I am now totally getting this image of Manoha with rings on his fingers, wearing a fudora hat and a large purple fur coat with a cane in one hand and pimpslapping Arisa saying "dammit, I'm a pimp, not a magical girl!"
Oh, this had in me in stiches.
MANOHA's device of a pimp cane with Divine-pimp-slap that can befriend-any-women as the finisher.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Old_Iron
Hey, you all lucked out. I went home early from work today because sick. Now I can post a short that I might revisit in the future. But for now, enjoy.
Spoiler for Generations of Aces:
As a child, she had been here once before.
Perhaps not older than even seven years old at the time.
She couldn't quite remember why her family had decided on the trip in the first place. It was on the other side of the world and not exactly the first choice of vacation destinations. Not in any way she could personally see at any rate.
But one of the places they had visited would remain with her forever.
And it was where she now stood again some fifteen years later.
It was an airbase. Not the largest around, certainly. But it held such a history shared by only a few others in the world.
This was one such place in Great Britain where airmen took to the skies in World War II.
Where they donned wings of steel to defend their lands and defeat their foes.
When Takamachi Nanoha had come here, there had been an airshow.
Sure, she had been entranced by the stunts and aerial acrobatics performed by the myriad collections of aircraft. But there was little else to it. Even as a child, she felt it was little more than a show. The feeling dampened her excitement, even as she ducked for cover when she thought a pair of jets doing a flyby would crash into one another.
They were little more than flying machines to her. And she couldn't quite grasp what had so entranced Kyouya. Maybe it was a guy thing? Or maybe she was too young to understand.
As the planes began to land, her father had taken her around to see the sights. Looking back, he seemed to have appeared a little sheepish for dragging his youngest to something she didn't seem to be enjoying. How were either to know what it was which would truly capture her attention?
For the show, numerous hangars which were normally closed off to the public were now available to the public. Their massive doors opened wide to accept visitors and those curious about what sort of aircraft lay within. Nanoha saw all manner of machine. Helecopters. Jets both fighter and bomber. There was even a biplane, carefully built for public display and painted in the colors of someone called the "Red Baron".
She recalls seeing it towed away not long after glimpsing it. It would later participate in a mock dogfight against what she had been told was a replica plane of French origins from the same era.
But what truly began to catch her eye was the great steel beasts from the second great war. Their pilots standing nearby in full dress unifrom if able and some clad in their aviator garb.
It was this which caught her heart more than any other sight she saw that day,
Nanoha supposed it must have shown on her face as her father led her closer to the scene.
It mattered little she couldn't understand the words of the aged airmen. There was a history here. A history of the sky. An aura of something so potent, she could not help but be drawn to it. With an almost reverent silence, she walked towards one of the planes.
It was massive.
Painted silver, white, yellow and grey. A prominent stenciling of a star and bars stood out upon its side. Next to it were the english letters she recognized from class. USAF.
At some point in her awe, an old airman strode over. Some might say he hobbled upon his cane, but those who said so would be blind. He said something she couldn't understand and her father spoke to him in reply. She was aware of them conversing for a bit until the old man walked up to stand next to her.
His voice was gravelly and ancient, full of an experience her childish mind could not fathom. He spoke in english, but slow and intentioned. He wanted her to hear the words even if she might not understand them.
"P-51 Mustang. United States Air Force."
She looked up to the airman with some measure of confusion at the words before it finally clicked. This was the name of the plane. And who flew it. Was this his plane? Did he fly this great metal bird?
With some amount of awkwardness, she asked him if he did. Of course he didn't understand. He didn't speak Japanese. However her motioning between him and the plane seemed to convey the question. The old man shook his head in the universal negative before pointing over to another plane not far away. He motioned for her to walk with him, shooting a glance to Shiro who nodded and began to follow close by.
This plane was smaller than the Mustang. But no less awe inspiring.
Forest green with a large circular emblem in the place of the star she had seen before. The wings had a different shape to them and it seemed less bulky overall. If the Mustang was hard, then this one was more rounded, sleek.
Again, he spoke. Brushing his whitened mustache as he did so and with a tone of fondless and admiration anyone could hear.
"Supermarine Spitfire. Royal Air Force."
This was his plane. The aircraft which had taken him into the skies to fight and had brought him home to rest. His history lay with this great machine. It was this one which made him into a pilot.
Nanoha could not help but let an awed sound pass her lips. The airman laughed and turned to her father. They exchanged words and Shiro asked her if she would like to see more.
She could not nod her head eagerly enough.
For the rest of the day, they walked around the hangars. The old man telling her the name and branch of each and every plane they came across.
Some were spoken of with fondness.
"Hawker Typhoon. Royal Air Force."
Some admiration.
"P-38 Lightning. United States Air Force."
Others a grudging respect.
"Messerschmitt 109. Luftwaffe."
And some with an amusement she did not quite understand.
"Yakovlev 9. Soviet Air Force."
There were even a few stories he told. Both of his own time in the heavens and of friends and comrades.
Even with her father translating the tales, there was no impact lost in the images she saw in her mind. She could see each and every battle. Every harrowing moment. Each narrow escape. Victory, both satisfying and bitter.
The old pilot seemed to grow more and more lively and animated as he spoke. As though passing on his history brought it to life again. Even her father seemed entranced by the life this man had lived. And with each passing moment, the desire grew. The desire to take to the skies like he had. To soar through the heavens on mighty wings.
To fly.
Nanoha recalled vividly the end of the day. When it was time for the airshow to close and everyone to return to their hotel. She had turned to say goodbye to the veteran who had taken so much of his time to show her and her family around when she truly saw the man.
