Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Character Creation and Discussion (second reincarnation)

[Keroko]

Originally Posted by Jimmy C

Despite this, the Bureau has a chronic shortage of mages, why's that?

Several reasons. As you said, some simply won't be combat capable. Secondly, the bureau has a lot of ground to cover, and stations mages even on worlds with very low popularity (example in this case being Erio and Caro who go to a reserve) and third, not all mages necisarily join the military. Criminal mages nothwithstanding, there are also civilian mages.

Originally Posted by Jimmy C

And I'd be cautious about assuming that a majority of the population has magic, even if it's a level too low to be considered useful to the TSAB. In such a society, non-magic-capable people would be treated as handicapped or second-class at best. That's something we don't see in StrikerS.

I'm sorry, I should have been more clear. When I said 'high population' I didn't mean the majority. What I meant was somewhere around a 50/50 balance. Maybe around the 40% balance at the very least. I highly doubt mages are a huge minority. Why would Mid become a culture centered around the use of magic if only an extreme minority could use it?

Originally Posted by Jimmy C

We've only seen one that definitely teaches magic. We don't know if this is standard to all Mid schools. Also, it doesn't require a high precentage of mages in the population to make magic schools a worthwhile proposition. Even if only 1% out of Mid's population are mages, that's 10,000 out of every million people. A large city like Cranagan should have 10 times that, at least. Should be easy to fill magic schools, don't you think? Yet, it's only 1%.

True.

Originally Posted by Jimmy C

Not to mention you forgot Arf and Zafira could do that well before the Liezes were shown doing that. In fact, I was surprised no one used them as examples for this.

*shrug* I just wanted to point out the image of the Lieze twins in kitty form.

[AdmiralTigerclaw]

Originally Posted by Jimmy C

Two questions: Is this gate going to be skywards pointing down or on the ground pointing up? Because your text switches from the first to the second later.
Next, this is an area devastation spell, why do you want to keep it confined? In fact, you can't keep it confined indefintely.
A star offers so many possibilities, the coronosphere is even hotter than the photosphere surface, but I'm not sure if the particle density is high enough to cause damage.
The photosphere has 6000C solar plasma and it gets hotter the deeper you go, and there's the radiation...
If you can open even a small gate 8 light minutes to the nearest star, there's a closer source of destruction you can tap. Magma from the planet's mantle. If you want hotter, you can go to the fluid outer core. All that's less than 10,000km below you.

For question one: Ground Pointing up. If it were in the sky pointing down, it'd carve right through the planet.

For question two: Uh... do you have the slightest incling of the explosive force that would be produced if it were allowed to simply blast outwards? This is super high energy plasma that's getting freed from gravitational pressurization that causes fusion at the center of the stellar body. This would be entertaining if Hayate opened a Gate of Ra and nuked her ass the moment the link was established. We're talking BIG nuking... remember how much energy a simple Solar Flare has. You want to make sure that's pointing into the sky.



Now, as for magma... well, it wouldn't be Gate of RA if we didn't call down the Sun God now would it? But I'm sure we can make a Gate of Apep that unleashes coils of Lava from the underworld. Less awsome firepower, but still awsome firepower.

[Jimmy C]

Originally Posted by Keroko

What I meant was somewhere around a 50/50 balance. Maybe around the 40% balance at the very least.

When you're talking about humans and a trait as defining as the ability to use magic, that's not balance at all. To me anyway. I'm at the end of the day, so details will have to wait.

Why would Mid become a culture centered around the use of magic if only an extreme minority could use it?

I stand by my assertions that Mid can harness magic artificially without mages. It explains many features in the series and makes the use of magic-powered system available to non-mages.

Secondly, the bureau has a lot of ground to cover, and stations mages even on worlds with very low popularity (example in this case being Erio and Caro who go to a reserve)

A point from SSM3, they volunteered to go there. Erio mentions the Bureau has trouble finding agents willing to accept such remote assignments.

Originally Posted by Admiral Tigerclaw

Ground Pointing up. If it were in the sky pointing down, it'd carve right through the planet.

Please, you'd need a gate several kilometers across to funnel enough plasma to do something like that quickly. At best, you'd get a really deep hole with a gate tens of meters across.
Since you mention it'll be shooting upwards, what kind of targets are you thinking of using this against?

This is super high energy plasma that's getting freed from gravitational pressurization that causes fusion at the center of the stellar body.

You don't need to grab from the core, you know. Not to mention, disturbances at that depth could cause noticable instability in the star. Even the top kilometer of the photosphere contains more than adequate power to wreak havoc on a ground tactical scale. Always think of efficient ways of getting what you want.

I'm sure we can make a Gate of Apep that unleashes coils of Lava from the underworld.

Good, now do you see the possibilities of gating in your attacks instead of producing them yourself?

You can do the Rift Generator attack by opening a gate into space. Then, you can do a water attack by opening a gate into the ocean depths.

[Keroko]

Originally Posted by Jimmy C

When you're talking about humans and a trait as defining as the ability to use magic, that's not balance at all. To me anyway. I'm at the end of the day, so details will have to wait.

*tilts head* I'll wait then, I don't fully understand what you're trying to say.

Originally Posted by Jimmy C

I stand by my assertions that Mid can harness magic artificially without mages. It explains many features in the series and makes the use of magic-powered system available to non-mages.

Harnesing it yes, from what we've seen its the most comonly used energy source. but non-mages obviously can't use magic the way mages can, meaning you leave anything that involves weaponry, combat and security in the hands of a small minority. If that minority was not so small at all, it would be easier to swallow.

Originally Posted by Jimmy C

A point from SSM3, they volunteered to go there. Erio mentions the Bureau has trouble finding agents willing to accept such remote assignments.

Ah, I didn't know that. Thanks for pointing that out. Still, it doesn't really change my point: The TSAB has a lot of ground to cover.

Originally Posted by Jimmy C

You don't need to grab from the core, you know. Not to mention, disturbances at that depth could cause noticable instability in the star. Even the top kilometer of the photosphere contains more than adequate power to wreak havoc on a ground tactical scale. Always think of efficient ways of getting what you want.

Just grab from the Corona if you want extreme heat and damage. The photosphere is around 5000 C if I remember correctly. The Corona around one to three million. And since its outside the photosphere, its only excess energy you're taking, and closer to boot.

[AdmiralTigerclaw]

Originally Posted by Jimmy C

Please, you'd need a gate several kilometers across to funnel enough plasma to do something like that quickly. At best, you'd get a really deep hole with a gate tens of meters across.
Since you mention it'll be shooting upwards, what kind of targets are you thinking of using this against?

Well, it's about the size of Hayate's other big-nasties. Se we're talking a few hundred meters across. That's enough to flash bake anyone caught in it.

Now, it'll be shooting upwards, but the gate appears on the ground. So the targets would be, anyone on the ground, and anyone above it. Generally, everyone. After all, the thing erupts more or less like a beam. So once it's open you're not going to outrun the energy discharge, especially the heat.

You don't need to grab from the core, you know. Not to mention, disturbances at that depth could cause noticable instability in the star. Even the top kilometer of the photosphere contains more than adequate power to wreak havoc on a ground tactical scale. Always think of efficient ways of getting what you want.

You misunderstand. The entire star is under high pressure from a few kilometers down onwards. The whole stellar body is PLASMA reigned in by gravity and heats under the force of compression and fusion. The density and pressure in a star is not too outlandish even at mid or near-surface levels to produce a tremendous explosive shockwave. Hell, the heating of the atmosphere alone from the energy coming through the gate could cause a nuclear shockwave if it's not contained in a collumn. The gate opens a gravity free vent. The first thing the plasma's going to do is... "OH LOOK! FOLLOW ME!"


This is not about the spell being efficient, it's about it being mother-sucking insane and powerful... and dangerous. (Rein sealed it away in the corner of her mind and Hayate only randomly finds it in her magic book.) One could say that it's a spell produced by one of Rein's previous masters... and he wasn't quite... sane.


Now, disturbances ... instability in a star? Are you thinking about that? There are only two forces of any considerable nature in a star. Gravity, pulling everything to the center, and the fusion reaction in the core, trying to explode outward. The whole thing is a giant disturbance. It can't destablize like so many science fiction freaks want you to believe... No. You open a hole, some plasma will jet out, and everything around will just fill it in because it's a high density fluid being crushed inwards by gravitational force.

Good, now do you see the possibilities of gating in your attacks instead of producing them yourself?

??? You squakin at me? YOU SQUAKIN AT ME? No seriously, are you making some point from a previous conversation I didn't take part of?

You can do the Rift Generator attack by opening a gate into space. Then, you can do a water attack by opening a gate into the ocean depths.

[Sheba]

I don't feel like quoting. But I'll say my piece one last time over what I don't like about the 40k's "hegemony". At one point in this thread, and recently in IRC (mainly because of the SSX bits), one man have been forcing the 40k down people's throats. He won't stop. He admit that he have gone overboard at times. To the point that a couple of people have been facepalming, and some have started to cringe whenever the two numbers and the one letter are brought about.

People, mostly those from the other side, who you call miltakus, have voiced their opinions, mostly not favorable, about it. One even asked for some moderation. But that one basically received the "lol stfu" treatment.

So then SSX came, and as IRC folks has witnessed it, it was chanting about 40kism and Chaos nonsense all over. To the point it felt tactless, bordering on gloating.

There are so much that one can take. And I made it clear to him that I am not going to let him brainwash the two numbers and one letter in me. I enjoy this thread and the channel because I could exchange ideas with people from different horizons, with different frames of references. The most delicious being those related to judaism and mythologies. Sure, 40k and HOTBLOOD are all the rage in this thread. But, you know, a little moderation is not bad either.

What I ask is a little moderation, and maybe a slightly different look on things.

[Comartemis]

Originally Posted by Sheba

I don't feel like quoting. But I'll say my piece one last time over what I don't like about the 40k's "hegemony". At one point in this thread, and recently in IRC (mainly because of the SSX bits), one man have been forcing the 40k down people's throats. He won't stop. He admit that he have gone overboard at times. To the point that a couple of people have been facepalming, and some have started to cringe whenever the two numbers and the one letter are brought about.

People, mostly those from the other side, who you call miltakus, have voiced their opinions, mostly not favorable, about it. One even asked for some moderation. But that one basically received the "lol stfu" treatment.

So then SSX came, and as IRC folks has witnessed it, it was chanting about 40kism and Chaos nonsense all over. To the point it felt tactless, bordering on gloating.

There are so much that one can take. And I made it clear to him that I am not going to let him brainwash the two numbers and one letter in me. I enjoy this thread and the channel because I could exchange ideas with people from different horizons, with different frames of references. The most delicious being those related to judaism and mythologies. Sure, 40k and HOTBLOOD are all the rage in this thread. But, you know, a little moderation is not bad either.

What I ask is a little moderation, and maybe a slightly different look on things.

Sheba, you need to chill out and stop taking this so goddamn seriously. If you don't like the 40K stuff, then there's a very simple solution for dealing with it: it's called turning the other cheek. I do it all the time with the milotaku and the emo crap that people pump out every now and then; I paid no attention to Alpha back when Kage was still working on it, and I've learned to ignore Eva's "lol Fate-flavored tang" jokes. So if whoever it is you're referring to is spewing 40K-isms everywhere, take a page from my book: lend him a deaf ear and keep working on whatever it is you're doing with no regard for the stuff he's smoking.

And to the 40K advocate (you know who you are): take care that you do not descend to Haru's level on these boards as Sheba claims you have, lest the mods bring the ban hammer down on your head. If things are indeed as bad as Sheba claims they are, then bear in mind that you have absolutely no right whatsoever to dictate to a writer how he does his work.

