Innocence Seekers: April Light/Chapter 2/Episode 17

This is the fifth episode, "Powerful Foe" (強力な敵), of the second chapter of Innocence Seekers: April Light.

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Episode text
The man charged straight at the girls, forcing Aoi to put up a barrier. However, one strike was all it took to completely shatter the barrier. Wakaba attempted to save Aoi from the attack; however, the man noticed this and sent magic bullets in their direction. Wakaba attempted to evade the bullets; however, the bullets were far too quick and agile, and managed to land several hits on her and Aoi.

–Uzuki: &lt;Wakaba! Aocchi!&gt;

–?????: &lt;I hope you realise now that you are completely outmatched here. It was I who nearly destroyed that spaceship you were on, after all.&gt;

–Uzuki: &lt;I don't know who you are, but...&gt;

A massive yellow magic circle appeared beneath Uzuki's feet.

–Uzuki: &lt;... I sense an evil aura around you. You are human, yet you have demonic powers. Therefore...&gt;

Uzuki's sword became electrified.

–Uzuki: &lt;Secret Skill, Divine Lightning!&gt;

Uzuki charged straight at the man, striking him once with the sword. The attack by itself did not even scratch the man; however, a massive lightning bolt traversed the path the sword took.

–Louise: &lt;Uzuki, don't tell me...&gt;

–Uzuki: &lt;Louise, it's a Secret Skill I've created in my efforts to allow the use of my Inherent Ability outside of Full Burst mode. It's not as powerful, though, which makes it suitable for personal combat.&gt;

Despite the attack, the man was unfazed.

–?????: &lt;Is that all, girl?&gt;

–Uzuki: &lt;No way!&gt;

–?????: &lt;I can assure you, I can take a direct hit from an SMMC and still be standing. Now, let me show you what I am capable of!&gt;

A massive purple magic circle appeared beneath the man's feet. Thousands of magic bullets appeared and surrounded the girls.

–Benio: &lt;Secret Skill, Grand Barrier!&gt;

The man sent the bullets flying towards the girls. Suddenly, a massive red barrier appeared around the girls. As a result, the bullets harmlessly dissipated upon impact with the barrier.

–Louise: &lt;Benio, you too?&gt;

–Benio: &lt;We really need to get away from him. It'll be quite a while until I can use that Secret Skill again.&gt;

–Uzuki: &lt;But who can cover for us? We don't know where Himawari and the others are.&gt;

–Wakaba: &lt;I... I'll try to hold him off.&gt;

–Uzuki: &lt;Are you sure, Wakaba? You were hit by a nasty attack.&gt;

–Wakaba: &lt;I'm fine now.&gt;

Wakaba flew towards the man, and transformed her weapon into its twin cannon form. She then began to cast a spell. A massive green magic circle appeared beneath her feet, and a massive magic bullet appeared in front of her.

–Wakaba: &lt;Everyone, ground yourselves! Otherwise you'll be blown away!&gt;

–Uzuki: &lt;Ah, right.&gt;

The other girls cast binds on themselves and attached them to the background mana field.

–Wakaba: &lt;Right, here goes. Secret Skill, Blast Calamity!&gt;

Wakaba fired the massive magic bullet towards the man. In response, the man put up a barrier; however, the bullet was never going to impact the barrier. It exploded 50 metres from the man, sending him hurtling through space.

–Uzuki: &lt;Wait, Wakaba, how did you do that?&gt;

–Wakaba: &lt;Well, I had Aoi use her barriers to redirect part of the blast towards him, and I put as much air into the attack as I could. I also added a confusion effect to the attack, so he won't be returning soon.>

–Louise: &lt;I see. He was too powerful for us to deal with, anyway.&gt;

–Aoi: &lt;But who was that man? He never told us his name.&gt;

–Louise: &lt;I have a very bad feeling about this. I think that man may be the one whom Natasha and Chelsea have been telling everyone to avoid.&gt;

–Wakaba: &lt;Wait, could he be...&gt;

–Louise: &lt;Pablo Méndez. That is the man. While he was originally a human, after his defeat at the hands of Lily and Jacinta 23 years ago...&gt;

–Benio: &lt;23 years?&gt;

