I guess I see it differently than you two. Lets see, first I partially agree with Dragon Slave = Starlight Breaker. The thing is, Dragon Slave has a much wider area of destruction, and what makes it h4xx is... its purely elemental/physical damage! Barriers aside, you could level that GC tower with one of them, as well as all of Mid-Childa with a few of them. They're like mini nukes. Not even Dieci's S rank canon looked that big. If I had to categorize this one, I'd say its SS-SSS rank. In Nanohaverse, that's h4xx!
You think? The impact of Starlight Breaker in episode 10 has just as big a radius -if not bigger- then Dragon Slave (not to mention that Dragon Slave's damage radius tends to differ, just like Starlight Breaker).
In OCverse it's just AWWWRIGHT! Well, actually I wasn't serious suggesting bringing Dragon Slave in, it just randomly popped into my mind when I've read about Arcas the Dragonslayer learning fire magic
I think I'll go add all my updates to the actual posts with characters' profiles.
Haha, dont worry, I know you werent serious. I just love Slayers so discussing about it makes me go .
Quote:
Originally Posted by Keroko
You think? The impact of Starlight Breaker in episode 10 has just as big a radius -if not bigger- then Dragon Slave (not to mention that Dragon Slave's damage radius tends to differ, just like Starlight Breaker).
Of course, it all depends on how much energy Nanoha puts into her Starlight Breaker. So yes, you're totally right. Damage radius aside, though, SLB does purely magical damage, while the other does purely physical... so in Nanohaverse, that is "hacking"... and literally, because nukes are banned. A couple Dragon Slaves and bye bye Mid-Childa...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kha
3. Wait till you see who are Sophia's batchmates. And I heard a big star is coming to visit... And I think she's gonna blow her mind when she meets them.
Ah hello Miss Arika, nice to meet you, right this way please...
4. Not really. Dark Crusade introduces the Necrons as a playable side on the Villians, while for the good guys, it's the HAK and the Licht von Belka, making Saint Church have 4 armies under their banner, just like the old days.
It'll be more balanced if someone introduced the Chaos faction, so you go ahead. I recommend Dios for a hero there, and the Vidalia Heresy can also play a big part.
As much as Mai fits the bill, I wonder if she can be recruited under Chaos...
~~~New intelligence data updated~~~
Previously, we had a post of what you could deploy from the Alexei Gateway without additional structures. It has been updated with more descriptions, and a basic unit I missed out with a slip of mind.
Now lets go with another basic structure, the Beastiary!
Spoiler for The Beastiary:
Structure description
The Beastiary is where one deploys the otherworldly creatures that the master summoners of HAK have brought into the mortal worlds. These creatures only require a battleforce commander to have the Beastiary erected, and the Sister Hall upgraded to its upper tiers Silver Hall and Grand Hall.
Stone Giant
Beings of solid igneous rock, they are the stalwarts of the Knight-sisters. Their enormous size and hard-as-diamond hide sees the girls huddling behind these big friendly giants when it starts to rain missiles and spellfire. The Stone Giant can also uproot trees or anything long and hard to use as a weapon. Hero Weapon Summoner can call upon enormous divine weaponry to equip these gentle but protective guardians
Bolshack Dragon
A potent and versatile beast of flame, the Bolshack Dragon is the staple beatdown machine of the Knight-sisters. Their conventional armanents mixed with claws, fiery breath, and it being at ease taking on both air and ground targets sees them being deployed in almost any situation where firepower exceeds the need to cut cost.
God Pheonix Ra
This creature is so rare that only one can be deployed at any one time. And it's worth it's price: The creature attacks from another astral plane, effectively shielding itself from all damage. And from its wings come great balls of purifying flame, making this summon creature the most powerful anti-army weapon in the HAK's arsenal.
However, like all pheonixes, Ra burns himself out very rapidly, and his egg has to be brought back to the Beastiary to be rehatched. If the egg is destroyed, the lengthy summoning process must be re attempted.
Out of time. Up next, HAK's heroes deployed from the Shrine of Maidens!
And prepare yourselves for...
(reads spoiler card)
Mai-IMOUTO?!
3. A nano-machine user in a pure magic faction?? That's cheating!!!
4. Sure I'll make it. I just need more canon info to see if I can squeeze this faction into the story somehow. Else they will be just like Necrons, a new threat in our OCverse. If you want me to post the faction without any background, I can do it right now... I thought this up a long time ago. So far the only thing linking these guys to Nanohaverse is two of my character's Lost Logia (Relics).
Good idea about Dios and Mai. I'll see what I can do about them. What is Vidalia Heresy, though? I dont recall that.
5. Nice choice of bestiary. Definitely fits well with the rest of the units.
Of course, it all depends on how much energy Nanoha puts into her Starlight Breaker. So yes, you're totally right. Damage radius aside, though, SLB does purely magical damage, while the other does purely physical...
I'm still not convinced that a direct hit to a normal human with a Starlight Breaker would do no damage. Why else would Nanoha and Fate protect Arisa and Suzuka with barriers? Why else was there that big splashing colum of water when Nanoha shot Fate? And the only reason the city was still standing when Reinforce I shot that Starlight Breaker was because of the barrier.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erio
so in Nanohaverse, that is "hacking"... and literally, because nukes are banned. A couple Dragon Slaves and bye bye Mid-Childa...
You misunderstand. Technollogical nukes are banned. Magical nukes are still allowed... as long as they are in the millitary.
And it would take more then 'a couple' of Dragon Slaves to blow up mid-childa. You'd have to be casting Dragon Slave over and over thousands of times to blow a planet out of existance. you're making the spell sound much more powerfull then it is. Even a strengthened Dragon Slave could only blow up about a fifth of Seyruun. Most nukes available here in real life would have whiped the entire city off the map.
I was watching the original Ghostbusters the other day, and it inspired me to write this little parody of two scenes from the movie.
Spoiler for Who ya gonna call?:
-Scene 1-
“It’s a girl,” Mel stated, surprised.
“It’s Gozer,” Sevasti realized out loud.
“I though Gozer was a MAN,” Boomer replied.
“It’s whatever it wants to be.”
“Well, whatever it is, it’s gotta get by us,” Arcas said.
“Right.”
“Go get her, Mel!”
Mel gulped, and slowly proceeded towards the figure.
“Gozer the Gozerian!” The figure turned to face Mel. “Good evening. As the duly designated representative of the city, county, and world of Mid-Childia, I order you to cease any and all supernatural activity and return forthwith to your point of origin, or to the nearest convenient parallel dimension.”
“That oughta do it. Thanks very much, Mel.”
“Are you a God?” Gozer asked. Mel looked back at Arcas, who nodded to her.
“No.”
“Then… DIE!” Gozer replied, sending bolts of lightning out of its fingertips at the Phantasms, which drove them back to the buildings’ edge.
The Phantasms recovered from the assault, catching their breath.
“Mel,” Boomer began. “If someone asks you if you’re a God, you say YES!”
-Scene 2-
“What do you mean, choose? We don’t understand!” Mel cried.
“Choose,” the voice boomed. “Choose the form of the Destructor.”
“Oh, I get it, I get it! Ohhh, VERY CUTE!” Arcas replied. “Whatever we think of – if we think of Admiral Hallaoun, Admiral Halloun will appear and destroy us. So empty your heads! Empty your heads, we’ve only got one shot at this!”
“The choice is made!”
“Whoa! Whoa-oh! Whoa!”
“The Traveler has come!”
“Nobody choosed anything!”
Arcas pointed to Sevasti. “Did you choose anything?”
“No,” the Major replied.
To Boomer. “Did YOU?!”
“My mind is totally blank.”
“I didn’t choose anything!”
The other three Noble Phantasms turned around to see Mel slowly backing away. Arcas went up to her and gave her a look.
“I couldn’t help it. It just popped in there.”
“WHAT? What ‘just popped in there?’”
“I… I tried to think…”
“LOOK!” Sevasti shouted.
“No! It CAN’T be!” Mel wailed.
“What is it?” Arcas asked.
“It CAN’T be!”
“What did you do, Mel?”
“Oh, shit!” Boomer exclaimed.
The quartet watched as a large, round white head wearing a sailor hat walked between the buildings a few streets over. Arcas cast a disbelieving look at Mel.
Mel nodded slowly. “It’s the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man.”
Citizens ran in terror from the huge creature, which crushed cars like bugs.
“Well, there’s something you don’t see everyday,” Arcas commented.
“I tried to think of the most harmless thing. Something I loved from my childhood. Something that could never, ever possibly destroy us… Mr. Stay-Puft.”
“Nice thinking, Mel.”
“We used to roast Stay-Puft marshmallows, by the fire at Camp Ocanda.”
Arcas looked to his CO. “Mel has gone by-by, Major. What have you got left?”
“Sorry, Arcas, but I’m terrified beyond the capacity for rational thought,” Sevasti stated as they watched the monster come down the street towards the building.
I was watching the original Ghostbusters the other day, and it inspired me to write this little parody of two scenes from the movie.
Spoiler for Who ya gonna call?:
-Scene 1-
“It’s a girl,” Mel stated, surprised.
“It’s Gozer,” Sevasti realized out loud.
“I though Gozer was a MAN,” Boomer replied.
“It’s whatever it wants to be.”
“Well, whatever it is, it’s gotta get by us,” Arcas said.
“Right.”
“Go get her, Mel!”
Mel gulped, and slowly proceeded towards the figure.
“Gozer the Gozerian!” The figure turned to face Mel. “Good evening. As the duly designated representative of the city, county, and world of Mid-Childia, I order you to cease any and all supernatural activity and return forthwith to your point of origin, or to the nearest convenient parallel dimension.”
“That oughta do it. Thanks very much, Mel.”
“Are you a God?” Gozer asked. Mel looked back at Arcas, who nodded to her.
“No.”
“Then… DIE!” Gozer replied, sending bolts of lightning out of its fingertips at the Phantasms, which drove them back to the buildings’ edge.
The Phantasms recovered from the assault, catching their breath.
“Mel,” Boomer began. “If someone asks you if you’re a God, you say YES!”
-Scene 2-
“What do you mean, choose? We don’t understand!” Mel cried.
“Choose,” the voice boomed. “Choose the form of the Destructor.”
“Oh, I get it, I get it! Ohhh, VERY CUTE!” Arcas replied. “Whatever we think of – if we think of Admiral Hallaoun, Admiral Halloun will appear and destroy us. So empty your heads! Empty your heads, we’ve only got one shot at this!”
“The choice is made!”
“Whoa! Whoa-oh! Whoa!”
“The Traveler has come!”
“Nobody choosed anything!”
Arcas pointed to Sevasti. “Did you choose anything?”
“No,” the Major replied.
To Boomer. “Did YOU?!”