Well kept white-gray hair, still full despite his apparent years. A sharp jawline matching stern and aged features. He was tall, even slightly hunched as a strong, gnarled hand held a wooden walking cane. His uniform was pressed and immaculate, giving almost no sign it was over half a century old. Boots polished to a mirror shine and what medals he wore gleamed in the light of the hangar.
Yet those eyes of his.
Hawklike and grey, Nanoha felt if she were to have met this man when he first took to the skies, they would be the same.
Eyes which looked to the heavens, not as someone tied to the earth, but as someone who soared through them.
Their eyes met and the past looked into the future.
He reached into his pocket after a few moments and withdrew something. It glinted when the light struck it. Holding out his hand, he waited until she reached up to accept what was hidden. A weight dropped into her tiny palms and she looked to see what she had been handed.
Wings.
A small metal pin depicting the wings a pilot was granted.
They were of no official capacity. They carried no history. Yet there was a message conveyed in these fledgling wings.
Fly.
So struck was she by the power of such a simple gift, Nanoha almost did not hear the sound of the airman clearing his throat to grasp her attention. She looked up, almost completely unaware of her surroundings. Not even the nearby presence of her father registered.
He saluted, speaking in the ancient voice he carried as he did so.
"Wing Commander Montgomery Williams. Royal Air Force. Retired."
Nanoha swallowed the lump in her throat as she grasped the pin tightly in her left hand. She straightened her back and looked him in the eyes once more. Bringing her right hand up in as close a mimicry as she could, she returned the salute. There were no titles to her name. Nor descriptors of any sort suitable. But she could give him at least this: her name.
"Takamachi Nanoha."
They stood there for a moment in time, each saluting the other as some unspoken torch was passed from the old man to the young girl.
He lowered his hand and nodded. An expression of approval on his features. He spoke to her father briefly, words she could only guess at their meaning. Yet Shiro nodded in some manner of pride and gratitude.
The airman turned to leave and Nanoha swore she saw something there. Perhaps it was the fact she had still been a child at the time and prone to an overactive imagination. Perhaps it had been tiredness from the day. It could have been anything.
Yet as he began walking away, she saw others walking alongside him. Some were there in an instant. Others making their way to him from the planes in the hangars. Ghostly figures. Men of every age, era, and nation. All clad in the attire of an aviator.
Pilots.
Each and every one of them.
And some part of her knew. Somewhere deep in her heart, she knew.
Each of them... Aces.
Blinking out of her reverie, a twenty-two year old Nanoha stared at the memorial on the base. Deep emotions welled up within her as she read down the list of names.
She smiled sadly as she ran a finger across the name of the man who changed her life. Even if it had been only one meeting, the impact had been profound. It was too bad there were so many things preventing her from telling him how she had finally taken to the skies.
But as the treasured pin upon her breast gleamed, she had a feeling he knew.
"Thank you."
And before her stood once more, the ghostly figures of times past. Some smiling. Some saluting. Others joking and a few stern. A German looking man gave her a grin and a thumbs up as one of Russian descent punched him in the arm with some measure of joviality. It was an irony which nearly made her laugh.
Yet standing front and center, his features younger but no less powerful or wise, was Wing Commander Williams. His gaze just as stern and sharp as she remembered.
Nanoha smiled for a moment before schooling her features. She snapped her heels together and saluted him, him and every airman there, with a textbook perfect salute.
They returned the salute in unison as she announced herself.
"Captain Takamachi Nanoha. Time-Space Administration Bureau Air Force."
As the congregation began to fade, she would swear she heard a voice. A voice she would never forget.
"Well done, Captain. Well done."
Nanoha smiled as she did an about-face and began walking away. She had work to do.
She had fledglings to instruct.
Young flyers to teach.
Another generation of aces to inspire.
Yes, I agree with the others, you need a boost in your reputation. This is an awesome take of childhood dream and inspiration that made Nanoha the Ace she is today.
I wonder if you can also make a childhood moment out of other characters like; Yuuno being an archaeologist, Fate being an enforcer, Hayate being an Lieutenant Colonel, and Chrono as an Admiral.
Wow, such a reaction. I'm really glad you all enjoyed it so much. Such is the inspiration of listening to Aces in Exile on repeat for hours on end.
I'll admit, there was a lot more I wanted to do with it. But it all came off as being a useless addition whenever I tried. One such thing being her actually dogfighting with someone. It didn't really work, so I scrapped it.
As for everyone else's inspiration... That's a little more difficult to try and flesh out. Nanoha's was broad enough to give me a lot of elbow room in interpretation. I'll have to think about it.
Still thank you all for your comments. I really appreciate it. =3
Also, whoever guesses the deal with the German gets a cookie~
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The Art of Shipping is as profound as it is dangerous; not for the faint of heart nor the weak of will, it makes gods and devils out of us all.
Wow, such a reaction. I'm really glad you all enjoyed it so much. Such is the inspiration of listening to Aces in Exile on repeat for hours on end.
I'll admit, there was a lot more I wanted to do with it. But it all came off as being a useless addition whenever I tried. One such thing being her actually dogfighting with someone. It didn't really work, so I scrapped it.
As for everyone else's inspiration... That's a little more difficult to try and flesh out. Nanoha's was broad enough to give me a lot of elbow room in interpretation. I'll have to think about it.
Still thank you all for your comments. I really appreciate it. =3
Also, whoever guesses the deal with the German gets a cookie~
Is that German ghost having a bet on who has a better looking wife with the Russian, and right after he take a good look at Nanoha, he then said, "She looks like my wife, but Japanese" with a grin and a thumbs up?
Isn't Hayate the atoner in canon Nanoha? Making up for the crimes that the Wolkenritter committed for her sake, and the past victims of the tome whose power she has inherited?
