both nod. Seems they agreed to that easily enough. Time for the first questions then.

"Important questions first. Why was I in cryo?"

"Cryo is a common misconception, although the overall outcome is similar, or so I'm told." Annette takes over the explanation almost immediately, glancing at Emett as if expecting him to intercede. He merely nods towards her, allowing her the chance to speak. "However, as it's been explained to me, the substance you were in keeps your powers from functioning, thereby keeping you in check. It's generally used for keeping Caelestis Bellator's imprisoned, at least those that are criminals to the government. It has the added effect of simulating the same experience as cryo as well, suspending bodily functions to an almost nonexistent level. You, however, were being suppressed do to odd fluctuations in your abilities, at least until you could be safely examined for irregularities."

You glance at Emett, who shrugs.

"Seems like she knows more about it than I do. I'm a soldier, not... whatever the hell she is."

"I was required to know such things. As the personal attendant of my lady, it was important I understood as much about her and her life as possible."

"Right..." You pause again, absorbing that bit of information. Not cryo, suppression... whatever that meant. Still, this next question might be a bit more... sensitive.

"I need to know what's going on. We seem to be at war, my memory is full of holes, and I need to know who is fighting who. And why. And please, no omissions or white lies. I'm aware I just defected."

Emett starts to open his mouth, then clicks it shut, clearly surprised at your candor. Again, it's Annette who jumps in first.

"You're memory is full of holes, my lady?"

"Yes. I can't remember... anything, really. I know what I am, I think. I know my name. I know I know you... or knew you. You're familiar. But... everything else is blank."

"I see..." Annette seems slightly hurt at you admitting you don't remember her much, but rallies quickly, clearly taking everything as best she can. Your connection to her wavers only slightly, and her belief in you is hardly shaken at all. "Going through an entire history lesson right now would be... difficult, but the basics can certainly be addressed. The organization we work for... used to work for, is known as the Heaven Court. It tracks, catalogs and governs Caelestis Bellator, Celestial or Heavenly Warriors-"

"Or the old title for them. Magical Girls."

"Archaic and not in use."

"It's what us common folk call them. It's what they are. What most used to be. Till you militarized them."

"The Court never-"

"Bullshit. Sure, nations did it first, but once the Court started getting their hands on them, they just kept gaining power till no one could oppose them. They pretty much run the world government now, having toppled most national government in favor of branch officials of their's running things."

You glance at Annette for input, but she looks accepting, if grudgingly, of the explanation. When she notices your look, she merely gives a nod of confirmation, although she clearly finds it distasteful.

"He's correct, at least in part. Regardless, you've made your decision, my lady. This group you've joined with, however... I would assume you represent on of the numerous rebellious groups?"

"Yeah. Technically we're an military group, helping out anywhere we can with the various rebellions, in exchange for whatever they can spare. We've got a few magical girls helping us out, too, when they can. They have to keep a low profile for the most part, only help out on the big missions."

"Hmph. Not even true rebels."

"Hey, everyone's gotta eat. And your Court isn't helping with the spreading of food. Particularly to those of us that won't bend the knee. Regardless, we're headed for New Tokyo at the moment. There's a few magical girls there that wanted to meet you, help you get back on your feet. Kaguya, the Lunar from before, she'll be meeting us just outside to take you off our hands, put you through a crash course."

"So... being a magical girl makes me important?"

"Caelestis Bellator. And yes. You are one of the most powerful people on the planet, simply by virtue of what you are. Guns have virtually no effect on you, thanks to your magical protections, and only another Bellator really has any chance of taking you down. You were once one of the-"

"Put it simply, your strong. Really strong. People can rally around that kind of strength. The rebellions can rally around that kind of strength."

Emett pauses a moment, glancing at a watch on his wrist, before nodding to himself slightly.

"We're almost there. You got any last questions before we land?"

>Input

Okay, when do I get my frilly costume, and just how big of a crowd's going to be waiting to greet us when we land?

Most rebellions have a reason- taxes too high, opressives governments, the murder of marginalized people- just what exactly are the rebellions rebelling against? Specifics not just "The Government"

>>675905
heard something about lack of food spreading.

but yeah.

Really important question: what's the security level in New Tokyo? Basically, you want to explore and do stuff. Walking around and flinging starlight into the crowd is a good way to get yourself killed, you know that, but do we have any sort of jamming signal that prevents the scanning equipment from detecting magic or magic-infused beings, or are going to have to play this one by ear and be as covert as celestially possible?

>You, however, were being suppressed do to odd fluctuations in your abilities, at least until you could be safely examined for irregularities
Oh. Well, that's gonna come back to haunt us, isn't it. If we're with the rebellion, we're cut off from mainstream magic medical care.

>Annette seems slightly hurt at you admitting you don't remember her much
When we eventually get a moment to talk alone with Annette and she asks why we made that choice. You had no information, no frame of reference, so you called on your powers. You knew you could trust her absolutely, but it wasn't the court's cause it resonated with. This was where you're supposed to be but ...you're very grateful she followed you. That wasn't an easy decision to make.

>You got any last questions before we land?
Do you need to know anything about these people we're meeting with?

To Emmett: What reason did you have to think this was going to work, that you were recruit-able? Not trying to be insulting there- he must have known something.

"Most rebellions have a reason to rebel. What exactly are these rebellions rebelling against?"

Emett pushed a hand through his hair, obviously thinking a moment before giving his reply.

"Depends on which one you're asking after. Some of the major ones are in the impoverished regions. Some of those officials aren't very generous with the use of the taxes in place. Others are rebelling cause the magical girls are getting taken the moment they pop up. It's a piece of history to a lot of people, and part of that big history lesson that'll have to wait for someone else to tell you. Then you got the people that just want better for themselves. The power hungry, or those that remember what having power was actually like. The political types."

"I see... And New Tokyo? How hard will it be for me to travel around? Is there equipment or anything I should be worried about?"

"Most people nowadays don't ever see a magical girl."

"Caelestis Bellator."

"Whatever. Still, New Tokyo's got a frew that have managed to stay out of Court hands. Kaguya is one of them. I know of one other at least, but she might know more. I wouldn't go telling just anyone what you are, but if it does get out, I wouldn't be too worried. And no equipment, far as I know. Though any other magical girls might know who and what you are, so I'd steer clear of any Court people if you can. Not that New Tokyo has many."

"One of the few cities that has managed to remain independent of the Court. Many of the residents regard the Bellator as idols. And there has never been solid proof that Bellator can sense each other in anyway."

"Got it. Don't be stupid, but don't have to worry too much."

"Sounds about right."

"So... you know anything about these people I'm supposed to meet?"

"I know Kaguya. The Lunar that helped us get you out of that facility. She's fairly helpful, one of the more active in helping my little troop out. She mentioned one other, but don't know anything about her."

You feel the shuttle start to slow, the rocking of it increasing as it descends. You feel it alight on something, then the shuttle door is slid open and the Lunar from before, Kaguya, smiles at you from the opening.

"Hey, how's it going? I hear you're the one who might need a crash course in being a magical girl. Ready to go?"

You glance at Emett, who nods at you encouragingly, and you disembark, finding yourself on the roof of a skyscraper. The wind buffets you slightly, but you hardly notice. You're magic is returning, and its strengthening you further. A part of you can hardly wait to learn what you can do, to feel the magic surging freely. Annette starts to follow you, but a look from Kaguya halts her. She frowns slightly, but sits back down, looking slightly peeved.

"Be careful, my lady."

"I will... Emett?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't mean to insult you or anything but... how did you know I'd defect at all?"

"Hm... I didn't. But, well, someone told me a long time ago, that believing in someone, in something, was kinda the point of magical girls. If you don't believe, then you don't get anything out of them."

Kaguya giggles from next to the door, then slides it shut, pounding on the side before the shuttle pulls away into the air again, disappearing among the clouds in the air.

"Don't worry, they're heading to the edge of the city. We'll be meeting em there. Hope you don't mind, but that'll be the end goal, and you can decide what you want to do. First off though, introductions are in order. I'm called Kaguya by the common man, defender of New Tokyo and a bunch of other titles I've gotten. People around here like handing those out like candy.

"Still, to us Daughters, I'm Tsuki.

"We can get started right away, if you like, but I'm sure you have questions too. And I guess we have to wait for Sunny. Up to you, though. I'm only here to help you out. Well, to help Emett, really, as a favor."

>Input

>I'm called Kaguya by the common man
>Still, to us Daughters, I'm Tsuki
Okay, Kaguya is the heroic stage name, and I'm guessing Tsuki is the divine name, as it translates to moon. (Although technically it can be used as a 'common' name too).

If that's the case, that would mean the various Daughters of a given aspect have different names? (So Tsuki is a Lunar, but she's not Luna). I wonder if that means our being Stella instead of some other Stellar makes us significant.

>what do
Introduce yourself as Stella and... you guess you'll have to work on a stage name.

Hopefully it won't be too hard too pick up, since you should have know this, before. I don't suppose she knows anything about suppress?

introduce yourself as lily. you aren't sure how these names are supposed to be ordered.

My Divine name, is Stella. My actual name is Lily Iridium...And if you don't mind me asking, can you give me any tips as to how my magic works?

The Stella naming theme is obvious. I'd suggest "Eta Carinae" as the Stella name, after the chaotically variable (we were apparently in suspension due to fluctuations in our abilities) binary pair (we have aligned ourselves with both an ex-government officer and a on-and-off anti-government rebel).

Introduce yourself as Iridium. Be professional at first, and the more personal information she gives about herself, the more relaxed you can act.

Eventually, go shopping for equipment and stuff. You'll want her help in figuring out what you need and where the prices are reasonable.

>>675970
So it nicknames to Eta or Cari, I suppose.

>>675974
Introducing ourself by our family name is probably the worst option. If we have any relatives we currently don't remember, we want to protect them from our involvement here.

"I'm... not sure how these names are supposed to be ordered. My divine name is Stella, if that helps at all. My actual name is-"

"I don't need to know that. Keep that for people you trust. We barely know each other, after all. I'll just use Stella, for the moment. You can come up with a more common use name later."

"Yeah, I guess I will... So, you're supposed to help me with my magic?"

"Yup. Well, kinda, we gotta get you up to speed, but Lunar magic is different from Stellar or Solar. We'll get you up and running, though... doesn't look like Sunny is around right now, but we can get started."

"Yeah. Uh, would it be possible to go shopping later or something? I only have what I'm wearing, and it might help to go pick up some things."

"Sure, no problems. I know a few places that cater more to our needs. Also know a good place to meet up with other girls, if you'd like. Sort of a lounge slash club type deal. I'll show you later.

"For the moment, though, let's jump right in. Now, I only know a little bit about Stellars, but I do know your kind tend to be good at fast, weak magic. How you shape that though, is up to you. I'd suggest taking a moment to sort it all out in your soul. Meantime, I'll set up some targets for you to hit."

You frown a moment, absorbing the advice before closing your eyes and reaching into yourself. You feel the magic pulsing within, and you feel it coursing through your body, strengthening it against hardship. Still, it is raw and unrefined. Now it seems, is the time to shape it as you will.

>Arrow: Weakest of the base forms of magical attack, but pinpoint accurate and drains the least amount of energy.

>Lance: Stronger than arrows, but more costly as well. They are not as accurate either, but are capable of punching through armor far more easily.

>Grenade: Lobbed grenades that explode with Stellar magic. Costly for Stellars, and the shortest range of the three basic forms of Stellar offensive magic.

>>675988
Voting for arrow because Bullet Hell.

However, can we get a shotgun later if we choose arrow?

>>675988
>>Arrow: Weakest of the base forms of magical attack, but pinpoint accurate and drains the least amount of energy.
Arrow, hopefully with future upgrades for homing and multi-shot.
I thought Stella was the 'class' name like Lunar, not her actual name!

arrow, if you are hitting an armor plate then you are using it wrong.

>I thought Stella was the 'class' name like Lunar, not her actual name!
I did at first too. Although the roots for the classes and the names we were given to choose between were the same anyways (Sol the Solar, Luna the Lunar, Stella the Stellar).

>Voting for arrow because Bullet Hell
For that exact reason, yes. We're going to fire a million homing accurate shots, and each one will go where we want it to. Let our opposition have fun not being overwhelmed by that.

Hrrrm...Arrows?
Part of me wants to go Lance for the potential to not be dead once some Solar Knight afficianado gets in our face with a broadsword...
But Arrow certainly plays to our strengths.
I'll vote Lance anyhow though.

You focus, sharpening your magic into an small bolt of energy, feeling the magic drain from your reserves to shape to your will. You open your eyes to see the stellar magic hovering above your open hand, glowing dimly. Set up along an opposite building are glowing circles of silvery light, shields produced by Kaguya for targets. She notices your magical power manifest itself, and she steps to the side, gesturing towards the targets.

"Have at it."

You nod and step forward, eyeing each target a moment before selecting one of the easier ones to hit. You judge the distance a moment, then hurl the stellar magic at the target. It closes the distance within milliseconds. It slams into the target and reflects off, fizzling out a few seconds later. The reflection makes sense, must be a Lunar thing.

"Seems like you've got the hang of it already. Not all that surprising, getting woken up from suppression instead of learning from scratch."

You fire off a few more, feeling the small drain with each shot, one at each target, gradually increasing in speed. After hitting each, a surprisingly easy task overall, you settle back, letting the magic settle. You're fairly certain you could easily call it up again if need be, and judging by the speed you could fire at, it seems like being a Stellar lives up to its name. You have little to judge off, though, so perhaps a true test will come later, when you can make a comparison. A slow clap comes from behind you, and you turn to see another girl, in a similar frilly outfit as Kaguya, looking vaguely annoyed and a bit condescending.

"Good job. You can fire the most basic of spells. Maybe next we'll get you to actually do something useful?"

"Sunny-"

"Yeah, yeah. I get it. Don't mean I want to be here."

Kaguya looks apologetic as she places herself between the two of you, hands raised in a soothing manner towards the new arrival as the Lunar glances over her shoulder at you.

"Hey, she's Sunny, as the commons know her. I... well, she doesn't share her soul name. Least not with me. Sunny, this is Stella. Sunny isn't the best team player, but then most Solars aren't. Kinda their thing to be as magnificent in appearance as possible. They draw from the adoration of crowds, after all."

"Sure, just give her my life story while you're at it. Look, Stellar, I'm not here to play nice. I'm only here to help get you up to speed. First step for that is getting you an attack power, sure. I would say we'd shape you magic for defense as well, but, let's face it, Stellar magic sucks at defense. Better to avoid than take the hit. Keep that in mind. It's why the wide area attack spells of Solars has an advantage against you Stellars. Best remember that."

Sunny gives you a somewhat malicious grin before Kaguya once again steps in, clearly attempting to remain the friendly party between the two of you despite the obvious animosity you've received.

"Yes, but it's your fast hitting and often times large number of attack spells that make Stellars excellent against Lunars. We can only throw up so many barriers before your magic will overwhelm us. But Lunar magic is great against Solars, who prefer big one off spells which Lunars can easily reflect."

Sunny makes a loud humphing sound, but otherwise makes no move to refute the information. For a moment, there is silence, then Sunny breaks in again, sounding bored as opposed to condescending.

"So... she know about the traits yet?"

"I was getting to that."

"Well, I'll start then. Pay attention, new, blood."

"Stella."

"Whatever. Each of the magical types has a trait that sort of sticks with them, regardless of how they shape their magic later. Solars, like me, begin to gather excess magic from our spell uses and store it within our bodies, like an overflow container. The more magic we use, the more it grows. We can draw on that store of magic to supercharge a spell later, the more we have stored up, the more powerful the overcharged spell will be. It's called Overcharging among us girls."

"Lunars, like me, can bleed off magical energy from spells we reflect with our shields. It makes us great against the high power usage spells of Solars, but the low power of the Stellars makes us siphon off such a small amount that we expend more erecting the shield than we get back. Siphoning, to keep the terms similar."