“My mind is totally blank.”
“I didn’t choose anything!”
The other three Noble Phantasms turned around to see Mel slowly backing away. Arcas went up to her and gave her a look.
“I couldn’t help it. It just popped in there.”
“WHAT? What ‘just popped in there?’”
“I… I tried to think…”
“LOOK!” Sevasti shouted.
“No! It CAN’T be!” Mel wailed.
“What is it?” Arcas asked.
“It CAN’T be!”
“What did you do, Mel?”
“Oh, shit!” Boomer exclaimed.
The quartet watched as a large, round white head wearing a sailor hat walked between the buildings a few streets over. Arcas cast a disbelieving look at Mel.
Mel nodded slowly. “It’s the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man.”
Citizens ran in terror from the huge creature, which crushed cars like bugs.
“Well, there’s something you don’t see everyday,” Arcas commented.
“I tried to think of the most harmless thing. Something I loved from my childhood. Something that could never, ever possibly destroy us… Mr. Stay-Puft.”
“Nice thinking, Mel.”
“We used to roast Stay-Puft marshmallows, by the fire at Camp Ocanda.”
Arcas looked to his CO. “Mel has gone by-by, Major. What have you got left?”
“Sorry, Arcas, but I’m terrified beyond the capacity for rational thought,” Sevasti stated as they watched the monster come down the street towards the building.
I'm still not convinced that a direct hit to a normal human with a Starlight Breaker would do no damage. Why else would Nanoha and Fate protect Arisa and Suzuka with barriers? Why else was there that big splashing colum of water when Nanoha shot Fate? And the only reason the city was still standing when Reinforce I shot that Starlight Breaker was because of the barrier.
Well I didnt say a SLB would not do any damage. However, it has been proven that it does not do PHYSICAL damage, or not much... Or I guess YnS's SLB was modified to not do any physical damage? I'm not sure. The thing is, its a magical attack, so even if it does do a bit of physical damage, its not 100% like Dragon Slave.
And while the part about the barrier could be debatable (I personally dont have a clue), Amy did say "there was no physical damage" after the explosion.
Quote:
You misunderstand. Technollogical nukes are banned. Magical nukes are still allowed... as long as they are in the millitary.
And it would take more then 'a couple' of Dragon Slaves to blow up mid-childa. You'd have to be casting Dragon Slave over and over thousands of times to blow a planet out of existance. you're making the spell sound much more powerfull then it is. Even a strengthened Dragon Slave could only blow up about a fifth of Seyruun. Most nukes available here in real life would have whiped the entire city off the map.
For some reason I highly doubt the TSAB would allow nukes of any type, even in the hands of their most trusted. They dont even allow flying inside the city without permission. So I'm pretty sure such type of spell is prohibited.
But no, I dont 'misunderstand'. I know what you mean, and I know about conventional weapons. You could say I was twisting the idea a bit to prove my point.
As for the second point, I should have said "Mid-Childa capital". Cranagar, was it? While a 'couple' wont completely wipe it out, two well placed ones will totally devastate the city. Surely the TSAB wont allow mages to have such dangerous spells running around. And also... I did say "mini-nuke" when comparing a Dragon Slave.
In any case, Dragon Slave IS an over SS rank spell, considering its destructive power. A character with such power is truly powerful, by Nanohaverse standards.
*poses dramatically* You shall not defeat me that easilly!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erio
Well I didnt say a SLB would not do any damage. However, it has been proven that it does not do PHYSICAL damage, or not much... Or I guess YnS's SLB was modified to not do any physical damage? I'm not sure.
Proven? Where? In the battle with Fate? There was a huge colum of splashing water. That means it was physical.
You have to keep in mind that barrier jackets are called like that for a reason: They automatically create both a barrier and a field spell. This should explain why a large scale attack leaves little in the way of wounds, but one would still feel like he or she has been rolled over like a ten-ton steamroler (you can't lessen the feeling of the impact, after all).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erio
The thing is, its a magical attack, so even if it does do a bit of physical damage, its not 100% like Dragon Slave.
I know it's not the same (Dragon Slave calls upon the power of a Mazoku lord, after all) but the difference is not that much. It does do physicall damage, but barriers (or lazy animation, whichever you want) prevents us from seeing it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erio
And while the part about the barrier could be debatable (I personally dont have a clue), Amy did say "there was no physical damage" after the explosion.
*re-checks A's 10* She does? when? I want to check her tone of voice when she says that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erio
For some reason I highly doubt the TSAB would allow nukes of any type, even in the hands of their most trusted. They dont even allow flying inside the city without permission. So I'm pretty sure such type of spell is prohibited.
Hayate already smashed that theory to itty-bitty bits.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erio
But no, I dont 'misunderstand'. I know what you mean, and I know about conventional weapons. You could say I was twisting the idea a bit to prove my point.
This one learns fast....
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erio
As for the second point, I should have said "Mid-Childa capital". Cranagar, was it? While a 'couple' wont completely wipe it out, two well placed ones will totally devastate the city.
*Shrug* no arguments there.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erio
Surely the TSAB wont allow mages to have such dangerous spells running around. And also... I did say "mini-nuke" when comparing a Dragon Slave.
*cough*Hayate*cough*
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erio
In any case, Dragon Slave IS an over SS rank spell, considering its destructive power. A character with such power is truly powerful, by Nanohaverse standards.
I still say it's about equal level to Starlight Breaker, which mind you, is still S rank in terms of power.
*poses dramatically* You shall not defeat me that easilly!
Quote:
Proven? Where? In the battle with Fate? There was a huge colum of splashing water. That means it was physical.
You have to keep in mind that barrier jackets are called like that for a reason: They automatically create both a barrier and a field spell. This should explain why a large scale attack leaves little in the way of wounds, but one would still feel like he or she has been rolled over like a ten-ton steamroler (you can't lessen the feeling of the impact, after all).
I know it's not the same (Dragon Slave calls upon the power of a Mazoku lord, after all) but the difference is not that much. It does do physicall damage, but barriers (or lazy animation, whichever you want) prevents us from seeing it.
You know, I think we're on the same page here, thinking the same way, but for some reason our arguments do not concur with each other.
Lets try this again: SLB does mainly magical damage, and some physical damage. I would say a 90/10 ratio. Or even bigger percentage for the magical damage part.
So yes, it does some physical damage. No argument there.
Quote:
*re-checks A's 10* She does? when? I want to check her tone of voice when she says that.
This one is my bad, I mixed up this explosion with Shamal's Annihilation Lightning spell in episode 5.
However, I believe the two events are somewhat similar. Both explosions were inside this "barrier" and both did not destroy any buildings. So from this I concluded that SLB does not do much physical damage either. And at least Yami no Sho's SLB did not appear to do any physical damage at all. Of course, this may have been hidden from us.
Quote:
Hayate already smashed that theory to itty-bitty bits.
You talking about that ice attack in episode 2?
I still stand by my theory. At least that ice attack did not blow everything up... and as shown it is very useful to take the fire out.
Quote:
This one learns fast....
*Shrug* no arguments there.
*nods* At least one point where we come to an agreement.
Quote:
*cough*Hayate*cough*
Read above.
Quote:
I still say it's about equal level to Starlight Breaker, which mind you, is still S rank in terms of power.
It was S rank 9 years ago, though... maybe its more powerful now? And if I recall correctly, wasnt SLB EX+ SS rank? (Or SLB+... something like that)
Proven? Where? In the battle with Fate? There was a huge colum of splashing water. That means it was physical.
Hayate already smashed that theory to itty-bitty bits.
- 2 words. Dramatic Effect. Pretty much how there's stuff like explosions that look like they can kill, and smoke and such...like when Excellion Buster and Trident Smasher clashed in their "knock-out spell" or when Nanoha blasted Crossfire Shoot at Teana. Don't look at it too hard. It loses a lot of effect dramatism if we're to digest every single aesthetic point down to the grind.
- Well...at least that nuke was clearly a magical attack. None of the building were shown to crumble and shatter to pieces upon contact. And it depends on the location as well.
__________________
Night~and~Gale: ~ The Final Mythology of the Man who Defied Destiny.
The sleeping lion shall awaken beyond the depths of time, crossing ten billion lights, come to Terra.
You know, I think we're on the same page here, thinking the same way, but for some reason our arguments do not concur with each other.
Lets try this again: SLB does mainly magical damage, and some physical damage. I would say a 90/10 ratio. Or even bigger percentage for the magical damage part.
So yes, it does some physical damage. No argument there.
My opinion is that Starlight Breaker does physical damage, no more no less. This is part of a simple opinion of mine that it is simply destroying the drama if our heroes attacks have no chance of actually killing things.
"Oh no! Nanoha is firing her Starlight Breaker!"
"Who cares, it's not like it'll do any damage."
See the point? Besides, various manga pages show the crew after their attacks with rubble and burned cloth.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erio
You talking about that ice attack in episode 2?
I still stand by my theory. At least that ice attack did not blow everything up... and as shown it is very useful to take the fire out.
No, I was talking about the multi tac-nuke from episode 11/12 (which, I may remind you, tore metal drones apart, hence doing physical damage).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Erio
It was S rank 9 years ago, though... maybe its more powerful now? And if I recall correctly, wasnt SLB EX+ SS rank? (Or SLB+... something like that)
Not sure. Can't recall having read any sources on that one, but that doesn't say much.
Still, a mage having Dragon Slave as a spell should be possible. He'd be a powerfull mage, and therefore most likely a high ranked one.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nightengale
- 2 words. Dramatic Effect. Pretty much how there's stuff like explosions that look like they can kill, and smoke and such...like when Excellion Buster and Trident Smasher clashed in their "knock-out spell" or when Nanoha blasted Crossfire Shoot at Teana. Don't look at it too hard. It loses a lot of effect dramatism if we're to digest every single aesthetic point down to the grind.
I know, it's just that I hate the thought of Nanoha firing a full-power Starlight Breaker and everyone sitting back going "Relax, it's not going to do any damage" That in itself ruins a lot of drama for me. I want those spells to be able to do damage, because that increases tension levels.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nightengale
- Well...at least that nuke was clearly a magical attack. None of the building were shown to crumble and shatter to pieces upon contact. And it depends on the location as well.
Drones are metal, the multi tac-nuke tore those drones apart. Hence the Hraesvelgr is a physical spell.
Unless you were talking about Diabolic Emission, on which point I will have to concede.
My opinion is that Starlight Breaker does physical damage, no more no less. This is part of a simple opinion of mine that it is simply destroying the drama if our heroes attacks have no chance of actually killing things.
"Oh no! Nanoha is firing her Starlight Breaker!"
"Who cares, it's not like it'll do any damage."
See the point? Besides, various manga pages show the crew after their attacks with rubble and burned cloth.