Einhart felt like growling as she tried to use this Blast Ash spell. Vivio had commented that it would be easier to learn what Pokota did, the Dragon Slave, if she knew how to draw upon Black magic in general first. Looking at Vivio, she almost groaned as the girl was turning various trees into ashes with the spell. "Why is this so difficult for me?"
"Vivio cheats," Arashi said to her, at least he wasn't doing too much better than she was, "she can just watch someone do spells and learn the basics from that. I wish this was easier though..."
"From what I understand," Nove spoke up as she dropped some firewood down onto the small campfire that they had set up a few hours ago, "is that the spiritual energy that Black and Shamanistic magic uses is different than just using our Linker Cores."
Einhart nodded, that much had been obvious. "So, we're getting to that place tomorrow then?" She asked Lyos, who nodded at her while he practiced swinging his sword a few times.
"Yep. If we leave just before dawn, we'll be there in the late afternoon at the latest."
"GAH!" Pokota grabbed his head and rubbed it hard. "This is nuts! It shouldn't be this hard for you to use Black magic. Even if you have almost no aptitude for it, you should still be able to use some of the basics!"
"Might I suggest letting me link up with your device?" Uno said as her hologram popped up from where Jet Edge rested on Nove's shirt. "It's probably not a good idea to leave it on all the time, you know." She smirked at Einhart and looked at Vivio, who was walking back to them. "You too. It's probably not a good idea to be in those adult forms all the time."
Vivio and Einhart looked at each other before a flash of light engulfed them both and they reverted to being in their shorter child forms.
"What the heck?!" Pokota yelped as he stared at Einhart and Vivio. "Some sort of Mazoku?"
"It's just basic transformation magic." Nove explained for the rabbit. "It's not commonly used, however, most people who use it just change their basic appearances. It's fairly low-maintenance though." Smirking, she looked at Arashi and Vivio. "In fact, can't Yuuno turn into a yellow ferret?"
Vivio gave her a flat look while crossing her arms over her chest. "Just because Yuuno-papa can turn into a ferret doesn't make him one. Anyway, I'd like you to meet Chris." Vivio gestured to her bunny device, which twitched and bowed to everyone. "He's my Intelligent Device."
"Ah," Einhart blushed softly as she held a plush snow leopard in her hands, "this is Tio."
"Mraw!" The device got a strange gleam in its eyes and jumped away from Einhart and jumped at Pokota.
"Whaaa?!" Pokota jumped back as the cat landed in front of him, growling. "Oh, you think you're so tough, huh?" His ear hands rose up and started moving around in a manner meant to make himself far more intimidating.
Tio growled and prepared to jump at Pokota before Einhart grabbed him and lightly bopped him on the head. "Mraw?"
"Bad Tio, bad." Einhart frowned at her device lightly. "We don't try to attack people who are helping us." She turned to Pokota and bowed. "I'm sorry, he gets excitable."
"I... I see that." Pokota stared at the device, which growled at him. "Just keep that thing away from me and it'll be okay." Really, it wasn't his fault that he was jumpy, that thing made him nervous. Actually, it wasn't just the device, it was the two girls that suddenly became younger. Who knew that was possible? Didn't Mazoku do stuff like that? But as he looked around, he didn't see anyone else reacting to it, so it must have been common or something.
"Hey, Nila," Lyos turned to the last member of the group, "what do you have to do out here anyway?" Quietly, Nila reached behind her to pull out a broken short sword from a sheath. "Oh." Well, it made sense, if you wanted your sword fixed, you take it to a weaponsmith. "You could have done that anywhere. Why here?"
Nila just sheathed the sword and snorted, walking away from him.
"Urgh, some days..." Lyos grumbled as he sat down. Sometimes he forgot how hard it was to deal with that woman when she wasn't talkative. Then again, she was never talkative, so it was just annoying.
Uno rolled her digital eyes and looked at Chris and Tio, both of which suddenly turned to look at her. "Yes, good plush bunny and kitty, auntie Uno has something good for you."
Nove just sweat-dropped as both devices ran up to her and sat down, looking at her device. "If I didn't know what was going on, I'd say that they were staring." Actually, if either of them had anything like Thoth's personality, she would have thought she was being ogled, but that wasn't happening, so she didn't worry about it. It still didn't make getting looked at any easier.
"So, this'll make it easier for us to use Black magic then?" Vivio asked, getting an absent nod from Uno. "That's good, right?"
"Yeah." Einhart looked at her and gave her a soft smile. "Maybe we can take care of those..."
"Don't get ahead of yourself." Pokota warned her. "Even if you know how to cast Black magic, that doesn't mean that you're well suited for it." He closed his eyes as he waggled a finger at them. "And even if you're suited for it, knowing just one spell is a bad idea, it takes time to cast the Dragon Slave and just knowing how to cast it doesn't make you too threatening. If a Mazoku knows that all you can do is the Dragon Slave, they have a chance to rig a counter-attack, the best thing is to know enough spells to avoid getting trapped using only one thing."
"I know that much." Einhart nodded to him. Getting reduced to a single point of ability was just bad form. After all, only the most foolish of opponents fell for the same trick over and over again.
"Right, well," Pokota looked at Einhart, Vivio and Arashi, who was just watching everything silently, "come on, let's see if you can learn anything new now."
(---)
"I saw it, I don't believe it." Pokota muttered and looked at Tio, who looked like it was grinning at him. "Really? You can do that now?"
Lyos laughed at him. "Well, I told you, didn't I? The people from where they're from learn really fast."
