Magia Record Another Story Part 2 Chapter 8: Final Trigger

The following is a summary by bigscarythings.

Chapter 8: Final Trigger

Episode 1

The story opens with Kanagi at the maid cafe. As her current batch of customers leave, her manager pulls her aside, saying that Kanagi can go home now, and Kanagi accepts this. The manager remarks that they increased Kanagi's number of shifts by her request, but they now fear that Kanagi is overworking herself. Kanagi shrugs it off; she's been working fewer hours due to complications in her personal life, and she needs to make up the difference somehow or else her family's finances will be impacted.

The manager asks about school, but Kanagi firmly says this is the only way her family can survive - and it just has to be this month. By the end of it, her father is projected to return to work, so they'll have breathing room. The manager congratulates her, but then says she should be careful about broadcasting her personal life to the world - walls have ears and shoji have eyes, as the saying goes. Just a little while ago, word got out that Kanagi had worn her knickers backwards after Kanagi had spoken about it; Kanagi shrugs it off again along the lines of, "Oh okay, I'll be careful."

As Kanagi walks out, she bumps into Momoko. After exchanging greetings, Kanagi explains she needs to take up extra shifts for a little while (hence why she's working later in the day than usual), but thanks to that, she's been able to meet Karin at the cafe and told her to go to the KMU meeting in Chapter 8 to meet with Momoko and the others. And that dovetails nicely into why Momoko is here - she came because she wanted to inform Kanagi about the info they got on Endless Mirrors - that the Magical Girl who became her was a Daito girl named Mikoto Sena.

In a flashback, we see Yachiyo had explained that this aligns with what Mitama has been suspecting for a while. Yachiyo wanted Momoko and Mikage to go confirm this info to Kanagi and Mitama respectively, so that they can now take countermeasures against the witch.

We cut over to Mikage informing Mitama, who takes this news...not exuberantly. She sends Mikage home for dinner, explaining she can't close the shop yet. Once Mikage scampers home, Mitama looks sad, and repeats Mikoto's name.

That evening, Kanagi is at home when Mitama calls, asking that they meet in the park downstairs. They affirm what they've both learned about Mikoto, how Alina regained her memories, and that Alina and the Mirrors witch now collaborate on destruction. Mitama is sure it's because of her wish, and recaps what we learned about Mikoto in the Mirrors story, with Mikoto's dark, heartbreaking diary ending on the day Mitama made her wish.

Kanagi remarks that Mikoto is a sad monster forged by her tragic upbringing - a common story in Daito. Still, she objects to this being born from Mitama's wish - after all, Mitama wished to be the being that destroys Kamihama. As long as Mitama does nothing, she can't be the one who destroys. But that ship's long set sail by Mitama's logic - she already "did something" when she made her wish, and all the gears started to move towards destruction.

Kanagi asks about Mikage's wish to protect Kamihama, but Mitama dismisses that, too - she believes Mikage's wish kicked in during the battle against Eve and Walpurgisnacht, which protected Kamihama. Mitama believes that now that Mikage's wish has been granted, this now leaves Mitama's still open to be resolved. Mitama knows that Kyubey's wish-granting power is absolute, and while she was holding out for a miracle, this newly-gained knowledge of Endless Mirrors has sealed Mitama's fate: Whether she lives or dies, her wish will inevitably come true.

When asked what she'll do now, Mitama says she'll ride the dragon: If her wish will bring destruction no matter what, then at the very least, she can steer that tide of destruction and shape the future as she wants it to be.

We flash back to Kanagi asking whether Mitama wants to destroy the town back in Chapter 10; in the present day, Mitama says they're not just magical girls, but human beings who live in a society that they cannot endure any longer.

Kanagi returns home, where her dad calls her and her brother in for a meeting. As it turns out, the company that had hired her dad has retracted the job offer. He is contrite, but Kanagi comforts him by saying she enjoys her job, but her brother asks why he lost the job. Her dad claims it was because of his disability, while Kanagi exclaims it was because he's from the East. Her dad says no, if that were the case, they would never have given him the offer in the first place, but Kanagi's brother points out the whole election fiasco... Kanagi's dad says that even if this is the case, it's not the company owner's fault (who hired the dad himself); it's a small, local business, with a number of people who dislike Easterners. The owner made this choice to protect Kanagi's dad.

Her brother remarks on how sudden this change in the currents is - for example, a Western guy picked a fight with him, and he fought back. The dad condemns this, saying it'll just feed into the cycle of abuse, but her brother couldn't bring himself to just stand there and take it. To herself, Kanagi thinks they're already neck-deep into this cycle, and it'll only get worse as people with her father's perspective start fading away. While she hates the handful of people who created this situation, it's the entire history of the city itself that's fanned the flames.

