Nanoha FanFiction Discussion

[00-Raiser]

Originally Posted by deathcurse

Ah, interesting that Hayate and Nanoha went through rehab together, I didn't know that....I'll see how that might work into my story ^^.

Well, they both had to re-learn how to walk, but you've already got Nanoha walking in this fic.

It's also amusing to note that Zafira would give both Nanoha and Hayate rides on his back XD

[WarpObscura]

Chapter One of Reinforce Threshold

Spoiler for Reinforce Threshold Chapter Two:

"Please calm down and tell us what you saw."

Corporal Micael de Guzman's teeth chattered and his hands grabbed the edge of the coffee table before him firmly despite the advice he had just been given. He took deep breaths in an attempt to calm his nerves, but parts of his face still twitched as he tried and failed to shut out the images that had been burned into his mind. He was seated on a couch in a warmly-lit, brightly-coloured room and the two Bureau officers speaking to him wore concerned expressions, with a psychologist hovering unintrusively in the background, but the vibes of an interrogation were unavoidable. It did not help that another enlisted man was seated nearby preparing to take down his words, a recording device by the other's side.

"Y-you have what m-my Device recorded. I-Isn't that good e-e-enough?" He paused, then belatedly added, "Sirs?"

One of the officers, who wore the bars of a Captain, gently tapped the table, trying to compose his explanation. "Corporal de Guzman... Micael... the video and audio your Device recorded forms only one part of the picture. We also need your personal report on the attack."

Micael took a few more deep breaths until his teeth stopped chattering and said, "Yes… Sir. Where should I start?"

"How about planetfall?"

Micael scrunched up his eyes in thought. "It was ten days ago. Our ship, the Ganesha, had just made orbit around Unadministered World #203. Old Belkan texts referred to it as... As… As Morgen-something. Supposedly, it translates to Morning Castle in Belkan. The head archaeologist present was Dr. Senoj Hindia, with the leader of our contingent being Major Shing Ka Li." He paused to take breaths. "We had formed a base camp on the landing site and brought down the necessary equipment." Another pause. "It was seven days later when...” He bit his lower lip, “when that thing appeared. I think they had checked in with base less than fifteen minutes ago?" One of the officers whispered something to the other enlisted man, who took something down. "When they failed to check in the next time, we knew there was something wrong."

The officers nodded in understanding. Boot camp for all Bureau men involved training in telepathy so that there was no need for conventional radios or a single signals team that could be surgically eliminated by enemies to deny communications ability.

"We had deployed heavy weapons teams and turrets to cover the entrance to the path." Micael's lips quivered slightly after saying this. He had had friends in those teams. "In hindsight... It didn't have to take the path at all, but it did so to taunt us."

He described how the monster in humanoid form had strolled in view, how it had sneered in response to the shouted challenges and claimed them unworthy of being successors to Old Belka, of being sport or even feedstock. The heavy weapons had opened fire, sending waves of energy blasts at the monster until smoke had obscured their view of it. However, as the Bureau mages had watched in desperate hope, the smoke had cleared to reveal a large white barrier in the triangular Belkan style, the monster unfazed behind it.

"Someone, I can't remember who, threw an anti-armour grenade at it." Micael paused for a while, tapping his fingers on the table and studying the floor. "That was a mistake."

The monster had made it stop in mid-air, to the horror and shock of all present, then sent it flying right back. The resultant explosion of magic, sufficient to tear open a main battle tank, sent men flying in all directions like ragdolls to land in unnatural positions if they were not already dead. The survivors were forced to fall back as it advanced, their lesser blasts ineffectual against its barriers while it retaliated devastatingly. The expedition had armoured vehicles, since archaeological digs always had the chance of setting free something dangerous, but their heavier weapons had fared no better and neither had their armour.

Micael recalled how Major Shing had been trying to hide his panic even as he called the Ganesha for support, telling her skipper to ignore the collateral damage concerns and bring the steel rain, the situation was that far gone. It had been shortly afterwards that the few remaining mages had reported losing contact with the monster, something that had made no sense at that moment since it had had them on the defensive all the way. Their worst fear had been confirmed when screams started being captured by the holographic link to the Ganesha. The video had shown the ship’s captain turning away with his Device active, then nothing for a while before showing the leering visage of the monster. When the monster had teleported in moments later, the major had engaged it with uncharacteristic fury, attacking it with his spear Device and throwing all his best spells at it. Rumour had it that Major Shing had once lasted over nine minutes against none less than the legendary Signum herself, but it had been painfully obvious that the monster was toying with him now, and it had torn his Linker Core from him before dismembering him with a blade of glowing white light.

With the Major dead, the survivors had tried to break and run, but there was no escape from the beast, who had hunted them down with the implacability of a Terminator. Micael had been the last one and it had used binding spells on him before talking to him. He still could recall what it had said.

"Look at you, insect. A pathetic creature of meat and bone, sweating as you run through these paths. How can you challenge a perfect, immortal being?"

Micael had been too frightened to reply.

"Do not wet yourself, weakling. Is this really what the scavenger lords can offer me?"

"Sc-sc-sc-scavenger lords?" He had managed to stammer out, curiosity piqued despite himself.

"Do not tell me du wisst nicht dass. Your... how did the databanks put it? Time-Space Administration Bureau? It was one of the carrion feeders that rose in the aftermath of Belka's fall, great is she. Your fellow insects managed to get off a distress signal before I killed them... Or should I say that I let them get off the distress signal?"

Micael had turned another shade paler, if that was even possible, at the thought of more men selling their lives futilely against the monster.

"I am not compelled to destroy them. There must be survivors to tell the tales, to spread the word. Belka will rise again and consume you... what is that animal called? Vulture? Yes, she will consume those who tried to consume her and have so evidently failed!" The monster had waved its hand, opening a rip in reality, and pulled out supplies that it piled with an odd neatness before him. "This should be enough to sustain you until your rescue comes. Your binds will fade before the day is up. Do not say that the Tome of the Morning Sky does not know mercy!"

Micael had seized upon the name even as he watched the monster form a teleport with speed he had scarce seen elsewhere and disappeared.

"It was about a day later when the destroyer Varuna arrived in orbit and sent down a landing party that found me and the… remains of… of my comrades. Some time later, after they had done a search of the dig, recovered our dead and equipment, then returned to dock..." Micael gestured around himself, "here I am."

"Thank you, Micael," the Captain said. He paused for a calculated while, then added, "Do you think there was anything that could have been done better?"

Micael gulped. He did not want to second-guess the memory of Major Shing or his late comrades, but... "Sir, if we had started off with air support or orbital bombardment, could it have made a difference?"

The other officer, who Micael finally noticed was a Major, appeared to steeple his fingers. "It might have," he said in a somewhat guttural voice to contrast with the gentler one of the Captain. He paced before the table. "Do you have any further queries, Corp- Micael?"

Micael scrunched up his eyes in thought, then said, "Sirs, the... thing identified itself as the Tome of the Morning Sky and kept speaking about Old Belka. W-wasn't there a similarly named Belkan Lost Logia before?"

The Major looked at him with what he thought was a harsh gaze. “Where did you hear of that, Micael?”

"I, uh, I had friends who served under Admiral Clyde Harlaown, bless his name, on his last tour, sir."

"Hmm," the Major said, "we can't confirm anything as of yet."

Micael recognised the evasion for what it was, but did not press the matter. "I have no further queries, sirs."

"Very well. We'll contact you again for psychological re-evaluation sometime. For now, we've spoken with your superior officer and he's agreed to give you a month's convalescence."

Micael blinked a few times, confused at what appeared to be undeserved reward, then said, “T-t-thank you, sirs!"

"You may go."

Micael got to his feet, saluted, gathered his things and departed the room. After the door closed behind him, the psychologist and the enlisted man serving as secretary were also ushered out. After the doors had shut behind them, the Major said, "This is above my pay grade. We'll have to go to someone higher."

The Captain silently nodded assent.

Spoiler for Author's Notes:

I don't really know if I'm going anywhere with this. I admit to playing a bit hard and fast with the military organisation of the Bureau. Having armour support for archaeological digs seems a bit overkill, but I ran with the assumption that folks recognise how damn dangerous the stuff that could be unearthed is. One that's probably wrong?

I'm a REMF, haven't had a chance to look at real plans for joint ops; if you know how a real combined arms force should have tried to engage the Tome, please do tell.

Yes, I intentionally spelt Micael without the "H", thank you.

[Kaijo]

Originally Posted by 00-Raiser

Well, they both had to re-learn how to walk, but you've already got Nanoha walking in this fic.

It's also amusing to note that Zafira would give both Nanoha and Hayate rides on his back XD

Well, if Nanoha is a familiar now, she's got a new body so technically she's healed. Just like Arf was sick and dying, but was suddenly all better after being made a familiar. A new body is part of the deal. It's formed with magic, but it apparently pretty much turns normal afterward... well, as normal as a person with magic would be. It just requires upkeep in the form of the master's mana.

[ninryu]

I recommend you guys to post your fics at FF.net.

[00-Raiser]

Originally Posted by ninryu

I recommend you guys to post your fics at FF.net.

Most of us do that already We just post here first so we can get feedback/make changes before uploading the final versions to FF.net.

[Rising Dragon]

Originally Posted by ninryu

I recommend you guys to post your fics at FF.net.

Originally Posted by 00-Raiser

Most of us do that already We just post here first so we can get feedback/make changes before uploading the final versions to FF.net.

Or, at the very least, listen to Moczo rage about the site. =X

[ninryu]

Originally Posted by deathcurse

Nice catch . That wondering is exactly why I wanted to end the series there originally XD.

oh shit, I knew it!

don't you dare stop it! write MOAR!

[Kaijo]

Okay, I suppose it's been long enough; time for another installment of Future Angst!

Future Tense

Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn

In which Nanoha becomes a houseguest for awhile, and several others experience interesting developments... for good or for ill...

Previous chapters can be found here.

Spoiler for Future Tense, Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn:

MGLN: Future Tense
Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn

Xx~~*~~xX

Pure white.

It stretched in every direction as far as the eye could see, and it left her profoundly unsettled. White held a number of meanings in her home country, but the most prominent one in her mind now was death, so she felt the scenery was practically choking the life from her.

In fact, she found she couldn't breathe.

She tried to raise her arms to her throat to check her airways, but they wouldn't move, and no she keenly felt another pair of hands there, squeezing tightly. Her body jerked slightly in it's death throes to escape the torment, but it was no use; she wasn't getting any air and she felt weaker and more helpless by the second.

[I can't... breathe! What's... going on!?]

As soon as the question was raised, a vague, blurry face formed in front of her, pale, thin and gaunt, with a grey outline and a toothy grin. The face was amorphous, changing, indistinct, yet somehow it instilled her with fear.

She was going to die.

Nanoha's eyes shot open as she inhaled reflexively, panting while she slowly became aware of her surroundings, first noticing how the sheets of the bed clung to her moderately sweaty body as she stared at the ceiling of what appeared to be a log cabin. While her breathing slowly returned to normal, she turned her head, finding her shirt and pants drying on a line above fire crackling in a fireplace in the corner, which raised her inner alarm and caused her to confirm she had been reduced to her underwear.

[Where am I?] she wondered, clutching the bed sheet to her chest as she tried to sit up, feeling a bit dizzy almost immediately.

Raising her hand, she touched her head, only to find it bandaged. She realized someone must have done that, and put her here, but who? She remembered being at Yuuno and Shari's house, then Fate broke in, and things became a bit fuzzy after that. They had teleported her, and she remembered feeling sad she couldn't talk with Fate, and then she woke up here.

"Find your daughter! Find Vivio!"

Her eyes widened as the flood of memories came back, with Yuuno's command being the most prominent one, even as her head began to pound; it still didn't stop her from her joyous thought.

Vivio is alive!

And there Fate was there as well, looking a bit older, but not as much as she expected to see for a woman her age, yet still filling Nanoha with regret. [Fate-chan...]

She also realized that Fate had called Yuuno her “ex-husband” which Nanoha found more confusing; [Yuuno and Fate were married? How did that happen?] That wasn't something she would have seen coming, and it made her feel a bit funny inside for reasons she couldn't quite figure out. Or maybe she just wasn't feeling well to begin with; she wasn't sure which.

The front door opening broke her line of thought and drew her attention over to the side, even as her vision began to swim. A tall, moderately-built man in tanned leathers and raccoon cap entered, his face mostly obscured by a thick reddish-brown beard. Her eyes widened as he took notice of her, seemingly studying her face.

"Your awake," he stated the obvious. "I didn't do anything to you, but you do have a concussion. You should rest awhile."

She couldn't even attempt to argue the point as her vision became more blurred, and then she collapsed back to the pillow as unconsciousness claimed her once more.

x~~*~~x

“I never expected to see you again,” Fate stated as she entered the brig, seeing Yuuno bound with chains in his cell; it was a confrontation she found herself hesitant to commit to, but in the end she managed to force herself to do it. “And I honestly hoped that you were just laying low to stay out of the Bureau's way. It really pains me to see you like this.”

Yuuno glanced up, his eyes almost unreadable, but Fate knew him well enough to see the disappointment there. “You can stop that pain anytime. Let us go, or at least let Shari go. If you won't do that because you're still loyal to Hayate, then do it as a request, in remembrance of what we had.”

Fate clenched her fist. “I can't, I'm truly sorry. I don't know what you're planning with Nanoha and Vivio, but I can take a guess. I really had hoped that you weren't working with the terrorists, but I can't let this go, no matter how much I want to.”

“One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter,” Yuuno shot back.

Fate sighed. “We've had this argument before; it's why we divorced in the first place. I'm not going to have it again.”

Yuuno's gaze dropped. “Yes, we have. And neither one of us will budge. Grief brought us to together, and it helped heal us; I was truly happy back then.” He shook his head. “But a shared common loss wasn't enough to sustain what we had. We were simply hiding from the truth.”

“That she wasn't coming back, no matter how much we missed her,” Fate added, her voice softening, then it turned hard again. “But you did bring her back, at least a clone of her. Why? What are you, Carim, and Vivio up to?”

“I'm sorry, but I can't tell you,” Yuuno stated flatly. “Only that it no longer matters what happens to me. Nanoha taught me that; to do whatever it takes to save the people you care about, no matter how painful.”

“You weren't the only one!” Fate almost shouted at him, her eyes on the verge of watering. “Don't you think it pains me to do this!? Hayate and I, we're doing this not because we want to, but because we have to, in order to save lives! Don't make me do this; you know what I'm going to have to do!”

Yuuno chuckled darkly. “And yet we're having the argument again.” He shook his head, then met her eyes. “Then do what you have to, and I'll do what I have to.”

Fate grit her teeth, glaring at her ex-husband; he was pushing her, making it easy for her to inflict punishment, but she wasn't going to fall for it... yet. Instead, she turned around to compose herself. “I'll bring Shari in so you two can have one more night together to talk. But that's all I can do. Tomorrow, one way or another, I'll have to find out exactly what you're up to.”

She felt Yuuno's eyes on the back of her head as she left the brig, but despite that, she somehow managed to keep her resolve firm.

x~~*~~x

Sister Rubella moved from patient to patient in the mobile army hospital, checking each one, lending her minor healing magic to each one. She was technically a prisoner, but she was able to convince the soldiers to let her tend to the wounded; above all else, she didn't want more death on her conscience.

"Hey, we'll be moving out soon, so make sure they're ready for transport!" came the call of a soldier who ducked his head into the tent.

"I have at least four people who shouldn't be moved for three days at the very minimum!" she protested. "I was promised I would be given the time for their bodies to heal enough for transport. Don't you have any medical personnel who can assist me? My healing magic isn't as strong as it used to be."

