Author's notes:

This is a crossover between one of the finest CRPGs , Arcanum, and Lucky Star. I have put it here as there is sadly no category for Arcanum fics… So from the looks of it, this is the first one on fanfiction net evah. Have fun reading it, and with any good feedback, I'm going to continue this. I have already written three chapters and I'll made them available as soon as they're edited. Later… we'll see.

Big thanks are due to my beta, Shadowfox026. To her you owe that this piece is readable at all!

EDIT: People who rewieved the story pointed out that the world of the game Arcanum is little known to a normal human. I could write some kind of prologue to explain things, but I though it'll be more fun for to figure out everything by yourselves (since the game world gets a lot of description in the story). But if I get more reviews asking me for such an extra explanation, I'll rewrite the first chapter to accommodate it.

CHAPTER ONE: THE PLACE OF SMOKE AND WATER

In which our main protagonists are introduced, as they are involved in a most delicate political matter in the world's capital.

Konata entered her father's office, panting slightly. Sojiro was busy looking through a massive steel periscope, which was built into the floor next to his even larger, mahogany desk. She waited patiently until he was done peeping at… whoever was in the office below. The haze of the setting sun entered through high, curtained windows and bathed the room in orange light. Multiple surfaces and ornamentations of brass, crystal and polished wood reflected the light. The air smelled of cherry tobacco. Her father did not smoke, so it had to be one of his… colleagues.

When Sojiro finally noticed her presence, he put up an unconvincing expression of shock on his face.

"You're really testing your father's integrity wearing those… modern… clothes."

"You mean those?" she pointed at her black, sophistically treaded, short-sleeved leotard. "They're sports clothes. Scientifically designed and proven to be extremely effective."

"At provoking stroke in older men?"

"We can always design some medicine for that… Hmmm, and who is she?" asked Konata looking through the now vacated periscope.

"Oh, some envoy. From Tulla."

"Tulla? Hmmm, she's kinda cute. Do you intend to hear her out? "

"Nah. And she's a bit too old, isn't she?"

"Sometimes I find it difficult to believe that you're really my father."

"From where would you inherit your great scientific aptitude then?" he asked, straightening himself and smoothing off his expensive smoking shirt.

"Hmmm… I don't know. Maybe from a dwarf?"

"A dwarf? Bah! Dwarves are all perverts."

The girl in the room below was now in the phase of quickly growing irritation. She was about twenty years old, dressed in a white, hooded robe, yet the robe was made of thin fabric and had a quite low-cut neckline, which was a popular design with the women who had to underline their magical or priestly provenience yet didn't wan't too look too anachronic. Two long, lavender ponytails protruded from underneath the hood and framed a smooth and nice, yet a bit aggressively-looking face.

"Ahem. As I said, I have a very important case to discuss with the Industrial Council."

"Dear miss, but only the members of the Industrial Council or people specifically invited by the Industrial Council or its members are allowed to attend meetings of the Industrial Council."

The secretary, as she had described her position, had an extremely sweet and polite voice. She was a tall, gorgeous, bespectacled and… embarrassingly busty woman with striking pink hair, dressed in an elegant and obviously expensive yet at the same time very modest-looking long dress.

"So you're saying that representatives of foreign powers are uninvited?"

"The invitation is of course automatic for any such distinguished figures."

"Yet I am a diplomat! I represent the City of Tulla, for Halcyon's love!"

"Oh. I'm terribly sorry. I am afraid that the Unified Kingdom does not recognize such a political entity."

"Does not… recognize? Honestly, this is unheard of!"

"My sincere apologies, madam, but it's beyond my power to change that. If that's satisfying for you, you can leave a memo here, stating your case. The Industrial Council tries to help all the citizens, but they're really, really busy. I'll contact you when your case has been reviewed, if you'll be so kind to leave your address."

The young sorceress started to turn red. Little sparks appeared on her fingertips. The temptation to lightning-blast this unexpected obstacle to smithereens was strong.

Though using magic here, in the heart of a high-tech building, would lead to disaster, probably including a large explosion and dismemberment of at least two people, herself included. She felt like exploding anyway. Her hard-won reputation, not to mention international peace, was hanging on a thread, all because of this self-righteous, oh-so-sorry, sickeningly cute, big-titted…

She slowly composed herself and spoke in an almost controlled voice. "You don't understand anything! Are you stupid? This is serious business! Your… Kingdom's actions are reckless and dangerous. If you won't listen to reason, Tulla may be forced to act to end this heedless policy."

