Aileen: Oh look, the bipedals are debating the reality magic. It's so amusing to see them talking about forces beyond their comprehension as if they know all about them. But really though, remember this?
I think it's time we go and see whether you even managed to save one tiny little life before we continue debating finer points of magic, don't you think?
In a flash of light, you return to the underground lab. You blink as you remember the choice. Right. Run at the drone and try to bash it of Quint. You charge at the drone, ignoring a warning cry from Megane and raise your arms to smash your device into the drone as hard as you can.
*shunk*
The sound of metal piercing flesh makes itself known as the drone raises one of its unoccupied legs and thrusts it forward, piercing you chest straight trough. The cries of your commanding officers fade away as the life bleeds out of your body through the hole in your chest.
Suddenly, as if waking up, you open your eyes and find yourself in the white world again, apparently still wearing the Ground Force uniform. Your device is in the hands of Aileen, who is looking it over with what seems like fascination.
"Such an amazing device. Supports defensive spells, increased stability, reinforces your grounding position, mental scope, it even has support for rapid fire and firing on the move. Truly an amazing Mid Childan device."
Aileen's fascinated look changes immediately as she looks up and glares at you.
"Which of course makes your action all the more idiotic. You're a Mid Childan mage holding a Mid Childan device and you think its a smart idea to run up to a drone designed for close combat? I mean if you don't want to save Quint you only have to say so. Let's try again." Aileen once again fades away in the whiteness of the world, you hear her fading voice tell you one last thing. "Oh, and by the way, if you have any questions just ask. I'll give you the best dictionary."
When the white itself fades away, you once again face the same choice.
A: Try shooting the drone of Quint.
B: Run at the drone and bash it of Quint.
C: Help Megane with the drone attacking her.
D: Do nothing.
Extrapolating from their "daughters", Quint seems physical while Megane seems more indirect, so Megane may have more trouble with the drones than Quint. C
In terms of loadout, again, air superiority is not the greatest of concerns. That's what our friendlies are for. Those same friendlies also make Hammers a no-no. Dogfights are by their very nature unpredictable, and firing wildly with friendlies possibly being everywhere is not exactly conductive to good teamwork. For that reason, we'll pack Crusaders.
So, final selection: B-2.
Oh dear... now we've got three ordinance techs scuffling...
The fighter selection is clean, but I've got three different ordinance votes. Anyone for a tiebreaker?
Most of this shit has been done to death. My opinion about most of this can basically be summed up as augment I've used before: "Just cause it's called magic doesn't mean a user is automatically a walking no limits fallacy". It's a fact that seems to escape many hacks that even in Fantasy magic nearly always has rules and things it can't do. This is something even most of the "It's magic" crowd here accepts in some cases. Mostly in the face of blatantly overpowered mary sues, but then they rail against it in most others.
Make up your mind if magic can toss out all the rules then you have no reason to question absurdly broken powers. After all "it's magic!" If their are limits then we can question such broken powers by saying they conflict with canon. As it is now though you lot seem to want to have the cake and eat it too. Their are no limits when you don't want them, they're are limits when you do.
Anyway that's my stand, but something else mentioned did get my attention and is not quite as done to death.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DezoPenguin
But I can't help but think that in doing so, it's kind of missing the point. If Midchildan magic is just technology by another name, then how is the Nanohaverse different from Star Wars or Warhammer 40K or (especially) Stargate or any other sci-fi franchise?
My Answer: It really isn't.
I still wonder why people don't seem to grasp this. Even you who frankly I think it rather well read and experienced don't seem to feel that at the core Nanoha really isn't much different from other sci-fi that plays fast and loose with science. The only difference being they decided to add the word "Magic" in place of random technobabble..
If you just compare SG-1 tech and Nanoha magic feets it becomes even more glaringly obvious.
Spoiler for SG-1 "Science":
Force Fields: Chose your flavor door, personal, star ship? Energy Weapons: None not vehicle mounted that quite match Starlight Breaker, but plenty that match lesser spells. Teleporting: Been there, done that in just as many ways in each. Cloaking: Done in SG-1 without even technology, some random particle apparently renders people totally invisible even without continuing energy input! Holograms and Illusions: Sooo many. Some of them can even acutally hurt people! (Mitchell fighting the Knight in Season 9) Bullet Time Super Speed: Now in convenient bracelet form! Healing: Near asended beings are pretty much Jesus, lay hands and wham no more bullet hole! If one of them isn’t handy a fancy bracelet that glows can also heal bullet wounds, or telekinetically hurl people across rooms, either or. Moving Through Solid Matter: "Phasing" for the win. Compressed Storage: Using a buffer on a teleporter allows a small Wraith dart to carry quite possibly thousands of people as energy patterns. Oh this can also be used to swap the minds of people, or put two of them in one body... somehow. Cloning: O'Neil acutally has a Teenage clone of him living on earth under an assumed name. Said clone also has all his memories. Time Travel: Outright stated to be impossible in Nanoha, so common in SG-1 it borders on cliche. There are IIRC at least 4 totally separate methods of time travel now. Time Control: Not quite the same thing as above. SG-1 has had devices that slow time, devices that speed up time, devices that cause time to loop, and devices that cut off a small segment of the universe from the rest of time... Travel to Other Universes: “Quantum Mirror”, Stargate Through Blackhole, ALTERNATE REALITY DRIVE (Yes that is CANON in SG-1) Raising the dead:Maybe sorta possible in Nanoha depending on how you interpret Zest. Common as dirt in SG-1, so common that O’Neil’s response to Daniel’s “death” was basically “Bullshit, he’ll be back.” Oh and these devices can also produce zombies, yes zombies.
And I'm probably missing some insanity I forgot over 15 seasons of shows.
So yeah what’s the difference?
