[Record 02: The Shocking Discovery]
Alicia woke with a start. Today was finally the day. Her birthday always fell on the weekend, so there was never anything to fear from school. It was a fact that the little blond had a habit of milking for all it was worth. Grinning, she stretched her arms and unleashed a thunderous yawn.
"Alicia? Finally awake?" yelled Nanoha.
Nodding her head drowsily, Alicia answered, "Yes, I'm up!"
"Come down for breakfast sweety!"
An incredible aroma reached Alicia's nose. Nanoha always made her favorite blueberry pancakes for breakfast on her birthday. The little blond nearly dashed to her closet as she hastily threw on her outfit for the day. Today she was dressed in a black and white skirt with a similar-themed open top. Beneath it she wore an icy-blue t-shirt. Finally dressed, she made her way down the stairs and to the table where her godmother, her actual mother, Vivio, and Einhart were all waiting for her.
"Happy birthday Alicia!" they all cheered.
"Thanks everyone!" cried Alicia with a bright smile. Without a moment to lose, the little blond made her way to her seat. Surely enough there were her favorite blueberry pancakes. Alicia was just about to dig into her meal when Vivio suddenly took hold of one of her hands.
"Would you like to start opening some of your presents early?"asked her older sister.
Alicia raised an eyebrow. While she was all for opening presents, her parents usually made her wait until the actual party. "Looks like this is going to be an interesting birthday after all," the little blond thought to herself with surprise. Nodding her head, she answered, "Sure!"
Einhart handed her a small package wrapped in silvery-green paper. The minty-haired bruiser giggled as she watched Alicia hover over the small package with anticipation. "I think you already know what it is, but please enjoy it," said Einhart over telepathy.
Winking, Vivio added, "Just remember to look surprised."
The little blond happily obliged as she tore the silvery-green package open. A pair of gauntlets lay inside. They were very similar to the ones her sister wore, but the knuckle guards were more similar to the ones on Einhart's gauntlets. Alicia let out a hearty squeal. "Thanks Einhart! Thank you, Sis!"
For reasons unknown to Alicia, Vivio chuckled deviously. "What're you talking about Alicia? That's just from Ein."
Einhart felt a vein pop on her head. Still, she retained her typical composur. On a private telepathic line, Einhart warned, "You will pay for that, Vivio."
Vivio smiled sweetly from the other side of the table. Instead of answering, she ignored Einhart and handed Alicia a dark blue and purple package. "This one is from me. Hope you like it."
Alicia smiled as she tore the package open. This time, she found a black and silver jacket within the package. Her eyes widened. It was the same jacket she had been eyeing a few weeks ago at the local clothing store.
"Th-Thanks, Vivio!"
Running a gentle hand through Alicia's hair, Vivio replied, "You're welcome kiddo."
With the pleasantries finished. Einhart stood from her seat. "Vivio, if you'd please." It wasn't a request. It was a command.
The sankt kaiser stood from her seat with a cheeky grin plastered onto her face. "Sure, I could use the morning exercise."
The grin was returned. "Just don't make sure to get the wind knocked out of you this time," teased Einhart.
"I-I just wasn't ready that time!" yelled Vivio defiantly. A deep blush spread across the sankt kaiser's face.
Einhart replied in a similar manner to Vivio's response earlier this morning by completely ignoring the retort with an innocent smile. Annoyed, Vivio followed the minty-haired girl out of the house and into the backyard.
With the two gone, Fate and Nanoha stood from their chairs.
"Alicia, Mommy and I will be home later today around lunch," announced the white devil. "We'll be back real soon okay?"
"Okay," replied a merry Alicia. She was far too preoccupied slipping on her gloves to notice that the two of them were leaving.
Fate smiled and warmly embraced her daughter. "Now remember to take good care of those and to be good while we're gone. I promise that we'll be back as soon as possible. Erio and Caro will be here soon."
Alicia beamed, answering her mother by looking over her shoulder and beckoning Nanoha toward them. Smiling, the auburn-haired mage joined them in their embrace. With the tender moment finished, the two aces left, leaving Alicia alone in the house. As she clenched a fist with her new gauntlets, the little blond muttered cheerfully,"They've got a real firm fit. It's nice."
Not being a practitioner of the Modern Belkan or Ancient Belkan styles, Alicia was never able to grasp fighting as well as her friends. In all around combat it was considered a weakness for her. Finding her way to the glass sliding door, the little blond made her way outside to watch the still going sparring match between Vivio and Einhart. They were matching each other blow for blow and no one had managed to land an actual hit yet.