–Louise: &lt;Let me finish. After his defeat, he managed to stay alive for long enough to make a deal with a powerful demon. While the identity of that demon remains a mystery even now, what we do know is that he was powerful enough to subdue the demon and absorb his powers. As such that demon no longer exists.&gt;

–Uzuki: &lt;Is that the source of his powers?&gt;

–Louise: &lt;Yes. Even before he gained demonic powers, he was an exceptionally powerful mage, with a bucket capacity of around 1,500, and a wide variety of powerful spells. However, after he gained demonic powers, his power has grown considerably, to the point of challenging spaceships. If you didn't notice before, his attacks nearly depleted the Endurance&#39;s barrier, which can take 20 megatons of energy.&gt;

–Aoi: &lt;Then, is there anyone who can defeat him now?&gt;

–Louise: &lt;No one knows exactly how to defeat him. We know that either a magical girl or an Innocence Shard is needed, just like for any other demon. However, we do not have anyone with the power needed to face him. He is just way too powerful.&gt;

–Uzuki: &lt;What about Inherent Abilities? Or Unison?&gt;

–Louise: &lt;At the moment, we're still not sure. Anyway, let's return to the ship.&gt;

–Uzuki: &lt;Okay.&gt;

"Later we learnt that the man who nearly brought down the Endurance was indeed Pablo Méndez. I have to admit, we were lucky there. If we had fought him on a planet, chances are that we would've lost our bodies."

Meanwhile:

–Yamamoto: What?! You mean he was driven away? How can that be?!

–Figure A: I wouldn't say 'driven away', but rather, 'blown away dazed and confused'. That green magical girl may not be as powerful as you, but she sure is smart. She knew that the battlefield was in space, and she found a way to send Pablo hurtling at a significant fraction of the speed of light to avoid a protracted battle which they would surely lose. Indeed, by the time he snapped out of his confusion, he was already at the asteroid belt.

–Yamamoto: I see. Even after all these years, he is still stupid. Even if grounding wasn't an option, someone of his power should still rely on protection from such petty effects as confusion.

–Figure B: Anyway, what will be your next move?

–Yamamoto: One of the Donsilan magical girls has still not been accounted for. I want you to find her and capture her.

–Figure B: Yes, Master.

–Yamamoto: You will not go alone. I will send additional forces to meet you.

–Figure B: Yes.

The next day, the girls gathered at the hangar of the Endurance.

–Miho: Is everyone here?

–Himawari: Looks like it.

–Miho: Okay. Our next destination, of course, is Italy. We are to head to Rome to meet up with Aria.

–Louise: Also, in a few hours, spaceships from Likkra and Namari will arrive at Earth.

–Uzuki: Wait, just how many people are fighting against Yamamoto at the moment?

–Tamaki: From what I've heard, a significant portion, probably around 40 per cent, of the Zodiac Warriors does not recognise Yamamoto as the leader anymore. This faction is led by Jacinta Allen, and they have managed to convince most governments to support them.

–Louise: A fair proportion of Earth, including most Western governments, support this faction. However, in some nations, including the location of the air-elemental World Orb, the security situation has deteriorated as a result of Yamamoto's actions.

–Kanade: Wait a minute, does that mean Melody is in danger?

–Louise: Possibly. But we cannot know for certain. Anyway, our focus for now should be on Italy, and the fire-elemental World Orb.

–Lyra: But we can't just leave Melody by herself! It's possible that Yamamoto is after her.

–Flavia: Lyra, I know you're concerned about Melody, but the fact remains that Puella has not been able to gain entry into India since the 11th century. And there's evidence that Yamamoto's forces have set up their headquarters in Kolkata.

–Aoi: Wait, why there, of all places?

–Himawari: We're not sure ourselves. All we know is that Yamamoto fled Japan after his actions at the location of the water-elemental World Orb.

–Louise: Anyway, there may be someone within the Zodiac Warriors based in India who may help us.

–Wakaba: You mean Rani?

–Kanade: Wait, Wakaba, you know this person?

–Wakaba: She's a penfriend of Mizutani-san.

–Louise: Ah, yes. Let's hope that she can help us.

–Flavia: Anyway, I think it's time for you to head to Italy. I'll be staying here for now.

–Uzuki: Wait, why?

–Flavia: My sister told me to. She said that I should remain on the Endurance until we're ready to find the air-elemental World Orb.