Pokota nodded as he watched Einhart and Vivio run through the various spells he was teaching them really fast. Arashi wasn't doing as well, but he wasn't too far behind them. "I'm almost worried that I'm going to get replaced or something."
Lyos snorted as he leaned back on the grass. "I'd just relax. It's not like we're going to forget you anytime soon. Anyway, Pokota, I'm going to rest, you take the first watch."
Pokota looked around and saw Ixpellia and Corona already out cold while Nila was leaning against a tree, her hood pulled down and over her eyes, not giving off any indication that she was awake or asleep. Sighing, Pokota just wondered what her deal was. Oh well, it wasn't his place to worry about it.
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My fics Due to certain things, I am not here, find me over on TFF.
This just kind of poped in to my head one day and refuses to leave me alone, so I decided to post it here and on ff.net, any constructive criticism would be appreciated those people can be cruel. Caro seems a little ooc to even me, but she has a lot to process. I promise other characters will be in the next chapter this will be encompassing a lot. So here is the start of a rare Epic Caro/Erio fic
Spoiler for LONG:
She floated in an unnerving darkness. She could feel something else amongst the darkness, something bad. A loud low growl filled the air. “Ferid?” she called, out of confusion as much as fear. The growl came again only louder, sounding more massive and closer. “Voltaire?!” she called out again louder and more terrified. Again, the growl only got more terrifying, now clearly sounding hostile.
“Ferid! Voltaire!” She cried out into the darkness, now desperate for some refuge. Suddenly, two points of red pierced the blackness, and even though she yearned for the safety of the light, she knew that there was no safety in that crimson glow. Her fears only intensified as the lights began to swell, growing from the distant glint of starlight to the size of the midday sun; while still far off, it was clearly coming. “Ferid!” She cried again, only to hear that monstrous growl turn to a roar. The glow continued to grow as well as the darkness between them. “Voltaire!” She shouted, as what now was clearly eyes grew to the size of mountains. With the face of doom quickly approaching all but one name faded from her mind. “Erio! ERIO!!”
Suddenly, she heard herd her name and in an instant gravity returned. She plummeted faster then she thought possible. She forced her eyes open to see where if she was rid of the monster. Indeed, not only had it stop, but also now she could see an outline of what it was, a dragon of immeasurable size. Then twelve lights raced toward the dragon right before everything went black.
Once again, she heard her name, louder, clearer, closer, and best of all so familiar. Her eyes opened to the sight of Erio’s face, full concern leaning over her. Tears built up as joy and security swept over her, shot up and wrapped her arm around his neck faster than her partner could say another word.
“Caro,” he gasped at the speed at which latched on to him, after a few seconds he took the hint and wrapped his arms around her. “It’s ok. We’re all right here.”
Erio’s mention of that word “we” finally forced Caro to take note of the rest of the room. Looking over Erio’s shoulder, she saw that Mira and Tanto were also in the room, and quickly reddened at the realization that she had woken up the entire base in the middle of the night. Caro let go of Erio and bow apologetically. “Sorry!”
“It’s fine, Caro” Tanto assured her.
“Really,” Mira quickly agreed. “Are you going to be alright? I don’t think I’ve heard you scream like that in all the time you’ve been with us.”
Caro mustered her best smile before she replied. “Yes.” It wasn’t really a lie, she assured herself. She would be fine after she got back to sleep, but was still quite shaken. She glanced at Erio, he was looking at her like he wanted to say something. Clearly, she was not too good at lying.
“Ok then,” Mira replied as turned around and walked over to the other bunk. Before anyone could ask what she was doing, she grabbed the pillow and ripped the top sheet off the bed, then turned about. “You know Caro we’ve got to train you to lie better.” She told the younger girl as she rolled the sheet around the pillow. “Erio,” she addressed the teen, tossing him wrapped pillow. “You really need to speak up when it is so obvious you want to say something.”
“Mira!” Tanto objected swiftly. “Don’t you thing that’s a little much?”
“No,” she answered firmly, shooting him a harsh look. “She’s still shaken and Erio obviously wanted to offer. Besides, Erio is hardly the type to try anything inappropriate with a vulnerable young girl who trusts him so implicitly.” Mira then put on one of the most pleasant and strangely terrifying smiles those in the room had ever seen “Even if he were, surely he wouldn’t want to… disappoint his family and friends. Just think of how the Black Goddess, White Devil, Fallen Angle, and all those respected comrades would react if we had to tell them that, plus Caro’s dragons probably wouldn’t like it too much either.”
“Uh,” Tanto tried to recover from not only the awkward allegation, but also the rather unnerving images that came to mind considering what the two had told him and Mira about their comrades. “Well I guess that’s true. Fine, if they want to, I see no harm in it.”
Erio gulped looking rather terrified by Mira’s words. He still managed to nod his head.
“Good,” Mira replied before letting out a yawn. “Well, see you two in a few hours.” She grabbed hold of Tanto’s arm and started towards the door.
……………………………………………………..
The teens stared at the door, still trying to process what had just happen. Everything about this situation was embarrassing. Both a collage of emotion; Caro felt ashamed of this childish treatment, even more so that she couldn’t bring herself to object to it, and she was most ashamed of who she had let see her this way. However, it was precisely because of whom he was that she didn’t want him to leave. Erio on the other hand was embarrassed by just how much he wanted to be here, how much it meant when he heard her scream his name, and how much Mira’s words scared him. Thus, both sat silent in the dark, trying to think of what to say. Finally, Erio started to unwrap the sheet.
Seeing her partner, getting ready to sleep on the floor filled Caro with guilt, even more so as she began to notice the temperature in the room. “Erio-kun” she started hesitantly. “You don’t have to…”
“I don’t mind, Caro.” He cut her off readily. “I mean, I can’t remember the last time that you screamed from a nightmare.”