The little blond mage watched them with great enthusiasm. Their skill was on a whole other level. While her mother and godmother may be two of the greatest magicians of their age, Vivio and Einhart were two of the greatest knights of their age. Vivio was doing well in following Hayate's footsteps toward becoming the next great Mage-Knight: a master of both the Belkan and Mid-Childan magic systems.
Finally after what was actually a few hours, someone landed a blow. In a blur of motion Vivio had managed to strike Einhart in the chest with her fist. The minty-haired bruiser staggered back as Vivio huffed and puffed while putting distance between herself and Einhart. Smirking, the minty-haired bruiser taunted, "What's the matter? It took that much just to land a solid punch?"
Vivio smiled at Einhart through gritted teeth. "I'm… Just… Warming up!"
Einhart's muscles tensed as she dodged Vivio's lunge, striking the sankt kaiser with her Haou Arts: Danku Ken at point-blank range. Vivio spiraled backwards, sailing through the air until eventually striking land. She cringed and coughed, but eventually picked herself up, returning to her fighting stance. At last, Einhart sighed. "Your endurance has improved, but you're recovery is still sort of sloppy. Let's work on that a little more tomorrow."
Still trying to regain her composure, Vivio replied, "Y-Yeah." After taking another deep breath, the sankt kaiser whined aloud. "Geez, Ein, that punch of yours is really something else. Had you hit me harder, I probably would have broken a rib or two!"
The minty-haired bruiser flushed at Vivio's words of praise. "I-It… Still needs work," she replied softly. After a calming breath, Einhart sauntered towards Vivio as their barrier jackets disappeared, returning them to their usual outfits. With their bodies finally matured into those of adults, Asteion and Sacred Heart reappeared much sooner than they used to.
Seeing that the battle was over, Alicia clapped for the two of them. "That was amazing! Einhart totally side-stepped you and and you in the gut, Sis! It was so cool!"
Vivio chuckled sheepishly while Einhart beamed at the praise.
"Looks like you two are active as ever," teased a masculine voice. Turning around, the three found Erio and Caro waiting for them by the glass door.
"Nah, I think I'm even stronger than before," replied a smiling Vivio.
Caro giggled. "We can see that!"
Noticing the little girl directly in front of them, Erio ruffled Alicia's hair and said, "Happy birthday, Alicia."
Alicia smiled. "Thanks, Erio." Looking towards Caro, she said, "It's good to see you again, Caro. How are you?"
Caro giggled while waving a red and pink package around. "I'm great, thanks! I'll place this on the table for later this afternoon."
"Okay!" replied Alicia.
Noticing her gloves, Erio asked, "Hey, did you get new gauntlets? Those are really nice."
"She needed gauntlets to make actual use of her Strike Arts practice. The gloves they use for basic practice just aren't anything close to the real thing," explained Einhart coolly.
Erio nodded. "I see. Well that sounds cool! Hey, where are Nanoha and Fate?"
"At work," answered Vivio coolly. "They'll be back in an hour."
"What? That much time went by already?" yelled a bewildered Alicia.
Vivio giggled. "Yup, we spent a lot of time out here today. Wanna go back inside?" Looking at her friends she added telepathically, "Erio, Caro, Einhart; let's go to my room after we give Alicia something to do."
The three recipients of Vivio's telepathic message nodded.
"Aw, no fair. I wanna know what you guys were talking about," cried Alicia with an envious pout.
Patting her head, Erio replied, "Alicia, it looks like we have to talk about work right now. Is it okay if you wait for us in your room? You could play a game or two while you're waiting."
She wasn't entirely satisfied with Erio's reply, but Alicia made no fuss over the matter. "Alright," she said coolly.
As soon as the little blond left the room, the four adults crept into Vivio's room and closed the door behind them. Her room was relatively simple: featuring a simple bed and desk with various pictures and trophies strewn along her dresser. Erio took a seat on the floor beside Caro while Einhart perched herself on the chair beside the desk. Vivio on the other hand sat herself on her bed.
Silence fell upon them.
"So, what's up Vivio?" asked Erio.
Vivio crossed her arms. "Well, you see, something weird's going on. Mama said that there's a new troublemaker on the block and that he's causing a lot of trouble. I think she's discussing the details about him today with Fate-mama and the others."
