“I can’t believe this,” Jackie moped.

“Believe what?” Annie asked as she looked up from the Algebra textbook.

“This,” he waved at her and the seeming mountain pile of textbooks, or at least he felt like it was. “I can’t believe you were serious about actually tutoring us!” he huffed. “And how the hell did you convince Mom to let me stay over at your place to study!?”

“I managed to convince her because you actually need it,” she blinked with a deadpan. “And you’re lucky Leah is such a good student, so she both backed me up and gave her blessing so we can still meet up.”

“Yeah, Leah really managed to double team you with that curveball didn’t she,” Carmen laughed as she scratched Peachy’s ears, the cat giving a hearty purr.

“Not even a week after school gets canceled and I’m already knee deep in homework again,” he whined.

“Keeping your education up is important Jackie,” Annie answered plainly as she flipped another page. “It’s important for kids your age to learn while they can.”

“Besides, it’s not that bad,” Ichika chimed in. “I mean you get all of our help with this too,” she smiled.

“Yeah, especially with math. You need all the help you can get with the stuff,” Carmen laughed.

“Yeah, well I think you should be over here studying with me through all this crap,” Jackie challenged her while wildly waving his finger at her.

“Sure, unlike you I actually like learning,” Carmen giggled much to his irritation. “I should actually ask my parents about getting me in on this.”

“You would do that, wouldn’t you?” he grumbled, collapsing upon the table.

“I guess our momentum is derailed for now,” Annie sighed as she closed the Math book.

“I think a break would do you two some good anyway,” Ichika noted. “Oh, by the way, Jackie, you never told us why your family was away for so long. Did you ever find that out?”

“Hmm?” he looked up. “Oh, right. Mom’s a civil engineer, and with all the stuff that happened, a lot of structures got damaged. It was all hands-on deck and she wound up having to bring Leah and Tommy with her after the birthday party. Apparently, they did they called her in so they could organize rescue efforts and the like.”

“Wow, your mom sounds pretty impressive,” Ichika chuckled.

“Mary, er, his mom definitely seems to have it pretty together for being a single mom,” Annie added.

“What about your dad?” Ichika tilted her head.

“Oh, Jackie’s dad works overseas. He’s an anthropologist, and he’s been away for some field work since last year,” Carmen explained.

“Yeah, he considered taking us with him, but he didn’t want us all to pick up and leave, especially Tommy since, little kid and all,” Jackie shrugged.

“Sounds like both of your parents are pretty responsible,” Ichika chuckled.

“I mean, when you get past the weird hang ups they sometimes have, like Mom had with Annie, sure I guess,” he shrugged again, not sharing in the enthusiasm.

“No,” Annie protested. “Her concerns were well founded. She’s just concerned for you. She doesn’t want you getting exploited. I won’t say I enjoy being on the receiving end of that distrust, but she really just cares for you.”

“I guess so,” Jackie sighed.

“So, what now?” Carmen asked, redirecting the conversation, much to Jackie’s gratitude. “Should we talk about some incidents now?”

“Sounds good to me,” Ichika nodded.

“Please, anything but more of these stupid numbers,” Jackie begged.

“Alright, then, I guess we’ll do that then,” Annie chuckled. “Alright, to recap, recently there’s been a bunch of sightings of suspicious people taking control of numerous buildings that have been abandoned or damaged since that mist event.”

“About that,” Ichika said raising her hand. “Shouldn’t we come up with a term for that so we’re all on the same page when it comes up? It’s kinda annoying being like ‘that mist event’ or whatever.”

“Yeah, we keep scrambling for words, but it never seems right,” Jackie frowned.

“Oh, oh, how about the Day of Magical Awakening!” Carmen grinned.

“That’s way too long,” Jackie objected.

“Yeah, it should be short and sweet,” Annie nodded.

“Then how about, the Change,” Carmen wiggled her fingers eerily.

“Too common,” Jackie frowned.

“The effulgence?”

“Wha-? What does that even mean?”

“It’s basically when something is overtaken by light,” Annie explained.

“I like it,” Ichika giggled.

“Yeah, but no one else is going to know what it means,” Jackie sighed.

“Which is why it’ll work,” Carmen wagged her finger. “Or do you just not like it because it’s a word you don’t know?”

“Oh, then how about the Magic Mist?” Ichika proposed.

The others blinked and looked at each other. “That’s so good!” Carmen hugged Ichika, the latter giving a small hop and a smile.

“Yeah, I think that will work,” Jackie nodded with a grin. “It’s pretty specific, and I think anyone we need to talk to about it would get what that means.”