Point taken. And I do agree with you.
I do believe, though, that you can kill someone with a purely magical attack. Sure, there wont be any physical damage done to the body, but their linker core or, if you want to go deeper into this, their soul should be severely damaged to the point they... die.
Have you watched Hunter X Hunter? Just being exposed to a magical emission (or in HxH's case, Nen) without protection will kill you instantly. That's pretty sweet.
Quote:
No, I was talking about the multi tac-nuke from episode 11/12 (which, I may remind you, tore metal drones apart, hence doing physical damage).
Ah, that one. Hmm, sincerely I have no clue what that is.
I could come up with a few rather good theories, such as the magical attack messed up the internal magic circuits of the drones and thus they exploded... I dont think we'll get anywhere with this one, though. We dont have enough evidence to prove that it is a magical or a physical attack.
If I had to guess, though, I'd say it does magical damage, similar to SLB.
Quote:
Not sure. Can't recall having read any sources on that one, but that doesn't say much.
Still, a mage having Dragon Slave as a spell should be possible. He'd be a powerfull mage, and therefore most likely a high ranked one.
I'm now back home so I can check my sources... Starlight Breaker + is ranked S in power, and that's when Nanoha was 9 or 10 years old. Surely, the power has risen since then. But then again, there is no proof for this rise in power rank.
Ah, surely it is possible to cast a Dragon Slave. Nanoha could do it. That's why I was saying stuff like the TSAB doesnt allow such spells, etc.
And what better way to do that with the first chapter of my Leryk fic, "Seven Days."
Enjoy!
Spoiler for Seven Days, Part I:
Location: The Home of Adm. Lindy Hallaoun, Uminari City, Japan, The 97th Non-Administrated World, Earth
Time: 0730 MST (Local Equivalent)
Lindy Hallaoun’s alarm clock beeped loudly, and the TSAB Admiral reached over to turn it off. As she looked at the time, she wondered: Why am I getting up so early? She then remembered her visitor from last night. That’s right – Arcas came by, wanting to learn Mid-magic, and I agreed to teach him.
With that in mind, Lindy headed down the hall to what used to be Chrono’s old room to wake Arcas. She found the Dragonslayer sprawled out over the bed, and promptly tried to wake him, shaking him at first. Arcas batted her hand away and burrowed deeper into the blankets. Lindy stripped them off the bed and shook him again. No response. Next, she tried to take Arcas’ pillow, but found that the Phantasm simply refused to let go.
Finally, Lindy decided to use the waking tactic she had developed for use on her own daughter. She gripped the underside of the mattress, and lifted, sending Arcas to the floor in a heap.
The Dragonslayer put one arm up on the bed, and pulled himself off the floor, glaring at Lindy.
“You don’t have to be so rough, you know. I would have been out of bed soon.”
Lindy replied, her old command skills coming back to her. “While you’re in my house, and learning magic from me, you’ll live by MY rules. Understand?”
Arcas muttered a reply.
“I can’t hear you.”
“I said, yes ma’am.”
“Good. Now go get showered and dressed.”
Arcas left the room, carrying a set of clothes with him. As he did, Lindy hurried back to her own room, where she showered and dressed. She then headed down to the kitchen, and began to prepare breakfast.
Meanwhile, Arcas was still in the shower, letting the warm water run over his body in an attempt to wake himself fully. As he cleaned himself up, he wondered about his decision to learn Mid-magic. Should I have really come here? Am I learning magic to help out the squad, or just to salve my own pride? The Dragonslayer shook his head, trying to rid himself of the notion that it was inadequacy that had brought him to this decision. Well, they say that time tells all, so by the end, I should have my answer. With that, Arcas turned off the water, and stepped from the shower. After drying himself, he pulled on his clothes, and made his way to the kitchen.
After breakfast, Lindy contacted a TSAB outpost on Earth, where they could spend their days training. Once they had gathered all the necessary materials, the two transferred to the outpost.
Arcas and Lindy appeared within the facility, and were promptly escorted to a training room where they could work. After they engaged their Jacket and Armor, and Arcas had prepped Apalis, Lindy turned to him.
“So, where do you want to start?”
“For now, let’s just do some basics – nothing complicated, just getting used to a different style.”
For the next five hours, Lindy and Arcas worked on basic control of Mid-magic. Arcas was relieved to learn that defensive and movement magics relied on the same skills he had acquired with Neo-Velkan magic, and therefore the only category where he would be starting from zero would be offensive spells. Then, it was time to break for lunch.
Arcas and Lindy talked as they ate their food.
“I have to tell you, Arcas, in all my years with the Bureau, I’ve never seen someone be able to pick up magic as fast as you can.”
“Thanks for the compliment, but let’s not forget that these are just the basics. Things are only going to get harder from here on in.”
“True. But remember, once you have the concepts down, it’s just a matter of practice and application to improve.”
“‘Practice and application.’ You won’t believe how many times I’ve heard that from your son.”
“Chrono-kun’s a living example of that.”
Arcas nodded, then paused. “You know, if we manage to pull this off, you write one of those Dummies books.”
Lindy laughed. “I could, couldn’t I? Lindy Hallaoun: TSAB Admiral, housewife, and now bestselling author!”
The two broke down into laughter as they considered the absurdity of it.
After lunch, Arcas and Lindy had returned to the training room, ready to begin their afternoon session. After a quick discussion (and a little begging), it was decided that Arcas would face off against three Enforcers for actual combat experience.
The Enforcers engaged their Barrier Jackets and Storage Devices, and then the battle began.
Arcas spent the first two minutes of battle evading and blocking the mage’s spells. This is looking all too familiar… Arcas thought. I need a way break out of this entrapment. Arcas promptly analyzed the mages’ battle strategy and formation. Two mid-range attackers up front, with one long-range attacker in back. If I try and get too close, all three will be firing at me. On the other hand, I simply can’t sit back and use range to my advantage either – the mid-range mages will see the spell coming and block it with a shield. The only way for me to win, Arcas concluded, is to break up their defensive formation. But how to do that? Arcas only had a few spells currently available, and none were specialized to pierce defenses. Of those spells, one is a standard Buster-type attack – that’s out. I either need control of speed in order to break up the formation. Arcas deliberated for another ten seconds, and promptly made his choice. Arcas flew backwards, putting some range between himself and the Enforcers.
“All right, Apalis. It’s time to see what we’ve learned.”
[Yes, Sir.]
“Apalis, Triple Load.”
[Load Cartridge.] Apalis promptly ejected three cartridges. [Ready.]
Arcas launched his first offensive spell of the session. “Blazing Snipe!”
With that command, a long, crimson bolt of energy flew forth from the Device, headed towards the mages. As predicted, a pair of shields was deployed to intercept the spell. But Arcas had counted on that, and sent the spell swinging wide in from the left. The mages repositioned their shields to intercept the controlled magic shot, only to fall into Arcas’ trap.
“Do it, Apalis!”
[Flare Arrow.]
The shot spiraled upward quickly, and fired itself downwards, into the middle of the defensive position. The shot exploded, scattering the mages. While they were unharmed, their defensive position was now broken. Arcas wasted no time in taking advantage of the disoriented mages.
“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust!”
[Flame Buster.]
The long range mage managed to react the fastest – he saw the massive column of fire incoming and promptly turned tail, flying like hell. The Buster slammed into one Enforcer’s auto-guard magic full force, and clipped the other. Once the smoke cleared, one Enforcer had his staff over his head in both hands, signaling that he had been ‘eliminated.’ The other mid-range Enforcer, however, bombarded Arcas’ position with a Crossfire Shoot. Arcas responded immediately.
“Scatter all to the winds, Apalis!”
[Whirlwind,] the Device intoned. It ejected another three cartridges, and a cone of wind issued forth from Apalis’ tip, sending the shots wide once intercepted by the high speed winds. Arcas then issued another command.
“Let none escape!” With that, the wind disappeared, only to reappear around the remaining mid-range mage, binding him. Arcas then flew up and pointed Apalis at him.
“Bang. You’re dead.”
The wind died, and the mage returned to the ground with his companion. Arcas then whirled around to confront the long-range mage… only to see an incoming attack. “Apalis!” The Device ejected two cartridges, then spoke.
[Afterburner.]
Arcas rocketed at full speed out of the path, only for the shot to change direction and follow him. A controlled shot magic… only way to stop it is to distract the shooter… Arcas spotted the mage, and executed an Immelmann turn to evade the pursuing attack.
The Dragonslayer flew straight at the mage, the shot hot on his heels.
“Okay, Apalis, when I give the word, slam on the brakes.”
[Yes, Sir.]
Arcas looked over his shoulder, once, twice, three times. “Now, Apalis!”
[Full Stop.]
Arcas was jerked to a halt, and the magical attack blew right by him, headed for its user. The mage saw the incoming assault and evaded, the shot exploding against the wall. The Enforcer jerked his head up, only to be met with a crimson glow. Slowly, he raised his staff over his head, and proceeded down to the floor, followed by Arcas.
The lead Enforcer, who had used the Crossfire Shoot against the Dragonslayer, offered his hand.
“Congrats, kid. For a beginner, you sure taught the three of us a lesson.”
“Thanks, but I was very fortunate.”
“Fortune favors the bold, kid. Don’t forget that.”
Lindy ran out onto the floor and tackle-hugged Arcas.
“Stars and Spells, Arcas, you WON! Against three veteran Enforcers, no less! We may be writing that book sooner than you think!”
Location: The Home of Adm. Lindy Hallaoun, Uminari City, Japan, The 97th Non-Administrated World, Earth
Time: 2000 MST (Local Equivalent)
After a few more sparring sessions, and some pointers from Lindy, the pair returned to the Hallaoun residence for the evening. While Lindy was still in peak condition, Arcas was absolutely exhausted. After showering and changing clothes, Arcas promptly flopped down onto the couch. Lindy had just loaded another movie into the player, and was headed into the kitchen to prepare dinner.
“Arcas, be a gentleman and help a girl make dinner, will you?”
Arcas groaned, but left the couch and proceeded into the kitchen.
“You know that I have absolutely no cooking skills whatsoever.”
“Now, now, you know that that’s not true…”
“It’s absolutely true! Lindy, when I got up the other day to have breakfast, I ate meatloaf. MEATLOAF! And not even straight meatloaf! I had a meatloaf sandwich, and used pancakes as bread! Now does THAT sound like someone with anything resembling cooking skills?!”
“Well then,” Lindy said, handing Arcas a large pot. “We’ll just have to change that. You can start by boiling water.”
“What exactly are we making?” Arcas asked as he filled the pot with water.
“Well, since you need practice, we’ll just make spaghetti – it’s simple enough, and the only way you can REALLY ruin it is by turning it into charcoal, which won’t happen.”
