Fine sand traveled on the northerly wind. Humongous flatbeds carrying yellow construction vehicles rumbled along the northbound main road. It was the season for the Stardust Desert to encroach on the city. And thus, the yearly occasion for the corporations to work together harmoniously. After all, the desert damaged their equipment in the factories equally. Any threat to their bottom line was a common enemy.

  The noise of the cleaning crews heading northward could be heard all across the Coalworks District, traveling through the ground and on the wind. But in a distant corner among the abandoned factories and warehouses of a bygone era, there was only the rattling of abandoned chains and a door banging open and closed in the strong gusts. Underneath a rusted machine with a long-forgotten purpose, past a hidden door, lay the secret lair of a band of terrorists.

  At the end of a grated gangway, right next to the bottom of the stairs, was an inconspicuous door. Putting one's ear against it, one could hear music playing on the other side. They were all theme songs from various cartoons, a mishmash of genres and voices. Rarely calm, mostly hot-blooded, more often than not high-pitched. But they all had one thing in common: They sang of love and justice.

  Raven lay in her bed and eyed the screen of her phone suspiciously. A message from Robin after nearly two weeks of silence. She wanted to meet her and go on an outing with Ronja Ikonen tonight. Two days before the Starlight Dynamics heist. It was an ambush, leaving her little time to react.

  Nightingale had assured her that Robin was a professional. This was an unnecessary risk and anything but professional. She was all for Robin making friends her age, even if they were corporate magical girls. But now wasn't the best time.

  No, this was likely related to her mental state. Their parting last time had been on uncertain terms, to put it mildly. This was an attempt to mend their relationship without being stuck alone. Ronja, being their first mutual acquaintance not involved with their work, would be the unwitting mediator.

  Raven sighed. She had avoided contact with Robin since that evening. Her aversion to the girl's advances wasn't out of any adherence to the law or social limitations. She had put those behind her the day she had to risk her life to defeat monsters to save people who were not only ungrateful but downright despicable. They were criminals, murderers, even terrorists now. No, their age difference simply made her uncomfortable. Robin was still a child, and her infatuation was a passing crush that could never work out. For many reasons.

  Still, she knew that they could never return to the professional attitude they had treated each other with during the first mission together. Human relationships were always so difficult. How had it worked for her back then, before it all came crashing down? She could hardly recall a single happy memory now.

  Raven sat up in her bed and gestured at the analog radio on the shelf. It switched off by an unseen hand. The sudden silence weighed on her mind as heavily as the phone did in her palm. She sighed. No more hesitation. This was an opportunity to set things straight. A calm conversation, clear boundaries. This evening out could very well be the deciding factor between success and failure for their entire undertaking. It would be a bad joke if the plan failed because of a teenage girl's mental instability.

  She put her phone in her back pocket for now and walked across her room. After a short while of contemplation, she threw on casual outdoor clothes that didn't stand out with bright colors or text. She emerged from her room and found Nightingale sleeping in her wheelchair beside the Thoughtmend Stele. She wasn't plugged in, or the door opening would have woken her up. With a wry smile, Raven walked over and shook her shoulder lightly. If she slept in this cold room, she would get sick even with the thick blanket over her legs.

  "Oh, I was more tired than I thought," she said in her usual frail voice. "Is there something you need?"

  "I'll be heading downtown," responded Raven. Then, after a short pause, she continued, "I'll meet Robin and Ronja."

  "I see." Nightingale had heard the details on their chance run-in with Riot Rhapsody. She was in no position to comment on it. Raven knew what she was doing.

  She began pushing her wheelchair past the Thoughtmend Stele and rows of servers toward her room. "I'll take the analog car this time," she said with an ironic smile. "You don't have to wait for my return. I might be late."

  The automatic door opened to Nightingale's bedroom. Raven had cleaned it up, but now it looked empty. With the medicinal smell, it invoked the image of a hospital room rather than where someone was living. She resolved to buy some decorations for her, even if she couldn't see them.

  "Be careful, Kanon," muttered Nightingale from her bed when Raven was on her way out of the room. She stopped in the doorway at the mention of her real name. The sickly girl was the only person in the world who knew who she really was now. All others were dead. And she knew that Nightingale wasn't long for this world, either. It would all come to a head very soon.