He shrugged. "Not my call, and not my problem. You're the one who wanted to help with this. Our doctors are busy with the injured soldiers, and they take precedence."

She sighed again as the soldier left, glancing at the half-dozen rebels still under her care, reaching down to stroke the hair of the youngest who was still unconscious. "I'm sorry, I know I sinned, but I thought it was for the best. This way, we can limit the suffering and death, until Our Lady returns." Her eyes closed as tears formed. "I never meant to have so many hurt, including you! I was told they'd take care of you with a minimum of casualties and harm."

"You... told them... where the hideout was?" Givo said in surprise, causing her eyes to snap open and see him staring back at her.

"I..." Rubella started to say, staring at him in horror, then bowed her head. "Forgive me, but they promised leniency for everyone if I did, but I remember the war and couldn't stand to see the resistance taking anymore lives."

The youth continued to glare at her, then turned his head away from her. His lack of response troubled her more than if he had outright stated his condemnation of her actions, and Rubella found herself shaking slightly.

"Let me see if I can get you new bandages for the move," she told him, moving to the supplies in the corner of the tent.

Givo still didn't reply.

x~~*~~x

Agito strained against the bind spell that Hayate rapidly hit her with as soon as Signum moved out of the way. "Will someone explain just what the hell happened!?"

"I'd like to know that as well," Hayate replied, studying the little demon. "My spell was only meant to reconstitute Signum. So how did this happen?"

"[That must have been the unknown variance I detected,]" Rein ventured. "[Somehow, her linker core was connected with Signum's, even though we never actually entered her patterns into the new book.]"

"I tried to tell you it would be no use," Signum stated in an emotionless tone. "Hayate had her device rebuilt during the war to ensure neither Vita nor I could be ever be permanently killed. The tome originally had the ability to reconstitute us whenever we were killed, and she restored that function from the data the original Reinforce left in her linker core. You were never told this."

Agito stared at the two. "You can't be killed? Then you can't..."

She trailed off, but Signum seemed to catch what she was about to say, nodding slightly with a small hint of sadness in her eyes. Agito understood; Signum knew she was betraying Zest's promise, but somehow couldn't disobey Hayate no matter how much she might personally want to... and she also couldn't die. In that crystal clear moment, Agito saw exactly what kind of situation her former master was in.

“Well, this is a problem, then,” the mistress of the Wolkenritter stated at last. “If you won't rejoin the Bureau, I'll have to find a was to disconnect you from Signum and the book.”

The little demon shifted her glare to Hayate, recognizing that there was a new objective: In order to free Signum, Hayate had to die.

x~~*~~x

When she awoke again, a light breeze was blowing through the cabin from the open windows, carrying with it the sound of chirping birds. Somehow, she got the impression that it was morning, which made her wonder exactly how long she was out. However, she did feel slightly better, enough to sit up partially, but she didn't press her luck.

Her clothes were now folded on a chair next to the bed, the necklace Raging Heart was hooked to resting on top. Another glance around the single room cabin drew her gaze to the blankets on the couch; her mysterious host must have slept there, allowing her to have his bed.

[Quite the gentleman after all,] she thought to herself, which just made her wonder who he was even more.

The door opened again, and Nanoha made sure the blanket was covering her chest, though at this point he had probably seen things already. Still, she wasn't about to give out free shows.

"Um, I should thank you for helping me," she stated, which just earned her a shrug in response.

Her host seemed to show a reluctance for communication as he mostly ignored her, instead grabbing a piece of fruit from a bowl to cut it in two. Curious, Nanoha watched him as he placed a placed half of it on a tray, then took two bowls over to a pot sitting on a spit in the fireplace. He filled them both with something, returning to the table, his whole body attitude making it seem like he was deliberately trying not to pay much attention to her; but she couldn't figure out why.

"I'm... Seikou," Nanoha offered, making another attempt at conversation after debating what name to give him. "May I ask your name?"

He paused, glancing at her once after setting the bowls down on the table; the look in his eyes made him seem like he was somehow skeptical of her of something, as if he was trying to figure her out, much like she was trying to do to him. Then he seemingly lost interest in his study of her, placing spoons in the bowls before picking up the tray and coming over to her.

Nanoha sat up more, tying the blanket around her upper body, then accepted the tray as he put it in her lap. "Oh, thank you! Mr...?"

Once again he ignored her, turning to head back to the table, sitting down to pick up his spoon. Nanoha refocused her attention to her own steaming bowl, which contained something that strongly resembled a soup-like oatmeal. It smelled decently enough, so she mimicked his motion, blowing on a spoonful to cool it before trying it. It wasn't quite tasteless, but it wasn't bad either, and she realized she was quite hungry.

"Edward," her host said out-of-the-blue, causing her to turn and look at him; he shrugged. "My name."

Nanoha smiled. "Nice to meet you, Edward."

He almost seemed to blush, she thought, but it quickly faded. "You had a concussion. Once you rest a few days, you can resume your journey."

[There it is again,] she realized, something in his tone that matched his body actions, as if he didn't want her here. [Perhaps he's a hermit who is just used to being alone and prefers it that way?]

"Well, I'll try not to burden you too much," she told him after trying out the piece of fruit that tasted much like a peach.

Edward shrugged again, then finished the rest of his meal in silence before heading to the door, pausing before exiting. "I'll be back later today. You should probably stay here; dangerous out there. There are some rolls in the cupboard and fruit in the bowl if you get hungry."

And then he was gone, the wood door whining as it closed behind him, leaving Nanoha alone with her thoughts and the remains of her breakfast, wondering exactly what kind of man Edward was. Ultimately, she decided not to worry about it so much; her life was dangerous enough as it was, and the best thing she could do would be to recover and leave, hopefully before anyone else showed up. Almost everyone she came into contact with had suffered misfortune, mostly because of the Bureau being after her; she didn't want to afflict him with that.

Plus, she had to focus on her mission; somewhere out there, Vivio was alive, and waiting for her.

x~~*~~x

"I'm reeeaaally looking forward to a bath," Teana opined longingly as the two approached their home in Clangan.

Wendi made a show of sniffing the air, then grinned. "Yes, you do."

Teana halfheartedly whacked her across the back of the head, but she was smiling slightly. "Shut up."

The door opened the moment they hit the edge of the property line, revealing a smirking Nove who came out to greet them. "About time you guys got back; I was beginning to get worried!"

It had been agreed upon earlier, that Nove would go ahead and return first, so that she could sneak back in and make it seem as if she never left; they didn't want to broadcast the fact that she had been with them, as she wasn't supposed to leave the city in the first place.

"Well, we would have been back sooner, but Wendi was beginning to enjoy her new accommodations," Teana joked.

"Hmph," the #11 cyborg grunted, purposefully looking away. "I'm just-"

The words died on her lips as several vans pulled up and disgorged a number of Enforcers, who promptly encircled the trio, while yet more Enforcers descended from the sky to join their brethren. All pointed their staves threateningly at the Nakajima family.

"What's the meaning of this!?" Teana demanded, as her sisters activated their devices.

"Wendi is under arrest for conspiracy to commit treason against the state," Hayate informed them, descending out of the sky to land behind the Enforcer line. "I suggest you don't resist, so you will be able to defend yourself at trial."

Teana noticed her two sisters tensing up, but laid a hand on both their shoulders to prevent them from doing something rash. "On what evidence?"

"A video that has recently come to light, among others," Hayate told them, opening a holographic screen to display it.

Wendi was clearly shown walking down a hallway, then paused and glanced around, before stepping to the side while pulling out a small communication device and holding it to her ear. "I told you not to call me here... Yes, I got the last message you sent... I'll have a chance to meet with them next week... Yes, I know how important this is, and I agree with you that it's time Hayate's rule ended. Now don't call me here again unless it's important!"

The trio watched, stunned, as the video ended and the screen disappeared, with Wendi immediately blurting out afterward, "That isn't me! Someone was using transformation magic or something!"

"No magic was detected in that particular hallway," Hayate declared solemnly. "But you'll have a chance to examine the evidence for yourself later. For now, you're under arrest; I can't make exceptions for anyone, not even you."

Wendi tensed again, but Teana placed both hands on her shoulders and said softly, "Go along with it for now. We'll get you out of this, I promise. I won't let any harm come to you." The #11 cyborg acquiesced under her sister's words, growling, but allowing herself to be handcuffed under protest.

"With that out of the way, Nove Nakajima, you are also under arrest for disobeying orders," Hayate stated, turning to the other cyborg. "You left the city under explicit orders not to."

"Quattro!" Nove spat. "She lied to me; she-" The #9 cyborg promptly shut up, then adjusted her stance. "Quattro must be behind this! Her IS can manipulate images without magic!"

Hayate's eyes narrowed. "Quattro's use of her IS is limited, and under my direct control. And her whereabouts were confirmed at the times of Wendi's little phone call, and your disappearance. You have no one to blame but yourself."

Teana turned on the supreme commander as Nove was taken into custody, her patience rapdily running out. "Hayate, you can't possibly accept-"

"You'll have a chance to make your case at trial," Hayate restated, interrupting her subordinate. "Don't make me repeat myself again. And we better not find evidence of your involvement in this conspiracy as well."

Helpless, Teana could only glare at Hayate as she watched as her two sisters being taken away, every fiber of her being screaming at her to stop this, but logically knowing she couldn't. Then movement in the corner of her eye shifted her attention around to see Dieci appear in the window of their home, curiously watching the situation. Teana shot Hayate another dark look, then forced her way past the Enforcers; she needed to explain things to Dieci first, then help prepare a defense against the ridciulous charges.

If Quattro was behind this, Teana would definitely find a way to prove it.

x~~*~~x

“How is it going in there?” Vice asked casually, placing a screwdriver in the hand that appeared from the hole.

“Better if you'd shut your yap and let me work,” Alto told him kindly for the umpteenth time since their flight from Mid-Childa a day-and-a-half ago.

“Well, we are stranded in space on the edge of a planetary system, and will remain so until you fix the engine, so we have to fill the time with something,” Vice bantered, falling back into the habit to stave off the reality of their situation. “And dinner is on hold.”

“Consider yourself lucky we're here at all!” she snapped back. “Hyperdrive mechanics aren't easy, and I didn't exactly have the best parts to work with in the first place! I might be able to manage a short hop to one of the planets, if they are habitable, and we can at least land.”

“Amos is still analyzing them, but the first three are out,” he informed her. “Too cold, and one is a gas giant. The other two are on the other side of the sun, so we won't have reliable data for awhile. But with a gas giant in system to act as a comet catcher, and the other two closer to the star, in the 'Goldilocks zone' as he calls it, he's hopeful.”

He didn't state what they were all thinking, though. Even if they found a habitable planet, they'd remain trapped there unless they could get the shuttle fully repaired; the planet would become their new home, and their role in the resistance would be over until someone could rescue them. With Hayate's Bureau controlling most of the dimensional sea, that aspect seemed unlikely.

Vice sighed and leaned back against the bulkhead, his mind as empty as the space around the shuttle. [Well, at least it can't get worse...]

“Mom, dad, I think you better get up here!” Amos's worried voice came from the front of the shuttle, forcing Vice to mentally smack himself for tempting fate. “Sensors just registered a ship dropping out of hyperspace, and from their trajectory, they're headed straight for us!”

Alto's head popped out of the hole in the bulkhead where she met Vice's gaze, then the two sprinted up front to the cockpit. Sure enough, there a vessel on approach, and Vice felt his insides grow cold as the shuttle's computer registered it's profile as a Bureau Cruiser.

“Unidentified ship, we have scanned your vessel and noticed that you are currently dead in the water,” came a female voice. “Do you require assistance?”

“Something about that voice...” Alto stated, rubbing her chin with her index finger.

“Can we get our engines back up in a few minutes?” Amos asked, but Alto shook her head to that; Vice was back there, and he knew she'd require at least 20 minutes to even put the sublight engines back together, never mind the hyperspace ones.

“Well, we need to respond or else they'll get really suspicious,” Vice reasoned, then took a deep breath and opened communications. “Thank you for your concern, but we are okay. We should have our engines back online momentarily, and we'll be on our way.”

There was a very pregnant pause, as all three pairs of eyes were locked on the radar screen, noting as the bureau ship drifted closer and closer; would it work?

The female voice came back on. “You really should learn to accept help sometimes.. Have your crew standby.”

Alto smacked her palm. “I thought I recognized that voice! It's-”

Her words were cut off as the entire crew of the shuttle were teleported, arriving in the in the hold of the Bureau ship. Vice spun to see a woman almost as old as he was, sporting a short crop of faded pink hair while she studied the rebels, a group of Enforcer's behind her.

“-Captain Lowran!” Alto finished, echoing Vice's realization.

Lucino sighed and shook her head, hands on her hips. “You guys are in a lot of trouble, you know that?”

A voice echoed over the communications system. “The shuttle is aboard, Captain. And the Admiral says he wants to meet with our guests.”

Vice narrowed his eyes, debating on how many Enforcer's he could take out if he activated Storm Raider. “Admiral aboard, eh? I guess we're your prisoners, then.”

“He's not on board, but we'll be taking you to see him,” Lucino replied with a hint of mystery. “Oh, and you probably shouldn't do that, Vice; I'd hate to shoot any of you.” Her lips tugged upwards into a grin. “You wouldn't be able to participate in the revolution, then.”

x~~*~~x

The hands were gnarled, but strong, resisting her attempts to remove them from her neck. All her magic was taken with her task, leaving her none to protect herself; and if she did, all her friends would die.

"You are mine now, child," the husky voice whispered in glee.

"S-stop!" Nanoha coughed out, fighting as she felt the very life in her body flow away. "I have to..."

The face floating in front of her was still blurred, unrecognizable, but somehow familiar, haunting, and hating, though she didn't know why. But this time, she retained enough presence of mind to realize it wasn't her air being choked out.

It was her very life essence.

Nanoha awoke in a sweat, panting heavily, and while the darkness around informed her that it was still night, that only made the images in her mind more vivid. It was the second time she had that particular dream, and the nagging mystery of what it meant left her unsettled. She sat up and rubbed her arms, then decided what she really needed was some fresh air; she didn't quite feel up to trying to get back to sleep.

While she got dressed, she reflected on the fact that almost a week had gone by since she had arrived at Edward's cabin, and she still didn't know much about him, although she wasn't really trying; he was still as uncommunicative as ever, so even attempting to drag something out of him was practically a fool's errand. Still, he did take care of her, and during her time here they had slipped into something of an uneasy unspoken relationship; Nanoha helping to tidy up and clean and cook where she could without asking, while he went out hunting or fishing daily. She was mostly recovered now, so she would be leaving him soon.

[Five days, which I suppose is long enough to impose on him,] she thought to herself. [The headaches are gone and I no longer feel weak. And I have to find Vivio.]

But there were still a couple of things that troubled her as she stepped outside into the very early morning air, one of them being the nightmare; was it just a subconscious construct reflecting her inner troubles about being a sacrifice? Or was it something more

She put that aside for not while she went to the nearby stream to wash the sweat off her body, focusing on the other thing that still bothered her; Edward's adamant refusal to teach her how to hunt or trap. She knew she'd have to travel on her own again soon, and with little money, she wasn't sure when she'd be able to eat properly. So, as much as the act of killing for her own food disturbed her, she knew she'd have to learn, but Edward had refused to allow her to accompany him.