"And Stellars, like you new blood, have a sort of chaining effect. As more spells are chained against a target, the more each successive spell will do to that target. You gotta hit the target though. Not shields. Makes you vicious against Lunars, as even if only one or two spells break through at a time, each spell will eat away at their passive defenses more and more. Not to mention strong ones can launch so many spells at once that a Lunar can't block them all easily. It's called, rather unimaginatively, Chaining."

"That covers the basics, I think. You've got a basic attack spell, and you have a movement ability to. That should cover you for a little while, particularly until we can get you somewhere to practice and you can see about drawing in more power from your source. Stellars are causes, so the more you represent your cause, and promote people belief and support of that cause, the more power you'll draw in to augment your own abilities."

"Pansy ass cult leaders."

"Sunny!"

"Whatever."

Kaguya frowns, but returns her attention to you, that apologetic look on her face again.

"Sorry about her. If you have any questions, now would be a good time for it. After this, we'll head off and see about getting you some proper clothing, and a few gadgets that might prove useful. Like a phone."

>Input

are there things immune, or nearly immune to magic?

stellars would be even better then solars at extremely hardened targets with magic resist. solar would hit it super hard but if it doesn't break through in the one hit, it probably wont break on the next. but a stellar can shoot the same spot a thousand times and nothing happens only for the 1001st shot to dent it and the 1002nd shot to punch through.

So, let me get this straight.

Solars use splash damage and other debilitating / strong attacks at the cost of burning through their energy reserves, and their trump card is limit breaks.

Lunars work on the defensive and have a weak overall damage rate, but can turn the tide by countering / blocking / parrying attacks, earning them the energy they need to keep shielding themselves and firing when their enemies run out of energy to shield themselves.

Stellars use rapid-fire bullet attacks to break shields and can keep dodging with their efficiently handled energy reserves, but will have serious trouble defending against anything.

So, how do you synergize with other classes and yourselves? Do you know the basic strategy needed to take out certain groups? There's also the matter of synthetic targets, who can use different abilities through technology than the three Caelestis Bellator magics can.

Also, is it possible to take on some aspects of other classes by wearing the right magic armor? For instance, can a Stellar wear enhanced Solar Gloves that add an explosive effect to her arrows? Can Solars wear hex-laced dresses that siphon a large amount of energy but can auto-block sneak attacks? Can Lunars wear multiple rings and piercings that cause their shields to counterattack with a fraction of the siphoned energy? You know, customization and stuff.

Actually Sunny...I know you don't like me, but you get stronger from being the glorious champion, right?
My place is to gather and strengthen a cause, but yours is to be champion of it. We can totally work together and do amazing things I'm sure!
With someone like you to save the day, it'd be easier on me to rally others to a cause, and with me around, you'll always have someone to gaze in your glory.
We're different, sure. But we're best when we cover each other's strengths and weaknesses.

>They draw from the adoration of crowds, after all
Huh. So they're powered sorta by shallowness. Fame, popularity, attention of the moment. Whereas we're powered more by real connections: faith, belief, trust.

Interestingly, that sort of means stellars would have a gradual power growth and we build, gain, and retain connections, while solars would be more prone to sharp swings in power as the crowd's favor and/or attention waxed and waned, even if their base power is stronger than ours.

>Sunny isn't the best team player, but then most Solars aren't.
Which yes, would favor a certain disposition. It'll be interesting to see if we encounter exceptions.

>Siphoning
What do you do with the siphoned energy? Just refill reserves, so you can stay in the fight longer?

>Chaining
So we work like a fighting game. We can stack up chained combos for massive damage. Sweet.

>antagonism
I don't see a reason to let ourselves to be bothered by it. If that's the way she is, it's not a problem till it becomes one.

>any other questions
We didn't get into where Lunar power comes from. Reflecting radiance- it's more about who you work with, or one person?

Are joint operations or teaming up common between daughters? If we're basically the only thing that can stop each other and we have triangle of weakness and strengths, any two Daughters together would have an answer for any one opponent.

Any non-Daughter things that are a serious threat to us?

Either of them know anything about suppress? Be nice to know what the expected side effects are and how long they're expected to last. Hopefully your memory problems are temporary and due to that and not the result of those power fluctuations that put you under (um, maybe don't share the power fluctuations bit with them, now).

>are there things immune, or nearly immune to magic?

"Only thing found so far the is immune to our magic is that Suppression crap. Well... that and the Great Enemy, to an extent, but the Enemy has been dead and gone for decades. No longer our problem."

"The... Enemy?"

"Seriously? Are you retarded?"

"Sunny! She just woke up from Suppression not even an hour ago."

"Eh. Doesn't excuse not knowing the Great Enemy. Reason we exist in the first place. The whole 'Light of the Heavens fighting against the dark, evil threat to Mankind'. It's kinda our thing. Or was. Until a bunch of us found the heart of the whole thing and blew it to hell... not to mention wiping out most half of North America and killing themselves in the process."

"They still deserve our respect."

"Oh no, all the props to them for murdering a couple million people. All the props."

Kaguya sighs at that, looking suddenly very stressed out, but shakes it off soon enough and turns back to you for your next question.

>So, how do you synergize with other classes and yourselves? Do you know the basic strategy needed to take out certain groups?

"Synergize? You mean like... work together?"

"Uh... we don't generally do that, anymore. The old reason for it, the Great Enemy, is gone. Most are only looking out for themselves as best they can. You either work for the Court, or you avoid them as much as possible, while doing whatever it is you want."

"Sides, what reason would we have to work together? Sure, the rebel types do sometimes, but there isn't much call for it. The free ones are either here in New Tokyo, or so spread out that its impractical. And teaming up would draw the Court on you like flies to honey."

"I suppose if you wanted the old strategies and the like, you could go looking for one of the first or second generations. They'd know more about it."

"Yeah, cause you'll find the old timers just lazing about, waiting for you to come ask them dumb questions."

"Sunny..."

"Yeah yeah. Respect and all..."

>There's also the matter of synthetic targets.

"Synthetics? Uh... what like, artificial magical girls or something?"

"I think she means tanks, guns, that sort of things."

"Oh. Not in much use, at least not against us. Mundane weapons don't do much to us.

>Also, is it possible to take on some aspects of other classes by wearing the right magic armor? For instance, can a Stellar wear enhanced Solar Gloves that add an explosive effect to her arrows? Can Solars wear hex-laced dresses that siphon a large amount of energy but can auto-block sneak attacks? Can Lunars wear multiple rings and piercings that cause their shields to counterattack with a fraction of the siphoned energy?

"Like, fantasy style enchantments? I mean... I've never heard of it. Kaguya, you've been around longer, you heard anything?"

"Nope. Nothing I've ever heard of. I mean, I've heard about people using things as gimmicks before, like stage props and the like, but never anything actually magical. If they do exist, I've never seen one either."

>We didn't get into where Lunar power comes from. Reflecting radiance- it's more about who you work with, or one person?

"Yeah, Lunar's gain power through supporting a single person, making them shine brighter. One would think a Solar would be a great choice, but being supported like that tends to take away from the brilliance of their victories. Most of us choose more mundane people to support. They don't even have to know we're supporting them, so long as they shine, we grow in strength."

>Any non-Daughter things that are a serious threat to us?

"A serious threat... Not really. We're the most powerful things walking the planet right now."

"She's right... mostly. Suppression pretty much makes us completely vulnerable, and there is the original units used to hunt us down at the end of the Celestial War. That's the big war that started up after the Great Enemy was defeated. Lot of the devastation across the globe is from that, and not the actual fight with the Enemy."

"Original units. Pah, those aren't used for anything more than glorified cage fights now. Ha! Exo-Mechs are hunks of junk."

"Still... get enough of them, and they can overwhelm us long enough to trap us with Suppression. And there's rumors the military still has a few specialized units for when using another girl would be bad."

"Yeah yeah. Listen, Exo-Mechs exist, but they're stupid. Just ignore em and you'll be fine."

>Either of them know anything about suppress?

"Suppression is the only thing that can make us vulnerable that I know of. Still, it's hard to manage from what I've seen, as you have to submerge us in it for the full effects to start up. Otherwise it just sort of drains us a little and our magic burns through it. I've never heard of anyone suffering from any major problems caused by it, but then again, I don't think I've ever talked to anyone who's been submerged in the stuff. Sunny?"

"Mm... nope. I got nothing. Anyone I've seen get taken doesn't come back."

"Yeah... So, anymore questions, or are we ready to go? Still gotta grab you some clothes and those gadgets."

So, how far do you think anyone would go to bring back the primordial (Great Enemy)? With all these civil wars and superheroines ruling the world just to fight each other, having something to lure them all into one place and fight at their combined level would be REALLY useful.

Seriously, we're just going to assume that an eldritch abomination stays dead forever by shooting magic into its core until it explodes? Come on. Also, why was its core in North America?

>So, anymore questions, or are we ready to go?
So people can't normally get past our powers with bullets, do we have built in protection from other kind of attacks? Wondering how creative non-magical opposition is willing to get. (If we still need to eat and drink we could be drugged or poisoned, if we still need to breathe we could be gassed, unless we have the right kind of audiovisual filters we could be disoriented by flashbang style attacks. And maybe most importantly- if you need to consciously activate magic shields or evasion, a sniper's bullet or other surprise attack could still be deadly).

>Sides, what reason would we have to work together?
Well, if you expect to get into a fight, and we have triangle of weaknesses and strengths, two Daughters cooperating would have an answer for any one opponent. On your own you run the risk of being caught in a disadvantage.

>The free ones are either here in New Tokyo, or so spread out that its impractical. And teaming up would draw the Court on you like flies to honey.
That reminds me: where is the court's influence, then? Where was the place you pulled me out of?

>draw the Court on you like flies to honey
How much does the court clash with people around here? If I was one of them, how likely am I to bump into someone who really isn't happy to see me?

and what exactly could the court send at a trio of us that would be any kind of threat other then another trio?

>>676305
If it's been inactive for decades, that counts squarely as not our problem.

>>676313
Well, type advantage isn't everything. Then we get into how strong / skilled the individuals involved are, and then tactics employed and how well they work together as a team.

Presumably if the court functions like some kind of actual military and trains their magical girls to follow orders and work together, they'd have the advantage over loner independents trying to cooperate for the first time.

(I'm kind of amused we picked the side where we saw more connections and got magical girls less willing to work together).

Sooo Rebels go solo instead of grouping up.
...I kind of see what Sunny there means about us Stellars being cult leaders given the implications of that...
Okay! I've got a question! Any place you guys know of that could use a Stellar to bolster their spirits and give them a magical hand?

>Built in protection

"All us Daughters have a passive magical barrier around us at all times. I wouldn't suggest trying to take tank rounds to the face, but anything smaller than that we can shrug off without much care. You'll still feel the hit, just won't have much damage. Like someone lightly poked you."

"Sunny is right in that regard. Stellars have the weakest form of it, but anything below a tank round you could easily ignore for the most part. We do need to eat, drink and breathe though, so that can be used against you. We're hardier, but not immune."

>So, how far do you think anyone would go to bring back the Great Enemy?

"No one would. If they did, it wouldn't be pretty. It's the reason we Daughters exist. If it were back, the Court wouldn't be able to stop all of us from hunting it till it was dead again."

"Calm down Kaguya. No need to get all serious. But she's right. If anything brought all of us together, it would be that. Not that I wish that on anyone. The Great Enemy might not have done a lot of physical damage to the Earth itself, but it consumed a lot of people during its active period. We won't let it live."

>Seriously, we're just going to assume that an eldritch abomination stays dead forever by shooting magic into its core until it explodes?

"No one knows what they did to it. Whatever it was, half of North America is gone, close to two million people died, along with the most powerful magical girls of both the first and second generations. Yeah, it might be a little wishful to think it's dead, but I think humanity deserves that. It better stay dead..."

"Kaguya... Look, nice as it makes me sound, I suggest leaving this topic alone. It's a sore subject for our Lunar here."

"Leave it, Sunny. Better to talk about it then let it be forgotten."

>Also, why was its core in North America?

"No one knows. Just like no ones knows why or how it showed up on Earth at all, or the why and how of our existence soon after. Lot of people have looked into it. Most people don't want to know. Not after everything that's happened."

>where is the court's influence, then? Where was the place you pulled me out of?

"Technically, the Court is a organization under the UN. In reality, it's the other way around. The Court does what it wants, global governments have little power over them when the Court controls the magical girls. As for where we pulled you from, a facility that was in Old Tokyo. You didn't get a good look at it, but it's basically a ruin nowadays. Perfect for secretive little bases and the like."

>How much does the Court clash with people around here?

"New Tokyo is a free city. Anyone is allowed to live here, so long as they follow the rules of the city. Mostly the standard stuff. The Court hangs around, has an embassy here and everything, but doesn't have much presence, and most don't like having them around. We free girls help keep the peace though. They aren't willing to spend the resources to hunt us down, not when New Tokyo treats us like idols."

"Sunny is right, the Court can't do much within the city. Take a step outside and you're fair game though. No, most Court activity in Japan is centered around Kyoto.

"Still, I think that's enough questions for the moment. We've got to get you geared up. Maybe later we can check out the local mech fights. Show you what a Exo-Mech looks like. Come on, will head down to the streets, you're dressed normal enough. You coming Sunny?"

"I was only here to help out. I've got my own things to take care of. When you get her a phone, give her my number. I might not like it, but it is nice to see another magical girl free of the Court. I'd like to keep it that way."

"You got it. This way, Stella."

Kaguya leads you down towards an access door as Sunny just drops off the side, soon shooting into the sky as a girl wreathed in golden light and shooting off into the sky. You follow Kaguya to an elevator, and after a short ride down, exit out onto the streets. Almost immediately, Kaguya is swarmed by people, all of them trying to get her attention for a handshake or an autograph. She flashes the lot of them a smile, gives them a wave and then slips through the crowd, you trailing behind. Overall, the other girl seems uninterested in the crowd, more intent on making it to wherever you're going. Still, everywhere you go people are pointing her out, waving to her and generally being overly friendly. Eventually, Kaguya halts her forward movement, looking thoughtful as she turns to you and steadfastly ignores the crowd that soon begins to gather around you.

"So, you want to check out gadgets first? Or maybe we can get you some new clothes, you could pick out a style of dress for your common, magical girl persona. I'd suggest shaping some of your magic to mask your identity, trust me, it helps. Not that you have much to work with right now. Or we could swing by the Exo-Mech arena now, before you have to carry around a bunch of bags. It's up to you."

>Input

A few mechs would be useful in a fight. Even if they couldn't do any damage, having an expendable robot run interference could save your life.

Also, shopping for supplies and gadgets and accessories is going to take a toll on someone's back. Make it the back that's replaceable.

hmmm... naw, we should stand out. no masks, no secret vs normal persona, we are who we are. how could we expect people to trust us if they only see us in fights?

but yeah, something to carry stuff would be nice. then we can go nuts and get all the dresses.

Guessing here, but I'm starting to think Tsuki has a personal connection to that core explosion disaster.

>what do next
Let's get gadgets, first. Those are gonna be useful necessities no matter what identity or guise we assume.

After that we can worry about clothes.

>I'd suggest shaping some of your magic to mask your identity, trust me, it helps.
Maybe start reaching out to that part of your magic. Even if we don't have the power to distort your appearance right now, what are our options in that regard?

gadgets first, then clothes, preferably with a mask of some sort for that dramatic effect.

>Coin Toss tie breaker decides: Exo-Mech Arena

"I guess... the Exo-Mech arena then. Maybe I can get one to carry bags or something."

"You want a mech to carry your bags? Uh... do you even know how to- No, wait, I forget. Your memory. Alright, well, easier to just show you. Come on."