–Uzuki: Ah, okay.

–Himawari: Anyway, everyone, let's head off.

The girls entered the shuttles, and Flavia exited tha hangar. After a while, the hangar door opened, and the shuttles took off.

Meanwhile, somewhere in the Himalayas, Melody was trekking through the snow-covered mountains in search for the air-elemental World Orb.

–Melody: The orb... it must be here somewhere.

Melody took out her pendant. It shone a beam of light northeast. Melody followed the beam, but after ten minutes, she stopped as she noticed something.

–Melody: That noise... what was that?

Melody looked behind her, only to find around 20 men who were after her.

–Melody: Now what? I was prepared to find the World Orb alone, so why are they sending assistance?

The men continued to approach her.

–Melody: Hey, I said that I didn't need any help! Why are you here?!

–Man A: We're not here to help you. Yamamoto has requested that we take you in to assist him.

–Melody: That Yamamoto person, he's supposed to be the leader of the Zodiac Warriors, right?

–Man A: Yes.

–Melody: But why would the Zodiac Warriors send you to take me in to help them when I'm already helping them here?

The men stood silent for a moment.

–Melody: Now it makes sense to me. Natasha said that Yamamoto did not contact anyone during the Donsilan incursion. This tells me... that Yamamoto has turned against us.

–Man B: Yamamoto has not turned against anyone! It is they who have turned against him.

–Melody: Then tell me. When the Zodiac Warriors needed him the most, where was he? Why did he not respond?

The men did not answer.

–Melody: No answer? As expected, humans like you are worthless. What should I do with you now?

–Man A: You... you're coming with us, whether you like it or not!

–Melody: Try.

The men charged straight at Melody; however, flaming chains appeared from nowhere and struck the men, knocking them to the ground. A girl's voice then spoke to Melody.

–?????: Are you okay, Melody?

Melody turned towards the direction of the voice, and saw the girl.

–Melody: Wait... who are you? How do you know me?

–Girl: It's a long story, but I am a member of the Zodiac Warriors. My name is Rani, by the way.

–Melody: Ah, okay. Wait, whose side are you on?

–Rani: Your side, of course. But anyway, the Zodiac Warriors is in turmoil after Yamamoto's actions. Since you were out searching for the World Orb, you probably haven't heard about all of this, but the Zodiac Warriors has effectively split into two warring factions. One, of course, is led by Yamamoto. The other is led by Jacinta Allen, who took it upon herself to lead those who opposed Yamamoto. As for me, well, I was pressured into joining Yamamoto's faction. I, of course, refused, but they were so persistent that I had to flee New Delhi.

–Melody: And that's how you came to meet me?

–Rani: Well, you could say that our meeting was a coincidence. Anyway, I better ask you to hold off your search.

–Melody: Why?

–Rani: Well, those men will follow you for as long as you stay in India. Right now I'm heading to the border with China. I suggest that you come with me.

–Melody: Wait, why China?

–Rani: Yamamoto tried to establish a base in China, but his forces were driven back, not by Jacinta's faction, not by Puella, but rather by the Chinese military. So we can suggest that China will ensure our safety.

–Melody: Ah, okay.

–Rani: Anyway, let's go.

–Melody: Right.

The two girls headed north.

On board one of the shuttles:

–Pilot: Ah, I see.

The pilot put back the radio communicator.

–Uzuki: What's going on?

–Pilot: Unfortunately, enemy fighters have been spotted in Italian airspace. The captain has ordered us to divert to another location.

–Aoi: And where would that be?

–Pilot: We've been given clearance to land at an RAF base in southern England. It'll be an additional few hours as we need to adjust our trajectory.

–Benio: So we have to head to Italy on foot, right?

–Wakaba: Looks like it.

–Tamaki: Well, it'll be quite a while until we reach the location of the fire-elemental World Orb. So how exactly will we get to Italy?

–Miho: Well, the others are on the other shuttle. I guess we'll know once we actually land.

–Uzuki: Anyway, we don't have anything to do but to wait. Anyway, Miporin, when the Endurance was attacked, where were you?

–Miho: Ah, well... our shuttle was stuck in a holding pattern. Our pilot told us not to teleport out.