It was true, she hadn’t screamed in her sleep since she first came to live at the preserve, she rarely even had nightmares, but she still didn’t want him to sleep on the cold floor for her sake. “At least use the other bed!” she plead rather insistently. No sooner had the words left her lips did she realize how they could, and apparently did sound.
Erio just stared at her, hurt and confusion plastered on his face. She really couldn’t blame him for feeling unwelcome in the sheer force of her words came out with. “Caro, if you don’t want me…”
“NO!” she nearly shouted, embarrassing both of them again. “I…It’s…cold. You could get sick.”
“It’s alright.” He assured her again, looking perfectly resolute, although it quickly faded. “It’s just nothing helped.” A helpless fear crept across his face. “You just kept screaming and calling for help.” Then the emotion in Erio’s face changed again, as it shifted to relief. “Finally, I grabbed hold of you, and like flipping a switch you stopped screaming. So I want to stay as close as possible, just in case.”
Caro didn’t know what to say. She hadn’t even considered the effect of the night’s events on him, and they clearly had a dramatic effect on the boy. That fearful, helpless look lingered in her mind. She could not recall another time she had ever seen such a look on the boy’s face. Caro blushed so intensely that her felt as if they were burning, and she really didn’t know why. Then she uttered something that she never imagined she’d say. “Then why don’t you sleep with me?” She couldn’t believe she said it, but at the same time, she meant it. She received no response from Erio, her words might have surprised him even more then herself. Both their faces reddened deeper and Caro diverted her gaze. “You said you wanted to stay as close as possible and you won’t be cold.”
The dreams came again, but it seemed that Erio’s arms held her fears at bay. Thankfully, this one brought a great deal of clarity. Once again, the dream took place in darkness, but it wasn’t a void like space, more like a cave. This time six shadows moved through the dark each distinct, but three commanded her attention a short haired woman about Erio’s height carrying a spear, another figure a full head higher and seemingly unarmed, and most of all a four winged dragon bringing up the rear. The two at the front simply seemed familiar, but she instantly recognized the dragon as her protector, Voltare only fifteen to twenty times smaller. The shadows rushed onward finally they came to vast cavern with strange torches tracing some kind of design, and at the center an alter. Suddenly the torches flared and all went white.
The next thing Caro knew she was staring at her bedroom wall. The whole ordeal was even more troubling now that they seemed to be more than simple nightmare. Still laying here like this she couldn’t help but feel safe. Caro looked over her shoulder at the face of the still sleeping boy, and turned back towards the wall deciding simply to enjoy the moment: the safety of Erio’s strong arm, the warmth of his chest pressed against her back, calming sound of his breathing. Suddenly, her reverie was shattered by something poking her in her bottom. Instantly, her face was blazing as she realized what it was. Her mind was in a frenzy, she was becoming dizzy as her face grew hotter. She could feel herself fading, until she heard something that made her heart skip a beat.
“Caro,” Erio mumerd in sleep.
“Me?” She asked herself in utter disbelief. She had never even considered it possible that Erio thought of her that way. Why would he…? Caro’s thoughts derailed as Erio shifted in even closer, and brought the hand resting so protectively on her shoulder under her arm and right onto her breast. Caro had finally reached her braking point; in a fit of unprecedented panic, she elbowed the sleeping boy with all the might she could muster.
She barely registered as she tried to come to grips with the when Erio hit the ground, her mind never been in such a frenzy. Then she heard something that pushed the entire situation, Erio groaning like he was waking up. The thought of having to face Erio, to tell him why she did what she did, to tell him what he did; it was simply too much her mind began to fade all and went black.
The sun’s warmth on her face caused her to rouse once again, and within seconds, she jolted up as she realized how long she had been out. She rushed to get dressed and report for duty. Approximately two minutes later, she rushed through the small outpost, looking for one of her superiors. She finally found Mira at the kitchen sink. “I’m sorry! Privite 1st class Caro Ru Lushe reporting for duty.”
“Caro,” Mira greeted her with a smile as she turned away from her task. She walked over to her, hands still dripping. “Did you sleep any better?”
“Yes,” she answered with her normal enthusiasm, after all her sleep was not the distressing part of this morning. Her anxiety was already on the rise at the mere thought of it, in fact she was just realizing that she was watching the exits. “Where are Tanto-san and Erio-san?”
“Well, they went to bring supplies to outpost two.” Mira replied before she turned and walked back towards the kitchen. “They should be back by the time that you finish your breakfast.”
Caro was caught off guard by the implication. Even after all this time, it was touching to think that she would still be shown such care. However, it came off a little bitter sweet, as she could not help feeling a little relieved at the delay in facing Erio.“You didn’t have to…”
“Don’t be silly Caro,” Mira assured her as she opened the microwave. “You are an important member of this team. Do you really think that any of us would let you go hungry?” She took out a plate wrapped in plastic out. She felt the top. “Good still warm.” She closed the door and placed the plate on the table.
“Thank you.” Caro said sincerely before she took a seat at the table. “Mira-san,” she asked weakly. “I think, I might have to go see Voltaire.”
Mira just looked at her stunned for a second at the abruptness of this request. “Is this about your dream?”
Caro simply gave a timid nod. “I had another after…Erio came to slee…stay with me.” She struggled to explain, embarrassment quickly overtaking her as the events of the morning came to mind; embarrassment that only grew as she noticed her stuttering. She could only hope that Mira would not call her on it. “I saw a far younger Voltaire and five others moving towards some sort of alter.”
“You think that it is some sort of memory?” Mira asked confused and concerned. “Caro has anything like this happened before?”
