Chapter 50: Upgrades and Demotions
Miss Marcy carefully slid the high-tech device across the table, handing it directly to Tony. "Well, it looks like they officially made you the leader of this outfit."
Pink immediately took the reins, her posture turning incredibly smug as she flipped her pigtails. "Well, obviously! The corporate higher-ups clearly know real talent when they see it!"
Across the table, Maya was practically vibrating with intense, competitive anger, her tiny fists pounding the laminate booth. "This is completely ridiculous!!"
Sensing the tension, Tony forcefully took control back from Pink, letting out a heavy sigh. "I actually agree with Maya... I am absolutely not leader material."
Outside the booth, the delivery magical girl let out a sharp, mocking chuckle. "Oh, you're entirely right about that, sweetie! The Sparkle Syndicate is actually famous for thrusting the absolute weakest members of a team into leadership roles to force them to grow." She smirked, crossing her arms. "They actually think you're the useless dud of your squad. Honestly, looking at you right now, you have absolutely zero normal emotional magic radiating off your baseline form. I can totally see why they think you're a total lightweight, hehehe!"
FLASH.
Pink furiously yanked the reins back, her entire body erupting in a violent, blinding magenta glow. "Whaaaaaaat!!!" she shrieked, her voice echoing with dangerous, multi-toned power.
Above the table, the space violently warped. In a fraction of a second, her pink magical mallet materialized-except it didn't stop growing. It rapidly expanded until it was literally the size of a semi-truck, shattering the light fixtures, crushing the ceiling panels, and tearing right through the roof of the building.
To say the delivery girl was terrified would be the ultimate understatement of the century. Her tiny wings froze, and she fell backward onto the floor, staring up at the world-ending weapon in pure horror.
Alice immediately jumped up from her seat, waving her hands in a total panic. "Pink!! Tony!!! Please, calm down right now!!!" She looked around at the shattered drywall, falling insulation, and the literal view of the night sky above them. "Also... you... you completely destroyed the diner..."
Meanwhile, the poor waitress slowly crawled out from beneath the front counter. She lay flat on the linoleum floor, looking up at the colossal hammer stammering in absolute, paralyzing fear.
The kitchen doors swung open, and the grizzled line cook stepped out to see what the commotion was. He looked up at the semi-truck-sized weapon crushing his restaurant, stood completely still for a second, and then calmly turned right back around and walked straight back into the kitchen.
"I knew it," the cook muttered to himself as the door swung shut. "I should have stayed working as a mechanic..."