When the Devil Broke the Universe

Homura should have been in bed hours ago. They were going to wake her early for work, she knew that… but with any luck, soon enough she wouldn't be here anymore anyway.

The raven-haired girl looked over another text about skyshards. She knew it was a fool's hope, but what Theodor had said about the meteor shower wouldn't leave her mind. Was it possible Madoka had survived, but landed elsewhere? Could she find her?

Nonsense, Madoka was dead. Getting her hopes up would only hurt her later. And yet, she couldn't help but research and study.

Homura covered her mouth as she released a yawn—and noticed something out of the corner of her eye. There, in the library doorway, she could have sworn she'd seen a flash of pink. In an instant Homura was out in the main hall, again catching a glimpse of pink walking out towards the entrance to the temple.

… It couldn't be. It just couldn't.

Yet she still found herself running out of the main hall and down the entry staircase, having cast her invisibility spell before leaving the library so the scant few guards on patrol at this hour didn't spot her. She continued out into the cave that provided the temple's exit, throwing herself off the ledges instead of bothering with the convoluted path in a nice bit of parkour. Her feet hit the ground and she continued, catching another glimpse of pink at the front of the cave. She pressed herself harder—she HAD to catch up to whoever that was, at the very least so she could prove to herself it wasn't who she hoped it was.

It couldn't be.

Homura exited the cave out onto the base of the mountain, near the village of Karthspire which lay just over the river. For a moment she didn't see anything, panic building that maybe she'd lost the trail, despite the full moons lighting up the night.

But then she saw her—long twin pigtails, a billowing white dress. Homura's breath got caught in her throat as her heart skipped a beat. She tried to call out her name as the figure descended into the valley, but choked on her own voice. Instead Homura chased after her down the road, despite the fact that the figure was moving incredibly fast for a pedestrian.

Over the river, Madoka had gone off the beaten path, past some rocks and trees. Homura followed, and very quickly the chase became far more complicated—but Homura wasn't prepared to give up. Not now. Not now.

"MADOKA!" she called, finally finding her voice, "WAIT!"

But Madoka didn't wait, and for the next several minutes Homura found herself pushing past bushes and climbing over boulders as she struggled to keep up—only managing the barest of glimpses of her other half.

Something in the back of her mind told her this was wrong. This didn't feel right, something was off. Why was Madoka leading her this way? Why wasn't she stopping? Why did she still look like the Law of Cycles? Why was the Law of Cycles on foot? Why was she here at all?

But it didn't matter. Those questions didn't matter. Madoka was here, and she was going to—

Homura entered a clearing surrounded by cliff-face about a story high. The moons' light shone down on the gnarled trees and uneven grass, but she saw no sign of Madoka.

And that's when she saw him. At first Homura had thought the figure a tree, taller than the rest but just as foreboding. But it moved, and she noted that it did not look like a tree. The figure was over seven feet tall, with thick leather boots and animal hide clothing covering the bare minimum of his well-endowed body—though the chest was partially covered in deer antler armor, and in his hands were two large spears. But the head… the head was not human in the slightest—fur covered much of his body, but his head was truly animalistic; consisting of some odd yet terrifying cross between a wolf and a deer, with massive antlers jutting out the sides.

"**Greetings.**"

Homura froze. She knew exactly who this was; her studies on the cosmology of this new world had led her to texts about the Daedric Princes, the interloping gods from outside creation.

"… Hircine," she said, tensing up at the thought of standing in front of a potentially hostile being that could crush her like a bug if he so wished. Idly she wondered if this was how those girls she'd slaughtered had felt when facing her, but pushed those thoughts aside.

"**You have done well,**" the god of the hunt said, **"Not too many mortals would have been able or willing to follow their prey up here. Though, you're not quite mortal, are you?**"

"Where's Madoka?" Homura said icily, her trepidation replaced by anger when she realized she'd been tricked.