Caro hesitated a moment, while she never had her dreams invaded before, the experience did remind her of when Voltaire first sort her out, but she had been told that the events around forging a pact of summoning was sacred and not to be discussed with those outside the tribe. Still, she would now fit into that category herself and Mira was only trying to help. “It is kinda like when I first met Voltaire.”
The older woman’s eyes widened a second at the subject; Caro had talked about her old life, but how she got her dragons was always a topic that much to her and the other Nature Preservation Core members’ aggravation was strictly avoided. The scientist in her was rabid at the opportunity probe the matter, but she could not bring herself to do that to Caro. “I see...well I guess it is good thing that you and Erio never use your sick days. How long should I put you down for?”
Caro smiled gratefully at Mira. She could only imagine the restraint it took her friend to let the matter drop. “Thank you, Mira-san. This should not take more than a day.”
@Slilent Type
If you have a fanfiction.net account, you can do a file upload and copy from there before pasting here; it keeps the paragraphing.
Disclaimer: I may not follow what I've said in my own review, please do not scream at shout at me when I make a mistake that I myself pointed out. Show me where it is and I will fix it.
"So, this is it?" Nove asked as the group found a rather small, non-descript shack, late in the afternoon the next day. "Doesn't look too impressive..."
"Most wizards build their laboratories underground." Lyos pointed out to her, he then pointed to what looked like a large box that was connected to the shack. "Besides, I said he made magic weapons, didn't I?"
"Among other things." Nove said as she walked ahead of the group towards the hut.
"Stop staring at her, let's go." Pokota grumbled as the group made their way to the shack.
"Halt." A female voice spoke up as a woman in a reddish, long-sleeved maid outfit stepped out from behind the shack. She had her eyes closed, but her red hair was only down to her shoulders. "What is your name?"
"I'm Lyos," the blue haired man said as he stepped forward. "These are my companions."
The woman nodded. "What is your business here?"
"To see the old man about some seal-breaking items. He should have gotten my letter a few days ago."
She nodded again. "What is your..."
"Ozel..." An older voice spoke up as the door to the shack opened up. "What's going on? Do we have guests? I like guests."
"No." Ozel turned to look at him, despite not opening her eyes, "now get back inside and write me into your will."
The man was wearing dark pants and a ratty, dirty colored white coat, he had a mostly bald head, except for a ring of hair around the side of his head with long hair that stuck out at odd angles behind him. He had a weird monocle on his left eye. Well, it looked like a monocle that was combined with several magnifying lenses. "Ozel," the man's high pitched voice sounded amused, "now, now, is that any way to treat me after I found you and fixed you up all those years ago?"
Ozel gave him a flat look. "I would say something rude, but you are not worth the effort, Masha."
Masha sighed and shook his head. "I swear," he looked at Lyos and gave the young man a smirk, "if you ever encounter a doll that has shut down, word of advice, don't fix her up and give her a more interesting personality, it comes back to bite you in the ass."
"Yeah," Lyos nodded at him, "can we come in?"
The man looked surprised, before laughing. "Of course, of course... Though, I only expected two of you, not this group."
"Can't be helped, we're here now." Lyos shrugged as he followed Masha into the shack.
"Wow!" Vivio, Ixpellia and Corona couldn't help but gasp in awe as they saw the various beakers and chemicals all around.
"I wouldn't touch that if I was you." Masha warned Ixpellia as she got close to a large flask that had liquid that was changing colors rapidly. "The last person who did got turned into a toad." He smiled as Ixpellia's eyes widened and she backed off from it quickly.
"Yes," Ozel nodded, "however, he got better."
Corona looked at the chemicals and frowned. "This seems more like a chemistry lab than a weaponsmith's lab." When Masha opened a large door in the back, she could only blink at the small hallway that had two doors in it. "What?"
"Well, I may be a weaponsmith, but I'm also a magic user, little girl." He chuckled as he walked to the end of the hallway and opened the door. Most of the group grimaced at the heat that rushed out of the room.
"Ooooh!" Ixpellia's eyes widened as she saw what was in the room. "Shiny!" Her eyes started to sparkle as she walked into the room.
"I think I'm going to just go wait outside." Arashi spoke up and looked at Vivio and Einhart. "You two coming with?" Einhart nodded and he looked at Corona and smiled. "Hey, come on, it'll probably be boring in there anyway."
Corona nodded and followed after him.
Vivio looked at Ixpellia as she looked around the room. "Ixy, are you going to be okay?"
"It's Ixpellia..." The young girl muttered as she looked at the various swords lining the walls. "Shiny!"
"I wouldn't touch them." Nove warned her and turned to look at Masha. "Tell me something, I'm not really up to date on what you use for chemicals around here, but wouldn't having chemicals that can turn people into toads be kind of dangerous if they get too hot?"
Masha smiled at her. "Well, I dabble with chemicals and sometimes when I'm forging the swords, I use the chemicals to give a sword a bit of an edge." He chuckled at his own joke before coughing. "Sorry, I'm just getting old." Sighing, the old weaponsmith walked over to the far wall and pulled out a long, thin blade. "As for you, Lyos, I hope this works for you."
"Hmm?" Lyos looked at it, it didn't look that remarkable, but he knew better than to doubt the man who had fixed his Banisher a few times over the years. "So, this is supposed to break seals?"
"Without damaging anything under the seals, I admit, that was hard, yes..." Masha nodded and jumped as he turned and saw Ixpellia holding a white short sword, well, short to most people, but it was almost a full sized broadsword for the young girl as she moved it around while looking at it in awe.