Now we go over to Mitama looking over the lake, with the dilapidated Ferris wheel in the distance. She remarks that among Magical Girls, everyone is equal - there's no East or West divide. This is why Mitama was saved. But in the end, that was only a temporary escape from reality; a distraction. She's not just a magical girl, but a human - and always under pressure to live as a human. But no matter how hard she tries, human society will interfere with the lives of magical girls...

And that's San and Miyuri's cue to approach. They remark how Mitama holds a grudge against the city itself, which aligns nicely with Neo-Magius's goals, and Neo-Magius is the one organization that will allow Mitama to retaliate against humans and find true equality. Mitama asks if she can really trust them; San responds by asking if Mitama wants the full explanation, though Miyuri says Mitama might regret it. But Mitama would rather regret her actions than not act at all - she explicitly says she's letting her emotions take the wheel and decides not to waste any time contemplating it. San accepts this, but says she'll explain things once they get the whole squad together - this lake is no place to have a detailed conversation, and they take their leave.

Meanwhile, in the arcade, Kanagi meets with Ao to ask if she's really joining Neo-Magius (it seems like Ao invited her here to talk about it). Ao says she's not quite sure, but she has accepted their invitation to meet up. She remarks that she and Kanagi must have felt quite the same when Kanagi read Ao's heart - their lives are alike in inequality and exploitation, after all. Speaking of which, Ao asks how Kamihama is doing, given that life looks even harder for the Easterners now. Kanagi says that about sums it up - while the Easterners equals among Magical Girls, human society trumps all. No matter how they try to bridge the gap, they will never see eye to eye; the city's history always gets in the way. No matter how they try to change, things always get worse.

So, Ao asks, why doesn't Kanagi look into Neo-Magius too, then? If they spread magical girl supremacy, they can force humans to treat each other as equals without exploitation. She eagerly implores Kanagi to join her - if they all work together, securng their ambitions will be on easy mode!

Kanagi thinks to herself that she's on a ticking clock - if Neo-Magius is still active, then that means Mitama will inevitably find out, and as soon as she does, she's joining up, no doubt about it. That in mind, Kanagi accepts Ao's invitation to join the meeting as well.

Episode 2

On the day of the meeting, Kanagi and Mitama take the train together to their destination. Mitama is thrown for a loop - Kanagi does realize that this is a meeting with Neo-Magius, right? Kanagi is well-aware, and asks if Mitama is surprised. Mitama isn't surprised per se, but...doesn't Kanagi love everyone in Kamihama more than Mitama? Kanagi thinks back to what she said in the subway battle against Promised Blood in Chapter 6, about how she liked Iroha and Yachiyo more than she had expected. Mitama continues speaking, saying she thought Kanagi couldn't hope for Kamihama's destruction anymore - people carry Ryo's memory, or are important to Kanagi's loved ones.

Kanagi says her feelings are quite as clear-cut/detached from the city as Mitama's, but reaffirms that in looking at how the city's next generation is already absorbing the sins of their fathers and being consumed by the city's dark history, she can't help but feel like she's given up on any hope that the town could break from its unchanging course.

Mitama asks if it was the kid chucking a rock at Mikage that triggered her, but Kanagi says she wouldn't make this blanket assessment on a single isolated incident. There's been more to it, though (ex. what just happened with her family). Everyone is suffering now, and the way things are going, things are getting worse. A lot worse. The best thing they can do is try to salvage something out of the future, and the only way they can do that is by burning the past to the ground. Her concern with Neo-Magius, however, is that it has no leadership anymore - how do they expect to bring about their goals? With that, we transition to their arrival in the cafe where they're meeting Neo-Magius - and to their shock, they see Shizuka there with San and Miyuri!

Shizuka tells them to laugh if they want; she has her own reasons for attending this meeting. Kanagi says she's not laughing; she and Mitama are here for their own reasons as well. If anything, Mitama feels relieved seeing Shizuka there, too. With the invitees all gathered now, San decides they ought to get started. Kanagi uses her magic to confirm that it's just San and Miyuri here - quite vulnerable.

Ao is a trifle wary, saying that they're all technically still enemies; San seems to say that they can take her and Miyuri's Soul Gems if it makes them feel better. She knows full well that Neo-Magius is at a clear disadvantage against them, and if they can't recruit these girls over, Neo-Magius's goals are as good as dead. So San asks they just hear her and Miyuri out.

San explains that their goal is magical girl supremacy to rise above the people, recapping how magical girls have driven human development since its inception. In the process of rising above humanity, she claims that all of their goals will also happen to be fulfilled along the way. Miyuri jumps in, explaining that magical girls are practically gods among men, which is why San will be able to become the Takarazaki festival's god. If Miyuri becomes superior to others, she'll be self-assured and no longer anxious, meaning she won't go berserk anymore. Hagumu will no longer be mocked and ridiculed; Shigure won't have anyone messing with her anymore - basically, supremacy is the one thing that will ensure all these disparate goals come to pass. San says they will transcend humanity and reach "the top" that Himena so often refers to - they will become as gods.