Basically Nanoha calls it magic, SG-1 calls it science but it does the same damn things. On the other hand attempting to apply total no limits fallacies to either is equally wrong. Both can do allot, but not quite "anything". This is also why I found it so easy to make adaptions of two of SG-1s characters for Nanoha and they fit almost perfectly IMO.
As you strap yourself in, you make a suggestion for the conflicting loadouts.
Going for a balance of the desire for hitting power and safety, you suggest a hybrid loadout, instructing the ordinance team to load a mixed assortment of Crusaders and Sledgehammers.
[VEHICLE AND WEAPON SELECTION COMPLETE]
SF-30 C Phoenix Bomber
Primary Weapons: Two Stormbolt Mediums
Secondary Load:
8X Crusader General Purpose Antiship missiles.
4X Sledgehammer Heavy Antiship Missiles
The cockpit seals as your vehicle raises into position on the elevated launch catapult. Instructions from the AirBoss crackle over your commlink as you go over configuration and pre-ignition checks.
Ahead of you, the flight deck doors part as the EM drivers on the catapult begin to spark.
On a instruction from the AirBoss, you power up your Super Kinetic Ion Pulse Drives to idle. Creating a gentle thrumming fieling as the engine cycles at low power.
Several cross communications filter through your headset from the bridge, indicating that the carrier is aligning so that your launch will be at an optimal deorbit angle for as rapid an insertion as possible. A light thud announces the pressence of the catpult clamp attatching to your forward landing gear.
Out the flight deck's magnetic docking field, you can see Mid-Childa allign silently as 'CAT ONE, HOT!' crackles through the radio and echoes in the bay.
Giving your instrument displays one more scan, you note the G-suppressor is up at max and turn it down a notch. You want to feel any maneuver you make so you can keep your orientation. A flip of a switch closes the thermal shielding that protects the cockpit, switching you to a vitual cockpit display.
"Mouse One Cleared for Launch. Godspeed."
Gripping the control stick and throttle, you hear the whine of the catapult's EM driver even through the fighter as it prepares to fire.
With a jolt, the catapult fires, hurling your fighter clear of the cloaked carrier. Three seconds after you clear the docking bay, you execute a mandatory sharp roll and thirty degree off axis turn to get you out of the way of the carrier (in case it needs to jump), and push your throttle forward. A flare of light from the engines as they take over propelling you adds to the effect of the launch.
Glancing back in your virtual cockpit, there is no sign of the carrier, having exited the cloaking field almost as soon as you left the docking bay.
Hitting the atmosphere at 17,000 MPH, you align for an optimal speed to safety reentry vector and consider your approach options.
The cradle is at roughtly 10,000 feet and climbing, heading more or less south, skirting the continent. You'll be coming in from the west over the ocean.
There are three options for this approach.
A: Approach High
"You will waste no time getting time over target, and will close fast at 100,000 feet where the atmosphere is thinnest, allowing for the highest atmospheric speed. Everyone and their mother will see you against the backdrop of space."
B: Approach Level
"The direct approach pattern will put you into engagement from the greatest distance thanks to a very shallow angle of attack. But most of the crossfire engagement is occuring at this level around the Cradle."
C: Approach Low
"You'll come in deep and low, using the curvature of the planet to mask your approach and ground interference to prevent your approach from being clearly identified until you're well within strike range. You'll have to cut back on speed due to the higher atmospheric density though."
Last edited by AdmiralTigerclaw; 2009-10-07 at 18:07.
Red eyes slowly opened, squinting as they tried to focus. Clouds were visible above and the girl laying on the ground let out a slow groan as she came to. Blond hair kept small strands of freshly mowed grass in it as Fate slowly sat up. 'What... where am I?' The questions came at once and the girl swallowed thickly, realizing her throat was parched. 'I feel like my whole body was scrambled...' Moving one hand to rub her eyes, she placed the other on the ground beside her and yelped when she realized that Bardiche was in battle form minus the plasma glow of his blade. "B-Bardiche? What... what happened to us?"
"Memory blocks for the past twelve hours are missing, sir." The device told her helplessly.
"...Why am I in my barrier jacket?" Fate slowly stood and stumbled back to her knees when her vision swam in front of her. "Ugh... Bardiche, can you scan me?"
"Already have sir, condition green."
"Thank you..." Fate took a long steading breath and felt herself feel a little better. "If I'm here, then the others might be in danger... I think this qualifies as flight without permission. Let's go, Bardiche!"
"Yes sir!"
Fate leapt into the air and twisted once to stabilize herself before looking around from her bird's eye view. "I'm in the park in the town, so that means the base is westward." After nodding to herself, she took off, forming a small barrier around herself to block most of the wind blowing on her.
"Incoming communication, sir." Bardiche informed her, popping a monitor up for her.
"Connect." Fate replied easily, relieved that she was being contacted.
"Unidentified mage, you have entered a restricted air flight zone in military use. State your name and land immediately or you will be fired upon."
Fate blinked at the harsh command and looked at the man on the screen she didn't recognize. "Fate T. Harlaown, lead enforcer of section six on my way back from a battle. I need a status update for the past twelve hours."
The man typed a few things on a floating keyboard before glaring at Fate. "There is no mage by that name stationed here. Please land at once."
Fate growled. "Look, I was knocked out in battle and have no idea what is going on, I need a status update!"
Again the man frowned. "Land right now, mage, or you will be intercepted. This is your last warning."
The blonde sighed and cut the communication off, flying to the front of her familiar base. 'I'll have to find Hayate or someone to find out what's going on.' As she started walking to the door, Signum exited it and stood infront of Fate. "Signum, thank goodness." She offered her friend a relieved smile. "I was knocked out some time ago and-"
"How do you know my name?"