Under Lindy’s watchful eye, Arcas did manage to make dinner for the both of them without ruining anything. After dinner, they headed back to the living room and settled into the couch for the night’s movie.
“So, what do we have tonight?”
“You’re going to like this – it’s the sequel to what we watched last night.”
“Another ‘Alien’ movie? Just how many did they make?”
“Five, at last count.”
“And this is just number TWO? We’re not watching ALL of them, are we?”
“No – just the original three.”
With that, Lindy started the sci-fi action movie.
During the movie, despite Arcas’ interest in seeing how Earth people depicted this “Alien,” he started nodding off, a result of his intensive training session that day. Lindy noticed this, and paused the movie.
“Are you alright?”
“I’m fine,” the Dragonslayer responded. “Just tired is all.”
“Do you want to lie down?”
“Can I?”
“Sure,” Lindy replied, wondering why Arcas had asked permission. She soon discovered why – Arcas stretched out on the couch, laying his head in Lindy’s lap. Arcas looked up at the Admiral.
“This is okay, right?”
“It’s fine,” Lindy smiled. “Unexpected, but fine.” With that, she resumed the movie.
Once the movie was over, the two talked about their favorite parts.
“…can’t deny the awesomeness of that scene, Lindy. The Queen standing over Newt and Bishop, and then the doors slowly open to reveal Ripley in that power suit – the scene is just pure win right there.”
“Agreed, but I liked that scene in the Med Lab better – it showed that Ripley uses her head in a desperate situation.”
“True.”
After finishing their discussion about the movie, they sat quietly, with Arcas’ head in Lindy’s lap. Arcas then let out a sigh. Lindy picked up on it, and proceeded with that knowledge.
“Ara, ara, that was an awfully heavy sigh, Arcas? Something on your mind?”
“It’s – it’s nothing,” he replied, doing his best to face away from Lindy’s knowing smile.
“It’s the girl, isn’t it? You miss her.”
Internally, parts of Arcas’ brain waged war. Come on, one part exclaimed, this is Lindy! Ever since you joined the Tripartite, she’s practically been your mother! And you’re on Earth, far, far away from the prying eyes of your comrades and any would-be matchmakers. You can be honest with her!
Right, another part stated. Tell her how you feel, so that she can make your life miserable too by playing matchmaker.
She wouldn’t do that! Lindy was happily married once, she knows that love isn’t something that can be forced or rushed! If anything, she’d help by keeping Hayate and the others off your back!
This coming from the one who thought that helping Hayate by squeezing into a pair of LEATHER PANTS was a GOOD thing!
ENOUGH! Arcas mentally shouted. I’m in charge here! I decide what to say and what to keep secret! The Dragonslayer then responded to Lindy’s question, looking up into her warm, motherly expression.
“Is it obvious?”
Lindy giggled. “I was once in love too, you know.”
“It’s just that – I know she’s only a friend, but…”
“You can’t help it; you miss her.”
“Yeah,” Arcas replied shyly.
“So, tell me about her!”
“Didn’t Fate already tell you about her?”
“All I got from Fate was her name, that you like her, and that she thinks you two would make a cute couple.”
Arcas said nothing, but blushed in response.
“Is she pretty?”
Go on, you nimrod, be honest!
“Prettiest girl in the whole galaxy.”
“Is she nice?”
“Nicer than an angel,” Arcas responded. As he responded to Lindy’s questions, Arcas felt a pleasant warmth spread through his chest. This wasn’t like when Boomer or the Aces teased him about Mel – that was an embarrassed warmth. This was gentle, comforting. Then, Lindy asked THE question:
“Do you love her?”
Arcas paused a moment.
“Do you promise not to tell a soul?”
“I promise.”
“Not even Fate?”
“Not even Fate.” Arcas beckoned to her, and Lindy bent down, only to hear Arcas whisper ever so softly:
“With all my heart.”
Lindy smiled, then sat up, putting her hands together in front of her face, as if she was praying. She paused for a moment, then asked of the Dragonslayer:
“Because – I just can’t. I mean – what if she says no? What if she doesn’t like me that?”
“Arcas,” she replied, trying to reassure him. “Any girl with half a brain in her head would like you! You’re kind. You’re devoted. You’re honest – what more could a girl ask for?”
“But I just – I –” Arcas stammered. “I couldn’t take it if she said no.”
Lindy scooted over next to him and wrapped an arm around him, stroking his back. “But don’t you want to know how she really feels?”
“More than anything.”
“Then you’re going to have to take some risks – nothing ventured, nothing gained, as the Earth saying goes.”
“But how would I do that?”
“Simple. You find some sort of occasion to celebrate, and then you ask her out to dinner.”
“Ask Mel on a date? I don’t know…”
“It’s not a date,” Lindy clarified. “It’s just dinner between two friends, nothing romantic about it.”
“So, it’s just two friends, having a good time.”
“Now you’ve got it! When you get nervous, or others tease you, just remind yourself: it’s just dinner.”
“It’s just dinner.”
“So, the next chance you get, what are you going to do?”
“I’m going to ask Mel out to dinner.”
“Good.” Lindy looked over at the clock. “We should be getting to bed – there’s still plenty of work to be done.”
“Indeed.”
And with that, the Dragonslayer and the Admiral ended their first day…
And what better way to do that with the first chapter of my Leryk fic, "Seven Days."
Enjoy!
Spoiler for Seven Days, Part I:
Location: The Home of Adm. Lindy Hallaoun, Uminari City, Japan, The 97th Non-Administrated World, Earth
Time: 0730 MST (Local Equivalent)
Lindy Hallaoun’s alarm clock beeped loudly, and the TSAB Admiral reached over to turn it off. As she looked at the time, she wondered: Why am I getting up so early? She then remembered her visitor from last night. That’s right – Arcas came by, wanting to learn Mid-magic, and I agreed to teach him.
With that in mind, Lindy headed down the hall to what used to be Chrono’s old room to wake Arcas. She found the Dragonslayer sprawled out over the bed, and promptly tried to wake him, shaking him at first. Arcas batted her hand away and burrowed deeper into the blankets. Lindy stripped them off the bed and shook him again. No response. Next, she tried to take Arcas’ pillow, but found that the Phantasm simply refused to let go.
Finally, Lindy decided to use the waking tactic she had developed for use on her own daughter. She gripped the underside of the mattress, and lifted, sending Arcas to the floor in a heap.
The Dragonslayer put one arm up on the bed, and pulled himself off the floor, glaring at Lindy.
“You don’t have to be so rough, you know. I would have been out of bed soon.”
Lindy replied, her old command skills coming back to her. “While you’re in my house, and learning magic from me, you’ll live by MY rules. Understand?”
Arcas muttered a reply.
“I can’t hear you.”
“I said, yes ma’am.”
“Good. Now go get showered and dressed.”
Arcas left the room, carrying a set of clothes with him. As he did, Lindy hurried back to her own room, where she showered and dressed. She then headed down to the kitchen, and began to prepare breakfast.
Meanwhile, Arcas was still in the shower, letting the warm water run over his body in an attempt to wake himself fully. As he cleaned himself up, he wondered about his decision to learn Mid-magic. Should I have really come here? Am I learning magic to help out the squad, or just to salve my own pride? The Dragonslayer shook his head, trying to rid himself of the notion that it was inadequacy that had brought him to this decision. Well, they say that time tells all, so by the end, I should have my answer. With that, Arcas turned off the water, and stepped from the shower. After drying himself, he pulled on his clothes, and made his way to the kitchen.
After breakfast, Lindy contacted a TSAB outpost on Earth, where they could spend their days training. Once they had gathered all the necessary materials, the two transferred to the outpost.
Arcas and Lindy appeared within the facility, and were promptly escorted to a training room where they could work. After they engaged their Jacket and Armor, and Arcas had prepped Apalis, Lindy turned to him.
“So, where do you want to start?”
“For now, let’s just do some basics – nothing complicated, just getting used to a different style.”
For the next five hours, Lindy and Arcas worked on basic control of Mid-magic. Arcas was relieved to learn that defensive and movement magics relied on the same skills he had acquired with Neo-Velkan magic, and therefore the only category where he would be starting from zero would be offensive spells. Then, it was time to break for lunch.
Arcas and Lindy talked as they ate their food.
“I have to tell you, Arcas, in all my years with the Bureau, I’ve never seen someone be able to pick up magic as fast as you can.”
“Thanks for the compliment, but let’s not forget that these are just the basics. Things are only going to get harder from here on in.”
“True. But remember, once you have the concepts down, it’s just a matter of practice and application to improve.”
“‘Practice and application.’ You won’t believe how many times I’ve heard that from your son.”
“Chrono-kun’s a living example of that.”
Arcas nodded, then paused. “You know, if we manage to pull this off, you write one of those Dummies books.”
Lindy laughed. “I could, couldn’t I? Lindy Hallaoun: TSAB Admiral, housewife, and now bestselling author!”
The two broke down into laughter as they considered the absurdity of it.
After lunch, Arcas and Lindy had returned to the training room, ready to begin their afternoon session. After a quick discussion (and a little begging), it was decided that Arcas would face off against three Enforcers for actual combat experience.
The Enforcers engaged their Barrier Jackets and Storage Devices, and then the battle began.
Arcas spent the first two minutes of battle evading and blocking the mage’s spells. This is looking all too familiar… Arcas thought. I need a way break out of this entrapment. Arcas promptly analyzed the mages’ battle strategy and formation. Two mid-range attackers up front, with one long-range attacker in back. If I try and get too close, all three will be firing at me. On the other hand, I simply can’t sit back and use range to my advantage either – the mid-range mages will see the spell coming and block it with a shield. The only way for me to win, Arcas concluded, is to break up their defensive formation. But how to do that? Arcas only had a few spells currently available, and none were specialized to pierce defenses. Of those spells, one is a standard Buster-type attack – that’s out. I either need control of speed in order to break up the formation. Arcas deliberated for another ten seconds, and promptly made his choice. Arcas flew backwards, putting some range between himself and the Enforcers.
“All right, Apalis. It’s time to see what we’ve learned.”
[Yes, Sir.]
“Apalis, Triple Load.”
[Load Cartridge.] Apalis promptly ejected three cartridges. [Ready.]
Arcas launched his first offensive spell of the session. “Blazing Snipe!”
With that command, a long, crimson bolt of energy flew forth from the Device, headed towards the mages. As predicted, a pair of shields was deployed to intercept the spell. But Arcas had counted on that, and sent the spell swinging wide in from the left. The mages repositioned their shields to intercept the controlled magic shot, only to fall into Arcas’ trap.
“Do it, Apalis!”
[Flare Arrow.]
