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terrifyingrenegadelibrary · 7 years ago

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Volume 2, Chapter 10

Ayyyyyy

Godkillas

Liz: Zaresi.

Zaresi: Liz.

-the two goddesses stare at each other. Morgan looks between them, seeming uncomfortable-

Liz: This can still end, you know.

Zaresi: I was going to say the same.

Liz: Give up the magic. Shoot it all into space or something.

Zaresi: Come back to the right side. There’s nothing that can stop me anymore. Not even you.

Liz: I don’t want to kill you.

Zaresi: I would not worry.

Liz: …Please.

Morgan: Liz? What are you doing?

Liz: Zaresi, please. This is my fault. I made you like this.

-Zaresi tilts her head-

Liz: It’s a long explanation. But…please. Give me a chance to fix it. Just stop all this.

Morgan: Did we come here to talk or fight? You gave me a whole speech about following through, so maybe let’s do that?

Liz: …Right. Z. Last chance. Stand down now, I’ll explain everything, and we can undo what we’ve done.

-Zaresi is still for a while-

Zaresi: No.

-Liz sighs-

Zaresi: I do not know what you are talking about, but I—

Liz: Conversation’s over.

-she holds out a hand, and it expands into a three-dimensional map of sigils. She barks a word, and a red and black beam lances outwards, piercing straight through Zaresi-

Zaresi: Wh-what was that?

Liz: Ritual.

Zaresi: Obviously. You did not consider that I would just cancel it?

-Death magic ripples out from her…and stops-

Zaresi: What?

Liz: (mockingly) “You did not consider that I would just cancel it?” Obviously I did, because that ritual prevents you from doing that anymore. Neat, huh? Set it up while you were on your way here.

Zaresi: …How?

Liz: Magic? Obviously.

-she turns to Morgan-

Liz: Okay, so, I constrained her magic to prevent it from interacting with other magic. She can’t take out rituals like she’s been doing anymore. She can still cast a whole lot more than you can, and I still wouldn’t let her magic touch you, but at least she won’t just cancel everything you do and kill you in seconds, right?

Morgan: Wait, are you not helping?

Liz: Yeah, I really need to go back and keep the zombies from killing your friends.

Zaresi: About that…

-everyone looks over to where Liz has been piling zombie corpses-

-or, at least, where she had been, because the corpses have linked together to form into a massive, misshapen, hulk of bodies-

Morgan: …Um. Yikes.

Liz: …I should probably deal with that.

Morgan: …Please.

Liz: Good luck!

-Morgan gulps as Liz flashes away, and she turns to Zaresi-

Zaresi: …You know I will kill you, right?

Morgan: Nah.

-cut down to the ground. Janice opens fire on Evan, who maneuvers the tentacles from his mat to block her. Quinn sprints around behind him, firing arrow after arrow, but Laura intercepts, disintegrating Quinn’s attacks with a wall of Death magic-

Evan: What happened to us, Janice?

-the two are exchanging fire-

Evan: Didn’t we used to get along?

Janice: That was before you killed Richard.

Evan: Oh, yeah, I guess that’s fair.

-suddenly, Quinn appears within the mass of tentacles. She punches Evan hard enough to knock him off his feet, but several tendrils catch him before he falls and several more block Quinn from approaching again-

Quinn: I have heard enough out of you!

Evan: Oh, are we playing Categories? How about “Things people say right before I kill them?” Phalcoboenus megalopterus!

-he throws another playing card into the air, where it detonates like street fireworks, pressing Quinn towards the tendrils behind her-

Quinn: Is there anything you take seriously?

Evan: “Famous last words?”

Quinn: What on earth could have made you this kind of a person? Is there some excuse you’ve got for this? Rough childhood? I mean, not that that would excuse anything, but you’ve got to give me something!

Evan: “Elementary school counselor report summaries?”

Quinn: You’re literally the worst human being alive.

Evan: “Advice from friends?”

Quinn: Get better friends!

Laura: Hey, Evan? Is Quinn in there?

Evan: We’re having a conversation! Can you give us a moment?

Quinn: Actually, you know what, that’s fine.

-and she vanishes. Evan rolls his eyes, and continues fending off fire from Janice-

-Laura, meanwhile, has been standing around somewhat awkwardly, and seems slightly relieved when Quinn appears, firing arrows at her-

Quinn: Seriously, why do you put up with him?

Laura: I try not to.

Quinn: You don’t seem to do such a terribly good job of it.

Laura: Can we just focus on trying to kill each other?

Quinn: If you insist.

-meanwhile, about a block over, Liz is battling the zombie hulk-

Liz: You know…

-she rips the magic out of it with dozens of Love magic feathers. It collapses to the ground, but almost immediately gets back up-

Liz: That’s the seventh time I’ve killed you. Whatever’s powering you, I’m almost impressed.

-she dodges a massive fist, and detaches it with a slash of Death magic. It disintegrates back into composite bodies, which are quickly reabsorbed into the main mass-

Liz: At least, I might be if you weren’t trying to kill me. Seriously, cut it out.

-her arm transforms into a sigil diagram, and a beam of magic lances through the amalgamate. It slumps, and then magic pulses out from it and it recovers-

Liz: Oh come on, that’s eight! What’ll it take? Maybe thirteen? Zaresi likes thirteen…

-as the amalgamate charges her, she continues killing it over and over again-

-in the sky, Eneril is still battling the Reapers, Dee and Andrew on his back-

Dee: Go east. East!

-Eneril looks around, picks a direction and rockets that way, swirls of flame picking off the Reapers that attempt to follow-

Dee: East, I said! They’ve laid a trap this way!

Eneril: And how, exactly, am I supposed to intuit which way is east?

Dee: Use the sun!

Andrew: Why are you under the impression that we can see the sun?!

-as Eneril keeps flying, dozens of Reapers rise out from behind buildings, intercepting him-

Dee: See? Told you we should have gone east.

-On the rooftops, Morgan charges Zaresi. She leaps across several rooftops and lunges at the goddess, a scythe forming in her hands…and another scythe interposes itself between the two, catching Morgan’s weapon and flinging her off to the side-

Zaresi: Hopeless.

