Ch 35: Octagram Stars
"YEP, we are going to die" I say as I glance into the document that Sauirle protected onto my face.
"I didn't expect that to be your reaction to your own creation" Sauriel said as he jumped from the window to my bed, after making sure my bed was appropriately fluffy he lay down. I, on the other hand, was seen contemplating the life decision that led me to be in the care of a creature such as Sauriel.
"I mean... I should have expected this?" I say while giving Sauriel a glance.
"Don't worry too much about it, I have gone above and beyond to meet the 'weird' expectations of your proposal, honestly it was quite fun" I flinch at the word 'weird' knowing damm well what Sauriel meant, he didn't even give me a sideways glance, I just sigh as I reread the document to confirm its content and the stupidity of it just washes over me.
'Octgram Stars' The title is actually the name of the group of magical girls that I came up with.
[Not great, but it does make sense... I think?]
An octagram is a name that we give to a geometrical figure that we otherwise would call an '8-pointed star', it can be constructed by adding to square figures. It is quite an unusual symbol for me because although it is quite simple, it is not vastly used contrary to the four, five or even the six-pointed stars.
But I have seen it through the last month so much that I'm actually getting sick of it. It is imprinted on almost everything related to angels or magic.
[I mean Sauriel has the symbol engraved in his eyes for goodness sake!!]
It is truly something that must have some sort of significance, so I decided to use it to follow Hui's advice about the magical girl group, the idea that magic is based on emotions lead to the conclusion that 'meaning' can enhance the magic. This would explain 'verbal contracts' and even explain why naming attacks makes them better, even changing them when they are repeated enough.
So the advice that she gave me said something along the lines of 'be extremely superstitious and engrave meaning into everything even if no one else notices it' which at the time made sense.
[I did go a bit too overboard though...]
I tried researching the meaning of the 8-pointed star symbol through internet and got some interesting answers, obviously being a rather simple symbol it appeared on many cultures with vastly different meanings, but they did fit my agenda, or well... most of them. In general, the symbol means can mean:
Hope [I guess we're magical girls so we are a somewhat popular symbol of hope? I mean stars are always related to hope so it should be somewhat clear]
Lust or Fertility [Most Magic-user are girls, that's it... I don't think I'm lustful, The Class rep would fit that definition though]
Overabundance [Since the name of the group was 'octagram' I decided on eight members instead of the usual five or six, so technically we have an overabundance of members]
Compass [I knew that technically compares are octagrams, so I guess we are some kind of guidance? At this point, I'm really stretching it but Hui did tell me that 'Magic and science push nature to its limits' so maybe it is alright, I'm definitely not delusional!!!]
To be fair, most of these are probably unimportant on the grand scale of things, but even I can see that some of these points are way too precise to be a coincidence since the name of the group is actually the thing that I paid the least attention to. When I asked Sauriel about this he said 'It's probably because of fate' which I just don't believe, but I really don't have room to argue because of some points ahead of me.
The next thing on the document is actually the 'codenames' of the members inside the group, I always liked naming stuff, especially when it meant to represent some people, which could get complicated because we already have some aliases, anyway I decided to have a symmetrical system in order to make the members count to be 8 for symbolism.
Basically, 8 members are divided into pairs that are 'polar opposites' in order to have some meaning, like the quotes of 'If there's light then there's dark' or something like that, I was aiming to have so sort of balance so that the group would flow effortlessly in any situation, but it really could lead to having many disputes, after all, we are mixing oil on water.
[Cringe... why did Sauriel snatch the document before I could properly revise it?!?!]
So we have 8 positions, each one called a star with a name that describes its characteristics. But to be fair, finding 8 people with those requirements is nearly impossible, from what Sauriel said I guess he found the people in question, but I also asked that they would synergize and that they would be friendly
[ Yes I'm asking for too much, but apparently, he did it and found the people]
-----[{The Star of Order}]-----
I guess this is one was somewhat expected, it is meant to represent a person who imposes order even in chaotic situations, being able to maintain calm and be able to make the best decisions without hesitation, and has the power to actually enforce and maintain this state of order, diligence, discipline, etc...