"**Not here, I'm afraid.**" Homura deflated, grief beginning to roil within her once more. But Hircine wasn't done, **"However, I can tell you where she is.**"

For the second time tonight, Homura forgot how to breathe as her heart did a flip, "…W-what?" Madoka was alive. Madoka was here. He knew where Madoka was. She could find Madoka. Theodor had been right; they'd all come here from the meteor shower, and now she could find Madoka.

"**I know where she is, and I know where she's going. However, I do not give out boons for free. Rewards are earned, not provided.**"

Ah, and there it was. The pitch. "… What do you want from me?" she asked, expecting an attempt on her soul.

"**Relax, young one. All I desire is a test.**"

"A test?"

The god nodded, **"You have already shown me your speed and tracking. Now I wish to test your strength and guile, to see if you are truly worthy of your hunt.**"

The sound of rustling bushes and something stepping on a downed branch behind her caught Homura's attention. She turned around to find a second large creature, apelike with three eyes glaring directly at the teenage girl half its height. Homura's first thought as she instinctively backed up was "bigfoot" or "yeti". It would make sense, considering all the dragons and magic.

"**Defeat this opponent, and I will tell you where your quarry lies.**"

"… I don't have any weapons on me." Homura told the god, continuing to back into the clearing as she tried to give herself some space. She cursed herself; she should have known better than to come out here without something to protect herself.

Hircine didn't seem too broken up about it, **"All the better. Does a wolf use a sword to catch his prey? Does a deer use a wheeled carriage to escape? No, they rely on their innate gifts to survive.**"

With that, the troll roared and charged at Homura, who barely evaded its first swipe by rolling into the grass and over. The troll swung around, slamming its first into the earth where she'd been—had she not leaped into the air and provided a swift kick to the troll's face as her entire body performed a graceful backflip. The impact was enough to stagger the beast back, and Homura landed in a crouch before brushing her hair aside. Hircine said nothing, but watched impassively.

Seeing that she'd landed near a large branch that had fallen off of one of the gnarled trees in the area, Homura got an idea. She grabbed the branch, and then as the troll rushed her vanished into thin air. The troll was confused and hesitated before smashing the ground where its prey had been, only to encounter nothing.

A few seconds later and the troll felt something grabbing the fur on its back, and a moment after that Homura shoved the sharp end of the branch directly into the back of the troll's neck. The beast staggered, swinging wildly in a futile attempt to grab its opponent, but instead Homura simply shoved the makeshift weapon in deeper, twisting as she did until the troll simply became too unstable to use as a platform. She jumped back off and backed away as the dying creature finally keeled over face-first into the grass.

Homura steadied her breath, flipping her hair behind her as she turned to Hircine, "Where is Madoka?"

But the god didn't reply, instead keeping his attention on the downed troll. Homura heard a grunt, and then movement behind her. To her surprise, the troll was getting up as it pulled the branch out of its neck and roared in anger. Blood gushed out of the wound, but quickly tapered away as the flesh healed itself impossibly fast. It then threw the branch away, right where Homura was. The swing sent her flying, and she landed in a heap several dozen feet away.

Homura tried to get up, wincing at a fairly nasty bruise already starting to form along her side. But before she could get back on her feet, the troll grabbed the girl by the leg and lifted her up into the air, before slamming her back into the dirt. Then it did it again. By the third time, Homura was seeing nothing but stars in her vision as the troll sent her battered body ragdolling into a pile of rocks.

Even as she lay there, Homura could feel the troll bounding closer. She ached; her entire body was ablaze with pain and she could barely move.

The vibrations in the earth stopped; the troll was now directly above her and Homura no longer had the physical strength to fight back. Part of her knew this was the end and welcomed it; an end to all of this. Sweet oblivion, at last.

… But she was fighting for Madoka. Madoka was alive, she was here, and Homura had to keep going.

And she still had one last card up her sleeve.