-Morgan catches herself with a pair of scythes before she can fall off the edge of the building-

Morgan: You’re the one with no hope!

Zaresi: I do not understand.

Morgan: You don’t understand!

Zaresi: …That is what I said.

-there’s an awkward pause-

Morgan: Can we just cut the banter? This is ridiculous.

Zaresi: If you insist. I will make this quick then.

-she bats aside another scythe-stroke and sends scythes cascading down around Morgan. She sprints away-

Zaresi: To reiterate, though, this is hopeless.

-she forms a scythe in her hands and slashes it crossways at Morgan. She catches it with her own scythes, and Zaresi starts to push her back-

Zaresi: You have no chance of winning.

-Zaresi whirls the bottom of her cloak, batting Morgan away again. This time she sails over the side of the building and drops about fifty feet before she can get a handhold with her scythes. Her descent changes from a lethal drop to a slow slide-

Zaresi: I have defeated everything in my path so far, including yourself. Fair fight or no, you have never before succeeded in standing against me, and now you come equipped with nothing but a Contract and a fighting spirit? You are arrogant.

Morgan: You’re calling me arrogant?

Zaresi: What did you say?

Morgan: No, seriously, how can you not get the hypocrisy there?

Zaresi: No, I mean, what did you say? You are very far below me. Figuratively, yes, but also at this moment literally.

Morgan: Oh, uh. (yelling) I was saying that you’re also arrogant!

-Zaresi shrugs-

Zaresi: It is a flaw we share, but all the same it will be your undoing and not mine.

-she raises a hand, a scythe forming-

Zaresi: I have allowed you to live for too long. There will be no next time.

-and she points down, the scythe diving towards where Morgan is desperately clinging to the side of the building-

-a few hundred feet up and a few seconds earlier, Eneril blasts away the last of the Reapers attacking him and notices Zaresi knocking Morgan off the side of the building-

Eneril: She’s not paying attention!

Dee: So?

Eneril: So now is the time to strike!

Andrew: Also, we should probably help Morgan out.

Dee: I wouldn’t. We can’t take her on.

Eneril: Don’t be ridiculous.

-he swoops towards the rooftop she’s on-

Dee: Wait! No! Bad idea bad idea bad idea!

-as the scythe plunges towards Morgan, Eneril bats it out of the way with winding patterns of Darkness magic-

Eneril: ZARESI!

Dee: Why would you get her attention I thought this was supposed to be a surprise attack--

-the goddess doesn’t look up-

Eneril: The time has come for my long overdue vengea—

-a scythe opens him up from chin to…well, let’s say the base of the tail. Death magic burns at the edges of the cut, and multicolored strands of magic drain out like a leaking pipe-

Eneril: Augh!

Andrew: Are you okay?!

Dee: And this is why we stick to the plan…

-Eneril crashes into the tower, even more of his form being sheared away by the collision. He whirls away, having lost control entirely of his flight path-

Dee: You need to let go! That Death magic will just keep burning away at you if you don’t jettison all the magic it’s touched!

Eneril: I won’t! I’m stronger than it!

Dee: Ugh…I figured I’d be using this on Evan or something, but this works too.

-she pulls herself up to Eneril’s head, produces a post-it with sigils scribbled onto it, and slams it onto Eneril-

Dee: Big Brother!

-Eneril’s eyes flash gray, and suddenly a huge portion of his body mass disintegrates. What’s left is no longer touched by the Death magic-

Andrew: What was that?

Dee: Mind control.

Andrew: Seriously?

-Dee shrugs-

Dee: Well, it was that or let him die and then also fall to our deaths. Any idea how to fly this thing?

Andrew: I don’t think “fly” is really the verb you want here.

-Eneril, Dee, and Andrew crash to the ground on a lower rooftop. As the ritual controlling Eneril’s mind fades, he awakens, and shifts into his human form from before-

Dee: And how are you feeling?

-Eneril notices Dee and leaps to his feet, flames sprouting around him-

Eneril: What did you do to me?

Dee: Saved your life. Now, new question.

-Eneril stalks towards Dee, the flames swirling around his hands-

Eneril: Make it a good one.

Dee: What do we do about them?

-she points behind Eneril, where the remaining Reapers are descending on the three-

Eneril: Please. Even injured, I’m more powerful than all of them combined.

-and he swings his arms wide, a wall of flames erupting between the three and the Reapers-

Iggy: Koliko dugo možeš to da uradiš?

Reaper #2: (aside) Var dette ritual lavet ved hjælp af google translate?

-Dee and Andrew fire blasts of their own up at the Reapers, but the Knowledge magic isn’t terribly useful, mostly bouncing off or being dodged. Eneril, for his part, grabs a Reaper with a tendril of Darkness magic, and drags it down into the flames, incinerating it-

Dee: Well, that works.

-Eneril flickers slightly around the edges-

Eneril: It’ll hold for now.

Andrew: That’s kind of concerning.

Eneril: (more firmly) It’ll hold.

-meanwhile, Morgan is still slowly sliding down the side of the building. Quinn notices-

Quinn: Hey, Janice, can you hold Laura and Evan both for a few seconds?

Janice: I AM THE UNQUESTIONED MONARCH OF ALL WAR MAGIC!

Quinn: I’ll take that as a yes.

-Quinn vanishes, darting over to Morgan-

Quinn: Hey, fall! I’ll catch you!

Morgan: Oh thank goodness.

-she dissipates her scythe and drops a few stories, where Quinn catches her-

Liz: Oh, good, you two are together.

Morgan: Wait what who told you?!

Quinn: We’re not—Um—

Liz: No, I mean standing together.

-there’s an awkward pause, broken by Liz firing a beam of Death magic through the head of the zombie amalgamate. It collapses again, but gets up just as quickly-

Liz: That’s 13. There goes that theory.

Quinn: Huh?

Liz: Nothing. Anyway, second ritual time! You two are gonna need to kiss.

Morgan: What.

Quinn: What.

Liz: I mean, you don’t have to, I guess. But it’s the ritual I set up for Love and Death, it requires you two to be in proximity, I guess you could just like—

-Quinn and Morgan kiss-

Liz: Yeah, that’s what I thought.