[LoweGear]

Originally Posted by Sheba

I don't feel like quoting. But I'll say my piece one last time over what I don't like about the 40k's "hegemony". At one point in this thread, and recently in IRC (mainly because of the SSX bits), one man have been forcing the 40k down people's throats. He won't stop. He admit that he have gone overboard at times. To the point that a couple of people have been facepalming, and some have started to cringe whenever the two numbers and the one letter are brought about.

People, mostly those from the other side, who you call miltakus, have voiced their opinions, mostly not favorable, about it. One even asked for some moderation. But that one basically received the "lol stfu" treatment.

So then SSX came, and as IRC folks has witnessed it, it was chanting about 40kism and Chaos nonsense all over. To the point it felt tactless, bordering on gloating.

There are so much that one can take. And I made it clear to him that I am not going to let him brainwash the two numbers and one letter in me. I enjoy this thread and the channel because I could exchange ideas with people from different horizons, with different frames of references. The most delicious being those related to judaism and mythologies. Sure, 40k and HOTBLOOD are all the rage in this thread. But, you know, a little moderation is not bad either.

What I ask is a little moderation, and maybe a slightly different look on things.

Not really in the best of positions to take opposition, since I'm quite enthusiastic about the inclusion of 40K ideas into the Nanohaverse (if only because the similarities breed some good crack), but then again no one's telling you to accept it as canon at gunpoint. Even amongst Kerokanon, with once certain ideas getting shuffled around in a mess of continuity and canonical confusion, the only true thing among our scenarios is to simply believe in what you do and stick to it.

Besides, you think this is bad, try the first few months of OC when Warhammer 40K and Gurren Lagann and SRW crack were being tossed around with reckless abandon everywhere. Compared to back then, this is nothing.

Moderation is good, and it's been an ideal this thread has been striving to do for the past few months, but I'm honestly not sure the 40K crack deserves such moderation, especially when the hard scenarios written about such crack have been few and far between.

If you want to rage about 40K going overboard, maybe you should look at me... I crossed over an entire race (the Necrons) into the Nanohaverse WHOLESALE, without modification, as a central element in an entire character profile. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but even back then I admit it was less Nanohaverse and more 40K.

[Sheba]

Done with a chapter, it's going under correction from some people. I know one thing when I started writing it. I knew how to start, I know how to finish it, mainly because a nice guy sharing the same family name as the Motorhead's guitarist has provided me the barebone of the story. It was like... So simple, I has it under my eyes all along. The hardest for me will be the journey, where I expect a long bumpy road from the real life challenges. Only I am not too sure if 14k words were reasonable for a first chapter.

[Saint X]

Originally Posted by Keroko

Question: What are the limits to blocking incoming attacks?

Well Divine Buster can pass thru for starters.

It usually works more in a "confuse block" rather than a "real block".

Originally Posted by Keroko

In my opinion, this spell sounds a bit too collateral for the TSAB. We agreed that Mass Based weaponry is okay if used with magic, but this spell functions like a frag mine. There is no control who gets hurt.

True but it's not like the fragments spread out to hit randomly. Only those in the beam are affected. And the explosion strength is relative to the beam strength as well.

Originally Posted by Keroko

A portal of sorts, right? Are enemies capable of crossing this portal?

The, while the tunnel is open, anyone on those two locations can move to travel to the other side, traveling in pseudo-voidspace- sometimes, battles can occur in the tunnel but normally the force of the tunnel opening on the other side is enough to deter anyone from entering for the vital first few seconds.

there's your answer

[Keroko]

Originally Posted by Sheba

I don't feel like quoting. But I'll say my piece one last time over what I don't like about the 40k's "hegemony". At one point in this thread, and recently in IRC (mainly because of the SSX bits), one man have been forcing the 40k down people's throats.

At no point in time did we force 40K down anyone's throat. At no point in time did we ever say that 40K was the only way. Just because some of us like to make 40K references out of things doesn't mean that the rest of the thread must use them. That's ridiculous, and we never even suggested such a thing.

Some of us use 40K in the mix of our characters and lore, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. If you don't like it, then there is no reason for you to use it. We won't force you to.

We have never, and will never try and 'brainwash' people into using 40K references, but that doesn't mean that we will stop using them for our own works. Why, pray do tell, should we? There is no such thing as a 'diktat' there is no such thing as a 'hegemony' the only ones using 40K references are those who want to use 40K references.

Originally Posted by LoweGear

If you want to rage about 40K going overboard, maybe you should look at me... I crossed over an entire race (the Necrons) into the Nanohaverse WHOLESALE, without modification, as a central element in an entire character profile. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but even back then I admit it was less Nanohaverse and more 40K.

To be fair, the background part wasn't wrong per se. Heck, you would have gotten away with it without anyone knowing if I hadn't recognised the Necron symbol.

It was when we started importing the Necron themselves that things spiraled off.

Originally Posted by Saint X

Well Divine Buster can pass thru for starters.

It usually works more in a "confuse block" rather than a "real block".

Confuse block?

Originally Posted by Saint X

True but it's not like the fragments spread out to hit randomly. Only those in the beam are affected. And the explosion strength is relative to the beam strength as well.

You described it as 'gathering debris and then exploding' how does that not spread out debris randomly?

Originally Posted by Saint X

there's your answer

Ah, must have missed that.

[Sheba]

At that one point, I'll just leave it. But now I hope that my stance on it is clear. Actually, I am relieved because I have gotten a start, thanks to beta readers' feedbacks and corrections. They were on the encouraging and humbling side, as it makes me realize that I may be not that bad on some departments, but I also have a lot to learn. I will post it later that night.

[Wild Goose]

Trailer of something in TF6:

Spoiler:

It has been said repeatedly that in magical combat, melee is king. It has been said by many that Hayate Yagami needed melee skills to be able to survive, even if she wasn't interested in melee, and that her AOE spells, while powerful, weren't much use since she needed Rein to target for her.

Franz Jaeger was of the opinion that this was simply because mages weren't trained to call in artillery strikes. Of course, he had never called in an artillery strike himself, but he conviniently ignored that little detail. And anyway artillery were just mortars on a larger scale. Though he had called in airstrikes before...

His eyes narrowed behind his shades, focusing on the targets, a pair of laser rangefinder binoculars held up to his eyes, and he noted the range, target location, and referred to the map beside where he knelt. The middle of an abandoned building, while not possessing the great field of vision that the roof had, was nonetheless better-suited for his purposes; from here he had a good overwatch position, able to support the Forwards with his battle rifle, his magic, and his secret weapon...

There they are.

Franz took a deep breath, and spoke, in the strange sing-song like style he had learned, "Long-Arch-Zero this is Uruz-Six-Actual transmitting from operations area. Are you receiving, over?"

"Roger, Franz-kun. I have you," replied Hayate over the telepathic link.

“It's good to see you in action, ma'am," responded Franz, all professionalism. "Requesting artillery strike on my position. Adjust Fire, Polar, Over. Target: enemy observation post. Defensive capability unknown. Two-Two-Zero by One-Niner-Four. Attitude Two-Eight-Zero-Zero. Precision, Danger Close, Three Rounds, Mark, Over.”

"Received and approved, Lieutenant. Be advised, Rein isn't with me, so my targeting isn't going to be as accurate as it can be."

"That's why you're firing three rounds, Hayate," said Franz, his fierce grin audible over the comms. "Anytime you're ready, mein fuhrer."

People complaining about Hayate being shafted and useless do not know how to use her.

Also, one more thing: as a battlefield commander, it is not Hayate's job to get into combat and mix things up. By doing so, she loses sight of the broad picture. She's not being paid her salary, nor does she have her Lieutenant Colonel rank, to be just another grunt. Her job is to keep track of the battlefield, manage her combat assets and lead her people. If she's going to be another grunt, she might as well accept a demotion and forget being RF6's Commanding Officer. She is the Commanding Officer. It is her job to Command.

[Kha]

So I tried:

Spoiler for Kha, circa MC 0069:

This picture was taken as Kha got ready for a photo-shoot with Sophia, Keira and Ashley, all of them graduate White Wings from the Sankt Alexei Kloster Magical Girls' School. Up to this stage in life, Kha has almost always been exclusively in the company of girls, and hence he has turned out rather bishie. The ceremonial garb he's wearing, corset and all, isn't meant for males, which is to be expected since its a Convent. As you can see, contact with the Aces has changed his sense of fashion a little, as he is now growing a ponytail.

This mismatched uniform is also an indicator of history; the Licht von Belka in MC 0069 had only had informal training facilities and programs, and the Cleric-Knights chapter is still a lost order. Therefore, Kha furthered his training in the Convent of his birth place, while taking lessons from Master Wodan, who is only discovered much much later to be Fate's father.

Creator's Notes

The source material was Otto in a white cassock. Kha being a member of a religious organization could use a proper gown, unlike his Kruznik-inspired one Hayate designed for him.

And so I started. And I very quickly learnt that Otto was FAR from a perfect reverse trap. Several feminine features had to be Warped away, and excessive chest shadows erased. The corset had to be stretched, but even so, it was STUCK there as red as an eyesore.

And lets not forget the shoulders; I first "dislocated" them, then gave Kha scholeosis, then fractured his clavicle, before making it anatomically sound.

This is my first major attempt at heavily shopping a picture. My thanks to the IRC for bearing with my repeated evaluation requests! So please, go ahead and tear into it. How can I improve, good masters of Photoshock?

[Julius Firefocht]

Originally Posted by Sheba

I don't feel like quoting. But I'll say my piece one last time over what I don't like about the 40k's "hegemony". At one point in this thread, and recently in IRC (mainly because of the SSX bits), one man have been forcing the 40k down people's throats. He won't stop. He admit that he have gone overboard at times. To the point that a couple of people have been facepalming, and some have started to cringe whenever the two numbers and the one letter are brought about.

People, mostly those from the other side, who you call miltakus, have voiced their opinions, mostly not favorable, about it. One even asked for some moderation. But that one basically received the "lol stfu" treatment.

So then SSX came, and as IRC folks has witnessed it, it was chanting about 40kism and Chaos nonsense all over. To the point it felt tactless, bordering on gloating.

There are so much that one can take. And I made it clear to him that I am not going to let him brainwash the two numbers and one letter in me. I enjoy this thread and the channel because I could exchange ideas with people from different horizons, with different frames of references. The most delicious being those related to judaism and mythologies. Sure, 40k and HOTBLOOD are all the rage in this thread. But, you know, a little moderation is not bad either.

What I ask is a little moderation, and maybe a slightly different look on things.

I will not lie...the truth is, I enjoy mixing anime with 40K. Its just about the only way I can play my Blood Angels Space Marines, feel like I am fighting the good fight for my beloved Feito-chan and shout "FOR FEITO-CHAN!!!!" whenever they charge into close combat, or just need that extra bit of luck from the divine.

All these crossovers of universes and such, well, call it a manifestation of the writers' love for two hobbies/genres that will never get to officially cross paths in the foreseeable future. Call it a dilution of the core values and features that make the respective universes unique. It makes no differences, people enjoy doing it, some enjoy reading it, and if you don't like it, then in all honesty there are other fanfics or fanmade universes to indulge yourself in. I am sure 40K related stuff are a minority within the entire Nanoha fanfic collection...one look at Fanfiction.net's Nanoha section would confirm that.

Also, do not worry about getting brainwashed into liking 40K. The cost of entry into the game is prohibitive, to put it mildly. It should be a good deterrent to anyone thinking of starting this expensive hobby.

In the meantime, I am continuing to work on my own Nanoha/40K project, as are Kha, Keroko and the others. Except I am not bringing 40K into the Nanoha universe. No, I bought Fate, Nanoha and Hayate into the 40K universe instead. And I am having great fun doing it.

[Sheba]

Originally Posted by Julius Firefocht

I will not lie...the truth is, I enjoy mixing anime with 40K. Its just about the only way I can play my Blood Angels Space Marines, feel like I am fighting the good fight for my beloved Feito-chan and shout "FOR FEITO-CHAN!!!!" whenever they charge into close combat, or just need that extra bit of luck from the divine.

