Disclaimer: I don't own Nanoha or Fate/Stay Night. If I did, Fate would be calling Nanoha "Master".
Those cold eyes were watching me as I trembled, trying to push myself up. My eyes were still adjusting, the shadowed crypt barely illuminated by the sickly green glow of the circle drawn around me. Several hooded figures stood at the edges of the circle, staring intently. Just beyond them, I could barely make out twisted shapes scattering the floor – dead and dried bodies. And as always, my dream ended amidst raging flames…
…The dream about my birth.
Fate/Lyrical Night I
The Day it Began
"…aown-senpai."
I drifted slowly into consciousness from the gentle coaxing of a girls voice.
"Harlaown-senpai!"
I sat up quickly and opened my eyes. Around me were the various odds-and-ends I had been tinkering with last night, and the walls around me were covered with tools. From the looks of it, I'd overworked myself again and had fallen asleep in the shed. A small huff directed my attention to the girl standing in front of me, and I finally looked up at her. Her arms were crossed, and her red and green eyes were glaring down at me. With her cheeks puffed out and the two tiny pigtails on her head, though, it was really hard to take her seriously.
"I knew you'd be here again, senpai. You need to take better care of yourself."
"I'm sorry, Vivio," I said, standing up. I patted her on the head and smiled, to which she gave an exasperated look. "I should go get breakfast ready."
She suddenly smiled brightly, her annoyance forgotten. "Don't worry about that, senpai, I can do it. Go get ready before Arf-san gets here."
I watched in slight amusement as Vivio ran off ahead of me to the house, and then lightly brushed myself off before I followed.
My name is Fate Harlaown. This estate I lived on, which was surprisingly large, had been inherited from my mother, Lindy Harlaown. She didn't have any other close family; she told me once that she'd lost her husband and son ten years ago, around the time that I had been adopted. So, when she'd passed away five years ago, everything had been left to me.
I can't say that it was lonely here, though. Especially since Vivio had started coming by. She was the younger sister of an old friend, and I hadn't really talked to her much before. Smiling fondly, I remembered when I'd found her sniffling on the sidewalk. It didn't get much to find out that some boys were picking on her, and I'd done my best to cheer her up and give some helpful advice. It hadn't really been anything special, but I must have made an impression on her, because after that she'd always done her best to take care of me…well, after I'd taught her a few basic things. She was a pretty gifted girl, though, considering she'd just entered middle school.
"Fate-chaaaan! Hurry up Fate-chan!"
And I couldn't forget Arf, I thought, my smile growing wider as I walked to the dining area. She was a teacher at my school, a close friend of my mother's, and my self-appointed surrogate mother. She'd taken it upon herself to check in on me constantly, worried about me living all by myself. I never could understand why she like being called 'Arf', though, but after all these years it just became normal. I couldn't even remember her real name anymore.
Sliding the door open, I was greeted by Arf who was impatiently bouncing on the floor, breakfast already lying out on the table. Okay, maybe I lied a little. She did seem like a dog in more ways than one, and if she had a tail I'm sure it would have been wagging frantically.
"Come oooon, Fate-chan! I'm hungry!"
"So, how does it look?"
I was kneeling on the floor, carefully inspecting the heater in front of me. Behind me, looking over my shoulder was my friend Yuuno Scryaa. He was the president of the school's library club, and had asked me to check out the club's heater which had stopped working a week ago.
"I think I can fix it," I answered, "But it might take some delicate work…"
"Don't worry, I'll leave the room. Just call if you need some help."
"Thanks," I said, watching as he left. I probably wouldn't have had troubles working if he'd stayed, but it was probably best that he didn't see what I was about to do. Sighing slightly, I turned back to the heater. It seemed like some of the wiring had shorted out, and I didn't want to spend too much time trying to find it. Placing my hand on the machine, I concentrated on my fingertips, pouring some of my magic through them. A spark leapt into the heater, and I traced its movements with my mind until I'd found the problem. Smiling happily, I pulled out some tools and got to work.
It only took a few minutes, and I soon found myself walking down the hallways, chatting with Yuuno as we headed to homeroom.
"Thanks, Fate, I owe you," he said in appreciation.
"Mm, no, that's okay," I answered. I opened my mouth to speak again, but was stopped short as I noticed a girl walking towards us.
The first thing that caught my eyes was obviously her outfit. The short, white skirt and matching shirt were definitely not part of the dress code. She had an intensely cute face, and her red hair tied in a lopsided ponytail only made her stand out more. Her blue eyes, however, held a silent determination, and they didn't even flicker towards me or Yuuno as she brushed between us. I probably ended up staring a bit too long, because Yuuno startled me with a slight cough.
"I hope you're not getting interested in Takamichi-san, too," he murmured.
