*
Then, he was just acting tough. The pain threw out his rationality. But if she tried to convince him once more... Maybe...
"You, you haven't opened the gate, have you? You wouldn't forfeit your life here and now, right?" (Protagonist)
The jig is up. In this sort of plot, the control is always held by the antagonist. To launch or not to launch? It was a massive convenience that they do not launch until the Protagonist has time to thwart their plans. His cold sweat got more vicious, his eyes no longer swimming in pain but from something else. The source of his anxiety was right before him. He tied the missiles to his life for self preservation, even when he brings about an apocalypse of monsters to the human world, he was worried that he wasn't invincible.
When the gate is open, anyone can easily come and kill him. On the other hand if he doesn't open the gate, he doesn't fulfill his goals. He became stuck in this mire of his own making, hesitant on pulling the trigger. Making his own life the bullet loaded into the chamber only indicated his cowardice, as well as putting the trigger in the hands of the Protagonist.
It was as if the movie was building up to this moment, who was really the protagonist? Melancholic usic even began to play as his eyes shivered in fervour.
"That's right... I couldn't pull the trigger... Because I was a coward..." (Antagonist)
"Wait... What are you doi-!?" (Protagonist)
He somehow wrestles his neck out of her iron grip with his frail body and broken leg. He grits his teeth and tears his lip through it all. The music embroils itself with an unseen passion. His body begins to glow, a glow all too familiar to Arin. Black cloth drops from the sky, snaking around him as if it had a mind of its own. The wraps him in a ball before exploding.
Before the Protagonist was now a new magical girl, one in a gothic style magical girl costume.
"I was too afraid, the biggest coward on this earth. Thanks to you, I saw through that. So I've done it.
I opened the gate with my knowledge, it's been on a timer all this while, beyond my control. I stalled for time, only because the gate was difficult to pry open, my life wasn't the key to it, but it would have given you a false sense of security.
This power... This high voice and ostentatious outfit... Even the world has now recognised my courage. " (Antagonist)
It certainly was extremely strange to see an old man transform into a magical girl in a kid's franchise, but maybe anything goes nowadays. To sum it up, the Protagonist was so taken by surprise that she was beaten to the side, she ran away towards the exit, saved her friends and ran away together. When they reached outside, the sky was dark as the gate blocked the sun. It was large enough to form a black spot over the continent. Monsters looked to be sparsely distributed, but over such a large area, even a sparse distribution still meant astronomical numbers.
It also meant that they get a larger coverage of invasion in this world. They spread over the continent and spilled over to other continents. The movie ended there, with Arin preparing the sequel in her hand. It was only the first movie but it drained Lastia's body of emotions and stamina. She layed on the couch in a lazy manner, slouching her back over to the side. Arin leaned into he rin retaliation, her soft hair brushed over Lastia's skin.
"Aghh... That was convoluted, was I supposed to know some background information on her friends?" (Lastia)
"... Yeah, it was technically a summary but should have stood well as a standalone too. I guess this happens to most adaptations.
The second one shouldn't face pacing issues, it's a movie original! " (Arin)
By the time they finished, it was well after 3 pm. School had already ended, just as they noticed the time, Lastia heard a knock on the door. Approaching the door to open it, she first looked through the peep hole to see who it was. A girl in jett black hair that draped her back, she was casually dressed in a hoodie and some jeans. She looked to be around their age, so Lastia was comfortable with letting her in.
Moreover... She's likely the one named Sariel in her diary. No one else would be visiting other than her two closest friends.
"Jeez! You guys were here watching movies while I was in school!?
Man... How much did I miss?" (Sariel)
"Just Note Maiden 1 and 2. We were planning on moving to another genre, you can just in time. We had also just returned home after a snack refill outside." (Arin)
She hands a bag to Sariel, like a bribe. With some flush to her cheeks, Sariel hesitated for a moment before taking the bag into her hand with a sheepish smile. Her smile couldn't be contained and it clashed with her embarrassment in this awkward manner.
"Iyaahhh!!!???!!" (Arin)
She screams into Lastia's ears, which scares more than the jumpscare on the movie. Her shrill piercing voice hurt her right ear drum a bit. Even though it was her first time, the movie didn't do a good job of stewing her into the atmosphere. More than that, with Sariel leaning on her left side as opposed to Arin on her right, she felt extremely secure and safe. Though, she wouldn't voice that out.
These were two people willing to stay with her and relive things with her, even if she couldn't remember a single experience they had together. Perhaps the biggest sensation wrecking her heart was the guilt that stemmed from such a circumstance. She was quite cynical early in the morning, forming judgements off of the previous Lastia for falling into despair...
They lived equally short lives, and she couldn't see why the previous Lastia valued it so much. She saw their disappearance as something natural, another will take our place. They always do. But now... She wished that her friends would remember the 'her' that was here today... She found it dreadfully selfish, uglily self-indulgent. For a moment she smiled wistfully, her expression shifted as quick as possible, hoping to hide it up. They must have seen it, it wasn't possible to hide it in such proximity.
Sariel let off a deep sigh, wrapping her arm behind Lastia, she placed a palm on her head. Gently, she patted her. Arin leaned her head into her right shoulder and wrapped the front of Lastia's chest in hug.