glitchdoka episode 11

"Time traveller Kris Randall. You've repeated this month countless times, haven't you, meow? Did you find what you wanted?"

Kris just looked at Mila, hate in her eyes.

"You don't have to answer me. After all, your existence has already given me answers, meow. Why Dani was such a talented magical girl..."

"Don't say shit about Dani."

"Your power as a Puella Magi depends on the misfortune you'll face, meow! Dani was just an ordinary girl with an ordinary life, so why did she have such sadness?"

Kris was silent.

"Hey," Mila smiled, "do you think it could be your fault?"

"Why, you--!"

"Everything is for Dani Martin, isn't it? Going back in time, fighting all those Witches... every time you went to another universe, you bound it to the last one. And each world was focused around one Miss Dani Martin!"

"Fuck..."

"Allll the fate lines of allll the worlds are focused around her. And I think we both know who to blame for that! You've been a great partner, Kris. You raised Dani to be the best Witch ever!"

"Get out."

"Hee hee..."

"GET OUT!"


After Sora's wake, Dani laid on her bed, staring up at the ceiling.

"Cody Sora and Gabe all died..."

"It's not unusual," Mila said.

"Doesn't it matter to you?! They died because of you!"

Mila sighed. "Do you ever feel bad for cattle? Do you think about how their meat ends up on your plate?" She looked into Dani's eyes, and Dani felt what it was like to be a domestic animal.

"No! Stop!"

"You're missing the point, meow! This isn't cruel. Sure you kill them in the end, but before that, they're protected from the wild and from natural selection! They have wonderful lives. Your relationship is perfectly reasonable!"

"Are you saying it's the same...?"

"Nope! We don't treat you as cattle. We make lots of compromises with you! We accept you as sentient beings and negotiate with you."

"I..."

"Would you like to see the past which we Assimilators and you humans have shared?"

Mila stared into Dani's eyes. She saw flashes of teenagers from history; proper ladies in medieval dresses, martial monks, even lumberjacks.

"Countless kids have been granted wishes from the Assimilators, only to let themselves be taken by despair. What begins with a wish ends in a curse! It's the cycle of the Puella Magi. Some of you turned the tides of history, even!"

"Just stop! Stop it! They believed you, and you betrayed them!"

"We didn't betray them, meow. Their own wishes did! When a wish doesn't fit reason, it generates distortion. The outcome of that is bound to be terrible! If that's betrayal, then making wishes at all is a mistake, meow."

Dani sobbed to herself as she watched history unfold before her eyes.

"But you know, humanity's managed to go on because of everyone's sacrifices. Your easy life is built on tears!"

She shook as Mila let her out of her trance. She felt the sheets under her legs.

"If you acknowledge that," Mila went on, smiling, "then tell me, what's so special about just a few people?"

"Did you... really feel nothing as you watched over them? Couldn't you understand how hard it was for them?!"

"If we could understand that, we'd never have come here! In our culture, being emotional is a sickness. That's why you were so surprising to us! You all have your own feelings, and yet you all coexist."

"If you hadn't come to this planet..."

"You'd still be living in caves, meow."


Dani knocked on Kris's door.

"Can I come in?"

"Sure," Kris said, unlatching the chain and swinging the door open.

Dani stepped inside, looking up at the many images of old documents.

"This is Walpurgis, right..? Gabe told me about it. You guys were gonna go fight a witch which neither of you could fight alone."

Kris looked up at her. "Yeah."

"Will it... be dangerous?"

"That's right. Unlike other Witches, this one doesn't need to hide behind a Barrier. If she manifests, everyone's dead."

"Then we've gotta stop her! Since Gabe died, you're the only one who can still fight..."

"Don't worry about me. It'd be impossible for that fucker, but me? I can counter Walpurgis on my own. I didn't need Gabe, either. I just agreed so he wouldn't look like an idiot."

"Really?"

Kris just looked at Dani.

"I want to believe you, I really do... but I can't! I can't believe it will all be okay! You're lying to me, Kris! You're lying when you say you can do it on your own!"