"Why?" I asked, curious.
"Most of the guys in this school are crazy about her. There isn't a boy in our grade that wouldn't want to date Takamichi Nanoha!"
Yuuno had a glint in his eye, the one that he always seemed to get when he'd uncovered some important info. "That doesn't sound so-"
"But rumour is that she's got a huge killer streak! The nickname that gets whispered around behind her back is 'White Devil'!"
If I could read Yuuno's mind right now, I would probably see an image of Takamichi-san standing in front of a flaming backdrop, leveling everything in her path…
"Archer, do you feel it?" Nanoha murmured as she looked out over the school grounds from the rooftop.
"Yes, for a while now," the servant replied, hidden from sight, "but it doesn't seem like he's eager to attack."
"We should…wait for the school to clear out before we make any moves."
"Hey, hold up Fate!" yelled a familiar voice. I looked over my shoulder, and saw an unmistakable blond that belonged to an old friend. Arisa Bannings, Vivio's older sister, was walking towards me with her usual confident strut, and I noticed a group of boys standing and waiting behind her.
"What's wrong?" I asked as she came closer.
"You look like you've got time on your hands. Think you can help me out? The dojo needs cleaning out, but I really can't stick around any longer."
I hesitated slightly; it was pretty late. I could never say no to a request, though.
"I can do it."
"Great," she said, and walked off back to her entourage.
"Can you tell which servant it is?" Nanoha asked as she sat in waiting, still on the rooftop.
"No."
"Could it be the one that's been stealing linker cores all over town?" she pressed, slight doubt in her voice now.
"That shouldn't be your concern. Our only goal should be to defeat the other masters."
"I know that, but still-"
"He's here."
Nanoha leapt to her feet, staring upwards to the figure standing atop the roof fencing, framed by the moon. He looked young, younger than her. His hair was short, messy bush of red, and he was draped in a large white coat, almost concealing his red body armour. Held loosely in his hands was an unmistakable spear.
"Lancer," Nanoha observed.
"If you are aware of that, that makes you my enemy," the enemy servant stated. In a swift movement he spun his weapon in his hands, preparing to leap at the girl.
"Archer!" Nanoha yelled, taking a running dash towards the opening at the stairwell, "The landing's yours. Onegai!"
She recklessly leapt over the side railing into a three story freefall. Before she had even begun her descent, though, a blond woman appeared beside her, holding tightly to the girl. The pair dropped to the ground, and Archer readied her legs for the landing. Softly and deftly Archer supported the two as she hit earth, and then lightly dropped Nanoha to the ground as they broke into a run again.
"He's a close combat type; we'll need to find a battlefield more to your advantage," Nanoha said as she continued to move, but was suddenly jerked backwards as Archer grabbed her shoulders. Only a few feet in front of them, the Lancer servant appeared, catching up to them like it was nothing.
"An Archer servant was it?" the boy asked, eyeing the woman before him, "Well…now that we've crossed paths, we've no choice but to battle."
"I'm prepared to fight," Archer said to her master, "Tell me what to do, Nanoha."
The girl hesitated for a moment, unsure. When she looked at the unwavering form of her servant, though, she nodded.
"Right. Do your best, Archer."
"Of course."
Lancer didn't pause for a second as he lunged forwards. Archer calmly held out her arm, a black poleax appearing in her hand…
"What was that?" I called in surprise. I was just finishing my second pass of the floor when I'd heard a loud crash from outside. Dropping my washcloth, I ran out of the dojo and searched for the commotion. Hearing another crash, I turned towards the track field...and my jaw dropped.
Two figures were leaping around each other, swinging deadly looking weapons at each other at full strength. As blades struck each other again the dust around the figures exploding outward at the impact, and the blast of air hit me with shocking force. Involuntarily, I let out a gasp.
"Who's there?!" one of the figures yelled, the short red-haired one. Panicking, I turned and ran into the school.
I had run for a minute straight without thinking, turning every corner I came across, sheer terror running through me. What the hell was that?! Those two were fighting, actually fighting! It wasn't an act; they were trying to kill each other!
It was at least another minute before I started to slow, and I finally came to a stop, falling against the corridor wall to catch my breath. I shouldn't have panicked so much; there was probably a perfectly reasonable expl-
"Sonic move!"
Those words barely registered in my head as an agonizing pain ripped through my chest, a spear driven clean into my heart. I only caught a glimpse of the red hair of my assailant before I collapsed to the floor, my senses quickly fading.
"Sorry, but witnesses can't be allowed to live," the boy murmured as he vanished.
"Not like this…I can't die…like this..." were my last thoughts before the world closed in around me…
Nanoha halted when she saw the body on the ground. Her body trembled slightly, the shock of the sight slowly setting in. She knew it would be like this, she knew there would be casualties. Still, she could have done something. If she'd acted faster, if she'd been a little stronger…
"Archer," her voice was level, but struggled to hold her emotions at bay, "Follow Lancer. He'll return to his master…we need to know who it is."