Caro raised an eyebrow. "What's so bad about that? We used to talk about that stuff at meetings all the time when we were in Riot Force 6."
Einhart's countenance fell. "But did she ever walk out or come in with a tense composure? Both Nanoha and Fate have been acting strangely all morning. They said they'll be back after they discuss what to do about the situation. To be exact, they've been like this since yesterday."
"Hmm." Erio crossed his arms. His right hand released itself to scratch his head. "Wow, that is pretty weird. Fate never gets tense about something like that unless it's really bad."
Caro struck a pensive pose. "Well, normally they bring home a picture of the suspect if there's one on a TSAB camera. Did you guys happen to see if they left anything on the table today?"
Vivio placed her finger on her lips. "No. Mama never leaves important stuff like that out normally. But you know what she did come home with a single data disk yesterday though. It's been on the table ever since she came home last night. I wanted to look at it but Fate-mama would always direct me elsewhere."
Erio tensed. "Something's not right about this. Nanoha wouldn't just leave a data disk laying around on the table. Odds are she wanted Caro and I to take a look at it," thought the red-haired lancer. "Still, Vivio works for the bureau. Why would they try so hard to keep Vivio from seeing a regular ol' TSAB criminal data disk? To make matters even more mysterious, they're behaving strangely. I wonder if it's got anything to do with that project from a few years ago." Speaking to Caro on a private line, Erio asked, "Hey, Caro, remember the incident that occurred before Alicia was born? Project Photon?"
Caro nodded, noting that Vivio and Einhart obviously couldn't hear him. "Yeah, I do. Why? It was a terrible disaster and many children died during various stages of the experiment." Suddenly, the pinkette's eyes widened with realization. "Hey wait a sec, wasn't Alicia-"
"Don't be so obvious that you're serious. You'll make the girls suspicious. Anyway, I have a feeling whoever this is, is probably another survivor of the project. There were thirteen of them and Alicia's the last one they ever came out with, so it could easily be one of the other twelve."
Rising from her seat, Caro said, "Hey, Vivio, Einhart; I want you to come with Erio and me. I wanna go and look at the disk."
Erio's face quickly changed to one of panic. "Are you crazy?" he yelled telepathically. "What if it is a survivor? Fate wouldn't even let us look at the other Photon files before, remember? We could be looking at really classified stuff! We could get in huge trouble if we're caught!"
"Don't you wanna know why Fate's acting so strangely?" asked Caro telepathically. "It must be something terrible for it to be causing both Nanoha and Fate to behave this way. If we can help them, I want to do my best to do so."
There was silence.
Erio said nothing as he finally made his way to the door. Looking at Cario, he finally replied, "Alright. Let's do this then." The red-haired lancer motioned to the still sitting girls. "We're gonna go take a look at that disk," he whispered. "You guys in or out?"
Nodding to each other and then to Erio, both Vivio and Einhart rose from their seats and replied, "We're in."
"Alright, let's go then," said Erio with a deep sigh.
Without a moment to lose, Vivio and Einhart followed Erio and Caro out of Vivio's room and into the living room. To their surprise, Alicia was nowhere in sight. Her video games were playing full blast along with the little blond's random cheers whenever something good would happen.
Carefully surveying his surroundings, Erio eventually found a data disk labeled Photon-XIII placed right out in plain sight on the dining table. It was labeled with the TSAB seal. It was exactly what they were looking for. Picking it up, he summoned Strada and slipped the small disk into a small slot. "Gather around the table," commanded Erio. "I'm gonna have Strada play the data back to us."
Vivio, Einhart, and Caro carefully crowded around the dining table as Erio laid Strada flat on its pole. Soon after that, a hologram popped up featuring several walls of text. Unlike most files of this nature, there was not a word of recorded sound on this file.
"A soundless track? They really wanted to make sure this stuff wasn't leaked," noted Caro.
"It would appear that way," replied Erio.
Vivio quietly read the data to the group.
[Photon XIII | Eyes: Blue | Hair: Auburn | Barrier jacket: Black with some blue markings | Divider: Replica Divider-VB996 | Magic System: Eclipse & Mid-Childan]
[Mana Conversion Affinity: None | Mana Color: Silver & Red]
[Details: This particular subject was incredibly successful in terms of containing his own power; however, he seems to suffer extreme pain when using either his magic or his abilities as an Eclipse Driver.]