Fate stopped talking for a few seconds, looking at her friend with a slightly open mouth. "Signum, please, I am seriously worried that-"
"Answer my question, mage. You entered a military base without permission after being warned that hostile action would be taken. This is a restricted zone."
"Signum, this isn't funny!" Fate's voice started shaking, fear settling in on her. "Please, I am really worried here, I don't need this!"
"I need to restrain you and take you so you can be questioned. Will you come with me quietly?"
"Signum!" Fate shouted now, tears in her eyes. "Why are you doing this, I need your help right now! This isn't funny!" When the woman didn't reply she walked past, then shoved her away when a hand moved to grab her. Before the warrior could make another attempt, Hayate made it to them, already in her jacket. "Hayate, will you-"
Hayate pointed her staff at Fate and glared at her with serious eyes. "Put down your weapon and identify yourself."
Spoiler for AlternativeS part 2:
"What...?" Fate felt her legs shake but managed to keep herself standing. "Hayate... What is going on?" The tip of the staff lowered slightly when a tear fell from Fate's eye. "I don't... understand... Why are you acting like this...?"
Signum looked at Hayate and then back at the blonde who was on the edge of a breakdown. "I think the best course of action right now would be for you to come with us for a while and get some questions answered. Why do you know our names and why are you insisting that we know you?"
"Nanoha..." Fate's voice was soft, unsure of herself anymore. "I want to see Nanoha and Vivio."
Hayate positioned her staff in a less threatening way and put a hand on her hip, judging the woman in front of her. "Why do you want to see Nanoha-chan?"
"Please. Just please, okay? I need to see her..."
Signum stood behind her woman and put a hand on Fate's shoulder. "Mistress, I can take her from here."
"Please," Fate spoke again. " Just let me see them?"
"Who is Vivio?" Hayate asked, making Fate stiffen. "Okay, okay... I will ask for Nanoha to come to the interrogation room, will that make you feel better?"
"Mistress!?"
"I don't think she will cause any trouble." Hayate told her friend. "Now, can you tell me your name?"
"Fate." Fate finally spoke up. "Fate T. Harlaown."
Ignoring the last name as a coincidence, Hayate simply nodded. "Signum, please escort Fate-san here to the interrogation room. I will get Nanoha and ask her to meet you there."
Signum nodded and addressed Fate again. "Please disarm your device." She watched Fate recall her staff and place the gem in a slot on her left glove. "Thank you, this way, please." Putting her hand on Fate's back, she began to lead her.
Silence hung over the two as they slowly walked across the base while Hayate flew off towards the training field that was near where they were heading. No words were spoken during the semi-long walk and Fate felt a little bit of relief when she was entered in the air conditioned building. Together they walked to an elevator and she ignored the strange look she got when she pushed the button for the correct floor. After exiting, she made her way to the room and opened it, seeing Nanoha and Hayate already sitting behind the desk in the room.
After sitting down, Fate looked at Nanoha's questioning face and felt her heart break completely. "You... don't know who I am, do you?"
Nanoha looked at the woman in front of herself and slowly shook her head. "I'm... sorry? I don't remember you..."
Hayate spoke up, giving the woman a sad look. "Fate-san, could you please answer some questions for us? We have gone out of our way for you so much already." Fate nodded sadly, eyes still focused on Nanoha. "You told our contact that you were stationed here, am I correct?"
"Yes. Bardiche, could you?"
"Yes sir." Several monitors popped up, displaying Fate's I.D and information.
"Lightning one," Signum noted. "That is my call sign."
Fate didn't say anything. Instead, Hayate continued. "This looks too good to be faked... She even has our friendly unit code...It says here you live... In Nanoha's room."
Fate nodded again. "Yes, along with Vivio."
Nanoha shook her head. "Who is Vivio?" She almost flinched when Fate looked as if she had just lost her will to live. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you." She glanced at Hayate with a confused face and whispered to her. "What happened to this girl?"
"I don't know," Hayate whispered back softly. Turning back to Fate, she tried again. "Fate-san, you said something about being knocked out? You are in battle mode?"
Fate was looking down at her hands on the table, talking so softly she almost couldn't be heard. "I don't know... I woke up and have no memory of the battle I was in or how I even got there... The last I recall was dropping Vivio off at school."
"That name... why would that person be in my room?"
Nanoha swallowed and leaned back, stammering over her words. The woman in front of her was obviously upset because of them but she honestly couldn't remember anything. "Tell me something I would remember?"
"Our marriage?" Nanoha shook her head at Fate's words. "Adopting Vivio? Growing up, swapping ribbons?" When Nanoha kept shaking her head, Fate started getting desperate. "Anything? You saved me from my mother-" When Nanoha's eyes widened slightly, Fate felt a small bit of hope. "When we were nine, I attacked you for the jewel seeds!"
"I... I remember that, that was when I met Yuuno-kun and found out I was a mage..."
Fate nodded, reaching over and taking both of Nanoha's hands, much to everyone's displeasure. "Yes! And Arf, my familiar! Suzuka and Arisa!"
Nanoha shook her head, unsure. "How... can you know what happened on Earth..."
"That was me! The girl with pigtails! We fought and fought and you kept trying to get me to talk to you, and then when I was captured I came to help you against my mother. You offered your hand and saved me!"
Nanoha shook her head again. "But I... that girl died." This time Fate shook her head. "I remember it... I was yelling at her... to take my hand... and she didn't... she reached for her mother and was pulled into the void..."
"No... no, I reached for you. You saved me!" She felt Signum place a hand on her shoulder and she sat back down. "This isn't happening..."
"Fate, could you look at me...?" Nanoha leaned forward and ignored her friend's looks. Gently she touched Fate's cheeks and looked into her eyes. "I remember... those eyes. That were so very sad...."