Archer wordlessly complied, swiftly disappearing.
"I could at least…stay with you as you die…right?" the girl asked, more to herself than anything. She slowly walked forwards and crouched down, but quickly fell back as she saw the face of the victim.
"No…it…it's you. It's you. Why you?" she repeated, her eyes starting to tear. She raised her hand to her mouth, a small sob escaping her lips, "…why did it have to be you?"
As emotions began to overwhelm her, she realized what she had to do. Taking a yellow gem from her pocket, she brought herself to her feet, holding her hand out above the fallen girl.
"…I'm sorry. Just let me be irresponsible. Just this once…"
I gasped in pain as I jerked up. My hand shot to my chest instinctively, but I felt nothing wrong. Pulling it away, though, it was dripping with blood. Wait, I'd been stabbed through the heart. I checked again, still dazed. That's right, I was stabbed. I was dead…but someone came…and saved me?
"That was foolish. You used a precious gem for something like this?"
"It was just…something I had to do…ne?" Nanoha said softly, her face looking crestfallen.
Archer watched her for a moment, but continued. "I didn't mean what you did, but why you did it. Outsider can't be allowed to see us, the rules are clear. Any that do…must be killed."
Nanoha didn't respond, and kept staring at the floor.
"Lancer knew this. He chose to kill the witness instead of continuing the fight. And when he realizes he failed…"
This got Nanoha's attention as her head whipped up, panic in her eyes. "He won't let her live!"
I was curled silently against a wall, having someone made it home. My thoughts were anything but clear; I just couldn't comprehend what had transpired tonight. As I drowned in confusion, I suddenly felt it. I couldn't explain it, but I knew what the feeling meant. It was him. He'd followed me. He was still trying to kill me. I wasn't going to let that happen.
Rising to my feet, I focused my mind, channeling the magic I had learned to wield. The skin on my arm started to tingle as I felt the current flowing. I couldn't beat him, I knew how strong and how skilled he was. I could buy myself time though. Just as I had thought that, he appeared beside me. I was startled, leaping back and raising my hands in defense as he spun his spear and pointed it at me.
"I have to kill you," he said simply.
This was my only chance. My hand close enough to his weapon, I let my magic loose. The electricity shot through the spear into his arms, and he jumped, more surprised then hurt. I had already moved, though, and I burst through the outside door, sprinting as hard as I could.
I was only halfway across the courtyard when he appeared in front of me. I skidded to a halt, the sense of impending death finally setting into my head.
"I see…that's why you're still alive," he murmured, and swung his weapon at me. The shaft of the spear smashed into my side, the strength of the blow sending me flying. My world blurred around me, only stopping when I crashed into something large and heavy, and I found myself breaking through the storage shed door.
The boy was approaching slowly. There was nothing I could do – my body felt far too heavy to move, it took all my effort just to raise to my knees.
"You were probably the seventh," the red-haired boy said to me as he closed the final distance and pointed his spear towards me.
"Seventh, what do you mean?" I sputtered out, trying to stall. I was just given a second chance, I couldn't die again. Unnoticed to both of us, lines began to form on my left hand.
"It doesn't matter now," he answered, and I finally recognized remorse in his voice. It did little to ease me, though, as he poised as he prepared to strike.
Not like this. What good was my life, ending like this? How could I redeem myself like this? The lines on my hand started to glow, and, unseen, a circle began to trace behind me in a faint pink shimmer.
"Now die," the boy said, plunging his spear towards me. I flinched and fell backwards, shutting my eyes tight as I awaited the inevitable. The pain I expected never came though, as the sound of metal on metal resonated. Opening my eyes, I watched as the lancer leapt away, driven back by another figure standing before me. Turning to me, I caught sight of the woman who had just saved my life.
"I am Saber. I am here in response to your summons," she said, her voice low and steady. The moonlight cast through the window reflected off of her silver armour, surrounding her in an ethereal glow. Her long pink hair swayed behind her, and her intense and determined eyes were unblinkingly locked onto mine.
"I ask of you, are you my master?"
I couldn't speak, my mouth open as I sat frozen on the ground. Maybe it was the confusion around me…no, that wasn't it. I was silent in awe from the overwhelming beauty of the girl standing before me…
A/N: FSN and I had serious creative differences while writing this. I wanted to make this my own story, and FSN just kept popping in to make me copy it. I think we've finally come to an agreement, after the fact. FSN keeps its plot and events; I get the characters and the background story. I'll definitely have to push my part harder in the next few chapters; sometimes even I forget these are Nanoha characters in the scenes…