“Why?” Nanoha had asked. “If I can learn to gather my own food-”

“I said no!” Edward shot back with a brief flare of anger. “I hunt best alone; I don't want anyone tagging along. Once you're better and leave, how you get along isn't my concern. There is a small harbor trading post a day's journey from here where other hunters gather; if you really want to learn when you leave, you can ask someone there.”

Nanoha sighed, pushing through the bushes, wondering where that stream was. She had been there a few times, but this was her first in the dark; had she taken a wrong turn? Pausing, she risked a small search spell, releasing the orb into the air and then closed her eyes to see the images relayed to her mind's eye through Raging Heart.

[Aha, there it is!] she thought to herself, seeing the small stream weave through the woods, then saw something unnatural shaped in the distance. [Wait, what's that?]

She guided the orb passed the stream, over several dozen meters of forest. There, among the trees and brush vines, were the ruins of several buildings. Had they been homes? Nanoha didn't know, but she found herself curious, letting the orb do the searching for her, dipping between them. The smaller ones were almost rotted away, but the largest one was still fairly intact, although not by much.

The first rays of sunlight came over the mountains, striking something above the door of the big building and reflecting the light in a flash. She guided the orb up to it, realizing that there was a name on the plate, but it had faded with age and fungus and vines obscured most of the rest of it. Still, there was something about the distribution of letters she could see that made her decide to cancel the spell and take a short flight over to the actual location.

Floating in front of the name plate, she wiped it off with her sleeve, her eyes widening as she read the name, her mind filling in for the faded letters:

SUPOOL NATURE PRESERVE

[Supool?] she thought, incredulous. [When did I end up on Supool? Did Yuuno and Shari send me here? Or was their house on that planet and I was initially sent there?] It occurred to her that she never asked; she just assumed she was still on Mid-Childa. [Does that mean Vivio is on this planet, too?]

The door to the building was long gone, but the insides were too rotted and overgrown that she decided not to venture in. But as she turned around to scan the area, she did notice a distinct well-traveled path in the overgrown grass. One direction led off back the way towards Edward's cabin, so it seemed to be something that he used often. Curious, Nanoha followed it as it wound behind the larger building.

Eventually she found the end of the path and stopped, feeling a sharp pain in her chest. It wasn't the wasn't the large tree that caused Nanoha's reaction, but the stone slab a meter in front of it. Stunned, she read the engraving on the stone:

CARO MONDAIL
0065 – 0101
BELOVED WIFE AND FRIEND

x~~*~~x

“Am I too late?” the wizened man wondered as he picked his way through the rubble.

The large building had stood here for years, hidden among the trees, and finally when he had a break in the case, was he too late to do tell anyone what he had discovered? His orders had been specific, to seek out that which was hidden that not even Carim could see. And it had taken years of following shadows and pulling at small threads before he began to see the full tapestry.

“There is something going on that not even I can see,” Carim told him while they were alone. “But you must find out. You must disappear and drop into the shadows, for it is only there that you will find the truth that we so desperately need. Be my eyes, and let me see.”

But the remains of the church where he stood let him know that there was no longer anyone here. Burnt holes in the ceiling and walls reminded him of pinpoint lightning strikes, so he had a pretty good guess what might have happened; or rather “who” might have happened. Did Carim not see this? Or just not tell him? Would his warning come too late?

Instinctively, he clutched the disc in his hand, given to him by a dying man, who had once worked for the Bureau many years ago.

“I've carried this truth for too long,” the former security guard spoke in a low gravely voice, barely holding on as old age sapped his life. “But I can't go to my grave without telling someone. At the time, I was scared, and I didn't want to be caught, so I took the evidence with me and ran. It's yours now, and what you choose to do with it is up to you.”

His own death was probably close at hand, but he couldn't die until he had revealed what he had learned. That was why he had even managed to get a few of those anti-aging treatments, even though it made his skin crawl in revulsion. What he had to share was too important; they had to know!

And they were all so naïve to believe it was all a series of random, unfortunate incidents. What he had learned, had opened his eyes to what was really going on, although he still couldn't fathom the ultimate purpose. He now knew the “how” but the “why” part still eluded him, but it couldn't wait; as it was, he may have waited too long.

And now his fears told him he was too late, as he sat down on one of the fallen pillars to rest. If they found Carim's hideout, they may have also found the others; who else could he tell? After a moment, his head came back up, the momentary faltering of his resolve fading; he couldn't give up now, not while there was still a chance.

Verossa Acous knew there was still a possibility, but only if he could find her in time.

Xx~~*~~xX

Author's notes:

Dots. More dots. Can you find them, and draw the lines? =)

Title is from an old song, by the Byrds, and the implication is that there is a time for everything. A time for love, a time for hate, a time for war, a time for peace. There's a time for everything, which I feel fits the mood of this chapter.

For those that want less angst and more boom boom, I'll get back to that with my two Crisis continuations. Just kinda exploring this option for now.^^

[Megaolix]

Originally Posted by Kaijo

Okay, I suppose it's been long enough; time for another installment of Future Angst!

Future Tense

Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn

In which Nanoha becomes a houseguest for awhile, and several others experience interesting developments... for good or for ill...

Previous chapters can be found here.

Spoiler for Future Tense, Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn:

MGLN: Future Tense
Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn

Xx~~*~~xX

Pure white.

It stretched in every direction as far as the eye could see, and it left her profoundly unsettled. White held a number of meanings in her home country, but the most prominent one in her mind now was death, so she felt the scenery was practically choking the life from her.

In fact, she found she couldn't breathe.

She tried to raise her arms to her throat to check her airways, but they wouldn't move, and no she keenly felt another pair of hands there, squeezing tightly. Her body jerked slightly in it's death throes to escape the torment, but it was no use; she wasn't getting any air and she felt weaker and more helpless by the second.

[I can't... breathe! What's... going on!?]

As soon as the question was raised, a vague, blurry face formed in front of her, pale, thin and gaunt, with a grey outline and a toothy grin. The face was amorphous, changing, indistinct, yet somehow it instilled her with fear.

She was going to die.

Nanoha's eyes shot open as she inhaled reflexively, panting while she slowly became aware of her surroundings, first noticing how the sheets of the bed clung to her moderately sweaty body as she stared at the ceiling of what appeared to be a log cabin. While her breathing slowly returned to normal, she turned her head, finding her shirt and pants drying on a line above fire crackling in a fireplace in the corner, which raised her inner alarm and caused her to confirm she had been reduced to her underwear.

[Where am I?] she wondered, clutching the bed sheet to her chest as she tried to sit up, feeling a bit dizzy almost immediately.

Raising her hand, she touched her head, only to find it bandaged. She realized someone must have done that, and put her here, but who? She remembered being at Yuuno and Shari's house, then Fate broke in, and things became a bit fuzzy after that. They had teleported her, and she remembered feeling sad she couldn't talk with Fate, and then she woke up here.

"Find your daughter! Find Vivio!"

Her eyes widened as the flood of memories came back, with Yuuno's command being the most prominent one, even as her head began to pound; it still didn't stop her from her joyous thought.

Vivio is alive!

And there Fate was there as well, looking a bit older, but not as much as she expected to see for a woman her age, yet still filling Nanoha with regret. [Fate-chan...]

She also realized that Fate had called Yuuno her “ex-husband” which Nanoha found more confusing; [Yuuno and Fate were married? How did that happen?] That wasn't something she would have seen coming, and it made her feel a bit funny inside for reasons she couldn't quite figure out. Or maybe she just wasn't feeling well to begin with; she wasn't sure which.

The front door opening broke her line of thought and drew her attention over to the side, even as her vision began to swim. A tall, moderately-built man in tanned leathers and raccoon cap entered, his face mostly obscured by a thick reddish-brown beard. Her eyes widened as he took notice of her, seemingly studying her face.

"Your awake," he stated the obvious. "I didn't do anything to you, but you do have a concussion. You should rest awhile."

She couldn't even attempt to argue the point as her vision became more blurred, and then she collapsed back to the pillow as unconsciousness claimed her once more.

x~~*~~x

“I never expected to see you again,” Fate stated as she entered the brig, seeing Yuuno bound with chains in his cell; it was a confrontation she found herself hesitant to commit to, but in the end she managed to force herself to do it. “And I honestly hoped that you were just laying low to stay out of the Bureau's way. It really pains me to see you like this.”

Yuuno glanced up, his eyes almost unreadable, but Fate knew him well enough to see the disappointment there. “You can stop that pain anytime. Let us go, or at least let Shari go. If you won't do that because you're still loyal to Hayate, then do it as a request, in remembrance of what we had.”

Fate clenched her fist. “I can't, I'm truly sorry. I don't know what you're planning with Nanoha and Vivio, but I can take a guess. I really had hoped that you weren't working with the terrorists, but I can't let this go, no matter how much I want to.”

“One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter,” Yuuno shot back.

Fate sighed. “We've had this argument before; it's why we divorced in the first place. I'm not going to have it again.”

Yuuno's gaze dropped. “Yes, we have. And neither one of us will budge. Grief brought us to together, and it helped heal us; I was truly happy back then.” He shook his head. “But a shared common loss wasn't enough to sustain what we had. We were simply hiding from the truth.”

“That she wasn't coming back, no matter how much we missed her,” Fate added, her voice softening, then it turned hard again. “But you did bring her back, at least a clone of her. Why? What are you, Carim, and Vivio up to?”

“I'm sorry, but I can't tell you,” Yuuno stated flatly. “Only that it no longer matters what happens to me. Nanoha taught me that; to do whatever it takes to save the people you care about, no matter how painful.”

“You weren't the only one!” Fate almost shouted at him, her eyes on the verge of watering. “Don't you think it pains me to do this!? Hayate and I, we're doing this not because we want to, but because we have to, in order to save lives! Don't make me do this; you know what I'm going to have to do!”

Yuuno chuckled darkly. “And yet we're having the argument again.” He shook his head, then met her eyes. “Then do what you have to, and I'll do what I have to.”

Fate grit her teeth, glaring at her ex-husband; he was pushing her, making it easy for her to inflict punishment, but she wasn't going to fall for it... yet. Instead, she turned around to compose herself. “I'll bring Shari in so you two can have one more night together to talk. But that's all I can do. Tomorrow, one way or another, I'll have to find out exactly what you're up to.”

She felt Yuuno's eyes on the back of her head as she left the brig, but despite that, she somehow managed to keep her resolve firm.

x~~*~~x

Sister Rubella moved from patient to patient in the mobile army hospital, checking each one, lending her minor healing magic to each one. She was technically a prisoner, but she was able to convince the soldiers to let her tend to the wounded; above all else, she didn't want more death on her conscience.

"Hey, we'll be moving out soon, so make sure they're ready for transport!" came the call of a soldier who ducked his head into the tent.

"I have at least four people who shouldn't be moved for three days at the very minimum!" she protested. "I was promised I would be given the time for their bodies to heal enough for transport. Don't you have any medical personnel who can assist me? My healing magic isn't as strong as it used to be."

He shrugged. "Not my call, and not my problem. You're the one who wanted to help with this. Our doctors are busy with the injured soldiers, and they take precedence."

She sighed again as the soldier left, glancing at the half-dozen rebels still under her care, reaching down to stroke the hair of the youngest who was still unconscious. "I'm sorry, I know I sinned, but I thought it was for the best. This way, we can limit the suffering and death, until Our Lady returns." Her eyes closed as tears formed. "I never meant to have so many hurt, including you! I was told they'd take care of you with a minimum of casualties and harm."

"You... told them... where the hideout was?" Givo said in surprise, causing her eyes to snap open and see him staring back at her.

"I..." Rubella started to say, staring at him in horror, then bowed her head. "Forgive me, but they promised leniency for everyone if I did, but I remember the war and couldn't stand to see the resistance taking anymore lives."

The youth continued to glare at her, then turned his head away from her. His lack of response troubled her more than if he had outright stated his condemnation of her actions, and Rubella found herself shaking slightly.

"Let me see if I can get you new bandages for the move," she told him, moving to the supplies in the corner of the tent.

Givo still didn't reply.

x~~*~~x

Agito strained against the bind spell that Hayate rapidly hit her with as soon as Signum moved out of the way. "Will someone explain just what the hell happened!?"

"I'd like to know that as well," Hayate replied, studying the little demon. "My spell was only meant to reconstitute Signum. So how did this happen?"

"[That must have been the unknown variance I detected,]" Rein ventured. "[Somehow, her linker core was connected with Signum's, even though we never actually entered her patterns into the new book.]"

"I tried to tell you it would be no use," Signum stated in an emotionless tone. "Hayate had her device rebuilt during the war to ensure neither Vita nor I could be ever be permanently killed. The tome originally had the ability to reconstitute us whenever we were killed, and she restored that function from the data the original Reinforce left in her linker core. You were never told this."

Agito stared at the two. "You can't be killed? Then you can't..."

She trailed off, but Signum seemed to catch what she was about to say, nodding slightly with a small hint of sadness in her eyes. Agito understood; Signum knew she was betraying Zest's promise, but somehow couldn't disobey Hayate no matter how much she might personally want to... and she also couldn't die. In that crystal clear moment, Agito saw exactly what kind of situation her former master was in.

“Well, this is a problem, then,” the mistress of the Wolkenritter stated at last. “If you won't rejoin the Bureau, I'll have to find a was to disconnect you from Signum and the book.”

The little demon shifted her glare to Hayate, recognizing that there was a new objective: In order to free Signum, Hayate had to die.

x~~*~~x

When she awoke again, a light breeze was blowing through the cabin from the open windows, carrying with it the sound of chirping birds. Somehow, she got the impression that it was morning, which made her wonder exactly how long she was out. However, she did feel slightly better, enough to sit up partially, but she didn't press her luck.

Her clothes were now folded on a chair next to the bed, the necklace Raging Heart was hooked to resting on top. Another glance around the single room cabin drew her gaze to the blankets on the couch; her mysterious host must have slept there, allowing her to have his bed.

[Quite the gentleman after all,] she thought to herself, which just made her wonder who he was even more.

The door opened again, and Nanoha made sure the blanket was covering her chest, though at this point he had probably seen things already. Still, she wasn't about to give out free shows.

"Um, I should thank you for helping me," she stated, which just earned her a shrug in response.

Her host seemed to show a reluctance for communication as he mostly ignored her, instead grabbing a piece of fruit from a bowl to cut it in two. Curious, Nanoha watched him as he placed a placed half of it on a tray, then took two bowls over to a pot sitting on a spit in the fireplace. He filled them both with something, returning to the table, his whole body attitude making it seem like he was deliberately trying not to pay much attention to her; but she couldn't figure out why.

"I'm... Seikou," Nanoha offered, making another attempt at conversation after debating what name to give him. "May I ask your name?"

He paused, glancing at her once after setting the bowls down on the table; the look in his eyes made him seem like he was somehow skeptical of her of something, as if he was trying to figure her out, much like she was trying to do to him. Then he seemingly lost interest in his study of her, placing spoons in the bowls before picking up the tray and coming over to her.

Nanoha sat up more, tying the blanket around her upper body, then accepted the tray as he put it in her lap. "Oh, thank you! Mr...?"

Once again he ignored her, turning to head back to the table, sitting down to pick up his spoon. Nanoha refocused her attention to her own steaming bowl, which contained something that strongly resembled a soup-like oatmeal. It smelled decently enough, so she mimicked his motion, blowing on a spoonful to cool it before trying it. It wasn't quite tasteless, but it wasn't bad either, and she realized she was quite hungry.

"Edward," her host said out-of-the-blue, causing her to turn and look at him; he shrugged. "My name."

Nanoha smiled. "Nice to meet you, Edward."

He almost seemed to blush, she thought, but it quickly faded. "You had a concussion. Once you rest a few days, you can resume your journey."