Kaguya starts off again, nimbly weaving her way through the crowd that's gathered around you. You follow close behind, not wanting to get lost among all these people. She leads you quickly into a more industrial looking area, the sounds of industry all around you. Within minutes, however, you find yourself walking up to a large warehouse, although significant additions seemed to have been made and you can find a large line milling about in front of a massive archway, guards checking for what looks like tickets. Kaguya seems uninterested in the line however, making her way confidently to the front and waving for you to follow. As she reaches the guards, she smiles and waves, and one of them sidesteps to let her through, briefly giving you a look before Kaguya steps in.

"She's with me."

You step past him gingerly as he continues to glare suspiciously at you, but ignores you as you reach Kaguya's side. She flashes him a friendly smile then heads off into the complex, grinning more mischievously at you.

"Being a magical girl idol around New Tokyo pays off. Lots of people are willing to let us get away with skipping lines and the like. Business tends to drum up when we're hanging around after all."

She goes silent as you emerge into the arena proper, cheers and boos filling up the air around you. You hear the sound of crackling lighting, and the discharge of something as it fires. And then, with a burst of light, you spot them in the center of the arena, two machines duking it out, hurling punches and balls of electricity at each other as they down around within the confines of the arena walls. Within, you can spot what appears to be people, strapped into the machines themselves and operating them with intense focus. You stare a moment before you hear a giggle from next to you. Kaguya is clearly amused.

"See the issue now? Exo-Mechs aren't autonomous. Still, I know where we can get you a robot helper. Won't be useful for combat, they're kinda stupid, but they can help carry stuff, and they're useful for minor tasks. This way."

She leads you back into the corridors, you getting one last look at the fight as one of the pair hits the other with a bolt of electricity. That can't be safe, but you suppose you can't argue the issue if Kaguya isn't worried about it. A few minutes later and you seem to have entered a more factory-esque area. All around you, workers toil at machines, doing maintenance, building new ones and even selling various parts and tools. Kaguya is just as well received here as outside, getting rewarded with waves from engineers, vendors and customers alike. Soon enough, you've reached another shop, which Kaguya bounces into rather happily.

"Takeda! Brought you another customer!"

A man, one that can only be kindly described as 'rotund', shambles out from behind various machinery, grease and smudges of grime covering both the man and his clothes. He grins at seeing Kaguya, and his smile only grows at spotting you.

"Ah! Kaguya! Greetings, greetings! Always good to see you! And you've brought me a buyer! Wonderful! What can I get for you today? License? Exo-Mech? Perhaps some repair work?"

"Not today, Takeda. She's just looking for a servant bot."

"Oh." His smile flickers slightly, clearly disappointed, before it comes back in full force, taking the rejection in stride. "Well, never let it be said Takeda didn't provide! What exactly are we looking for? High end perhaps? Speech, smooth motion, predictive module, the works? Or something simpler, cheaper? Come, come, let me show you what I have now!"

The man guides you, rather gently, to a section of his space, gesturing at what appear to be human sized robot, all powered down. He begins gesturing wildly, expounding the virtues of this or that, but you admit half of what he says is mechanical jargon you are unfamiliar with. Kaguya provides little help, giggling from somewhere behind you. You do catch, however, that there are three here you could choose from. As you think over the issue, Kaguya comes up behind you, whispering in you ear.

"Don't let Takeda pressure you too much. I've got a budget for you, 10,000, but we still have to hit up the other locations too. Just keep that in mind."

>Base Model Servo-Mech: Cheapest of the three, it takes basic commands, and can perform basic tasks, but little else. Costs 2,000

>Nishi Robotics Servo-Mech: Comes preprogrammed with a number of household tasks, as well as being capable of being programmed with more if desired. Costs 4,000

>Takeda Special: Custom built Servo-Mech. Can be customized to fit many roles, from caretaker to bodyguard. Costs 6,000

The Nishi looks good. It's customizable and relatively cheap, so we can program it to take more complex orders if we need them.

Nishi sounds like it should suit our needs I think?

Without seeing what else we can buy, grabbing the mid range nishi sounds good

Unrealted but I was wondering if physical/weapons training will be available? We're in a rebelion and I have a feeling supression will be used against us at some point, I think we'd feel a lot more secure if we carry a non magic weapon and know how to use it. Fihgting hand to hand, grappling, guns and knives all seem like things we need to spend time on. Even just a guy with a knife can be scary if you don't have powers, so lets make sure we carry a bigger one and know how to use it

...is it kind of silly for a 'cult leader' magical girl to invest in a servant bot? Are we even gonna have an apartment or fixed base of operations where we could store a bot? (We don't even know what the cause we've joined is planning on doing). It seems kind of a frivolous luxury.

If we are getting one, mid-range seems the right call. The non-customization one isn't worth the time, and the pricey one isn't worth gimping ourselves when shopping for necessities. (Plus, we already have a caretaker bodyguard).

>>676693
Considering we have to be submerged in fluid for suppression to work, I'm not sure normal style fighting is a priority. By the time you're boxed in and underwater, you've pretty much lost a fight anyways.

That and our last bout of suppression messed with our memory, and left us physically unsteady as we were coming out of it. I don't see a knife or gun being much use to us in that situation.

Hope this isn't spammy but for clarification is the fluid the only method of suppression or are the other ways of inflicting it?

>>676685
>>Takeda Special: Custom built Servo-Mech. Can be customized to fit many roles, from caretaker to bodyguard. Costs 6,000
Ask if the Takeda Special can go toe-to-toe - for a bit - with a Magical Girl. If so, we could use a sparring partner we don't need to to worry (too much) about injuring or killing.

"Hey Kaguya?"

"Yes?"

"Suppression... is it only caused by that liquid?"

"Far as we know. Why?"

"Just a thought..."

You'd have to put some thought into that. While getting some combat training of some kind might be of some use, you weren't sure how much, or if it would be worth the trouble, considering your last suppression bath. Still, a thought to consider.

"I guess... I guess I'll take the Nishi."

The mechanic nods his head happily, then begins tinkering with the device, muttering comments to himself. Kaguya nods her head in acceptance before waiting patiently alongside you as the machine is brought to life. Dull lights, what you think serve as sensors, light up on its "face" and it stands in a relatively smooth motion, though you can detect some rigidity to it. It stares unblinking at you and Kaguya before Takeda gets to instructing you on what to do.

"All that's left to do is imprint your voice on it. Go ahead, identify yourself as its... well, I can't use the word, but you get the idea. Currently it's designation is Nishi-13254, so use that so you know you are addressing it."

You nod in understanding before stepping closer, feeling slightly apprehensive.

"Nishi 13254, I am your master, Lily Iridium."

There's a beep, then it turns to face you squarely, bowing in a deep, Japanese-style show of respect.

"Lily Iridium-Sama. This unit is pleased to serve."

It's voice sounds hollow and robotic, but understandable. You turn to find Kaguya grinning from ear to ear and Takeda with a self satisfied smirk.

"Well, that takes care of that. I got Takeda's payment covered, so don't worry about that."

"Pleasure doing business with such an honored customer, Kaguya."

"Oh please. Regardless, we're about done here. I've seen a few Nishi's before, so I know when you get the chance you can fiddle with it later. For now, what's our next stop? Clothes? Gadgets? Or did you want a closer look at the Exo-Mechs? I can get us into the hangars if you like."

>Input

Whichever has better deals at this time of day.

Otherwise, you'd like to see the Giant Robots That Shoot People. Followed by gadgets, and finally shopping.

Well, she has our given name, now. I suppose it's a moot point, since we're basically trusting her anyways.

As does he, although he doesn't necessarily know we're a magical girl.

>what do
Well... as long as we're here, it couldn't hurt to take a closer look at one of the giant robots.

(Then gadgets, then clothes).

I'd rather get some clothes or gadgets...Gadgets first, clothes later I think.

Take a closer look at the mechs, then gadgets?

"I wouldn't mind seeing one of the mechs up close."

"Alright. Stick close."

Kaguya departs the shop with a final wave to Takeda before leading you back the way you came, weaving through the crowds. Your new servo-mech trails behind you, easily keeping pace. After a few minutes, the crowds thin out, and you realize that the people around you are mainly in jumpsuits, covered in grease and all moving with senses of purpose. Most hardly notice the pair of you making your way deeper in, only a few sparing confused glances. Kaguya drops back to walk beside you soon after reaching this new area, offering you a friendly grin.

"Almost there. I was originally going to show you a different mech, I probably could've asked anyone to give us a peek, but well... you slipped up back there, and fair is fair. My family sponsor's this one, so... well, I trust you."

She stops speaking just as you reach a particular door. It's marked with a symbol on the front, a wolf with a full moon rising behind it. Kaguya rolls her eyes at the depiction, but is smiling regardless. She keys it open with a swipe of her hand over the lock, then ushers you inside.

Within the cluttered and rather messy area you instantly spot the exo-mech, the machine's front armor pulled off and interior workings exposed. A man sits at an angle inside, working on something, while another man stands up from where he was seated, looking concerned before he spots your companion and his eyes light up with surprise.

"Kyoko-Sama! We weren't told you'd be coming! If we'd known we'd have-"

"It's fine, Kenji. This is a surprise visit after all. I'm just here to show a friend the Okami."

Kaguya, or rather, Kyoko gestures to you, offering the man a smile. He bows to you both, a very deep bow, before straightening himself, still looking worried. The other man has stopped his work as well, trying to hurry himself so he can likely do the same. Kaguya, er, Kyoko, waves his haste away however. Clearly she doesn't want this to be a big deal.

"Matsumoto, please, continue. The Okami has a match tonight, after all. Want her in the best shape she can be."

"Ah, yes."

The mechanic, presumably a mechanic, goes back to his work, while Kaguya starts up a conversation with the other. She glances at you and smiles, nodding towards the exo-mech with an affirmative nod. You hesitate slightly before making your way forward, stopping a few feet away to study it more closely without getting in the way.

The machine stands nearly twice as tall as a man, and on closer inspection you realize that it isn't really a full mech so much as a cross between that and powered armor. The pilot, or perhaps wearer, or whatever, seems to get strapped in to a place roughly within the torso. The arms and legs then have a place within the machine's own arms and legs, likely used to guide and enhance movement rather than being manipulated through keyed controls. A large backpack, presumably the place for the generator, radiator and electrical equipment, rests behind the torso, and no helm or face is visible. All in all, it looks more like a simple combat platform than a full sized mecha.

Still, you see no visible weapons on it, most likely a result of being civilian, but still, you can't see it as much of a threat to you.

"So, this your first time seeing one up close?"

You glance up to find the other man, Matsumoto, watching you with a subtle amusement on his face. You nod slightly, not really sure how much you want to say, but he seems to accept that with a nod of his own.

"Well, I can't speak for every exo-mech, but if you have any questions, about the Okami or exo-mechs in general, feel free to ask me. My work gets kinda dull, and I'm only really running numbers right now."

>Input

>you slipped up back there
>I trust you
Make sure to be more careful with her name than your own- no reason to betray trust. And a lunar's identity would be more vulnerable than the others- once an opponent knows who they are, they can figure out who their light is and act against them. Solars and Stellars would be harder to neutralize this way, as they draw from groups.

Speaking of, my current guess would be that she draws power from the mech's pilot, though that kind of thing is probably very rude to ask after or bring up in conversation.

>you can't see it as much of a threat to you
Still, cool though!

>any questions
How does it fight? I don't see any weapons- is it all hand to hand?

What keeps the pilot from getting hurt?

How's she doing in the standigns / rankings / season / however they track that stuff?

Too bad these aren't up to par with Caelestis Bellator, or they'd get more funding.

Are these Exo-Mechs still used in combat against magical girls, for distractions and mobility and stuff?

could a sufficiently powerful lunar ride one and shield the whole thing?

Wiki page updated to not suck, mostly to head off the triplicate magical girl names before they get confusing.

http://tgchan.org/wiki/Caelestis_Bellator

Dis thread when?

>How does it fight? I don't see any weapons- is it all hand to hand?

"Civilian ones in the arena's, yeah. That and very toned down electrical attacks. People are more interested that way, and it minimizes injury to the pilots, along with a few other safety measures.

"Normally, any weapon these things can carry, they can use. Back during the war, we had em decked out with all sorts of things. Oversized shotguns, missile racks, hell, I saw a couple running around with swords."

>What keeps the pilot from getting hurt?

"Normally, several inches of solid steel, plus shock absorbers to dampen impact, and the sheer mobility these things can have if you tune em right. Other than that, nothing. In the arena, though, most attacks aren't lethal. It's more point based then anything. Rip off certain pieces of armor, you get points. Land a solid blow, you get points. Disable the mech completely, automatic win. Still, harming the pilot intentionally is grounds for banishment and legal action. The arena owners around here take that sort of thing very seriously. Though I've heard of illegal street fights from time to time."

>Are these Exo-Mechs still used in combat against magical girls, for distractions and mobility and stuff?

"Not so much anymore. Court's got its own trained monkeys for that." Matsumoto's voice bears a bitter edge at the mention of the Court and its magical girls, glancing slightly at Kaguya. "Our little princess over there has had some narrow scrapes with them, and I don't like her odds if she keeps up her antics. Still, there are a few military exo-mech units out there, and they can be used to take down a magical girl, despite what they might tell you. See, lots of magical girls focus on ranged combat. Most don't have spells for short range, or even physical engagements. You get in close, and you can lock em down, specially if you can get a hand on em. It's why exo-mechs were designed for mobility over armor. You close fast, knowing you're going to lose some of your buddies, but you lock her down, magical girl can't do a thing. Like a pack of wolves fighting a bear. Bear'll go down eventually, but it'll take some of the wolves with it. Same idea. Still, why waste money on wolves when you have trained bears of your own."

"So, uh... how's she doing in the... um..."

"The Rankings? The Okami is doing fine this season. Real good. Her pilot's a little younger than most, doesn't have a lot of experience yet, but he learns fast. Too bad, he's no Kyoko, I tell you, she could make this baby fly when she was still piloting."

"Don't go getting sentimental on me, Matsu. You know I quit for good reasons."

Kaguya strides over from her conversation with the other men, staring fondly at the vehicle before her. For a moment, you detect a hint of melencholy in her eyes, but it quickly disappears as she turns to you, grin once again on her face.

"Welp, that's that. Hope you got a good long look. We got places to be, though. I'll catch you all later. Hopefully I can make it to the match."

"You better."

"Please give us some warning next time, Kyoko-Sama."

Kaguya waves to the pair as she guides you back outside, gesturing for you to follow. As you make your way back towards the entrance, there is a silence that seems rather hard to break. Still, within moments, Kaguya is falling back to walk next to you again.

"So, that was the Okami. Real beauty, if you ask me, though Ken could use some work still. Good kid though."

"Yeah... Could a Lunar use one of those, and channel her powers to cover the whole thing?"

"What, pilot and cast? Huh... I don't know. Maybe. Still, we're already pretty mobile, and it runs sorta counter to what Lunars do. We're more bastions then cavalry, if you get the analogy. Still, since we're walking, figure I might ask.

"What did you think of the exo-mech?"

>Input

it's pretty darn cool!

but i'd be careful. if someone out there figures out something that can resist magic, it can be turned from a wolf to a wolf with bear proof armor.

oh and name situation, who should we say which name in front of?

It's cool. Not looking forward to when someone at the court has the same idea I just did and finds a way to make it work...But then again, maybe it doesn't have to be the court that does it...Maybe it could be me, if I learned to drive one of those.
DANGIT! I thought having the ability to fight close up somehow would be useful! Maybe we can turn Comet into some sort of Comet kick or something later on...

Too bad we can't purchase a starter kit for building our own. Not much to do here, we got information about fighting Exo-Mechs and there isn't much else they can teach us yet.

Time to buy some gadgets. A smartphone would be great. But buy one without any internet connection, one hack could ruin you.

