Mallory Drake

Mallory Drake
Mallory (right) with Kara and Robynne.
Spirit Guard Tenacity.
First appearance	Chapter 1 (Spirit Guard Tenacity) Chapter 2 (Mallory)
Gender	Female
Family	Eli Drake (younger brother) Father Mother
Affiliations	SAU Volleyball Team Spirit Guard

Mallory Drake, or Mal for short, is a character in Magical Girl Policy. She is a sophomore at SAU that attempts to balance her college life with a superhero career. She became Spirit Guard Tenacity, the second member of the Spirit Guard and reincarnation of the Soldier, about a year prior to the start of the series. She is the best friend and roommate of team leader Angela Warrant. Mallory's life becomes complicated when her brother Eli discovers her secret identity, and Eli's roommate Robert is found to be the final member of the Spirit Guard.

Physical appearance

A born athlete with an Amazonian build, Mallory is about six feet tall and has a muscular body type. Her long, toned legs are said to be her most distinctive feature. She has brown hair that is usually kept in a low ponytail. She has green eyes (brown in artwork) that are said to have a stern gaze inherited from her father and shared with her brother. When not bound by SAU's dress code or the volleyball team's uniform, Mallory likes to wear clothing conducive to her athletic lifestyle, with a strong preference for red tank tops.

As Spirit Guard Tenacity, her muscles become more pronounced. Her hair falls from its ponytail and into a swept style. Her costume consists of a red single-piece cheerleader uniform and heeled boots. The Disconnection Effect as well as the Hush Corps work to block those who would associate Mallory with Tenacity.

Prior to transforming for the first time, Mallory was about an inch shorter, had less defined arm musculature, and had slightly smaller breasts.

Personality

Mallory is headstrong and has a reputation for being stubborn, rarely giving up once she sets her mind to something. She is straightforward in conversation, but sometimes has difficulty putting her thoughts into words. She finds herself wringing her hands when hesitant to say something, which is a tic shared with Eli. Mallory's stubbornness stems from confidence in her decision-making, which is why she feels belittled by her life being manipulated by the plans of Fate and the Soldier.

Her experience as a big sister has made her protective of others. She is constantly concerned for the well-being of her friends and family, and is eager to help at a moment's notice. She is insecure about her temper, which has gotten her into fights to defend Eli in the past.

Mallory has been an athlete all of her life and enjoys pushing herself. She hates to sit still and will try to be active even while injured. She had trained in taekwando in the past, and is said to be the toughest person Eli knows. She played for the volleyball team in high school and continues to do so at college. Even though her healing factor removes the need to work out in order to keep her body in shape, Mallory still enjoys doing so to unwind. Her younger brother's nerdy hobbies has led Mallory to playfully dismiss such things as dorky.

While transformed into Spirit Guard Tenacity, she is granted access to the Soldier's combat instincts and swordplay skills. She has a tendency to charge into the front lines of battle with little planning. She revels in the power she feels while transformed, which has led to her initial difficulty powering down, but her near-death experience against Day LaMode makes her realize she's not as invincible as she thought.

Abilities

Like the other Spirit Guard, Mallory has an aura of a plant scent: a coniferous forest in the mountains shortly before a storm. The aura flares up while transformed into Tenacity, protecting her from most forms of non-empathokinetic damage, potent enough to stop bullets.

Mallory's empathokinetic perception is the least keen among the Spirit Guard by a noticeable margin, being even weaker than Robert's. She senses things after her teammates and in less detail, struggling to gauge the strength of various auras. When Investiture is drained in her vicinity, she feels the pain of an electric shock through her spine.

Mallory's complex Investiture grants her a strong resistance to having it drained by a monster. Prior to transforming for the first time, calling upon her Investiture revealed her Ardent Resonance: a red glow around her body and the Ardentian symbol of tenacity on her forehead, which marked her as a future Spirit Guard.

Mallory transforms into Spirit Guard Tenacity by holding her Spirit Stick and, while feeling tenacious, pulling the baton apart and saying "Surge of Tenacity, Spirit Guard Power Up!" This obscures her in a red glow that renders her invulnerable during the transformation. She is placed in a sort of pocket dimension dubbed the Transformation Station while the process completes. She reverts to her normal form by either losing consciousness or willing her power to return to her Investiture while subconsciously feeling out of danger, though her body returning to normal leaves her feeling weak for a short time. She takes the longest to power down among the team.