[This one should be easy, Even I could classify in this one]
-----[{The Star of Fate}]-----
This is where things get funky and vague.
[NOT DELUSIONAL AND NOT CHUUNIBIYOU]
Anyways, For this position, I have in mind people who have an iron will and can carry out almost anything without question when the situations call for it, Straightforward, strong-willed, not very ambitious, and mostly going with the flow of the situation.
[I really don't know who could fit this definition, it is too dumb]
-----[{The Star of Hope}]-----
This one is actually pretty simple in my opinion, it is meant for people that inspire hope and instill the sense of familiarity, people who can help, accept and especially deal with other people through words and actions rather than violence, so yeah, someone compassionate, understanding and somewhat intelligent.
[I mean violence is still rather fun but some 'people person' would be needed in any organization]
-----[{The Star of Light}]-----
Also rather simple, It represents someone intelligent who can provide insight on any situation and problem, coming up with solutions and being reliable at all times, basically shining a light over the unknown, it would need someone exceptionally intelligent, diligent and relieable.
[I'm going to die... Who can even fit these roles?]
I'm still mauling over the names and 'descriptions' that I wrote on my delusions.
[I have to accept it, I'm a magic otaku, after all, this was inevitable]
anyway, these are the 'good' stars, the next is the 'bad' stars, these are meant to be paired with the good ones to give balance to our team, so their names are words that are more associated with bad rather than good.
[Yeah some ying-yang stuff to instill meaning in the group... or something like that... it also could be my delusion but I rather think its the former]
-----[{The Star of Chaos}]-----
Meant to represent people who can adapt and even prosper in chaotic environments that can change at a quick pace, so a wild card type of deal, since some situations literally can't be controlled it would be good if someone can operate under these conditions, so the characteristics would be like playful, intelligent, adaptable and definitely intelligent.
[I don't know if literally being at odds it's a good thing, dumb Sauriel for being impatient, and stupid past me for even writing it!!!]
-----[{The Star of Luck}]-----
Represent people who struggle against the odds by grabbing every single chance that they are given to them and exploiting them to the max, without any remorse for consequences, often being the most reckless because of the type of gambles that they need to take, of course, the person in question requires a strong will and determination to obtain what they want.
[Fate and Luck have almost the same characteristics, but Luck goes against Fate instinctually, I think this is cool]
-----[{The Star of Despair}]-----
The opposite of the Star of Life, someone Capable of instilling fear onto the enemies through brutal means, and mostly, evening conflict through threats and strength alone, so another person to avoid conflict through violence but still relying on 'the prospect of violence' to obtains the means to win, of course, it needs to be someone strong, intimidating and who couldn't back down.
[There are plenty of people who can fill this role, but this is the one I'm most skeptical about]
-----[{The Star of Darkness}]-----
This one is one who can be secretive and can carry out tasks that require precision and accuracy rather than strength and dexterity, the person in this group requires to be stealthy, not have a strong sense of justice and even have some unawareness.
[This person is the most dangerous, I think...]
If we exclude some of the cringy stuff, we can say that this was actually quite decent, there were some things that were still up in the air but since it was a 'prototype' I felt proud the moment I created it, but Sauriel decided to use as the final product so it is obviously his fault. There's no boss in this organization, since it is structured in this way it could be interpreted that it was somehow democratic.
[Actually, now that I think about it, I really don't like commanding people so I can overlook this...]
At that point, Sauriel spoke again after seeing me sigh.
"I have scheduled an appointment with all the members at the scrapyard, like 2 hours from now" He immediately gets punched and gets sent to the other side of the bed, landing on a pillow.
"WHAT? WHY?" I ask bewildered, Look at sauriel who doesn't seem to bother by it and is rolling back into its original position.