-as they do, a tendril of Death magic extends from Morgan, and a tendril of Love magic from Quinn. The tendrils intertwine and then split, curling back together to form a heart-

Liz: Aww, that’s kind of cute.

-and a wave of force sweeps out from the ritual, extending over the battlefield-

Liz: Well, hopefully that works. Okay, you two can get back to fighting now.

-she glances at Morgan and Quinn, who are still kissing-

Liz: ...Now.

-nope-

Liz: Quinn, just because you don’t need to breathe doesn’t mean Morgan doesn’t.

-this warning goes unheeded. Liz sighs-

Liz: Hey!

-the two snap apart, blushing-

Liz: Thank you. Get back to the battle?

Quinn: R-right.

-she dashes off to help Janice-

Liz: Morgan. Doing alright?

Morgan: Uh, been a little better. Last few seconds helped. Any advice?

Liz: Don’t die.

Morgan: ...Thanks.

Liz: Well, also—

-Zaresi rushes past, grabbing Morgan and dragging her along-

Liz: ...Eh, it’ll have to do.

-and she returns to battling the zombie hulk-

-meanwhile, the growth of the force sphere created by the ritual slows and stops, and flickers of pink and black energy begin to form within it-

-on the roof, Eneril, Dee, and Andrew are still holding off the Reapers. As the wall of flames begins to weaken, the Reapers’ assaults become bolder, until Iggy dashes past the wall-

Dee: Ah, crap. It’s been an honor, guys.

Andrew: This is the worst way to die ever.

Dee: I dunno, I could think of worse.

-the pink and black flickers gather around her-

-and a familiar, if somewhat shadowy androgynous figure interposes themself between Dee and Iggy, fending off the Reaper with an explosion of Knowledge magic-

Dee: …What.

-for the first time since we met her, she looks baffled-

Dee: …T-Tirali?

Tirali: Good to see you again.

Dee: H-how…

Eneril: Do you see those flickers?

-indeed, the pink and black flickers are now surrounding Tirali, cloaking them in an aura of Love and Death-

Eneril: ….I think Liz’s ritual is summoning ghosts.

Dee: What? Ghosts aren’t real. They’re not…

Eneril: Well, not ghosts exactly. More like…echoes of the people you’ve lost, formed out of the love you had for them. Which is, essentially, a ghost.

Dee: That’s…

Andrew: Kind of horrifying.

Dee: …Yeah.

-as a few more Reapers make it past the wall, Tirali repels them with more blasts of Knowledge magic. They’re joined by more shadowy figures, until a small army is helping to hold off Zaresi’s forces. Meanwhile, Eneril rebuilds his flame wall-

Andrew: Oh, hey, that’s my goddess there.

Dee: …C-contractor.

-on the ground, Evan and Janice are facing off. As they do, Laura slips around to the side, readying an attack from behind-

-and her blasts are deflected by a volley of arrows from Quinn-

Quinn: Hi! Sorry, needed to step out for a moment.

Janice: No worries, I’m having fun.

Quinn: That’s a little more concerning, honestly?

Janice: Why’s that?

Quinn: Never mind.

Janice: Cool. So. Ritual. Timeframe?

Quinn: Uh, should be soon.

Laura: Wait, what ritual?

Evan: I can’t see anything from in here. Laura, what’s going on?

Laura: Something about a ritual!

Liz: Oh, I made a ritual using Love and Death to summon ghosts of the people we loved to help us fight.

-Evan jumps and turns around to see Liz standing behind him-

Liz: Also, I need to borrow your ritual for just a minute.

-the zombie hulk crashes headlong into Evan’s tendrils, impaling itself. It grunts, and tears itself free, stupendous amounts of zombie biomass falling to the ground before being reabsorbed-

Liz: That didn’t even kill it? Shoddy ritual, Evan.

Evan: You—

-the flickers gather around Liz, and ghosts appear around her, tackling Evan-

Evan: Hey! Who even are these people?

Liz: Yeah, nobody you’d know.

Evan: Oh, come on. Spill.

Liz: …Nah.

-and she’s gone, taking the ghosts with her-

-Evan grumbles, and picks himself up-

-meanwhile, as Janice and Quinn fight, the flickers begin to gather around them-

-as Laura steps forward, a tall figure appears on the shoulder of Janice’s mech, and the air is suddenly filled with glowing birds made of War magic. Bolts of energy ricochet throughout the street, and Laura is forced back-

Janice: …Richard?

-yep-

Richard: Good to see you again, Janice.

-he nods to her, and spreads his arms, more and bigger tulpas forming and charging down Zaresi’s side. Laura tears holes in them with blasts, but they’re forming faster than she can destroy them-

Evan: Oh, come on. Wasn’t killing you once enough?

-the tendrils from his mat lash out, ripping through dozens of tulpas at once and making for Richard-

Janice: No!

-she fires at them, but Laura suppresses her attacks with a torrent of Death magic-

Janice: Quinn, if you could help out with some ghosts, that would be real nice!

Quinn: Well, I was never exactly friends with any of the other Love Magicians, so—

-there’s the twang of an electric guitar-

-followed by the tinkle of a-

-triangle-

Janice: What.

-and Allen and Jacob appear at Quinn’s side, a wave of sound spreading out from them and repelling Evan and Laura’s assault, leaving the tulpas untouched-

Quinn: …I’m with you on that. What.

Allen: Quinn! I know it seems like it’s hopeless, but you can do this!

Quinn: Allen, how do you have even the slightest idea what’s going on right now?

Janice: I think that it’s less that that’s Allen, and more that that’s your extrapolation of what Allen would say in this situation.

Allen: Hey! I’m Allen enough for these purposes! Now, Quinn, you are going to give this your best, and you are going to win! Right, Jacob?

Jacob: …Oh, hey, is this London?

Quinn: …I missed you two.

Jacob: But yeah. You got this.

-they continue their playing, keeping the tendrils at bay, and as Quinn, Janice, and the tulpas press the assault, they start to drive Laura and Evan back-

-meanwhile, now several blocks from the rest of the battle, Zaresi comes to a halt and flicks one of her scythes like a lacrosse stick, hurling Morgan away. Morgan stops herself from splattering by conjuring up her own scythes and grabbing on to them, but before she can get her footing she’s already dashing from side to side as more of Zaresi’s magic rains down around her-

Zaresi: Stop, Morgan. Just surrender. You will be granted leniency.