>>677683
a phone only has as much life ruining data as you give it. so long as nothing stupidly important is on the phone a hack will be an annoyance at worst.

>Most don't have spells for short range, or even physical engagements.
Hmm. I wonder if it would be worth picking up spells of that type just because they'd be unexpected.

It would counter mech-tactics, but wouldn't be any good against solars (getting close means they can just AOE blast you to death easier), and we already have the edge on Lunars. Might help against fellow Stellars, actually, since it would give us an unexpected angle of attack.

>"What did you think of the exo-mech?"
Cool. Really cool. *Grin*.

I don't think one would suit me any better than you, though. A stellar fighting style wouldn't be much helped being tied down at all. We're even more dependent on mobility, and not much on defenses.

It's an intriguing idea, using one to fight- I'd hate to come up against one. If we could find a way to synergize, a good combat style for a magical girl in a suit it would be a deadly combination. I wouldn't doubt the court is working on that themselves if they're busing fighting a rebellion; nothing spurs new technology like war.
Still though-, damn cool, thanks for showing me. And for trusting me

>>677666
>"What did you think of the exo-mech?"
Really cool.

I kind of want to ask Kyoko if becoming a magical girl was the reason she had to stop piloting, or if it was something else unrelated, but that seems like it might be a sore subject for her.
>>677677
>Comet kick
Inazuma Kick. Too good an opportunity to miss.

[spoiler]Just in case you missed it: http://tgchan.org/kusaba/questdis/res/95633.html

"Really cool." You can't help the large grin that spreads across your face. The thing had been pretty cool. Somehow, your head was practically spinning with idea on how to use one to your advantage, although you admitted that they seemed mostly pointless given your Stellar tendencies. Still, the ideas were fun to consider. "Still, overall, I don't think they mean much, at least for us. Kinda pointless, being what we are."

"Yeah, I hear you. Still, it was fun to pilot. An entirely different feeling then being a Daughter. Hey, maybe if you decide to stick around New Tokyo, we can land you a job working at the arena? You seem interested enough, and the Okami could always use more help."

"I'll... I'll think about it."

Kaguya nods in response and picks up the pace a little. You weren't lying about thinking about it though, as you suddenly realize you'll have to consider what you want to do with your new freedom, blank memory and all. You don't even know if you have any usable skills outside your position as a Daughter of the Stars.

Eventually, you are shaken from your reverie by Kaguya, who quirks an eyebrow at you in question. You wave it away before turning your attention to the newest shop in front of you. It seems to be a smaller shop, hidden between what looks to be a bookstore and a large department store. Still, despite its quaint feel, the store is filled to the brim with electronics of all kinds. You marvel at all the things within, before you find two devices dropped into your hands. One seems to be wristband of some kind, a small computer screen placed on it. The other is more obviously a phone. You glance up to see Kaguya grinning at you again.

"Phone has Sunny's number on it. Mine too. Never know when you might need the help. The wristband is the same as mine-" Kaguya pulls back a sleeve on her dress to show a similar device on her arm. "- it reads the magical energy in our bodies and displays it as a percentage. It updates itself to, so you don't have to worry about a thing in that regard. Just don't ask how the owner got them. That should cover the basics. All in all, a grand total of 2,000. That leave you with 4,000 to play with. Can't say what you'll find, or even what you might be looking for. Just have to go digging through the junk. Might even find some upgrades for your new robo-pal, there. Just keep in mind we'll need some for clothing too.

"Have at it!"

You glance around the shop as you fiddle with the wristband, eventually getting it secured around your wrist. There's a slight prickling sensation, then a gentle beep. A quick glance reveals a number calculating itself, then a flash of a 100% pops up. Seems you're at full strength. Go figure.

>Input

>I'll think about it.
Really depends on what we end up doing. If our cause lets us set up shop in one location, a civilian identity with or without a job might be an option. Would also depend on how much funding we get from our group / what they provide. And then there's the big question of what's the best use of our free time.

>You don't even know if you have any usable skills outside your position as a Daughter of the Stars
I wonder if you'd learn anything if you googled yourself. Or of course, we could always see what Anette knows about your past.

>a flash of a 100% pops up. Seems you're at full strength. Go figure.
Later, I'd like to fire off an arrow and a comet to see how much they cost, but that doesn't seem appropriate in the middle of an electronics store. And maybe we shouldn't do anything flashy before we've invested in disguising our appearance.

Does the not-watch have any other information it displays in other menus? Right now, it might say things about your powers you aren't even aware of yet.

>dig for gadgets
Hmm. Some kind of basic multitool might be useful for non-magic stuff. And/or as a practical add on to slap on the droid.

I would consider a basic weapon like a baton or knife, but there's not a whole lot of point where you're a walking bullet hell boss.

Alright, we got our HP bar and phone...
What devices to look for?...
This world doesn't seem to have equipment that's magical on it's own...Or at the least if it does, it demands a Daughter to power it so it's not actually that common.
Then again, the wrist band...
I figure assuming there's no 'innate' way for the Daughters to sense each other there's gotta be magic radar, at least.

>>678055
it could be incredibly short ranged, which is why it can only work on a wrist band.

Find some Kevlar weave that fits in a dress. Get a shield for your robot buddy, and a few books. Your allies should have supplies, so no need to go overboard on those.

>>678070
kevlar? a shield? we already immune to bullets. anything we can't block with magic will ignore kevlar as well.

We know very little about what magical girls normally do for fun, friendship, food, facilities, funds, and fuc love normally here, or what the establishment has in the way of plans and expectations for us. A bunch of questions we need useful answers to in order to prioritize what to buy include: Where do we expect to stay/sleep? What might a wardrobe reasonably cost and what else do we need besides clothes and computing hardware to look up stuff and do leet haxx0rz? Why do people crowd around magical girls here, and how do we help them? What about the lady we rescued/captured? Are we getting a trust fund or an allowance, and what affects that if so?

Let's look for:
A reach extender for our arm so we can grab things far away, like an extendo hand
a grappling hook maybe?
something to recharge our magic
something to heal ourselves if we get hurt Maybe an anti-magic sheild?
A repulsar gadget to push people away?

something fisty, brass knuckles like.

>>678308
Repulsar / grappler seems like the kind of thing magic should cover.

>>678051
And in retrospect, a multi-tool might not be needed if we could magic up solid light objects instead of just blasts, bullets, and shields. Although, then again, working with tools that risk frying or blowing up what you're working on might not be practical.

>>678045
>The wristband is the same as mine-" Kaguya pulls back a sleeve on her dress to show a similar device on her arm. "- it reads the magical energy in our bodies and displays it as a percentage. It updates itself to, so you don't have to worry about a thing in that regard. Just don't ask how the owner got them.
That seems super-suspicious, particularly if all the Daughters turn out to have these indispensably convenient very specialised devices of unknown origin.

>>678362
Thinking that anything we can do with a gadget we should, to save mana for things that we can't right? Never hurts to have options.

>>678438
Maybe, maybe not? Our whole thing is about spamming cheap attacks, and mundane utility spells are probably pretty cheap. Even more so if they're one-offs. So if we can do that kind of thing, I'd expect it to be affordable.

The unknown tradeoff is how versatile our powers actually are, versus how much stuff we could carry is worth the load.

>>678075
Okay, so that would mean that any armor Lily wears should be designed to protect OTHER people...

How about a high-density kinetic shield so that she can comet straight into walls and everything within two feet of her (including clothes and anyone she's hugging) will be safe?

Probably too expensive, but there might be something in the market designed to help her save people rather than self-defense. Some kind of easily-equipped armor that can be placed on civilians so that you can leave them alone after saving them and they'll probably be fine for the next minute.

>>678450
you are asking for impossibly powerful gear. a shield capable of resisting a magical girl's power for even a few seconds would be ludicrously expensive.

You frown slightly as a thought slips through your mind. Kaguya easily catches the change in expression, cocking her head to the side curiously.

"What's up?"

"Well... these bracelets. Doesn't it seem rather convenient that something like this just happens to exist, and we just happen to get them from some unknown place?"

"Oh. Well, they're not unknown. Been around since the second generation. But these particular ones are acquired through less than legal means from the Court. And they've been scrubbed clean of any tracking, I've had... people, look into it for me. Nothing to fear. Go ahead and take a look around without any worries."

You nod amiably, then begin to browse through the store shelves, hunting for thing that might be of use. You slowly acquire objects throughout your journey until you arrive at the storefront again, a small pile of possibilities in your arms. You quickly discard things that might be redundant, or that Kaguya proclaims as being not particularly useful, and eventually arrive at a few possible things to spend your budget on.

>Multi-Function Tool: The simple tool allows for a variety of simple functions, including a multitude of basic mechanic tools and even a few electronic "re-purposing" functions. Sells for 1,000 at the most basic of models.

>Shock-Fist: A one size fits all glove with an attached micro-battery. The resulting device discharges its charge into a subject when forceful contact is made between fist and subject. The battery can hold three charges, and can be charged at any convenient source of electricity. Sells for 2,000 for a pair.

>Simple Baton: Sounds like what it is. A simple wood baton, generally used for self-defense. Sells for 500.

Inspect the multi-function tool. What apps does it have and what programs can you purchase later?

>Shock-Fist
We're getting this. Because I bet we can totes tie our magic into tech and with this we can COMET PUNCH OUR ENEMIES INTO THE OBLIVION OF SPACE!!!

>>679166
I'd get the tool and the baton for versatility. You can actually use a baton for a lot.

The gloves are interesting, but too pricey. If we got them, I wouldn't want to get anything else.

Multi-tool and shock fist I think- a peice of wood shouldn't be exactly hard to find lying around, and I expect it's about as good as a rock or other debris (although I could be wrong)
multi-tool will hopefully have multiple uses that come in handy!
shock fist will also hopefully fufill a close quarters options we may not be able to dow tih magic (as has been discussed before)

Come on, that "shock fist" is just a tazer with a glove, we can build a better one later when we've got a decent workshop probably, this one is gonna be civilian grade.
The multitool and the baton sound good, how much money does that leave us with and do we have any idea what skills we may have (or have had) that are relevant to buying tools? I think I wanna ask our wife (girlfriend? boss? secretary? who she was to us is on the list of questions to ask her) what we used to know and do.

Some debate occurs before you eventually settle on just the multi-tool. While either one of the melee weapons might be of some use, there is little you could do with them at the moment. Perhaps in the future, you'd think about it, and probably have access to far better, but you'll make do without for now.

You inspect the multi-tool after the purchase, and find it comes with an ample number of simple tools, screwdriver, bottle opener, knife, but it also contains a number of simple hacking programs, capable of being updated or upgraded at a later date. Those already loaded into the machines admittedly limited space seem to deal with hacking through basic security systems, but you suppose it'll do for now.

After making the purchase, Kaguya snatches you up once again, leading you through the streets once again. This trip is significantly shorter, however, and you soon find yourself in the center of a mall complex, surrounded by people going about their business here and there. Kaguya is still getting accosted by numerous individuals, but before she gets completely swarmed, she hands off a small card to you, giving you a bit of advice on the side.

"Clothing stores around here are pretty expansive, I'm sure if you can think it up, it'll be around here somewhere. While not as important for you as it is for our more... fantastic siblings, it's still important to make an impression. You wouldn't be able to promote your cause if you didn't shine at least a little. I'll leave it to you, you should have enough on the card to cover you for a few different things, plus essentials. Come find me when you're done. Just follow the crowds."

With a smile and wink, Kaguya lets herself get swept up into the crowd, clearly giving her adoring fans her attention. Guess that means you're on your own for now.

Time to get shopping.

>Describe/Draw/Define/Whatever Your Preference for costume.

Wear something common-looking but made of bright colors. A few orange overalls combined with some basic dresses.

I feel like there's a level of fun to be had with taking that 'cult leader' line Sunny threw at us and running with it.
Something something we should have a cape. A short cape if we're worried about catching on things, but some level of cape-ish thing should be worn by us, yes.

Tank top, short jacket, frilly skirt, thigh highs, boots. Maybe some ribbon or lace where we can fit it in. Warm colors, oranges, yellows. Let's go for something fun. (Probably should hide some pockets in there somewhere as a small nod to practicality).

Army girl's probably going to disprove of whatever we pick, but we're not in the military no more, might as well look the part.

I dunno how much we can alter our appearance magically, but we might want to start experimenting with that if we're establishing a public persona, here. Apparent facial structure, hair style / color, eye color / shape are small things that play a big part in how people see you- small tweaks are all it might take. (Our powers seem very light show driven, subtly changing colors or lighting is probably within our capabilities).

Santova 2015/10/27(Tue)20:40 No. 679759 ID: 26ac98
File 144600360534.jpg - (813.42KB , 2448x2448 , IMG_3115.jpg )

Boots, cargo pants, fglame retardant army jacket with lots of pockets. We want heavy duty studry practical clothing- we're in a war after all. We don't really need to worry about our clothes protecting us (magical sheild already obtained) but we can use them to carry things, put out fires, etc etc.
We also need a symbol.
I attached a file with a couple of designs- the smaller one is a star to represent us, the larger one is supposed to incorperate star, sun and moons to represent the daughters as a whole, unified together. I would strongly push we have some sort of emblem or signifer, a banner or symbol people can recognize and rally around for our cause, even if it's not one of those

>>679759
symbolism is why getting nice looking clothes is important. following a grungy looking person vs following a well dressed person.

>>679777
Army clothes don't have to be grungy, and symbolism doesn't have to be pomp, it just has to be iconiciconic - we don't have to look regal just as long as we're significant and memorable right?

Something vaguely military, or at least reminiscent of a uniform. Undershirt and overcoat, epaulettes, a cap or beret (my vote is beret), and a insignia like >>679759 suggested. With Comet, trousers are probably a better idea than a skirt.

We are aligned with people against the 'Court' hierarchy, but we still have to pick a personal cause. I nominate peace, love and prosperity as our personal cause. This will include works for the poor, protecting those that deserve and need it, free hugs, and needing a large bed for all the visitors and occupants. With love explicitly part of our cause, it follows that we should fly high with a short skirt and naughty underwear.
Even if we can't get behind that idea, or it's a bad idea, we do still have normal clothes shopping to do. Here's a list of normal clothing to get: A fancy short dress and heels for going to formal functions and high-class dates, a nice skirt-suit and other businesswear, rugged overalls with a toolbelt for when we're being a greasemonkey, workout clothes and runners, a burqa or two for when we want to go incognito, good steeltoe boots, a few pairs of jeans and a selection of t-shirts that speak to you, socks & underwear, a good backpack and duffle bag, and a nice and fancy hairpin or two.

>>679895
I'll second picking up some civilian duds on the side (prices permitting), since we won't be in magical girl mode all the time, and who knows when we'll get more money or a chance to shop.

>>679895
I upvote this in addition to my previous suggestions

Just to help speed things along a little, I'll throw this out there, just the two styles I've seen people leaning towards, feel free to solidify a vote for your next post.

Another thing, this is a purely dress style choice at the moment. What you choose to represent is entirely up to you until you "debut" as a magical girl, to use the word loosely, and you solidify yourself as a force in the world. If you wish to discuss specifics of what you choose to represent, or how you wish to present yourself in the future(ie, have an alter ego, don't, how this alter ego should act, etc.) I'd ask you take that to the discussion thread, found here:

http://tgchan.org/kusaba/questdis/res/95633.html

Regardless, the two clothing styles for you're magical girl persona, should you choose to differentiate the two:

>Military Inspired: Taking stylistic inspiration from military uniforms, what is essentially an officer's formal dress uniform is used, tailored slightly for easy of movement, insignia worn upon the shoulder and upon the flash on the accompanying beret. The insignia is taken from one of two presented(unless others are suggested), either the single star or the united three.