All these crossovers of universes and such, well, call it a manifestation of the writers' love for two hobbies/genres that will never get to officially cross paths in the foreseeable future. Call it a dilution of the core values and features that make the respective universes unique. It makes no differences, people enjoy doing it, some enjoy reading it, and if you don't like it, then in all honesty there are other fanfics or fanmade universes to indulge yourself in. I am sure 40K related stuff are a minority within the entire Nanoha fanfic collection...one look at Fanfiction.net's Nanoha section would confirm that.

Also, do not worry about getting brainwashed into liking 40K. The cost of entry into the game is prohibitive, to put it mildly. It should be a good deterrent to anyone thinking of starting this expensive hobby.

In the meantime, I am continuing to work on my own Nanoha/40K project, as are Kha, Keroko and the others. Except I am not bringing 40K into the Nanoha universe. No, I bought Fate, Nanoha and Hayate into the 40K universe instead. And I am having great fun doing it.

I am not going to stop you from doing it. If you manage to deliver, more power to you.

[Tempy]

Well, this took way to long to get out. And during the weekend too!

Ach. Update during a slow time.

Oh well. Enjoy, in any case.

Spoiler for Act 2:

“Hauuu~! It’s so cold!” Hayate chattered, feeling the chill bite down to her bones despite the heat boosts to her barrier jacket. Even her black wings shook. The others felt similarly, though they did not voice it. Seeing them shiver in the frozen was enough.

“Well, once we get moving, we shouldn’t feel it so badly,” Nanoha reasoned, though she too wished she had something more on. How long was their time limit again?

“Here they come,” Fate announced, her words punctuated by the rapid approach of gun drones. Like the swordship, they were Spartan in design. Built to be cheap and effective, the guns’ greatest strength was their numbers.

“Yosh~! Let’s go!”

The strike team exploded into motion just as the gun drones opened up, innumerable rays of light lancing through the frozen air. Blue sky and white ground contrasted greatly against the burning red bolts of energy fire, the colorful traces of the strike team gracefully cutting bright trails into the sky. Against a swarm of over a thousand gun drones, seven mages scattered into their specialized groups.

Fate and Signum were in the thickest of it all, weaving through the swarm like furious wasps, stinging with every pass they made. Yet their movements were irregular, almost spiraling inwards as the gun drones followed blindly. None of the gadgets would realize, however, that their chase was useless.

“Firing Hræsvelgr! Displace!” the command immediately had the two zipping away from the cluster. Just in time too, as a silver beam struck home, condensing then exploding in a fantastic burst of magic.

“That ends a good number of them,” Fate commented.

Signum nodded. “And a lot left over.”

“Let’s set up another shot.”

Elsewhere, pink and red blazed through the sky all the while angry crimson followed. Although not in the deepest of the action, Vita and Nanoha were facing their fair share of beamfire.

“Gaaah! There’s too damn many!” the red Knight growled as she jet backwards to dodge another barrage. To her extreme annoyance, as usual, Intel had dropped the ball because no one said that the drones could get smarter – with every passing moment they were learning and adapting, forcing the strike team to constantly change tactics. Though at this rate, it won’t matter where they move…

“Use the trees as cover!” the order came to her though telepathy, Nanoha’s voice ringing clearly though her adrenaline rush. Strange as it may be, there really was a large cluster of snow covered trees, as white as the rest of the world. How exactly this ice planet managed to grow some form of flora would have to be a question asked and answered at a much later time, however.

“There are trees in a place like this?!” Vita wondered out loud as she dove for the tree line, the angry buzz of beam fire passing her previous position. Weaving through the frost covered plants, Vita could barely see the gun drones following her flight path. Dammit, were they leading her? “Oi! How about some support fire?”

Divine Buster!

Vita cleared the trees just in time to see her attackers be enveloped in a grand pink beam of doom, explosions replacing gadget. For a moment, they were in the clear, but more were coming.

“How was that, Vita-chan?” Nanoha smiled as she floated by, her staff still pointed downward in firing position.

“Cutting it a bit close there, Nanoha,” the Hammer Knight muttered, dusting the snow out of her hair. Suddenly, she swung her hammer at Nanoha, the shaft shooting out with “And you still need to watch your back.”

“But that’s what you’re here for, Vita-chan~!” Nanoha smiled again as they too returned to the battle.

Not too distantly away,

“Mou,” Hayate sighed dramatically rotating her shoulder with a sigh. “It’s been so long since we’ve done actual field work…”

“But it’s more fun this way, isn’t it? Together again, just like old times,” Shamal smiled.

“Hai~… but it’d be better if we could do this while not getting shot at,” the Meister had a wry grin as she watched the action from afar. Fate and Signum were doing a good job at “herding” the gun drones together – she’d have to launch another volley soon enough. “Oh well, you win some, you lose some.”

Zafira remained stoic as ever, his eyes watching the battle unfold. The attackers were taking much of the heat, leaving he, Hayate, and Shamal to be mostly untouched. It was better this way, he felt, as it allowed them to support the team without fear of retaliation. But it was pretty damn cold.

“Threat levels down forty percent. Keep it up,” the Claudia reported to them all over the com-link.

“So many, and only forty percent?” Fate murmured, her focus lifted for but only a moment. Yet in that tiny window, a bolt of red tore towards her unsuspecting head, a lucky shot that with enough power to blow a head clean off. Beam met blade, however, the scorching energy deflecting off magical metal; the resulting clash caused the blonde girl to whirl around in surprise, seeing only her ally. There was no time to look at each other, though as they immediately went back-to-back to fend off the regrouped enemy.

“Is something wrong? You seem distracted,” Signum’s voice was both reprimanding and concerned.

“It’s nothing. I just want to finish this quickly, that’s all,” Fate’s soft tones could barely be heard over the din of battle, but she felt Signum nod in acceptance. They separated once more, their spiral of death once again swirling in the frigid sky. Just like before, the two scattered the instant the report came through.

“Hræsvelgr, Firing!”

Another white beam tore through the air, piercing deeply into the gathered crowd and exploding magnificently once again. From a distance, to the casual observer, the battle would only seem like a wondrous cacophony of colors, rays and beams crisscrossing followed by grand clusters of blossoming explosions. This battle, so beautiful and deadly, it was a terrifying and awesome work of art upon a white and blue canvas.

“Threat down sixty percent,” the cool voice of the Claudia's AWACS operator finally reported. “Be advised, the Marines’ assault craft have been deployed. Proceed to the swordship and await their arrival.”

“Roger!” came the grateful reply.

“Rein, we can separate now, but stay close, okay?” Hayate warned, already beginning to de-unison from her device.

“Hai nano desu~!”

------------------------------------------

“Admiral, the Marines have launched and are en route to the swordship. The operation will begin once they arrive.”

“Thank you,” Chrono acknowledged, unmoving in his seat. All that was left was to sit and wait for the progression of the mission; everything was out of his hands now, a position he did not like all too much.

The position of Admiral gave him significant command and political power, but it also meant he had to watch others do the work he wanted to do instead. Frustrating, but out of his control – more people relied on him as a commander than a soldier anyways… It was envy, perhaps, that made him wish he was out there with his sister and friends. Or perhaps long unwanted nostalgia, to return to olden times when things were simpler, friendlier, and less painful to his soul.

But that time was far away from now, and envy only a fleeting emotion. The past could not be changed.

What other thoughts Chrono had were immediately stripped away with the loud outcry of his second-in-command, sounding abnormally indignant. “What the—what is this kid doing here?! Someone get him out of here this instant!"

Speak of the devil…

Glancing over to the boy in question, the Admiral watched as the child’s previous awe and amazement transform into angry indignation. What a furious response! Not the least bit guilty, but rather incensed! What had he allowed on his ship when he agreed with Fate on this?

What a troublesome sister… barely just boarded and already so deep in his life, again…

------------------------------------------

Mid-Childa, Dock #42, XV-class warship Claudia
Shortly after Enforcer Fate Testarossa Harlaown boarded.

Fate quietly stepped through the wide halls of the Claudia, alone. She had already visited her quarters, dropping off her personal effects and little Erio. Now she was off to business. Internally, Fate was dreading having to explain herself to her, erm, elder brother, but part of her was sure Chrono would not object. Despite all that had happened in recent times, he had not changed that much… she hoped. Still, she sent out the mental call, “Chrono…”

“Fate? So, you have arrived. How punctual of you,” the response was immediate, typical of him.

“I did learn from the best, after all.”

“Hmm.”

“I’m sorry for contacting you telepathically, but there’s something I need to talk to you about my situation.”

“It is of no concern. What is the issue?”

“I’ve brought Erio with me. I… I wasn’t able to find a caretaker for him…”

“Erio? The boy you’ve adopted?”

“Y-Yes. Due to the urgency of the mission, I did not want to impose on Mama and Arf-chan, so I brought him with me. I know I should’ve called beforehand, but I was rather busy.”

“I see… so you are asking if he, a civilian minor, can stay aboard a military vessel for the duration of a sensitive interdiction operation, no?”

“If that isn’t an issue…?” Fate hesitated.

Part of her hesitation was because Chrono was being as, well, confident, assertive, and charismatic as ever, characteristics of his personality that was just so masculine, unlike Yuuno-kun or Zafira. He made her nervous and put her wavering heart at ease all at once. He was so difficult to approach, for she could not help but feel self-conscious around him. Though she supposed, as children, her insecurity around him had been worse, because she felt like a bother to him and Mama Lindy, that she did not belong with them, and she did not have the heart to ask anything for herself.

Her big brother, perceptive and sensitive, though was having none of that; always it had been Chrono looking after her, standing right there beside her. He put her needs above his own, trained her, nurtured her as a person, before stopping to take care of himself. Her Big Brother had finished the great work Nanoha started that she was not a freak but a human being, that she deserved the same fighting chance as any other born from the womb of their mother, and that she belonged.

She had a family.

It had been the same to everyone that had become apart of their circle, their family. Chrono had been everyone’s big brother, godfather, or at least uncle of sorts. He had put his full heart and effort into it, an eccentric quirk that reminded her endearingly of Nanoha-chan. And despite all awkwardness, his and hers, Fate could not have asked for a better brother, a better man…

She was so proud when he was promoted to Admiral, for surely none was more deserving than he was. An-And just as surely, he was deserving of…happiness and love, a golden dream come true, but…

The blonde-haired woman shook herself free from her reverie, with a sigh, and gave herself a mental kick. Now, was hardly the time to be indulging in the past. The only way she reasoned that she was ever going to get over feeling like an absolute little girl to “Chrono-oniisama” (as Hayate-chan used to joke often) was to prove her worth to him, that they could stand together as equals…

That it was all right for him to lean on her, too. …erm, she knew a man like Chrono wore his pride seriously, but even so, he did not have to carry the burden all by himself. If he would not share it with everyone else, well, he would have to learn to share it with her then! Hmph. And she was certainly not going to take “No, negative, denied, dismissed, ten percent, M.R.U. (Much Regret Unable; I will court martial you” for an answer!

Chrono was…

Chrono was her responsibility, now.

Hence, her destination, the captain’s quarters in which her brother resided and a luxury befitting of his responsibilities. She felt bad using the access codes he had given her to invade his privacy, but she wanted to see him in person. It has been sometime since they last met and Fate felt it was perfectly justifiable, for a concerned sister to want to meet her dreadfully troublesome brother.

Glancing at the bathroom, she noted the unfinished reports laying on his bureau, written in old-fashioned ink no less judging by the dutiful ink point and quill pen standing by, which drew a small impish smile from Fate. It was just like her big brother to do things so prim and proper. The sound of running water meant he was washing his hands, after a little accident no doubt, which meant their conversation had distracted him enough to not detect her approach.

“Hmm…” he mentally hummed, as if contemplating the issue. For a moment, she was worried that he would actually refuse her.