Morgan: I don’t want your leniency.

Zaresi: You will die, then.

Morgan: No, I won’t!

-she swings her scythes, but they’re stopped cold by Zaresi’s. Morgan conjures up more and more, but Zaresi matches them without so much as slowing down-

Zaresi: You cannot win this. You will never win this. I outclass you in power, in experience, and quite frankly in drive to succeed.

Morgan: Bit of a broken record there?

Zaresi: If I repeat myself, it is to drive home my point.

-more scythes rain down on Morgan, who is slowly buried under them-

Zaresi: You are doomed.

-Morgan’s scythes begin to sputter. She conjures more, but they form wispy and barely solid-

-cut back to Liz, who is still fighting the zombie amalgamate, which is just picking itself up from yet another death-

Liz: Oh, come on. You still haven’t run out of juice?

-she notices something, and looks at her feet, which are starting to flicker and blur-

Liz: …And speaking of running out of juice…

-as the amalgamate gets up, she blasts it with another wave of feathers, accompanied by similar blasts from her ghosts. However, the combined attack doesn’t even slow the amalgamate down, and the flickering spreads up to Liz’s knees-

Liz: Oh dear.

-the amalgamate charges-

-and shift to Janice, Quinn, Evan, and Laura, who are still facing off-

Evan: Hey, Janice!

-Janice turns around, to see Evan perched on the shoulder of their mech. Their eyes widen-

Evan: See, the big difference between our rituals is that I can ditch mine and let it run on its own. Which, as you might have noticed, I just did. Necrosyrtes!

-and he jams his knife into the mech, which vanishes into nothing. Janice yelps and drops to the ground, rolling with the impact as compared to Evan’s somewhat graceless plummet-

Evan: …Ow.

-on the other hand, without the suppressive fire from the mech, the tendrils of Evan’s ritual rapidly overwhelm the waves of sound, and then the summoned tulpas-

Quinn: Janice! A little—

-she turns to see the situation-

Quinn: Oh.

-and is distracted long enough for Laura to hit her from behind with a burst of Death magic. The attack burns several holes in her, which she patches up as she begins to flicker as well. Meanwhile, Evan advances on Janice, twirling his knife. They open fire on him, but the tendrils, now largely unimpeded, intercept their bullets-

Janice: Richard!

Richard: Janice.

Janice: It looks like we’re about to lose!

Richard: That is seeming like a possibility.

Janice: I just wanted to say, since I didn’t get to the last time…fighting at your side. It’s been an honor.

Richard: …As has it for me.

Janice: …See you around.

-and the tentacles tear through Janice’s covering fire. One of them grabs Janice, draining the life from them, and flings them back. They land hard and don’t get up-

Evan: And that’s what happens when you work together. High-five for teamwork, Laura?

Laura: You take too much pleasure in this.

Evan: And yet you don’t stop me.

-he limps over towards Janice and Quinn-

Evan: It’s probably no big secret at this point, but when I use my ritual and suck the magic out of something, everything they’ve ever seen flashes in front of my eyes in the split-second it takes for the ritual to work.

-he stares at Janice-

Evan: I tell you this because I hope you’ll understand why it’s so important to me that I don’t let Laura kill you less painfully. Everything going on in your head? I need it. After the ritual worked on Nicholas, I decided I’d do whatever it took to get to keep using it.

-he grins, and tilts his head a little-

Evan: Fortunately, the conditions for the ritual just happen to coincide with one of my favorite things in the world to do.

-Laura, meanwhile, has approached Quinn, and is sitting in front of her-

-Quinn lashes out with a bolt of Love magic, which Laura casually deflects, looking very tired. Quinn, meanwhile, becomes even blurrier-

Laura: Don’t. It’s not worth it.

Quinn: So what?

Laura: Tell me something, okay? Before you die?

Quinn: Why should I do that?

Laura: It’s not about Morgan. I promise.

Quinn: …Fine.

Laura: What did you think you were going to accomplish? You had to understand you didn’t have enough power to engage with us directly. Nobody and nothing does.

-cut to Liz, slashing dozens of holes into the amalgamate-

Liz: 32…

-she’s now a formless wisp from the waist down, but she still flits aside from a strike-

-cut waaaay up to Dee, Andrew, and Eneril on the rooftop, as they attempt to hold off the incoming Reapers-

Andrew: Uh, how much longer do we have?

Eneril: I can do this all day!

Tirali: That is definitely false.

Andrew: So again, how much longer do we have?

Dee: About five seconds.

-on cue, the wall of fire Eneril is producing flickers and dies. Having lost the element of surprise, the ghosts are swiftly eliminated-

Dee: See?

-Andrew gulps-

Iggy: Ovo je gotovo! Po njih!

-and the Reapers all dive-

Dee: …Well. At least I’ll die as I lived.

Andrew: How’s that?

Dee: Being right all the time.

-they raise their magic up for a last stand-

-and back to Laura and Quinn on the ground-

Quinn: …

-she shrugs-

Laura: …Ah, crap.

Evan: Hmm?

Laura: Evan, deal with these two! I need to go now!

-and she’s gone-

Evan: Flaky to the end. Oh well.

-he twirls his knife-

Evan: Well, it’s been fun, and it’s been real, but it hasn’t been real fun.

-he kneels down by Janice, who hasn’t yet gotten up-

Evan: Now, I’ve been having a lot of trouble lately with people escaping while I’m making up my mind about who to kill first, so when this fight started I decided I’d start with you. Say hi to Richard from me.

-Janice spits in his face-

Evan: Whaaaatever.

-cut back to Morgan and Zaresi-

Zaresi: Do you have any last words?

Morgan: (breathlessly) See, uh, I’d say something, but I actually can’t right now, and I’m really sort of kicking myself for that because it would be the perfect time to say that something, but I think you’re about to see for yourself so you can probably guess.

-and Liz’s ritual washes over the two-

-there’s a flicker of pink and black around Morgan -

-her scythes disintegrate as Zaresi’s all slash down-

-and they all miss-

Zaresi: …Damn.