>Casual Inspiration: Following a more traditional route, but shying away from the overly frilly and flamboyant styles. Tank top, jacket, short skirt, thigh-highs and boots are the norm, with vibrant, warm oranges and yellows to catch the eye. An insignia could be worn stitched to a jacket pocket, worn as a locket on the neck, as a bracelet accessory, or anything similar.

To answer an idea posited as well, your magic can be turned rather easily to alter appearance in subtle, and not so subtle, ways if one chooses.

If we are restricted to a single outfit, I vote military style- iconic and easy to recognize, inspiring to the people that rally around us. It elevates us apart from people but I feel that fact works in our favor- we want to become an idol, a symbol, something greater than we actually are for our people to look to for inspiration and faith; a guiding star if you will. I personally vote for unified insignia to represent us bringing together the daughtors, the rebelion and, if only a single member, the court. Peace in our time kinda deal

I think the only thing that came close to consensus with the suggestions was that there should be some kind of jacket in the outfit. So that should be included at least. (Plus, I feel like an obvious visual reference to the court's styling / who we were will reassure Annette somewhat).

Could we hybridize the two? A military-style jacket worn over a more casual warm thing. And keep the beret, but maybe non-regulation color. An outfit that's a nod to our past, and to our new cause.

We don't try to hide from what we were, or what we are now. Honestly is at the root of trust, and that's what our power is based on.

>To answer an idea posited as well, your magic can be turned rather easily to alter appearance in subtle, and not so subtle, ways if one chooses.
If we want a civilian identity / job, I suggest we make some minor tweaks. A different eye color, hair style (maybe some highlights?), subtle facial structure differences when magiced up. Not different enough to weird out people who should know us, but enough that strangers aren't gonna make us on the street.

>emblem
The one on the right is cooler, and the whole uniting things is very us, and very Stellar too, actually (it is after all, a pattern of interconnections).

I'd put it on the beret and the jacket. Not sure if we go with the pocket or the shoulder, but either would work.

Call me an anarchist shit-disturber, but wearing military costume, or even military costume-inspired clothing says an awful lot about our political and cultural leanings. If we're not part of an army I don't really want to peg us as a damn neonazi.

>>679935
Sometimes the answer is less about choices and more about comprise.

An overall casual outfit with military vibes. I say we keep the beret and our give our jacket more prominent emblazoning. Say large unified emblem on the back with our individual emblem on the shoulders, and the unified emblem again on the beret.

>>679935
Screw it, wear a Dirtied Fur Coat (buy one at the cheap markets) and some Cargo Shorts.

You spend then next hour collecting up and trying on various articles of clothing, trying to settle on something to wear. The normal everyday things are easy, and you collect a few outfits for a variety of situations and conditions you may find yourself in. An outfit for a possible magical girl persona, however, proves far more difficult to settle on.

Eventually, however, you narrow your choices down to two, a military styled outfit and a more casual outfit. For a few minutes you agonize over the two, then decide, you know what? Screw it, you'll just mix both. You choose to keep the military beret(which is a nice bright orange and earns you a few odd looks from the clerk you bought it from) and a more utilitarian everyday uniform jacket of similar color to the beret(which the person you purchase it from insists is called a blouse, and not a jacket, but whatever), while you take a skirt, t-shirt, thigh highs and some knee high boots from the more casual side. You try it on and quickly note that you now look rather nice in orange and yellows. Huh, who'd have thought. You return to your original set of aqcuired clothing for now, purchase the remaining items you need, and make your way back into the mall main hallways, servo-mech following dutifully behind you loaded down with bags. You chose to keep the bag with your newest outfit with you, for safekeeping, even as you brainstorm ideas for an emblem to place on the jacket and beret. Perhaps something to represent unity...

Your thoughts are interrupted by the gradual increase in noise and chatter from around you, and you decide you've found Kaguya. Sure enough, you emerge into a small courtyard area and find her up on a stage, smiling and waving and taking pictures with people. You wait a few minutes and she spots you as she finishes up with another group. You see a brief flash of relief across her face, then she puts on a sad smile and excuses herself, to the disappointed chatters of the crowd. Still, she makes her way to you and quickly leads you away.

"Oh man, it's great you showed up when you did. Doing that for an hour is exhausting. I don't know how Sunny can keep that sort of thing up for entire days. Get everything you need?"

"Yeah, I think so... is that normal?"

"Well... for some of us. Others don't actually do anything with their powers anymore, no Great Enemy, and they don't want to get involved with either the Court or the Rebels. Solars are the most active and obvious about it, and I'm somewhat of an exception when it comes to Lunars. Most Lunars aren't that, ah... open? Open about their meet and greets. Oh, look at the time. We'd better get to the city limits. This way, we'll take the tram."

Kaguya takes off, you and your robot friend following along behind, and eventually you reach what appears to be a tram station. Within a few minutes of arriving a tram pulls in, and you soon find yourself moving along at a good pace, seeing the buildings flash by around you as you head off to wherever you're going. Kaguya gets mobbed again almost immediately after the doors close, which leaves you to think for a bit, before she manages to make her excuses and return her attention to you.

"Should've changed before we left. Oh well. So... we got a little while before we get there. You have any last questions before that? About anything you want, I'll do my best to answer."

>Input

We should talk strategy. What do we do now?

So what happens next? I've joined up with this rebellion but it seems very informal. I don't really know where to go or what to do. It feels weird to just sort of wake up one day, nothing in your head and told to choose what to do. It's kinda hard to pick a direction when you don't really have anything to go on yanno?

Also, is there any way I could get my memory back? Is suppression amnesia permanant?

So... what is normal for us around here? No enemy, and I assume you're not off making daring raids and rescues every day, nor that the court is constantly butting in.

Hmm. Are there practical applications for what we do, or are our powers pretty much combat oriented? (Energy attacks might be able to be adapted to power generation, flight and related powers to construction, shields could be useful in all kinds of industry...).

I can come up with a few questions, sure. Where do we live, what's our budget like, what changes those things, how much do we set our schedule and task list, what's our emergency beeper going to go off for, how often will that happen, when do we get to see Annette again, and should we be baking a cake, pie or something else as a thank you for the help so far?

>What do we do now?

"We'll meet up with Emmett, and you can decide what you want to do from there. From everything I know, he's planning on leaving Japan, doesn't want to stick around for too long. But there are groups around here who could use a Stellar's help to. Guess it's up to you in the end."

> is there any way I could get my memory back? Is suppression amnesia permanent?

"I don't know. I'm sorry I can't be of much help, but anyone who's been taken hasn't come back. You'd have to talk to someone who knows more about it then I do."

>So... what is normal for us around here? No enemy, and I assume you're not off making daring raids and rescues every day, nor that the court is constantly butting in.

"Most of us follow whatever desires we like. A lot of the Solars are idols and, uh... emergency workers, I guess is the best term for them. Lunars like me generally stay out of the way, support whoever we choose from the shadows, I'm a bit of an exception. Stellars... well, there aren't many around here. Then again, there's only five of us around here.

"So really, it's up to you how actively you want to help the resistance efforts."

>Hmm. Are there practical applications for what we do, or are our powers pretty much combat oriented?

"Combat. We were originally meant to fight the Great Enemy, and our powers are almost exclusively for that purpose, or for disguising ourselves to avoid notice in our everyday lives. I've never heard of anyone ever turning our powers to another purpose. Using our power openly like that would probably attract too much attention normally, actually. Might be possible here in New Tokyo though, or another free city out there in the world."

>Where do we live, what's our budget like, what changes those things, how much do we set our schedule and task list, what's our emergency beeper going to go off for, how often will that happen, when do we get to see Annette again, and should we be baking a cake, pie or something else as a thank you for the help so far?

Kaguya blinks at this, then begins giggling happily, eventually quieting down enough to answer with a large grin on her face.

"I prefer cakes, but I'll leave that to you. Annette, that's the woman that was in the military uniform right? She should be there at the meeting, assuming something didn't happen. Emmet is pretty understanding, though, so she should be fine. As for the rest, well, it'll be up to what you decide. Ah! Time for us to get off. Almost there."

Kaguya leads the way off the tram, and you find yourself in a region of relative quiet. It seems to be a residential area, houses filling the streets and even a convenience store at one end of the block. Kaguya hardly pauses though, continuing to make her way down the street. You note it's starting to get later, the sun beginning its descent, and you feel exhaustion starting to set in. You've done a lot today, and rest would be appreciated. Still, you keep pace, and eventually you find yourself being led down a few blocks off the main road before being ushered into one of the houses. Within, you find a couple members of the crew who'd saved you. You enter the living room area and spot Annette, who ceases her pacing with a relieved expression on her face. She seems to have discarded her military uniform in exchange for a more casual look, her blond hair pulled back into a ponytail that runs down her back.

"My lady. It's good to see you again. You're alright, not hurt?"

"I'm fine, Annette. Yourself?"

"I'm well, thank you."

Further discussion is interrupted as Emmet enters the room, looking a bit stressed but managing a small smile at seeing you.

"Good to see you. Hope you had a productive day."

"It's been... eventful. And educational."

"Well, I hope it got you up to speed. I hate to rush this, but we need to know: You plan on sticking around here, or heading out with us? We kinda have to leave, Court's on high alert for us, so it's best my little group leaves. You though, they aren't looking for as hard, and it'll be easier to keep yourself out of mind, sources we have tell us records concerning you are scarce after the base went up, and that's confirmed by Annette."

You glance at her, and she nods as she elaborates.

"Information concerning specific Bellator are kept confined to a specific base, as well as the main hub in Europe. Most who had access to your records did not make it out of the explosion, with the exception of myself, and the base in Kyoto is likely still reeling from the attack. Not much effort will be made to hunt you down or retrieve the proper records for a few months at least."

"Right. Still, that means we have to get out of the country. Like I said, it's up to you if you want to stick with us or stay here, there'll be opportunities to support the resistance either way. We plan on heading to the mainland, through Korea and into China to start with, and there are those in both nations that could use our help, while around here, there are a few factions that could use some help around here.

"I'm sorry I'm dumping this on you so fast, but we have to move pretty quick. If you've got question, you can ask them, but we don't have a lot of time."

>Input

I vote we move out with them- bot fighting might be fun but ultimately I wanna be on the front lines, where the action is
If we can I'd be nice to get some private time with Annette

Questions:
Why so worried/stressed? What's the sitch?
What are we gonna be doing in Korea/China?
How long will we be staying before we move again?
When can I rest?

I don't like her going out into the field without some intel, but right now Lily is clueless about how the world currently works. As a soldier/hero class, she needs to see these things for herself instead of hearing them from a classroom, especially with her mind still deprived of its core memories.

If we were put on ice because of power irregularities it would be irresponsible to go out into the field without a clean bill of health for that problem, full stop. We don't know what a clean bill of health for that is, but I wouldn't want to count on us having that yet.
A month getting up to speed either recovering memory or making new memory sounds like a good idea even if that weren't an issue, since we seem to know remarkably little about standard Court operational doctrine, modern asymmetrical warfare doctrine in the age of magical girls, or even a good grasp of what else we have in skills and aptitudes. For the moment we need drills, power development, and knowledge of the strategy, tactics and geopolitics involved to be properly helpful anyway, so we should work on that while we try to apply ourself to helping the people of New Tokyo with their security and prosperity.
This all said, I'd like to ask Anette what she suggests, because she should know far more about our difficulties, limitations and how to get past them than we do.

My gut reaction is that we responded to his cause and we should really follow through on it. (Although the city here is kind of tempting).

Pertinent questions:

What would we be doing on the road?

What about that power instability Annette mentioned before? How did it manifest itself before? How / what problem we had might effect if we're better off on the road or in one place.

"I- This is a big decision."

"I know. I'm sorry for forcing this on you. Look, you can think about it for a little, but we don't have much time."

"I have a few questions, if that's alright?"

"Of course, anything I can help you with."

>Why so worried/stressed? What's the sitch?

"Getting hunted by the Court is never easy on the best of days. We pulled one of the highest profile snatch and grabs in current history. We aren't exactly on the Court's good list."

>What would we be doing in Korea/China?

"Same thing you'd do anywhere I guess. We find ourselves somewhere to hole up, we meet the local resistance efforts, we find out how we can help. Rinse repeat everywhere we go."

>How long will we be staying before we move again?

"We leave tomorrow, whether you're with us or not."

>What about that power instability Annette mentioned before? How did it manifest itself before?

Annette looks uncomfortable at the question, arms across her chest as an expression of uncertainty reaches her face.

"My lady, the anomaly that struck you resulted in... wild swing in power. One moment you could be at full strength, the next you were little stronger than an average human. The exact conditions for the shift were... undetermined. Not a single Court doctor could place what was afflicting you. The fluctuation were quickly affecting your health as well, they said the changes in your magic were wreaking havoc on your physical body."

"... Annette, what do you suggest I do, given what we know?"

"I'd... To be honest, I'd prefer we have stayed with the Court. They have the doctors and knowledge to care for you." A general sense of unease fills the air, the sudden tense atmosphere easily felt. Her admission was clearly unwelcome among those present. The tension releases itself easily enough when she continues. "Still, since you've chosen this path, I'd have to suggest staying in the city. I'm aware of a few of the resistance groups around these parts, you've ah... fought a few of them. And I also know a few tasks we can do to weaken the Kyoto branch of the Court. Still, the decision is yours, my lady."

>Input

Kyoto has a high chance of survival, but there are too many traps that can be placed there. You should travel the world until you have enough intel to form a plan and find a base to hunker down and train up.

>the anomaly that struck you resulted in... wild swing in power. One moment you could be at full strength, the next you were little stronger than an average human.
I wonder if that could have been caused by us starting to not believe in the cause we were fighting for, or some other problem with an important connection. Our powers seem very based in emotions, and you wouldn't even be able to properly diagnose it if you were in denial over what was happening.

Although the real problem with that theory is you'd think such overt symptoms for a crisis of faith would be known, a few generations in. Unless it's kind of a new problem? (It would have been a lot harder to question fighting the Enemy out to wipe out humanity than fighting for an institution).

>Annette, what do you suggest I do, given what we know?
Too bad that wasn't worded differently. The hazard in directly asking her opinion / what she wants is the strain if we choose to reject it too many times. We already asked a lot, getting her to defect with us.

>we've fought some of the local resistance groups
Well we're going to be popular, aren't we.

>And I also know a few tasks we can do to weaken the Kyoto branch of the Court.
That... might be the deciding factor. The advantage any intelligence from our defection gives us is time sensitive. It won't stay current. That, and it might be worth it evaluating how / if our powers act up where we have something of a safety net.

That weighs against just how badly Emmet needs our help. We're firepower, and if they're being hunted, it would be handy to have someone who knows something about how the court would be doing it. Although then again, without a flashy magical girl in tow, they might be more anonymous / harder to find anyways.

we should stay, but tell them to keep in touch, you seem to be getting a GO FAST power so we may be able to be both places at once eventually.

Annette's recommendation to avoid going on the road agrees with my intuition that we should really make sure our head is screwed on correctly before we join this road show. We've barely got power of flight, a basic shield and a basic attack and I would not expect us to match any other stellar the Court has at this point, in tactics, strategy or powers. Plus, we need to at least grasp what our talents, aptitudes and limitations are before jumping into time-sensitive and dangerous situations.

So, as suggested current plan: Join up with the traveling rebellion road show in 1-2 months. Also, do some aptitude testing to know what we can do besides sling magic missiles. Most importantly, it's time to start developing our ethos.

>I wonder if that could have been caused by us starting to not believe in the cause we were fighting for, or some other problem with an important connection. Our powers seem very based in emotions, and you wouldn't even be able to properly diagnose it if you were in denial over what was happening.
Plausible, but we lack information or a way to test this.

We represent a cause- personally it feels a bit like ditching not to go with. We risk our lives but how can we put our life above the soldiers that risked death or died to get our help? I don't know if I want to live with their lives hanging on my head knowing that by going with we could have saved people yanno?