“I agree,” Annie smirked. “Alright, so ever since the Magic Mist swept across the planet, abandoned buildings have been getting occupied by suspicious groups. No one knows what they’re doing, and we don’t know any specifics beyond that.”

“Sounds like the perfect thing to get us started,” Carmen pumped her arm with a wink. “It’ll be the best way to inaugurate our team. Find some villains and flush them out.”

“I agree,” Ichika nodded. “It would be great to make ourselves more known. But how would we go about doing that?”

“Well, we would just go find one of these buildings and go in to find out what they’re doing, right?” Carmen thought aloud.

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea,” Annie shook her head. “It’s just as likely to be refugees as it could be someone villainous. And in the latter, we might be getting into more trouble than we’re prepared for. I think the first thing we should do is gather some more information,” she reasoned.

“In that case, how about we walk around town and ask people if they’ve heard anything strange?” Carmen grinned. “It’s how it normally works in games and TV shows.”

“I’m not so sure that’d work in real life,” Annie said uncertainly.

“We could also look online,” Ichika proposed. “I’ve seen a lot of rumors posted on Facey and Redds,” she explained, using her typical cutesy nicknames for the sites.

“I think a combination of both may actually be best,” Annie considered. “Rumors online can be hit or miss, and good rumors on the streets can be hard to find.”

“Then how about we split up for a bit and go do some independent investigating?” Carmen held her arms behind her head with a grin.

“Hmm,” Annie held her head in her hand as she considered the proposal. “Alright, but under one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“Carmen, Jackie, you two will be going together.”

“What, don’t you trust us?” Carmen pouted.

“It’s not that. But if one of us stumbles upon something dangerous then you should at least have some back up. You’re both kids, and there’s safety in numbers, and I’ll keep close too if anything happens. That is unless you’d rather go with me personally,” Annie shrugged.

“Aw, fine,” Carmen relented. “Well, we’re used to hanging out anyway. Isn’t that right Jackie?” she chuckled as Jackie grinned back.

* * *

Freestone Park was always a rather popular spot among teens and young adults since as far back as Jackie could remember. Two acres of grassy hills, trees, and a rather vast man made pond, at least compared to most places in Arizona. The ponds weren’t much, especially compared to the likes of the lake in the heart of the neighboring town of Tempe. It was a comfortable place full of fun for kids and pets while adults freely wandered it in leisure. The curving paths and playground made for a comforting space for all visitors.

Of course, such a refuge was not untouched by the Magic Mist, Jackie gawked as he looked on at the strange state of the park. Not only had refugees of varying sizes and forms come to the park to escape their newly complicated lives, but some of the plants had bizarrely disappeared while yet others had changed, becoming strangely colorful and fantastical even. It was as if they had stepped into a space of the mundane merging with the fantastical.

He had heard a few reports on this strange phenomenon. While most people’s attentions had been on how the many humans had begun changing, numerous reports also came in of other lifeforms changing as well. Much the same applied as to the humans, some had their physiology change or gained new powerful abilities, plenty matching mythical creatures. Some horses sprouted wings and horns, some cats gained telekinetic powers as their tails split, like Peachy, and there were even sightings of animals that seemed to match the likes of the hippogriffs and phoenixes.

The strangest of these reports were those of animals becoming human like in form, just as many humans became more like animals in appearance. Much like the minotaur Jackie and the others encountered in the mall over a week ago, the new humanoids were quite confused by their new forms. The former animals seemed to gain knowledge to match their new lives and matching awareness as they became the likes of harpies, fairies, and lamia. Of course, many questions still lingered of how to treat them, but it was only one of the many issues to be in wide consideration these days.

What was perhaps more peculiar and seemed the most surprising in rural areas was how plant life seemed similarly affected. Some became more animalistic, gaining limbs and hunger while remaining planted in the ground. Meanwhile others seemed to become humanoid in form as well, plant girls emerging from flowers, people falling out of fruit, and more. Jackie could eye one such girl, her dusty white skin and deep green hair matching some of the trees around her as she seemed to talk nostalgically to them. A short distance away a man leaned against another tree seemed to have green skin and yellowish green hair, the two seemingly uprooted from their previous lives. He couldn’t help but feel bad for them, particularly the man who had a grim face while the girl at least had a smile as if visiting old family.

It left the park in a strange place with strange spots of missing plants and messy soil, while collections of human-like people huddled across it in refuge. Even the ponds were full of similarly changed beings. He had come here many times when he was younger, and he could instantly tell the change in atmosphere. It wasn’t uncomfortable, but it was far from the familiar comfortable energy he once felt. Instead, there was a tinge of agitation to the area. He took a heavy sigh as he looked around.

“Alright,” Carmen struck a confident pose. “Let’s go see what we can find out.”