The shot spiraled upward quickly, and fired itself downwards, into the middle of the defensive position. The shot exploded, scattering the mages. While they were unharmed, their defensive position was now broken. Arcas wasted no time in taking advantage of the disoriented mages.
“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust!”
[Flame Buster.]
The long range mage managed to react the fastest – he saw the massive column of fire incoming and promptly turned tail, flying like hell. The Buster slammed into one Enforcer’s auto-guard magic full force, and clipped the other. Once the smoke cleared, one Enforcer had his staff over his head in both hands, signaling that he had been ‘eliminated.’ The other mid-range Enforcer, however, bombarded Arcas’ position with a Crossfire Shoot. Arcas responded immediately.
“Scatter all to the winds, Apalis!”
[Whirlwind,] the Device intoned. It ejected another three cartridges, and a cone of wind issued forth from Apalis’ tip, sending the shots wide once intercepted by the high speed winds. Arcas then issued another command.
“Let none escape!” With that, the wind disappeared, only to reappear around the remaining mid-range mage, binding him. Arcas then flew up and pointed Apalis at him.
“Bang. You’re dead.”
The wind died, and the mage returned to the ground with his companion. Arcas then whirled around to confront the long-range mage… only to see an incoming attack. “Apalis!” The Device ejected two cartridges, then spoke.
[Afterburner.]
Arcas rocketed at full speed out of the path, only for the shot to change direction and follow him. A controlled shot magic… only way to stop it is to distract the shooter… Arcas spotted the mage, and executed an Immelmann turn to evade the pursuing attack.
The Dragonslayer flew straight at the mage, the shot hot on his heels.
“Okay, Apalis, when I give the word, slam on the brakes.”
[Yes, Sir.]
Arcas looked over his shoulder, once, twice, three times. “Now, Apalis!”
[Full Stop.]
Arcas was jerked to a halt, and the magical attack blew right by him, headed for its user. The mage saw the incoming assault and evaded, the shot exploding against the wall. The Enforcer jerked his head up, only to be met with a crimson glow. Slowly, he raised his staff over his head, and proceeded down to the floor, followed by Arcas.
The lead Enforcer, who had used the Crossfire Shoot against the Dragonslayer, offered his hand.
“Congrats, kid. For a beginner, you sure taught the three of us a lesson.”
“Thanks, but I was very fortunate.”
“Fortune favors the bold, kid. Don’t forget that.”
Lindy ran out onto the floor and tackle-hugged Arcas.
“Stars and Spells, Arcas, you WON! Against three veteran Enforcers, no less! We may be writing that book sooner than you think!”
Location: The Home of Adm. Lindy Hallaoun, Uminari City, Japan, The 97th Non-Administrated World, Earth
Time: 2000 MST (Local Equivalent)
After a few more sparring sessions, and some pointers from Lindy, the pair returned to the Hallaoun residence for the evening. While Lindy was still in peak condition, Arcas was absolutely exhausted. After showering and changing clothes, Arcas promptly flopped down onto the couch. Lindy had just loaded another movie into the player, and was headed into the kitchen to prepare dinner.
“Arcas, be a gentleman and help a girl make dinner, will you?”
Arcas groaned, but left the couch and proceeded into the kitchen.
“You know that I have absolutely no cooking skills whatsoever.”
“Now, now, you know that that’s not true…”
“It’s absolutely true! Lindy, when I got up the other day to have breakfast, I ate meatloaf. MEATLOAF! And not even straight meatloaf! I had a meatloaf sandwich, and used pancakes as bread! Now does THAT sound like someone with anything resembling cooking skills?!”
“Well then,” Lindy said, handing Arcas a large pot. “We’ll just have to change that. You can start by boiling water.”
“What exactly are we making?” Arcas asked as he filled the pot with water.
“Well, since you need practice, we’ll just make spaghetti – it’s simple enough, and the only way you can REALLY ruin it is by turning it into charcoal, which won’t happen.”
Under Lindy’s watchful eye, Arcas did manage to make dinner for the both of them without ruining anything. After dinner, they headed back to the living room and settled into the couch for the night’s movie.
“So, what do we have tonight?”
“You’re going to like this – it’s the sequel to what we watched last night.”
“Another ‘Alien’ movie? Just how many did they make?”
“Five, at last count.”
“And this is just number TWO? We’re not watching ALL of them, are we?”
“No – just the original three.”
With that, Lindy started the sci-fi action movie.
During the movie, despite Arcas’ interest in seeing how Earth people depicted this “Alien,” he started nodding off, a result of his intensive training session that day. Lindy noticed this, and paused the movie.
“Are you alright?”
“I’m fine,” the Dragonslayer responded. “Just tired is all.”
“Do you want to lie down?”
“Can I?”
“Sure,” Lindy replied, wondering why Arcas had asked permission. She soon discovered why – Arcas stretched out on the couch, laying his head in Lindy’s lap. Arcas looked up at the Admiral.
“This is okay, right?”
“It’s fine,” Lindy smiled. “Unexpected, but fine.” With that, she resumed the movie.
Once the movie was over, the two talked about their favorite parts.
“…can’t deny the awesomeness of that scene, Lindy. The Queen standing over Newt and Bishop, and then the doors slowly open to reveal Ripley in that power suit – the scene is just pure win right there.”
“Agreed, but I liked that scene in the Med Lab better – it showed that Ripley uses her head in a desperate situation.”
“True.”
After finishing their discussion about the movie, they sat quietly, with Arcas’ head in Lindy’s lap. Arcas then let out a sigh. Lindy picked up on it, and proceeded with that knowledge.
“Ara, ara, that was an awfully heavy sigh, Arcas? Something on your mind?”
“It’s – it’s nothing,” he replied, doing his best to face away from Lindy’s knowing smile.
“It’s the girl, isn’t it? You miss her.”
Internally, parts of Arcas’ brain waged war. Come on, one part exclaimed, this is Lindy! Ever since you joined the Tripartite, she’s practically been your mother! And you’re on Earth, far, far away from the prying eyes of your comrades and any would-be matchmakers. You can be honest with her!
Right, another part stated. Tell her how you feel, so that she can make your life miserable too by playing matchmaker.
She wouldn’t do that! Lindy was happily married once, she knows that love isn’t something that can be forced or rushed! If anything, she’d help by keeping Hayate and the others off your back!
This coming from the one who thought that helping Hayate by squeezing into a pair of LEATHER PANTS was a GOOD thing!
ENOUGH! Arcas mentally shouted. I’m in charge here! I decide what to say and what to keep secret! The Dragonslayer then responded to Lindy’s question, looking up into her warm, motherly expression.
“Is it obvious?”
Lindy giggled. “I was once in love too, you know.”
“It’s just that – I know she’s only a friend, but…”
“You can’t help it; you miss her.”
“Yeah,” Arcas replied shyly.
“So, tell me about her!”
“Didn’t Fate already tell you about her?”
“All I got from Fate was her name, that you like her, and that she thinks you two would make a cute couple.”
Arcas said nothing, but blushed in response.
“Is she pretty?”
Go on, you nimrod, be honest!
“Prettiest girl in the whole galaxy.”
“Is she nice?”
“Nicer than an angel,” Arcas responded. As he responded to Lindy’s questions, Arcas felt a pleasant warmth spread through his chest. This wasn’t like when Boomer or the Aces teased him about Mel – that was an embarrassed warmth. This was gentle, comforting. Then, Lindy asked THE question:
“Do you love her?”
Arcas paused a moment.
“Do you promise not to tell a soul?”
“I promise.”
“Not even Fate?”
“Not even Fate.” Arcas beckoned to her, and Lindy bent down, only to hear Arcas whisper ever so softly:
“With all my heart.”
Lindy smiled, then sat up, putting her hands together in front of her face, as if she was praying. She paused for a moment, then asked of the Dragonslayer:
“Because – I just can’t. I mean – what if she says no? What if she doesn’t like me that?”
“Arcas,” she replied, trying to reassure him. “Any girl with half a brain in her head would like you! You’re kind. You’re devoted. You’re honest – what more could a girl ask for?”
“But I just – I –” Arcas stammered. “I couldn’t take it if she said no.”
Lindy scooted over next to him and wrapped an arm around him, stroking his back. “But don’t you want to know how she really feels?”
“More than anything.”
“Then you’re going to have to take some risks – nothing ventured, nothing gained, as the Earth saying goes.”
“But how would I do that?”
“Simple. You find some sort of occasion to celebrate, and then you ask her out to dinner.”
“Ask Mel on a date? I don’t know…”
“It’s not a date,” Lindy clarified. “It’s just dinner between two friends, nothing romantic about it.”
“So, it’s just two friends, having a good time.”
“Now you’ve got it! When you get nervous, or others tease you, just remind yourself: it’s just dinner.”
“It’s just dinner.”
“So, the next chance you get, what are you going to do?”
“I’m going to ask Mel out to dinner.”
“Good.” Lindy looked over at the clock. “We should be getting to bed – there’s still plenty of work to be done.”
“Indeed.”
And with that, the Dragonslayer and the Admiral ended their first day…
Part II to be up in the next day or two!
Lindy screen-time!
Though... Didn't the whole crew (minus Takamachi familly) move to Mid-Childa after the Aces started working full-time? I recall Hayate and the knights doing so, at least. I'd be surprised if Lindy was the only one staying behind.
I'm quite positive that magical damage can also kill. I don't think it was stated to be 100% non-lethal.
= = =
OK, I got a little bored waiting for canon plot to move forth, so I've come up with some post-StrikerS things. The following may be considered raw preview pieces and will probably be subject to editing. I've took liberty of using a couple of other's OCs, though nothing important happened character-wise so far, I'll ask permission if anything serious comes to my mind.
Spoiler for Preview:
When Kha entered the briefing office the light was already put out and everybody sat at their places. The call was too sudden and despite his best efforts to get here as soon as possible it seemed like he was the last to arrive. He reached one of the free places trying not to attract too much attention to the rare fact of him being late.
“Well, all are assembled at last,” – the voice sounded familiar but it was too dark to determine the looks of the person standing near the large screen on the opposite wall, - “I think we can start now.”
The screen turned on and revealed the man’s face.
“Head Investigator Romardo?” – There were few things that could surprise Kha but this was the face he expected the least to see at such a meeting, - “What could bring you here?”
“It is Director Romardo, please,” – the man smiled in his usual way when it was impossible to say whether he was honest or faked his friendliness, - “Long time no see, I guess.”
= = =
“Their real names are unknown, and they’ve shown no intention to communicate with anybody so far. We’ve labeled the first one Sirius.”
The screen blinked and showed new information.