"You would probably change the name and stuff even though it is pretty perfect, so I did it like that to solidify the contract, you're pretty indecisive but can't handle pressure so I added some pressure to quicken the process" He said while giving me a look.
[He does know me well at least, but still, how can an angel exploit my weakness?]
"I see... but why did you blur the names of 6 of the 8 members?" I said while looking at the pixelation on the document.
"I thought a surprise would be cool" He said as he stretched himself and laid on my bed once again.
"I guess... but my name is blurred as well!!!" I point out that the only names written are Mary's and Akari's.
"As I said, surprise" He said while closing his eyes.
"Ugh... whatever I gotta get there, you really should have warned me beforehand!!" I start rushing to the bathroom to clean myself and begin preparing to depart to the scrapyard.
"I'll try the next time" Sauriel said dozing off leaving me to take a bath.
After taking said bath, combing my hair, and putting on decent clothes, I decide to go to the scrapyard, theoretically speaking Hui should be there because she is always in there, so I have a safe assumption that she will be part of the team to my dismay. Taking the same route that has been following for the last 2 weeks that I have been training.
I have now the power to actually destroy concrete walls without the need for aether coating or even my gloves, which I have named 'Lonsdaleite' or 'Leite' for short. Since meaning has something to do with magical power I decided to name my weapon, taking its name for the strongest type of diamond that there is.
These gloves are really a blessing and I can see why I would get them, Although I would of like something more traditional for a Magical girl the effect that they have is definitely worth it, they can cushion almost any force and heal my hands constantly. So I can Literally make holes on steel without breaking my hands.
[I tried without gloves and it was not pleasant]
All magical weapons have some fort of effect to them, Aqua's sprinkler can make an infinite amount of decaying water as long as it is touching either the ground or Aqua and Hui's Yo-yo can bounce off walls, which Hui complained about because it was 'not interesting and I got somewhat angry and teched her how she should use it better.
'Bouncyness is a terrifying weapon, Have you not seen One piece Hui?' I said to her jokingly, but she decided to start watching it and got some ideas from it, it might seem random and dumb but I could see how she started using her weapon with more confidence.
When reminiscing about HUi I finally reached the Scrapyard and sat down at the meeting point, we were early, of course, about 30 minutes early So I asked the question that lingered on my mind.
"Did you get the rings?" I asked Sauriel.
"The rings ARE the invitation, if they don't have it they will not be able to enter the scrapyard" Sauriel said as he started stretching on the broken-down couch inside Hui's rundown hideout.
The rings are the symbol That I decided to use in order to make us a proper organization, they are somewhat easy to spot but also can be hidden with ease, also since they are some sort of symbol they needed to be embedded with more meaning.
[I'm really overthinking this whole 'Meaning = Emotions = Magic' thing aren't I?]
Rings have the symbol of the respective star.
Order - Libra symbol - ♎︎
Fate - Wyrd Noun - ᛣ
Hope - Triquetra (Trinity symbol) -
Light - Sun - ☼
Chaos - Chaos Star-
Luck - Four Leaf Clover - 🍀
Despair - Thunder Cloud - 🔥
Darkness - Moon - 🌙
The symbols are supposed to emphasize the names of the members of the group and honestly, it's pretty good, but it was tiring to find symbols for things vague as 'Fate' but it was interesting nonetheless.
The rings themselves are black with silver decorations, each symbol is on the top of the ring that has a circular shape, to be fair it is quite fascinating and could look cool.
[They are a bit too thick, but it is all for the sake of drawing and symbolism!!!]
"Sauriel when will you show me the ring that belongs to me" I said once I realized that technically I don't even have my ring yet.
"It is a surprise, knowing your personality you will flip out when you know your symbol even though it represents you" He said while enjoying the shade in the junk cave.
[I don't know where he gets the confidence to say that but okay I guess]
After a few minutes, The first 2 people got here, I already knew they were in this whole Magical girl Fiasco so I didin0t even get surprised but since they were my close friends I at least wouldn't be alone when meeting the new faces
"Yo! Amy how is it going" Mary said
"It's good to see you again Amy" Akari greeted me
"Welcome, Mary! Class rep!" I greeted them, being kind of nervous about this meeting.