“You know, I have you written down as his Godfather,” she whispered, hoping that the fact would help support her case. “I don’t think he’ll be much of a bother, and maybe you two could talk and get to know each other…?”

“As usual, you have overworked yourself,” he replied, showing no response to the Godfather bit. Still, his lack of response…made her tense up with worried anticipation. “No, there is no problem with it. Just keep him out of the way of sensitive operations, and everything should be fine. If he needs a distraction, I am sure the marines will be happy to help.”

That brought a wave of relief that got her mischievous side working. Heh. Her dear brother had not noticed her at all.

“Thank you, Chrono,” she stepped in then, hoping to surprise her brother.

Instead, she saw only horror.

Admiral Chrono Clyde Harlaown was there, uniform jacket shed and his sleeves rolled up, indifferent of her sudden entrance; he stood over a running faucet, his hands submerged under the streaming water. But… they were not the same warm hands she had grown up holding. Red and inflamed, they bore a number of old scars and fresh bleeding cuts, staining the pooling water red. The steam that rose from the water meant it was scalding hot, yet the youthful man did not seem to mind it at all. In fact, her brother dear barely acknowledged her arrival, his focus solely on his soap and blood-covered hands.

“Y-your hands! What… why…?” the Enforcer could scarcely speak the words, her mouth moving but no sound coming forth. What had he done to himself?

“They’re dirty…filthy,” her brother could only mutter, rubbing the lather together once more. “I need to clean them…”

------------------------------------------

Chrono’s eyes refocused to the present, just in time to see his second-in-command below him physically approach Elio. He had gotten a “good earful” after that little slip up, and really, he did not need that happening again anytime soon. That was twice she had caught him unawares now, a bad record for him.

And what was this about the boy being his godson? He had not consented to that!

Frustrated at his situation, the Admiral wanted nothing more than to forget it all had happened. But it did; he had a godson, there would be no changing that. A godson who was about to get manhandled by his X-O (executive officer), and well, an angry Fate would not do at all, would it?

“XO, please, calm yourself,” Chrono rumbled, from the captain’s elevated “roost”, where he could survey the entire bridge. “His presence here is of no great issue.”

“B-but, sir! He’s a child!” the poor man protested in a splutter, paling a little bit. Perhaps, he had let slip some venom that he had no intended. Yet, judging from the way the fellow looked at him, it was that and the man had forgotten his presence altogether. “He is not authorized, nor allowed to be in the bridge during a combat scenario!”

The vanity of people these days; the fact he made OF-10 “Admiral” in his early-20s, while they were still stuck at OF-6 “Commodore” in there late-40s, should have been enough warning he was not a man to be trifled with. He had been fighting since he was five years old, having volunteered himself for the now defunct “Project ‘A’ 8492nd – The Aggressors”, a venture filled with good intentions that was doomed to fail from the start. Theory and practical experience he had in spades, both in the military and political arenas. Crossing Chrono Harlaown would lead to a very, very bad work day.

“He is also my godchild, and I am now giving him authorization to be on the bridge as an observer,” he returned coolly, with an edge to his voice. “Now then, may we focus on the battle rather than the presence of a single boy?”

The vice-commander quietly huffed his indignation, bristling like a rooster preening itself, but returned his attention to combat nonetheless. If the oh-so-infallible admiral wanted to break regulations, then let him do so – he will have to explain it to the politicians later.

More could have been said, had it not been for the communications officer cutting in at that moment. “Admiral, the Marines have boarded the ship.”

“Thank you. Continue observations and report any anomalies,” he nodded and turned in his chair to face Erio. The boy’s attitude and expression had changed little, still that indignation that bore no ounce of gratitude. What an interesting child Fate had picked up. “Now then, my godson, why don’t you come on up here and enjoy the lesson with your godfather? The operation will continue regardless of my attention, so I propose we get to know each other better, you and I.”

Erio complied with a glare.

An interesting boy, indeed. Just what kind of heartache could you be causing for my little sister, I wonder?

------------------------------------------

A lone security robot quietly patrolled the inner halls of the Belkan swordship, attentively scanning the dead halls as it had for over three hundred years. Like the gun drones outside, this gadget was designed for purpose than aesthetics, resulting in an ugly but effective hostile force suppression unit.

Alas, being alone, it lacked the defensive and offensive capabilities to withstand an entire squad’s worth of magical firepower. Five humming beams of destructive energy scorched the air, piercing the armored body and frying the circuitry into useless scrap. From the shadows emerged five soldiers, clad in dark protective gear and helmets, their faces hidden away by visors and gasmasks. In their arms were rifle-like devices, similar in design to mass weapons of old but conspicuously magical in design.

“This is too easy!” chuckled one of the armored soldiers, the remnants of the robot crunching beneath his boots.

“You’d rather they shoot back?” one could practically see the smirk despite the full mask.

The Marines of the Claudia, elite in their own right, specialized in shipboard assaults. Grunts in the truest sense, their purpose was purely combat. Though not as magically strong or flexible as the Aces or other commissioned officers, they drew their strength from their teamwork and experience. These soldiers, proud and dedicated Marines, the Wild Geese.

“Bugger. The AMF is getting stronger,” the third man of the group muttered, pushing his armor’s magic regulator output a little higher to compensate. “AMF at second threshold!”

“Ten-Four. Haul shebs, marines! I don’t want to waste half my energy just trying to fire my damn rifle!”

For such a grand ship, its halls were bare and lackluster. Dark and unlit, only the ephemeral glow of the Marines’ magical gear and devices brought any form of illumination. Their boots clattered softly in the empty halls, which seemed to echo down every shadowed path. Not a word passed between them as they moved swiftly, though an upcoming T-intersection prompted the point man to speak up.

“This is Four. I’m movin’ right,” he said, already moving around the bend.

“Wait! Check your damn corners—!” the squad leader’s words failed to reach his subordinate in time as he rounded the corner. Perhaps it was just a moment of negligence, spurned by the utter lack of any real contact in the past few minutes since the boarding, but the point man rounded the bend without a single hint of hesitation, bumping the tip of his weapon against the armored plate of a security droid.

“Shit!” the trooper tried to backpedal, only to overcompensate and fall on his ass. Suddenly, he was staring down the business end of a security drone’s weapon, a gleaming barrel that seemed to whine quietly. Instinct and training snapped in an instant, his rifle coming up to knock the weapon aside.

PSZZNNH!

The beam illuminated the hall briefly, a bright orange color that gleamed off the other Marines’ glowing blue goggles as they followed their teammate. It glanced off the grey bulkhead, leaving a blackened scorch mark and a tiny wisp of smoke. The Marines’ responses were immediate, a merciless barrage of beam fire that quickly tore apart the droid, sparks flying as it collapsed in on itself.

“You okay, killer?”

“Still in one piece, sir,” replied the junior marine, shakily, as he climbed to his feet. “Wasn’t expecting that.”

“This crate is starting to take notice o’ us and release more of them tinnies. Don’t rush ahead and make y’self a hero, just yet.”

The private’s sheepish look was hidden behind his mask.

“Let’s go,” with a hand gesture, they fell in and resumed their progress.

In other parts of the ship, other teams of Marines scoured the halls just like this group, cleansing the ship of any hostile encountered and securing areas little by little. Purification of the swordship of any unwanted elements would be time consuming. Still, the Marines would perform their job to the best of their ability, even if it meant hunting down every last drone wandering the halls. The ever growing Anti-Magic Field strength served only to complicate matters, however, placing a strict time and operation limit on them all.

“Third threshold. The levels are starting to increase faster, sir.”

“Copy. What’s our sit-rep now?”

“Two meters from the second checkpoint, Major. Frag order says we should check in with the other squads about, now,” their rear-most marine spoke up, the tech specialist.

With another silent hand, they came to a full halt and repositioned themselves

“Alright then. All of you take a knee and stay frosty. Goose One to Wild Geese, request company wide sit-rep, over,” the leader ordered, holding a hand up to his ear. Silence passed between the Marines, though a storm of chatter came in the squad leader’s head. Telepathic communications were fuzzy and difficult to pick up within the slowly strengthening AMF, but things weren’t that bad yet. A few injuries, but no casualties, and everything encountered thus far had been reduced to scrap.

Perfect.

“Claudia, this is Goose One, we’ve cleared at least forty percent of the ship and still moving. Have those Aces gotten the bridge yet? Over.”

“Goose One, we copy. The bridge is about to be penetrated; Goose Six says to continue the operation and standby for possible updates.”

“Affirmative, Claudia. Goose One out.”

------------------------------------------

Unlike the strict and disciplined Marines, Nanoha and her friends were at their strongest if given room to maneuver. In the tight quarters of the swordship, they were at a severe disadvantage. Thusly, their sole objective was to reach the ship’s bridge and take it over, a job that was oddly easier than expected. Along with the Marines came Yuuno, joining up with the Aces as the rest of the soldiers split up into the ship. Whatever reason it may have been, be it Fate and Signum’s lightning fast strikes that destroyed anything that dared to threaten them or the Marines’ presence that drew more attention, they soon arrived at the final barrier: a double set of drab grey doors. And they were not even locked!

“Claudia, this is Alpha squad, over. Now breaching the bridge,” Nanoha sent the message and nodded to Fate, who nodded back. Together with Vita and Signum, the four breached the entrance and slipped in with their devices at ready. Rather than be attacked, however, they were instead treated to a glorious sight.

“Oh wow…”

It was grand in the sense that it was bigger than any other room, far larger than what could realistically exist. Unlike the swordship’s dark and minimalist interior, the bridge bright and lively, literally a heaven of warm light and cool grass under their feet. It was as if they were transported to a faraway paradise, an expansive pasture with grass, flowers, fruit trees, even a blue sky with clouds and a sun!

“This is…” Yuuno could find no words to describe the absolute splendor and beauty that lay out before him. So this was how ancient Belkan swordships were? Or perhaps it was limited to only this sort a ship? Was this an elite ship? A noble’s craft? So many questions! “This must be a reality marble…! A reality within reality! To think they put such a dimension within their own ships…!”

Though expansive, there were distinct limits to the room’s size. There was a design evident in its layout. Inert consoles and screens were clustered near one area of the room, directly across from a moderately sized shallow pool of water. Barely ankle deep, the water was clear and seemed rather fresh. Yet of all the magnificence in the room, none could match the elegance of the grand throne resting in the center of the pool, flanked by twin-vaulted columns of stone. Tall and wide, the seat was appropriate for even a king to sit. Yet, upon this alabaster white with gilded accents was a sight that seemed like some foul interloper within the room.

Ancient blackened armor sat in the throne as if it were its imprisoned king, countless rusted chains binding it to the chair, and more anchored into the nearby columns too. It was the sole blemish of this miniature world, and it sure as hell looked damn spooky. There was also a strange egg-shaped object, gargantuan in size that lay behind the throne, suspended above the water by unseen forces, dwarfing the chained kin utterly. But, the “egg” seemed so natural and unremarkable that it could have been just about anything, even a lavish decoration for a connoisseur captain.

“Spread out and stay sharp. It’s far too quiet,” Signum glanced at her fellow Cloud Knights, receiving affirmative nods. Zafira and Shamal took positions by the rear of the area, close to the door and granting them the best view of the area. Vita took a position next to Hayate, the two girls standing close to the grand throne. Signum joined Nanoha, Fate, and Yuuno as they inspected the “front” of the space. The Black Witch was first by a keyboard, a piece of technology almost alien amidst all this strange nature. No, it wasn’t alien – nature and technology seemed to fuse seamlessly here.

“Yuuno, you can probably access the ship through here,” Fate’s quiet voice was oddly loud in the expansive room. Perhaps this was another feature of this magical space, so that communications would not be impeded.