“How exactly do you expect us to do that?” Jackie’s eyes glanced around observing the obvious discomfort.

“Hm, you’ve got a point,” she said glumly. “We can’t exactly just go up and ask people,” she crossed her arms as she thought. “Oh, I’ve got it, how about we go eavesdropping,” she grinned.

“Isn’t that the kind of thing bad guys do?” Jackie gave a soft pout.

“Oh, come on Jackie, think about all that anime where the main characters overhear a conversation as they walk by. We just gotta do that.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive,” she nodded. “Let’s meet back here in half an hour.”

“Didn’t Annie say...”

“Jackie, we’re in a park, not wandering the streets. That’s literally why we chose this place, we’ll be safe here,” Carmen gave him an unenthused glare.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“Alright, I’ll go check on the other end of the pond, you look around here, got it. Catch you in thirty!” she waved, running off.

Jackie sighed as he gave in to her immense energy before chuckling. “She’s right, I just have to listen here and there and see if anyone says anything useful,” he reassured himself with a soft giggle followed by a small blush that licked his cheeks from embarrassment.

Jackie began to wander through the area, casually walking by a variety of people. Some talked family troubles, others random nerdy game rumors, and yet others seemed to bemoan their current circumstances. Most seemed to still be discussing the changes from the Magic Mist, how their lives had changed, whether it be that their home was wrecked by their transformations or inhospitable due to their new forms, or even lacking a home due to not even needing one till now.

Jackie sighed feeling more demoralized than anything after hearing their plight. Something in him hurt from hearing how rough everyone had it. It was strange, he felt even like he was there for some of the more traumatic stories. He gripped his shirt as he tried to calm down. That was when he heard a pair of voices behind him.

“That’s pretty weird, right?” a masculine voice questioned.

“Really weird,” a feminine voice replied. “Eerie too. I mean imagine walking home and hearing some girl’s voice like that.”

“Yeah, my bro would’ve looked into it, but there were all of these armed guys there,” they continued as their voice started to fade into the background.

“Well, that sounded unsettling,” Jackie frowned.

“What did?” he looked up to see Carmen having returned.

“I just heard someone talking about hearing some girl’s voice and seeing a bunch of armed men, or something,” he frowned.

“Oh yeah, I ran into those two a bit ago,” she chuckled. “They told me that someone they know was walking in a nearby industrial area when they heard someone singing. It was late at night and super out of the ordinary. Plus, the armed men makes it super suspicious.”

“But where is it?”

“I got the streets down on paper, but they weren’t sure of the exact location,” Carmen frowned. “Let’s see what the others turned up too.

“Yeah,” Jackie nodded.

* * *

“A woman’s voice and armed goons, huh?” Annie confirmed as she set down her phone, letting go of a disappointed look.

“Yeah, it’s super suspicious right?” Carmen nudged her with a glance.

“I think so too,” Ichika nodded as she tapped on her laptop. “And they’re not the only ones,” she put the laptop on the table showing a forum to the others.

“Oh, hey, Redd’s,” Carmen chuckled. “The people here are so full of themselves sometimes.”

“I’m not the biggest fan myself, but it’s still a really good place to find rumors. In fact, there’s a bunch of threads right now dedicated to rumors,” Ichika explained.

“Huh, what’s this one? ‘The manhunting witch?’ What’s that one all about?” Carmen wondered.

“I don’t know. That one’s just a bunch of rumors of random men being attacked by the same woman or something. It was pretty vague,” Ichika gave an uncertain look.

“What!?” Annie fumed upon reading one thread title. “‘My brother turned gay from the magic stuff, and how do I turn him back!?’” her eye twitched as she read a title.

“Of course, something like that would be on here in this dry ass state,” Carmen cringed.

“Yeah, there’s been a bit of that,” Ichika threw her eyes to the side in disappointment.

“Wait, what’s this one? Why would you boast about growing extra ones?” Jackie gagged.

“Like I’d know,” Annie sighed. “Heh, this one’s kinda funny though. ‘I think my new antenna are making me horny.’ That sounds like an adventure.”

“It’s sillier than that. Apparently, they meant they made them sexier or something,” Ichika giggled.

“Everyone, focus!” Carmen scolded them. “Chi, you said you found something?”

“Yeah, sorry, I accidentally backed out when I was moving it around,” Ichika chuckled. “Here look at this one,” she pressed the ‘forward’ button on the browser.