Mallory's athleticism grants her great physical ability, and her taekwando training makes her a skilled fighter. While transformed into Tenacity, she has superhuman attributes all around as well as the Soldier's combat instincts. She is the strongest warrior the Spirit Guard has, and takes to the front lines in battle using an offense-focused fighting style.

Tenacity can mentally summon her weapon to her hands as well as dismiss it. It initially takes the form of a pair of red pompoms, but clapping them together switches between this form and its true appearance of an oversized greatsword, which she swings around with ease. Her special moves require her to hold her sword and speak the name of the move, which utilize red-colored electricity.

Tenacity has a fast-acting healing factor that seals up wounds, prioritizing the smaller ones. It also attempts to keep her appearance consistent, leaving her relatively unblemished even during a violent battle. Powering down resets Mallory's body to how it was when she powered down for the first time, which she secretly uses to be at peak condition before volleyball games. Mallory herself has a lesser healing factor that acts like an accelerated version of the human body's natural regeneration. Both forms of healing are fueled by calories, so Mallory uses this super metabolism to get away with an diet less healthy than the one she claims to have.

The Disconnection Effect causes those who look at Spirit Guard Tenacity or her image to mentally assign that sole name to her, but it's weakened via repeated exposure. The effect applies on some level even to those who know that she's Mallory, perceiving the two forms slightly differently. It also prevents Tenacity herself from accidentally calling her fellow Spirit Guard by their real names.

Mallory occasionally receives visions of her past life as the Soldier during her sleep, complete with the Soldier's emotions and other sensations. While said visions provide information on the Ardent Empire and thus some background on the Spirit Guard's mission, the team believes they're actually granted in order to help the Spirit Guard in the future.

Special moves

• Intrepid Blade: Performs a charging slash with her electrified sword.
• Determined Arc: Performs a wide arcing slash with her sword, with lightning extending beyond the blade.

Biography

Background

Mallory Drake was born in Kessia City as the first child of a rich family. She has always been extremely close to her younger brother Elijah and his best friend Cory. Mallory's father dotes on her, as unlike Eli she had her car and college expenses paid for and is even given a credit card if she's in need of extra cash. Mallory's father is also very protective of her, however, not liking when she took taekwando lessons or moved into an apartment when she decided to attend Schuyler Adamson University with a volleyball scholarship.

After a rally for the volleyball team, Mallory was approached by the cheerleader Angela Warrant, who had sensed her aura, and the two became friends. When the two had dinner one day, the restaurant is attacked by a monster called Alena Alfredo. When Angela ran off to transform into Spirit Guard Valor, the monster tried and failed to drain Mallory's Investiture. Angela threw Mallory her Spirit Stick, which she used to transform into Spirit Guard Tenacity and defeat the monster.

Angela later took Mallory to observe cheer captain Cammy DeCroix's powerful aura, believing it to be a sign of another Spirit Guard, but Mallory couldn't sense anything special about it. Some days later, Mallory received a vision that helped her realize how bad of an influence Cammy was on Angela and told her friend about it. Angela attempted on her own to reveal Cammy's schemes to control the Student Association, but ended up kicked off the cheer team and lost her scholarship. Mallory, Angela's only remaining friend, had her move into her apartment.

Spirit Guard Tenacity's first recorded appearance was against the weightlifting monster Barbella. Over the following year, Vivian Joy and Kara Balmer joined the Spirit Guard as well.

Part 1

Spirit Guard Tenacity battles Polygal.

Kara senses a monster disguised as a Zombie Mansion machine at the Loose Change arcade, leaving the area to transform and alert her fellow Spirit Guard. Tenacity arrives at the scene along with Valor just as Charity forced the revealed Polygal to release Robert, Cory, and Eli. Tenacity expresses concern for the safety of the three as well as Rob's glowing, then charges at Polygal. Felicity arrives to constrict and burn the monster using Encircling Joy, while Tenacity finishes it off with Intrepid Blade. Robert is convinced to give the heroes his phone number so he may be contacted when they figure out what his glowing meant.