“Ah. Yes, I’ll get right on it,” the archaeologist floated over, albeit hesitantly. Every little bit of the room amazed and astounded him, and had it not been for his mission priorities, he’d gladly look over the rest of the room first. Still, many people depended on him right now. The console booted up with little sound, a holographic display sliding into view with archaic characters and text scrolling through it. His fingers danced masterfully across the console, a myriad of lights blinking with every touch. Those near him, Fate and Nanoha, could only gawk at the feat of dexterity and nimbleness. With a flourish, he turned to his friends.

“Okay, Fate-san. You can access the other consoles now. I’ve released the locks,” Yuuno nodded to the blonde, eager to access the console for information. “Oh, but it’s all in Ancient Belkan text. I hope you’ve brushed up on your linguistics.”

Fate, just about to touch the bridge console, stopped her in her tracks. “A-ah… um…”

Signum almost smirked at the blonde’s sudden uneasy look and floated over. “I’ll help her.”

“In the mean time, I’m going to find out more about this ship,” Yuuno almost sang as he turned back to his computer. A great smile threatened to split his face as his fingers tapped away, bringing up a slew of scrolling text. His eyes darted back and forth in an attempt to rapidly take in every bit of information that rolled across the screen, leading only to him breathing out in excitement. Whereas Fate and Signum worked to figure out the ship’s controls, Yuuno sought knowledge. “Amazing…!”

“What have you found out, Yuuno-kun?”

“This is incredible, Nanoha! This ship’s name is The Damocles, an advanced Belkan swordship intended as a command ship – that explains the minor reality marble in the bridge. As such, many of the systems here are intended to support fleets.”

Pausing in the work, Fate and Signum turned their attention to Yuuno. Alas, only the members of the Wolkenritter recognized the ship’s name, though vaguely. The three Aces returned only blank looks.

“Ha! No wonder it’s so well preserved! The time-flux system it uses is similar to the ones we have on Mid-Childan ships like the Claudia, but its range far surpasses even our best capital ships! And its anti-gravity field can protect an entire fleet from a black hole! Why don’t we have something like this?!”

The technical information Yuuno spouted was probably interesting to everyone else, but for a certain Hammer Knight, all the jargon and history served only to bore her. What did interest her, however, was the sole being sitting upon the throne, countless black chains binding it.

One of the Old Guard… she thought, stepping up to the armor. The chains were wrapped chokingly around the throne and the armor, a number of chains pulling its arms out and up in some freakish mimicry of prison shackles. The way the armor was slumped forward, its head bowed in defeat, it was like a tired prisoner, accepting his damned fate.

Despite its lifelessness, it seemed so… sad.

“Hmm?” A glint of light caught her attention, drawing her to inspect the armor’s clenched gauntlet. It was barely visible through the fingers, but it was worth reporting. “Oi, ferret! The rusting tin man’s got something in his hand!”

By then, Yuuno was already far too deep in his examination to be bothered by the eternally young girl. However, the word “ferret” sliced through his attention like a sword, cutting him off from finishing his statement, for he convulsed, as if struck, with a double take. Amidst the silent chuckles from his friends, the archaeologist turned to face Vita. “Ne, Vita-san, did you have to call me that?”

“It’s the only way to get your attention through that technobabble,” the hammer girl shrugged indifferently then jerked a thumb at the armor. “Anyways, I thought you should check this out.”

“Oh? What could it be?” Scrya asked, already flying towards the throne.

“Some kinda gem in its hand,” Vita shrugged again and stepped out of the way. “I can’t see it all to well, but it’s pretty obvious.”

“Gem? It… no. Could it possibly…?” Yuuno’s voice dropped to a mutter, a hand dropping to his side and popping open an attached belt pouch.

“What is it, Yuuno-kun?” Hayate asked, the next person closest. Nanoha had followed her old friend up to the chair, also wondering the same question. Back at the console, Fate remained to look over the still progressing text, Signum next to her to help translate. The rest of the group waited for the eventual explanation.

“I received this in a package not long after I started working on translating The Gospel of Judas,” the blond explained, digging through the pouch. “I didn’t know the sender—some sort of priory—but in it was a short message and this…”

The archaeologist held up a red crystal, a strangely shaped gem that glittered brightly in the lit room. Strangely shaped, because if held in one way, it possessed a crescent shape, yet in another direction, it was a perfect circle. In a way, it was like half of a sphere, split in a bizarre curved shape. In Yuuno’s hands, it felt strangely warm.

“It’s beautiful,” Hayate breathed, marveling at the flawless gem. “What is it?”

Yuuno smiled, happy at the opportunity to explain. “This crystal is an artifact, a literal piece of history from the time of the Saint King. According to the note, this is only part of the full artifact, half of a Royal Treasure called the Odin Sphere.”

“Hey. If it’s a Royal Treasure, what’s it doing in your hands? Shouldn’t the Saint Church have it?” Vita asked while eyeballing the thing as well. She didn’t like how it had that eerie glow…

“Hah, well, I’m not too sure either,” Yuuno chuckled with a shrug. “For the longest time, I thought it was just a forgery of some sorts, but I held on to it anyways, if anything then a good luck charm. But now, it seems it’s the real thing!”

The archaeologist approached the armor, feeling the gem heat up as he drew closer.

“And… I don’t know if I can believe it. I think this is the other half…!” Yuuno’s pulse quickened as his hand slowly crept towards the green gem, now glowing brightly with its proximity to its twin half. Despite being clenched tightly in the gauntlet, rays of green light managed to peek out. This was it! The other half of the Odin Sphere!

His fingers just touched the metal of the gauntlet, brushing against the aged armor for only a brief moment. Odd. It felt strangely warm, but it was likely the gem’s magical energy heating the plate. The hand seemed to have an iron grip on the crystal, but it soon anticlimactically gave way with gentle pressure. With careful, slow movements, Yuuno brought the two halves closer and closer together, their individual lights shining brighter than ever. Soundlessly they came together, releasing a blinding flash of glorious red and enchanting green. As quickly as it came, however, the light faded away, and in its wake resting in the archaeologist’s hand was a perfectly spherical object, a harmonious yet distinctly colored gem that reminded him of a yin-yang orb.

“Huh. Wow… it’s… complete…!” Yuuno looked up at his friends with bright and jubilant eyes, an excited and victorious laugh just at his lips. Think of the discovery they had made just now! An ancient Belkan relic, finally complete! But why did not his friends share his elation? Why did they instead stare with wide eyes and gaping mouths, as if he were some ghastly sight.

No… they stared not at him. They stared behind him…

Yuuno’s breath caught in his throat, his eyes widening to the size of saucers as his heart was gripped in icy fear. He could feel it behind him, a thick miasma-like heat that he hadn’t noticed before. Slowly, agonizingly slowly, he turned around. With every little centimeter he turned he could feel it grow stronger, that awful bone-chilling and gut-wrenching feeling.

Wrath. Hatred. Fury. It churned violently in tainted contrast to the peace of the bridge, a murderous bloodlust that seemed almost tangible it was so thick. This choking killing intent… This smothering rage that threatened to take his very sanity… what kind of monster was it ?!

At last he saw, before him that fearsome armor bound by chains. Why had he not seen it before? How the armor seemed twisted and vile, jagged black plate that was nothing like the noble armor boasted in paintings and historical text. Trailing up the demon of red and black, horrified green eye soon found themselves gazing into terrifying crimson.

The fiery red eyes of lunacy.

[Saint X]

Originally Posted by Keroko

Confuse block?

Well big explosions can make one think twice about firing or passing thru.

Anyone caught in a field of explosions will also

Originally Posted by Keroko

You described it as 'gathering debris and then exploding' how does that not spread out debris randomly?

it was supposed to be of limited range

"was" being the operative word because a 60 minute OCC discussion again redeveloped the spell- so the spell description is now totally invalid.

and yes since you are the only one who replied in that post it was still FISSION MAILED

But i'll still post Skill Evaluations

Originally Posted by Keroko

Ah, must have missed that.

oh well that's the problem

I get it too simple and people don't get it

I get it too detailed and people say it's too complicated.

[Sheba]

Originally Posted by Saint X

oh well that's the problem

I get it too simple and people don't get it

I get it too detailed and people say it's too complicated.

It just does not help when your questions get Tetris'ed under various outbursts of different brands of crack. Sorry for not giving the evaluation, too busy with my own stuff.

[Sheba]

Here I drop my HUGE tetris!

The first chapter of a story. While I love the thrillers of the spy or political kind, my reading background made me cut more for the simpler stories.

Expect not:

- Me managing the huge cast. I stuck to a trimmed down cast I can somewhat manage.

- Geass-like plot twists.

- Death Note-like Mind Games.

- Battle plans a la Hannibal.

Spoiler for Journeyers chapter I.1":

It was not the brightest day for Hayate. Her magic, turning out to be less reliable as time went on, was not a personal crisis in the least. This was expanding out into the general community, as the need to find out the root of the evil that was affecting magic in the universe was stronger than ever. She left her friends behind her, in a Mid-Childa besieged by the Alwion Confederacy.
She had arrived, on an alien planet, hinted to be the source of their problems. She was brought here by the Conquistadores, since the ship was one of the few to not have been affected by the magical chaos. Her legs were burning, her head scorched by the bright yellow sun. A few steps before her, Signum surveyed the landscape in front of them. Behind her, Vivio was squatting, checking out her possessions, mainly books, scrolls, and a standard issue S2U staff, while Zafira watched over the little girl.

Reinforce was floating well above the ground, checking the skies and the horizon. Regarding the Namshub, the vessel that captain Kyoya Kibagami jokingly called "the Yagami's taxi", it was badly damaged from the chaos in the dimensional sea, a result of the distortion caused by a supernova in the normal space. Ynana, the ship's operator, was severely wounded in her attempt to protect her passengers against the radiation burst that had spread from the normal space to the dimensional sea.


During their journey toward this planet, Hayate felt powerless as she witnessed the loss of magical power the crew suffered through. Vivio did everything to comfort to Antigone who took the worst part of this. The nail in the coffin was when Arngrim, her favourite summon and her friend,faded out of reality. Now, it was Sieraza who stayed with her mistress and friend. While that planet was Sieraza's home, the leather winged girl felt that there were nothing left of her motherland, this was something Hayate could remember as the Urashima syndrome.
Signum and Reinforce reported that everything was all clear, while Kyoya and Sieraza were manually activating the camouflage mechanism of the spaceship by following Ynana's instructions. Then Hayate's mind tried to gather what had brought her on this planet, Madhyaloka.

***

From what Hayate could remember, it all started in the winter of the year MC 0078 with rumors from worlds on the rim of TSAB's influence. It was a few months after TSAB's first official contact with the Alwion Confederacy. From these worlds within the TSAB's jurisdiction, it was rumored that arias, the chants used for the more powerful spells, had lost their powers. Various magicians either had their own magic turning against them, not working as they used to work or just weakening to the point to disappear. Then, news about a tragedy had reached the offices of the Intelligence Department of the TSAB: one of the administrated worlds, the Administrated World #44, had gone into a global war. Indeed, all the local powers had tried to grab the remaining magical resources for themselves. As a result, their civilization collapsed and only a few survivors could have been saved by a TSAB rescue team led by Subaru. Another world, Ymir where the sun never set, was wiped out of all life. Its magical protections had gradually failed while a flare coming from its dim red sun had hit the planet. It was now a ghost world. The more Hayate had thought about it, the more she was believing that it may have started earlier.

As far as she was personally concerned, bad news had been piling up in her office. She always suspected that the Alwion Confederacy was not the democracy it claimed to be. The few meetings with the officials were actually covers for both parties to evaluate their mutual strengths. She also had the feeling that the pirates who had been bothering the TSAB navy for a while could be potential allies. The Confederates had demanded the TSAB to capture the leader, claiming him to be terrorist and a traitor. But if he was really a criminal, why would small groups of people flee their motherland to join him and fight against their governement? While diplomats of the TSAB had suggested her to not take this stance in public, she could not help but draw a comparison between the captain Morgan and famous rebel leaders of her homeworld.
Another subject of annoyance for Hayate was the demands from the Confederacy to give them Vivio's friend, Fiana Vickers, a political refugee. She was suspected to have conspired against the republic. Hayate found the idea of a rather shy kid plotting the fall of a republic absurd. Fiana was a lonely and withdrawn girl whose heart gradually opened at the contact of Vivio. And she had shown a promising magic potential. Fiana Vickers' crime was to be the survivor of the House of Vickers, the former ruler of the Confederacy, when it was still an imperial monarchy.