Fate leaned lightly against the palms and placed her hand over Nanoha's. "I didn't die... Why is everything so suddenly different... I don't..."
"Lets talk somewhere more comfortable," Nanoha requested softly. "Hayate-chan, I don't think she is a threat. We need to let her settle down and try and figure out why she knows all of this. I think we should help her."
Hayate let out a breath but agreed anyway. "You always were one to help people no matter what... But I agree, this is a very confusing situation."
"Okay then, lets go to my room, Fate-chan. Signum, could you watch my students for an hour?" She got a nod and a very thankful look from Fate. "Lets go then." her hands pulled back and moved back under the table. A moment later she moved back and ran her palm over a small orb on her chair, gliding over to a shocked Fate. "Fate-chan?"
Fate felt everything stop, seeing nothing but Nanoha in a wheelchair. The questions around her started to fade out and she felt as if sand was pouring all over her body before she collapsed to her knees and then to the floor. The last thing she heard was her name being shouted and Nanoha trying to lean over to reach her.
Spoiler for Alternatives Part 3:
~**~
Fate moaned as a cool, damp washcloth was moved over her cheeks. "Wha...?"
"Don't force yourself," a gentle voice warned her softly.
"Shamal..." Fate spoke up, resting easier when the familiar voice was heard. "I had the worse nightmare... I went home and nobody remembered who I was... Nanoha was in a wheelchair..." Her red eyes slowly opened and she looked at the doctor. "It was horrible."
"...I'm sorry to say this, but that wasn't a dream." Shamal gave her patient a sympathetic look. "Fate-san, was it?"
The blonde closed her eyes and stayed silent for a long moment before answering. "...Yes."
"Can you answer some standard questions for me?"
"Yes."
"Do you hurt anywhere?"
"No."
"No headache or sore joints?"
"No."
Shamal clicked her tongue and scribbled on her pad. "Do you have a medical record I can review?"
Fate finally spoke up again after accepting the fact that she was still where she was. "Bardiche, please give Shamal my records." She watched a monitor appear before her and Shamal inspect it.
"They told me you said you knew all of us?" Shamal read over the information before her, staring at the perfect notes and then seeing her name by the doctor who treated the woman. "I see you know me as well, not just my name."
"Yes..." Fate sat up and moved her feet off the bed to sit. "You always treated me. I'm sure you'll find anything you want to know in there... Nanoha isn't here, is she?"
"No, she went to finish training her students, but requested me to contact her when you woke up. Were you expecting her to be here?"
Fate shook her head and stood, looking down at her Barrier Jacket before dismissing it to her normal enforcer uniform. "Shamal, I'm going to the training grounds, if you need me please contact Bardiche, okay?"
"I'm sorry I can't let you go without being escorted..." Her words trailed when the blonde looked at the floor sadly. "... Tell you what, you are my last patient today... How about I walk with you?"
"Thank you, I would like that." Fate allowed the woman to collect her things and close her office before walking along the hallways with her.
"So, how much do you know about us?"
Fate kept her eyes ahead, wondering how exactly to answer that. "You took care of me since I was nine... I remember getting my flu shots every year and being put on diets when I ate too many snacks..." A small smile came to her lips at the bittersweet memory. "We met back in the book of darkness incident-"
"How did you know about that? Its top secret."
"I was there." Fate replied back simply. "You and I didn't fight much, that was mainly Signum. I met Hayate then as well, on Christmas eve back on Earth..." Fate finally looked over at her. "Am I in some sort of fantasy world?"
"Or are you in the normal world with a fantasy memory?" Shamal answered back. "The possibility of this isn't unheard of, although rare."
"There have been others like me?"
"Time-Space distortion, a rare occurrence when going from subspace to normal space. However, those situations have been nothing more than losing time, not entering in alternate realities where only they have changed. Your situation is unique and I can't really offer you any more information until we understand why you have these memories that aren't real."
Fate had to run a few steps to catch up. "They have to be real, I experienced them all."
"The possibilities are too many right now. I will research it, though. Hayate already requested my help in the case."
Fate felt a small smile on her lips. "She doesn't change." The doctor returned the smile and continued the small walk to the training field, where Nanoha was sitting before the active training barrier. "Nanoha-chan."
Nanoha glanced over her shoulder and grinned before moving her left hand over the control orb of her wheelchair to turn herself around. "Shamal-san, Fate-chan, hello. Have you collected yourself, Fate-chan?"
Red eyes stared at the girl before her. "I am trying, but everything is so confusing..." Taking a step forward, she knelt down to be on a more eye-level with her friend. "When you had that accident, way back when we were twelve... is that when you lost your ability to walk?"
"Shouldn't you know that if you've been with me all this time?"
"The Nanoha I know... fought through it, and didn't give up. I helped her every day until she could walk again." Her gaze softened. "I'm sorry..."
Nanoha blinked and made her chair move back a little. "Thank you, but I am fine. I am a tactical teacher and spell developer. Your Nanoha was the same?"
"Stars leader and special task trainer. She lead a unit as well as trained forward students and normal recruits... She also shoved all her paper work off on her poor students." Judging from the laughter in Nanoha's eyes, that part stayed the same. Before she could continue the conversation, a flashing red monitor appeared beside Nanoha, demanding attention.
"Nanoha-chan!" Hayate's face appeared on the screen. "There are some drones near the bridge leading into the city. They are a new model, probably a test run. I need three or four people to launch an attack while we defend incase it is a front!"
Fate looked at the screen, eyes on the drones. "That's... not a new model."
Nanoha turned back to Fate. "You have seen these before?"
"Of course... They were Scaglietti's, a prototype for the more advanced drones."
Hayate addressed Fate now. "You have encountered them before, correct?"
"Yes." She nodded.
Hayate eyed the woman hard. "You said you were stationed under me, right?"