I can see that they are their usual selves, Maru being relaxed while checking out the place and Akari looking at everything like a little kid at a park, They were clearly excited but they were pretty good at hiding it.
[Yeah you can't hide the shine in those eyes]
"So what are we doing here?" Mary asked after checking Hui's hideout and finally settling beside Sauriel.
[She isn't acknowledging Sauriel?]
"Magical Girl Group assembly" Sauriel Spoke, Startling Mary who jumped and raised her fist to attack.
"Oh... the cat thing that Amy had!!"
"Funny" Akari blurted while covering her mouth.
"What is funny?" Mary asked at Akari.
"That's a High angel, not a cat thing, but it is quite fitting for its current form" Akari explained.
"OH" Mary immediately bowed to Sauriel, "Sorry I didn't notice My name is Maria... is good to see you?" Mary awkwardly said.
[How important is this dumb cat to get Mary to respec him?]
"No worries, I have invoked many people here to finally form the magical girl group that Amy will lead in the future"
"More like you force me to lead" I rebutted.
"You signed a contract as a successor, Leading a group is one of the responsibilities of that" Sauriel said.
[I technically signed 2 contracts didn't I?]
I just shrugged it off but Akari and MAry took it way more seriously now, they somehow interpreted me as someone extraordinary which made me awkward.
[I really hate being treated like that]
"Anyway, thanks for the ring Amy i will treasure it" Akari said.
"Oh yes the ring, I also like it but the design could use some work" Mary chimed in, but said in an unusually cold tone.
[What? wait... don't tell me...]
"Could you show the designs to me, they technically have a meaning" I said while thinking about what Saurile probably did.
Akari already was wearing the ring, the black ring with silver accents was quite thick, the top part was flattened and on it, the symbol of a Crescent moon rested, symbolism that she would be the star of Darkness.
[Wha...]
Mary then reluctantly showed her ring, my hunch resulted to be true, on the ring it was engraved a four-leaf clover in silver, meaning that Mary was the star of Luck.
[Yeah I must apologize]
"'I didn't send the rings, Sauriel took the reins in that one, but I must apologize for this, I didn't mean to offend you" Is aid while bowing, Mary accepted my apology since she knew that I wouldn't do it on purpose.
"But why are you unhappy with it, the clover looks cool in my opinion" Akari said while seeing the Ring that Mary had.
"The meaning is what troubles me" Mary said while looking at her arm, no one said anything making the silence deafening.
"Can I explain Mary?" I said while looking at her.
"Since it's Akari I guess it's okay" Mary said, I sighed and looked at Akari.
"You know that Mary doesn't like her parents right?"
"Yes, I'm aware that Mary is being quite a good student but even then her parents neglect her to an unacceptable degree"
"Indeed, So Mary doesn't like being compared or related to her parents and her sister"
"Makes sense, but he clov-"
"Mary's last name is 'Fortune' "
"I see..."
It is an unusual name even in this city, 'Fortune' being a literal word makes people look at you weird, I had this happen to me since 'Rochelle' is also quite unusual, but fortune received worse treatment.
[Kids are ruthless, that is all I can say]
Anyway, since the clover is meaning of luck, it can be connected to 'Fortune', which she hates because or the stingy remarks, her own family, and because she everything but 'fortunate', she apparently wants to change her last name to something else but she isn't at an age when she can do that.
"Sauriel say something!!"
"Sorry, but you were the only one who could reasonably be the Star of Luck"
"I guess it is alright"
And so we talked for a bit to ease the mood since Mary's personal problems are something that she needs to deal with herself.
[Interfiering with family affairs is not good or so Mom said, and she seems very knowledgeable on the concept]
While thinking about that I heard something and looked at the sky.
"WATCH OUT"
And was tackled to the ground.