Morgan: …Wait—

-and there’s another figure standing between the two, arms outstretched as Space magic bends Zaresi’s attacks-

Holly: Hey again.

-Morgan stares in shock-

Morgan: Holly! I—

Holly: Just a minute. We need to get this done.

-she points at Zaresi-

-who is suddenly directly in front of Morgan-

Holly: You’re up.

Zaresi: What are you—

Morgan: Holly—

Holly: Finish this!

Morgan: …Right.

-Zaresi slashes at Holly’s magic with her scythes, tearing through it-

-but just before it snaps-

-Morgan takes a deep breath and stabs Zaresi with the knife-

Morgan: And that thing I wanted to say earlier was—

-Laura rushes up-

Laura: Zaresi, be careful, it’s a—

Morgan and Laura: --Distraction!

-there’s a pop-

-and an explosion of pure magic spills from the knife into Zaresi. Her form starts to waver, and then crack, white light spilling out from the holes-

Zaresi: Oh.

Morgan: Told you. Distraction.

Holly: She’s good at those.

Zaresi: This will not stop me. I just need to…

-she focuses-

-where Liz is, the amalgamate is charging her. Liz spreads her wings, but they’re wispy and see-through, as is most of Liz in fact-

-the amalgamate swings down its fists-

-and abruptly disintegrates, the energies that had been keeping it going draining away-

Liz: …Guess 37 was enough. That’s my cue.

-she looks around, realizes nobody is nearby to hear her one-liners, and dashes off after the magic draining from what used to be the amalgamate-

-Evan, meanwhile, sees the same thing, and further notices the magic draining out of his knife, his spell mat, and several other rituals he had on his person-

Evan: What the hell?

-he glances at Janice, who doesn’t seem like they’ll be involving themselves in the fight any time soon-

Evan: …Stay there.

-and they run off-

-the magic reaches Zaresi, who absorbs it into herself. The cracks begin to seal…and then open up again, splitting even wider-

-Liz runs up-

Liz: Hey.

Morgan: Uh, hey. You’re not looking so great.

Liz: I’ve had better days. You did the thing, huh?

Morgan: I think so.

-the two glance at Zaresi, who is still struggling to contain the released magic-

Liz: You won’t survive canceling it out. Novju may have had millennia to grow, but she was just skimming off the top. Janice and I got magic from the pyramids, Stonehenge, ancient cave drawings…we went deep. It’s too much even for you.

Zaresi: I have another option.

Morgan: You do?!

-she turns to Liz-

Morgan: She does?!

Liz: You’re thinking you could just not bother containing it, right?

-Zaresi glares at her-

Liz: You could, I guess. Change your form to put the magic on the outside, zip off somewhere else, leaving the magic here to spread everywhere. You’d probably even kill Morgan and me.

Morgan: Wait, what?

Liz: But this is a lot of magic. It wouldn’t stop there. You’d probably end up scouring London. Maybe all of Great Britain.

Morgan: Wait, what?

Zaresi: I would win.

Liz: You would admit that this whole thing was never about improving lives. That there’s no point where you stop killing and let people live in peace. That it was all really just about putting yourself in charge. Trying to show you were right.

Morgan: No, seriously, did you give her a way to wipe Great Britain off the map?

-Liz ignores Morgan-

Liz: Well? Gonna do that? Prove me right, Z.

-there’s silence for a while, as the cracks spread-

Zaresi: …Liz, you could come with me.

-Liz blinks-

-Zaresi abruptly shifts down, taking on her human form. Liz takes a step back-

Zaresi: I know you don’t like it, but it’s the right thing. I’ve ended conflict.

Liz: There’s always going to be conflict, Z. You can’t solve everything with the nuclear option.

Zaresi: It works.

Liz: Until there’s nothing left to protect.

-she waves her hand, gesturing at the battlefield-

Liz: You want to pack up, do this again in New York, or Shanghai, or Addis Ababa? Take your pick, really. It’s not going to end.

Zaresi: …

Liz: Do the right thing.

Zaresi: …We were friends, Liz…

Liz: We were.

Zaresi: …

Liz: When you were a Spirit, I…I think I changed you. And I spent too long avoiding dealing with that, and then you went and took over the world. So now I’m fixing things.

Zaresi: …

Liz: Sorry.

-she and Zaresi stare at each other for a long time. The cracks grow wider and wider-

Zaresi: …It’s okay. I made my choices. Whatever you might have said…this is on me. I guess it’s only fair that I be the one to make the choice to end it.

Liz: …Goodbye, Z.

Zaresi: Bye, Liz.

-the cracks abruptly seal-

-for just a moment, Zaresi stands there, perfectly still-

-then her form flashes pitch-black-

-and it’s gone-

-up on the roof, the Reapers dive. The last defensive spells fail-

Iggy: Oh! Oh hey! I can speak in English agai—

-and the Reapers transform into harmless wisps of light. Iggy crashes headlong into Andrew’s fist, which is covered in a thin film of magic-

Andrew: Quiet, Iggy.

Dee: Ooh, sick burn.

-Eneril just sighs as the remaining ex-Reapers scatter-

-back with the spot formerly occupied by Zaresi, and its constituents, Liz bows her head-

Liz: I tried.

Laura: …You…

Evan: …Lady Zaresi?

-his eyes narrow, and he raises his knife-

Evan: What did you do?!

-he rushes at Liz, swinging his knife…but it just passes through, no longer possessed of any magic-

Evan: Aaagh!

-he turns towards Morgan, rushing her-

-and finds himself shoved away by a wave of Space magic-

Holly: Not happening.

-Evan’s eyes flick back and forth between the assembled Magicians and Spirits-

-and then he remembers that Janice is still very much around, and very much barely conscious-

-and he sprints off. Liz swipes at him in an attempt to stop him, but just as he passed through her earlier, she passes through him now, too drained to keep herself fully corporeal-

-Morgan takes a few steps after her, then totters and slumps over, exhausted from casting all day and from being flung around the city like a ragdoll. Holly makes to cast a spell, but her form starts to flicker the moment she gets more than a few meters from Morgan, and she steps back in range of the ritual-

Evan: I won’t be denied this! I’m going to kill someone today, and I guess it’ll be—

-he’s tackled to the ground, the knife skittering away from him-

Laura: No.

