Story 13: Ride Into The Night

The sky was a fiery orange, sailors would be delighting, but you weren't a sailor, and you definitely wouldn't be delighting.

You were a magical girl, and you had a mission. You were to drive Warmaster Kharn to a distant city for an important meeting, and you had only one night to get her there. The Ninth's resources were strapped from the vendetta, and Kyuubey could only give you what was available.

Stepping out of the open elevator into the multi-tiered underground parking lot, you viewed the only choice: A used dark green bootlegger with bullet holes decorating the backside. No armor protection, no rocket lock jamming, no cruise control; you had your night ahead of you.

Warmaster Kharn was still at the Officio's entrance, waiting. Time to pick her up. You entered the vehicle, the door swinging out too freely, closing a bit too hard, and you turned the engine on.

Nothing happened.

You had to try several times before it roared to existence, settling down into a purr. A stuttering purr, with gunshots of black smoke in the back.

You scanned the interior of your chosen chariot.

Parts of the seats were ripped open, their yellow stuffing bulging out; the driver seat was stationed too far back; there were sticky stains on the cup holder; the passenger seat was leveled too rim rod straight; there were no seat belts installed; the steering wheel was bare bone; the windshield had a crack eating up half the width; the rear-view window had only a sliver of the mirror in the frame, your side luckily; and the floor was rusted. There were probably a myriad of other problems associated with this car but you couldn't discern them.

Your luck was extraordinary.

You pulled the seat forward to a more comfortable position, the controls groaning in protest, then put the car into reverse. Pushing on the pedal lightly, you jerked forward as the car raced backward. You fought for control before ramming into the oncoming wall, stopping the raging horse with the inertia slamming the back of your head into the head rest. What the fuck kind of power did the engine possess?

You, with great respect, lead the stallion out of the stable, nearly crashing several times.

Out in front of the Offico, you escorted Kharn to the bootlegger. The way she moved caught your attention. She was very confident, cutting through the air like a lion's roar, being the very model of a Warmaster. She looked wonderful in your eyes, and you didn't question the secret behind her seduction. Just looking at her, your heart swelled and a certain desire became apparent. You stifled it, knowing they had entrusted the Warmaster's safety to you. You felt the world on your shoulders, since no one else could do this mission like you.

You opened the passenger side door for her, and Kharn got in smoothly, you closing the door once she was fully inside. Walking around the front, you kept an eye on the scenery, looking for any incoming attacks or unwanted eyes. You got in, shutting the door.

"Are you ready to go, Warmaster?"

"Da, comrade."

Putting the car into drive, you grip the wheel, and pushed down on the pedal. The car streaked forward with a loud neigh, shooting out of the compound at breakneck speed with a plume of smoke and skid marks in its wake. You tried to keep it in the right direction, hands hard on the wheel, all of your attention on dodging the wall. The bootlegger blasted through the half open gate instead, destroying it in the process, and out into the road you drove, going in the direction you needed to go; the beginning of your journey already accomplished.

While dodging slowpoke drivers, your eyes darted to Kharn for a split second, then at the road, then back at her, then... you did this back and forth for a minute. She kept her eyes forward, a bland look on her face, apparently unsurprised by the instability of the bootlegger. She had adjusted the seat already - probably while you were walking around the car - and made herself at home, her legs had more room to stretch out. She was lounging, for Pete's sake! Her ability to stay cool caught your breath, but you had to say something before it was too late.

"Warmaster Kharn, before we leave the city, do you want any refreshments? There should still be something open." Kharn didn't look at you, nor speak, before finally shaking her head.

"Nyet, comrade." You nodded, keeping your eyes ahead. So she didn't want to eat or drink. You could understand that, and respected it you did.

Inside the bootlegger, Mitakihara Town wasn't that big of a city, because you were blazing past the City Outskirts sign before you knew it.

You darted at the built in digital clock, which (miraculously) worked, the neon green face showing 9:08pm. You put more pressure on the pedal, the stallion nearly breaking a sound barrier. All around you was the blackness of night, thick enough to hide anything but thin enough to cut right through. You flicked your gaze up at the rear-view mirror and found it to be useless, the sliver showing you not enough. You glanced at the driver's side mirror, and noticed there was none. Your luck, your luck, your luck, you cursed silently, gripping the wheel tighter with a disapproving frown.

The car shook more and more as the speed climbed, from ninety to one hundred and thirty to two hundred and to unable to read anymore. One little shake in the wrong direction from your hands and both you and Kharn would be history, magical girl or not.

Kharn sighed, capturing your attention.

"How should we go about this mission?" Silence from her for several minutes. "We could just strut in there as if we own it and slaughter them all..."

"Shhh, comrade, we have all night to get there. Time for chit-chat will be later."