  "I'm always careful," Raven responded quietly before stepping outside and listening to the door closing behind her. Her feet took her through the server hall toward the common room. A mindless variety show ran on the television screen. Neri was slumped on the couch, looking up at the ceiling, a burning cigarette between his loose fingers dangling over the armrest. Igor was out, buying supplies.

  David Song sat beside him, staring at the screen blankly. Neri had done a good job on him. He was about ready to be returned to the wild. They were only waiting for after the heist so that his reappearance wouldn't stir the hornet's nest. For now, he was like a blank slate, a doll to liven up the atmosphere in the hideout.

  "I'm going out. I leave the base - Nightingale - to you," said Raven. Neri only grunted in response, barely moving in his seat. That was all the confirmation she needed.

  Her heels clicked up the grated stairs and across the gangway. The machine above rumbled aside and opened the path. The sound of her footsteps through the empty warehouse was drowned out by the strong winds blowing in through broken windows and cracks in the sheet metal walls.

  She entered a different garage from the one where her Ventari BT-12 was parked. This space was large enough to fit multiple vehicles, including the black van they had used during the Raytronics Financial Center attack. Igor had taken a different car this time to avoid drawing attention to their hidden base.

  The unassuming dark gray sedan, a model from over twenty years ago, was perfect to blend in with the regular traffic. She picked up the key from a box beside the door and unlocked it remotely. No fancy onboard intelligence and automatic doors. Just the way she liked them. Her motorcycle was a status symbol when she dealt with the underground. This one was good enough for private outings.

  "Alright, I'm coming to pick you up at five." She replied to Robin with this short message and put the phone in the tray behind the shift stick without waiting for an answer. With a wave of her hand, she pressed the button to open the garage door. The old motor hummed quietly and calmly as if factory-new. Igor's handiwork. She drove out of the garage and onto the sandy path outside.

  A long evening lay before her.

  The sun was a hazy orange disk in the sky, even as far south as the Saint Adela's Institute. The windows of the girls' school remained tightly shut to avoid letting even a single stray grain of sand inside. Classes were in full swing, and the corridors were silent. The voices of teachers lecturing and girls responding to questions could be heard faintly from beyond the closed doors.

  One class was noisier than any other. Self-study was written on the blackboard in big letters. The teacher had fallen sick suddenly, and a replacement had not been found in time. A rare occurrence at the institute, but a welcome one. Even the prim and proper ladies looked for every opportunity to relax.

  At the very back of the classroom sat a girl with green hair tied up into neat twintails. She wore big headphones from a brand only an audiophile would know. The fact that they had little sound isolation was irrelevant to her. Thus, the students sitting near her could hear the music she was listening to if they tried.

  Punk rock. At times, it was a male vocalist, at others a female. Sometimes in groups. Always raging against the corporations. Burn down those who burn away your life for the sake of profit. Torch the life support machine propping up terminal capitalism. And from the ashes, a new world shall arise.

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  The girls around her stared in disbelief while Alicia beheld her phone screen in the same way. Raven had agreed to meet her despite the short notice and the upcoming mission. Despite her fumble last time. She would come to pick her up after her club activities. It was one of her usual short replies, so it was impossible to tell what she was thinking. Still, just being willing to meet her again outside of work was a ray of hope. She still had a chance.

  School couldn't end soon enough. She was no model student, but only after-school activities had her giddy like this, be it work or meeting Raven. She remembered and quickly messaged Ronja, confirming that they could meet later. One part of her felt bad for using her as an excuse like this, and meeting her idol again did make her happy. But being able to clear the air with Raven was just more important right now.

  Alicia looked at the clock on her phone, and her smile froze. Six more hours. The flow of time would feel like molasses now. If only she had seen the message half an hour before Raven came to pick her up. The phone vibrating with a text message startled her from her idle thoughts. Was it a follow-up from Raven? No, it was Ronja. She sent a nodding cat emoji. Surprisingly cute. Quite different from her public persona.

  Her classmates watched her go through various emotions and exchanged curious glances. She was usually aloof, even cold. This was a new side to her. It made her feel more approachable. Still, they were all young ladies from well-off families. The headphones and vulgar music remained insurmountable barriers.