The secretary raised her hands defensively and cracked a nervous smile. Yet the mage wasn't sure if she was trying to calm down her or the pair of huge half-ogre guards who, just ten seconds ago, had been looking like slumbering, but they were now starting to gain interest in the conversation.

"Please calm down, madam," said the secretary pleadingly. "I am aware that what you perceive as a denial might have offended you, but being rude never gets you anywhere."

"I am not being rude!"

The pink haired woman smiled. "By no means I am suggesting that, madam. Is anything else I can help you with?"

"Obviously not, since you have no authority over the so-called Vendigrothian Plant. Please tell your superiors that…" She stopped to overcome the growing sore in her throat. What was meant to be a harsh and cold statement, was coming out in a somewhat lame voice. Yet she pushed on. "That I, Hiiragi Kagami, a diplomatic envoy of Tulla, the city of mages, cannot suffer this kind of humiliation any longer. Nobody can say we weren't trying to address this crisis by diplomatic means. I'm leaving."

The sorceress turned on her heel and rushed to the door, determined not to hear any more excuses. She had tears in her eyes. How they can be so stupid? Whatever happens, this will be their fault…only theirs…The thought, however, didn't make her feel much better.

"Tsukasa!" yelled Kagami again. Some of the people present in the plaza in front of the Council building turned their heads, but she didn't care anymore. Her twin sister, who was supposed to wait there, was nowhere to be seen. The sorceress spent the last five minutes franticly walking across the plaza and back, looking around, asking people and finally yelling, but to no avail. She finally stopped by the huge statue of the most infamous Gilbert Bates, proudly standing in the center of the plaza.

The place was at least a hundred metres across, surrounded by canals and some of the most prominent buildings in Tarant. The entire northern side was occupied by the exquisite four-story palace of the Council, which scraped the overcast evening sky with poles and antennas that capped its three massive domes of greenish bronze. In the background rose multiple columns of black and white smoke, originating from the sprawling industrial district. The southern face consisted of modern buildings. The redaction of the Tarantian, the most influential newspaper on the continent, occupied the tallest of them all, a construction of concrete and steel thirty stories high at least, capped with huge metal mast which acted as an anchor for airships that visited Tarant. In the west, the plaza descended to a reinforced river shore. A plethora of yachts, boats and barges were anchored there. The water level was low, as the sea tide had withdrawn since Kagami last saw it. On the other side, the Kensington Park could be seen with trees, bushes and many statues of bronze and stone. That was the direction she came from. At least three bridges were thrown over the river, one of them housing a railway. Finally, to the east lay the Garillon District, the wealthiest part of Tarant, crowded with expensive residences, expensive shops and expensive-looking people.

I'll never be able to find her here, thought Kagami, feeling powerless.

"Yo!"

She turned around to see a small boy, dressed in a dark brown jacket and beige trousers. His head, and whole back for that matter, was covered with an incredible amount of blue hair. There was something very odd about him, but the sorceress couldn't put a finger on it.

"So, they ditched you, didn't they?"

"Excuse me?"

"The Council."

"Wha… What do you want?"

"I think you might be interested in what I have to show you."

Kagami didn't like this conversation one bit. The person was really weird-looking and didn't act like a child at all. "I don't have the time," she said. After a second, out of desperation she added, "I'm looking for my sister. She is my height, wearing a blue robe. Did you happen to see her?"

"Oh, she's really cute. Are you sure she's your sister?"

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, nothing. I'm just saying that you could relax a bit, that's what."

"Wha…? Do you know where she is or not?"

"Well, not exactly, but…" The strange boy seemed to think something over.

"But what?"

"I saw where she went. Yet the question is, how well do you know the city? Are you here for the first time? If so, this may prove to be very…"

"Difficult, yes! I am aware of that! Just tell me where she is already!"

"It's the Commercial District, near the Park. I can lend you my assistance in finding her."

"Er…"

"You're unfamiliar with the city. Without a trustful guide, you're going to get lost for sure. This city is quite big, the biggest in the world to be exact, and it's also quite dangerous, especially for such young, pretty girls as yourself…"

"Fine, fine! Show me the way! Just stop blabbering already!"

