When the Devil Broke the Universe

In the beginning, there was Anu, the unchanging, eternal void. From that came Padomay, the possibility for change, and from their union emerged the Et'ada—the original spirits, the barest urges and concepts of what could be.

One of these urges, Madoka, came up with a plan: a world where the Et'ada could learn to live and grow, to transcend who they were and become greater. She believed things could be better than they were. A number of other Et'ada joined her cause and began to design their new world together, and for a time it was good. Mami made the space in the void for this new creation, while Sayaka, Nagisa, Kyoko, and many others provided their energy and will. Even the aloof dragon of time Homura was eventually persuaded to join, honeyed by Madoka's words.

But Madoka deceived them, for the world was not like how they imagined. There was struggle and strife, pain and mortality, and the promise hope had delivered seemed beyond reach. Discontentment rumbled beneath the surface, for this was not the grand vision that had been sold to them.

Homura, the great dragon, confronted Madoka and tore her heart from her chest, leaving her body behind to form the half-moon, an ever-present reminder of how this world had been permanently marred and broken. Her heart was thrown into Red Mountain, and Madoka herself was forced to wander the world she had created, slinking around in a dead skin.

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Madoka awoke with a start, the vibrant and disturbing dream following her into the waking world. She took a deep breath, steadying herself. It was still dark out, and she could hear both Mami and Sayaka's soft breathing beside her in the bed, reminding her where she was. One nightmare for another, she supposed. Still, their rhythmic inhale and exhale began to allow the fallen goddess to begin to drift back into slumber.

"Ma-do-ka."

Madoka's eyes snapped open. She knew that voice. Sitting up, she saw a child, no older than three, holding onto the ladder leading to the main floor of the cabin. Instantly she recognized who it was—there was no mistaking that messy light brown hair or that chubby face.

"Tatsuya" Madoka breathed in disbelief.

"Ma-do-ka!" he said again in a cheerful manner, before ascending the ladder.

"Tatsuya, wait!" Madoka called, doing her best to keep her voice down as she jumped out of bed. She climbed after him, catching his form trotting out the door just as she made it upstairs. "Come back!"

Madoka forwent shoes or a jacket, ignoring the cool weather and the hard, uneven dirt road as she chased after someone she'd thought dead. By the time she was outside, he was already down the street near the edge of town, laughing happily as he went—how fast could a toddler be?!

"Tatsuya, slow down!" she called, running after him as he went around the corner of a building. She rounded the same corner and then stood, looking around frantically for where her brother had gone.

A hand grabbed her shoulder. She snapped back, swinging in alarm only to find Mami with a concerned look on her face.

"Mami!" Madoka said in a panic, "I saw Tatsuya! He's around here, he's—"

"Madoka" Mami's grip tightened, but was still comforting, "You were sleepwalking".

"But Tatsuya—"

"Isn't here."

Tears welled up in Madoka's eyes even as she finally shrugged off sleep, "I thought…"

"I know," Mami hugged her as she felt Madoka's quiet sobs, "… This is the third time this week," the blonde said quietly, worried; the third time Madoka had been caught sleepwalking towards the edge of town, following someone she knew. The first time it had been her mother, but the last two it had been Tatsuya.

Normally both girls would pass it off as nerves, but the weird part of it was, the dreams always led Madoka in the same direction—to the town's south exit.

"Come on, let's go back inside." Mami told her, leading Madoka back towards the apothecary.

"… Something wants me to go south." Madoka murmured as they walked, leaning against Mami for comfort, "I can feel it. It gets stronger every night."

"What do you think it is?"

Madoka shook her head, "I don't know."

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Mami was fast; the blonde girl had sworn she'd never picked up a sword before, yet she was somehow channeling her ribbon-throwing skills into her melee combat with surprising clarity. For her it was less swordplay and more an interpretive dance, and Madoka was having a hard time just keeping pace. The blond swung her practice stick for Madoka's legs, and the pinkette jumped and rolled in midair just in time to avoid some nasty bruises. When she landed, Mami was already on her again, and Madoka found herself once again perpetually on the defensive until Mami sidestepped Madoka's practice stick and slammed her weapon into Madoka's side. The 'younger' girl took a tumble, landing in the dirt with a victorious Mami standing above her—who a moment later offered a hand, one that Madoka gladly took.

"Excellent job, Mami." Wulf said as he approached the two, tea kettle and cups in hand, "Unorthodox, but excellent. Though beware that your style doesn't become a hindrance. I saw a lot of wide movements that could create openings for your opponents," he said as he poured the cups and handed one to her.

"Thank you," she said with a breath, taking what he'd said under advisement.

Wulf handed another cup to Madoka, "A definite improvement, but you're still aiming for Mami's sword instead of Mami".

Madoka sighed, slumping, "I know. But I start fighting and then I just have to keep blocking or I get hit".

"The easiest way to not get hit is to avoid the blow." Wulf replied, "The reason Mami beat you is that she wasn't where your sword was, but she was where your sword wasn't".

"… Surely you don't expect us to be sword masters in the span of a few days." Mami said curiously. It had been quite the surprise when today Wulf took a break from magic theory to give them pointers on how to wield the blade.

Wulf smiled as he sat down on a log, taking a sip from his cup, "No, I don't. But I do expect you to know enough of the basics for it to save your life. The truth is that most bandits don't really know any sword-fighting techniques; they just pick up a weapon and start swinging it like a club, meaning you'll have an advantage, if only a slight one," he looked up at Mami, "Your ranged skills are commendable, but they are still a weakness if that's all you know and you have no one to back you up. And until your friend wakes up, you will have to pick up the slack."

Wulf glanced at the evening sun, "It's getting late, and I assume Bren and Aia will soon be looking for you. We'll pick this up again tomorrow."

"Aia said she was taking care of dinner tonight," Mami said as they began to walk, "So we're not that late today, thankfully".

Madoka made a noncommittal noise, but otherwise did not respond to Mami. The blond girl walked closer to her, "Are you alright?"

"Huh?" Madoka asked, waking from her thoughts, "Yeah, sorry. Just… thinking."

"About the dream?"

Madoka nodded, "I don't know what's down south. All I know is that something wants me to go there." She turned to Wulf, "What do you think?"

They'd told Wulf some of what had happened last night, as much as they could without revealing everything about who they really were and came from. He frowned, thinking, "If you genuinely feel something is pulling you, it's probably best to find out what it is. That said, I still think you should go to the College first".

"What if what I'm feeling is urgent?" Madoka asked him with a slight edge of panic to her voice, "What if it's not there later?"

"Do you know where your dreams want you to go?" he asked, to which she shook her head, "If you don't know how far south you need to go, wandering around in the wilderness without a guide or proper supplies is not a good plan of attack. The College is still your best bet—they can help you wake your friend, find your other friends, and help you get your bearings better than I can. They even might be able to help you figure out what your dreams mean."

"… Do you really think they'll help us?" Madoka asked him, "We're not exactly important".

Wulf seemed to repress a chuckle over something only he found funny, "I believe they'd be more willing to help you more than you might think".

"And why is that?" Mami asked, curious.

"Just a hunch of mine," was Wulf's response as they neared the town, "The College are good people. Eccentric, but good."