-and she punches him in the face, knocking him out-

Liz: …Huh. Thanks for the assist.

-Laura says nothing-

Liz: Okay then. So, uh, these ghosts aren’t going to last forever. I don’t know how everyone feels about the whole closure thing, but…there are a couple conversations I’d like to have before they fade.

Morgan: …Yeah.

-she turns to the Holly specter-

Morgan: Um…hey.

Holly: Hey, Morgan.

Morgan: …I’m sorry I couldn’t save you.

Holly: It’s alright.

Morgan: Is it? You’re a ghost, talking to me. What’s alright about that?

Holly: Think about it. I’m a ghost made out of Love and Death magic. I’m basically an imprint of myself, taken from the minds of the people who love me. Which means, no matter how much you blame yourself, deep down you know this wasn’t your fault.

Morgan: …I don’t follow.

Holly: Which is proof that I’m the real me. You never could have figured that out.

-she giggles-

Holly: Hey, speaking of people who love me, did you ever get Quinn’s memories back? It would be nice to talk to her.

Morgan: Oh, right, she should be—

-she trails off-

Morgan: …Where is she? Evan’s unconscious, Laura’s here.

Laura: Uh, we were fighting, I sort of left her…

-she gestures vaguely, and Morgan rushes off, Holly following-

Liz: …Oh dear.

-She glances at Laura, who looks stricken-

Liz: …Well? Go after them. I’ll keep an eye on Evan.

Laura: …Right.

-and she follows, as Liz turns to one of the ghosts-

-Morgan quickly arrives to a road where Janice, semiconscious, is being watched over by a specter of Richard-

Morgan: Janice! Have you seen Morgan!

Janice: Mmm…five more minutes.

-they shift a bit-

Morgan: …

Laura: Um, Morgan?

-Morgan turns around, glaring at Laura-

Morgan: What do you want?

Laura: …Look carefully.

-Morgan does so-

-and realizes that the air in the area is very slightly tinted pink-

Morgan: Wh—Wha?

Laura: She took a lot of damage, and she used a lot of magic. She’s…dissolving.

Morgan: Wh—no!

-she looks back and forth as if expecting someone to solve the problem-

Holly: …I’m currently bound into the ritual that made this version of me. I can’t end it early, or I’d…sorry.

Morgan: No, this isn’t okay! We won! This isn’t supposed to happen!

-Morgan drops to her knees, attempting to scoop the mist back together-

Morgan: Quinn, please! I can’t lose you again! Not after all this…

-Morgan continues to babble as she sobs into the ground-

Morgan: Spirits can revive if they receive invested magic, right? I brought Quinn back before; I’ve got plenty.

Laura: What?

Morgan: Right after we broke out of Zaresi’s prison! She started to dissolve, I put her back together!

-Laura frowns-

Laura: …Morgan, if you were actually able to repair her, it means she was probably faking dissolution. Once a Spirit reaches this point, it’s really only a matter of time.

Morgan: I’m not going to accept that. If she needs more magic, I’ve got plenty.

Laura: …No you don’t. You’ve been casting all day, and Quinn needs almost a whole life’s worth. Do you remember, back when I explained Spirits to you, I said you’d never realistically run out of magic?

Morgan: Yeah, so?

Laura: You’d almost certainly run out of magic.

Morgan: So what? I can just come back as a Spirit, right?

Laura: A Magician can return as a Spirit if they died from channeling too much divine magic at once. If you burned out the last scrap of magic in your body…you’ve seen Evan’s ritual. You know what would happen.

Morgan: …Fine.

-she glares at the mist-

Morgan: Quinn, you already died once because I couldn’t figure out what Zaresi was doing before it happened. If this is what it takes to keep you from dying again, then accept it and come back, because you’re all that’s left worth living for!

-magic begins to flow out of her, twisting off into the mist, which starts to gather. Morgan spasms, and nearly collapses-

Laura: Morgan! You’re going to die!

-Morgan chews on her words for just a moment, before spitting them out-

Morgan: Then tell Quinn I love her!

-more and more magic flows out of her. She cries out in pain-

-and Laura steps forwards, and grabs Morgan by the arm-

Laura: Tell her yourself.

Morgan: Laura, what the hell are you doing?

Laura: The least I owe you.

-and magic starts to flow off of Laura too-

Morgan: Like you’re in any better shape than I am right now?

Laura: It’s a gamble. But with two of us…it could work.

-Laura crumples to the ground as well as her magic intertwines with Morgan’s, tendrils fanning out into the mist-

-for a brief moment, nothing happens. Morgan’s breaths start to slow. Laura’s speed up-

Laura: (softly) …I’m sorry.

Morgan: (equally softly) Thank you for trying.

Laura: …That’s not what I’m sorry about.

-Morgan’s eyes start to close. The specter of Holly blinks, and her eyes widen-

Holly: Wait, no, don’t—

-and the mist abruptly starts to regather-

Holly: Morgan!

-Morgan’s eyes snap open as the pink light begins to take shape-

Morgan: …Quinn!

-and the light resumes its physical form as Quinn, as Laura and Morgan both collapse, breathing shallowly-

-but hey, at least they’re breathing. Holly bows her head in relief-

Quinn: Oh, man, I really do not want to do that again.

-Morgan stares at her for a moment, from where she’s lying on the ground-

Quinn: (weakly) What’s the matter, Morgan? You look like you’ve seen a ghost…

-and Morgan leaps to her feet, and kisses her-

Morgan: I love you, Quinn.

-Quinn grins-

Quinn: So I heard.

-Holly smiles-

Holly: Hey, Quinn!

Quinn: Holly?

Holly: Someone else you think Morgan would have gotten from the ritual?

Quinn: There could have been another me.

Holly: You’re not dead.

Quinn: I’m a little dead.

Holly: I’m more dead.

Quinn: …Okay, yeah.

-she hugs Holly. Meanwhile, two other people walk up-

Allen: Hey!

Jacob: Hi…

Morgan: …Oh my god.