Fate set her eyes, knowing that tone of voice. "Ma'am!"
"What is your rank, Fate-san?"
The blonde pulled Bardiche and recalled her just recently discarded jacket. "S. I can handle them all by myself while recording their motions for you. Request permission for personal flight."
"Granted."
"Hayate-chan!" Nanoha interrupted sharply. "We can't just send her-!"
"Nanoha," Fate spoke up, smiling at her lovingly. "I want to talk to you when I get back, okay? I'll treat you to Fuji's." With that, she flew into the air, twisted, and headed off to the combat site. 'If these are here, and if what Shamal said was true...' The drones came into sight and she ignited her scythe. 'Then Scaglietti is alive...And he is smart enough to figure out why I am in this alternate reality.' She set her brow and engaged, activating several cameras around herself. 'And that means that these people here have no idea of the war about to happen...'
Curse my limited interwebz AGAIN for the 3rd month in a fucking row!!!
Ate my long reply, and I've not much credit left on my phone to redo it again (gonna have to make it last for 10 more days!!!) so I'll just say in summary that both Dezo and Tk have points I agree in. I'm not using this "science is magic" as an excuse to go nuts. And I think Nanoha World magic is the real science that was called Magic.
And so, I decided to create a magic that was called science. That is a recurring theme in all my Nanoha fics, especially the main one I'm working on (stalled again due to BIG EXAM coming). Negima and To Aru worlds only gave me further avenues to explore it.
My initial post was to share and grow ideas, and thanks to everyone for the input.
As you strap yourself in, you make a suggestion for the conflicting loadouts.
Going for a balance of the desire for hitting power and safety, you suggest a hybrid loadout, instructing the ordinance team to load a mixed assortment of Crusaders and Sledgehammers.
[VEHICLE AND WEAPON SELECTION COMPLETE]
SF-30 C Phoenix Bomber
Primary Weapons: Two Stormbolt Mediums
Secondary Load:
8X Crusader General Purpose Antiship missiles.
4X Sledgehammer Heavy Antiship Missiles
The cockpit seals as your vehicle raises into position on the elevated launch catapult. Instructions from the AirBoss crackle over your commlink as you go over configuration and pre-ignition checks.
Ahead of you, the flight deck doors part as the EM drivers on the catapult begin to spark.
On a instruction from the AirBoss, you power up your Super Kinetic Ion Pulse Drives to idle. Creating a gentle thrumming fieling as the engine cycles at low power.
Several cross communications filter through your headset from the bridge, indicating that the carrier is aligning so that your launch will be at an optimal deorbit angle for as rapid an insertion as possible. A light thud announces the pressence of the catpult clamp attatching to your forward landing gear.
Out the flight deck's magnetic docking field, you can see Mid-Childa allign silently as 'CAT ONE, HOT!' crackles through the radio and echoes in the bay.
Giving your instrument displays one more scan, you note the G-suppressor is up at max and turn it down a notch. You want to feel any maneuver you make so you can keep your orientation. A flip of a switch closes the thermal shielding that protects the cockpit, switching you to a vitual cockpit display.
"Mouse One Cleared for Launch. Godspeed."
Gripping the control stick and throttle, you hear the whine of the catapult's EM driver even through the fighter as it prepares to fire.
With a jolt, the catapult fires, hurling your fighter clear of the cloaked carrier. Three seconds after you clear the docking bay, you execute a mandatory sharp roll and thirty degree off axis turn to get you out of the way of the carrier (in case it needs to jump), and push your throttle forward. A flare of light from the engines as they take over propelling you adds to the effect of the launch.
Glancing back in your virtual cockpit, there is no sign of the carrier, having exited the cloaking field almost as soon as you left the docking bay.
Hitting the atmosphere at 17,000 MPH, you align for an optimal speed to safety reentry vector and consider your approach options.
The cradle is at roughtly 10,000 feet and climbing, heading more or less south, skirting the continent. You'll be coming in from the west over the ocean.
There are three options for this approach.
A: Approach High
"You will waste no time getting time over target, and will close fast at 100,000 feet where the atmosphere is thinnest, allowing for the highest atmospheric speed. Everyone and their mother will see you against the backdrop of space."
B: Approach Level
"The direct approach pattern will put you into engagement from the greatest distance thanks to a very shallow angle of attack. But most of the crossfire engagement is occuring at this level around the Cradle."
C: Approach Low
"You'll come in deep and low, using the curvature of the planet to mask your approach and ground interference to prevent your approach from being clearly identified until you're well within strike range. You'll have to cut back on speed due to the higher atmospheric density though."
While I believe that if the Aces were taken out by an enemy (thus, low/level altitude), approaching at a low altitude makes more sense for now. C
I still wonder why people don't seem to grasp this. Even you who frankly I think it rather well read and experienced don't seem to feel that at the core Nanoha really isn't much different from other sci-fi that plays fast and loose with science. The only difference being they decided to add the word "Magic" in place of random technobabble..
If you just compare SG-1 tech and Nanoha magic feets it becomes even more glaringly obvious.