The hood of the blue robe was thrown back, revealing short, lavender hair held in place by a yellow band. The young woman was looking at a large steel statue depicting a figure in an intricate, mechanical-looking suit of armour with a goggled helmet. The person held a shield in one hand, raised high, and a strange axe adorned with some gizmos, gears and pipes in the other, ready to strike after the blow from the unseen enemy was parried. The inscription below stated simply "The Living One".

"Tsukasa!"

As the young woman turned around, she noticed Kagami running towards her, her pale shins quickly flashing from under the robe. A smile appeared on short-haired girl's face.

"Sis! There you are! This city is so exciting!"

"Kai'ten be thanked I've found you! Where have you been? You have me worried sick!"

"Oh… I am sorry… I just thought, since you'll be attending this meeting, it won't hurt if I stroll around a little bit, and… I was already heading back, I swear…"

Kagami's face softened. "Please, don't cry! I forgive you". She hugged her sister.

"I was not crying, Sis. You just looked so worried…"

"It was nothing!" interrupted the blue-haired person. "With my help, we would have found you very quickly anyway."

Tsukasa broke away from Kagami's hug, startled at first, but after quickly assessing the diminutive person who appeared out of nowhere by her sister's side, she smiled shyly.

"Um, hello, miss. I am Hiiragi Tsukasa. Nice to meet you." She bowed, putting her hands together.

"Miss?" said Kagami, wide-eyed.

"Yes, I am not yet married," she smiled. "Name's Konata."

Kagami turned red "I thought…"

"Oh… what is it? I am sorry to disappoint you, or go against your customs, but if you're looking for a wife..."

"I am not…!"

Tsukasa giggled, covering her mouth with one hand.

Kagami turned to her, red faced, fists on her hips.

"So where have you been?"

"Eeek…! I was just… I bought a thing or two, you know, as souvenirs for mummy and daddy, for Inori and Matsuri, and friends… There are so many great things here I've never seen before!" She reached inside her bulky bag. "And for you, Sis!" She presented Kagami a book with a colourful drawing of some long-eared, scantily clad nymph with a harp. "There are so many wonderful pictures inside! I'm sure you'll like it!"

Kagami took the book embarrassingly and couldn't resist to flip a few pages. From what she figured out, it was a romance between said nymph (suspiciously busty for an elf) and some young knight (with a suspiciously shiny armour). The obstacle between them seemed to be a group of mean-looking elves.

"Well, thank you, it is… nicely drawn."

"Good choice," cut in Konata, trying too look above Kagami's shoulder, or rather elbow. "It's Captive of T'sen Ang, by Ernst Stone Crusher. The quality of the pictures owes a lot to the advanced printing methods he uses! Really, a dwarf of science and a great artist, too."

"T'sen Ang? The name seems familiar," said Kagami.

"Yes, it was the city of the so-called Dark Elves, until it was destroyed by the Living One and her companions, during the Dark Elf conspiracy." Konata pointed at the statue.

"Yes… the Living One. Do you remember, Tsukasa? Dad told us about her. It was she who figured out the Pelojian ghosts' riddle."

Tsukasa looked like she didn't understand anything of what they were talking about. Kagami sighed.

"But why isn't her name displayed here? Or her face?"

"You know, Kagami… she might have rescued the world, and been one of the best scientific minds of her times, and people were grateful and all that, but she was a half-orc. With the Troggist party on the rise…"

"You don't seem to be too prejudiced yourself, for a human."

"But she's a gnome, Sis."

"Oh…" Kagami turned red again.

"It's nothing." Konata waved her hand. "You have a very smart sister."

Tsukasa blushed.

"Oh, why, thank you…", casually said Kagami. "So…" she turned to Tsukasa. "I hope you didn't spend all the money, did you?" she joked.

"Well…" Tsukasa lowered her head.

"Oh no."

The Devonshire Way was bathed in electric light. Despite the late evening, shops were still open and people went about their business, the three girls among them. Tsukasa was walking in the vanguard of the group, eyes wide open.

"So bright and steady! Not like those flickering, floating lights of ours! It's almost daylight!"

"We have changed from gas to electric lights about ten years ago," explained Konata. "Now the electricity is part of almost everything. It heats, it illuminates, it makes machines move. Even our new subway is powered by it."