–Uzuki: Ah, okay. It's because we really needed your help fighting that man.

–Miho: Well, it couldn't be helped. Besides, you were able to get the job done, right?

–Uzuki: Well, you can thank Wakaba and Aocchi for that.

–Aoi: Anyway, when will we arrive?

–Pilot: From our projected course, we will arrive at 0200 hours local time.

–Uzuki: I see. So it'll still be dark.

–Pilot: Also, it appears that it'll be raining at that time.

–Wakaba: Uzuki, what about jet lag?

–Uzuki: Ah, right. Louise told us not to worry about it initially, as we weren't staying in one place for more than a day, and to sleep whenever we feel like it. But now that we're going to be in Europe for a while, it seems we will need to adjust.

–Wakaba: Ah, I see. Wait...

Wakaba pointed out the window.

–Wakaba: What... is that?

Everyone else looked out the window.

–Benio: Wakaba, that's Earth. What are you talking about?

–Wakaba: No... I mean, if you look at those lights, one of them is far brighter than the others.

–Pilot: Wait, you girls can actually see the city lights from here?

–Tamaki: Well, I'm best at it, but we all can, to an extent.

–Uzuki: Anyway, where exactly is that bright light?

–Wakaba: It has faded away, but it was near Cape Town.

–Pilot: I see. Cape Town, South Africa. I'll inform the captain and ask him if anything happened near Cape Town.

After a few hours, the shuttles landed at an airfield in Hampshire. The shuttles taxied to a nearby hangar, where the girls disembarked.

–Louise: Uzuki, did you see that light near Cape Town?

–Uzuki: Well, Wakaba did. But it faded rather quickly. What was that?

–Himawari: Well, the captain of the Endurance suggested that it was a massive explosion. Probably around 18 megatons. Whatever it was, it was powerful enough to nearly saturate the city's defence barrier.

–Aoi: What could've cause such a massive explosion?

–Himawari: We're pretty sure that it wasn't a nuclear weapon, as no detectable amounts of fallout were found at the site of the explosion. But no other kind of man-made device can achieve such a powerful explosion without magic.

–Wakaba: So you're suggesting that it was magic, right?

–Benio: But who could've created such a huge explosion?

–Kanade: Actually, I don't think it was an individual, but rather, a device. A mana bomb, to be precise.

–Miho: Mana bomb?

–Kanade: It's a device that converts mana into electromagnetic radiation. We Donsilans have mana bombs with yields in the teraton range, but the yield of a mana bomb is limited by the amount of energy its protective barrier can take. Realistically, its yield can only be around 20 times the power of its barrier. Of course, setting it off in a planet's atmosphere can cause even more devastation than if it were set off in space. We use them because they're more efficient than antimatter weapons and they require less maintenance. But if Yamamoto's faction managed to create a mana bomb, then...

–Louise: It's scary to even think about it.

–Wakaba: If it is a mana bomb, then... I don't think that they can create any more. It was probably just a test.

–Tamaki: Wait, Wakaba, what do you mean?

–Kanade: Well, Wakaba does have a point. I mean, even we Donsilans cannot mass-manufacture mana bombs.

–Wakaba: I had the fortune of actually seeing a mana bomb being built. The two responsible for building it were said to be the best in their respective fields, and that they were chosen for this job because they were pretty much the only ones who could do it.

–Louise: Wait, could they be Roger and Rachel Mason?

–Wakaba: Ah, they were.

–Aoi: But who requested the mana bomb?

–Wakaba: I'm not sure.

–Uzuki: Anyway, where will we be staying for now?

–Himawari: Ah, I almost forgot about that. Well, it's only a few hours until daybreak, so we'll be staying here for the moment. We'll be departing for Southampton at sunrise.

–Louise: We'll be taking a ship to Le Havre, and from there we will head to Paris. I'll tell you more once we get to Paris.

–Uzuki: Got it.

After a few hours, the clouds cleared, and the sun began to appear on the eastern horizon.

–Himawari: Right, then, let's go.

The girls left the hangar, with the exception of Lyra. Louise noticed this, and walked back to Lyra.

–Louise: Lyra, you've been awfully quiet for the past few hours. Is something the matter?

–Lyra: Lou-Lou... it's just... I sense a powerful being around. An evil being is close.