Spoiler for SG-1 "Science":
Force Fields: Chose your flavor door, personal, star ship? Energy Weapons: None not vehicle mounted that quite match Starlight Breaker, but plenty that match lesser spells. Teleporting: Been there, done that in just as many ways in each. Cloaking: Done in SG-1 without even technology, some random particle apparently renders people totally invisible even without continuing energy input! Holograms and Illusions: Sooo many. Some of them can even acutally hurt people! (Mitchell fighting the Knight in Season 9) Bullet Time Super Speed: Now in convenient bracelet form! Healing: Near asended beings are pretty much Jesus, lay hands and wham no more bullet hole! If one of them isn’t handy a fancy bracelet that glows can also heal bullet wounds, or telekinetically hurl people across rooms, either or. Moving Through Solid Matter: "Phasing" for the win. Compressed Storage: Using a buffer on a teleporter allows a small Wraith dart to carry quite possibly thousands of people as energy patterns. Oh this can also be used to swap the minds of people, or put two of them in one body... somehow. Cloning: O'Neil acutally has a Teenage clone of him living on earth under an assumed name. Said clone also has all his memories. Time Travel: Outright stated to be impossible in Nanoha, so common in SG-1 it borders on cliche. There are IIRC at least 4 totally separate methods of time travel now. Time Control: Not quite the same thing as above. SG-1 has had devices that slow time, devices that speed up time, devices that cause time to loop, and devices that cut off a small segment of the universe from the rest of time... Travel to Other Universes: “Quantum Mirror”, Stargate Through Blackhole, ALTERNATE REALITY DRIVE (Yes that is CANON in SG-1) Raising the dead:Maybe sorta possible in Nanoha depending on how you interpret Zest. Common as dirt in SG-1, so common that O’Neil’s response to Daniel’s “death” was basically “Bullshit, he’ll be back.” Oh and these devices can also produce zombies, yes zombies.
And I'm probably missing some insanity I forgot over 15 seasons of shows.
So yeah what’s the difference?
Basically Nanoha calls it magic, SG-1 calls it science but it does the same damn things. On the other hand attempting to apply total no limits fallacies to either is equally wrong. Both can do allot, but not quite "anything". This is also why I found it so easy to make adaptions of two of SG-1s characters for Nanoha and they fit almost perfectly IMO.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Keroko
Exactly that. One calls it science, the other calls it magic. One has a an aura of reality, the other an aura of mysticism.
Precisely. (That is, incidentally, why I added the "especially" to my mention of the Stargate franchise. Tk's list sums it up perfectly.) The concepts that they play around with and the plotlines that they follow do follow along with the majority of sci-fi series. Calling Nanoha's technological base "magic" instead of an extension of our known real-world science is strictly a perceptual question in how we, the audience, see it, and how it ties in psychologically with how we see the events.
Red eyes slowly opened, squinting as they tried to focus. Clouds were visible above and the girl laying on the ground let out a slow groan as she came to. Blond hair kept small strands of freshly mowed grass in it as Fate slowly sat up. 'What... where am I?' The questions came at once and the girl swallowed thickly, realizing her throat was parched. 'I feel like my whole body was scrambled...' Moving one hand to rub her eyes, she placed the other on the ground beside her and yelped when she realized that Bardiche was in battle form minus the plasma glow of his blade. "B-Bardiche? What... what happened to us?"
"Memory blocks for the past twelve hours are missing, sir." The device told her helplessly.
"...Why am I in my barrier jacket?" Fate slowly stood and stumbled back to her knees when her vision swam in front of her. "Ugh... Bardiche, can you scan me?"
"Already have sir, condition green."
"Thank you..." Fate took a long steading breath and felt herself feel a little better. "If I'm here, then the others might be in danger... I think this qualifies as flight without permission. Let's go, Bardiche!"
"Yes sir!"
Fate leapt into the air and twisted once to stabilize herself before looking around from her bird's eye view. "I'm in the park in the town, so that means the base is westward." After nodding to herself, she took off, forming a small barrier around herself to block most of the wind blowing on her.
"Incoming communication, sir." Bardiche informed her, popping a monitor up for her.
"Connect." Fate replied easily, relieved that she was being contacted.
"Unidentified mage, you have entered a restricted air flight zone in military use. State your name and land immediately or you will be fired upon."
Fate blinked at the harsh command and looked at the man on the screen she didn't recognize. "Fate T. Harlaown, lead enforcer of section six on my way back from a battle. I need a status update for the past twelve hours."
The man typed a few things on a floating keyboard before glaring at Fate. "There is no mage by that name stationed here. Please land at once."
Fate growled. "Look, I was knocked out in battle and have no idea what is going on, I need a status update!"
Again the man frowned. "Land right now, mage, or you will be intercepted. This is your last warning."
The blonde sighed and cut the communication off, flying to the front of her familiar base. 'I'll have to find Hayate or someone to find out what's going on.' As she started walking to the door, Signum exited it and stood infront of Fate. "Signum, thank goodness." She offered her friend a relieved smile. "I was knocked out some time ago and-"
"How do you know my name?"
Fate stopped talking for a few seconds, looking at her friend with a slightly open mouth. "Signum, please, I am seriously worried that-"
"Answer my question, mage. You entered a military base without permission after being warned that hostile action would be taken. This is a restricted zone."
"Signum, this isn't funny!" Fate's voice started shaking, fear settling in on her. "Please, I am really worried here, I don't need this!"
"I need to restrain you and take you so you can be questioned. Will you come with me quietly?"
"Signum!" Fate shouted now, tears in her eyes. "Why are you doing this, I need your help right now! This isn't funny!" When the woman didn't reply she walked past, then shoved her away when a hand moved to grab her. Before the warrior could make another attempt, Hayate made it to them, already in her jacket. "Hayate, will you-"
Hayate pointed her staff at Fate and glared at her with serious eyes. "Put down your weapon and identify yourself."
Spoiler for AlternativeS part 2:
"What...?" Fate felt her legs shake but managed to keep herself standing. "Hayate... What is going on?" The tip of the staff lowered slightly when a tear fell from Fate's eye. "I don't... understand... Why are you acting like this...?"
Signum looked at Hayate and then back at the blonde who was on the edge of a breakdown. "I think the best course of action right now would be for you to come with us for a while and get some questions answered. Why do you know our names and why are you insisting that we know you?"
"Nanoha..." Fate's voice was soft, unsure of herself anymore. "I want to see Nanoha and Vivio."
