"They Call it Lucas Lake now would you believe," said Leslie Gordon.
The little girl looked blankly at the large sea of water as it reminded her of the powerful angel from planet Clockwork. Here is where the angel was said to have saved the town from being over run by an army of spiders... a town that she now, over the years had now guarded to make sure was safe with the power of a magic girl, granted to her by the wish-machine.
It was a very difficult transition, going from a guy to a very young girl... not to mention, growing up in a world like this. Monsters attacked the Spring Village, and it was up to them to defend it. It's been attacked be various 'minor' monsters. Rats, goblins, the occasional lizard-creature. Still her presence seemed to make the place avoided now as if the creatures were becoming more 'intelligent'.
Magic girl six started as but a five year old in this world, but had spent another give years since. In some ways it wasn't as hard as it might have been if she was still on Earth. Indeed every day she saw her home planet in the sky, as it filled space as far as the horizon like some weird mirror. Leslie Gordon was almost like her father, as the two continued to try and understand this world and its connection to the Earth.
Lucas Lake however, was a very special place. When the explosion of light happened, it left a vast crater... and the resulting Lake was named after Lucas. It was also in some ways, a reminder of their home... Lakeside. Sometimes they thought the way home had to be within the lake... but how?
Leslie knew that the little girl was originally named Byran. However, he also had a lot of experience in helping someone who had transformed in such a drastic way, with his own daughter Lilly. He had made huge mistakes in the past... some of the worst ones possible. It was all done out of love. He wanted Billy to try and hold on to who he was originally, because he loved his son...
.. but all it did was hurt. He will never make that mistake again.
Now he could apply all that he had learned to Bryan. He told her that in a way she was quite lucky, that because this was a new world she didn't have an old identity to feel an 'obligation' towards. Yes her family was still out there... but they would not want her to be unhappy. Bryan didn't have any 'reminders' of her old life here, and slowly... slowly... she was starting to forget them. Leslie was sometimes concerned about it, but there was nothing they could do at this point. It was healthier and better for Bryan to just accept what she was, then make any 'fight' of it.
Still... even so, Bryan 'did' fight, despite Leslie's attempts to quell any identity issues as largely irrelevant.
"I'm not magic girl six," she said. "How can I be... there's already a magic girl six."
"I don't really know," said Leslie. "We'll work it out someday... but in the mean time, the village is very grateful for you defending it."
"...they scare me," admitted Bryan.
"How so?"
"They... they don't seem like real people," she said with a sigh. "But... they are becoming more real? Or are we just... looking less?"
Leslie sighed too. He liked them, he ate food with them... yes, they were in many ways similar to humans. But 'real'? There was something off about that. They were defending people that just didn't seem 'real'... Leslie wondered if this is what it was like when a 'god' interacted with a mortal. Was it simply about... a different level of reality? Were gods simply 'more real then themselves? But even if these people were 'less real', it didn't take away that they were a reality... they had lives, and slowly seemed to be gaining free will- as if the influence of the Earth was being felt by them. "I think they are learning from us. They are becoming more sentient."
Bryan glanced over, still worried over the sound of any animals here. "The monsters here are becoming more sentient too," said Bryan quickly. "I think one of the Rabbit People were trying to talk to me. But I didn't understand what it was saying."
"Leslie nodded again. They had made contact with many 'tribes' of creatures. Most of them were wild and worked in isolation... but some were becoming organised. "Things are changing in this world... just by our presence. I don't really know how... but we are responsible. We have to help them through it."
"But they are afraid of me..." said Bryan. "They call me a monster... that looks like a human."
"They... don't understand you, that's all" said Leslie gently, placing a hand on the young girl's shoulder. "You appeared from them inside an egg. The same way many of the monsters do here too."
"But I used to be someone else! I was Bryan... a human. I told you I made a wish, on a strange machine..."
"I know. I just... don't know how it can be possible. The rainbow guardian must have changed you like everyone else. I have told you though to pick another name..."
"Byran can be a girl's name." said younger one stubbornly. "It's also all I got now."
"My own daughter was a lot happier after accepting a new name. It made things... easier."
"I don't want it to be easier!" the child cried out suddenly. "If the village finds out how 'un-human' I am especially w-when when my um- things start growing, what am I going to do!"
"I wont let anything happen to you Bryan," vowed Leslie. "They are just afraid because... you are different. They never had someone that can use magic like you."
Byran however was not placated. "What can you do? If they go crazy? You're just an old human. I need an angel. I need Lucas!" She could take her back to the wish machine and... get her back to normal. They were interrupted by a rustle in the bushes. Bryan was ready to start counting. The problem being magic girl six was how long it took to power up. "one two three-" she started but was too slow.
Suddenly a little neko-woman jumped out of the bushes. "Uh- hi. Not a bad time is it?"
Leslie looked relieved. "Cliff, you are looking well?"
"Living in the forest, camping out because the humans here are all weird to the changed... I'm just peachy."
"Well technically you're not a changed. It wasn't the sun right?" Said Leslie curiously.
"Fine no. it was magic. I turned into my own DnD character... and it was because 'she' asked me for help."
Leslie had to chuckle. "If only I could imagine myself a powerful wizard, or some such. But as it stands you just have an old human to work with. Here, I got you some food and clothes from the village."
Cliff anxiously ate the food, her tail twitching behind her. Her clothes looked somewhat shredded, as she moved in the brush of the forest. Leslie was kind enough to also provide her some new clothes in a bag. She had explored a lot of the surrounding forest, but it was weird because the forest changed all the time. Still Cliff was becoming pretty good at getting back to the outskirts of Spring Village.
Cliff tried not to think too much at all that she was a 'little woman', barely three foot tall. Byran was actually just a little taller then her now. At least being part cat seemed to give her some skills. Why couldn't she have been an elf.. heck, even a half orc at this point would be better. She felt weak, and useless. Not to mention the collar she was forced to wear!
"Did you find anything new in the forest?" asked Bryan.
"I think I found the temple of Six." said the the neko-girl. "It's about a three day trip... want to go?"
Bryan gasped and nodded. "Yes.. of course! Maybe we can fix this whole mess there."