The page loaded to a thread titled ‘I heard a pretty voice and saw a bunch of guns, wtf?’ The thread detailed a similar account to what Jackie and Carmen had heard. The poster explained how they were passing through an industrial area to get to a bus stop when they heard a woman’s voice with a ‘somber tone’ echo through the area. When they investigated the saw several men holding guns and numerous others who were described as ‘transformed.’ The collection of guards noticed the poster and threatened them to leave.

“I think this might be the same thing,” Ichika looked to the others.

“Yeah, I agree,” Carmen glared at the thread. “We have to do something.”

“Carmen,” Annie looked at her. “I understand how you feel, but these people are armed, and...”

“Someone could be in trouble!” Carmen yelped, startling the others. “The post even said the voice sounded sad. What if someone’s been kidnapped? If we don’t help, who knows what will happen to them!”

“But we don’t know that,” Annie frowned.

“But isn’t it weird? If they could hear that voice from the sidewalk, far away from the building, then that’s definitely suspicious. You wouldn’t be able to hear a voice from that distance,” she slammed the table. “That might mean that they’ve got magic like we do, and they’re using it to try and reach out for help. We can’t just give up because we’re afraid to be hurt. We won’t be able to help anyone with that kind of attitude, and then we’d just be wasting these powers.”

“Carmen,” Jackie frowned.

“I know that, but...” Annie gripped her dress. “We...I want to do something. If people are hurting, I want to do everything I can to reach out to them and help them. But, putting you all in danger, I…,” she shed a few tears. There was an awkward silence as Annie struggled to find the right words, failing to do so.

“Actually,” Ichika broke the silence, “what if we had a way to get in and out without being noticed? What if they didn’t know we were there?”

“You have an idea?” Jackie looked to her.

“Yeah, I do,” she winked. She explained her plan to the others who looked at her in amazement. She shivered and shrank back. Saying it out loud just made it seem ridiculous, and now she just felt embarrassed for saying it. Surely, they were going to…

“That could actually work,” Annie broke the silence.

“Yeah, that’s an incredible idea,” Carmen laughed. “Talk about Chi the cheeky!”

“Then...” Ichika gasped.

“I’d want to test your idea first,” Annie said as she wiped away her tears. “But if this works, I’d be satisfied.”

“In that case, how about we do it tonight?”

“Isn’t that a little short notice?” Jackie objected.

“Sure, but it works out. Tonight, is actually supposed to be a little cold and humid. It would be best to use that to our advantage now before it gets a chance to warm up.”

“I’m surprised it’s still that cold,” Annie wondered aloud. “Think it could be something to do with this magic stuff?”

* * *

“Alright,” Annie nodded as she stood in the golden field as it basked in the twilight rays of the sun. “We’ll practice here before heading out,” she explained.

“Sounds good to me,” Carmen grinned.

“Me too,” Ichika echoed.

“Me too, I guess, but why did you ask us all to wear our pajamas?” Jackie asked, tugging at his black top and grey pants, then looking around at the others, eyeing their clothes. Ichika was wearing a simple white nightgown with lace over the top which seemed to flow around her knees in the wind. Carmen wore a simple set of pajamas, similar to Jackie’s only with an orange top and black shorts. Annie finally was wearing a beautiful crimson nightgown with purple ribbons feeding through it.

“Well, we still don’t know how to change back on our own accord,” Annie scratched at her cheek. “So, the three of us agreed that it would be better to get into our pjs so when we revert, we’re still wearing something comfortable.

“Is it really a big deal?” Jackie asked.

“Yeah, uh, wearing a bra to bed is not fun,” Carmen scowled.

“Ditto that,” Ichika nodded in consensus.

“Huh, never thought of that,” Jackie blushed. Pushing some excess thoughts out of his mind before they could touch down.

“So, we all ready?” Annie chuckled, the other three nodded.

“Alright, let’s go!” Ichika declared as she opened her locket.

A flurry of cyan light blew out of her locket as it wrapped around her, her clothes vanishing into its blizzard of powdery light. A pure white dress draped over her, folding over her like a Winter’s kimono and flowing beneath her like a Summery sundress. It grew thick around her body, while the sleeves stretched and began to flutter around her, the tips becoming transparent like a combination glassy icicles and lacy slush coming off her arms and falling around her legs. The flurry bunched up around her waist, forming a shimmering wide cyan sash, a sizable bow growing on her back until it finished with an unending bounce. The last lights converged around her head forming elaborate snowflake hairpins in her hair with small ice crystals dangling off of them, matching her glistening icy blue skin.

Ichika took a breath as her transformation concluded, glancing around at the others who looked at her with confidence as they stood in their magical girl attire. “Alright, let’s make sure we practice this, and get it down right!” she pumped her arms. “There’s someone depending on us getting this right tonight,” she declared.

“Right!” the others answered with equally confident smiles.