[There it is again,] she realized, something in his tone that matched his body actions, as if he didn't want her here. [Perhaps he's a hermit who is just used to being alone and prefers it that way?]

"Well, I'll try not to burden you too much," she told him after trying out the piece of fruit that tasted much like a peach.

Edward shrugged again, then finished the rest of his meal in silence before heading to the door, pausing before exiting. "I'll be back later today. You should probably stay here; dangerous out there. There are some rolls in the cupboard and fruit in the bowl if you get hungry."

And then he was gone, the wood door whining as it closed behind him, leaving Nanoha alone with her thoughts and the remains of her breakfast, wondering exactly what kind of man Edward was. Ultimately, she decided not to worry about it so much; her life was dangerous enough as it was, and the best thing she could do would be to recover and leave, hopefully before anyone else showed up. Almost everyone she came into contact with had suffered misfortune, mostly because of the Bureau being after her; she didn't want to afflict him with that.

Plus, she had to focus on her mission; somewhere out there, Vivio was alive, and waiting for her.

x~~*~~x

"I'm reeeaaally looking forward to a bath," Teana opined longingly as the two approached their home in Clangan.

Wendi made a show of sniffing the air, then grinned. "Yes, you do."

Teana halfheartedly whacked her across the back of the head, but she was smiling slightly. "Shut up."

The door opened the moment they hit the edge of the property line, revealing a smirking Nove who came out to greet them. "About time you guys got back; I was beginning to get worried!"

It had been agreed upon earlier, that Nove would go ahead and return first, so that she could sneak back in and make it seem as if she never left; they didn't want to broadcast the fact that she had been with them, as she wasn't supposed to leave the city in the first place.

"Well, we would have been back sooner, but Wendi was beginning to enjoy her new accommodations," Teana joked.

"Hmph," the #11 cyborg grunted, purposefully looking away. "I'm just-"

The words died on her lips as several vans pulled up and disgorged a number of Enforcers, who promptly encircled the trio, while yet more Enforcers descended from the sky to join their brethren. All pointed their staves threateningly at the Nakajima family.

"What's the meaning of this!?" Teana demanded, as her sisters activated their devices.

"Wendi is under arrest for conspiracy to commit treason against the state," Hayate informed them, descending out of the sky to land behind the Enforcer line. "I suggest you don't resist, so you will be able to defend yourself at trial."

Teana noticed her two sisters tensing up, but laid a hand on both their shoulders to prevent them from doing something rash. "On what evidence?"

"A video that has recently come to light, among others," Hayate told them, opening a holographic screen to display it.

Wendi was clearly shown walking down a hallway, then paused and glanced around, before stepping to the side while pulling out a small communication device and holding it to her ear. "I told you not to call me here... Yes, I got the last message you sent... I'll have a chance to meet with them next week... Yes, I know how important this is, and I agree with you that it's time Hayate's rule ended. Now don't call me here again unless it's important!"

The trio watched, stunned, as the video ended and the screen disappeared, with Wendi immediately blurting out afterward, "That isn't me! Someone was using transformation magic or something!"

"No magic was detected in that particular hallway," Hayate declared solemnly. "But you'll have a chance to examine the evidence for yourself later. For now, you're under arrest; I can't make exceptions for anyone, not even you."

Wendi tensed again, but Teana placed both hands on her shoulders and said softly, "Go along with it for now. We'll get you out of this, I promise. I won't let any harm come to you." The #11 cyborg acquiesced under her sister's words, growling, but allowing herself to be handcuffed under protest.

"With that out of the way, Nove Nakajima, you are also under arrest for disobeying orders," Hayate stated, turning to the other cyborg. "You left the city under explicit orders not to."

"Quattro!" Nove spat. "She lied to me; she-" The #9 cyborg promptly shut up, then adjusted her stance. "Quattro must be behind this! Her IS can manipulate images without magic!"

Hayate's eyes narrowed. "Quattro's use of her IS is limited, and under my direct control. And her whereabouts were confirmed at the times of Wendi's little phone call, and your disappearance. You have no one to blame but yourself."

Teana turned on the supreme commander as Nove was taken into custody, her patience rapdily running out. "Hayate, you can't possibly accept-"

"You'll have a chance to make your case at trial," Hayate restated, interrupting her subordinate. "Don't make me repeat myself again. And we better not find evidence of your involvement in this conspiracy as well."

Helpless, Teana could only glare at Hayate as she watched as her two sisters being taken away, every fiber of her being screaming at her to stop this, but logically knowing she couldn't. Then movement in the corner of her eye shifted her attention around to see Dieci appear in the window of their home, curiously watching the situation. Teana shot Hayate another dark look, then forced her way past the Enforcers; she needed to explain things to Dieci first, then help prepare a defense against the ridciulous charges.

If Quattro was behind this, Teana would definitely find a way to prove it.

x~~*~~x

“How is it going in there?” Vice asked casually, placing a screwdriver in the hand that appeared from the hole.

“Better if you'd shut your yap and let me work,” Alto told him kindly for the umpteenth time since their flight from Mid-Childa a day-and-a-half ago.

“Well, we are stranded in space on the edge of a planetary system, and will remain so until you fix the engine, so we have to fill the time with something,” Vice bantered, falling back into the habit to stave off the reality of their situation. “And dinner is on hold.”

“Consider yourself lucky we're here at all!” she snapped back. “Hyperdrive mechanics aren't easy, and I didn't exactly have the best parts to work with in the first place! I might be able to manage a short hop to one of the planets, if they are habitable, and we can at least land.”

“Amos is still analyzing them, but the first three are out,” he informed her. “Too cold, and one is a gas giant. The other two are on the other side of the sun, so we won't have reliable data for awhile. But with a gas giant in system to act as a comet catcher, and the other two closer to the star, in the 'Goldilocks zone' as he calls it, he's hopeful.”

He didn't state what they were all thinking, though. Even if they found a habitable planet, they'd remain trapped there unless they could get the shuttle fully repaired; the planet would become their new home, and their role in the resistance would be over until someone could rescue them. With Hayate's Bureau controlling most of the dimensional sea, that aspect seemed unlikely.

Vice sighed and leaned back against the bulkhead, his mind as empty as the space around the shuttle. [Well, at least it can't get worse...]

“Mom, dad, I think you better get up here!” Amos's worried voice came from the front of the shuttle, forcing Vice to mentally smack himself for tempting fate. “Sensors just registered a ship dropping out of hyperspace, and from their trajectory, they're headed straight for us!”

Alto's head popped out of the hole in the bulkhead where she met Vice's gaze, then the two sprinted up front to the cockpit. Sure enough, there a vessel on approach, and Vice felt his insides grow cold as the shuttle's computer registered it's profile as a Bureau Cruiser.

“Unidentified ship, we have scanned your vessel and noticed that you are currently dead in the water,” came a female voice. “Do you require assistance?”

“Something about that voice...” Alto stated, rubbing her chin with her index finger.

“Can we get our engines back up in a few minutes?” Amos asked, but Alto shook her head to that; Vice was back there, and he knew she'd require at least 20 minutes to even put the sublight engines back together, never mind the hyperspace ones.

“Well, we need to respond or else they'll get really suspicious,” Vice reasoned, then took a deep breath and opened communications. “Thank you for your concern, but we are okay. We should have our engines back online momentarily, and we'll be on our way.”

There was a very pregnant pause, as all three pairs of eyes were locked on the radar screen, noting as the bureau ship drifted closer and closer; would it work?

The female voice came back on. “You really should learn to accept help sometimes.. Have your crew standby.”

Alto smacked her palm. “I thought I recognized that voice! It's-”

Her words were cut off as the entire crew of the shuttle were teleported, arriving in the in the hold of the Bureau ship. Vice spun to see a woman almost as old as he was, sporting a short crop of faded pink hair while she studied the rebels, a group of Enforcer's behind her.

“-Captain Lowran!” Alto finished, echoing Vice's realization.

Lucino sighed and shook her head, hands on her hips. “You guys are in a lot of trouble, you know that?”

A voice echoed over the communications system. “The shuttle is aboard, Captain. And the Admiral says he wants to meet with our guests.”

Vice narrowed his eyes, debating on how many Enforcer's he could take out if he activated Storm Raider. “Admiral aboard, eh? I guess we're your prisoners, then.”

“He's not on board, but we'll be taking you to see him,” Lucino replied with a hint of mystery. “Oh, and you probably shouldn't do that, Vice; I'd hate to shoot any of you.” Her lips tugged upwards into a grin. “You wouldn't be able to participate in the revolution, then.”

x~~*~~x

The hands were gnarled, but strong, resisting her attempts to remove them from her neck. All her magic was taken with her task, leaving her none to protect herself; and if she did, all her friends would die.

"You are mine now, child," the husky voice whispered in glee.

"S-stop!" Nanoha coughed out, fighting as she felt the very life in her body flow away. "I have to..."

The face floating in front of her was still blurred, unrecognizable, but somehow familiar, haunting, and hating, though she didn't know why. But this time, she retained enough presence of mind to realize it wasn't her air being choked out.

It was her very life essence.

Nanoha awoke in a sweat, panting heavily, and while the darkness around informed her that it was still night, that only made the images in her mind more vivid. It was the second time she had that particular dream, and the nagging mystery of what it meant left her unsettled. She sat up and rubbed her arms, then decided what she really needed was some fresh air; she didn't quite feel up to trying to get back to sleep.

While she got dressed, she reflected on the fact that almost a week had gone by since she had arrived at Edward's cabin, and she still didn't know much about him, although she wasn't really trying; he was still as uncommunicative as ever, so even attempting to drag something out of him was practically a fool's errand. Still, he did take care of her, and during her time here they had slipped into something of an uneasy unspoken relationship; Nanoha helping to tidy up and clean and cook where she could without asking, while he went out hunting or fishing daily. She was mostly recovered now, so she would be leaving him soon.

[Five days, which I suppose is long enough to impose on him,] she thought to herself. [The headaches are gone and I no longer feel weak. And I have to find Vivio.]

But there were still a couple of things that troubled her as she stepped outside into the very early morning air, one of them being the nightmare; was it just a subconscious construct reflecting her inner troubles about being a sacrifice? Or was it something more

She put that aside for not while she went to the nearby stream to wash the sweat off her body, focusing on the other thing that still bothered her; Edward's adamant refusal to teach her how to hunt or trap. She knew she'd have to travel on her own again soon, and with little money, she wasn't sure when she'd be able to eat properly. So, as much as the act of killing for her own food disturbed her, she knew she'd have to learn, but Edward had refused to allow her to accompany him.

“Why?” Nanoha had asked. “If I can learn to gather my own food-”

“I said no!” Edward shot back with a brief flare of anger. “I hunt best alone; I don't want anyone tagging along. Once you're better and leave, how you get along isn't my concern. There is a small harbor trading post a day's journey from here where other hunters gather; if you really want to learn when you leave, you can ask someone there.”

Nanoha sighed, pushing through the bushes, wondering where that stream was. She had been there a few times, but this was her first in the dark; had she taken a wrong turn? Pausing, she risked a small search spell, releasing the orb into the air and then closed her eyes to see the images relayed to her mind's eye through Raging Heart.

[Aha, there it is!] she thought to herself, seeing the small stream weave through the woods, then saw something unnatural shaped in the distance. [Wait, what's that?]

She guided the orb passed the stream, over several dozen meters of forest. There, among the trees and brush vines, were the ruins of several buildings. Had they been homes? Nanoha didn't know, but she found herself curious, letting the orb do the searching for her, dipping between them. The smaller ones were almost rotted away, but the largest one was still fairly intact, although not by much.

The first rays of sunlight came over the mountains, striking something above the door of the big building and reflecting the light in a flash. She guided the orb up to it, realizing that there was a name on the plate, but it had faded with age and fungus and vines obscured most of the rest of it. Still, there was something about the distribution of letters she could see that made her decide to cancel the spell and take a short flight over to the actual location.

Floating in front of the name plate, she wiped it off with her sleeve, her eyes widening as she read the name, her mind filling in for the faded letters:

SUPOOL NATURE PRESERVE

[Supool?] she thought, incredulous. [When did I end up on Supool? Did Yuuno and Shari send me here? Or was their house on that planet and I was initially sent there?] It occurred to her that she never asked; she just assumed she was still on Mid-Childa. [Does that mean Vivio is on this planet, too?]

The door to the building was long gone, but the insides were too rotted and overgrown that she decided not to venture in. But as she turned around to scan the area, she did notice a distinct well-traveled path in the overgrown grass. One direction led off back the way towards Edward's cabin, so it seemed to be something that he used often. Curious, Nanoha followed it as it wound behind the larger building.

Eventually she found the end of the path and stopped, feeling a sharp pain in her chest. It wasn't the wasn't the large tree that caused Nanoha's reaction, but the stone slab a meter in front of it. Stunned, she read the engraving on the stone:

CARO MONDAIL
0065 – 0101
BELOVED WIFE AND FRIEND

x~~*~~x

“Am I too late?” the wizened man wondered as he picked his way through the rubble.

The large building had stood here for years, hidden among the trees, and finally when he had a break in the case, was he too late to do tell anyone what he had discovered? His orders had been specific, to seek out that which was hidden that not even Carim could see. And it had taken years of following shadows and pulling at small threads before he began to see the full tapestry.

“There is something going on that not even I can see,” Carim told him while they were alone. “But you must find out. You must disappear and drop into the shadows, for it is only there that you will find the truth that we so desperately need. Be my eyes, and let me see.”

But the remains of the church where he stood let him know that there was no longer anyone here. Burnt holes in the ceiling and walls reminded him of pinpoint lightning strikes, so he had a pretty good guess what might have happened; or rather “who” might have happened. Did Carim not see this? Or just not tell him? Would his warning come too late?

Instinctively, he clutched the disc in his hand, given to him by a dying man, who had once worked for the Bureau many years ago.

“I've carried this truth for too long,” the former security guard spoke in a low gravely voice, barely holding on as old age sapped his life. “But I can't go to my grave without telling someone. At the time, I was scared, and I didn't want to be caught, so I took the evidence with me and ran. It's yours now, and what you choose to do with it is up to you.”

His own death was probably close at hand, but he couldn't die until he had revealed what he had learned. That was why he had even managed to get a few of those anti-aging treatments, even though it made his skin crawl in revulsion. What he had to share was too important; they had to know!

And they were all so naïve to believe it was all a series of random, unfortunate incidents. What he had learned, had opened his eyes to what was really going on, although he still couldn't fathom the ultimate purpose. He now knew the “how” but the “why” part still eluded him, but it couldn't wait; as it was, he may have waited too long.

And now his fears told him he was too late, as he sat down on one of the fallen pillars to rest. If they found Carim's hideout, they may have also found the others; who else could he tell? After a moment, his head came back up, the momentary faltering of his resolve fading; he couldn't give up now, not while there was still a chance.

Verossa Acous knew there was still a possibility, but only if he could find her in time.

Xx~~*~~xX

Author's notes:

Dots. More dots. Can you find them, and draw the lines? =)

Title is from an old song, by the Byrds, and the implication is that there is a time for everything. A time for love, a time for hate, a time for war, a time for peace. There's a time for everything, which I feel fits the mood of this chapter.

For those that want less angst and more boom boom, I'll get back to that with my two Crisis continuations. Just kinda exploring this option for now.^^

Future Angst. Good one . Anyway, mmmmm...

mmmmmm...

No omake this time. Not enough suffering for me to use.

Apart from that... Well, I did say Nanoha needed a break, but now that we got it, the chapter itself feels like a breather from all the problems piling up one afer another.