Hayate positioned her staff in a less threatening way and put a hand on her hip, judging the woman in front of her. "Why do you want to see Nanoha-chan?"
"Please. Just please, okay? I need to see her..."
Signum stood behind her woman and put a hand on Fate's shoulder. "Mistress, I can take her from here."
"Please," Fate spoke again. " Just let me see them?"
"Who is Vivio?" Hayate asked, making Fate stiffen. "Okay, okay... I will ask for Nanoha to come to the interrogation room, will that make you feel better?"
"Mistress!?"
"I don't think she will cause any trouble." Hayate told her friend. "Now, can you tell me your name?"
"Fate." Fate finally spoke up. "Fate T. Harlaown."
Ignoring the last name as a coincidence, Hayate simply nodded. "Signum, please escort Fate-san here to the interrogation room. I will get Nanoha and ask her to meet you there."
Signum nodded and addressed Fate again. "Please disarm your device." She watched Fate recall her staff and place the gem in a slot on her left glove. "Thank you, this way, please." Putting her hand on Fate's back, she began to lead her.
Silence hung over the two as they slowly walked across the base while Hayate flew off towards the training field that was near where they were heading. No words were spoken during the semi-long walk and Fate felt a little bit of relief when she was entered in the air conditioned building. Together they walked to an elevator and she ignored the strange look she got when she pushed the button for the correct floor. After exiting, she made her way to the room and opened it, seeing Nanoha and Hayate already sitting behind the desk in the room.
After sitting down, Fate looked at Nanoha's questioning face and felt her heart break completely. "You... don't know who I am, do you?"
Nanoha looked at the woman in front of herself and slowly shook her head. "I'm... sorry? I don't remember you..."
Hayate spoke up, giving the woman a sad look. "Fate-san, could you please answer some questions for us? We have gone out of our way for you so much already." Fate nodded sadly, eyes still focused on Nanoha. "You told our contact that you were stationed here, am I correct?"
"Yes. Bardiche, could you?"
"Yes sir." Several monitors popped up, displaying Fate's I.D and information.
"Lightning one," Signum noted. "That is my call sign."
Fate didn't say anything. Instead, Hayate continued. "This looks too good to be faked... She even has our friendly unit code...It says here you live... In Nanoha's room."
Fate nodded again. "Yes, along with Vivio."
Nanoha shook her head. "Who is Vivio?" She almost flinched when Fate looked as if she had just lost her will to live. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you." She glanced at Hayate with a confused face and whispered to her. "What happened to this girl?"
"I don't know," Hayate whispered back softly. Turning back to Fate, she tried again. "Fate-san, you said something about being knocked out? You are in battle mode?"
Fate was looking down at her hands on the table, talking so softly she almost couldn't be heard. "I don't know... I woke up and have no memory of the battle I was in or how I even got there... The last I recall was dropping Vivio off at school."
"That name... why would that person be in my room?"
Nanoha swallowed and leaned back, stammering over her words. The woman in front of her was obviously upset because of them but she honestly couldn't remember anything. "Tell me something I would remember?"
"Our marriage?" Nanoha shook her head at Fate's words. "Adopting Vivio? Growing up, swapping ribbons?" When Nanoha kept shaking her head, Fate started getting desperate. "Anything? You saved me from my mother-" When Nanoha's eyes widened slightly, Fate felt a small bit of hope. "When we were nine, I attacked you for the jewel seeds!"
"I... I remember that, that was when I met Yuuno-kun and found out I was a mage..."
Fate nodded, reaching over and taking both of Nanoha's hands, much to everyone's displeasure. "Yes! And Arf, my familiar! Suzuka and Arisa!"
Nanoha shook her head, unsure. "How... can you know what happened on Earth..."
"That was me! The girl with pigtails! We fought and fought and you kept trying to get me to talk to you, and then when I was captured I came to help you against my mother. You offered your hand and saved me!"
Nanoha shook her head again. "But I... that girl died." This time Fate shook her head. "I remember it... I was yelling at her... to take my hand... and she didn't... she reached for her mother and was pulled into the void..."
"No... no, I reached for you. You saved me!" She felt Signum place a hand on her shoulder and she sat back down. "This isn't happening..."
"Fate, could you look at me...?" Nanoha leaned forward and ignored her friend's looks. Gently she touched Fate's cheeks and looked into her eyes. "I remember... those eyes. That were so very sad...."
Fate leaned lightly against the palms and placed her hand over Nanoha's. "I didn't die... Why is everything so suddenly different... I don't..."
"Lets talk somewhere more comfortable," Nanoha requested softly. "Hayate-chan, I don't think she is a threat. We need to let her settle down and try and figure out why she knows all of this. I think we should help her."
Hayate let out a breath but agreed anyway. "You always were one to help people no matter what... But I agree, this is a very confusing situation."
"Okay then, lets go to my room, Fate-chan. Signum, could you watch my students for an hour?" She got a nod and a very thankful look from Fate. "Lets go then." her hands pulled back and moved back under the table. A moment later she moved back and ran her palm over a small orb on her chair, gliding over to a shocked Fate. "Fate-chan?"
Fate felt everything stop, seeing nothing but Nanoha in a wheelchair. The questions around her started to fade out and she felt as if sand was pouring all over her body before she collapsed to her knees and then to the floor. The last thing she heard was her name being shouted and Nanoha trying to lean over to reach her.
Spoiler for Alternatives Part 3:
~**~
Fate moaned as a cool, damp washcloth was moved over her cheeks. "Wha...?"
"Don't force yourself," a gentle voice warned her softly.
"Shamal..." Fate spoke up, resting easier when the familiar voice was heard. "I had the worse nightmare... I went home and nobody remembered who I was... Nanoha was in a wheelchair..." Her red eyes slowly opened and she looked at the doctor. "It was horrible."