Quinn: I mean, kind of.

Morgan: You’re back! Quinn brought you two back?

Allen: Yeah! Not even death is gonna keep a good musician down!

Jacob: -yawning- Death?

Allen: We kind of died, Jacob.

Jacob: …Huh. Didn’t notice.

Morgan: Never change.

-she hugs the both of them-

Allen: Not like there’s a whole lot of time to.

Morgan: …Okay, yeah, that’s a bit of a mood-killer.

-Quinn nods-

Allen: Well, while we’ve got the band together, why not play one last show?

Morgan: With no instruments or audience?

Allen: Jacob and I can make the instruments.

Quinn: And it’s not like we ever had an audience anyway.

Holly: You’ve got me.

-Laura, who is still lying on the ground, raises a hand-

Laura: And me?

Allen: See? That’s like twice our usual.

Jacob: … (to Laura) Didn’t you kill us?

Laura: …Kind of.

Jacob: …Huh.

Allen: …We can’t really turn down an extra audience member.

Holly: You sure can’t.

-about an hour later, they’re still playing-

Laura: Uh, how are you turning down the volume on acoustic instruments?

Holly: They’re not.

-she waves a hand. It’s starting to fade-

Holly: The ritual’s about to go out. Our time’s up.

Morgan: …Oh.

Quinn: …Oh.

Allen: Yeah.

Jacob: Eh.

Quinn: It was nice getting to play with you again.

-she hugs the other band members. Morgan joins the group hug for a moment, before stepping aside, to Holly-

Morgan: …So, uh.

Holly: Yeah.

Morgan: …I’m glad I can at least say goodbye.

-Holly nods-

Holly: Goodbye, Morgan. You did good.

Morgan: Goodbye, Holly.

-they hug, and when the hug breaks, Holly’s gone-

-Quinn, Morgan, and Laura are left alone. Liz approaches, dragging an unconscious Evan behind her-

Liz: Hey. Have you…

Morgan: Yeah. We did.

-Liz nods-

Liz: Where’s everyone else?

Quinn: Well, Janice is still out, I think, and…

Liz: …Where are Eneril and Dee?

Quinn: And Andrew.

Liz: I guess.

-meanwhile, back on the roof of that one building-

Dee: Awesome, we won. How do we get down?

Eneril: Oh, be quiet.

-and back on the ground…-

Liz: …I’ll go get them.

-she flashes away, returning with a very confused Dragon, a very confused Magician, and a second Magician whose entire mode of existence is based on never ever being confused-

Dee: Nice work, Morgan.

Morgan: You could at least admit that, for once in your life, you are startled by the events that have transpired.

Dee: …No.

Andrew: I am.

Dee: Dude.

Liz: Eneril. Thank you for your assistance. Will you be alright?

Eneril: Hmph. I’ll repair, given time. For now, I’m going home.

Dee: Mind giving me a ride?

Eneril: Yes.

Dee: That’s alright. Come on, Andrew, let’s go.

-and the two follow Eneril, the Dragon sighing as he walks off-

Dee: See you around!

Liz: Well. Anyone seen Janice?

-as if on cue, they walk up-

Liz: Alright, problem solved. Janice, how are you feeling?

Janice: …I have been distinctly better in the past.

Liz: I’m sure you’ll be fine.

-she sits down by Janice-

Liz: We’ll all be fine.

Janice: Yeah? How about him?

-they gesture at Evan-

Liz: Piece of work, that.

-Quinn tilts her head at Evan-

Quinn: I have an idea!

Morgan: You’re thinking what I’m thinking?

Quinn: I should hope so.

-cut to Evan with a small sigil on his forehead-

Janice: Honestly, at some point this is probably kinder than telling him his actions ended up leading to Zaresi biting it.

Liz: …Let’s not try and pretend this isn’t petty revenge.

Janice: Works for me.

Quinn: Yep. Sweet, sweet petty revenge.

Morgan: Okay, on the count of three.

Quinn: One…two…three…

Morgan, Quinn, Liz, and Janice: Buteo!

-there’s a flash-

Evan: Huh?

-he looks around in confusion-

Evan: Where am I…what’s going on?

Janice: …There’s a lot to explain.

-they take Evan aside, and begin whispering to him-

Liz: Well, we’ll see if he develops any better this time around.

-the remaining three turn to Laura-

Morgan: So.

Laura: Well? Get it over with.

-she spreads her arms out-

Laura: I’ve got no magic, Liz is a Reaper, and Morgan’s a Death Magician. I can add two and two, so just finish this.

Liz: Hm.

Morgan: No.

Laura: What?

Morgan: Laura, were you wrong?

Laura: Bit too late, isn’t it?

Morgan: Answer my question.

Laura: Why?

Morgan: Zaresi’s dead, your plan failed, and everything you did to achieve it was pointless. Were you wrong?

Laura: …

-Liz suddenly steps forwards-

Liz: Laura. Do you know my history with Zaresi?

Laura: I—

Liz: I used to love her. And when he changed, I spent a long time loving her still, before I realized that I needed to hate her. She wasn’t willing to change how she thought about the world, and that made her so dangerous that she turned love into hate. Is that what you want to be?

Laura: …I never wanted this. Any of this.

Morgan: So?

Laura: I’m sorry.

Morgan: That’s not what I wanted to hear.

-there’s a long silence-

Laura: I may have made a bad call.

Morgan: …Okay.

-Laura bursts into tears, and Morgan gently hugs her-

Morgan: I haven’t forgiven you. I don’t know if I can ever forgive you. I don’t think I can ever forgive you. But…okay.

-Morgan lets go, and Laura steps back-

Quinn: …You did kind of kill me once. Sort of sore about that.

-Laura sniffles-

Quinn: But hey. I got better.

-she grins vaguely. Laura laughs hollowly despite herself-

Liz: …So. Who wants ice cream?

-cut to everyone in a small ice cream parlor. Everyone but Evan has ice cream, Evan seems more occupied asking questions to Janice, though, and isn’t bothered-

Liz: So what are we all going to do with ourselves now that we’ve saved the world? Or, at least, failed to prevent it from being saved?