[Rising Dragon]

And now Caro's gone...

Also, Erio's really bad at picking out aliases, isn't he? It was kinda obvious when I first read through, and hearing the name "Edward" only cinched it for me.

[vic-vic]

Originally Posted by Kaijo

Okay, I suppose it's been long enough; time for another installment of Future Angst!

Future Tense

Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn

In which Nanoha becomes a houseguest for awhile, and several others experience interesting developments... for good or for ill...

Previous chapters can be found here.

Spoiler for Future Tense, Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn:

MGLN: Future Tense
Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn

Xx~~*~~xX

Pure white.

It stretched in every direction as far as the eye could see, and it left her profoundly unsettled. White held a number of meanings in her home country, but the most prominent one in her mind now was death, so she felt the scenery was practically choking the life from her.

In fact, she found she couldn't breathe.

She tried to raise her arms to her throat to check her airways, but they wouldn't move, and no she keenly felt another pair of hands there, squeezing tightly. Her body jerked slightly in it's death throes to escape the torment, but it was no use; she wasn't getting any air and she felt weaker and more helpless by the second.

[I can't... breathe! What's... going on!?]

As soon as the question was raised, a vague, blurry face formed in front of her, pale, thin and gaunt, with a grey outline and a toothy grin. The face was amorphous, changing, indistinct, yet somehow it instilled her with fear.

She was going to die.

Nanoha's eyes shot open as she inhaled reflexively, panting while she slowly became aware of her surroundings, first noticing how the sheets of the bed clung to her moderately sweaty body as she stared at the ceiling of what appeared to be a log cabin. While her breathing slowly returned to normal, she turned her head, finding her shirt and pants drying on a line above fire crackling in a fireplace in the corner, which raised her inner alarm and caused her to confirm she had been reduced to her underwear.

[Where am I?] she wondered, clutching the bed sheet to her chest as she tried to sit up, feeling a bit dizzy almost immediately.

Raising her hand, she touched her head, only to find it bandaged. She realized someone must have done that, and put her here, but who? She remembered being at Yuuno and Shari's house, then Fate broke in, and things became a bit fuzzy after that. They had teleported her, and she remembered feeling sad she couldn't talk with Fate, and then she woke up here.

"Find your daughter! Find Vivio!"

Her eyes widened as the flood of memories came back, with Yuuno's command being the most prominent one, even as her head began to pound; it still didn't stop her from her joyous thought.

Vivio is alive!

And there Fate was there as well, looking a bit older, but not as much as she expected to see for a woman her age, yet still filling Nanoha with regret. [Fate-chan...]

She also realized that Fate had called Yuuno her “ex-husband” which Nanoha found more confusing; [Yuuno and Fate were married? How did that happen?] That wasn't something she would have seen coming, and it made her feel a bit funny inside for reasons she couldn't quite figure out. Or maybe she just wasn't feeling well to begin with; she wasn't sure which.

The front door opening broke her line of thought and drew her attention over to the side, even as her vision began to swim. A tall, moderately-built man in tanned leathers and raccoon cap entered, his face mostly obscured by a thick reddish-brown beard. Her eyes widened as he took notice of her, seemingly studying her face.

"Your awake," he stated the obvious. "I didn't do anything to you, but you do have a concussion. You should rest awhile."

She couldn't even attempt to argue the point as her vision became more blurred, and then she collapsed back to the pillow as unconsciousness claimed her once more.

x~~*~~x

“I never expected to see you again,” Fate stated as she entered the brig, seeing Yuuno bound with chains in his cell; it was a confrontation she found herself hesitant to commit to, but in the end she managed to force herself to do it. “And I honestly hoped that you were just laying low to stay out of the Bureau's way. It really pains me to see you like this.”

Yuuno glanced up, his eyes almost unreadable, but Fate knew him well enough to see the disappointment there. “You can stop that pain anytime. Let us go, or at least let Shari go. If you won't do that because you're still loyal to Hayate, then do it as a request, in remembrance of what we had.”

Fate clenched her fist. “I can't, I'm truly sorry. I don't know what you're planning with Nanoha and Vivio, but I can take a guess. I really had hoped that you weren't working with the terrorists, but I can't let this go, no matter how much I want to.”

“One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter,” Yuuno shot back.

Fate sighed. “We've had this argument before; it's why we divorced in the first place. I'm not going to have it again.”

Yuuno's gaze dropped. “Yes, we have. And neither one of us will budge. Grief brought us to together, and it helped heal us; I was truly happy back then.” He shook his head. “But a shared common loss wasn't enough to sustain what we had. We were simply hiding from the truth.”

“That she wasn't coming back, no matter how much we missed her,” Fate added, her voice softening, then it turned hard again. “But you did bring her back, at least a clone of her. Why? What are you, Carim, and Vivio up to?”

“I'm sorry, but I can't tell you,” Yuuno stated flatly. “Only that it no longer matters what happens to me. Nanoha taught me that; to do whatever it takes to save the people you care about, no matter how painful.”

“You weren't the only one!” Fate almost shouted at him, her eyes on the verge of watering. “Don't you think it pains me to do this!? Hayate and I, we're doing this not because we want to, but because we have to, in order to save lives! Don't make me do this; you know what I'm going to have to do!”

Yuuno chuckled darkly. “And yet we're having the argument again.” He shook his head, then met her eyes. “Then do what you have to, and I'll do what I have to.”

Fate grit her teeth, glaring at her ex-husband; he was pushing her, making it easy for her to inflict punishment, but she wasn't going to fall for it... yet. Instead, she turned around to compose herself. “I'll bring Shari in so you two can have one more night together to talk. But that's all I can do. Tomorrow, one way or another, I'll have to find out exactly what you're up to.”

She felt Yuuno's eyes on the back of her head as she left the brig, but despite that, she somehow managed to keep her resolve firm.

x~~*~~x

Sister Rubella moved from patient to patient in the mobile army hospital, checking each one, lending her minor healing magic to each one. She was technically a prisoner, but she was able to convince the soldiers to let her tend to the wounded; above all else, she didn't want more death on her conscience.

"Hey, we'll be moving out soon, so make sure they're ready for transport!" came the call of a soldier who ducked his head into the tent.

"I have at least four people who shouldn't be moved for three days at the very minimum!" she protested. "I was promised I would be given the time for their bodies to heal enough for transport. Don't you have any medical personnel who can assist me? My healing magic isn't as strong as it used to be."

He shrugged. "Not my call, and not my problem. You're the one who wanted to help with this. Our doctors are busy with the injured soldiers, and they take precedence."

She sighed again as the soldier left, glancing at the half-dozen rebels still under her care, reaching down to stroke the hair of the youngest who was still unconscious. "I'm sorry, I know I sinned, but I thought it was for the best. This way, we can limit the suffering and death, until Our Lady returns." Her eyes closed as tears formed. "I never meant to have so many hurt, including you! I was told they'd take care of you with a minimum of casualties and harm."

"You... told them... where the hideout was?" Givo said in surprise, causing her eyes to snap open and see him staring back at her.

"I..." Rubella started to say, staring at him in horror, then bowed her head. "Forgive me, but they promised leniency for everyone if I did, but I remember the war and couldn't stand to see the resistance taking anymore lives."

The youth continued to glare at her, then turned his head away from her. His lack of response troubled her more than if he had outright stated his condemnation of her actions, and Rubella found herself shaking slightly.

"Let me see if I can get you new bandages for the move," she told him, moving to the supplies in the corner of the tent.

Givo still didn't reply.

x~~*~~x

Agito strained against the bind spell that Hayate rapidly hit her with as soon as Signum moved out of the way. "Will someone explain just what the hell happened!?"

"I'd like to know that as well," Hayate replied, studying the little demon. "My spell was only meant to reconstitute Signum. So how did this happen?"

"[That must have been the unknown variance I detected,]" Rein ventured. "[Somehow, her linker core was connected with Signum's, even though we never actually entered her patterns into the new book.]"

"I tried to tell you it would be no use," Signum stated in an emotionless tone. "Hayate had her device rebuilt during the war to ensure neither Vita nor I could be ever be permanently killed. The tome originally had the ability to reconstitute us whenever we were killed, and she restored that function from the data the original Reinforce left in her linker core. You were never told this."

Agito stared at the two. "You can't be killed? Then you can't..."

She trailed off, but Signum seemed to catch what she was about to say, nodding slightly with a small hint of sadness in her eyes. Agito understood; Signum knew she was betraying Zest's promise, but somehow couldn't disobey Hayate no matter how much she might personally want to... and she also couldn't die. In that crystal clear moment, Agito saw exactly what kind of situation her former master was in.

“Well, this is a problem, then,” the mistress of the Wolkenritter stated at last. “If you won't rejoin the Bureau, I'll have to find a was to disconnect you from Signum and the book.”

The little demon shifted her glare to Hayate, recognizing that there was a new objective: In order to free Signum, Hayate had to die.

x~~*~~x

When she awoke again, a light breeze was blowing through the cabin from the open windows, carrying with it the sound of chirping birds. Somehow, she got the impression that it was morning, which made her wonder exactly how long she was out. However, she did feel slightly better, enough to sit up partially, but she didn't press her luck.

Her clothes were now folded on a chair next to the bed, the necklace Raging Heart was hooked to resting on top. Another glance around the single room cabin drew her gaze to the blankets on the couch; her mysterious host must have slept there, allowing her to have his bed.

[Quite the gentleman after all,] she thought to herself, which just made her wonder who he was even more.

The door opened again, and Nanoha made sure the blanket was covering her chest, though at this point he had probably seen things already. Still, she wasn't about to give out free shows.

"Um, I should thank you for helping me," she stated, which just earned her a shrug in response.

Her host seemed to show a reluctance for communication as he mostly ignored her, instead grabbing a piece of fruit from a bowl to cut it in two. Curious, Nanoha watched him as he placed a placed half of it on a tray, then took two bowls over to a pot sitting on a spit in the fireplace. He filled them both with something, returning to the table, his whole body attitude making it seem like he was deliberately trying not to pay much attention to her; but she couldn't figure out why.

"I'm... Seikou," Nanoha offered, making another attempt at conversation after debating what name to give him. "May I ask your name?"

He paused, glancing at her once after setting the bowls down on the table; the look in his eyes made him seem like he was somehow skeptical of her of something, as if he was trying to figure her out, much like she was trying to do to him. Then he seemingly lost interest in his study of her, placing spoons in the bowls before picking up the tray and coming over to her.

Nanoha sat up more, tying the blanket around her upper body, then accepted the tray as he put it in her lap. "Oh, thank you! Mr...?"

Once again he ignored her, turning to head back to the table, sitting down to pick up his spoon. Nanoha refocused her attention to her own steaming bowl, which contained something that strongly resembled a soup-like oatmeal. It smelled decently enough, so she mimicked his motion, blowing on a spoonful to cool it before trying it. It wasn't quite tasteless, but it wasn't bad either, and she realized she was quite hungry.

"Edward," her host said out-of-the-blue, causing her to turn and look at him; he shrugged. "My name."

Nanoha smiled. "Nice to meet you, Edward."

He almost seemed to blush, she thought, but it quickly faded. "You had a concussion. Once you rest a few days, you can resume your journey."

[There it is again,] she realized, something in his tone that matched his body actions, as if he didn't want her here. [Perhaps he's a hermit who is just used to being alone and prefers it that way?]

"Well, I'll try not to burden you too much," she told him after trying out the piece of fruit that tasted much like a peach.

Edward shrugged again, then finished the rest of his meal in silence before heading to the door, pausing before exiting. "I'll be back later today. You should probably stay here; dangerous out there. There are some rolls in the cupboard and fruit in the bowl if you get hungry."

And then he was gone, the wood door whining as it closed behind him, leaving Nanoha alone with her thoughts and the remains of her breakfast, wondering exactly what kind of man Edward was. Ultimately, she decided not to worry about it so much; her life was dangerous enough as it was, and the best thing she could do would be to recover and leave, hopefully before anyone else showed up. Almost everyone she came into contact with had suffered misfortune, mostly because of the Bureau being after her; she didn't want to afflict him with that.

Plus, she had to focus on her mission; somewhere out there, Vivio was alive, and waiting for her.

x~~*~~x

"I'm reeeaaally looking forward to a bath," Teana opined longingly as the two approached their home in Clangan.

Wendi made a show of sniffing the air, then grinned. "Yes, you do."

Teana halfheartedly whacked her across the back of the head, but she was smiling slightly. "Shut up."

The door opened the moment they hit the edge of the property line, revealing a smirking Nove who came out to greet them. "About time you guys got back; I was beginning to get worried!"

It had been agreed upon earlier, that Nove would go ahead and return first, so that she could sneak back in and make it seem as if she never left; they didn't want to broadcast the fact that she had been with them, as she wasn't supposed to leave the city in the first place.

"Well, we would have been back sooner, but Wendi was beginning to enjoy her new accommodations," Teana joked.

"Hmph," the #11 cyborg grunted, purposefully looking away. "I'm just-"

The words died on her lips as several vans pulled up and disgorged a number of Enforcers, who promptly encircled the trio, while yet more Enforcers descended from the sky to join their brethren. All pointed their staves threateningly at the Nakajima family.

"What's the meaning of this!?" Teana demanded, as her sisters activated their devices.

"Wendi is under arrest for conspiracy to commit treason against the state," Hayate informed them, descending out of the sky to land behind the Enforcer line. "I suggest you don't resist, so you will be able to defend yourself at trial."

Teana noticed her two sisters tensing up, but laid a hand on both their shoulders to prevent them from doing something rash. "On what evidence?"

"A video that has recently come to light, among others," Hayate told them, opening a holographic screen to display it.

Wendi was clearly shown walking down a hallway, then paused and glanced around, before stepping to the side while pulling out a small communication device and holding it to her ear. "I told you not to call me here... Yes, I got the last message you sent... I'll have a chance to meet with them next week... Yes, I know how important this is, and I agree with you that it's time Hayate's rule ended. Now don't call me here again unless it's important!"

The trio watched, stunned, as the video ended and the screen disappeared, with Wendi immediately blurting out afterward, "That isn't me! Someone was using transformation magic or something!"

"No magic was detected in that particular hallway," Hayate declared solemnly. "But you'll have a chance to examine the evidence for yourself later. For now, you're under arrest; I can't make exceptions for anyone, not even you."

Wendi tensed again, but Teana placed both hands on her shoulders and said softly, "Go along with it for now. We'll get you out of this, I promise. I won't let any harm come to you." The #11 cyborg acquiesced under her sister's words, growling, but allowing herself to be handcuffed under protest.

"With that out of the way, Nove Nakajima, you are also under arrest for disobeying orders," Hayate stated, turning to the other cyborg. "You left the city under explicit orders not to."

"Quattro!" Nove spat. "She lied to me; she-" The #9 cyborg promptly shut up, then adjusted her stance. "Quattro must be behind this! Her IS can manipulate images without magic!"

Hayate's eyes narrowed. "Quattro's use of her IS is limited, and under my direct control. And her whereabouts were confirmed at the times of Wendi's little phone call, and your disappearance. You have no one to blame but yourself."

Teana turned on the supreme commander as Nove was taken into custody, her patience rapdily running out. "Hayate, you can't possibly accept-"

"You'll have a chance to make your case at trial," Hayate restated, interrupting her subordinate. "Don't make me repeat myself again. And we better not find evidence of your involvement in this conspiracy as well."