To add up more on the worries of Midchildan citizens, TSAB's intelligence agents and recon units had reported moves from the troops of Alwion on the frontier worlds of the TSAB's zone. Diplomats and ambassadors of Alwion had claimed that these mentionned frontier worlds used to belong to the former empire.
Moreover, the intelligence agents of the TSAB and the Enforcers had discovered that the Confederacy had set a plan named "Crimson Skies" in motion. It meant a full-scale attack. Something they expected at some point, but not that early.

Then reports came in of people sighting those they thought dead. It was way different from undead seen in bad horror movies. They were closer to ghosts abruptly appearing in front of their loved ones. Then they would go on their own business, unaware of their surrounding, and vanish as if they were just dreams. These specters looked real and surreal, leaving a feeling of unease in those they had come to visit. This happened in one of the ghost towns of Midchilda, those that were remains of the Great War. People who had come to visit the ruins had reported to have seen people in old Midchildan clothing.
These ghosts carried on their former lifes, then disappeared about as fast as they have appeared. On a darker note, Teana had come to Hayate, looking extremely troubled, after her late brother had "visited" her.

Soon, the reported calamities had hit them harder when it was their turn. At first, it was a few grunts, under the training of Nanoha, who were unable to tap in their magical energy. Some others were unable to chant their arias for their more powerful spells. Then other trainees could not get their spells working as expected. The worse had come to another trainee when the energy of his spell had backfired. The poor man had to be sent to the hospital. Finally, there were Caro who uttered in a trembling voice: "My friends would not come to me anymore. They don't understand my calls any longer." before tears overwhelmed her.

Lately, Hayate had two recurrent dreams. The first dream had Hayate standing in front of a chasm, inside a cave that appeared to be the heart of a labyrinth. In an attempt to find out what could lie in the depth, she gazed into the darkness and could feel something gazing back at her from the gaping hole, while unintelligible whispers urged her to leap inside the abyss. Most of the time, she would wake up from this dream before she made the decision to jump.
Another dream was a mist of light where she could float and feel at peace. Then a glowing golden fire would float toward her and as soon as she touched it, a series of still scenery started flashing through her mind while a calm feminine voice whispered in Hayate's ear:

"If you hear me, you will come.".

As these words floated in her mind, Hayate found herself beneath a starry night sky on which she could see unknown stars. The voice kept on whispering:

"Look up, and see the three moons and the Lone Red One."

Hayate raised her head to see three moons and a lone red star, surrounded by constellations she had never seen anywhere on the maps of the TSAB.
She lowered her glance to the direction of the voice who had become clearer. In front of her, a little girl was standing. She was clad in a simple but large white dress with a golden scarf and wearing a platinum tiara over her long black hair. A necklace of beads with a eight-pointed star medallion was worn around her frail neck. She looked to be about thirteen years old, but her purple eyes could tell that she was way older than she looked

"Now you have heard me, you will come under this sky. The sky of Mezzo Terra".

Obsessed by this dream, Hayate had requested Yuuno Scrya to find out about this Mezzo Terra and asked Carim if she could find a sense in her dreams. However, they were busy, trying to gather as much information as they could about the crisis, in preparation of the meeting involving most of the TSAB new High Council members and the directors of the different departments, as well as the Aces.

***

The day of the meeting, May 7th, MC079, had come rather quickly. Before entering the meeting room, Hayate saw that Vivio had followed Nanoha until this place. When Hayate had asked the reason of Vivio's presence, Vivio had replied that she felt as concerned as everyone else. Unfortunately, she had to stay outside, while the conference was being set up and about to start. When the door of the room was shut, Hayate surveyed the assembly, the heads of the different departments of the TSAB were present, with the exception of the director of the Enforcer department, never seen by anyone else. He or she was represented by his or her only friend and servant, the familiar Kayna who would occasionally assume the form of a raven. The servant had brought a Midchildan laptop computer that had a blank screen. It was supposed to be a proxy for the director, as shown by a miniature camera and mike. Other than the different directors, there were the secretary of defense and the secretary of foreign affairs, the top officers like the Admiral Chrono, and her friends Fate and Nanoha were sitting by her sides. In other occasions, Hayate would crack one of her jokes to ease up the atmosphere, but the crisis was way too severe to allow that.

The assembly was gathered by a middle-aged man. He was tall, athletic, fair-haired with strands of gray hair. He had the sharp but weary blue eyes of a veteran who had lead battles well beyond the boundaries of the TSAB's zone. Wrinkles had developed on his forehead and the corners of his mouth and his eyes. He retired from the frontline duty a few years ago. He was chosen as the new head of the TSAB High Council to replace those who had been killed during the Scaglietti Incident. He was elected because he was not related to any of the camarilla waging their war of influence in the offices of the TSAB. His name was Nigel McLaren.

He watched over the assembly, then started the opening speech of the meeting:

"Ladies and gentlemen. I have gathered this assembly to discuss about the crisis we are going through. This crisis is shaking the ideals of the TSAB and the foundations of our civilization. As we speak, the magic and the technology based on sorcery is failing us.
Starting from about one or two years ago, mages were starting to lose their powers or worse, their powers had turned against them. This had lead to dramatic events in worlds with lower levels of technology. There, mages would be often imprisoned, exiled or, worse, executed or lynched by the local population.
On worlds with a higher level of technological sorcery, this had lead to disasters. The most famous of them is the destruction of Ymir and its lifeforms by a flare of its star, after the failure of the planet's magic-based shields.
This was just the tip of the iceberg. The spread of the failure of our magitechnology had been slowed down by our best engineers.
Sadly, this could be just a temporary solution. If it go on, we may be forced to resort to the older technology, with the potential dangers we all expect from their use. It doesn't apply to just the civilian domain, but also in the military field.
Indeed, a vast Confederacy had set its eyes on our territories, and its resources. They first appeared as friendly, but as time passed, their masks had fallen. They attacked our neutral stance regarding Fiana Vickers. Our diplomats told them that we were just offering her the chance to enjoy a new life as an ordinary child. In turn, they labeled us as accomplices of a conspirator.
Not to mention that they have taken by force various mining settlements in our zone, pretending that these territories used to belong to them. Claim were later proven to be false by independent archeologists.
Their attitude toward the TSAB had shifted to a thinly veiled hostility and resulted in a volatile atmosphere between the two powers.
A conflict is not unlikely.
The crisis of technological sorcery and magic is endangering the survival of our people in worlds heavily dependant on it. But the addition of a potential, yet tangible, conflict is putting our very existence, as a model of civilization and autonomous power, at stake."

The following silence had given the meeting a solemn atmosphere as people were weighting the gravity of the crisis. One with a good hearing sense could almost hear the chuck-chuck of the fans of the climatization system behind the walls.

"Ground Army General Chrysler, what can we do if magic and sorcery keep failing like it does?" Nigel asked.

"We would have to revert to the older technology. Or an hybrid." The General replied. "This means the old firearms. Or the energy based weapons designed by Shari and Tsuzuki. The problem would be to equip the troops stationed pretty far."

"I've read from the files that the research and development department had been working on a kind of... Battery device. Care to tell us more?" Nigel enquired.

"It's just as they said. Devices that are designed to contain a limited amount of magical energy, just like battery. They used the cartdridges as a basic framework and expanded on it. They purpose was to artificially increase the magical energy pool of our mages, especially in combat. The weaknening of magic had forced the R&D scientists to works on seals that prevent, at best, the energy from leaking. At least, it could slow down the leaking of the energy. Doctor Shamal, Shari and Instructor Nanoha had together devised training methods to make an optimal use of the energy present in the mages and these battery devices." Chrysler answered.

"It's like someone on a remote island first uses a lighter to light a campfire then fall back to a magnifying glass when the lighter is empty. And when the magnifying glass is broken in an unfortunate accident, he fall back to make a fire with a flint, then a wooden branch." Nigel thought to himself.

"Gentlemen, I hope you are understanding why the question of the removal of the ban of conventionals is in the air." Nigel simply declared.

This statement had raised an uproar in the audience. As Nigel expected.

"I do not like it either. But unless you find a solution in the next days, it cannot be prevented." Nigel carefully weighted the consequence of this decision. He knew he was doing it for the sake of the TSAB's worlds.

"Admiral Chrono, what's the situation of the navy?" He asked.

"The dimensional sea seems to have turned less safe than before. Indeed, it have been reported that several of our ships have gone missing while going through the usual routes. Or they just have stopped working. As a result, some ships are immobilized and left drifting in the middle of the dimensional sea until they get rescued. It just doesn't have affected our ships, but also the civilian or private ships. As a result, the navigators have to find alternate and safer routes. This slow the general navigation down and affect the commerce and the logistic. And I fear that the merchant syndicates have to raise the price of the manufactured goods and raw materials as result of the increased risk and travelling time. To add up to our worries, some of our worlds are gradually isolated by the disturbances of the dimension sea. Indeed, the intensity of these disturbances could endanger our ships. On the brighter side, this also affect our main opponent. However, they have the number of ships and their willpower on their side." Admiral Chrono reported.

Nigel closed his eyes upon hearing these worrying reports. He then opened them and glanced toward General Chrysler:

"Compared to the confederates and their allies, what are the odds of the TSAB?"

"About five confederates and allies to two TSAB troopers." The general answered. "It just doesn't help that our main advantage, magic, is wavering. It's not just the decline of magic that is problematic. It's the fact that most of our troops have never killed another human being. We are most certain that the confederates have done it and have the will to do it. Not only they have the mindset. But they also have the equipment. Removing this ban on coventional would greatly help us."

Nigel gritted his teeth. He had killed people before. He knew how it felt and how it haunted one's nights. That was before his homeworld, torn by war, got discovered and saved by the TSAB. He looked at the Aces, wondering how would they feel when their hands would be covered in another human's blood. And what about the Knights? Wouldn't their old and buried memories of ancient wars awaken at the sight of corpses littered battlefields?

"Do they have weapons of mass destruction?" Nigel asked.

"Yes, however, it is unlikely that they are going to use them. They want the resources. And if it is possible, they want to convert the local population to their cause at best, or enslave them through forced labors at worst. It's because they need the manpower to exploit the resources they can gain." The general Chrysler replied.

"And we can't use the mass destruction weapons we have concealed against them, or we may alienate those who still resist in the Confederacy's main system" Nigel commented.

"That's right." Chrysler responded.

Nigel looked at the secretary of foreign affairs, Renault:

"Do we have potential allies?"

Renault saluted:

"One of them is the Agisymba Emirate. The Confederacy have indeed bought two important worlds with underhanded means from the Emirate. These worlds have provided the Emirate with raw materials and have also been strategic pivotal points for the Emirate's commercial routes and military garrisons. The League of Varcian is the second potential ally."

"Good, what do we know about their strengths?" Nigel asked.

"The biggest asset of the Emirate's army is their manpower. While inferior to the one that can be mobilized by the Confederacy and its allies, it is still enough to complete ours. Moreover, they specialize in quick but devastating strikes, and this is backed up by their well-trained akinci, asappi and janissaries divisions and their equipment. However, while they are willing to help us, on the basis of their animosity toward the Confederates, they expect us to pay a price." The secretary Renault asked.

"Of course, it is to be expected. What is the price?" Nigel asked.