"Wow... This is so light, but it's beautiful... And this cross guard, it looks like a flower..." Ixpellia could only stare in awe at the sword. "What is this?"
"Well," Masha rubbed his chin, surprised that the girl knew what a cross guard even was. "About eight years ago I came across the ruins of a city, I can tell you this, I was shocked that such a beautiful city so destroyed, not to mention the giant tree." He sighed and shook his head. "So, as I looked around, I found pieces of a sword that were on the ground and I've spent the past couple of years trying to fix it up, but, well..." He sighed and shook his head. "I haven't had much luck other than putting it together. I'm just not sure, it seems like it needs something else." He shrugged his shoulders and winced when they popped. "Well, you can have it if you want it." He blinked as everyone stared at him in shock. "What? It's a magic sword, it's meant to be used, and I just put it together on a whim."
Before anyone could say or do anything, Nila walked over and took the sword from Ixpellia and ignored her shout of disappointment. "...Blessed Blade..." She whispered softly.
"Blessed Blade?" Ixpellia blinked as Nila handed it back. "What's that?"
"Isn't that the sword that was said to be able to weaken and contain miasma from the Demon Beast Zannafar and even minor Mazoku?" Masha looked around the room, getting shrugs from the people in the room. "Well, if that's what it's called... How did you know that was the name, young lady?"
"...Familiar looking."
Ixpellia tilted her head as she focused on the voice. Nila didn't speak much, but for some strange reason, she could have sworn that her voice sounded somewhat familiar.
"Anyway..." Lyos's eyes widened as an explosion rocked the shack. "What the..?"
"The kids!" Nove was already rushing out of the room, followed by Lyos, Pokota, Nila and Ixpellia.
"Sir?" Ozel looked at Masha.
"Well, I didn't rebuild you just to hear you make annoying comments." The old man waved her off. "Show them why you're my bodyguard."
"Of course." The maid nodded and crossed her arms over her chest before extending her arms out to the sides, blades taking the place of her arms. "They can bite my shiny metal blades."
"Why did I have to mess with her personality when I was drunk?" Masha rubbed his forehead. "Oh right, I'm brilliant when sober, but a mad genius when I'm smashed." He still had no idea how that was possible. He just hoped that his place was still standing when the excitement was over.
Spoiler for Comments:
That took way too long.
I know what I want to do, but the words aren't coming out easily anymore, despite having the scenes in my head.
__________________
My fics Due to certain things, I am not here, find me over on TFF.
"So, this is it?" Nove asked as the group found a rather small, non-descript shack, late in the afternoon the next day. "Doesn't look too impressive..."
"Most wizards build their laboratories underground." Lyos pointed out to her, he then pointed to what looked like a large box that was connected to the shack. "Besides, I said he made magic weapons, didn't I?"
"Among other things." Nove said as she walked ahead of the group towards the hut.
"Stop staring at her, let's go." Pokota grumbled as the group made their way to the shack.
"Halt." A female voice spoke up as a woman in a reddish, long-sleeved maid outfit stepped out from behind the shack. She had her eyes closed, but her red hair was only down to her shoulders. "What is your name?"
"I'm Lyos," the blue haired man said as he stepped forward. "These are my companions."
The woman nodded. "What is your business here?"
"To see the old man about some seal-breaking items. He should have gotten my letter a few days ago."
She nodded again. "What is your..."
"Ozel..." An older voice spoke up as the door to the shack opened up. "What's going on? Do we have guests? I like guests."
"No." Ozel turned to look at him, despite not opening her eyes, "now get back inside and write me into your will."
The man was wearing dark pants and a ratty, dirty colored white coat, he had a mostly bald head, except for a ring of hair around the side of his head with long hair that stuck out at odd angles behind him. He had a weird monocle on his left eye. Well, it looked like a monocle that was combined with several magnifying lenses. "Ozel," the man's high pitched voice sounded amused, "now, now, is that any way to treat me after I found you and fixed you up all those years ago?"
Ozel gave him a flat look. "I would say something rude, but you are not worth the effort, Masha."
Masha sighed and shook his head. "I swear," he looked at Lyos and gave the young man a smirk, "if you ever encounter a doll that has shut down, word of advice, don't fix her up and give her a more interesting personality, it comes back to bite you in the ass."
"Yeah," Lyos nodded at him, "can we come in?"
The man looked surprised, before laughing. "Of course, of course... Though, I only expected two of you, not this group."
"Can't be helped, we're here now." Lyos shrugged as he followed Masha into the shack.
"Wow!" Vivio, Ixpellia and Corona couldn't help but gasp in awe as they saw the various beakers and chemicals all around.
"I wouldn't touch that if I was you." Masha warned Ixpellia as she got close to a large flask that had liquid that was changing colors rapidly. "The last person who did got turned into a toad." He smiled as Ixpellia's eyes widened and she backed off from it quickly.
"Yes," Ozel nodded, "however, he got better."
Corona looked at the chemicals and frowned. "This seems more like a chemistry lab than a weaponsmith's lab." When Masha opened a large door in the back, she could only blink at the small hallway that had two doors in it. "What?"
"Well, I may be a weaponsmith, but I'm also a magic user, little girl." He chuckled as he walked to the end of the hallway and opened the door. Most of the group grimaced at the heat that rushed out of the room.
"Ooooh!" Ixpellia's eyes widened as she saw what was in the room. "Shiny!" Her eyes started to sparkle as she walked into the room.
"I think I'm going to just go wait outside." Arashi spoke up and looked at Vivio and Einhart. "You two coming with?" Einhart nodded and he looked at Corona and smiled. "Hey, come on, it'll probably be boring in there anyway."
Corona nodded and followed after him.