Helpless, Teana could only glare at Hayate as she watched as her two sisters being taken away, every fiber of her being screaming at her to stop this, but logically knowing she couldn't. Then movement in the corner of her eye shifted her attention around to see Dieci appear in the window of their home, curiously watching the situation. Teana shot Hayate another dark look, then forced her way past the Enforcers; she needed to explain things to Dieci first, then help prepare a defense against the ridciulous charges.

If Quattro was behind this, Teana would definitely find a way to prove it.

x~~*~~x

“How is it going in there?” Vice asked casually, placing a screwdriver in the hand that appeared from the hole.

“Better if you'd shut your yap and let me work,” Alto told him kindly for the umpteenth time since their flight from Mid-Childa a day-and-a-half ago.

“Well, we are stranded in space on the edge of a planetary system, and will remain so until you fix the engine, so we have to fill the time with something,” Vice bantered, falling back into the habit to stave off the reality of their situation. “And dinner is on hold.”

“Consider yourself lucky we're here at all!” she snapped back. “Hyperdrive mechanics aren't easy, and I didn't exactly have the best parts to work with in the first place! I might be able to manage a short hop to one of the planets, if they are habitable, and we can at least land.”

“Amos is still analyzing them, but the first three are out,” he informed her. “Too cold, and one is a gas giant. The other two are on the other side of the sun, so we won't have reliable data for awhile. But with a gas giant in system to act as a comet catcher, and the other two closer to the star, in the 'Goldilocks zone' as he calls it, he's hopeful.”

He didn't state what they were all thinking, though. Even if they found a habitable planet, they'd remain trapped there unless they could get the shuttle fully repaired; the planet would become their new home, and their role in the resistance would be over until someone could rescue them. With Hayate's Bureau controlling most of the dimensional sea, that aspect seemed unlikely.

Vice sighed and leaned back against the bulkhead, his mind as empty as the space around the shuttle. [Well, at least it can't get worse...]

“Mom, dad, I think you better get up here!” Amos's worried voice came from the front of the shuttle, forcing Vice to mentally smack himself for tempting fate. “Sensors just registered a ship dropping out of hyperspace, and from their trajectory, they're headed straight for us!”

Alto's head popped out of the hole in the bulkhead where she met Vice's gaze, then the two sprinted up front to the cockpit. Sure enough, there a vessel on approach, and Vice felt his insides grow cold as the shuttle's computer registered it's profile as a Bureau Cruiser.

“Unidentified ship, we have scanned your vessel and noticed that you are currently dead in the water,” came a female voice. “Do you require assistance?”

“Something about that voice...” Alto stated, rubbing her chin with her index finger.

“Can we get our engines back up in a few minutes?” Amos asked, but Alto shook her head to that; Vice was back there, and he knew she'd require at least 20 minutes to even put the sublight engines back together, never mind the hyperspace ones.

“Well, we need to respond or else they'll get really suspicious,” Vice reasoned, then took a deep breath and opened communications. “Thank you for your concern, but we are okay. We should have our engines back online momentarily, and we'll be on our way.”

There was a very pregnant pause, as all three pairs of eyes were locked on the radar screen, noting as the bureau ship drifted closer and closer; would it work?

The female voice came back on. “You really should learn to accept help sometimes.. Have your crew standby.”

Alto smacked her palm. “I thought I recognized that voice! It's-”

Her words were cut off as the entire crew of the shuttle were teleported, arriving in the in the hold of the Bureau ship. Vice spun to see a woman almost as old as he was, sporting a short crop of faded pink hair while she studied the rebels, a group of Enforcer's behind her.

“-Captain Lowran!” Alto finished, echoing Vice's realization.

Lucino sighed and shook her head, hands on her hips. “You guys are in a lot of trouble, you know that?”

A voice echoed over the communications system. “The shuttle is aboard, Captain. And the Admiral says he wants to meet with our guests.”

Vice narrowed his eyes, debating on how many Enforcer's he could take out if he activated Storm Raider. “Admiral aboard, eh? I guess we're your prisoners, then.”

“He's not on board, but we'll be taking you to see him,” Lucino replied with a hint of mystery. “Oh, and you probably shouldn't do that, Vice; I'd hate to shoot any of you.” Her lips tugged upwards into a grin. “You wouldn't be able to participate in the revolution, then.”

x~~*~~x

The hands were gnarled, but strong, resisting her attempts to remove them from her neck. All her magic was taken with her task, leaving her none to protect herself; and if she did, all her friends would die.

"You are mine now, child," the husky voice whispered in glee.

"S-stop!" Nanoha coughed out, fighting as she felt the very life in her body flow away. "I have to..."

The face floating in front of her was still blurred, unrecognizable, but somehow familiar, haunting, and hating, though she didn't know why. But this time, she retained enough presence of mind to realize it wasn't her air being choked out.

It was her very life essence.

Nanoha awoke in a sweat, panting heavily, and while the darkness around informed her that it was still night, that only made the images in her mind more vivid. It was the second time she had that particular dream, and the nagging mystery of what it meant left her unsettled. She sat up and rubbed her arms, then decided what she really needed was some fresh air; she didn't quite feel up to trying to get back to sleep.

While she got dressed, she reflected on the fact that almost a week had gone by since she had arrived at Edward's cabin, and she still didn't know much about him, although she wasn't really trying; he was still as uncommunicative as ever, so even attempting to drag something out of him was practically a fool's errand. Still, he did take care of her, and during her time here they had slipped into something of an uneasy unspoken relationship; Nanoha helping to tidy up and clean and cook where she could without asking, while he went out hunting or fishing daily. She was mostly recovered now, so she would be leaving him soon.

[Five days, which I suppose is long enough to impose on him,] she thought to herself. [The headaches are gone and I no longer feel weak. And I have to find Vivio.]

But there were still a couple of things that troubled her as she stepped outside into the very early morning air, one of them being the nightmare; was it just a subconscious construct reflecting her inner troubles about being a sacrifice? Or was it something more

She put that aside for not while she went to the nearby stream to wash the sweat off her body, focusing on the other thing that still bothered her; Edward's adamant refusal to teach her how to hunt or trap. She knew she'd have to travel on her own again soon, and with little money, she wasn't sure when she'd be able to eat properly. So, as much as the act of killing for her own food disturbed her, she knew she'd have to learn, but Edward had refused to allow her to accompany him.

“Why?” Nanoha had asked. “If I can learn to gather my own food-”

“I said no!” Edward shot back with a brief flare of anger. “I hunt best alone; I don't want anyone tagging along. Once you're better and leave, how you get along isn't my concern. There is a small harbor trading post a day's journey from here where other hunters gather; if you really want to learn when you leave, you can ask someone there.”

Nanoha sighed, pushing through the bushes, wondering where that stream was. She had been there a few times, but this was her first in the dark; had she taken a wrong turn? Pausing, she risked a small search spell, releasing the orb into the air and then closed her eyes to see the images relayed to her mind's eye through Raging Heart.

[Aha, there it is!] she thought to herself, seeing the small stream weave through the woods, then saw something unnatural shaped in the distance. [Wait, what's that?]

She guided the orb passed the stream, over several dozen meters of forest. There, among the trees and brush vines, were the ruins of several buildings. Had they been homes? Nanoha didn't know, but she found herself curious, letting the orb do the searching for her, dipping between them. The smaller ones were almost rotted away, but the largest one was still fairly intact, although not by much.

The first rays of sunlight came over the mountains, striking something above the door of the big building and reflecting the light in a flash. She guided the orb up to it, realizing that there was a name on the plate, but it had faded with age and fungus and vines obscured most of the rest of it. Still, there was something about the distribution of letters she could see that made her decide to cancel the spell and take a short flight over to the actual location.

Floating in front of the name plate, she wiped it off with her sleeve, her eyes widening as she read the name, her mind filling in for the faded letters:

SUPOOL NATURE PRESERVE

[Supool?] she thought, incredulous. [When did I end up on Supool? Did Yuuno and Shari send me here? Or was their house on that planet and I was initially sent there?] It occurred to her that she never asked; she just assumed she was still on Mid-Childa. [Does that mean Vivio is on this planet, too?]

The door to the building was long gone, but the insides were too rotted and overgrown that she decided not to venture in. But as she turned around to scan the area, she did notice a distinct well-traveled path in the overgrown grass. One direction led off back the way towards Edward's cabin, so it seemed to be something that he used often. Curious, Nanoha followed it as it wound behind the larger building.

Eventually she found the end of the path and stopped, feeling a sharp pain in her chest. It wasn't the wasn't the large tree that caused Nanoha's reaction, but the stone slab a meter in front of it. Stunned, she read the engraving on the stone:

CARO MONDAIL
0065 – 0101
BELOVED WIFE AND FRIEND

x~~*~~x

“Am I too late?” the wizened man wondered as he picked his way through the rubble.

The large building had stood here for years, hidden among the trees, and finally when he had a break in the case, was he too late to do tell anyone what he had discovered? His orders had been specific, to seek out that which was hidden that not even Carim could see. And it had taken years of following shadows and pulling at small threads before he began to see the full tapestry.

“There is something going on that not even I can see,” Carim told him while they were alone. “But you must find out. You must disappear and drop into the shadows, for it is only there that you will find the truth that we so desperately need. Be my eyes, and let me see.”

But the remains of the church where he stood let him know that there was no longer anyone here. Burnt holes in the ceiling and walls reminded him of pinpoint lightning strikes, so he had a pretty good guess what might have happened; or rather “who” might have happened. Did Carim not see this? Or just not tell him? Would his warning come too late?

Instinctively, he clutched the disc in his hand, given to him by a dying man, who had once worked for the Bureau many years ago.

“I've carried this truth for too long,” the former security guard spoke in a low gravely voice, barely holding on as old age sapped his life. “But I can't go to my grave without telling someone. At the time, I was scared, and I didn't want to be caught, so I took the evidence with me and ran. It's yours now, and what you choose to do with it is up to you.”

His own death was probably close at hand, but he couldn't die until he had revealed what he had learned. That was why he had even managed to get a few of those anti-aging treatments, even though it made his skin crawl in revulsion. What he had to share was too important; they had to know!

And they were all so naïve to believe it was all a series of random, unfortunate incidents. What he had learned, had opened his eyes to what was really going on, although he still couldn't fathom the ultimate purpose. He now knew the “how” but the “why” part still eluded him, but it couldn't wait; as it was, he may have waited too long.

And now his fears told him he was too late, as he sat down on one of the fallen pillars to rest. If they found Carim's hideout, they may have also found the others; who else could he tell? After a moment, his head came back up, the momentary faltering of his resolve fading; he couldn't give up now, not while there was still a chance.

Verossa Acous knew there was still a possibility, but only if he could find her in time.

Xx~~*~~xX

Author's notes:

Dots. More dots. Can you find them, and draw the lines? =)

Title is from an old song, by the Byrds, and the implication is that there is a time for everything. A time for love, a time for hate, a time for war, a time for peace. There's a time for everything, which I feel fits the mood of this chapter.

For those that want less angst and more boom boom, I'll get back to that with my two Crisis continuations. Just kinda exploring this option for now.^^

Yay, detrmination filled Yuuno are pure badass. Hm, i still see a chemistry between him and Fate... a catfight between Fate and Shari

And what Verosa have finded?

[SilentOutlaw]

Originally Posted by Kaijo

Okay, I suppose it's been long enough; time for another installment of Future Angst!

Future Tense

Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn

In which Nanoha becomes a houseguest for awhile, and several others experience interesting developments... for good or for ill...

Previous chapters can be found here.

Another nice chapter, it's also kinda good to know what happened to Erio and Caro. Although it's sad to learn that one of them died and the other became a hermit.

I can't wait for when Nanoha and Vivio meet up, I feel a CMoH coming.

And with what happening with Verossa I think they may actually earn a happy ending....maybe.

[shiroi mahotsukai]

Even a pinprick of light is a blessing in the darkness, and like a candle hope will continue to burn even when it flickers and wanes...that is until it burns down to nothing and has no fuel left to burn. When that happens you get anew candle and begin the proccess all over again.

[Moczo]

Originally Posted by Rising Dragon

Or, at the very least, listen to Moczo rage about the site. =X

Shhhh... everything seems to be fine now, but it took the better part of two days, and I don't want to risk waking the site up and incurring it's wrath again...

[00-Raiser]

Originally Posted by Kaijo

Okay, I suppose it's been long enough; time for another installment of Future Angst!

Future Tense

Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn

In which Nanoha becomes a houseguest for awhile, and several others experience interesting developments... for good or for ill...

Previous chapters can be found here.

Spoiler for Future Tense, Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn:

MGLN: Future Tense
Chapter 16: To Everything, Turn

Xx~~*~~xX

Pure white.

It stretched in every direction as far as the eye could see, and it left her profoundly unsettled. White held a number of meanings in her home country, but the most prominent one in her mind now was death, so she felt the scenery was practically choking the life from her.

In fact, she found she couldn't breathe.

She tried to raise her arms to her throat to check her airways, but they wouldn't move, and no she keenly felt another pair of hands there, squeezing tightly. Her body jerked slightly in it's death throes to escape the torment, but it was no use; she wasn't getting any air and she felt weaker and more helpless by the second.

[I can't... breathe! What's... going on!?]

As soon as the question was raised, a vague, blurry face formed in front of her, pale, thin and gaunt, with a grey outline and a toothy grin. The face was amorphous, changing, indistinct, yet somehow it instilled her with fear.

She was going to die.

Nanoha's eyes shot open as she inhaled reflexively, panting while she slowly became aware of her surroundings, first noticing how the sheets of the bed clung to her moderately sweaty body as she stared at the ceiling of what appeared to be a log cabin. While her breathing slowly returned to normal, she turned her head, finding her shirt and pants drying on a line above fire crackling in a fireplace in the corner, which raised her inner alarm and caused her to confirm she had been reduced to her underwear.

[Where am I?] she wondered, clutching the bed sheet to her chest as she tried to sit up, feeling a bit dizzy almost immediately.

Raising her hand, she touched her head, only to find it bandaged. She realized someone must have done that, and put her here, but who? She remembered being at Yuuno and Shari's house, then Fate broke in, and things became a bit fuzzy after that. They had teleported her, and she remembered feeling sad she couldn't talk with Fate, and then she woke up here.

"Find your daughter! Find Vivio!"

Her eyes widened as the flood of memories came back, with Yuuno's command being the most prominent one, even as her head began to pound; it still didn't stop her from her joyous thought.

Vivio is alive!

And there Fate was there as well, looking a bit older, but not as much as she expected to see for a woman her age, yet still filling Nanoha with regret. [Fate-chan...]

She also realized that Fate had called Yuuno her “ex-husband” which Nanoha found more confusing; [Yuuno and Fate were married? How did that happen?] That wasn't something she would have seen coming, and it made her feel a bit funny inside for reasons she couldn't quite figure out. Or maybe she just wasn't feeling well to begin with; she wasn't sure which.

The front door opening broke her line of thought and drew her attention over to the side, even as her vision began to swim. A tall, moderately-built man in tanned leathers and raccoon cap entered, his face mostly obscured by a thick reddish-brown beard. Her eyes widened as he took notice of her, seemingly studying her face.

"Your awake," he stated the obvious. "I didn't do anything to you, but you do have a concussion. You should rest awhile."

She couldn't even attempt to argue the point as her vision became more blurred, and then she collapsed back to the pillow as unconsciousness claimed her once more.

x~~*~~x

“I never expected to see you again,” Fate stated as she entered the brig, seeing Yuuno bound with chains in his cell; it was a confrontation she found herself hesitant to commit to, but in the end she managed to force herself to do it. “And I honestly hoped that you were just laying low to stay out of the Bureau's way. It really pains me to see you like this.”