"...I'm sorry to say this, but that wasn't a dream." Shamal gave her patient a sympathetic look. "Fate-san, was it?"
The blonde closed her eyes and stayed silent for a long moment before answering. "...Yes."
"Can you answer some standard questions for me?"
"Yes."
"Do you hurt anywhere?"
"No."
"No headache or sore joints?"
"No."
Shamal clicked her tongue and scribbled on her pad. "Do you have a medical record I can review?"
Fate finally spoke up again after accepting the fact that she was still where she was. "Bardiche, please give Shamal my records." She watched a monitor appear before her and Shamal inspect it.
"They told me you said you knew all of us?" Shamal read over the information before her, staring at the perfect notes and then seeing her name by the doctor who treated the woman. "I see you know me as well, not just my name."
"Yes..." Fate sat up and moved her feet off the bed to sit. "You always treated me. I'm sure you'll find anything you want to know in there... Nanoha isn't here, is she?"
"No, she went to finish training her students, but requested me to contact her when you woke up. Were you expecting her to be here?"
Fate shook her head and stood, looking down at her Barrier Jacket before dismissing it to her normal enforcer uniform. "Shamal, I'm going to the training grounds, if you need me please contact Bardiche, okay?"
"I'm sorry I can't let you go without being escorted..." Her words trailed when the blonde looked at the floor sadly. "... Tell you what, you are my last patient today... How about I walk with you?"
"Thank you, I would like that." Fate allowed the woman to collect her things and close her office before walking along the hallways with her.
"So, how much do you know about us?"
Fate kept her eyes ahead, wondering how exactly to answer that. "You took care of me since I was nine... I remember getting my flu shots every year and being put on diets when I ate too many snacks..." A small smile came to her lips at the bittersweet memory. "We met back in the book of darkness incident-"
"How did you know about that? Its top secret."
"I was there." Fate replied back simply. "You and I didn't fight much, that was mainly Signum. I met Hayate then as well, on Christmas eve back on Earth..." Fate finally looked over at her. "Am I in some sort of fantasy world?"
"Or are you in the normal world with a fantasy memory?" Shamal answered back. "The possibility of this isn't unheard of, although rare."
"There have been others like me?"
"Time-Space distortion, a rare occurrence when going from subspace to normal space. However, those situations have been nothing more than losing time, not entering in alternate realities where only they have changed. Your situation is unique and I can't really offer you any more information until we understand why you have these memories that aren't real."
Fate had to run a few steps to catch up. "They have to be real, I experienced them all."
"The possibilities are too many right now. I will research it, though. Hayate already requested my help in the case."
Fate felt a small smile on her lips. "She doesn't change." The doctor returned the smile and continued the small walk to the training field, where Nanoha was sitting before the active training barrier. "Nanoha-chan."
Nanoha glanced over her shoulder and grinned before moving her left hand over the control orb of her wheelchair to turn herself around. "Shamal-san, Fate-chan, hello. Have you collected yourself, Fate-chan?"
Red eyes stared at the girl before her. "I am trying, but everything is so confusing..." Taking a step forward, she knelt down to be on a more eye-level with her friend. "When you had that accident, way back when we were twelve... is that when you lost your ability to walk?"
"Shouldn't you know that if you've been with me all this time?"
"The Nanoha I know... fought through it, and didn't give up. I helped her every day until she could walk again." Her gaze softened. "I'm sorry..."
Nanoha blinked and made her chair move back a little. "Thank you, but I am fine. I am a tactical teacher and spell developer. Your Nanoha was the same?"
"Stars leader and special task trainer. She lead a unit as well as trained forward students and normal recruits... She also shoved all her paper work off on her poor students." Judging from the laughter in Nanoha's eyes, that part stayed the same. Before she could continue the conversation, a flashing red monitor appeared beside Nanoha, demanding attention.
"Nanoha-chan!" Hayate's face appeared on the screen. "There are some drones near the bridge leading into the city. They are a new model, probably a test run. I need three or four people to launch an attack while we defend incase it is a front!"
Fate looked at the screen, eyes on the drones. "That's... not a new model."
Nanoha turned back to Fate. "You have seen these before?"
"Of course... They were Scaglietti's, a prototype for the more advanced drones."
Hayate addressed Fate now. "You have encountered them before, correct?"
"Yes." She nodded.
Hayate eyed the woman hard. "You said you were stationed under me, right?"
Fate set her eyes, knowing that tone of voice. "Ma'am!"
"What is your rank, Fate-san?"
The blonde pulled Bardiche and recalled her just recently discarded jacket. "S. I can handle them all by myself while recording their motions for you. Request permission for personal flight."
"Granted."
"Hayate-chan!" Nanoha interrupted sharply. "We can't just send her-!"
"Nanoha," Fate spoke up, smiling at her lovingly. "I want to talk to you when I get back, okay? I'll treat you to Fuji's." With that, she flew into the air, twisted, and headed off to the combat site. 'If these are here, and if what Shamal said was true...' The drones came into sight and she ignited her scythe. 'Then Scaglietti is alive...And he is smart enough to figure out why I am in this alternate reality.' She set her brow and engaged, activating several cameras around herself. 'And that means that these people here have no idea of the war about to happen...'
*SQUEAL*
That was AWESOME, Satashi! I like 'What If' fanfiction. Please post more soon!
They're afraid of getting arkh involved. Arkh goes completely overboard with litteralist interpretation. Discussions have predictably turned into a shitstorm almost on cue every single time they got going in there during two years I've been here.
2009-10-07, 14:55
If their are limits then we can question such broken powers by saying they conflict with canon. As it is now though you lot seem to want to have the cake and eat it too. Their are no limits when you don't want them, they're are limits when you do. 
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