> I don't know if I want to live with their lives hanging on my head knowing that by going with we could have saved people yanno?
You have that backwards: Incompetence in dangerous situations kills. Why do you think soldiers, paramedics, surgeons and cops all have shit tons of professional training to do even after they've been hired?

"I think... I think I'll stick around here for now. If I was in that tank because something is wrong with me, I don't think I need to be endangering anyone else with it."

"Fair enough." Emmet doesn't seem to mind your decision much, though you noted a slight sigh of relief from Annette, standing off to the side. Kaguya herself grins at you as well, clearly pleased you'll be sticking around. "You can use this place for now. It's not linked to us at all, and it's paid for entirely, furnished as well. Whatever else you decide to do with your life is up to you. If you need any help contacting local resistance groups, I can suggest a few... eh, we'll leave that for the morning. It's been a long day. Me and mine are gonna get some rest, I'll leave you to your's. Kaguya, Captain."

"Former Captain."

"Right."

Emmet leaves, his men following him out, though you can hear them thumping around in another room. There's a awkward silence for a moment, then Kaguya cuts in sheepishly.

"Well, I'd better get going to. Don't want to be out too late. I'll catch you around. If you ever need anything, feel free to call me."

Kaguya slips out of the room, and you hear the door open and close, leaving you alone with Annette and your robot companion(though it hardly counts). The awkward silence sets in again, and you fidget slightly, unsure of what to do. Annette seems just as unsure, arms crossing over her chest as she glances around the room.

"Ah... I suppose we shall be living here then, my lady..."

>Input

we should introduce the robot. explain to it that annette is secondary master and should follow her orders unless it contradicts our own.

Annette, what was I to you? Before? I know we have history but with my memory gone I am having trouble figuring out our relationship. Maternal? Sibling? Lover?

I think the first thing we should say is "thank you". For following us. It was... important to you. Not anyone would have done that.

Possible awkwardness cover: Sorry, it's hard to know what to say to someone who knows me better than I think I know me right now.

On the subject of your memory, which I'm sure will come up: you don't know how much you may have explained stellar connections before, but that's still there. You still feel it. Feel her. Emotion, just without context. It's like a picture out of focus, or with the color left behind and the lines all taken away.

You know her, you trust her, you care about her, but, who are we?

Who were you, without the magic? Oddly enough, that sort of explains itself. But you don't even know if you're good at anything else.

Past the emotional and historical stuff, we also probably want to ask her what she knows about suppression. It seems safe to assume your current condition is either a side of effect of being suppressed, or of whatever was causing your power to fluctuate in the first place. (Not sure which is preferable, there).

>>680985
also this- very well laid out

Memory is associative, doing the things we used to do might help to remember things we used to know. For that reason, I'd really like to know if we used to sleep alone, or with someone, and who that someone was if we did sleep with someone: Old habits might help us remember old things.
Aside from that, we need a plan for what to do over the next week that balances finding out what we can do, developing our power source and abilities, learning about the world around us, and maybe trying to do something useful and positive.

"I guess so... Annette?"

"Yes, my lady?"

"Thank you. For following me, I mean. It's... not everyone would have."

"Think nothing of it, my lady. I have long since sworn to follow you till the ends of the earth. A mere change in allegiance won't change that." Annette offer you a smile, one you return slightly awkwardly, before you cough, moving on to cover for your embarrassment.

"Sorry, it's a bit hard to talk to someone who know me better than I do... ah, this is uh... well, my new robot buddy I guess. Nishi 13254, this is Annette. She's allowed to give you orders, so long as they don't contradict mine."

The servo-mech turns it's head to face Annette, who gives it a half-hearted wave. There's a brief pause, then a beep and it's mechanical voice comes to life again.

"Annette-Sama. This unit is pleased to serve."

"Riiiiight. Well, you can be of some use, I suppose..." Annette doesn't look to thrilled about the servo-mech, judging from her expression, but she raises no vocal complaints, and seems more interested in ignoring it entirely. "My lady, if you'd like you may rest. You've had a long day. I will ensure that the place is livable and ready for you in the morning."

"Wait, I have something I want to talk about."

"My lady?"

"I... who was I? I mean, I have the magic, I can feel that, know what I am but... what was I without it? Who was I?"

"My lady was a third generation Caelestis Bellator. You were a Major within the Court, and were awarded honors on several occasions for honorable conduct, selfless service and the subduing of a number of high priority targets. It was noted among superiors, however, that you had an uncommon fondness for the common people, often forgoing material reward in favor of support for those affected by the battles that raged across the planet.

"More personally, you are twenty-three years of age, have finished schooling up to-"

As Annette speaks, you feel a sharp pain intrude upon you attention, even as memories emerge from the fog that shrouds your mind and snap into proper place. While most of it seems to be nothing specific, particular events still eluding your grasp, you do note skills and interests that you suddenly realize could be of some use in the future.

>Select 1

>Mechanical Background: During your years in high-school, as well as during your years of service in the Court, you took an interest in mechanics. This interest ranged from the most basic of machines to the advanced Exo-Mechs of the era. You even picked up how to pilot the war machines, though the skill was mainly a hobby more than anything else. Regardless, your technical skill and familiarity lend themselves to repairing damaged machinery, jury-rigging mechanical devices and modifying machines to suit your needs.

>Military Background: Your parents served in the military at the onset of the global conflicts, and died heroes of their nation. Orphaned, you were taken care of by the government and put through a military academy. You spent your days learning discipline, firearms and the proper way to make a bed. Upon graduating you were made an officer, and you quickly showed an uncanny ability to bark orders and have those orders followed. Over the years your general aura of command and strength of presence tends to draw attention, and while not as skilled as a more dedicated soldier, you do have some ability when it comes to firearms.

>Thief Background: While others might have spent their time in schools, you spent your early life on the streets, trying to survive. You quickly picked up a knack for... redistributing wealth, and as you grew older your knowledge of thievery grew. Your skills range from picking locks to sleight of hand, and while it wasn't the most glamorous of beginnings, those same skills could easily come in handy in your new life.

>Magical Background: Your celestial heritage awoke far sooner than most, magical power maturing that much sooner as well. While many were still figuring out how to cast the most basic of spells, you were already taking to the streets as a magical girl, even before the Court noticed you. While this meant you largely ignored lessons dealing with more mundane topics, your magical maturity lends itself even now. You may immediately construct a new spell, or upgrade an existing one.

>Simple Background: You grew up as normal as normal could be. While you have no particular skills, and you're considered average but for your magical abilities, for some reason that lack of presence makes it easy for you to slip into crowds and even more easily avoid awkward connections between yourself and possible alter egos.

Mechanical Background. Having knowledge of the Exo-Suits can help you fight alongside them.

"I'm fine, I'll, I'll be fine, looks like I got some of my memory back. Feels good to remember being me again... but I feel awkward for being a nerd. Least I was a sexy nerd... sexy inside, kinda; all that grime wasn't good for my pores but I didn't care back then."

military.

it is easier to believe in someone that appears to know what they are doing and is confident even if they are just making shit up and are scared.


grasp at your head for a second and take a breath. when she asks say that something came back, nothing big, just a general demeanor kind of thing.

Hrrm...
I like magical or military-simple isn't the best match for a stellar what with the whole 'cause' thing, and thief...Eeeeh.
Military means potential to help our minions as we accrue them, and magical just seems fitting for what seems to be how magical girls are treated.

>I have long since sworn to follow you till the ends of the earth.
Too bad we can't remember what we did to earn that loyalty right now.

>Annette doesn't look to thrilled about the servo-mech
I'm assuming she's giving it a "why do you need a robot when I can do everything for you" death glare.

>what background
Hmm. I'd like something that lets us approach our build in an unexpected way. To bring something atypical to magic combat.

Which is pretty much the opposite of the magical or simple backgrounds. And a military specialization seems like it wouldn't be that uncommon in the Court's forces, there would be a reasonable amount of overlap, there.

Between the last two... slight of hand and thief type trickiness might be useful. But if our personality was intrinsically sneaky, I think Lily would have been drawn to blink, not comet. And being mechanically inclined would fit nicely with how she was drawn to them earlier. An interest we left behind... something we couldn't keep doing when we had magic and being enlisted to worry about.

Mechanical. Magical girls with mechas, let's do it.

>what say
I... remember that. It's temporary, then. That's a relief. Hopefully the rest comes back soon.

I'm torn Military and Magical seem the most useful but neither really lends themselves to the concerns of the every man.

Theif and simple make the most sense, but thievery seems pretty useless when you have magic and simple is just plain boring.

Fuck it,Robots are awesome.
>>Mechanical

>Annette doesn't look to thrilled about the servo-mech -- >I'm assuming she's giving it a "why do you need a robot when I can do everything for you" death glare.
Educated guess: Consumer, commodity hardware is easiest to compromise because so much of each mass-produced model exists that lots of talent and effort gets spent at it. Because of that, it may be pre-compromised, and it could reasonably be spying on us right now for unknown others--including the Court. If we have electronics and mechanical aptitude the first thing we should do is audit that thing for bugs and vulnerabilities and patch the exploits.

I'll support recognizing our military background though, because we were a danged Major. Understanding tactics, logistics and organization is key to knowing what to do and when to do it with an enemy like the Court.

Mechanical!
Still wanna know about ours and annettes relationship- what did we do to earn her loyalty? What were we to her, and she to us?

>>681445
>Mechanical Background
Can't resist the giant robots.

Mechanical ideas assault your mind, bringing out a more focused fascination with the Okami exo-mech from earlier today. Already your mind whirls with thoughts and sketches of possible additions or modifications that could make the machine more capable. If they'd replace the power system cables with military grade ones, the efficiency and robustness of the entire power supply would go up by at least four percent. Though, that would be illegal to use. Of course, there was always the trick to bypass the civilian fail safes altogether, and you knew how to do that...

You shake the thoughts from your head for the moment, hand coming up to rub gently at your skull. You take a deep breath to steady yourself, and when you return your attention to Annette you find her with a look of concern on her face, hand extended towards you but hovering, almost protectively yet hesitant at the same time.

"My lady, are you...?"

"I'm fine, Annette. Just... think I remember some things. Nothing too specific, just general ideas, that sort of thing. Apparently, I was rather into machines."

"Yes." Annette lets a look of relief match her sigh, smiling slightly. "The base mechanics were always rather happy to have you around, though the same could not be said of the commanders. You were prone to dismantling equipment to see if you could 'improve' them."

"Yeah well... Annette?"

"Yes, My lady?"

"What... what were we? Before."

Annette goes silent at the question, an expression of pain reaching her before she shakes it off with a visible shudder running down her body. Her arms return to their crossed position across her chest, and she pauses to consider before replying.

"It doesn't matter, my lady. What we were has little to do with what we are now. My duties remain the same. Perhaps we may discuss it another time.

"For now, you've had a long day, and I'd suggest some rest. I'll be up awhile longer, making this place livable for you by morning. Your new... machine... can be of use to me in that regard as well."

>Input

>rest. I'll be up awhile longer, making this place livable for you by morning.
I, okay. Don't stay up too late, you need to take care of yourself too.

>Annette goes silent at the question, an expression of pain reaching her before she shakes it off with a visible shudder running down her body.
...I'll remember, okay? I got something back, the rest has to still be in here.

>>681653 this
also
Grab her hands, look her in the eyes and give her something along these lines
Even if "It doesn't matter" to you, I care. I don't really know what your duties were but right now I'm being thrown into a world on fire and I don't need a maid, I need companionship. You must have sacrificed a lot to come with me, so actually be here with me, not a just a distant figure cleaning my room. You're not a service bot and I don't want you to be.

Hug Annette TIGHT. See what reaction that gets from both of you.

"It sounds like we both lost a lot so I'll try to avoid re-opening the wounds. If you were used to the old-me holding you close though, just let me know if I'm supposed to be the big spoon or the little spoon. G'night."
And then we hug her.

>>681687
let's not imply we want to fuck.

"I... Ok. Don't stay up too late, you need to take care of yourself too..."

You start to head for the door to the hallway, intent on going upstairs and maybe finding an empty room to claim as your own. You pause as you reach the door, though. Behind you, Annette is already barking orders at the servo-mech, apparently intent on at least putting it to use. Still, simply leaving things as they are bothers you. You can do better to reassure. You WILL do better. You turn on your heel and stride back over to her, taking hold of her hands and drawing her surprised attention to you.

"My lady?"

"Even if it 'doesn't matter' to you, it matters to me. To be honest, I don't care what you're duties were, I just know that I've been thrown into a world on fire, and I don't need a maid. I need someone to support me.

"I will remember, ok? I got some of it back, the rest has to be in here somewhere."

You pull Annette into a hug, and you feel her tense against your body. For a moment, that's her only reaction, then she seems to slowly relax and wraps her own arms around you, though she seems somewhat hesitant.

"I believe you, my lady. I will continue to follow you, until you no longer require me."

You roll your eyes, but release the other woman, bid her goodnight and head upstairs, locating a vacant bedroom that, while sparse, has a bed in it at least. You barely lay down before sleep claims you.

You awake to gentle nudging and the sound of a woman's voice. For a moment, in your groggy state, you can't place the person or the words, but as sleep releases its clutches on your mind, you quickly catch up.

"My lady. It's time to wake."

You sit up reluctantly, noticing a blanket that hadn't been there before over your still clothed body, and find Annette standing next to the bed, an amused grin on her face. You frown in response, wondering what's so funny, but she simply bows once she notices your attention, a fluid and elegant thing that you silently marvel at. You have no idea what it takes to learn that, but damn did it look good.

"Good morning, my lady. I trust you slept well. Breakfast has been prepared and is waiting for you downstairs. Emmett and his men left early this morning. They left a fair amount of money for us to use till we get situated, though I'm afraid most of it has been put towards this months expenses. We will have to look into acquiring a source of stable income soon. I've also gathered up some data on the local resistance groups, which you may peruse at your leisure. If that is all, I still have the cookware to clean, as well as making sure that Spot is cleaning the bathroom properly."

Annette straightens from her bow and leaves, humming slightly to yourself as you stare, somewhat confused as to what just happened. Regardless, you get yourself out of bed and find your clothes have been both organized and placed into a proper dresser, which you are fairly certain wasn't in the room before, as well as a your multi-tool being placed upon a desk that was also not there before. In fact, on closer inspection, you find that the room you now occupy has been furnished much more than it had been before, drapes over the windows, a carpet on the floor, as well as a small decorative flower vase on the desk. You bed even has fresh sheets and pillows on it to match the blanket. It seems someone had been busy, and somehow you'd missed it all in your sleep.

>Input

>room redecorate around you while you sleep
Either you're a very heavy sleeper (you'd think the military would have trained you out of that), suppression takes a lot out of you, or "ninja maid" is in the resume Annette isn't sharing with you.

>Spot
Pfff.

>a small decorative flower vase on the desk
...lilies?

>what do
Get dressed (casual civilian clothes), pocket the multi tool, and find your breakfast before it gets cold.

Then we can look over the information she found us, and our options.

>>681924
>"ninja maid" is in the resume Annette isn't sharing with you
We met her in full combat uniform walking through a firefight, and barely phased by nearby explosions. Anette is full-on combat-butler.

Time to purchase some mechanics textbooks. See if you can upgrade "Spot" to a "Spike".

But yeah, "Spot" is a good name for the robo-pet.

Eat breakfast, read briefing, check spreadsheet, consider getting in contact with Kaguya's family (or Kaguya herself) to ask what the opportunities are like for people with greasemonkey talent.

Let's focus on getting dressed and ready before we start spending money- grab clothes, eat breakfast, maybe check out those leads she mentioned, then call kayuga?

You dig through your drawers and extract some random set of civilian clothing. You pause as you strip out of your loaned clothing, noticing a mirror on the back of the door and, more importantly, you notice yourself.