–Louise: Wait, what is it? A witch?

–Lyra: Yes.

–Louise: Then we must tell everyone! Let's go!

The two girls ran out of the hangar, only to find Uzuki, who had already changed into her mage outfit, confronting what appeared to be a young girl.

–Uzuki: You've finally come, Erelia. I was hoping that you would've come earlier.

–Wakaba: Wait, earlier? You mean, you called her here, Uzuki?

The witch responded.

–Erelia: Well, with Yamamoto's forces out and about, it was difficult for me to even get here. But anyway, here I am.

–Wakaba: But why did Uzuki call for you?

–Erelia: We both realised that we are compatible with each other. Besides, my sister is contracted with one of her sisters.

–Himawari: Wait, you're Orialla's younger sister?

–Erelia: That's correct. Anyway, Uzuki, don't disappoint me.

–Uzuki: I won't. Let's begin.

Uzuki and Erelia both began to cast a spell. Yellow magic circles appeared beneath their feet, and with a flash of yellow light, both disappeared, leaving behind a portal.

–Lyra: What's going on?

–Wakaba: It's a test, to see if Uzuki is worthy of a contract with Erelia. Mizuki went through something similar three years ago, and told me all about it.

–Lyra: I see.

–Kanade: Well, I know a bit about it. Witches by blood, born from a demon and a human or Donsilan, can enter contracts with magical girls.

–Lyra: And what about the portal?

–Louise: It leads to Erelia's witch space.

–Uzuki: &lt;Everyone, you can come in. I'm not required to do this by myself, you know.&gt;

–Aoi: Ah, should we head in?

–Wakaba: I guess so.

Wakaba held out her right hand and began to cast a spell. A green magic circle appeared beside her hand, and the portal opened.

–Wakaba: Let's go, everyone.

The girls headed into the portal.

End of Episode 17

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Commentary
Even now, I still haven't decided on Rani's family name, despite the fact that she was in my plans for a long time. When I do decide, I'll make links to her character page.

My first draft of this episode had a glaring mistake at the end. There were sections where Melody had lines, despite the fact that she was thousands of kilometres away from the other girls. Fortunately, I managed to catch this before I published this episode, giving the lines to Kanade and Lyra.

The "powerful foe" can refer to Pablo, but it can also refer to the witch.

"0200 hours local time" (or 0200J, although the girls do not know what the "J" means, hence I did not have the pilot use it) corresponds to 01:00 UTC (British Summer Time is UTC+01:00).

Mana bombs are, quite possibly, the most powerful weapons in Innocence Seekers, barring throwing actual black holes at targets. Theoretically, the yield of a mana bomb is limited only by the amount of energy that can be crammed within the device's space without forming a black hole (however, this limit is far higher than the yield even the most powerful Donsilan mana bombs; a bomb with an active spherical volume whose radius is one metre has an upper limit of around 6×1043 joules or 0.6 foes, comparable to the total energy of a gamma-ray burst and two orders of magnitude greater than the mass-energy of Earth). The main mechanism of a mana bomb is complete conversion of mana (or matter) into energy in the form of electromagnetic radiation. Unlike antimatter weapons, which only convert a portion of matter and antimatter into damaging energy (the rest being harmless neutrinos or less-damaging charged pions and muons), mana bombs convert all of their input into damaging energy. Small-scale mana bombs (comparable to the yield of thermonuclear weapons) are typically used as city destroyers or tactical ship-to-ship weapons, while larger weapons are used more strategically (e.g. to cause global devastation). The most powerful mana bombs don't actually use the background mana field as a source of energy, but a celestial body (such as an asteroid), and can easily destroy a planet.

Mana bombs do have their own limitations. Like all explosive devices, they are less effective in space (as the destructive potential of explosions is amplified in atmosphere) and have the risk of explosive failure (although the potential of an uncontrolled explosion is comparable to that of nuclear weapons and lower than that of chemical explosives and antimatter weapons). While the theoretical yield is so high that it need not be considered, the practical yield is limited due to the fact that the full yield is not achieved instantaneously. To prevent premature detonation (which would reduce the yield), mana bombs have a barrier enclosing the active volume, and detonation occurs when the barrier fails. As mentioned, detonation occurs when the energy generated is around 20 times the barrier's energy absorption capability.