The Spirit Guard contact Kunapipi and the Hush Corps for more information on Robert, and it is confirmed that he is to be the final Spirit Guard, so the team decides to meet him and feel out his character. Mallory and Vivian visit Rob, Cory, and Eli's dorm under the pretense of fearing for the latter's safety since he was attacked at work. The two probe Rob for details of the attack, with Mallory impressed to hear Rob fearlessly stood his ground despite being unaware of the Spirit Guard's existence. She berates Cory and Eli for not running, telling her brother to leave monsters to the Spirit Guard.

The Spirit Guard and Noriko discuss their findings on Robert. Mallory reassures Angela that Robert's seeming coldness is due to his personality; the Spirit Guard are simply a curiosity to him. Eli visits to retrieve a graphing calculator Mallory had borrowed, and is introduced to Mal's friends before leaving. The team decides Rob can be trusted to join them, so the Hush Corps text him to meet the Spirit Guard at the Standridge Hill Stone Circle tomorrow night to learn why he glowed.

The Spirit Guard and Kunapipi meet Robert at the Standridge Circle, where he is told about Fate, the Ardent Empire, and his own role as the last Spirit Guard. Robert turns down joining the team, as becoming Spirit Guard Serenity would transform him into a woman and ruin his life. When he mentions having to leave Cory and Eli as a reason why he won't do it, Tenacity tells him he can remain part of their lives and convinces the Spirit Guard to reveal their identities to him. Mallory is furious when Noriko appears with Cory and Eli, who had been spying on the meeting. Eli is fuming that Mallory has been risking her life as a superhero and not telling her family, while Mallory can't believe Eli ignored her warning to stay out the Spirit Guard's business. Fearing the reaction of their overprotective father, Mallory convinces Eli not to tell their parents, and Eli has her promise to be more open about such things with him like they always have. With everyone sworn to secrecy, the meeting ends.

Mallory and her friends go to Rale Valley Mall for some shopping, but sense a strange empathokinetic humming from seemingly random locations. Mal and Angela run into Robert, who senses it as well and offers to help in the search, as it's something he can do to protect others without transforming. Mal is grateful for the offer but asks him to leave the mall, as she doesn't want Eli or Cory to once again risk their lives if there turns out to be a monster. A little while later, the Spirit Guard sense Investiture being drained in Rob's direction and transform. Tenacity attacks the revealed Day LaMode to make way for Rob, Cory, and Eli's escape. The team gets split up dealing with LaMode's mannequin army. Tenacity senses Rob activate his Ardent Resonance again and rushes to the boys' side once more. LaMode quits trying to capture Robert and turns her attention to Tenacity. Tenacity is unable to keep up with LaMode's speed and body transfer ability, and is beaten within an inch of her life. With her last ditch effort to summon her sword directly into LaMode a failure, Tenacity is saved by the sudden arrival of Spirit Guard Serenity. Amazed at Robert's sacrifice and relieved at Eli and Cory's safety, Tenacity watches the new Spirit Guard easily defeat LaMode. The rest of the team arrives, and when Noriko warns them of the incoming police, it is decided that Tenacity will be operated on by Charity while Serenity makes them invisible using Placid Mist. Tenacity is then carried to her apartment by Serenity to recover.

Part 2

The next morning, Mallory is visited by Eli, who makes her eat to fuel her healing factor. Mal tells him that the transformed Robynne, despite her brave face, will need the help of her friends now more than ever. She also says her near death made her consider Eli having to explain her death to their parents, and decides she'll tell their parents she's a Spirit Guard in the near future.

A couple days later, Mallory has recovered enough to get up and visit everyone, who were discussing Robynne's first day back at class. At her current rate, she'll be able to return to class the next day and play volleyball by the end of the week.

The next morning, a sudden Spirit Guard meeting is held when it's found that Robynne had a vision of the Shrine Maiden last night. Mallory assures Robynne that the Maiden's plan requiring the Ardentia's extinction was probably decided after careful consideration, but admits her discomfort with the reincarnation thing. Later that day, Mal finds herself bored since she can't be too active while recovering, so Robynne has Mal accompany her to find a backpack that won't dig into her newfound breasts. Mallory insists on buying an expensive backpack with a credit card from her father as she's allowed to do so for her friends, saying she'll always be eager to help Rob for saving her life. Mal explains her plan to tell her parents she's a Spirit Guard, so Robynne asks to be told how it goes so she can figure out how to explain her own situation to her uncle.