Your skin is incredibly pale, like it had been devoid of sunlight for a very long time, and you notice your hair, falling to just between your shoulder blades, seems to be stark white. You run a hand through it a moment, frowning, since you are fairly certain that isn't normal. No one else you've seen, other than the elderly, has hair like yours. Perhaps a result of Suppression? Regardless, you note that the rest of your body seems to be lithe and lacking in any overt muscle, but then, you suppose your magic takes care of most physical aspects of your day to day. While you wouldn't call yourself sexy, you are not without a certain curve to your profile, something you find a small bit of pride in. You take another moment to eye yourself before shaking off your stupor and slipping your clothes on. You have things to do, can't spend all day staring at yourself. As you exit your room you slip the multi-tool into a pocket as well, never know when that might come in handy.

You decide to keep your hair down for the moment, it's not like you can't put it later. As you make your way downstairs you can hear humming coming from the kitchen/dining/living room, and as you enter you idly identify it as a marching cadence, the source of which is Annette in the kitchen part, washing dishes. Your food is sitting on a table, eggs, bacon and pancakes it seems, with strawberries topping the pancakes. You dig in heartily, and notice as folder placed next to your plate. Opening it up, you find the information on the resistance groups Annette had apparently dug up from somewhere. You read over it as you eat, absorbing as much of the information as you can. Once you finish reading, and conveniently eating as well, you summarize what you can in your head.

There seems to be three main groups in Japan, each with similar goals(sorta) but different methods. Based in Kyoto is a group calling themselves the Ronin, after masterless samurai. Smallest in number, they focus on "freeing" the Emperor of Japan from the Court's grasp and actively working to weaken the Court's influence in Japan through raids on supply shipments and Embassies. Noted was that you only briefly came into contact with the Ronin, during an embassy raid that failed due to your presence. The second is based farther north, in Hokkaido, calling itself the Hokkaido Liberation Front and seems to be more interested in fostering local discontent with the Japanese government as well as the Court. It was noted you apparently directly fought their agents a number of times. The last is a group in New Tokyo, a pacifist group that works mainly to maintain New Tokyo's right as a free city. Most citizens of New Tokyo are either members or supportive of the group, though admittedly they do little more than protest Court attempts to influence New Tokyo. You had no interaction with them before, as you were never allowed within New Tokyo.

As you finish up, Annette takes a seat across from you, bowing her head slightly once she notices your attention on her.

"My lady. You've had a chance to review the files I take it?"

"I did."

"Good. Any other groups I discovered you'd either had too much interaction with before or were too small to warrant your attention. I plan on going out and finding a more stable source of income, I should be able to easily support both of us, if you choose to focus on your duties as a Caelestis Bellator. If I may ask, what do you plan to do today?"

>Input

>possible albinism
Hmm. White hair is a rather distinctive look. If we assume that's your natural coloration and not a result of suppression (and you didn't disguise it while deployed), that will make it easier for the court to locate you when they start looking in earnest / recognize who you are when you come into conflict with them. It could also make it easier for any resistance group who encountered you previously to recognize you, or for people who see you magical girl-ing to recognize you as a civilian.

If it's not natural, it decreases the chances resistance groups would recognize you from before. Not sure if it helps or not with the Court- maybe you don't match what they have on file anymore, or maybe this is a known side effect of suppression, and they're looking for a girl who recently left it.

Symbolically though, it is kind of neat, and white is thematically appropriate for a clean start (and symbols seem like they matter, here). And if it's a known suppression side effect, it might lend credibility to our story with resistance members who might doubt us (or hope others might get out). So possibly an advantage in connection building?

>resistance groups
Do we know if Kaguya or Emmet's (or Sunny) are associated with either of these three? They're what we have for a point of reference so far. Oh, and the obvious follow up would be to what extent these groups are already known to have magical girls working with them. (Say, if contact goes bad, they're a lot more of a threat if they have magic).

Not sure what pacifists could use us for, since what we are is inherently combat oriented. Philosophical conflict there, unless they accept the need for protection. (Although, I suppose a magical girl could follow a technical pacifist conduct if she was just careful not to kill anyone). Might be interesting to scout them out, just to see what their deal is.

The Ronin's methods seem more promising to me than the Hokkaido's, although I'm not so sure about the end goal. (How much does one man / leader really matter?). Probably best not to engage the Hokkaido right off the bat, as they'd be least happy to see us, and we're still pretty low on our power curve.

Things we need to do:
-Ensure we're adequately different looking that we're not instantly picked up by optical recognition software. Probably requires glasses, hair dye and possibly some other stuff. If our features look European-heritage enough I'd suggest red or blonde because that matches pale skin for those ethnicities, and black instead for pale Asian-ethnicities.
-Regain knowledge of what we can do that wasn't completely lost during suppression.
-?Look up who we were and previous history somewhere that won't get traced back to us?
-Drill and develop powers.
-Talk to representatives of the pacifist group. Ask them for contact info, and what their planned public events are for the next month.
-Work on our ethos, research and review options.

Ask Anette for things missing from the list, and help putting them in order of priority and schedule.

Right now, you're a freelancer. Joining any particular group may have severe consequences, so be sure that you're strong enough to take them on if they decide to betray you... or vice versa.

And screw the ideals of each group. What matters is the short term benefits and the long term plans, as well as the structure of power and the estimated sanity of whoever's in charge years from now.

For now, a few exercises, some research in EXO-Mechs, and a few magical target practice rounds per day should be enough.

>>682510
>And screw the ideals of each group.
>Daughter of the Stars, you know that you gain strength primarily through acts that draw others to your ideals. The more people that believe in your cause, and in you, the more magical power you can draw from the Stars above. All that remains is trying to remember what you once represented, or perhaps selecting a new cause to fight for.
Bzzzzt, try again! We are an ideology-powered weapon, the ideals matter at least as much as the goals and ends, maybe more.

>>682502
>Probably require
It might not require any tools of the kind, if we can tweak out appearance with magic. (Although I don't know if there's a risk of other magic users detecting we have passive appearance enchantments up while presenting as a civilian, or if we risk those being knocked out versus if we can make them more persistent).

I'm still kind of torn on if a disguise is a good idea right now though.

Oh, and it occurs to me that any attempt to disguise our civilian identity is only as good as the disguises of our known associates.

The files on Caelestis Bellator might be tightly held and slow to release, but Annette was an enlisted soldier, and I expect her records are a lot easier to pull. And she'd have been reported MIA as soon as that plane got back.

(Although I'm not sure if they'd have recognized she defected, if they'd think she was taken prisoner, or if they didn't notice who you grabbed, so they don't know who might have died in the engagement or the bomb going off versus who was taken).

>>682570
good point, be should ask annette about her defection and what that means for us in terms of court reactions.

I vote pasifist group simply because I like the idea of rallying people to a person and a cause. If we become known in the city, we gain power, and I personally like the idea of pasifist route. Seek counsle with annette about what she thinks the reprocussions of that vs the other groups will be, and then see if we can phone up kayuga and get her counsel as well. Maybe build something cool if we have time

"I have a few ideas. Was hoping you could help me set them up in order of priority. Also, uh, do we need to worry about the Court coming after you? Since you defected?"

"Probably, my lady, but that's only if they know I'm here. Don't worry about that, I can take care of myself. I might have less resources to work with, but it's my job to make sure your life runs as smoothly as possible. Now, these ideas or your."

You spend a few minutes outlining what you'd like to do over the course of the next few days. Annette listens intently, chewing on her lower lip as she thinks. After you finish she is silent for a few moments more before she replies, giving her own overview of what's important.

>-Ensure we're adequately different looking that we're not instantly picked up by optical recognition software. Probably requires glasses, hair dye and possibly some other stuff. If our features look European-heritage enough I'd suggest red or blonde because that matches pale skin for those ethnicities, and black instead for pale Asian-ethnicities.

"Disguising yourself might not be important. It's a known side affect of Suppression, though most put into suppression haven't come out. You'll be noticeable to some degree. Still, people dye their hair all the time, and you can just as easily play it off as a personal choice. Your face isn't known to anyone in Japan at the moment, and it'll take time to request those records. Hopefully we'll be long gone by the time anyone gets around to it. Still, if it'll make you feel safer, I can pick up some hair dyes while I'm out today.

>-Regain knowledge of what we can do that wasn't completely lost during suppression.

"It... might be important to do so, but I'm not sure how. Perhaps going through the motions? If that's true, I would suggest finding a mechanics shop or the like and... what was the word you used to use... tinkering? Tinker with some things. Perhaps you'll figure something out."

>-Look up who we were and previous history somewhere that won't get traced back to us?

"Most records regarding specifics are highly classified. You're family needed to be kept safe. There was another reason as well, but even I wasn't privy to that knowledge, or why, and you refused to talk about it. Personal, you said."

>-Drill and develop powers.

"While practicing your powers will certainly help you understand them, you can only develop in strength by being what you are, a Daughter of the Stars. You need to attach yourself to an ideal and begin to gather support for it as soon as possible, so you can gain strength. This is... the most important thing you could be doing right now. You're vulnerable without power."

>-Talk to representatives of the pacifist group. Ask them for contact info, and what their planned public events are for the next month.

"This is certainly a good start to getting stronger. Finding out about the groups around us, and what they themselves are working towards, will give you an idea of what you're looking for, and therefore where you wish to draw strength from. I can get in contact with them if you wish, and arrange a meeting somewhere public."

>-Work on our ethos, research and review options.

"Another step towards gaining strength, certainly, and therefore important. Perhaps the most important step. The sooner you find an ideal you like, and a cause to support, then you'll begin gaining strength. Almost literally strength in numbers. That doesn't mean you should choose the most numerous group right off the bat. Just because they have the most support to begin with doesn't mean their ideal will lend itself to gathering more support.

"All in all, my suggestion is to focus on finding your ideal. While rediscovering yourself and your skills is all well and good, they do little for you while you're so vulnerable. And while it is unlikely the Court will do anything in New Tokyo, if we ever look to leave, you will need that strength.

"Finally, if I may, striking back against the Court, while not immediately advisable, is something we should look into. Currently they are reeling from the attack on the base in Old Tokyo, if we can keep up that momentum, it's possible we could do lasting damage to their hold on Japan. Of course, this only matters if you are aiming to take down the Court, I apologize if I presume too much.

"Regardless, finding an ideal is the most important thing in my opinion. I know of a Ronin supporter within the city we can use to contact them, and the Ronin are certainly the most active in confronting the Court. Hokkaido would require more long distance communication, but that's easily done as well. The Pacificsts are the easiest to get in contact with, but they are the least active, and generally only care about keeping New Tokyo free of the Court, they might not be willing to push for more."

>Meet with the Ronin

>Contact the HLF

>Meet the Pacifists

>Ignore the issue for the moment and focus on regaining lost skills

>Something else

>Input

I vote firstly for meeting thed pasifists, but if no one else agrees then I'd rather go with the Ronin than the Hokkaido

Hrrrm...
I like the Pacifists, and while we might be the least useful there, I like their cause the best.

So... No data then on if any of these groups have Caelestis Bellator associated with them?

The biggest risk of approaching the resistance groups is if the encounter goes south and we end up in conflict with one of their magical girls. We're underpowered right now.

>Need a group for power
There is a distinction between skill and power, right? I'm limited in what power I can draw on right now, but the skill should be in my head, somewhere.

I'd grant her that getting established with someone is probably our first priority.

>hair dye?
If she doesn't think it's gonna get us caught by the public, showing suppression symptoms would give or story more credence with potentially skeptical rebels. And showing people can escape also reinforces their cause. I think the risk is worth the diplomacy / belief bonuses, for now.

>keep momentum against the court
That, and if we do plan to act against them, any intelligence Annette has is time sensitive.

>what do
I think we should be feeling out groups for a cause match.

I'd start with the pacifists (probably the least risk to scout out) and the Ronin.

Oh, well, if we don't need dye yet let's save picking it up for when we've gotten some expert advice and use it right before we take our show on the road.

It's a clear majority for talking to the people with the least of a grudge against us, that are closest and least overall violent as well. I suggest we talk to them soonest, they may not have anything they know they want our help for immediately or (maybe) they have something for us to do which uses our tinkering talent. If it turns out they don't have anything in mind we can help with yet we can then go talk to Kaguya's mecha team and ask for direction on where and how to start greasemonkeying.

An hour later, after a great deal of constant drilling and worrying from Annette, you finally find yourself seated at a small family restaurant located a few train stations away from your new, potentially temporary, home. Annette, not sure if you'd acquired any disguise spells, had conveniently located a hoodie among your things, as well as a baseball cap from somewhere. Both were roughly pulled over your head before you left with strict instructions to keep your head down and not reveal your face to the rep. Apparently, it was precaution in case things got... out of hand. Besides, the only reason you'd agreed to it were because you hadn't decided if you were going to reveal who and what you were quite yet. You find yourself somewhat impatiently waiting for someone from the Pacifist group here, New Tokyo Freedom Movement you think was what Annette said they were called, whom she'd apparently made contact with herself and directed to meet you here. Just as the waitress comes around to your table for the fourth time, asking you if everything is alright, a older man, you'd say mid-forties, slides into the booth opposite you, looking slightly worn out but offering a kind smile to you and the waitress. A cursory inspection paints him as a slightly overweight office worker, a slight bead of sweat on his brow suggesting he'd at the least hurried here. Clearly this meeting was made out to be important. He orders a coffee, effectively sending the young woman away, before turning his attention to you, small smile turning apologetic.

"I'm sorry, running a bit late. Can't be a rep all the time, you know? Doesn't pay the bills."

You hum something noncommittal(you can't remember ever having a job, much less paying bills) as he settles back in his seat with a sigh, the coffee being delivered quite quickly with a nod of approval from the man. He takes a moment to savor the drink, taking a slow testing sip, though you notice quickly that he seems to be taking stock of you. You only hope you make a good impression.

"Well, I'm Kenji Morisato. I'm here to answer any questions you might have regarding the New Tokyo Freedom Movement as the most senior representative available, Miss..."

He looks at you questioningly, and you suddenly realize that you have to introduce yourself. You pause a moment, in a split second deciding what to do:

>Use Real Name
>Use Fake Name
>Ignore the Introduction

>Ask:

>Input

"Miss Whatever-You-Think-I-Am."

Get the basic details of what their organization is about, and how much infiltration / subversion a pacifist group undertakes.

>Use Fake Name
You're going to need one eventually, we might as well start now.

Saying something like "You can call me ____ " is a tacit admission you're using a false name, which is probably appropriate here. It says "I'm being careful, but I'm not lying to you about it."

(I'm blanking on what fake name to use for our magical-girl-sona, though. I'll trust someone else will have a good one, or I'll come back to it in a bit).

>Ask:
Um. Does he know he's meeting with a magical girl? That kind of affects what we can ask, if he doesn't know and/or we're keeping that back.

Obvious questions:

What are they trying to accomplish and why? What's their specific complaint with the Court?

How do they operate / what do they do?

How do they feel about the magical girls? (If we're inherently geared for conflict / violence, that's a big philosophical divide with pacifism. Why would they need one, what would they do with one?).

>also
I'm not sure we're close enough to him emotionally to do it, but can we feel out him or his group with our connection-sense?

"I apologize for not answering you promptly, but I'm not fully certain how to answer you about who I am. To put it cryptically, I am a was searching for her is and will be. If I could be assured confidence I would feel much more free to discuss that was, but if you were to lean closer as a close friend, family member or lover might for a hug or a kiss you might see what you need to know.
"To help find my is and my will be, I would like to know more about who the New Tokyo Freedom Movement is. I'm not entirely sure what I need to know but a starting point is to discuss what you do, what you aim for, what you are willing to say about your enemies, friends, allies and associates, and perhaps most importantly what you would do were you to have all the power of the Court at your disposal."