-she nods to Laura, who sighs-

Janice: I don’t know about you, but I’m heading back home. Somewhere close to it, at least. Aren’t you?

Liz: I’ve had enough of America for now. I’m going to stay here for a few months, see the sights. Besides, someone needs to clean up after Zaresi. Keep in touch, right?

-she grins at Morgan-

Morgan: Did you ever actually get a phone?

Liz: I’ll get on it. New times, new me.

Morgan: Workable.

Liz: What about you, Evan?

Evan: I…don’t know.

Janice: He can come with me. He has some relearning to do, after all.

Morgan: Really?

Evan: Maybe I can go to college, study herpetology. I always did like lizards.

-Morgan gives Janice a look. They shrug-

Liz: Laura?

Laura: …Janice? How do you feel about a third party?

Janice: I’d be agreeable. It’s not like this is the first time we’ve tried to kill each other, after all.

Laura: Probably won’t even be the last.

Janice: Amen to that.

Liz: And Morgan? Quinn?

-she winks-

Morgan: …Good question.

Quinn: Yeah.

Liz: Well, I should get going. I’ve got a whole city to explore.

-and off she strolls-

Janice: And I’ve got some plane tickets to get. You two don’t mind cleaning up, do you?

-they hop to their feet and leaves, followed by Laura and Evan. Janice wraps an arm around each of their shoulders as they go-

Quinn: So. Just us left, then.

Morgan: Yeah.

Quinn: So really, Morgan, what are you planning to do? Stay here? Go home?

Morgan: I don’t know.

Quinn: Really? You haven’t the slightest idea?

Morgan: None.

Quinn: Not going to go chase down Laura and win her back?

-Morgan frowns-

Quinn: Okay, not funny.

Morgan: Not really.

-there’s a long silence-

Morgan: So what were you thinking of doing?

Quinn: I was thinking I could head back to America too. Maybe go live in Dee’s town; it was nice there. Or maybe go west.

Morgan: Sounds like a good idea.

Quinn: …

Morgan: …Quinn, when you were mist, how much did you hear?

Quinn: Not much.

Morgan: …

Quinn: Something did stand out to me, though. Something you were saying…

-Morgan turns red-

Quinn: Come on, saying it for the first time when it looked like I was about to die? Talk about clichéd.

Morgan: Uh…

-and Quinn kisses her-

Quinn: I love you too, Morgan.

-montage of a lot of things happening-

-Morgan is sitting on a bench, alone, talking on her phone-

Morgan: Liz.

Liz: Honeymoon phase over already? Laura and Janice tell me you’ve barely been talking to them lately.

-Morgan blushes-

Morgan: You’re the first person I’ve talked to in a while besides Quinn.

Liz: Probably as it should be. What’s on your mind?

Morgan: I needed to ask you something.

-she takes a breath-

Morgan: All the people who died. In town, during the war…

Liz: …

Morgan: Is there anything we can do about it? I wasn’t thinking so clearly, but looking back on it, there’s Life magic, right? And we could find another Goddess of Space, undo what happened to Holly. We could—

Liz: …Magic can only go so far.

Morgan: But—

Liz: I’m sorry. Almost anything can be healed with some work, but death is…well, it’s final.

Morgan: …Oh.

Liz: …I’m sorry.

Morgan: …

Liz: I had an idea or two though.

-the world starts to go back to normal-

-Morgan and Quinn are at a gravestone, left in a small patch in a certain forest. It bears Holly’s name. Morgan is crying into Quinn’s shoulder, Quinn holding her close. Pan out to show dozens more gravestones. Janice is standing in front of Richard’s, Laura standing uncomfortably next to them. Evan just looks lost. Liz is standing off to one side, looking somber-

Laura: ...Janice?

Janice: …I’m fine.

Laura: That’s not your “I’m fine” face. That’s your “everything hurts, but I’m keeping it in because I think Evan or Laura is going to make fun of me” face.

Evan: I made fun of people?

Laura: Constantly.

Evan: …I sound like I was a dick.

Janice: You really were.

-and they burst into tears. Laura sighs-

Janice: I just…I miss him. He pretty much taught me everything I know about magic, and now he’s gone. And I miss him. You know?

Laura: I don’t know. But I get it.

-Janice nudges Laura, who somewhat awkwardly wraps an arm around them-

Evan: Um…I’m sorry, but who is it that you miss?

Laura: Richard.

Evan: Who?

Janice: ...I have some explaining to do.

-cut back to Morgan and Quinn-

Morgan: …It’s never really going to be okay, is it, Quinn?

Quinn: No.

-she pulls Morgan in a little closer-

Quinn: But it’ll be better.

-cut to Morgan and Quinn in a synagogue, Morgan still crying, Quinn wrapped around her-

-cut to the two in a room. Quinn makes a joke. Morgan giggles-

-cut to the two talking together on a park bench. Morgan looks sad, but she’s still smiling-

-once again, Morgan is alone, when Liz appears out of nowhere, wearing a wide-brimmed hat-

Morgan: …Can’t you literally shapeshift?

Liz: Sure I can. But I like the hat.

-she sits by Morgan-

Liz: Did it help any?

Morgan: I don’t know.

Liz: That’s fair.

Morgan: I just…don’t know what to do now.

Liz: Spend some time with your girlfriend. Go to college. Start a sitcom.

Morgan: And things will be better?

Liz: …Someday.

-she pats Morgan on the head gently-

-cut to a small hotel room, clearly on the west coast. Morgan and Quinn are watching a news report-

News: People all around the world are reporting a sense of lost time, and very few are able to recollect any of the events of the last several days. As of yet, no explanation for this phenomenon has been offered.

Quinn: Sure are a lot of Magicians in the world, huh?

Morgan: Lot of Magicians, lot of gods. Guess some things supersede town squabbles, huh?

Quinn: Leave it to Liz to find one last way of draining excess magic from the world.

-Morgan laughs. Quinn sighs-

Quinn: Something like this could always happen again, you know.

Morgan: It could. But you know what?

Quinn: What?

Morgan: We were there to stop this one. Someone else will stop the next one. You know what we do now?

Quinn: What do we do now?

Morgan: We rest.

Quinn: And enjoy our happy ending?

Morgan: Is it?