Spoiler for Sirius:
Codename: Sirius
Name: unknown
Magic Style: unknown
Specialization: melee combat
Estimated Threat Level: SS
Information:
Sirius was the first of the three to be seen. Till recently his actions had seemingly no particular pattern. In a short period of time he was involved in assassinations of political and military leaders, attacks on army bases and depots, Lost Logia thievery and others. Anybody who opposed Sirius directly was mercilessly killed. Despite his exceptional combat skills he frequently failed to achieve what seemed to be his goals, prioritizing fighting his immediate opponents.
Sirius was never seen to be using any known kind of magic. Despite that his physical strength, speed and agility can not be even compared to human. In any encounter he was either able to avoid every single shot fired at him or counter them bare-handed. His running speed easily matched the users of Sonic Move, and though he never demonstrated an ability to fly his jumps proved to be more than enough to compensate for it.
All attempts to use binding magic on Sirius appeared ineffective. Whether it was solely caused by his physical strength or willpower is unclear. Also no means of physical or magical defense which were tried against Sirius were able to withstand his attacks. There is a confirmed case of him punching directly through RG Avatar’s Lambda field defense and Phase Shift armor, killing its pilot in the process.
Until his recent reappearance Sirius was missing for three weeks after the encounter with Intelligence Department’s special force assembled specifically to confront him. The following file contains the event’s footage.
= = =
“Before starting any discussions on this case I would like to finish the presentation,” – Director Romardo raised his voice.
“Does he even have a heart?” – Somebody whispered at the back seats.
“I’ve heard that it’s made of gold. Literally,” – was the answer.
“So,” – Serge continued, - “The second of them was labeled Rigel.”
Spoiler for Rigel:
Codename: Rigel
Name: unknown
Magic Style: unknown
Specialization: summoning (?), ranged magic
Estimated Threat Level: SS
Information:
Rigel was mostly seen in the absence of Sirius during the last month. Unlike him she showed close to no interest in fighting, preferring to accomplish her goals as soon as possible and withdraw after that.
Rigel rarely performs any actions personally, relying on the creatures or constructs she summons (?): huge humanoid suits of black armor she calls forth immediately as she appears on the scene. Judging from footage her servants are most probably advanced autonomous machines, but it can only be confirmed after studying one of them closely.
The servants are armed with some kind of devices mounted on their arms which serve as basis for almost transparent extensions of their surface. The transparent parts possess the ability to take shape of either a long sword or a massive shield, capable of completely covering the user’s body. The swords have immense cutting power at both magical and physical levels, while the shields have similar defensive qualities. The material of the weapons doesn’t resemble anything known at this moment. The servants didn’t show any signs of being able to use magic. Though some servants were taken down during the encounters none could be salvaged, as they were immediately unsummoned (?) the same way they appeared.
Any direct attack against Rigel herself is always countered by several servants she keeps around her. There was a single case of Rigel using her own offensive magic. There were no survivors left but the event’s footage was preserved and is available in the following file.
= = =
“Lastly, the third one was labeled Cygnus.”
The screen blinked again but this time there was no clear picture. It was barely possible to notice a hooded figure floating in the air.
“What does this mean?” – Asked Keroko, - “Weren’t the previous pictures of decent quality?”
“That’s what I’d like to understand myself,” – Intelligence Department’s Director sounded a little ashamed, - “No matter what we tried this is the best quality we could get. The only way to see … err, him … better is to look with your own eyes. Otherwise something always corrupts the records. And there was also another thing about Cygnus.”
Serge turned to face Kha.
“I would like to ask you, my friend, to pay special attention to the following footage. Cygnus never performed any actions himself, only observed the work of Sirius and Rigel from afar, so we decided to take initiative. One of the mages was ordered to snipe him with a Buster spell, and here’s what came out of it.”
The picture on the screen changed, following the turning of the camera. As soon as Cygnus wasn’t seen anymore it regained former quality, causing several constrained cries of astonishment from the audience. Now the mage charging his Buster was shown. Despite some expectations nothing prevented him from shooting and the glowing beam of magical energy rushed towards its target. Everybody watched in anticipation of the moment when the beam should reach the hooded person. The camera kept him out of the screen to preserve image’s quality but the estimated distance was constantly being shown in the upper right corner. At the distance of 10 meters the beam suddenly dove into the wreaths of dark blood-colored mist. The camera zoomed out and revealed a spinning vortex rapidly swallowing the beam up.
“That is ..!” – Kha jumped up from his place, - “A gateway to the Warp!”
“Now tell me, der Kleriker,” – on the screen behind Serge’s back the vortex quickly disappeared as soon as the beam was completely gone, - “Who do you think can open and close a stable gateway at will?”
= = =
“So instead of making things go against their plan you propose to do just what they’re pressing for?”
“Exactly so! We’ll never be able to counter them properly if they keep that random tactic. This is the only way to make them strike where we’ll be expecting them.”
= = =
The plan was extremely risky at best. We still knew too little about the enemy. But we’ve gathered our elite here, so we had no right to back off. Now we could only wait.
That's basically a prologue to what I'm planning to write after the end of current series (I'll need to know what characters will remain available ). Comments are appreciated. Also a question to the supervisors over WH40K references - may I add some diversity to the hierarchy among Daemons? (bringing a bit of order into Chaos )
That's basically a prologue to what I'm planning to write after the end of current series (I'll need to know what characters will remain available ). Comments are appreciated. Also a question to the supervisors over WH40K references - may I add some diversity to the hierarchy among Daemons? (bringing a bit of order into Chaos )
I'm not sure I understand what you mean, can you expand on that a bit?
Name: Clyde Haralown Age: 13 Gender: Male Blood Type: A Hair colour: Navy Eyes colour: Blue Date of Birth: 22nd April Homeworld: Mid-Childa
Department assigned:
- Mid-Childa Armed Corp, First Encounter and Response unit
- Mobile Division, Riot Force Three
- Counter-Terrorism Division, Crisis Force Two
Rank/Position: Enforcer (Captain), Field Operations Commander
Magic Type: Mid-Childan Magic Rank: AAA+ Magic Circle Colour: Blue Device Name: Cortana Device Type : Storage, Staff-Spear Hybrid type
Military History
Signed up for military services at the age of 10. Exceeded expectations in cadet training within just under six months, and was immediately assigned to an experimental special task force unit in the Mid-Childan Armed Corps.
The unit’s missions involve being the first to be sent in to deal with extremely hostile territories with very little to no intelligence of the situation. For the next 1 ½ years, he and his unit were being sent to several administrative words to contain military up-rising and potentially apocalyptic crisis, as well as securing many alien worlds for the Bureau to colonized.
In his third year of service, he was approached by Admiral Gil Graham with a request for him to join the Dimensional Counter-Terrorism Division that the Navy was about to form. Accepting this proposal, Haralown was transferred back to Mid-Childa and was assigned to mobile division Riot Force Three (RF3) for the time being. During his stay with RF3, Haralown took this time to further his studies in preparation for his Enforcer examination which Admiral Graham applied for him.
One year later he finally completed the examination and was made Enforcer. Soon after, Graham’s own the Counter-Terrorism unit was established. Code-named as Crisis Force Two (CF2), this unit has been tasked with the confiscation and decommission of conventional, chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons, as well as the arrest of the traffickers involve. Though not an immediate priority, CF2 has also been granted permission to handle any Lost Logia related incident, should there be a situation where no Riot Force unit could be reached.
Enforcer Haralown was just recently transferred to Crisis Force Two.
This is a deeper report on Lindy's profile.
Let me know if I've used the wrong terminology, or if my descriptions were unclear anywhere
Spoiler for size:
Name: Lindy Hisakawa Age: 11 Gender: Female Blood Type: A Hair colour: Teal Eyes colour: Green Date of Birth: 12th November Homeworld: Mid-Childa
Department assigned:
- Air Force Division, 21st Aerial Defense Squadron.
- Counter-Terrorist Division, Crisis Force Two
Rank/Position: Sergeant, Strike Team Leader Magic Type: Mid-Childan Magic Rank: AA Magic Circle Colour: Green Device Name: Joyeuse Device Type : Storage, ‘Wing’ Equipment-type
Military History
Signed up for military services at the age of 8. After being recognized for her impressive flying skills and unique combat abilities, as well as several recommendations from the very reputable Envatilia family, she was immediately accepted into the Mid-Childa Air Force.
Over the course of the next two years, she has been training and serving at Cranagan's First Air Base located just outside the capital city. She was assigned to the Aerial Defense Unit, commonly known as the “Skyguards”, and has been involved in several occasions with the defense of both Ground Center and many residential areas against air assaults lead by radical factions who openly oppose the Administrative Bureau.
The Skyguards has also been working closely with the 11th Naval Fleet guarding the dimensional space around Cranagan. The 21st squadron in particular has been in direct contact with the Inter-dimensional Flagship “Arturia”, captained by the same Commodore Envatilia who had written the recommendation to the Air Force for her. The two divisions shared intel on enemy activities frequently.
Two months ago however, the 21st squadron was on a mission to intercept a nuclear attack on civilian-populated areas as well as several military structures. However, due to faulty intelligence from Ground Center, the entire squadron was lead into an ambushed by the enemy. Though the nuclear crisis was averted, the Skyguards suffered heavy causalities.
Several weeks after the incident, Commodore Envatilia once again stood up and recommended her for the position as a strike team leader for the Navy’s new Counter-Terrorism unit. A position that she had gladly fill.
Sergeant Hisakawa had just recently reported for duties.
A few interesting notes:
- I've decided on 'Hisakawa' as her maiden name. This was taken from the last name of her VA. And a Japanese background like Subaru/Ginga would explain her favor of the japanese culture, though some what distorted
- Her Birthday is also taken from her VA.
- Her device is also named after a legendary sword like Cortana.
- Most of you could probably guess where the name “Arturia” comes from
Though... Didn't the whole crew (minus Takamachi familly) move to Mid-Childa after the Aces started working full-time? I recall Hayate and the knights doing so, at least. I'd be surprised if Lindy was the only one staying behind.
The location of Lindy as mentioned in canon, to my knowledge, was last referenced in the A's Epilogue - which stated that she was staying on Earth. So that's what I'm working with - unless the great Ion Cannon decides to refute me otherwise.
I'm not sure I understand what you mean, can you expand on that a bit?
If you mean my question about WH40K references - I'm asking if it'd be alright if I come up with some sort of hierarchy of Daemons below Chaos Gods or even a couple of lesser gods of my own (well, most probably not completely my own ).
And what better way to do that with the first chapter of my Leryk fic, "Seven Days."
Enjoy!
Spoiler for Seven Days, Part I:
Location: The Home of Adm. Lindy Hallaoun, Uminari City, Japan, The 97th Non-Administrated World, Earth
Time: 0730 MST (Local Equivalent)
Lindy Hallaoun’s alarm clock beeped loudly, and the TSAB Admiral reached over to turn it off. As she looked at the time, she wondered: Why am I getting up so early? She then remembered her visitor from last night. That’s right – Arcas came by, wanting to learn Mid-magic, and I agreed to teach him.