Fake name, along the lines of what >>683632 said so that we're being transparent about not being transparent.
I think our main question is what can we do to help? If we can become a figure head for the organization and really help the people we gain strength and so do they so it's a win-win. Whats the fastest way for us to acomplish that?

"You can call me She who is Searching."

"Searching for...?"

"For who she was and who she is."

The man looks a little confused, but he decides to avoid pressing the issue. Instead, he takes a sip of his coffee again before settling back, his attention more obviously working to figure you out.

"Well, hopefully I can be of some help."

"We'll see. I want to know about the New Tokyo Freedom Movement. How you operate. What your goals are. What exactly you are resisting the Court for."

"Our goal is easy. To keep New Tokyo as a free city. The Court may own most of the world, but it doesn't own us. As for how we operate, mostly peaceful protests and the like. We've never had cause for much more, the New Tokyo government supports keeping the city's freedom. There's not much more to tell than that, unfortunately. I'm not sure what you were expecting to hear."

As you listen to him speak, you let a part of your attention shift, reaching out with your sense for connection and feeling for what his might be. What you feel sets you back slightly. This man connects to a far bigger network, one that, if you're feeling this right, can't possibly be limited to this city. You follow connections and feel your magic pulled in dozens of different directions, stretched thinly across distances you can barely discern. You're forced to end the attempt to feel out the extent of the man's community, blinking as you return to full attention. Morisato watches you with obvious concern, eyes examining you questioningly.

"Are you alright? You went a little... glassy eyed there for a moment."

You wave away his concern, instead wondering what to do with this new information. If what you felt was right, then Morisato isn't telling everything he could be. He's the face for something much larger than a single cities protest movement.

>Input

Apparently we both have secrets to keep, which is... mostly surprising as far as wondering how the heck Annette managed to get us so high up the org-chart of the New Tokyo Freedom Movement (or whatever that is a front for).

I say we giggle softly and say something like, "Ha, we're both trying to hide something big apparently. Is this the right place to be discussing confidential matters, or do I have to establish myself to the New Tokyo Freedom Movement before we have a more earnest discussion?"

>You can call me She who is Searching
Haha, wow that's silly and dramatic. We really should have just picked an alias.

>If what you felt was right, then Morisato isn't telling everything he could be. He's the face for something much larger than a single cities protest movement.
Hmm. I really wish we knew if he knew we were a magical girl or not, already. Really affects how we can address that.

>what say
He didn't really answer our question. Fighting for freedom to be free is pretty much tautology. People fight for freedom because they want to do something with it, or because they see what happens when it's lost or abused. He didn't tell us why it's worth being free of the Court. Or why he's willing to leave the rest of the world as it is. ...if he even is, that is.

"You know, you've never said WHY it was you wanted to be free of the Court."

Morisato blinks, then allows himself a small smile.

"No, I suppose I didn't. I would hazard a guess and assume it's different for every person seeking it. Many simply want freedom from the rule of a power that is not beholden to anyone but themselves. The Court has no law or code that states they must work for the betterment of mankind, though they proclaim it to be a goal. I know that I personally wish to be free of the Court's... influence... over the world's magical girl population. Yes, their, ah... sacred... duty might have ended decades ago, and yes they can be dangerous, but they are also just girls. They have their own lives to lead... and many have that choice taken from them."

Despite his lack of any real tells physically, you sense despair, a very deep sort of despair, emanating from the man in front of you. Something must have happened, something deep and painful, but you decide pressing the issue would be both rude and unwise. Giving too much away would be a bad idea. There's a silence that follows, you out of both consideration and allowing yourself time to think. Eventually, you find this whole farce to be overrated. Information needs to be freely given on both sides, and if Annette trusted this man enough to let you speak to him, then it seems fair that you be candid with him. Still, the thought that you're both trying to hide things from each other tickles your sense of humor, and you giggle slightly as you make your confession.

"Ha, we're both trying to hide something big apparently. Is this the right place to be discussing confidential matters, or do I have to establish myself to the New Tokyo Freedom Movement before we have a more earnest discussion?"

Morisato blinks in clear confusion and surprise, before frowning slightly. Perhaps you'd been a bit too frank with him. He takes it in stride though, sipping at his coffee again to buy a few more seconds to consider you thoughtfully.

"So that implies you have something you'd prefer not to be mentioned to most."

"It does."

"... I can offer a safe place to discuss more... sensitive things. However, I'm afraid it would require you submit to a security check, as well as a simple pat down for weapons."

A security check... you aren't certain how much that would give on you...

>Submit to the Check
>Attempt to negotiate
>Refuse offer
>___

You can talk out here. It's pretty obvious what his story is, so let's not open up wounds here.

So, what are the conditions to join and the usual jobs posted on the mission boards?

Sure, why not.
I mean, the way I see it, magical girls can blow through anything pretty much as long as they don't get dunked in suppression, weapons or no weapons.

There we go. The personal connection. He knew a magical girl, she was involved in some way with the court, and it ended badly.

>what do
Your weapons aren't the kind that are carried. (Don't say that now, but maybe it's worth using after we're secure).

Agree to his terms. Comment that we'll see if his security check discloses our secrets for us. (Letting the pacifist front group check us is probably about the lowest risk way for us to test how much information is readily available on us or how easy we are to ID).

When the patdown comes discloses the multitool and to whoever is doing it. (Pretty much any useful tool can double as an improvised weapon).

"I don't need to carry weapons, but if it's necessary a strip search would only be one more indignity compared to what I've already suffered. What else would this security check do, if I may ask? I have difficulty with things that would tell you what my civilian identity is for reasons that should be obvious."
Being totally serious, we don't want these people looking up and knowing more about who we are (were) than we do. If they want to do a DNA-match test or something else that tells them we're Lily Iridium I say we walk, and take our chances looking up the local magical girl hangout to ask for help.

Negotiate-
"I'm not sure how much I can trust you, just as you're not sure how much you can trust me. Would it be possible for me to bring a friend? I feel vulnerable, being asked to an undisclosed location with vauge security mesures and I'd like to have someone I can trust by my side to help me evaluate the situation before I agree to anything whole-heartedly"

>>685980
We don't have anyone to ask besides Sunny, who we can expect is busy maintaining her fame. She may additionally get called in by the other side when they figure out what we are.
Also, in my suggestion I'm implying rather thickly that we're a magical girl. That doesn't fly with pretending to be scared. We're also the one who asked for the more-private meeting, which means this would make us look crazy or daft to suddenly change our mind as soon as we ask and they respond with something that is forseeably plausible.

>>685980
Annette is busy securing a source of income, and if this goes wrong, we're only putting a softer target we have to protect on the board. Magical girl firepower is more than she could bring, anyways.

>>685996
I assume you meant Kaguya? I don't think Sunny gave us contact info before she flew off.

>>685998
Following quote is from 676495. Kaguya did get us a phone, so I'd imagine we do have her number. Still a bad idea to call Sunny though, I doubt she'd have patience for us bugging her just because we're having trouble talking to people that aren't either Heaven Court folks or magical girls.

"I was only here to help out. I've got my own things to take care of. When you get her a phone, give her my number. I might not like it, but it is nice to see another magical girl free of the Court. I'd like to keep it that way."

>>685996
I mean i am genuinely worried about what kind of information the search may reveal and who it might tip off. I was thinking Annette because she has the most knowledge about the court and what might endanger us. I wasn't really thinking we need "firepower" to protect us, just someone who knows the courts and can give us a second opinion is all. Besides shes not the only one that can get a job and she could always get one tomorrow. I feel like asking for her doesn't cvost us too much

>>686075
It reveals that we have a fucking captain in the Heaven Court with us, if they have any sort of database about such things. If you're not scared them finding that out could lead to her capture or our discreditation you've got no imagination for what people fighting a war might think about folks known to have worked for the other side.

"I can agree to that. Still, there are some things I'd rather keep to myself, for the moment. How invasive is this search going to be?"

"Nothing too major, I assure you. More just assurance that you aren't a mass murderer, or something of the like. The Court has no need to send its agents against us, there are far more militant and destructive groups to deal with at the moment."

You let that sink in, then rise to your feet as Morisato does the same. You've decided you'd trust him for the moment, and despite briefly considering getting someone else to tag along, you doubt it would do much good overall. Better to keep what friends you have out of public sight for the moment. He pays for what he'd ordered(without an overabundance of money you'd decided against ordering anything yourself), and then he leads you through the streets till you reach a building clearly marked "New Tokyo Freedom Movement". Apparently, this group either isn't shy or has no need to hide itself. Makes sense if it's only a pacifist political movement. You are lead inside, where a security guard pats both you and Morisato down before stepping aside, finding a number of people bustling about, calling greetings to Moriasato and offering you friendly enough smiles and nods. The man responds in kind to those that greet him as he leads you to a room within, a nicely furnished office with the name Morisato on it's door.

"Now then, a simple check should suffice, give me only a moment."

Morisato dives into tapping away at his computer, and you take a seat as you wait patiently, eyes wandering about the room. There seems to be little of note within the room, though you do notice a picture frame with Morisato and what appears to be a young teenage girl, both smiling at the camera. Before long, however, Morisato seems satisfied, settling back into his chair and turning his attention to you yet again.

"Well, it seems everything checks out. You certainly aren't wanted for mass murder or anything of the like, at least locally. This room is completely safe to discuss things in. Now then, what is it you wish to discuss? I swear on my name that anything said in this room is completely confidential."

>Input

1. How far are you willing to go to get a Caelestis Bellator on your side?
2. What's your take on the governments of the world?
3. How many people in your organization can you trust?
4. Will you fight if necessary?
5. What is necessary?

>Now then, what is it you wish to discuss? I swear on my name that anything said in this room is completely confidential.
Well, it's quite simple. You'd like to know what they're really fighting for, and why. There's more here than this small group.

And in return... you'll tell him your secret. Why you're interested. You see, reasons matter to you. (Do something mildly sparkly with your hand).

Cards on the table- we're admitting that we're magic, and trying to get him to admit what he's really up to.

The people around us are nominally a local pacifist movement, but this person obviously has broader connections even if the rest of the folks here don't. We need to check that, is his network substantially different than other people around here? It could be the New Tokyo Freedom Movement has a mole and we're talking to him. Considering how open it is odds are they ought to have at least a couple Heaven Court moles if there's no way to find those and deal with them.

If he checks out, we should pull off the hood and say we've heard as hearsay that Heaven Court starves people. We'd like to know if that's true, why people would say that and who would, and what the solution to the current political problems at the root of the world's conflicts is. We're trying to get a read on what holds this group together, who they cooperate with, and what they believe in, so let's ask them.

"I want to know what you're really fighting for. There's more to you, at least, than appears on the surface, and I want to know what it is. You're reasons for fighting. Because reasons, they matter to me."

You hold a hand up and let a spark of your magic out of your hand. It shines and twinkles a moment before scattering into shiny fragments, then disappearing altogether. The man opposite you stares in obvious shock, mouth working but words eluding him. It takes a few minutes for his mind to catch up entirely, and even then his shock is evident.

"You're... you're a magical girl."

You choose to say nothing. It's obvious either way, but you see no need to confirm it with words. Let him draw his own conclusions."

"That's... you're a magical girl. This is... this is... no magical girl has ever... A stellar?"

You do nod at that. Best to come clean entirely. You've already put your cards on the table, now to see if he does the same.

"This is... phenomenal. I... I do work for the New Tokyo Freedom Movement. That is true. But I also work closely with others, among the free cities, trying to regain even some control of the world from the Court. We have a few magical girls with us, of course, but... none here, in Japan. All those who are free here are more focused on themselves, or their own troubles. I don't fault them of course, but... with the destruction of the base in Old Tokyo, we have a unique situation in Japan. The Court is positively reeling from the attack, and no one even knows what happened! If you would help us... we could... we could... we could oust the Court from all of Japan!"

Morisato is pacing by now, eyes wide as the implications seem to hit him. You, however, are still focused on the reasons, something you note he hasn't given you, really. Something you feel you should steer him back towards.

"Mister Morisato, I hate to bring this up, but I never said I'd help you." That gets his attention. "I still need reasons. I won't fight for a cause I don't believe in. I want to know why you're fighting. What drives you, and your group."

"The Heaven's Court is corrupt, beyond repair. There are entities within it that try to do what's right, but beyond that it's officials do whatever they like, because they hold all the power. Starvation runs rampant throughout North America, infighting between "nations" in South America. These are just the tip of the iceberg. Myself, and others across the world, are trying to change that. We believe returning self-autonomy to the nations of the world is the best choice for that right now. Take away power from the Heaven's Court, free the magical girls from its control, and the world might be able to start addressing the problems again."

"But weren't magical girls fighting among themselves? Isn't that part of the issue? Why the Court was made?"

"Yes, that time was dark. But the magical girls were also lost and confused. The great enemy was defeated, there was nothing else to do with their power. Now, so many are part of the Court, but look at those who are free! They use their power to help people, to promote good causes, many given a choice wouldn't even use their power at all! That is what we aim for. Let the magical girls govern themselves, place them at the behest of no government but their own."

You frown slightly, taking all this in. Governing themselves? Freedom from the Court? Corruption? You're not sure if he's lying or not, though the connection you have with him, tenuous though it is, suggests at least that he believes he is telling the truth. His own connection with his comrades wouldn't be so strong otherwise. Still...

>This is... this is... no magical girl has ever...
Approached him? Approached them? I'm curious to know the context there, but I'm not sure we can afford to inquire, right now.

>with the destruction of the base in Old Tokyo
Let's not bring up our own involvement there, for now.

>we could oust the Court from all of Japan!
Don't we then go from a neutral or fringe territory to a resisting opposition? That makes Japan a target, and you're rather outgunned on the military and magic front.

>the cause
Dangit, I really wish we had all our memories. It's very hard to judge just how bad or corrupt the court is when you have no perspective on it.

I'm not entirely sure if he's advocating a kind of anarchism (every magical girl for themselves) or a kind of meritocracy of magical girls governing magical girls, without the civilian / muggle oversight (interference) the Court's structure has.

I'm leery of power-based exclusive governments (magical girls losing touch with the rest of humanity would be a bad thing, even if the nature of their power sources would check that to some degree) and I'm not sure widespread vigilantism is the best model either. Still, working to break up the court might be the right call at least, if it's gone far enough.

I feel like this is probably too far too one side to be what we're looking for, but we should keep the door open. We want to feel out the others, maybe come back if they're worse.

Time to carefully extricate ourselves, I think. Get out without losing him, but without making any promises, either.

At least this is one place where your being ex-court wouldn't matter. It's the prototype of what they want to do.

That strikes me as a short-term goal for how to improve the world: Humans have very long and deep experience of war and genocide pre-dating the era of magical girls, and there was no shortage of either during the political dominance of nation states. Morisato Kenji is, questionably, holding up that period with its crimes, injustices and outright atrocities as an improvement for the world and an ideal here. Do these folks have any plan for how to solve that small, 'nation-states won't actually stop war or genocide,' problem or are things so dire now that by the numbers it would be a genuine overall improvement where the gains clearly outweigh the losses?

only way to make the place really hard to assail would be to have us, a stellar, become the hope of the entire country. then any invading solars would be unable to gather mana as the people would not be swayed to believe in their fickleness. and with solars stuck running on low energy that means only other stellars and lunars can fight us. we have an advantage over lunars especially with a large amount of belief streaming into us and how a stellar vs stellar battle goes down would depend on who has the larger cause.

>>690440
I'm not sure solars need a local power base to function. The one at the military base that blew up sure didn't have a very big audience in that hanger.

Just because they need public appearances to keep their rep with their fans up doesn't mean they need to be seen or close to them all the time. (...and if they did, the Court could probably power in the field solars by making a television spectacle of it. "Hey look at your idol fighting those evil rebel terrorists in Japan!").