Episode 1: End of the Jade Knight

Sunlight streamed in through the front window of a cafe in idyllic Darmfurt, despite the cold weather outside. The good upper middle class people of the suburb didn’t mind the cold since it was a perfect opportunity to don expensive coats and go out to be seen with friends. Still this was Germany, so the cafe was much more practical than a typical Italian or French cafe, acting as a reasonably priced eatery more than a place to get 5 Euro lattes.

One well dressed woman came in and greeted her friends happily. A pair of frumpy engineer types were sitting discussing jargon over two already empty plates. The only non-German was a young Asian woman in her mid 20’s demurely dressed in a calf length blue shirt-dress with white buttons. She sat quietly, sipping tea peacefully.

There was one pair of eyes that kept stealing to the Asian woman. A young man in the corner with a laptop angling his screen out of view to hide the porn he was trying to download. It was a fruitless endeavor, since the cafe’s wifi was filtering out all the fun sites. Heinrich Von Liebstien, son of the proprietor of a nearby quarry, and eternal pervert was not pleased by the blocked links. Still, at least he could enjoy eyefuls of the hot Asian live in person. The waitress had noticed his creepy glances but said nothing, she figured he was harmless and, for the moment, she was right.

An American girl sauntered in with a loud hey-how-are-ya greeting. She plopped down to joined the Asian woman, slinging a book bag underneath her chair and shrugging off her big thick jacket.

“You know, I wouldn’t have guessed it, but it really it a lot of fun here,” the American girl said.

Tendo Aoi smiled at her student with a hint of reprobation, “Now, Kristen-chan, have you been practicing like she taught you?”

“Yes, Miss Tendo, I’ve been on it. Totally on it, so on it you wouldn’t believe. I am so ready to be tested you don’t even know. The real question is, are you ready?”

“I will do my best when the time comes,” Aoi smiled humbly, though the little spark in her eye tells Kristen that she is much more confident than her words.

The television news broke in to regular programming, “ ... eye witness reports confirm smoke rising from the barracks in...”

The American girl called out to the waitress in English, “Could you turn that up?”

The news continued in German, “Though no official statement has been issues, this would add to the death toll of 11 that began in spontaneous riots in Dusselburg. We have learned that additional attacks have occurred in these neighboring municipalities. These unrelated incidents make this a remarkably strained week, vigils for the victims will be held at...”

Those words, though dark, did not penetrate the pleasant mood of the coffee shop where nothing bad ever happens. Kristen and Aoi exchanged a meaningful look. They knew there was more to this story, and without action, these random events would plow through this city on the way to Berlin. They nodded and without another word, they were gone.

A dark figure clad in black armor stood in a parking lot outside the student center and threw his 5th car upside down onto another. The loud crash of it would surely draw the attention of the university students inside, he smile to himself. But he wanted them scattering, running, breathing delicious fear and sowing chaos. Maybe they needed help getting out of the building - perhaps a hole in the wall would help. He drew his fist up and a ball of dark purple energy crackled, then with a grunt, he hurled it the building.

Instead of the beautiful expanse of chaos he’d expected, there was a blinding flash of light and a clang that dispersed the negative energy ball. A pair of women one in red light and one in blue appeared as if by magic in the way of the blast and held a hand out to the dark figure, the blue one spoke. “Stop right there, in the name of the Goddess!”

“You can’t stop me, not now, I am too powerful, I am the Dark Knight of Jade, Master of Chaos and I will conquer you!”

Unfazed the blue woman spoke again, “I am Magical Girl Azure, empowered by the goddess to stop you in the name of peace!”

“And I am the Crimson Spirit, and if you don’t give up now, I’m gonna toast you like toast!” Magical Girl Azure gave Crimson Spirit a quick look. Crimson Spirit replied, “What, I’ve never done a boss fight before.”

In unison they announced, “Fighting for Love and Justice, we are the Magical Girls of Light!”

“Well, Crimson Spirit, Magical Girl Azure, prepare to face DOOOOOOM!”