"A sovereignty of about one century and one year over two of our frontier worlds, the administrated worlds 121 and 68, Ordova and Lestilla." Renault answered. "At the end of the period, the citizens of these worlds can choose to stay in the Emirate or return to the TSAB."

Nigel thought it over. This price seemed so little when the TSAB's survival was at stake.

"I think our citizens are ready to pay this price. Expect a speech from me in the next days to convince the Ordovans and the Lestillans. As soon this very meeting is over, I want you to send a delegation to negotiate with the involved parties, in order to make them understand all the benefits. And do not be afraid to exagerate these advantages."

Renault bowed over Nigel's words:

"I'll do it straight away."

"And what about the League, what help can we hope from them?" Nigel asked.

"They can use their powerful navy to supply us. While slower, their ships are more enduring, can withstand large amount of damage and are less sensible to the disturbance of the dimensional sea than our ships. They expect a joint protection force from our ships to keep the supply lines alive." The secretary of foreign affairs replied.

"How do they manage to do that?" Nigel enquired.

"They answered that everyone have their secrets." Renault answered.

"I would have done the same." Nigel commented. "What is their price for their help?"

"They want us to teach them magic, if we can solve this crisis. The Varcians have an history where mages used to be the ruling power. Then it just plain faded. They expect us to bring them answers over how to bring it back, should we manage to solve our own magic crisis. They think that this crisis is not the first, but they have never expected this scale." Renault said. "They hope magic can heal their world."

"Heal their world?" Nigel had not expected this.

"Their technological leap have been paid with a heavy price: the near destruction of almost all their ecosystem. If magic can help them to restore their ecosystem, they are fully willing to help us." Renault responded.

"So it all come to find out what is happening and how to undo it." Nigel shifted his gaze to Yuuno Scrya.

"Mister Scrya, I have invited you with the hope you can have some answers. I would like to hear your opinon about the current state of magic."
Yuuno then stood up, adjusting his glasses and clearing his throat:

"All these incidents are linked together, in one way or the other. Otherwise, how would you explain the way the dimensional sea have been disturbed to the point to endanger our navigation? What is telling us that the thing that disturb the dimensional sea would not spread over our reality? When we have asked the failing mages why their powers is dying up or failing, they all answered the same thing."

"What is it?" Nigel asked.

"It usually comes in the form of a recurring dream about a call inviting the dreamers to give something. In turn they are supposed to gain a greater power. Instead, their powers starts to fade away or get corrupted." Yuuno's reply had triggered a lot of reaction from the audience, ranging from worry to the realization that something was not exclusive to one person, but a lot of people in the known universe. Known by the TSAB.

Nigel then looked at everyone:

"How many of you have had this dream?"

Nearly everyone raised their hands.

"And how many of you have given this call a positive answer?"

Way fewer hands raised. Much to Hayate's relief, her friends, the Aces and her Knights, were not of those who had given in this call.

"Now, this is really troublesome." Nigel commented.

"It doesn't help that the more the dreamer ignore the call, the more subtle yet forceful the next calls becomes." Yuuno added.

"So, someone is corrupting or absorbing magic..." Nigel commented. "The problem is how this someone achieved this."

"I think I have a theory regarding this point." Yuuno said, while lifting his finger. "I have read a lot of old scriptures dating from the ancient times. First, Earth have an interesting theory regarding the lines of power. This have given birth to concepts like the ley lines and could explain the setups of many sites. Earth inhabitants even have created sciences like the Feng Shui. They have thought that favorable setups of various elements in a given landscape can modify the flow of mystical energy in favorable ways. What's more interesting is that this theory have found echo in a civilization way older than the civilizations found on Earth. This civilization is supposed to have existed before Al Hazred and Ancient Belka. Moreover, according to very old Belkan history chronicles, this civilization have been Belka's main concurrent, before fading from history."

Yuuno looked at the audience then quickly got to the point.

"Now, here is the interesting thing. This civilization have believed in a point of origin. From this point of origin, energy have flown and have shaped the universe we know. But not just the galaxies and the stars. It also have shaped the planets, the landscapes and the beings found these planets. They have believed that magic is a way to resonate with the point of origin and bend the reality according to the effects that are desired by a given spell. As for the magical energy, they believe that it also comes from this point of origin, like how a river comes from a spring and have branched out into myriads of smaller streams."

Eyes in the audience widened at what Yuuno could mean, an uproar of disapproval and denial ensued.

"I am afraid of what you are trying to imply." Nigel said.

"I too fear it myself. What if this people's theory hold a bit of truth? What if someone have found the source and is trying to use it to his or her own benefits?" Carim said.

"Exactly." Yuuno welcomed Carim's conclusion.

"When one want to rule the desert, all the tyrant needs is to take over all the water." Shamal commented in turn.

"And this have to happen just when war is at our gates!" One of the people in the audience shouted. "Couldn't we just give Fiana Vickers to the Confederates to appease them?"

Hayate felt anger in her flesh, she turned toward her friends. Nanoha and Fate had the same reaction, for different reasons. The former could not let Vivio lose her friend, the latter was angered by this demonstration of cowardice.
A loud thud silenced everyone, Nigel McLaren had slammed his fist on the table, giving a scolding stare at the one who had said that:

"Be quiet. You know very well that the Confederate will do their move regardless they have the exiled princess or not. You have heard the speech of their president about their 'vital space', don't you?" He then turned to Hayate, "And Miss Yagami knows the reason she have been invited by them about four months ago, right?"

"The goal was a demonstration of their forces, they also tried, with little to no success, to obtain information about our forces when it was their turn to visit Midchilda. I hate to admit it, but their elite unit, the 108 Immortals can rival our Combat Cyborgs, the Nakajima sisters and the former Numbers, in many ways. Any of their Majestic Twelve, their generals, is a capable leader and is gifted with a power about as good as an Ace. One way to tip the balance in our favor is to call for potential allies, like those contacted by our diplomats. I would suggest another potential ally: the Belkan diaspora. One potential problem would be to find a leader to rally them. I may suggest Carim Gracia. As far as Vickers is concerned, I say we keep her. I have seen what the Confederacy truly is. It's not a democracy, it is one of the worst dictatorships that exists today. Most of its population are brainwashed by their omnipresent propaganda, those who refuses and resists are oppressed. Those who managed to escape joined what the Confederacy heads call the terrorists." Hayate declared.

"The very same terrorists who harass our fleet, Miss Yagami!" Another man, the vice-admiral Horacio Punto, angrily retorted. To be fair, the ships of his fleet were the first ones to have been raided by the Screamsax Pirates led by the Captain Morgan. Being in charge of the transport and logistics for the TSAB military only made him a prey of choice for the pirates.

"Their leader have promised us to not do it anymore" Fate replied, in defense of Yagami.

Punto turned his head to Fate, scornfully snorting:
"Are you telling me that you, an Enforcer, have negotiated with a terrorist?"

A synthetic, non-human, voice had boomed in the room, causing all heads to turn to the small computer. Its owner was viewing the meeting through a camera integrated in the computer. With Kaina who was standing behind the machine all the while:

"I have personally required the enforcers Testarossa and Lanster to not take action against the leader of the pirates should they meet him again. If one is to blame, it is not them, but I."

"Would you care to tell us the reason, Director of the Enforcer Department?" The vice-admiral asked.

"I am certain that in this time of crisis, we will need to get as much cards in our hand as we can. These pirates are rebels against the Confederates, and more members of the clans that used to be the bricks of the former Alwion Empire are joining the captain De Havilland. This is why I asked the collaboration of the Intelligence department." the Director of the enforcer Department answered.

"Miss Director of the Intelligence Department?" Nigel enquired.

Then, a middle-aged woman stood up. Tightly clad in the uniform of the Intelligence Department, Carla Kyalami, saluted the audience:

"Yes, High Council head." Carla said.

"Since most of your informations are sensible, I'll simply ask one question, you'll only need to answer with yes or no. If you can't, you don't have to." Nigel stated the rules of the following dialogue, if one can call that a dialogue.

"Does our first contacts with the Confederacy date from way before the official contacts?" Nigel started.

"Affirmative" Carla nodded.

"The coming of Fiana Vickers in TSAB's zone of influence during MC 070, then the ensuing request of political asylum from her servants, had caused your department to send undercover agents in the Confederacy's territory, correct?" Nigel continued.

A silence was the only answer from Carla. A silence that could be interpreted in many ways. Nigel then asked his next question.

"You have kept contacts with your agents?"

"Negative." Carla replied

"In the absence of contact with the HQ, your agents had become sleeper agents, right?" Nigel continued.

"Classified information." Carla kept her composure.

"The Yagami's delegation that was sent soon after the first official contact was more than a diplomatic delegation. Am I correct?"

"Classified information." Another answer left to anyone's guess.

Hayate nodded to these words, she had to learn the working and traps of foreign diplomacy, and being the front cover of espionage activities was one of the aspects she had to live with. Then the synthetic voiced continued:

"In a time when magic is less reliable we'll have to use every available trump cards, the sleeper agents card may be one of our wild cards. Sadly, this may not be enough. We have to find out why magic is not working as intended in some cases, or why it is running dry. If anything said by Mister Scrya is true, it means something or someone is attacking magic at its very source. What, who, how, where and why."

"This is why I called Carim Gracia." McLaren replied.

"You did well" The synthetic voice commented.

"The audience would like to know your opinion and theories on the matter of magic. And possibly, a solution." Nigel said.

Carim stood up with a rather solemn expression on her face.

"I need not to repeat what Yuuno said about the state of magic. My own abilities had offered a small hint about how to deal with this crisis, this is what I have read: 'A master and a companion, a knight, a throneless emperor and her guardian will sail the sea of the stars. Beyond the starry ocean, lies the earth of the middle, where a princess and a giant of the ancient times will meet and join their forces to face their worst fears and ghosts. Upon the defeat of their ghosts, hubris wait for them in the heart of darkness, under the lonely shore. Should they overcome it, the pain of the world will be eased, should they don't, the world will crumble from losing its blood." Carim offered the best answer she could have, in this time of troubles.

"So that's how it is?" Nigel commented.

"That's the most my own abilities could have done." Carim replied, as if she apologized.

"What's this earth of the middle? There are plenty of worlds that could claim to be the earth of the middle." The puzzled secretary Renault asked.

This was the moment for Yuuno Scrya to speak up on the topic:

"Colonel Yagami had talked to Carim and I some days ago about a recurrent dream that could be related to this earth of the middle."

All eyes turned toward Yagami who suddenly felt the weight of the growing responsibility, she then went on describing her two recurrent dreams:

"Like all of you, I have received this call about the promise of a greater power. However, there were another dream. I was feeling at peace, in a mist of light, hearing an appeasing light. There were an appeasing voice trying to tell me something. Then I found myself under a starry night. I could see three moons. The first moon was silvery white, almost like the one seen from my homeland. The second one was a small but beautiful blue moon. Then the third one was a sinister grayish shattered moon. Another thing I could see in this sky are a lone red bright star and the constellations. The most notable was the one that was supposed to indicate the north of the planet. With a great deal of imagination, it looked like a sword. But if one looked a little at the southeast, a constellation in the form of a bowman could be seen. Another constellation, at the west, looked like a lone tower. And... There were the Twins, southward. That was all the constellations I could remember from my dream. Then the voice that appeased me became clearer and I turned my eyes to the source of this voice. It was a little girl, in her early teens, with very old eyes and a tiara around her black hair. She looked like a religious figure from her clothing. She had said something like 'If you hear it, you will come' and 'Now you have heard me, you will come under the sky of Mezzo Terra.'" Hayate had tried her best to not not omit the important details of her dream.

"The Earth of the Middle in one of the Earth's languages, and the native language of the House of Borgia when its founder father have come to Midchilda" The synthetic voice of the director of the Enforcer department commented.

A silence had fallen on the assembly as if they were all trying to figure out hypothesis, hints or solutions. The silence was soon interrupted by the Admiral Chrono.

