*
"Sorry, I couldn't help out. I thought you would be fine near Aura and I didn't think Eterna would attack in the open.
I was... Watching the gates around the school district. When Eterna attacked, groups of gunmen began to rush in. I was busy dealing with the various groups. You were right, they couldn't react if I simply lunged into the centre for fear of hitting each other. " (Faramicia)
Sariel smiled softly, her heart relief that her companions were still safe. Was it right to drag Aura into this war? Was it right to drag the other magical girls in? Not really, but she won't care about insignificant details like that. If she didn't group them up, they would be more vulnerable to Eterna's attacks. They are targets to begin with, it wasn't possible for them to be uninvolved. Sariel simply needed to do her job. Lead and bring victory.
"You did well. We can only do so much on our own, that's why you did amazing for your part dealing with all the gunmen.
Well... You left an awful mess at the scene, didn't you." (Sariel)
Fresh dark crimson clings stickily to Faramicia's combat dress, the tangy smell is only more pronounced for a magical girl's olfactory senses. Every sense is enhanced to a superhuman degree when transformed. Further away, there were strange clusters of students she could see from the rooftop. Even then she could guess what the sea of people of hiding in their midst, bodies. Numerous corpses Faramicia left in her wake. Faramicia winced in response, sheepishly looking away.
"Well, that's alright. Magical girls are a natural force of this universe, or a natural law forged from the human species. It's not something the government can bastardise into something evil and openly oppose." (Sariel)
They have to uphold their secrecy more than we do. At least that was the sentiment Sariel held.
"... It's impossible to sit still now, isn't it? Do you need help with anything? " (Faramicia)
It hasn't been long, but a short amount of time like this feels like a lifetime for magical girls, due to the high stakes nature of life and death. Faramicia had really grown stronger and more dependable since they first met, Sariel was feeling a little moved.
"... At this point it might be a little late to worry about defence. Do what you think is right, within your own power of course.
If you have any good ideas, don't be afraid to reach out to other magical girls. They're all good kids." (Sariel)
Thankfully, Alice established a massive groupchat with everyone involved before she sent them back. It's efficient to sent out information or even brainstorming. It's crude to use a messenger app, which was easily monitored by the government. So at the moment, crucial plans are kept off the records.
"Don't forget, you're a kid too... It must sound odd as the definitive strongest magical girl of our generation, but... I must tell you that it's fine to rely on others." (Faramicia)
When she was done, she walked past Sariel with a gentle smile on her face, cheekily sticking her tongue out at her before leaving.
" Haa~ that's right... It's only because everyone else is stronger, that's why I was able to stay so calm back then. Arin, Lastia...
If anything happened, I could fall back on them. Shameful, but... Peaceful." (Sariel)
Now that she's in this position, how was she doing? Is she doing well? Who would be the judge of that? The first person to cast judgement was... Herself. Inadequate, she still needed to rely on Alice for all these unforeseen issues that come into play. Alice always seemed so prepared, not only predicting when the attacks would come but also foreseeing inconveniences that would plague operations. Communications was the first thing to establish is any organisation, Sariel would have neglected such a thing and gone lost when things go bad.
Now she doesn't need to go crazy and visit 300 homes. That was just the A zones too, what about the rest? They were left in the hands of the sentinels, with Taneda helping out whichever zone didn't have a sentinel. There were 20 something odd sentinels, some zones fell under multiple jurisdictions as a result. Other than rogue magical girls, their job was to deal with the heavenly kings.
The very first heavenly king Sariel encountered, The Observer was weakened by Taneda beforehand. No matter what, her mind would always return to the days with those 2. Right, perhaps the people best able to judge her would be those two. 'Please judge me', she would plead, as long as she could see them again. Sluggishly, she laid down on one of the seats found on the rooftop garden. Her thoughts laid bare to the darkening sky, the armed shooters brought chaos to the official side of the school administration, sending every student back home by lunch break.
Humans are resilient, what these constant dangers and disasters has taught them isn't to cower in a shelter for the rest of time. Instead, it's to come back and continue learning, to continue pushing civilisation. That's why no matter what happens, as long as the sun doesn't blow up school will continue, maybe even the sun blowing up wouldn't stop them.
'People are impressive... Except for me... ', she couldn't help but think. If it were up to her, she would have moved to another planet long ago. The existential threat of Traces has never left, only kept abated by magical girls. A select few are bearing the pressure for the whole species. For an unspecified sin Sariel is even less aware of. So then, what has kept her from running?
Ideals? Duty? Responsibility? There's no way to narrow it down to one thing. Sariel simply felt like staying, not that she had a choice to evacuate to some other planet. This was the world Lastia and Arin gave their lives to protect. It's painfully beautiful and full of the treasure of life. So heart wrenchingly valuable that it would be a waste if it were gone. But these are all worthless platitudes, they would be 5% of the reason each.
"Fufu, I'm the biggest idiot." (Sariel)
It's because Lastia and Arin saved the world. So she wanted to catch up to them, follow their footsteps. Reach beyond her usual grasp, hold onto something truly special with her own hands. She wanted to be like them.