Yuuno glanced up, his eyes almost unreadable, but Fate knew him well enough to see the disappointment there. “You can stop that pain anytime. Let us go, or at least let Shari go. If you won't do that because you're still loyal to Hayate, then do it as a request, in remembrance of what we had.”

Fate clenched her fist. “I can't, I'm truly sorry. I don't know what you're planning with Nanoha and Vivio, but I can take a guess. I really had hoped that you weren't working with the terrorists, but I can't let this go, no matter how much I want to.”

“One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter,” Yuuno shot back.

Fate sighed. “We've had this argument before; it's why we divorced in the first place. I'm not going to have it again.”

Yuuno's gaze dropped. “Yes, we have. And neither one of us will budge. Grief brought us to together, and it helped heal us; I was truly happy back then.” He shook his head. “But a shared common loss wasn't enough to sustain what we had. We were simply hiding from the truth.”

“That she wasn't coming back, no matter how much we missed her,” Fate added, her voice softening, then it turned hard again. “But you did bring her back, at least a clone of her. Why? What are you, Carim, and Vivio up to?”

“I'm sorry, but I can't tell you,” Yuuno stated flatly. “Only that it no longer matters what happens to me. Nanoha taught me that; to do whatever it takes to save the people you care about, no matter how painful.”

“You weren't the only one!” Fate almost shouted at him, her eyes on the verge of watering. “Don't you think it pains me to do this!? Hayate and I, we're doing this not because we want to, but because we have to, in order to save lives! Don't make me do this; you know what I'm going to have to do!”

Yuuno chuckled darkly. “And yet we're having the argument again.” He shook his head, then met her eyes. “Then do what you have to, and I'll do what I have to.”

Fate grit her teeth, glaring at her ex-husband; he was pushing her, making it easy for her to inflict punishment, but she wasn't going to fall for it... yet. Instead, she turned around to compose herself. “I'll bring Shari in so you two can have one more night together to talk. But that's all I can do. Tomorrow, one way or another, I'll have to find out exactly what you're up to.”

She felt Yuuno's eyes on the back of her head as she left the brig, but despite that, she somehow managed to keep her resolve firm.

x~~*~~x

Sister Rubella moved from patient to patient in the mobile army hospital, checking each one, lending her minor healing magic to each one. She was technically a prisoner, but she was able to convince the soldiers to let her tend to the wounded; above all else, she didn't want more death on her conscience.

"Hey, we'll be moving out soon, so make sure they're ready for transport!" came the call of a soldier who ducked his head into the tent.

"I have at least four people who shouldn't be moved for three days at the very minimum!" she protested. "I was promised I would be given the time for their bodies to heal enough for transport. Don't you have any medical personnel who can assist me? My healing magic isn't as strong as it used to be."

He shrugged. "Not my call, and not my problem. You're the one who wanted to help with this. Our doctors are busy with the injured soldiers, and they take precedence."

She sighed again as the soldier left, glancing at the half-dozen rebels still under her care, reaching down to stroke the hair of the youngest who was still unconscious. "I'm sorry, I know I sinned, but I thought it was for the best. This way, we can limit the suffering and death, until Our Lady returns." Her eyes closed as tears formed. "I never meant to have so many hurt, including you! I was told they'd take care of you with a minimum of casualties and harm."

"You... told them... where the hideout was?" Givo said in surprise, causing her eyes to snap open and see him staring back at her.

"I..." Rubella started to say, staring at him in horror, then bowed her head. "Forgive me, but they promised leniency for everyone if I did, but I remember the war and couldn't stand to see the resistance taking anymore lives."

The youth continued to glare at her, then turned his head away from her. His lack of response troubled her more than if he had outright stated his condemnation of her actions, and Rubella found herself shaking slightly.

"Let me see if I can get you new bandages for the move," she told him, moving to the supplies in the corner of the tent.

Givo still didn't reply.

x~~*~~x

Agito strained against the bind spell that Hayate rapidly hit her with as soon as Signum moved out of the way. "Will someone explain just what the hell happened!?"

"I'd like to know that as well," Hayate replied, studying the little demon. "My spell was only meant to reconstitute Signum. So how did this happen?"

"[That must have been the unknown variance I detected,]" Rein ventured. "[Somehow, her linker core was connected with Signum's, even though we never actually entered her patterns into the new book.]"

"I tried to tell you it would be no use," Signum stated in an emotionless tone. "Hayate had her device rebuilt during the war to ensure neither Vita nor I could be ever be permanently killed. The tome originally had the ability to reconstitute us whenever we were killed, and she restored that function from the data the original Reinforce left in her linker core. You were never told this."

Agito stared at the two. "You can't be killed? Then you can't..."

She trailed off, but Signum seemed to catch what she was about to say, nodding slightly with a small hint of sadness in her eyes. Agito understood; Signum knew she was betraying Zest's promise, but somehow couldn't disobey Hayate no matter how much she might personally want to... and she also couldn't die. In that crystal clear moment, Agito saw exactly what kind of situation her former master was in.

“Well, this is a problem, then,” the mistress of the Wolkenritter stated at last. “If you won't rejoin the Bureau, I'll have to find a was to disconnect you from Signum and the book.”

The little demon shifted her glare to Hayate, recognizing that there was a new objective: In order to free Signum, Hayate had to die.

x~~*~~x

When she awoke again, a light breeze was blowing through the cabin from the open windows, carrying with it the sound of chirping birds. Somehow, she got the impression that it was morning, which made her wonder exactly how long she was out. However, she did feel slightly better, enough to sit up partially, but she didn't press her luck.

Her clothes were now folded on a chair next to the bed, the necklace Raging Heart was hooked to resting on top. Another glance around the single room cabin drew her gaze to the blankets on the couch; her mysterious host must have slept there, allowing her to have his bed.

[Quite the gentleman after all,] she thought to herself, which just made her wonder who he was even more.

The door opened again, and Nanoha made sure the blanket was covering her chest, though at this point he had probably seen things already. Still, she wasn't about to give out free shows.

"Um, I should thank you for helping me," she stated, which just earned her a shrug in response.

Her host seemed to show a reluctance for communication as he mostly ignored her, instead grabbing a piece of fruit from a bowl to cut it in two. Curious, Nanoha watched him as he placed a placed half of it on a tray, then took two bowls over to a pot sitting on a spit in the fireplace. He filled them both with something, returning to the table, his whole body attitude making it seem like he was deliberately trying not to pay much attention to her; but she couldn't figure out why.

"I'm... Seikou," Nanoha offered, making another attempt at conversation after debating what name to give him. "May I ask your name?"

He paused, glancing at her once after setting the bowls down on the table; the look in his eyes made him seem like he was somehow skeptical of her of something, as if he was trying to figure her out, much like she was trying to do to him. Then he seemingly lost interest in his study of her, placing spoons in the bowls before picking up the tray and coming over to her.

Nanoha sat up more, tying the blanket around her upper body, then accepted the tray as he put it in her lap. "Oh, thank you! Mr...?"

Once again he ignored her, turning to head back to the table, sitting down to pick up his spoon. Nanoha refocused her attention to her own steaming bowl, which contained something that strongly resembled a soup-like oatmeal. It smelled decently enough, so she mimicked his motion, blowing on a spoonful to cool it before trying it. It wasn't quite tasteless, but it wasn't bad either, and she realized she was quite hungry.

"Edward," her host said out-of-the-blue, causing her to turn and look at him; he shrugged. "My name."

Nanoha smiled. "Nice to meet you, Edward."

He almost seemed to blush, she thought, but it quickly faded. "You had a concussion. Once you rest a few days, you can resume your journey."

[There it is again,] she realized, something in his tone that matched his body actions, as if he didn't want her here. [Perhaps he's a hermit who is just used to being alone and prefers it that way?]

"Well, I'll try not to burden you too much," she told him after trying out the piece of fruit that tasted much like a peach.

Edward shrugged again, then finished the rest of his meal in silence before heading to the door, pausing before exiting. "I'll be back later today. You should probably stay here; dangerous out there. There are some rolls in the cupboard and fruit in the bowl if you get hungry."

And then he was gone, the wood door whining as it closed behind him, leaving Nanoha alone with her thoughts and the remains of her breakfast, wondering exactly what kind of man Edward was. Ultimately, she decided not to worry about it so much; her life was dangerous enough as it was, and the best thing she could do would be to recover and leave, hopefully before anyone else showed up. Almost everyone she came into contact with had suffered misfortune, mostly because of the Bureau being after her; she didn't want to afflict him with that.

Plus, she had to focus on her mission; somewhere out there, Vivio was alive, and waiting for her.

x~~*~~x

"I'm reeeaaally looking forward to a bath," Teana opined longingly as the two approached their home in Clangan.

Wendi made a show of sniffing the air, then grinned. "Yes, you do."

Teana halfheartedly whacked her across the back of the head, but she was smiling slightly. "Shut up."

The door opened the moment they hit the edge of the property line, revealing a smirking Nove who came out to greet them. "About time you guys got back; I was beginning to get worried!"

It had been agreed upon earlier, that Nove would go ahead and return first, so that she could sneak back in and make it seem as if she never left; they didn't want to broadcast the fact that she had been with them, as she wasn't supposed to leave the city in the first place.

"Well, we would have been back sooner, but Wendi was beginning to enjoy her new accommodations," Teana joked.

"Hmph," the #11 cyborg grunted, purposefully looking away. "I'm just-"

The words died on her lips as several vans pulled up and disgorged a number of Enforcers, who promptly encircled the trio, while yet more Enforcers descended from the sky to join their brethren. All pointed their staves threateningly at the Nakajima family.

"What's the meaning of this!?" Teana demanded, as her sisters activated their devices.

"Wendi is under arrest for conspiracy to commit treason against the state," Hayate informed them, descending out of the sky to land behind the Enforcer line. "I suggest you don't resist, so you will be able to defend yourself at trial."

Teana noticed her two sisters tensing up, but laid a hand on both their shoulders to prevent them from doing something rash. "On what evidence?"

"A video that has recently come to light, among others," Hayate told them, opening a holographic screen to display it.

Wendi was clearly shown walking down a hallway, then paused and glanced around, before stepping to the side while pulling out a small communication device and holding it to her ear. "I told you not to call me here... Yes, I got the last message you sent... I'll have a chance to meet with them next week... Yes, I know how important this is, and I agree with you that it's time Hayate's rule ended. Now don't call me here again unless it's important!"

The trio watched, stunned, as the video ended and the screen disappeared, with Wendi immediately blurting out afterward, "That isn't me! Someone was using transformation magic or something!"

"No magic was detected in that particular hallway," Hayate declared solemnly. "But you'll have a chance to examine the evidence for yourself later. For now, you're under arrest; I can't make exceptions for anyone, not even you."

Wendi tensed again, but Teana placed both hands on her shoulders and said softly, "Go along with it for now. We'll get you out of this, I promise. I won't let any harm come to you." The #11 cyborg acquiesced under her sister's words, growling, but allowing herself to be handcuffed under protest.

"With that out of the way, Nove Nakajima, you are also under arrest for disobeying orders," Hayate stated, turning to the other cyborg. "You left the city under explicit orders not to."

"Quattro!" Nove spat. "She lied to me; she-" The #9 cyborg promptly shut up, then adjusted her stance. "Quattro must be behind this! Her IS can manipulate images without magic!"

Hayate's eyes narrowed. "Quattro's use of her IS is limited, and under my direct control. And her whereabouts were confirmed at the times of Wendi's little phone call, and your disappearance. You have no one to blame but yourself."

Teana turned on the supreme commander as Nove was taken into custody, her patience rapdily running out. "Hayate, you can't possibly accept-"

"You'll have a chance to make your case at trial," Hayate restated, interrupting her subordinate. "Don't make me repeat myself again. And we better not find evidence of your involvement in this conspiracy as well."

Helpless, Teana could only glare at Hayate as she watched as her two sisters being taken away, every fiber of her being screaming at her to stop this, but logically knowing she couldn't. Then movement in the corner of her eye shifted her attention around to see Dieci appear in the window of their home, curiously watching the situation. Teana shot Hayate another dark look, then forced her way past the Enforcers; she needed to explain things to Dieci first, then help prepare a defense against the ridciulous charges.

If Quattro was behind this, Teana would definitely find a way to prove it.

x~~*~~x

“How is it going in there?” Vice asked casually, placing a screwdriver in the hand that appeared from the hole.

“Better if you'd shut your yap and let me work,” Alto told him kindly for the umpteenth time since their flight from Mid-Childa a day-and-a-half ago.

“Well, we are stranded in space on the edge of a planetary system, and will remain so until you fix the engine, so we have to fill the time with something,” Vice bantered, falling back into the habit to stave off the reality of their situation. “And dinner is on hold.”

“Consider yourself lucky we're here at all!” she snapped back. “Hyperdrive mechanics aren't easy, and I didn't exactly have the best parts to work with in the first place! I might be able to manage a short hop to one of the planets, if they are habitable, and we can at least land.”

“Amos is still analyzing them, but the first three are out,” he informed her. “Too cold, and one is a gas giant. The other two are on the other side of the sun, so we won't have reliable data for awhile. But with a gas giant in system to act as a comet catcher, and the other two closer to the star, in the 'Goldilocks zone' as he calls it, he's hopeful.”

He didn't state what they were all thinking, though. Even if they found a habitable planet, they'd remain trapped there unless they could get the shuttle fully repaired; the planet would become their new home, and their role in the resistance would be over until someone could rescue them. With Hayate's Bureau controlling most of the dimensional sea, that aspect seemed unlikely.

Vice sighed and leaned back against the bulkhead, his mind as empty as the space around the shuttle. [Well, at least it can't get worse...]

“Mom, dad, I think you better get up here!” Amos's worried voice came from the front of the shuttle, forcing Vice to mentally smack himself for tempting fate. “Sensors just registered a ship dropping out of hyperspace, and from their trajectory, they're headed straight for us!”

Alto's head popped out of the hole in the bulkhead where she met Vice's gaze, then the two sprinted up front to the cockpit. Sure enough, there a vessel on approach, and Vice felt his insides grow cold as the shuttle's computer registered it's profile as a Bureau Cruiser.

“Unidentified ship, we have scanned your vessel and noticed that you are currently dead in the water,” came a female voice. “Do you require assistance?”

“Something about that voice...” Alto stated, rubbing her chin with her index finger.

“Can we get our engines back up in a few minutes?” Amos asked, but Alto shook her head to that; Vice was back there, and he knew she'd require at least 20 minutes to even put the sublight engines back together, never mind the hyperspace ones.

“Well, we need to respond or else they'll get really suspicious,” Vice reasoned, then took a deep breath and opened communications. “Thank you for your concern, but we are okay. We should have our engines back online momentarily, and we'll be on our way.”

There was a very pregnant pause, as all three pairs of eyes were locked on the radar screen, noting as the bureau ship drifted closer and closer; would it work?

The female voice came back on. “You really should learn to accept help sometimes.. Have your crew standby.”

Alto smacked her palm. “I thought I recognized that voice! It's-”

Her words were cut off as the entire crew of the shuttle were teleported, arriving in the in the hold of the Bureau ship. Vice spun to see a woman almost as old as he was, sporting a short crop of faded pink hair while she studied the rebels, a group of Enforcer's behind her.

“-Captain Lowran!” Alto finished, echoing Vice's realization.

Lucino sighed and shook her head, hands on her hips. “You guys are in a lot of trouble, you know that?”

A voice echoed over the communications system. “The shuttle is aboard, Captain. And the Admiral says he wants to meet with our guests.”

Vice narrowed his eyes, debating on how many Enforcer's he could take out if he activated Storm Raider. “Admiral aboard, eh? I guess we're your prisoners, then.”