"About two years ago" Chrono said, "One of the ships under my command had discovered a solar system that was not claimed yet by any of the known transdimensional superpowers. I think you all remember the ship named Namshub and its operator, Ynana."

Hayate remembered this ship. This spaceship and its alien operator were relics of a time now forgotten by history, way before the ice age on Earth ended. In many regards, they were anachronisms that seemed to not belong to the distant past they were supposed to have lived in. And they should not have been here before a few centuries.

"Ynana had sent various drones and probes on this planet to gather as much information as possible." Chrono continued, "The purpose was to find out if the people living there could be contacted by the TSAB personel without any unwanted tension. But also to detect any potential lost logia-class objects in need to be recovered and secured. However, I think that this planet and its solar systems would be better presented by the navigator of Namshub."

It was not too long before the doors of the council room opened. With a glance, the three Aces could see Vivio taking a peek at the room while a seemingly young, yet ageless, silver-haired woman clad in the uniform of the TSAB navy walked in the room with various files under her arm. Ynana then turned her head toward the assembly, her eyes as cold as two quicksilver marbles surveying everyone who were present. Like a puppet whose the strings were pulled by a hesitating master, Ynana mechanically saluted the people.

Chrono motioned his head at Ynana, telling her she can report what she knew about the newly discovered system. A cold monotonous voice then started the presentation of one of the TSAB's new discoveries:

"The planet we have discovered orbit a yellow dwarf star of about 1.05 solar mass, meaning that this star is slightly bigger and brighter than Earth's Sun. Beside the planet that interest us, eleven other planets orbits that sun. This is not counting this sun's distant companion, a red dwarf of 0.4 solar mass that is located about 54.8 Astronomical Units, its velocity, orbit and distance allows this companion to complete its revolution every 405.66 earth years. The only habitable planet is the fourth planet, orbiting in a distance of 1.125 Astronomical Units. It takes 425 earth days to complete its orbit and its rotation period last 26 earth hours. Three moons orbits this planet that is the home of seven humanoid races. Surprisingly, there are also humans of the homo sapiens type on this planet. They apparently immigrated to this planet over three millennia ago, a range of 1300 to 1100 BC would be the rough estimation of when humans first came to this planet. They soon entered in competition with another immigrant humanoid race, the Bhadra, who had come to this planet when Earth was in the middle of the bronze age. A range between 2800 BC and 2600 BC would be the best estimation."

Carim tried to remember where she had heard the Bhadra name. Could it be one of the ancient civilizations that Belka had come to supplant before rising to the top as empire?

Ynana continued:

"The Bhadra were allied to one of the three native races and basically shaped the world to their desires after winning a war against one of the other native race. From now on, even if humans are now superior to the Bhadra in term of population, and influence on the civilization, everyone still call their world by the name the bhadra had given to it: Madhyaloka. In their language, it mean, The Middle World."

Ynana then turned her head to look at Hayate:

"Colonel Yagami. As observed from the surface of this planet by my drones, you could see the lone red dwarf star by night. As well as the three moons and the different constellations that could be as described in your dream. I don't have a great imagination but this is nearly how the rest of the crew of my ship had described them from the photos."

What should I do, this thought had raced through the Colonel's mind. Fate and Nanoha stared at Hayate, their eyes filled with interrogations and worries. How can they help their friend? Chrono considered the options that were presented, sadly, there were so little. Did the answer lie in this planet lost beyond the boundaries of the TSAB's zone of influence? What if the Confederacy discovered this planet too? Safe, in that place where no one but Kaina had ever come, the director of the Enforcers department considered the fact that there may be spies and traitors inside the TSAB working for their enemy, the slightest move will set this war in motion; Midchilda was cornered since the beginning. Carim and Yuuno pondered over Hayate's dream, this could be a call. What for? Vivio was listening by sticking her ear close to the door, she couldn't hear everything, but she had heard about "a journey" and "a throneless emperor". Was it her? The Knights looked at their master, trying to get a sign of what to do. But no answer from their master, lost in her thoughts. Reinforce Zwei was trying to know what her master planned to do, it was one of these times she couldn't read in Hayate.

Nigel knew that sooner or later, the TSAB would have to face a large scale conflict. He just wished it was not at that time, when their biggest advantage was failing them. Lifting the ban in conventional weapons, having to relearn how to wage this kind of war, it was not as easy as it sounded. But he had no other choices. He looked at the Colonel Yagami. Maybe the girl who called Hayate in her dreams knew something about Hayate that the Colonel herself did not know? Hayate thought to herself, she had to make a decision. Answering this call did mean leaving her friends behind her. But somehow, she believed that she must find out what was wrong with magic, her magic had not failed her yet. However, she did not want it to fail her in the middle of a crucial battle. Maybe, finding the root of their problems may help her to attain a better understanding of herself.

"Mister Head of the Council, McLaren. I will go. And I will find out how to restore magic." She realized that this decision will throw her on a lonely road. "I'll go alone, with the Conquistadores, and accompanied by my companion Reinforce."

Nanoha and Fate both stood up, voicing their concerns:

"Hayate!"

Only to be stopped by Hayate gesturing with her hand.

"Please, stay behind. The Midchildans needs their heroes. What would they do if we all leave them?"

"But we did everything together, we shared the same joys, we went through the same moments of sorrow" Nanoha replied. "I cannot decently train my troops without knowing that you are safe."

"Nanoha. You are a greater instructor than you want to believe. Look at how you have raised Teana and Subaru into the prides of their respective departments. It's all thank to you. Moreover, the more common soldiers will need a heroic figure like you to find courage. Finally, you are from Earth like me, you'll have no problems to adapt to the changes of policy, if we have come to remove that ban on the conventionals." Hayate looked straight into Nanoha's eyes.

"Hayate, I cannot stay behind, uncertain you are going to make it!" Fate said.

"The enforcers department will need all its people to find out the spies and the supporters of the Confederacy. Even you can make a difference between a discovered spy and one that can lead thousands of us to a certain death." Hayate was reminding Fate of her duty as an enforcer.

"Nanoha, Fate" Hayate shifted her glance in the direction of her Knights, "My family. There are times when someone have to walk a road alone. This time, for me, is coming soon".

Signum protested.

"I refuse to let go you alone. Please, meister, let me be your sword." Signum took Hayate's hands, as if she was about to make an oath, "If there are a knight in Carim's prophecy, let me be this knight."

Hayate then looked at Vita and Shamal who answered her interrogative gaze with a nod of agreement. Fate, Hayate and the Knights knew that Nanoha had suffered more than anyone else from the Scaglietti incident. More incidents or conflicts like this one would lead her to her downfall.

"I'll look over Nanoha." Vita declared.

"I'll be watching over her health." Shamal said.

The next minutes were then followed by a long ruckus. It was either protests against what appeared to be a fanciful impulse of the Colonel, sighs of reliefs over what could be solutions, or cheers in support of the decision that was taken. Nigel then brought back the order in the assembly with another loud knock against the table. He then stood up and looked at Hayate.

"Colonel Yagami. Please, you are going to be our beacon of hope in the dark times that will come. Never forget it. Remember why you are doing it. As far as I am concerned, I can only wish you the best of luck."

"I will, sir" Hayate saluted.

Nigel then turned his eyes to the audience. He wondered who could be the throneless emperor, Vivio? Fiana? The future will tell.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is no more the time for half-measures. We will have to play all the cards we have been dealt, it is no more the time for the petty struggles between the Bureau factions. We will either win or have to face our annihilation. This means that we will have to vote the removal of the ban on the conventional weapons. I know that some of you are going to question me over how my proposition is going against the ideals that founded the bureau. I know they have right now the intention to vote against it. I am not going to force them to do otherwise. However, I'd like them to think more about it, to think about what they are fighting for, why they joined the bureau and consider the enemy who is at our gates. Some of you, and some of the people under your command are indeed very young. Those had never faced the dilemma resulting from whatever it is right or wrong to kil. I won't lie, if you have never killed, you'll have to learn or you will get killed. Even the Colonel Yagami may soon face this dilemma in a world she doesn't even know. When this upcoming war will be over, maybe some people in this assembly will be dead, even I may be killed. And the survivors will know that everything won't be the same as they used to be. This is why I'll promise you fire, steel, mud, blood and tears."

People present at the meeting applauded. Then Nigel motioned his hand for silence.

"The vote for the removal of the ban on conventional weapons begins now. I have prepared the ballot. So, ladies and gentlement, it's time to accomplish your duty."

This was when everyone took a sheet of paper to write a single word, yes or no.

***

Under three moons, there were a magnificent grove, a few kilometers away from the shore. Several hundred years old trees offered a shelter to a very tall and reasonably toned protohuman was sitting in the lotus position. In font of him, there were a simple plate with simple food. His silver hair was blown by a gentle wind, his eyes were shut while his mind was trying to seize the mysteries of the universe. He was clad in very simple cotton clothing that left his chest bare, and wore only a necklace of beads around his neck. He then opened his three eyes to see a woman walking toward him then sitting by his side, under the tree. He did not need to look at her to guess the playful smirk she was hiding behind her fan. She was dressed in an elaborate gold and purple silk clothing that was mainly a purple tunic and ankle-lenght skirt fastened by a golden stash that emphasized her figure.

"I have expected you to come. Would you eat some of the pastries done by the villages I visited?" The man said.

"I guess I can't surprise you anymore, my dear. Thanks you for the pastries." The purpled-eyed woman giggled while picking up something that looked like a sticky cereal paste ball. "I wonder if you have ever laughed or felt entertainment. You seem to be so boring to hang with. No wonder your brother was upset with you."

"My brother always let his emotions get the best and worst of him." He replied. "But he is not the topic, right?"

"Indeed." The Lady twirled her long platinum blonde hair between her thin fingers.

"It's this crisis again? The Matriarch have finally found someone that can help us to undo the wound of our world?" The holy man asked.

"Times will be fun again. The one who answered the call looks to be a fun fellow." She commented.

"Don't you have enough fun? Don't you think that this one monster you have allowed into this world and is causing disasters in our world is enough?" The man asked.

"This fellow have, as one of her friends, the one who can bring peace and hope of redemption to our monster. Tame this beast and we may have a valuable ally against the one causing my world so much misery." She replied.

"Now this is interesting." He conceded.

The woman stood up and looked at her companion, with her deep purple eyes.

"I knew you would say that." She smiled and took a deep breath. "You now look forward to meeting them, don't you?"

"Indeed" He answered.

The woman then walked into what looked like a rift torn by a dozen of ghostly hands in the thin air.

***

During one night, Hayate was dreaming again. The same girl who had haunted her slumber stared at her with a joyful smile:

"You have heard me and answered my call."

"Why do you have to call me? Why me?" Hayate asked.

"My call was nothing more than a message in the bottle. It just so happened that the waves of fate had pushed the bottle toward you." The petite girl answered.

"That's all?" Hayate couldn't believe that this call was nothing more than a gamble.

The mysterious girl was walking up to Hayate and cupped Hayate's hands between hers:

"You are thinking that I was throwing a dice and hoping to roll a six? Funny enough, I rolled a six. You hold the key that may heal our world, your world and maybe the universe." she declared.

"What is this key?" Hayate just could not understand.

"You are a smart girl, you will understand when you will come to me." The girl replied.

"I have one more thing to ask." Hayate said.

"I am all ears" Such was this girl's reply.

Hayate then told her about the other recurring dream. The mysterious girl's eyes widened and showed worry.

"It's as your friend Yuuno said. You must not comply to this voice's demand. And it will become harder to resist as the days passes."

The girl then looked up, skyward. She then lowered her glance:

"We have to part our ways. It takes me a lot of effort to get tuned with you and be able to communicate"

"And who are you exactly?"

As the girl faded from Hayate's mind, she answered:

"The last alive disciple of my world's savior"

The rest of the night was dreamless and the alarm clock then pulled Hayate off her sleep.