“Oh, it’s on!” Crimson Spirit opened with a volley of fire arrows just like she’d practiced when she first got her powers, but the knight conjured up a shield and blocked them with a grunt as he marched toward her.

While her partner was definitely up for the fight, Magical Girl Azure was more worried about the crowd that was starting to gather. She flew to them and ushered them all back inside to go out in another direction. Of course one would assume that people would follow orders in an emergency, but the pull of the spectacle was making slow movers of some, and a few more wanted to help fight.

“Please, you must go back inside, it is for your own safety, I must insist!” Sadly, her polite pleas did not move much of the collected gawkers. She looked back to the fight just in time to see the Crimson Spirit in the way of a speeding mace. With a crash, it hit Crimson’s fire aura, knocking her back and by the looks of it, knocking some of the wind out of her.

“Hail storm, Blast!” Azure launched a quick volley of hail stones that pelted the pair - it wasn’t strong - but it was fast and enough to distract the knight while just melting off of Crimson’s aura.

“Bah, you think you can hurt me!? Feel my wrath!” He flung his mace at her which doubled, then doubled again in size as to whirled end over end at her. She dodged it, but it crunched into the concrete steps. There was no doubt, she needed to move this fight away from civilians.

“Your wrath has poor aim,” she taunted, then pelted him with more hail as she flew over. “Perhaps you are too slow for me?”

He bellowed in rage and chased after her on foot, letting Crimson got her breath back. In a flash, she took flight after them both.

Both Crimson and Azure kept pelting him with minor shots and nicks. Crimson also followed her companion’s lead with more verbal taunting, “Can’t catch us? What’s the matter, your armor all rusted?” “Too much of a fatty to keep up?” “Hey ugly! Taste fireball!”

That last insult was accompanied by a ball of fire that missed its mark, but set a few trees alight.

“Oops ... Sorry Azure,” she said, but Azure was already conjuring a dousing blast of water.

Seeing his prey turn her back, the Dark Knight leapt from below soaring in the air and knocking girl’s back with another mace. It blasted off her aura again, knocking her out of the air where she splashed down in a cylindrical pool of water that sprung from no where as Azure saved her again.

“Come on, we’re almost there!”

Azure grabbed up her addled partner and flew on with the knight in close pursuit.

“Did you see that? What was that? He wasn’t supposed to do that! I didn’t know he could do that!”

In moments the forest opened out into a wide expanse of rock as they flew into a quarry. Seconds later, the Knight bashed through the chain link fence and brushed it off like cobwebs.

“You will bow before the might of CHAOS!”

Crimson looked to Azure, “Now can we let loose?”

Azure smiled and nodded.

The Knight was not prepared for the next few volleys. Flashes and slashes came from all angles, they moved with speed and skill glowing much more than before. The first few hits he attributed to luck. When they knocked him down he attributed it to the odd footing. When his shield cracked, he attributed it to distraction, but worry was growing. When he was unable to summon another nega-ball he began to fear. When he was flying head first into the rack pile, he wondered when exactly had he lost control of the fight.

A dark claw trembled and struck down into the earth, grasping and pulling. Attached to it for the moment, was the Dark Knight of Jade crawling to get away. He gasped for nega-energy seeking some source to help it fight conquer, dominate and consume, but the Dark Jade master was beaten, as he well knew. It’s future was as bleak as the pile of hewn rock he presently found himself clawing out of.

In stark contrast, Azure floated, a figure bathed in blue light and gossamer blue wraps of power with golden bangles floated above the earthen crags of mined rock. “Estra’s flow of water - Cleansing Wave!” Her voice, high clear and full of purpose, sung to a higher power manifesting in an aquatic stream that cut off his attempt to escape. She looked to the right and called out, “Crimson Spirit, it’s time to finish it!”

“By Nefernia’s breath of fire, Purifying Blast!!” Like her ally, her voice sung to a higher power which gathered like a storm encircling her in embers that grew burning brighter as they spiraled into a powerful vortex of blinding fire. The streams gathered swirling faster and faster until they became a singularity of light that unleashed in a blast of pure fire, “Hee-yah!”