“He's not on board, but we'll be taking you to see him,” Lucino replied with a hint of mystery. “Oh, and you probably shouldn't do that, Vice; I'd hate to shoot any of you.” Her lips tugged upwards into a grin. “You wouldn't be able to participate in the revolution, then.”

x~~*~~x

The hands were gnarled, but strong, resisting her attempts to remove them from her neck. All her magic was taken with her task, leaving her none to protect herself; and if she did, all her friends would die.

"You are mine now, child," the husky voice whispered in glee.

"S-stop!" Nanoha coughed out, fighting as she felt the very life in her body flow away. "I have to..."

The face floating in front of her was still blurred, unrecognizable, but somehow familiar, haunting, and hating, though she didn't know why. But this time, she retained enough presence of mind to realize it wasn't her air being choked out.

It was her very life essence.

Nanoha awoke in a sweat, panting heavily, and while the darkness around informed her that it was still night, that only made the images in her mind more vivid. It was the second time she had that particular dream, and the nagging mystery of what it meant left her unsettled. She sat up and rubbed her arms, then decided what she really needed was some fresh air; she didn't quite feel up to trying to get back to sleep.

While she got dressed, she reflected on the fact that almost a week had gone by since she had arrived at Edward's cabin, and she still didn't know much about him, although she wasn't really trying; he was still as uncommunicative as ever, so even attempting to drag something out of him was practically a fool's errand. Still, he did take care of her, and during her time here they had slipped into something of an uneasy unspoken relationship; Nanoha helping to tidy up and clean and cook where she could without asking, while he went out hunting or fishing daily. She was mostly recovered now, so she would be leaving him soon.

[Five days, which I suppose is long enough to impose on him,] she thought to herself. [The headaches are gone and I no longer feel weak. And I have to find Vivio.]

But there were still a couple of things that troubled her as she stepped outside into the very early morning air, one of them being the nightmare; was it just a subconscious construct reflecting her inner troubles about being a sacrifice? Or was it something more

She put that aside for not while she went to the nearby stream to wash the sweat off her body, focusing on the other thing that still bothered her; Edward's adamant refusal to teach her how to hunt or trap. She knew she'd have to travel on her own again soon, and with little money, she wasn't sure when she'd be able to eat properly. So, as much as the act of killing for her own food disturbed her, she knew she'd have to learn, but Edward had refused to allow her to accompany him.

“Why?” Nanoha had asked. “If I can learn to gather my own food-”

“I said no!” Edward shot back with a brief flare of anger. “I hunt best alone; I don't want anyone tagging along. Once you're better and leave, how you get along isn't my concern. There is a small harbor trading post a day's journey from here where other hunters gather; if you really want to learn when you leave, you can ask someone there.”

Nanoha sighed, pushing through the bushes, wondering where that stream was. She had been there a few times, but this was her first in the dark; had she taken a wrong turn? Pausing, she risked a small search spell, releasing the orb into the air and then closed her eyes to see the images relayed to her mind's eye through Raging Heart.

[Aha, there it is!] she thought to herself, seeing the small stream weave through the woods, then saw something unnatural shaped in the distance. [Wait, what's that?]

She guided the orb passed the stream, over several dozen meters of forest. There, among the trees and brush vines, were the ruins of several buildings. Had they been homes? Nanoha didn't know, but she found herself curious, letting the orb do the searching for her, dipping between them. The smaller ones were almost rotted away, but the largest one was still fairly intact, although not by much.

The first rays of sunlight came over the mountains, striking something above the door of the big building and reflecting the light in a flash. She guided the orb up to it, realizing that there was a name on the plate, but it had faded with age and fungus and vines obscured most of the rest of it. Still, there was something about the distribution of letters she could see that made her decide to cancel the spell and take a short flight over to the actual location.

Floating in front of the name plate, she wiped it off with her sleeve, her eyes widening as she read the name, her mind filling in for the faded letters:

SUPOOL NATURE PRESERVE

[Supool?] she thought, incredulous. [When did I end up on Supool? Did Yuuno and Shari send me here? Or was their house on that planet and I was initially sent there?] It occurred to her that she never asked; she just assumed she was still on Mid-Childa. [Does that mean Vivio is on this planet, too?]

The door to the building was long gone, but the insides were too rotted and overgrown that she decided not to venture in. But as she turned around to scan the area, she did notice a distinct well-traveled path in the overgrown grass. One direction led off back the way towards Edward's cabin, so it seemed to be something that he used often. Curious, Nanoha followed it as it wound behind the larger building.

Eventually she found the end of the path and stopped, feeling a sharp pain in her chest. It wasn't the wasn't the large tree that caused Nanoha's reaction, but the stone slab a meter in front of it. Stunned, she read the engraving on the stone:

CARO MONDAIL
0065 – 0101
BELOVED WIFE AND FRIEND

x~~*~~x

“Am I too late?” the wizened man wondered as he picked his way through the rubble.

The large building had stood here for years, hidden among the trees, and finally when he had a break in the case, was he too late to do tell anyone what he had discovered? His orders had been specific, to seek out that which was hidden that not even Carim could see. And it had taken years of following shadows and pulling at small threads before he began to see the full tapestry.

“There is something going on that not even I can see,” Carim told him while they were alone. “But you must find out. You must disappear and drop into the shadows, for it is only there that you will find the truth that we so desperately need. Be my eyes, and let me see.”

But the remains of the church where he stood let him know that there was no longer anyone here. Burnt holes in the ceiling and walls reminded him of pinpoint lightning strikes, so he had a pretty good guess what might have happened; or rather “who” might have happened. Did Carim not see this? Or just not tell him? Would his warning come too late?

Instinctively, he clutched the disc in his hand, given to him by a dying man, who had once worked for the Bureau many years ago.

“I've carried this truth for too long,” the former security guard spoke in a low gravely voice, barely holding on as old age sapped his life. “But I can't go to my grave without telling someone. At the time, I was scared, and I didn't want to be caught, so I took the evidence with me and ran. It's yours now, and what you choose to do with it is up to you.”

His own death was probably close at hand, but he couldn't die until he had revealed what he had learned. That was why he had even managed to get a few of those anti-aging treatments, even though it made his skin crawl in revulsion. What he had to share was too important; they had to know!

And they were all so naïve to believe it was all a series of random, unfortunate incidents. What he had learned, had opened his eyes to what was really going on, although he still couldn't fathom the ultimate purpose. He now knew the “how” but the “why” part still eluded him, but it couldn't wait; as it was, he may have waited too long.

And now his fears told him he was too late, as he sat down on one of the fallen pillars to rest. If they found Carim's hideout, they may have also found the others; who else could he tell? After a moment, his head came back up, the momentary faltering of his resolve fading; he couldn't give up now, not while there was still a chance.

Verossa Acous knew there was still a possibility, but only if he could find her in time.

Xx~~*~~xX

Author's notes:

Dots. More dots. Can you find them, and draw the lines? =)

Title is from an old song, by the Byrds, and the implication is that there is a time for everything. A time for love, a time for hate, a time for war, a time for peace. There's a time for everything, which I feel fits the mood of this chapter.

For those that want less angst and more boom boom, I'll get back to that with my two Crisis continuations. Just kinda exploring this option for now.^^

Lots going on in this chapter, but few things of major severity. Like was said, a needed breather chapter. Good work.

[Kaijo]

Thanks for the comments everyone! And Raiser, thanks for the corrections as always. Uploaded a slightly better Chapter 16 to ff.net.

Originally Posted by SilentOutlaw

I can't wait for when Nanoha and Vivio meet up, I feel a CMoH coming.

Heh, heh, heh; you have no idea... ^_~

Edit: Well, it should be up soon, anyway. I think ff.net is running a little slow....

[Yasanagi]

Posted a new polished chapter of Material Days on my account. Check it out here.

[Nanya01]

Spoiler for More Changes:

A few days later...

Alicia frowned softly, something had happened, she just knew it. "Linith..?"

"Yes?" Her familiar looked at her, though she seemed to be distracted at the time. "Lady Alicia?"

"You feel that?" It was a terrible pulse of magic, one that chilled her to the bones, and she wasn't even that strong, magically, compared to the rest of the people in her penthouse. She couldn't imagine how it was for Linith.

The two went back to what they had been doing before, Linith cleaning up while Alicia did some tests on various things that were laying around. She looked at the Jewel Seeds before shaking her head. The last thing she wanted to do was experiment on them without double-checking to make sure that they were sealed properly.

The two of them suddenly stiffened as they heard the door get kicked in and Arf yelling. The two were in the living room a moment later and Alicia gasped as she saw Fate's hands and arms. There were deep burns, some gouging, and even blood. "Fate!" She gasped and went to her daughter, taking her from Arf. "What happened?"

"I'm sorry, mother... I just wanted to get the Jewel Seed."

"Why would you risk yourself like that?!" Alicia yelled, worry written all over her face as Linith moved them towards the bedroom. After putting Fate on the bed, Alicia grew more worried as Fate grimaced from that. "Linith..."

The catgirl nodded and gently, carefully, took Fate's clothing off, both women gasped and stared wide-eyed at the series of burns across Fate's upper body.

"Get the bandages, I'll see about healing her." Linith said softly as Alicia got up and went to the bathroom where they kept the bandages. As she worked some healing magic, mostly to stop any sort of bleeding and lessen the pain, Linith sighed as Fate looked away, out of shame. "What's wrong, Fate?"

"I upset mother... I just wanted that Jewel Seed before that other girl got it."

"So you decided you wanted to know what it felt like to become fried chicken?!" Linith snapped at her, getting her to cringe and turn away slightly. Sighing, Linith took a deep breath. "Fate, I'm sorry, but, we're not used to seeing you so badly hurt. It scares us. What if Arf hadn't been there? What if the other girl decided to attack you while you were hurt?" When she didn't respond, Linith ran a hand through her hair, before coaxing her to laying on her back again. "We don't want to lose you, Fate. Your mother would be very sad if you died."

Fate's eyes started to burn with tears as she hiccuped a few times, her breath coming in shuddering gasps, before she rolled over and clung to Linith. "I...I'm sorry!" She started crying, tears falling down her face as Linith, not stopping the healing spell, patted her on the head. She would have rubbed Fate's back, but there were burns there too. Just what had happened out there?

"I'm so so-sorry!" Fate sobbed into Linith's lap. "The other girl got one earlier today and then when the second one popped up, I really wanted to get it and..." She broke down, unable to form words at that time.

Alicia came back at that time and gently sat down on the bed, taking out some burn ointment and started to rub it on her daughter's back and arms. Neither woman said anything as Fate kept crying.

"Feel better?" Linith asked after Fate calmed down. The girl nodded against her lap. "Good... Fate, it's a good thing that you want to get these Lost Logia so badly, but..."

"I don't want you to do something that will get you hurt." Alicia finished for Linith as she continued to rub the lotion onto Fate's body. The two sat Fate up, since the burns were only on her upper body, and applied the lotion to her front. "You're my precious girl, if you died, I wouldn't know what to do with myself."

"I'm sorry." Fate sniffled softly and blinked as Linith wiped her face with a paper towel. The catgirl didn't say anything, thankfully, but Fate still felt bad that she had made both her mother and Linith worry about her.

At times, Linith felt like a mother to Fate, just like Alicia was.

It made her feel warm and happy.

But, she always felt a deep desire to do all that she could to prove herself worthy of the love that both of them and Arf gave to her. And that was why she did such dangerous and stupid stunts.

[shiroi mahotsukai]

Originally Posted by Yasanagi

Posted a new polished chapter of Material Days on my account. Check it out here.

I think the "polishing" is going well, rough edges smoothed and surfaces shined, it's almost like new...but still the same.

[Moczo]

Originally Posted by Nanya01

Spoiler for More Changes:

A few days later...

Alicia frowned softly, something had happened, she just knew it. "Linith..?"

"Yes?" Her familiar looked at her, though she seemed to be distracted at the time. "Lady Alicia?"

"You feel that?" It was a terrible pulse of magic, one that chilled her to the bones, and she wasn't even that strong, magically, compared to the rest of the people in her penthouse. She couldn't imagine how it was for Linith.

The two went back to what they had been doing before, Linith cleaning up while Alicia did some tests on various things that were laying around. She looked at the Jewel Seeds before shaking her head. The last thing she wanted to do was experiment on them without double-checking to make sure that they were sealed properly.

The two of them suddenly stiffened as they heard the door get kicked in and Arf yelling. The two were in the living room a moment later and Alicia gasped as she saw Fate's hands and arms. There were deep burns, some gouging, and even blood. "Fate!" She gasped and went to her daughter, taking her from Arf. "What happened?"

"I'm sorry, mother... I just wanted to get the Jewel Seed."

"Why would you risk yourself like that?!" Alicia yelled, worry written all over her face as Linith moved them towards the bedroom. After putting Fate on the bed, Alicia grew more worried as Fate grimaced from that. "Linith..."

The catgirl nodded and gently, carefully, took Fate's clothing off, both women gasped and stared wide-eyed at the series of burns across Fate's upper body.

"Get the bandages, I'll see about healing her." Linith said softly as Alicia got up and went to the bathroom where they kept the bandages. As she worked some healing magic, mostly to stop any sort of bleeding and lessen the pain, Linith sighed as Fate looked away, out of shame. "What's wrong, Fate?"

"I upset mother... I just wanted that Jewel Seed before that other girl got it."

"So you decided you wanted to know what it felt like to become fried chicken?!" Linith snapped at her, getting her to cringe and turn away slightly. Sighing, Linith took a deep breath. "Fate, I'm sorry, but, we're not used to seeing you so badly hurt. It scares us. What if Arf hadn't been there? What if the other girl decided to attack you while you were hurt?" When she didn't respond, Linith ran a hand through her hair, before coaxing her to laying on her back again. "We don't want to lose you, Fate. Your mother would be very sad if you died."

Fate's eyes started to burn with tears as she hiccuped a few times, her breath coming in shuddering gasps, before she rolled over and clung to Linith. "I...I'm sorry!" She started crying, tears falling down her face as Linith, not stopping the healing spell, patted her on the head. She would have rubbed Fate's back, but there were burns there too. Just what had happened out there?

"I'm so so-sorry!" Fate sobbed into Linith's lap. "The other girl got one earlier today and then when the second one popped up, I really wanted to get it and..." She broke down, unable to form words at that time.

Alicia came back at that time and gently sat down on the bed, taking out some burn ointment and started to rub it on her daughter's back and arms. Neither woman said anything as Fate kept crying.

"Feel better?" Linith asked after Fate calmed down. The girl nodded against her lap. "Good... Fate, it's a good thing that you want to get these Lost Logia so badly, but..."

"I don't want you to do something that will get you hurt." Alicia finished for Linith as she continued to rub the lotion onto Fate's body. The two sat Fate up, since the burns were only on her upper body, and applied the lotion to her front. "You're my precious girl, if you died, I wouldn't know what to do with myself."

"I'm sorry." Fate sniffled softly and blinked as Linith wiped her face with a paper towel. The catgirl didn't say anything, thankfully, but Fate still felt bad that she had made both her mother and Linith worry about her.

At times, Linith felt like a mother to Fate, just like Alicia was.

It made her feel warm and happy.

But, she always felt a deep desire to do all that she could to prove herself worthy of the love that both of them and Arf gave to her. And that was why she did such dangerous and stupid stunts.

Yup. I guess it just goes to show you that on some level, Fate is always going to be Fate, no matter what her childhood was like.

Poor little thing... but at least now she has someone to take care of her after she pushes herself too far.