Hoping she was lucky with her aim as her sight was still dizzy, Homura turned over to where she assumed the troll was and let loose with a torrent of fire right in its face. The troll squealed in pain as it stumbled backwards, and Homura took the opportunity to go invisible once more and crawl to safety.

She noted to herself as her senses returned to her that the fire had done more to harm the beast than any of her other attacks; the troll was whimpering as its face burned, desperately trying to put out the flames. That gave her an idea.

Wincing as she stood up, and quickly making sure nothing was broken, Homura ended her invisibility spell and charged up a different spell with both hands. She approached the creature and unleashed another stream of fire, doing her best to coat the monster from head to toe in flames. It screamed and howled in agony, stumbling as it tried in vain to protect itself. Then it swayed, and finally—it fell, first to its knees and then the rest of the body into the dirt.

Homura was panting heavily. Not only did every inch of her body ache, but she also was straight up out of magic; every inch of her reserve was gone. She'd never felt so physically empty, it was as if all her strength had been sapped away. She could barely stand, but she still had one more job to do as even now she could hear the troll gurgling; somehow it still wasn't dead yet.

Grabbing the branch from earlier, Homura dragged herself back over to the troll, tripping slightly along the way. But she made it, and then shoved the branch as hard as she could into the maimed creature's throat. Blood spurted out everywhere as the scorched monster struggled as best it could in its state, but it was over. The troll let out a final gurgling noise and its body fell limp, silent.

Dead.

With the threat dealt with, Homura dropped to her knees, clutching her side in pain before looking over at Hircine. Blood was dripping from above her left eye, and scrapes and bruises dotted her face and hands. Her clothes were torn and muddy, and she looked like she was about to pass out.

"Where… is… Madoka?" Homura asked him, panting with each word, even as she steadied herself by putting one of her hands on the ground.

Hircine stood silently for a moment, then nodded with a small grin on his face, **"Impressive. It's not often I get to see a smaller prey outplay a larger one. Very well, you have earned this: the one you call Madoka Kaname can be found in the village of Frost Creek, deep in the Drajkmyr Marsh, north of Morthal. From here it is a little over a week's journey on foot. I warn you though: she is about to leave, though I am sure a capable hunter such as yourself will be able to pick up her trail once arriving in town. I look forward to your hunt.**"

Homura looked to the north; in the distance she could make out the mountains separating the Reach from the Whiterun plains. Beyond, somewhere, lay Madoka.

"**One last piece of information,"** Hircine said, **"A warning: others are hunting you as well. Be on your guard, young wolf, lest the predator become the prey.**"

Homura frowned; others? "What about Madoka?" she asked, "Are they after—" she turned to Hircine, only to find no one there. Homura sat, crouched over, alone in the wilderness. It was quiet; only a faint breeze brushed past her.

And then it hit her, finally.

Madoka was alive. She could find her again, see her again. She could see Madoka's smile, hear her laughter. A smile escaped Homura's lips, one that quickly grew into a giggle and then a cackle, and then something snapped within Homura and her laughter became wild and uneven. Every inch of her body shook with a deep and unhinged sense of desperation, joy, and euphoria, and even as she did it, even as she realized it sounded insane, she couldn't stop. She didn't want to stop.

Madoka was alive.

Madoka was alive.

Madoka was **alive.**

It didn't matter what came next. It didn't matter what she'd do once she'd found Madoka, all that mattered was that Madoka was alive, Madoka had left a trail, and Homura knew how to track her down.

Still giggling like a madwoman as an entire week of indescribable stress and guilt and despair washed off her, she stood on her feet, ignoring her wounds as she rubbed her face with her hands, clearing away the tears now running down her cheek.

Madoka was alive.

Madoka was alive, and she was going to find her.

Homura had been planning on leaving the Blades soon anyway, ever since Theodor had gotten under her skin, but now she saw no need to prolong her stay here; in fact, the longer she waited, the greater the chance Madoka's trail would grow cold.

She would leave tonight.