"Electricity! This is something like you use in your Force spells, sis, right?"

"Something like," said Kagami, sulking a bit. Good thing that any old mage didn't hear that; to them, claiming that technology has anything to do with magic was a heresy.

"It must be an awful lot of work to enchant everything with that electricity!"

"Oh, no, not at all. You see, it is generated in one place, a power plant outside the city, then it's sent via copper cables everywhere. It's very easy."

"This is amazing… how all those things go without anyone watching, without noise or other side effects… It's really brilliant."

Konata's smile widened. "And that's not all. Through the studies on electricity, we devised a way to send voice through vast distances. It's quite a recent invention. The electricity is the way of the future. It has already replaced much of the steam engines. You see, we do not live solely on the legacy of Gilbert Bates, we are constantly improving on it! Just twenty years ago nobody would have dreamed of what we have already achieved."

"It's so very different than in Tulla… We do not invent anything new, we're supposed to spend our lives on learning how to achieve things that the masters teach us from the beginning of time… Few are able to do it. I am sure I'll never rise above Level Two spells. You know, I am not a very bright mage…"

Kagami was half-listening. She felt worse by the minute as she started to perceive the true gravity of the situation. Happy Tuskasa! Good for her she does not understand… Kagami knew that now she had to contact her father. But how could she tell him that she had failed? Especially since he had trusted her with such an important mission, since he did not send any of the more worthy mages, like her older sisters. He had been so sure she was capable. Yet… she failed. Failed and didn't know what to do.

Her father. His position wasn't stable, either. Kagami was old enough to understand that. He needed a visible success, badly. Many powerful mages resented him, since he was the first ruler of Tulla who wasn't a Master of any school of magic. The fact that after the untimely death of the previous ruler there was nobody left able to cast Level Five spells, and therefore gain Master title, didn't matter. A ruler who wasn't a Master! Laughing stock, even if he was probably the most powerful of them all. Nobody dared to laugh yet, but now…

"And this is King Fahrad! A masterpiece from Caladonian shipyards, designed by our own engineers!"

Kagami noticed they were now walking along the pier, overlooking the vast southern sea. A huge metal ship was anchored there, rising above them like a mountain wall, illuminated by innumerable electric lights. It was painted strikingly white, save its three sloped black chimneys. Several stories above the pier, some elegant looking ladies and gentlemen were strolling across the deck. The ramp was lowered and guarded by two young, wide-chested sailors in snow-white uniforms and caps.

"That's… unbelievable. So beautiful," gasped Tsukasa.

"The ship is the current speed record holder in Tarant-Caladon voyage. With its top speed of fifteen knots, it is able to cover that distance in just over two days!"

Tsukasa pushed both hands to her chest. "If only I could sail on this ship… Just a little…"

"You said you're not a very good sorceress, so you probably could. It can manage that level of magical interference," said Konata and smiled.

They walked further across the pier, passing by more ships. None looked as imposing as the King Fahrad, but almost all of them were steam-powered. Not until the girls traveled another couple hundreds of yards, they saw sailed ships. Those didn't look inspiring at all, and all seemed very old, tired and disfigured. And very busy. Girls watched as the nearest ship was being loaded with heavy-looking packages, carried by ragged figures. They were supervised by some bearded, massive individual in a half-open white shirt.

Suddenly, one of the ragged figures tripped and fell. The package floated through the air and landed on the pavement with a really heavy "thud". It ripped, and immediately a cascade of grain of some sort spilled around.

The supervisor's face turned red. He walked toward the unfortunate carrier, yelling "what have you done, you idiot! We don't have time for this shit! Get the hell up!"

The figure stood up, but said defiantly "we've been working all day! We have right to be tired!" Kagami noticed with surprise that the voice was female. She was not nearly as bulky as the supervisor, but clearly as tall. And he wasn't short.

"Shut up, you orcish bitch! Don't you tell me about your rights! Start mopping up on the double!" he approached her. Other workers stopped and started to watch.

"No! We need a break!"

"Why, you…" he unbuckled his belt, took it in his hand and swung at her with surprising agility. The girl was hit across her chest. She didn't flinch, though; instead she exposed her teeth at the attacker and threw herself at him without any warning. Kagami did not see clearly what happened, but she heard a crack and the next second the supervisor laid on the ground.

"Guards, guards!" he started to yell.

End of chapter one.