Mallory, Kara, and Vivian eavesdrop on Robynne and Angela's surprise private conversation, where the latter reveals something she had hidden from her teammates: she theorizes Cammy may be reincarnated from the Empress, but didn't tell the others because they can't sense auras as strongly as she or Robynne. Robynne senses the others behind the door and opens it so they can cry out their misunderstandings with Angela. The Spirit Guard brainstorm ways to deal with Cammy, with Mal being quick to shut down the option of Robynne joining the cheer team as a spy for fear of piling more on top of Rob's already stressful situation. Mal presses Robynne on why she's even considering the idea since it's clearly not because of the Empress theory, so she explains how she wants to tear Cammy down for being a more dangerous version of Evelyn, the one who ruined Robert's high school life. They decide to go through with the plan, with Robynne returning Cammy's dress bribe and presenting several demands in return for joining the team.

Part 3

After Robynne joins the cheer team, Mallory, Noriko, and Angela help her fill out her bio for the team's website.

Mallory's workout is interrupted by a call from Eli: the computer components Robynne had extorted from Cammy have arrived at his dorm as planned, but he wants Mal to drive them to Rob's dorm so his roommate Dale doesn't have an excuse to come along and hit on Rob. Mal drives over with Noriko, who puts a false license plate on the car and uses the Standridge Stone warps to ward off a possible spy associating anything with Angela. Robynne is annoyed to find Cammy had spited her by getting parts in a completely different style than what was demanded. Mallory offers to buy a different case at the store right then, but Robynne decides to keep it for now when Noriko suggests it would let Robynne subvert expectations of people who judge it by its colorful exterior, offering the name CandyStrike for it.

Mallory tells her parents about her Spirit Guard business, which goes over well. In order to make her father go easier on Eli, she exaggerates his involvement in the Polygal attack by claiming he went out of his way to lead the children to safety. This convinces their father that Eli has fully learned discipline and no longer needs a job while at college.

Mallory is at a volleyball game while Cell-celia is fought and doesn't check her phone until afterwards. She immediately rushes to bring Kara's energy bars to Kunapipi's office to help her friends recover. Cell-celia's human disguise, signal vision, and low-key Investiture collection has the team conclude that Platicore is shifting his monster designs in hopes of harvesting as much Investiture as possible before the Spirit Guard find them. Mallory suggests nightly patrols of Kessia City in order to snuff out newly planted monsters, but the plan is put off until Robynne explains her situation to her uncle. Robynne panics when she's reminded that her uncle will be coming to town that week, so Mal reassures her that he'll be supportive and Rob will have a huge weight off her shoulders.

The next morning, the team discusses Robynne's vision, which notably featured the Princess utilizing her religion's forbidden emotions to lie her way past corrupt Vice-Archon Liff. The others are concerned as none of their visions had any signs of this, which leads them to wonder if the Shrine Maiden, like Robynne, had the keenest empathokinetic perception among the team. After Tanya visits to give Robynne and Vivian a surprise promotion assignment, Mal assures the frustrated Robynne that she's making much better progress in her cheer mission than she thinks she is.

Relationships

Tenacity with the rest of the Spirit Guard.

Gallery

Spirit Guard Tenacity battles Polygal.

Mallory and Kara watch Robynne as she assembles her new computer.

Tenacity with the rest of the Spirit Guard.

Trivia

• In the October 2016 Q&A, Taralynn Andrews says Mallory's preferred type of car is an older muscle car that allows her to do mechanical work on it. She also likes the tactile feedback of a manual transmission.
• In the same column, it is revealed that Mallory likes to date athletic guys who are taller than her. She was mistrustful of them in high school since they knew of her rich family, but she has dated more since arriving at college.
• In the November 2016 Q&A, Andrews imagines Mallory's Halloweens often involve Cory dragging her and Eli into watching schlocky horror films.
• In the December 2016 Q&A, Andrews says if Mallory were prompted to name her computer, she would simply call it "Mal's computer", as she has no interest in naming things.