  Alicia ignored their gazes and was wholly unaware of their opinions. Even if they told her, she would have turned up her nose at them. She was a magical girl who lived in a different world from them. Their approval mattered to her not one bit.

  She started humming along with her music, smiling to herself while responding to Ronja with an emoji of her own.

  Raven waited in her car a distance from the entrance. She knew the positions of the security cameras and positioned herself so the trees would block her from their prying eyes. Her gaze flicked up to the rearview mirror when she saw movement. Students started to pour out of the main gate, and a column of expensive cars was waiting to pick them up. Most of them were driverless. Some had human chauffeurs.

  She spotted the tall rifle bags some of the girls carried. The shooting club was leaving the school. A moment later, she saw green twintails. Alicia noticed her at the same time, even though she was in the shade of a tree, sitting in a car she had not seen before. Her special magic at play; she could instinctively tell when somebody was watching her and pinpoint their location instantly. The perfect ability for a sniper.

  Alicia walked over with measured steps, maintaining a neutral expression. She was alone, as always. No friends in school. Not even a word of parting with her club mates. Her eyes were fixated on Raven's eyes in the rearview mirror, through the car window, across several dozen meters. The gaze of a predator on its prey. She had made up her mind.

  Raven was the first to break eye contact. She sighed and looked aside. There was no way to let her down gently, huh? She understood. A girl her age was too unstable to be able to let a clear rejection go. In her mind, there was always a chance unless the other side broke all contact. But that was something Raven couldn't do. They were still, in a way, a crew.

  "Hello, Raven," Alicia said as she opened the door on the passenger seat's side.

  "... how are you doing?" Raven responded with a nod.

  "Better, now that I get to see you again." The green-haired girl went on the offensive right away. She sat down, still clutching her school and rifle bag. Although she was quite petite, it looked cramped in the front seat.

  "Put those in the trunk. We don't want to get pinged on the way downtown."

  "Oh, right." Alicia quickly got out again. Raven avoided watching her in the rearview mirror and gathered her thoughts. She seemed normal enough, but who knew what she had planned? It was best to make things clear now before meeting Ronja. There were a lot of things they couldn't discuss with the number twenty-two listening.

  Once Alicia was seated beside her and the door blocked the outside noise, Raven started driving wordlessly. They left the hill housing the Saint Adela's Institute behind and entered the Meridian District's residential area. Rows of single-family homes with immaculate gardens. Suburbs reserved for high-ranking white-collar workers in the magitech-related corporations.

  "Alicia," Raven spoke up. She felt the girl beside her tensing up. "Whatever it is you feel about me. It won't work out."

  Silence. She waited for her response, never taking her eyes off the road. They soon left the suburbs behind and drove up the ramp of the downtown-bound highway. Only then did Alicia reply, "Why not?"

  Raven furrowed her brow and glanced at her. She had undone her twintails and surrounded her face in her voluminous hair. Gone was the aloof, trendy middle school girl. She showed her weapons as a maiden in love.

  "Because I'm an adult and you're a child," Raven declared in a matter-of-fact tone. There was no room for argument.

  "So you care about how people will view you? We're both criminals - murderers!" Alicia raised her voice, upset by this argument.

  "It's how I feel. You're a child." Raven repeated herself. "I would like to put this to rest once and for all."

  "What do you mean?"

  "You're ten years too young."

  "Then we can go out officially in ten years."

  "No. I don't have that kind of time."

  "What, you feel like you'll be too old by then?"

  "You know what lies at the end of this path."

  "I don't. Explain it to me like I'm a child." Alicia's willful defiance was ironic. This was the immaturity Raven could not overlook.

  "What awaits me is only death. You have your whole life before you," she responded.

  "Don't talk like you're some old lady with one foot in the grave. You're only eight years older than me. The same age difference as between my-" Alicia interrupted herself. She didn't want to talk about her parents with Raven. "And I won't let you die. At least not alone."

  "All you're feeling is a childish crush on the first person you perceived to be like you. Because we're both magical girls. But it will fade into a bittersweet memory within less than a year. Let it go."