Kanagi, understandably, immediately goes "wtf"; Ao says she doesn't know about the whole god thing, but at least magical girls will be considered more than human in their vision, and the world will be forced to accept this. But not only will they surpass the human world, they will reach the pinnacle of magical girls as well...which means Ao can become powerful, and will no longer be exploited. And Shizuka realizes if she becomes a god as well, then she can guide people and prevent them from turning evil. Mitama can finally give the people of Kamihama City their due punishment, and Kanagi...

Kanagi wants it all. She wants to give the unjust their punishment; she wants an end to exploitation; she wants to guide the people towards righteousness... But taking the righteous path herself isn't accomplishing that. What she seeks is to be something that can bring people together. Like a symbol of absolute terror, reigning supreme as the enemy of all people, that they must unite against in order to fight. She needs to paint over Kamihama's history to do that, and she knows wanting all this is greedy of her. But San says greed is good - it'll get her to the top, and once there, all of that will be possible, because again, they will be gods.

There's just one problem, though...after San encourages Kanagi to speak up with her objections, Kanagi says she has no idea how Neo-Magius will achieve any of this. Normally, people talking about becoming gods would be laughed out of the room; how are they planning to go about this?

And that's Himena's cue to enter the scene.

The Neo-Magius newcomers are shocked, and Himena is delighted at their adorable reactions - but yes, it really is her, in the flesh! "Nagirin" (Himena's new nickname for Kanagi) seems to have doubts, so during a fade-to-black, she gives them all the skinny. When we return to the present, Kanagi exclaims at how evil it is...but it's the only way they can get the people to listen: by crushing them, subduing them, and forcing them to listen and obey. Himena is delighted at Kanagi's understanding, and Ao is all for the plan. To herself, Kanagi notes that in the process of carrying out the plan, Kamihama may be destroyed, and it'll turn people's eyes to her (as an enemy, it seems), but...

Kanagi's face turns intense. Himena is startled, and Kanagi decides to herself that she must see the depths of Himena's heart - right here, right now, in order to be sure. She activates her magic, but to her shock, she's shut out. Himena notes she felt a magical reaction, and asks what Kanagi did. Kanagi, knowing that failing a lie check now would be fatal, admits the truth.

Himena is like "oh noes, I won't be able to go on", but Kanagi goes on to say that her mind-reading failed. For an instant, she felt a presence in Himena's mind - she's unsure what exactly she felt, but it seemed like a man was there. Himena connects the dots, realizing it was Hiko who intervened, and giggles to herself about Hiko showing off his cool side. At the newcomers' confusion, San explains Himena's deal, and how she and Hiko are the schemers of the team. Kanagi notes that what she saw wasn't an illusion or delusion - Hiko is the real thing. Which means Himena isn't insane: every plan she has made has been with sober, calm thoughts. Every plan has been a perfectly sane, calculated act of violence.

Neo-Magius knows what they're doing, and is entirely capable of carrying it out. So all that Kanagi is worried about now is herself: Everyone else is "pure" in their resolve, wanting this one thing only. Kanagi, on the other hand, is still not as resolute as everyone else.

Episode 3

In the final act, we shift to the betrayal itself, and then to its aftermath that night. They finally did it - Mitama says she feels renewed. Kanagi asks Himena what their next moves are. Himena says not to rush things - they won't be nuking Kamihama or whatever their plan is yet. Instead, their next step will be to squash the competition - they've finished making plans behind the scenes; now is the time to make these plans visible. They'll need to give all their heart in fighting the other magical girls, to make them feel really, truly defeated so they cannot resist any longer.

She asks if Kanagi objects to this; Kanagi does not. With that, San and Miyuri take their leave to Takarazaki, and Himena goes her own way, too. That leaves Kanagi and Mitama alone. As they walk home, Kanagi asks Mitama what she'll do once Kamihama is destroyed. Mitama says she'll die out of sheer selfish despair. Will Kanagi stop her? Kanagi doesn't know, either - she just might die of that as well. Mitama nonchalantly agrees, saying that it makes sense - because of their actions, "everyone" will be gone.

Kanagi smiles; at Mitama's prodding, she explains that Mitama is still her same old self. Mitama says that now that she's crossed the event horizon, she's calm and unafraid.

