Disclaimer: Magical Lyrical Girl Nanoha and Touhou Project are the copyright of their respective owners. Some aspects of the Nanoha universe are, however, fabricated, and may not truly represent their actual counterparts.
Tsss.
The doors slid open with a slight hiss.
The clip, clip sound of heels on metal echoed through the metal corridor, following its origin all the way to the conference room of the Frontier.
"Good evening, Admiral Harlaown."
Chrono turned.
"It's nice to see you again, Fate."
Fate turned to one of the chairs and took a seat, swiveling to face Chrono.
"I heard that Section Three's coming together again." She ventured.
"Well, wherever that's coming from, it's correct – but only for this mission as of yet. We'll have to wait for the rest first before revealing any details, though. Speaking of which, where is Teana? I was told she arrived at the same time you did."
"She's in the main transfer hall, waiting for the rest. I do hope it won't take too long, Teana's never been a very patient person."
"No worries! We're here!"
The door slid open again, and a small crowd of people strode in. The lady right in front snapped to attention and saluted.
"Good evening, sir! Captain Yagami Hayate and crew reporting, sir!"
Chrono returned the gesture, laughing slightly.
"Evening, Captain. Looking snappy as always." He turned to the others and saluted again. "Signum, Shamal, Zafira, Vita, Rein – good to have you back. Agito – nice to meet you."
Agito snapped a tiny salute. "It's a pleasure, sir."
From behind, Teana gave a crisp salute, and made a beeline for the seat next to Fate.
"The other four?" Hayate asked, taking her seat.
"Nanoha's finishing up a training session first. Caro and Erio had to apply for exit permits, and Subaru said she'll be down soon," Fate replied.
"Well, we'll start first then." Chrono headed back to his position at the head of the table. "Anything the others miss, you can tell them later." He reached a hand out, and touched a button in his holographic console. An image sputtered to life, fizzing slightly into the shape of a Gryphon-class cruiser over the meeting table.
"Recently, the Atlasia was investigating this particular dimension, in the same dimensional coordinates we are in now. The captain of the ship, Commander Rodriguez, sent in a top-priority emergency relay notifying us of the anomalistic properties of this dimension."
He pressed another button. The profiles of several men came up on the screen.
"These men were sent in as part of routine patrol procedure. Apparently, they were attacked by a hostile party. The five men, all able-bodied and highly-ranked mages, lasted a total of seven seconds against this threat before transmission was completely lost."
A collective murmur ran through the room. The door slid open, and the last four moved in quietly, taking their seats.
"Some specifications of the area were obtained, but because they were on routine patrol and traveling light, no video feed is available."
The dimension specifics rolled across the screen – land makeup, terrain, habitation, altitude, technology level. The details were synonymous with those of other less advanced dimensions, like the well-documented Terra-404, which was an established natural reserve for endangered animals originating from collapsed dimensions. It was all very normal.
"This, here, is what caught our attention."
Instantly, a gasp went across the table. The MPI value of the dimension was well in excess of 150 million. Hayate leapt to her feet. "But Terra-404 only has an MPI of two thousand! How could this-"
"That's why it caught our attention." Chrono motioned for Hayate to take her chair. She glanced around at the rest, slowly lowering herself. "What the Council believes we have here is -"
"- a Fantasia." Nanoha finished. Chrono nodded.
"A Fantasia. In other words, an actively magical dimension. I assume you are all familiar with the phrase, 'sufficiently advanced technology is just like magic'? This lies outside that realm of possibility. True Magic, magic that cannot possibly be created in any form by technology, is what we appear to be dealing with here."
Signum raised a hand. "But was that not determined to be impossible? True magic was said to be going against the very grain of the Multiverse. Such a thing could never exist."
"Well, it's here now. And this is what we're investigating." Chrono pulled up a list, indicating the tasks they were to embark on in the mission.
"First, determine the hostility level and capabilities of the inhabitants in the dimension. Since you are all first-class mages, I am sure you will find no problem with this.
"Secondly, scan the system for any presence of Lost Logia. This Fantasia-like effect could well stem from a Lost Logia in that dimension.
"Thirdly, if Lost Logia are present, extricate them by any means possible and rendezvous at this coordinate, the entry and extrication point."
A series of numbers scrolled slowly across the screen. The approximate location was somewhere over a small terrain rise.
"In the case that we somehow get separated on entry, make the rendezvous your top priority. Is that clear to all?"
The table rose and snapped to attention. "Yes, sir!"
"Then let us proceed. Fate, please lead the way to the dimensional transfer room. We are to scramble in full combat gear. Barrier jackets on, everyone."
"This way please."
The dimensional transfer room buzzed and hummed, the technicolour splendour of different dimensions clashing together parading itself on the walls. Chrono, barrier jacket already on, reached across to the console and pushed the intercom button.
"Frost-1 to Bridge, Stars team, Frost team and Lightning team are in position. Initiate transfer sequence."
"Roger, Frost-1, sir. Capacitors at 50% charge. Dimensional transfer in T-minus 20 seconds."
The whirring, buzzing sound steadily grew louder, the capacitors winding up as they prepared the magical burst necessary for propelling the thirteen to their destination. The colours started to grow in intensity.
"T-minus 10 seconds."
"Sir, something doesn't look right."
"Eh?"
"Nine."
"Sir! The transfer pathway is warping!"
"What?!"
"Eight."
Chrono jabbed at the "Terminate" button, but the capacitors had already spun up to power. The button no longer worked: the failsafe had kicked in to ensure the ship did not blow up from the excessive magical energy involved in transfers.
"External pressure is caving the transfer zone! It's the saturation in the Fantasia!"
"Seven."
"Try to rationalize it! See if you can even out the pressure balance in the pipe!"
"Six. Five."
"Can't, sir! It's snaking! I can't catch it!"
"Four."
"Everyone! Grab hold of each other!" Chrono shouted, reaching out for someone's hand, anyone. Around him, the others did the same. The room was now glaringly bright, a phantasmagoria of colours blooming around him, making it almost impossible to see.
"Three. Two."
His hands found those of Caro and Teana. A long chain of people was forming, a ring of tightly clenched fists.
"One."
"Close your eyes, people! Or the transfer will blind you!"
"Zero."
Whoosh.
A brief moment of calm. Then,
Chaos.
The ring was lashed at like a dinghy at sea. His eyes tightly shut, Chrono squeezed tightly on the hands he was grasping, their warmth in his own willing him to resist the urge to let his arms rest.
With a groan like a dying whale, their surroundings lurched and spun, throwing them around with disdain. The strain grew and grew, the groan increasing in pitch and volume, until it was a scream in their ears.
He could not hold on. With a final tug, they flew out of his grasp. Chrono could hear nothing over the intense screaming that washed over them. He braced himself for impact. Then…
…darkness.