  "I don't want to." Now it was childish denial. Alicia hit all the points that made Raven feel uncomfortable with her advances.

  "I will never love you, Alicia." Finally, she said it. Alicia's mouth fell open, then closed again.

  "Why not?"

  "I already have someone in my heart. At the end of my revenge, I will be with her."

  Silence. Alicia stared at Raven, eyes filled with despair. She had never seen that expression on her face before. Full of tenderness and sadness. And love. Love for someone she could never hope to compete against. After all, she was already dead. She could gather that much at least.

  Alicia could only mutter in complaint, "That's so unfair. Who was it?"

  "That's all I will say. Let me go. And in due time, you will find someone like that for yourself. Not just a crush on a ghost from a bygone era."

  Alicia wanted to rebut that the bygone era she spoke of was only two years ago, but couldn't bring herself to do it. It wouldn't feel right at this moment, after she had laid this part of her bare for the first time. She could tell that Raven was hurting inside. Even if she could never hope to grasp the true depth of her pain.

  All she could do was look at her face as she continued to drive. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she swallowed them with all the strength she could muster. She had declared to herself that she wouldn't give up. But seeing Raven's distant gaze, as if she were already looking beyond the veil of the afterlife, rendered all her internal struggles meaningless.

  So, this was what losing one's first love felt like, huh?

  "What's with you two?" Ronja asked with a tilt of her head when they met in the Everleaf Center's arcade.

  "Just exhausted from school," said Alicia with a wry smile. But she couldn't hide the fact that she had cried only recently.

  "How have you been?" Raven changed the topic.

  "Too busy. But I'm here to have fun, not talk about work," responded Ronja. Then she turned to Alicia again. "If you need a moment, I can-"

  "No, it's alright. Let's go. I want to let loose," Alicia shook her head and declared with a toothy grin. She took Ronja by the arm and pulled her along toward the shooting games.

  Raven knew she was trying her best to appear cheerful in front of Ronja. She would get over it soon enough. With a sniff, she followed them past the rows of noisy arcade machines. Students from nearby public schools were already swarming the place. It would likely be difficult to find a free machine.

  "Hey, are you Ronja Ikonen?" A boy suddenly exclaimed across the room. Others looked up from their games and craned their necks to peer over the machines.

  And there was this issue. Last time, they had been lucky that there weren't nearly as many people around and nobody had recognized her. But her outfit and hairstyle today were closer to her stage appearance. A poor choice when trying to pose as just another punk girl, especially when her atmosphere was so distinct. Despite being famous, she seemed to have little self-awareness beyond what public relations drilled into her.

  Students and even adults started to swarm around Ronja and Alicia. They didn't know how to respect personal space and clamored for autographs. Alicia was overwhelmed and boxed in. Raven motioned to step in, but she stopped when Ronja started rebuffing the fans. "Back off. Can't you see that you're bothering her?"

  Raven raised an eyebrow. She was obviously more concerned about Alicia since she herself was used to this kind of treatment. But her first instinct was to protect the girl beside her. Maybe there was a chance for more between them in the future. She watched, lips curled up in amusement, as Ronja utilized her powerful voice to order the fans to behave. If they wanted an autograph, they would have to line up in order.

  "Now, now, we will only accept a dozen or so autographs." Raven clapped her hands to get everybody's attention. She posed as Riot Rhapsody's personal assistant, acting so naturally that the person herself was left speechless. "It is Miss Ikonen's day off, after all."

  After a moment of silent shock, the clamor only grew in intensity. There were already over thirty fans surrounding them. The realization that not all of them would walk away with something to show for it sent them into a frenzy. But Raven stepped in and wrangled them like a bunch of unruly puppies. Her height and presence gave her a natural air of authority.

  "Who is she?" Ronja whispered to Alicia. The green-haired girl wore the Saint Adela's Institute uniform, but Raven was in casual clothes.

  "An amazing person," responded Alicia with a sad smile. Ronja glanced between her and Raven's back. She began to understand that something had happened between them since their last meeting. A distance that didn't exist before separated them. It wasn't her place to pry. But this atmosphere felt wrong. She really liked their energy together from before.

  So she would meddle.