With that in mind, Lindy headed down the hall to what used to be Chrono’s old room to wake Arcas. She found the Dragonslayer sprawled out over the bed, and promptly tried to wake him, shaking him at first. Arcas batted her hand away and burrowed deeper into the blankets. Lindy stripped them off the bed and shook him again. No response. Next, she tried to take Arcas’ pillow, but found that the Phantasm simply refused to let go.
Finally, Lindy decided to use the waking tactic she had developed for use on her own daughter. She gripped the underside of the mattress, and lifted, sending Arcas to the floor in a heap.
The Dragonslayer put one arm up on the bed, and pulled himself off the floor, glaring at Lindy.
“You don’t have to be so rough, you know. I would have been out of bed soon.”
Lindy replied, her old command skills coming back to her. “While you’re in my house, and learning magic from me, you’ll live by MY rules. Understand?”
Arcas muttered a reply.
“I can’t hear you.”
“I said, yes ma’am.”
“Good. Now go get showered and dressed.”
Arcas left the room, carrying a set of clothes with him. As he did, Lindy hurried back to her own room, where she showered and dressed. She then headed down to the kitchen, and began to prepare breakfast.
Meanwhile, Arcas was still in the shower, letting the warm water run over his body in an attempt to wake himself fully. As he cleaned himself up, he wondered about his decision to learn Mid-magic. Should I have really come here? Am I learning magic to help out the squad, or just to salve my own pride? The Dragonslayer shook his head, trying to rid himself of the notion that it was inadequacy that had brought him to this decision. Well, they say that time tells all, so by the end, I should have my answer. With that, Arcas turned off the water, and stepped from the shower. After drying himself, he pulled on his clothes, and made his way to the kitchen.
After breakfast, Lindy contacted a TSAB outpost on Earth, where they could spend their days training. Once they had gathered all the necessary materials, the two transferred to the outpost.
Arcas and Lindy appeared within the facility, and were promptly escorted to a training room where they could work. After they engaged their Jacket and Armor, and Arcas had prepped Apalis, Lindy turned to him.
“So, where do you want to start?”
“For now, let’s just do some basics – nothing complicated, just getting used to a different style.”
For the next five hours, Lindy and Arcas worked on basic control of Mid-magic. Arcas was relieved to learn that defensive and movement magics relied on the same skills he had acquired with Neo-Velkan magic, and therefore the only category where he would be starting from zero would be offensive spells. Then, it was time to break for lunch.
Arcas and Lindy talked as they ate their food.
“I have to tell you, Arcas, in all my years with the Bureau, I’ve never seen someone be able to pick up magic as fast as you can.”
“Thanks for the compliment, but let’s not forget that these are just the basics. Things are only going to get harder from here on in.”
“True. But remember, once you have the concepts down, it’s just a matter of practice and application to improve.”
“‘Practice and application.’ You won’t believe how many times I’ve heard that from your son.”
“Chrono-kun’s a living example of that.”
Arcas nodded, then paused. “You know, if we manage to pull this off, you write one of those Dummies books.”
Lindy laughed. “I could, couldn’t I? Lindy Hallaoun: TSAB Admiral, housewife, and now bestselling author!”
The two broke down into laughter as they considered the absurdity of it.
After lunch, Arcas and Lindy had returned to the training room, ready to begin their afternoon session. After a quick discussion (and a little begging), it was decided that Arcas would face off against three Enforcers for actual combat experience.
The Enforcers engaged their Barrier Jackets and Storage Devices, and then the battle began.
Arcas spent the first two minutes of battle evading and blocking the mage’s spells. This is looking all too familiar… Arcas thought. I need a way break out of this entrapment. Arcas promptly analyzed the mages’ battle strategy and formation. Two mid-range attackers up front, with one long-range attacker in back. If I try and get too close, all three will be firing at me. On the other hand, I simply can’t sit back and use range to my advantage either – the mid-range mages will see the spell coming and block it with a shield. The only way for me to win, Arcas concluded, is to break up their defensive formation. But how to do that? Arcas only had a few spells currently available, and none were specialized to pierce defenses. Of those spells, one is a standard Buster-type attack – that’s out. I either need control of speed in order to break up the formation. Arcas deliberated for another ten seconds, and promptly made his choice. Arcas flew backwards, putting some range between himself and the Enforcers.
“All right, Apalis. It’s time to see what we’ve learned.”
[Yes, Sir.]
“Apalis, Triple Load.”
[Load Cartridge.] Apalis promptly ejected three cartridges. [Ready.]
Arcas launched his first offensive spell of the session. “Blazing Snipe!”
With that command, a long, crimson bolt of energy flew forth from the Device, headed towards the mages. As predicted, a pair of shields was deployed to intercept the spell. But Arcas had counted on that, and sent the spell swinging wide in from the left. The mages repositioned their shields to intercept the controlled magic shot, only to fall into Arcas’ trap.
“Do it, Apalis!”
[Flare Arrow.]
The shot spiraled upward quickly, and fired itself downwards, into the middle of the defensive position. The shot exploded, scattering the mages. While they were unharmed, their defensive position was now broken. Arcas wasted no time in taking advantage of the disoriented mages.
“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust!”
[Flame Buster.]
The long range mage managed to react the fastest – he saw the massive column of fire incoming and promptly turned tail, flying like hell. The Buster slammed into one Enforcer’s auto-guard magic full force, and clipped the other. Once the smoke cleared, one Enforcer had his staff over his head in both hands, signaling that he had been ‘eliminated.’ The other mid-range Enforcer, however, bombarded Arcas’ position with a Crossfire Shoot. Arcas responded immediately.
“Scatter all to the winds, Apalis!”
[Whirlwind,] the Device intoned. It ejected another three cartridges, and a cone of wind issued forth from Apalis’ tip, sending the shots wide once intercepted by the high speed winds. Arcas then issued another command.
“Let none escape!” With that, the wind disappeared, only to reappear around the remaining mid-range mage, binding him. Arcas then flew up and pointed Apalis at him.
“Bang. You’re dead.”
The wind died, and the mage returned to the ground with his companion. Arcas then whirled around to confront the long-range mage… only to see an incoming attack. “Apalis!” The Device ejected two cartridges, then spoke.
[Afterburner.]
Arcas rocketed at full speed out of the path, only for the shot to change direction and follow him. A controlled shot magic… only way to stop it is to distract the shooter… Arcas spotted the mage, and executed an Immelmann turn to evade the pursuing attack.
The Dragonslayer flew straight at the mage, the shot hot on his heels.
“Okay, Apalis, when I give the word, slam on the brakes.”
[Yes, Sir.]
Arcas looked over his shoulder, once, twice, three times. “Now, Apalis!”
[Full Stop.]
Arcas was jerked to a halt, and the magical attack blew right by him, headed for its user. The mage saw the incoming assault and evaded, the shot exploding against the wall. The Enforcer jerked his head up, only to be met with a crimson glow. Slowly, he raised his staff over his head, and proceeded down to the floor, followed by Arcas.
The lead Enforcer, who had used the Crossfire Shoot against the Dragonslayer, offered his hand.
“Congrats, kid. For a beginner, you sure taught the three of us a lesson.”
“Thanks, but I was very fortunate.”
“Fortune favors the bold, kid. Don’t forget that.”
Lindy ran out onto the floor and tackle-hugged Arcas.
“Stars and Spells, Arcas, you WON! Against three veteran Enforcers, no less! We may be writing that book sooner than you think!”
Location: The Home of Adm. Lindy Hallaoun, Uminari City, Japan, The 97th Non-Administrated World, Earth
Time: 2000 MST (Local Equivalent)
After a few more sparring sessions, and some pointers from Lindy, the pair returned to the Hallaoun residence for the evening. While Lindy was still in peak condition, Arcas was absolutely exhausted. After showering and changing clothes, Arcas promptly flopped down onto the couch. Lindy had just loaded another movie into the player, and was headed into the kitchen to prepare dinner.
“Arcas, be a gentleman and help a girl make dinner, will you?”
Arcas groaned, but left the couch and proceeded into the kitchen.
“You know that I have absolutely no cooking skills whatsoever.”
“Now, now, you know that that’s not true…”
“It’s absolutely true! Lindy, when I got up the other day to have breakfast, I ate meatloaf. MEATLOAF! And not even straight meatloaf! I had a meatloaf sandwich, and used pancakes as bread! Now does THAT sound like someone with anything resembling cooking skills?!”
“Well then,” Lindy said, handing Arcas a large pot. “We’ll just have to change that. You can start by boiling water.”
“What exactly are we making?” Arcas asked as he filled the pot with water.
“Well, since you need practice, we’ll just make spaghetti – it’s simple enough, and the only way you can REALLY ruin it is by turning it into charcoal, which won’t happen.”
Under Lindy’s watchful eye, Arcas did manage to make dinner for the both of them without ruining anything. After dinner, they headed back to the living room and settled into the couch for the night’s movie.
“So, what do we have tonight?”
“You’re going to like this – it’s the sequel to what we watched last night.”
“Another ‘Alien’ movie? Just how many did they make?”
“Five, at last count.”
“And this is just number TWO? We’re not watching ALL of them, are we?”
“No – just the original three.”
With that, Lindy started the sci-fi action movie.
During the movie, despite Arcas’ interest in seeing how Earth people depicted this “Alien,” he started nodding off, a result of his intensive training session that day. Lindy noticed this, and paused the movie.
“Are you alright?”
“I’m fine,” the Dragonslayer responded. “Just tired is all.”
“Do you want to lie down?”
“Can I?”
“Sure,” Lindy replied, wondering why Arcas had asked permission. She soon discovered why – Arcas stretched out on the couch, laying his head in Lindy’s lap. Arcas looked up at the Admiral.
“This is okay, right?”
“It’s fine,” Lindy smiled. “Unexpected, but fine.” With that, she resumed the movie.
Once the movie was over, the two talked about their favorite parts.
“…can’t deny the awesomeness of that scene, Lindy. The Queen standing over Newt and Bishop, and then the doors slowly open to reveal Ripley in that power suit – the scene is just pure win right there.”
“Agreed, but I liked that scene in the Med Lab better – it showed that Ripley uses her head in a desperate situation.”
“True.”
After finishing their discussion about the movie, they sat quietly, with Arcas’ head in Lindy’s lap. Arcas then let out a sigh. Lindy picked up on it, and proceeded with that knowledge.
“Ara, ara, that was an awfully heavy sigh, Arcas? Something on your mind?”
“It’s – it’s nothing,” he replied, doing his best to face away from Lindy’s knowing smile.