Vivio looked at Ixpellia as she looked around the room. "Ixy, are you going to be okay?"
"It's Ixpellia..." The young girl muttered as she looked at the various swords lining the walls. "Shiny!"
"I wouldn't touch them." Nove warned her and turned to look at Masha. "Tell me something, I'm not really up to date on what you use for chemicals around here, but wouldn't having chemicals that can turn people into toads be kind of dangerous if they get too hot?"
Masha smiled at her. "Well, I dabble with chemicals and sometimes when I'm forging the swords, I use the chemicals to give a sword a bit of an edge." He chuckled at his own joke before coughing. "Sorry, I'm just getting old." Sighing, the old weaponsmith walked over to the far wall and pulled out a long, thin blade. "As for you, Lyos, I hope this works for you."
"Hmm?" Lyos looked at it, it didn't look that remarkable, but he knew better than to doubt the man who had fixed his Banisher a few times over the years. "So, this is supposed to break seals?"
"Without damaging anything under the seals, I admit, that was hard, yes..." Masha nodded and jumped as he turned and saw Ixpellia holding a white short sword, well, short to most people, but it was almost a full sized broadsword for the young girl as she moved it around while looking at it in awe.
"Wow... This is so light, but it's beautiful... And this cross guard, it looks like a flower..." Ixpellia could only stare in awe at the sword. "What is this?"
"Well," Masha rubbed his chin, surprised that the girl knew what a cross guard even was. "About eight years ago I came across the ruins of a city, I can tell you this, I was shocked that such a beautiful city so destroyed, not to mention the giant tree." He sighed and shook his head. "So, as I looked around, I found pieces of a sword that were on the ground and I've spent the past couple of years trying to fix it up, but, well..." He sighed and shook his head. "I haven't had much luck other than putting it together. I'm just not sure, it seems like it needs something else." He shrugged his shoulders and winced when they popped. "Well, you can have it if you want it." He blinked as everyone stared at him in shock. "What? It's a magic sword, it's meant to be used, and I just put it together on a whim."
Before anyone could say or do anything, Nila walked over and took the sword from Ixpellia and ignored her shout of disappointment. "...Blessed Blade..." She whispered softly.
"Blessed Blade?" Ixpellia blinked as Nila handed it back. "What's that?"
"Isn't that the sword that was said to be able to weaken and contain miasma from the Demon Beast Zannafar and even minor Mazoku?" Masha looked around the room, getting shrugs from the people in the room. "Well, if that's what it's called... How did you know that was the name, young lady?"
"...Familiar looking."
Ixpellia tilted her head as she focused on the voice. Nila didn't speak much, but for some strange reason, she could have sworn that her voice sounded somewhat familiar.
"Anyway..." Lyos's eyes widened as an explosion rocked the shack. "What the..?"
"The kids!" Nove was already rushing out of the room, followed by Lyos, Pokota, Nila and Ixpellia.
"Sir?" Ozel looked at Masha.
"Well, I didn't rebuild you just to hear you make annoying comments." The old man waved her off. "Show them why you're my bodyguard."
"Of course." The maid nodded and crossed her arms over her chest before extending her arms out to the sides, blades taking the place of her arms. "They can bite my shiny metal blades."
"Why did I have to mess with her personality when I was drunk?" Masha rubbed his forehead. "Oh right, I'm brilliant when sober, but a mad genius when I'm smashed." He still had no idea how that was possible. He just hoped that his place was still standing when the excitement was over.
Spoiler for Comments:
That took way too long.
I know what I want to do, but the words aren't coming out easily anymore, despite having the scenes in my head.
Spoiler for MST3K review:
Dante: Man! There's a party getting started and I'm not even Invited over.
Odin: I know how you feel, Dante.
Me: Like getting skewered into a pin cushion?
Odin: Vergil never got turned into a barbeque in his life... Why his reincarnate getting the Dante treatment over the sharp, pointy objects...
Reia: Is that Sword is the Excalibur for Ixy?
Ixpellia: It's IXPELLIA!!!... *sighs* Why I'm blessed with a mouthful name anyways?
Reia: You can blame that to your parents, but that's another tale.
Iris: At least we saw the childish side of Ixy that we haven't seen till this point of the story.
Me: What do you expect? She was forced to grow up during her reign.
Val: If there's a expy of a certain personification of death... Is there a expy of the personification of the Void around there? Bar the pink haired sorceress who's being VA'ed by Rie Kugimiya?
__________________
Darwin's nominee are best for laughs.
MGLN "Befriending" shows love thru superior firepower (Zenryokou Zenkai!)
Gundams are your worst nightmare in the battlefield.
SRW beats all foes.
JAM Project pwns all!!!
And I can't still make fanfic without restarting from the start when new ideas comes in...
@Slilent Type
If you have a fanfiction.net account, you can do a file upload and copy from there before pasting here; it keeps the paragraphing.
Disclaimer: I may not follow what I've said in my own review, please do not scream at shout at me when I make a mistake that I myself pointed out. Show me where it is and I will fix it.
Well grammar has always been a problem for me, but I could have sworn that ranks and titles were an exception to the number rule, and if it isn't it is for me. Caro not calling Erio-kun was simply an embarrassing mistake I can hardly believe I made.
The age is a little up in the air, but I think it is in-between vivid and force maybe fifteen for both of them.
As to the plot, thank you for the complement, I only hope I can keep it up after next chapter
Spoiler for spoiler:
since the dreams will be man quite clear, with the introduction of my OCs
I'm planning to write a Kamen Rider x Nanoha fic using Yuuno as the protagonist.
The problem is I can't decide which KR series should I pick...
My three main picks are OOO, Fourze and Wizard.