Kris balled her hands into fists, looking up at the ceiling. "... there's no way you could understand the shit I'm going through. Because I... I come from a different timeline!"

She ran to Dani, then, and threw her arms around her. "I come from the future, okay?! I've met you before. Like, a lot of times. And every time - every single fucking time - I saw you die. I tried to save you, I really did. I tried again and again and again. And it never fucking worked!"

"Kris..."

"You don't get it, do you? I'm just creeping you out, aren't I? It's only been a month since I even met you! But for me... for me...!" Tears fell down her face. "Every time I tried to save you, your timeline pushed me away. I wasn't like you and everyone could fucking tell! You wouldn't even listen to me!"

Kris took a deep, shuddering breath. "Am I lost in this fucking maze? Am I?!"

"Oh, Kris..."

"The most important thing was saving you! It was the only light I had! God, fuck, just... even if I can't reach you, just let me protect you!"


Dark clouds gathered over the city. Panicked calls were made, and everyone was evacuated in the wake of the supercell.

Kris looked up at the sky.

"C'mon, bitch. Let's dance."

She walked forward into the Witch's fog, and began to fight.

Even though it was hopeless.


Dani and her sister sat in the great hall with all the other evacuees. Dani picked herself up, and her sister glanced over.

"Where are you going?"

"Um, just to the bathroom..."

She went to stand at the entrance to the hall, looking at the storm outside. Mila stood beside her.

"Can Kris do it by herself..?"

"If I said she can't, would you believe me? But I don't think I have to tell you, meow. You can see clearly how she'll do."

"Kris..."

"Don't worry, meow! She hasn't lost hope yet. If she fails, she'll just go back in time and start again. It's meaningless, but stopping is out of the question for her. Of course, the moment she realises she can't change your fate...!" Mila smiled.

"She'll become a witch..."

"She knows it, too. So she won't give up. She has no choice. Even if it's hopeless, she'll fight!"

"Unless her hope is restored, she can't be saved?"

"She's just another magical girl, after all. You've seen how it goes!"

Dani clasped her hands to her mouth, trying to stifle a sob. "No... not Kris...!"

She turned, collecting her resolve, and moved to walk down the stairs. Something caught her wrist, and she turned to look up at her sister.

"Where're you going?"

"Sis... I have to go help a friend."

"There are people qualified to help. Leave it to them. We should stay where it's safe."

"No, it has to be me!"

Her sister slapped her.

"This isn't just you, you know! What did you feel when Sora died? Didn't you--"

"Sis," Dani looked up at her, "I understand. I love you, sis. And I know you love me, too. I'm not gonna throw my life away. Her expression was determined. "But this is different! Everyone is important, and I'm going to help you all! That's why there's somewhere I've gotta be right now!"

"You can't tell me why?"

"No."

"Then take me with you."

"I can't. It's not safe for you. ... you raised me to be a good person, right? I don't lie or do bad things. So please believe in me, sis!"

"Are you sure, absolutely sure?"

"Yes, I am!"

"Then go on," Sis shoved her. "Do some good."

Dani turned and smiled to her. "Thanks, sis."


Kris fought desperately, but it was no use. The gearbound Witch laughed as it flung a building towards her, and Kris groaned as she was crushed against the rubble. But she wasn't human -- so it only hurt her.

The worst pain was her despair.

"Why can't I beat her? I try my fucking best, again and again, but still I... I can't..."

Her Soul Gem flickered with darkness as pain overwhelmed her. "If I keep doing this... Dani's going to be even worse off, isn't she...?"

Tears fell from her eyes, mingling with blood. "Fuck it... I don't..."

She closed her eyes.

And then she felt someone take her hand.

"It's okay," Dani said to her, her voice soft. "It's okay, Kris."

"Dani..."

Dani straightened up, and stepped forward. Mila stepped up beside her.

"Dani, no, please... please tell me you didn't..."

The girl turned back towards Kris and smiled. "I'm sorry."