“It’s the girl, isn’t it? You miss her.”
Internally, parts of Arcas’ brain waged war. Come on, one part exclaimed, this is Lindy! Ever since you joined the Tripartite, she’s practically been your mother! And you’re on Earth, far, far away from the prying eyes of your comrades and any would-be matchmakers. You can be honest with her!
Right, another part stated. Tell her how you feel, so that she can make your life miserable too by playing matchmaker.
She wouldn’t do that! Lindy was happily married once, she knows that love isn’t something that can be forced or rushed! If anything, she’d help by keeping Hayate and the others off your back!
This coming from the one who thought that helping Hayate by squeezing into a pair of LEATHER PANTS was a GOOD thing!
ENOUGH! Arcas mentally shouted. I’m in charge here! I decide what to say and what to keep secret! The Dragonslayer then responded to Lindy’s question, looking up into her warm, motherly expression.
“Is it obvious?”
Lindy giggled. “I was once in love too, you know.”
“It’s just that – I know she’s only a friend, but…”
“You can’t help it; you miss her.”
“Yeah,” Arcas replied shyly.
“So, tell me about her!”
“Didn’t Fate already tell you about her?”
“All I got from Fate was her name, that you like her, and that she thinks you two would make a cute couple.”
Arcas said nothing, but blushed in response.
“Is she pretty?”
Go on, you nimrod, be honest!
“Prettiest girl in the whole galaxy.”
“Is she nice?”
“Nicer than an angel,” Arcas responded. As he responded to Lindy’s questions, Arcas felt a pleasant warmth spread through his chest. This wasn’t like when Boomer or the Aces teased him about Mel – that was an embarrassed warmth. This was gentle, comforting. Then, Lindy asked THE question:
“Do you love her?”
Arcas paused a moment.
“Do you promise not to tell a soul?”
“I promise.”
“Not even Fate?”
“Not even Fate.” Arcas beckoned to her, and Lindy bent down, only to hear Arcas whisper ever so softly:
“With all my heart.”
Lindy smiled, then sat up, putting her hands together in front of her face, as if she was praying. She paused for a moment, then asked of the Dragonslayer:
“Because – I just can’t. I mean – what if she says no? What if she doesn’t like me that?”
“Arcas,” she replied, trying to reassure him. “Any girl with half a brain in her head would like you! You’re kind. You’re devoted. You’re honest – what more could a girl ask for?”
“But I just – I –” Arcas stammered. “I couldn’t take it if she said no.”
Lindy scooted over next to him and wrapped an arm around him, stroking his back. “But don’t you want to know how she really feels?”
“More than anything.”
“Then you’re going to have to take some risks – nothing ventured, nothing gained, as the Earth saying goes.”
“But how would I do that?”
“Simple. You find some sort of occasion to celebrate, and then you ask her out to dinner.”
“Ask Mel on a date? I don’t know…”
“It’s not a date,” Lindy clarified. “It’s just dinner between two friends, nothing romantic about it.”
“So, it’s just two friends, having a good time.”
“Now you’ve got it! When you get nervous, or others tease you, just remind yourself: it’s just dinner.”
“It’s just dinner.”
“So, the next chance you get, what are you going to do?”
“I’m going to ask Mel out to dinner.”
“Good.” Lindy looked over at the clock. “We should be getting to bed – there’s still plenty of work to be done.”
“Indeed.”
And with that, the Dragonslayer and the Admiral ended their first day…
Part II to be up in the next day or two!
Hey, that was pretty nice, Reiji. The last part of the conversation was very natural, and even though quite "normal", I liked it.
I was rather surprised when Arcas laid his head on Lindy's lap, though.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Keroko
*pouts* You're no fun!
H-Hey! What happened to our Slayers discussion??
Quote:
Originally Posted by An Hero in Disguise
I'm quite positive that magical damage can also kill. I don't think it was stated to be 100% non-lethal.
= = =
OK, I got a little bored waiting for canon plot to move forth, so I've come up with some post-StrikerS things. The following may be considered raw preview pieces and will probably be subject to editing. I've took liberty of using a couple of other's OCs, though nothing important happened character-wise so far, I'll ask permission if anything serious comes to my mind.
Spoiler for Preview:
When Kha entered the briefing office the light was already put out and everybody sat at their places. The call was too sudden and despite his best efforts to get here as soon as possible it seemed like he was the last to arrive. He reached one of the free places trying not to attract too much attention to the rare fact of him being late.
“Well, all are assembled at last,” – the voice sounded familiar but it was too dark to determine the looks of the person standing near the large screen on the opposite wall, - “I think we can start now.”
The screen turned on and revealed the man’s face.
“Head Investigator Romardo?” – There were few things that could surprise Kha but this was the face he expected the least to see at such a meeting, - “What could bring you here?”
“It is Director Romardo, please,” – the man smiled in his usual way when it was impossible to say whether he was honest or faked his friendliness, - “Long time no see, I guess.”
= = =
“Their real names are unknown, and they’ve shown no intention to communicate with anybody so far. We’ve labeled the first one Sirius.”
The screen blinked and showed new information.
Spoiler for Sirius:
Codename: Sirius
Name: unknown
Magic Style: unknown
Specialization: melee combat
Estimated Threat Level: SS
Information:
Sirius was the first of the three to be seen. Till recently his actions had seemingly no particular pattern. In a short period of time he was involved in assassinations of political and military leaders, attacks on army bases and depots, Lost Logia thievery and others. Anybody who opposed Sirius directly was mercilessly killed. Despite his exceptional combat skills he frequently failed to achieve what seemed to be his goals, prioritizing fighting his immediate opponents.
Sirius was never seen to be using any known kind of magic. Despite that his physical strength, speed and agility can not be even compared to human. In any encounter he was either able to avoid every single shot fired at him or counter them bare-handed. His running speed easily matched the users of Sonic Move, and though he never demonstrated an ability to fly his jumps proved to be more than enough to compensate for it.
All attempts to use binding magic on Sirius appeared ineffective. Whether it was solely caused by his physical strength or willpower is unclear. Also no means of physical or magical defense which were tried against Sirius were able to withstand his attacks. There is a confirmed case of him punching directly through RG Avatar’s Lambda field defense and Phase Shift armor, killing its pilot in the process.
Until his recent reappearance Sirius was missing for three weeks after the encounter with Intelligence Department’s special force assembled specifically to confront him. The following file contains the event’s footage.
= = =
“Before starting any discussions on this case I would like to finish the presentation,” – Director Romardo raised his voice.
“Does he even have a heart?” – Somebody whispered at the back seats.
“I’ve heard that it’s made of gold. Literally,” – was the answer.
“So,” – Serge continued, - “The second of them was labeled Rigel.”
Spoiler for Rigel:
Codename: Rigel
Name: unknown
Magic Style: unknown
Specialization: summoning (?), ranged magic
Estimated Threat Level: SS
Information:
Rigel was mostly seen in the absence of Sirius during the last month. Unlike him she showed close to no interest in fighting, preferring to accomplish her goals as soon as possible and withdraw after that.
Rigel rarely performs any actions personally, relying on the creatures or constructs she summons (?): huge humanoid suits of black armor she calls forth immediately as she appears on the scene. Judging from footage her servants are most probably advanced autonomous machines, but it can only be confirmed after studying one of them closely.
The servants are armed with some kind of devices mounted on their arms which serve as basis for almost transparent extensions of their surface. The transparent parts possess the ability to take shape of either a long sword or a massive shield, capable of completely covering the user’s body. The swords have immense cutting power at both magical and physical levels, while the shields have similar defensive qualities. The material of the weapons doesn’t resemble anything known at this moment. The servants didn’t show any signs of being able to use magic. Though some servants were taken down during the encounters none could be salvaged, as they were immediately unsummoned (?) the same way they appeared.
Any direct attack against Rigel herself is always countered by several servants she keeps around her. There was a single case of Rigel using her own offensive magic. There were no survivors left but the event’s footage was preserved and is available in the following file.
= = =
“Lastly, the third one was labeled Cygnus.”
The screen blinked again but this time there was no clear picture. It was barely possible to notice a hooded figure floating in the air.
“What does this mean?” – Asked Keroko, - “Weren’t the previous pictures of decent quality?”
“That’s what I’d like to understand myself,” – Intelligence Department’s Director sounded a little ashamed, - “No matter what we tried this is the best quality we could get. The only way to see … err, him … better is to look with your own eyes. Otherwise something always corrupts the records. And there was also another thing about Cygnus.”
Serge turned to face Kha.
“I would like to ask you, my friend, to pay special attention to the following footage. Cygnus never performed any actions himself, only observed the work of Sirius and Rigel from afar, so we decided to take initiative. One of the mages was ordered to snipe him with a Buster spell, and here’s what came out of it.”
The picture on the screen changed, following the turning of the camera. As soon as Cygnus wasn’t seen anymore it regained former quality, causing several constrained cries of astonishment from the audience. Now the mage charging his Buster was shown. Despite some expectations nothing prevented him from shooting and the glowing beam of magical energy rushed towards its target. Everybody watched in anticipation of the moment when the beam should reach the hooded person. The camera kept him out of the screen to preserve image’s quality but the estimated distance was constantly being shown in the upper right corner. At the distance of 10 meters the beam suddenly dove into the wreaths of dark blood-colored mist. The camera zoomed out and revealed a spinning vortex rapidly swallowing the beam up.
“That is ..!” – Kha jumped up from his place, - “A gateway to the Warp!”
“Now tell me, der Kleriker,” – on the screen behind Serge’s back the vortex quickly disappeared as soon as the beam was completely gone, - “Who do you think can open and close a stable gateway at will?”
= = =
“So instead of making things go against their plan you propose to do just what they’re pressing for?”
“Exactly so! We’ll never be able to counter them properly if they keep that random tactic. This is the only way to make them strike where we’ll be expecting them.”
= = =
The plan was extremely risky at best. We still knew too little about the enemy. But we’ve gathered our elite here, so we had no right to back off. Now we could only wait.
That's basically a prologue to what I'm planning to write after the end of current series (I'll need to know what characters will remain available ). Comments are appreciated. Also a question to the supervisors over WH40K references - may I add some diversity to the hierarchy among Daemons? (bringing a bit of order into Chaos )
Very interesting preview! For now I dont see any problems with canon. I guess you just need to know what canon characters are left, huh. We have to wait over 2 months for you to write? Damn.
As for your last question, are you talking about the RTS stuff, or just WH40K in general?
2007-07-18, 10:50
Author
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A couple Dragon Slaves and bye bye Mid-Childa... 
). Comments are appreciated. Also a question to the supervisors over WH40K references - may I add some diversity to the hierarchy among Daemons? (bringing a bit of order into Chaos 
Mai-IMOUTO?! 