As it turns out, Mitama has arranged for a temporary place to stay, since she can't go back home or to the Coordinator's shop anymore. Kanagi, meanwhile, will go back to her family. Mitama notices that Kanagi is still not over the betrayal - Kanagi says it's a matter of emotion. Kanagi is about to go home, but Mitama stops her, saying that they've been through so much together. And now, with Endless Mirrors in play, connecting across time and space - it's the power that brings destruction. The more one resists or puts it off, the more devastating the inevitable impact. In this case...wouldn't the future be happier if they destroy the city now, than make things worse by putting it off? Kanagi realizes, then, that perhaps this is why Mitama embraced her fate so easily.

Once at the train station, however, Kanagi immediately gets a phone call from her dad, who's panicking and telling her to get to the hospital in Shinsei (I think) ASAP. Kanagi gets there first, before her parents - her brother is there with severe injuries like broken bones. He explains that after getting in the fight with the guy from the west the other day, the guy and his buddies came back for revenge. The brother spoke to the cops, who took it seriously up until a detective showed up - and all of a sudden, the cops became dismissive. The brother suspects the detective had some sort of connections with the brother's assaulter, and he thinks he recognizes the assaulter from elsewhere - from the group that had sabotaged the election, the same group that had thrown stones at Touka's dad in a false flag attack by the west. Kanagi demands her brother tell her where she can find this group. He panics, asking what she's planning on doing, and she says "Alright, if you won't tell me, I'll see for myself" - and the screen flashes with her magic.

Kanagi goes to the maid cafe; the manager is surprised to see her in person since she's not working today. Kanagi says she's just here to inform them that she won't be able to work for a few days, apologizing for the inconvenience. The manager is like "you could've just emailed me", but Kanagi notes the manager seems...relieved. The manager insists otherwise, since they won't have Kanagi's help; Kanagi notes another rival cafe has closed up shop, which means business will be booming here; she again apologizes for not being able to help.

Kanagi steps out. Before she gets too far, though, she's stopped by a maid who comes after her, saying the cafe has been threatened for a while now. They've been wanting to cover it up from Kanagi, but yes - they've been threatened by the same group that went after her brother. Kanagi realizes this must be why the manager was telling her to keep quiet about her family affairs, and why her dad got his job offer canceled. The maid confirms there's been pressure not to hire anyone from Daito. The saboteur group hasn't found out about Kanagi yet, but the rival cafe had hired a Daito girl...and, well, that cafe's goose has been cooked. The maid assures her this isn't about asking Kanagi to quit working at the cafe, but to keep her lips sealed on where she comes from - and the girl breaks down in tears, feeling awful for Kanagi. Kanagi assures she'll be back.

In the final scene, bodies hit the floor. Men beg Kanagi to just kill them already. Kanagi pants and wheezes, her soul gem overexerted and the doppel darkness engulfing her and her surroundings - but she's done it. She's hurt a human. Where before, she was not as resolute as the other Neo-Magius girls, she now is. She had never felt so empty as to cross that final line - but at last, she's allowed herself to harm others in order to maintain order. She thinks of Yachiyo, Iroha, and Tsuruno...Momoko, Himika, Karin, her coworkers, her family...she apologizes to them all.

And then she hears a voice, telling her, "Don't think you can go back. You've made it this far, and now you must keep going. You can't go back to those days of comfort - you've lost the right and potential to do so. You can no longer feel the kindness of others and gain their warmth."

Yes - Kanagi is speaking with her doppel (recall that she now has a Kimochi bracelet, which prevents her from turning into a witch). Which one of them is the real Kanagi? The one who's pretending to be calm, or the one who embraces the anger she truly feels? Kanagi insists she truly has been trying to change - but, her doppel says, she could not. Kanagi is frustrated, and her doppel is sorry. But it says Kanagi has to feel positive now - to feel liberated. What is the feeling that fills Kanagi now? Is it all black? The doppel knows. And it knows Kanagi knows, too.

Kanagi admits she feels much better than she expected. The doppel assents, saying she's finally moved forward. She crossed a line today she never imagined she would. And for this, her doppel gives her a word of advice: equality is about crushing everything all the same. Whatever comes at her, she must flatten it. True equality lies in a barren ruin. Kanagi heeds these words - "Well said, my inner self."

Kanagi will be the villain who will obliterate petty conflicts, who will obliterate this city and its history. Even if it causes pain to those she loves? Yes, her doppel says - because that is true salvation. Kanagi chuckles to herself - it's ironic, isn't it, that what the Magius could not accomplish, she will now. But she'll be fine. Her dreams will come true. She can now cross that final line, and she will flatten all things. She is ready.

The story closes with a news dispatch - that the saboteur group was attacked. All members of the group were found in critical condition - only one has regained consciousness, who claims the attacker was a single girl. Many questions are unanswered, and all the police can do is assure the people that they will investigate every single possible angle.