With the speed you were going, you would get her there by midnight, tops, so the time for chit-chat was now. But again, you respected her decision, and held your tongue. You still held her in high esteem. Still loved her for her, the monster and the Warmaster.

You had to bring her there safely. You just had to.

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An hour passed. Kharn was done with sitting there quietly, and rummaged in the tiny space that was called the backseat.

BONK. Something slammed into the side of your head, nearly causing you to eviscerate both of you on the asphalt. You regained control, heart pounding and head aching. Luckily this far out no one was around, so you had the entire two lanes of road to yourself to stabilize.

"Sorry, comrade." Kharn said, settling in with her possession. You took a quick second to stare at what she bludgeoned you with. It was an acoustic guitar, something you would see in a spaghetti western.

"How did that get in here?" You inquired, staring at your Warmaster as she tuned the guitar.

"I planted it in the back before you were briefed."

"But there isn't much room back there..."

"Exactly, a few things had to come out for space!" Kharn stated, now finishing the tuning.

"So you know how to play the guitar?"

"Da. Met an interesting American Cowboy this one time. Called himself 'Mike', and he entertained me with his guitar for a Siberian night." Kharn settled back into her seat fully, resting the guitar against her frame with the head jutting up to the ceiling, a respectable distance from your own head. Her metalflesh fingers flicked the strings. Soft aimless music rose into the air. "I shall entertain you tonight."

Stretching her fingers, she began to entertain you. Her tips held down the strings like torture victims, her other fingers plucking the strings. A simple melody filled the empty space in the car, and then her voice joined in.

"In our headlights, staring, bleak, Kong bottles, culexus' eyes,
On the asphalt underneath, our crushed plans and my friend,
Lonely street signs, power lines, they keep on flashing, flashing by,"

You listened, mesmerized, and in doing so, you saw her words made manifest. Every so often, a blur of a street sign flashed by, the closer power lines briefly showing in your headlights. You even passed a shattered Kong bottle, coaxing a chuckle out of you.

"And we keep driving into the night,
It's a late goodbye, such a late goodbye,
And we keep driving into the night,
It's a late goodbye,"

Her fingers kept plucking the strings with teasing caresses, her other fingers changing which strings were held down with practiced movements. She immersed herself in the act of singing, her eyes - as you looked over at her every so often - closed, her black hair cascading down her back, shoulders, and front to her seat below. Her legs were relaxed, her shoulders were relaxed - hell her entire self was relaxed, you noticed.

"Your breath hot upon my cheek, and we crossed, that line,
You made me strong when I was feeling weak, and we crossed, that one time,
Screaming stop, staring killer eyes, keep on flashing, flashing by,"

You felt watched. You were in an unstable car that had the engine of a speed demon, streaking across Japan at an unholy rate toward a destination in which everything rested upon you two succeeding. There were other Officios that didn't want you succeeding, and an on target rocket would vaporize this chunk of rusty metal with ease.

So much darkness. So much emptiness. So little traffic. Your foot became lead, the pedal pressed firm against the rusting floor. Black skeletal fingers flicked strings, and white skeletal fists kept the shaking car steady.

"And we keep driving into the night,
It's a late goodbye, such a late goodbye,
And we keep driving into the night,
It's a late goodbye,"

You felt like something was behind you. Fast approaching you, despite how many speed barriers you had broken in this car.

"The Blessed Lady grins from ear to ear when she sees the hand she's dealt us,
Points at my golden heirloom, and then we're playing hide and seek,
I can't breathe easy here, less there's another skull to take before us,
Till' in the john mirror I stare at myself grow tainted and psychotic,"

Your eyes snapped up to the rear-view mirror, and in that sliver, a cutthroat grin was seen. You went back to staring ahead. No way anyone could be in the back. Or behind you that close.

Flashes of scenes played out in the darkness. Magical girls witching out, turning on their friends. Magical girl against magical girl, all with gold glinting off them. A scene of Kharn, looking at herself in the mirror in some rundown bathroom, where her eyes blacken, and a slasher's smile cut ear to ear. You shuddered.

"And we keep driving into the night,
It's a late goodbye, such a late goodbye,
And we keeping driving into the night,
It's a late goodbye, such a late goodbye,
And we keeping driving into the night,
It's a late goodbye, such a late goodbye..."

Kharn's voice petered out, the song playing instrumental for a few seconds, and then that stopped too. Kharn let out a sigh.

"Oh Malal, dearest of all my friends," You looked at her to see her sorrowful expression. "I should have been the one..." You wondered when she would speak of it, and finally she did. You respected her highly, and kept your silence, for you knew something about her. This was one wound you couldn't heal. Not in a million years.

You two drove into the night, followed by a world of daemons toward an important mission.