Suddenly, the playback stopped.
"Hey, what gives?" complained Vivio.
Caro and Erio blinked.
Vivio read the notice presented to them aloud. [Please present a TSAB ID to view the final piece of information.]
The four teens looked at each other, hesitation evident in the everyone's eyes. Who would be the one to access the data? Eventually, Erio pulled out his own card and displayed it before the holographic screen. After a short scan, the computer presented yet another data screen.
[TSAB ID confirmed: Erio Mondial. This information must be kept secret if anything please attempt to read this by yourself if possible.]
The group ignored the message.
"Why would it want you to look at it alone?" asked Vivio curiously.
Erio crossed his arms. "I'm actually asking myself the same question."
Finally, the last piece appeared. They all gasped. This one came with a picture of a boy with wild auburn hair and deep blue eyes, eerily familiar blue eyes.
Vivio was the first to take a step back. "N-No way," the sankt kaiser shook her head. "I-It has to be some kind of joke!"
Einhart shook her head and pointed at the data screen. "I'm afraid it's true."
[Registered Alias: Saber Gremory | Birth Name: Takamachi Yuusei | Known Parent: Takamachi Nanoha | Unique Trait: Zero Gene]
[Survivor #XIII of Project Photon]
[Currently wanted by the TSAB for attempted time-space disruption. His termination has been ordered upon capture. He is wanted alive or dead.]
Erio felt a chill slither up his spine. "Th-This is…"
Einhart seemed almost too appalled to speak. Finally, she turned to the now completely pallid Vivio. "You didn't know a thing about this did you?" she asked quietly.
Fighting the urge to voice her confusion and frustration, Vivio shook her head. She could only stare blankly at the sudden reality before her. "I have a little brother," muttered the golden-haired bruiser. "And they want him dead."
The minty-haired bruiser sauntered to Vivio's side and patted her back, careful not to say anything. In the mean time Erio shut off the disk and placed it exactly where it had been on the table, even going as far as to place it in the same position. The air was tense in the room and no one spoke for several minutes.
After what seemed like an eternity of silence, Caro asked, "S-So… What're we gonna do?"
The red-haired lancer shook his head. "I," he paused, "I really don't really know myself. There's a lot about this that's just bugging me. I thought we took care of the Eclipse during the Eclipse Incident!"
"They never got rid of all of the dividers," explained Einhart. "Fate mentioned it to me once while we were on a job together. It's possible for that child to have come into contact with a replica divider if the person who has him has access to the collected eclipse artifacts. The real mystery is if he's infected with the primal virus or not."
"Impossible," countered Caro. "Hades is behind bars and Thoma wouldn't purposefully infect someone with the primal strand of the eclipse virus. He has to be a secondary."
"Doubt it," replied Erio. "If they wanted to recreate the zero effect, they would need a primal infection, not a secondary or a tertiary. I don't know how they did it, but they exposed that kid to a strosek."
Vivio shook her head, not wanting to believe what she had just bore witness to. "Is it possible for us to detain him for questioning?"
Caro shook her head. "We could, but it says that they want him terminated. This means that even if we manage to hide him here for a few days after detaining him and getting answers, if someone from the higher ups finds him, they'll probably kill him." Seeing the astonishment on Vivio's and Einhart's faces, Caro added, "Of course Nanoha and Fate would never do something like that, but it's just too dangerous."
"So, what's the plan then?" asked Einhart. "We are not even privy to this child's whereabouts. It's not like we can just walk up to him and ask him about this either. He might not even know what we're talking about."
"Hmm, true," replied Erio whilst nodding his head.
Suddenly the door creaked open. "We're home!" Echoed through the house as Nanoha and Fate made their way into the living room to find Erio, Caro, Vivio, and Einhart; who were standing around the table mere moments ago, relaxing as they raided the fridge.
Einhart and Vivio looked up from their soda cans. "Welcome back," the two said in unison.
"Where's Alicia?" asked Fate.
Erio chuckled. "Ah, Alicia decided to go play some games for awhile. She grew bored of listening to us talk."
Walking up to Fate, Erio and Caro embraced her gently as they said, "It's good to see you again, Fate."
Fate smiled. "It's wonderful to see you two as well."
Nanoha smiled as she revealed a box wrapped in blue and white and another in black and red. "Well, the party will be starting soon so get ready everyone. Try not to eat too much. Fate made tart."
"Okay!" replied the four young adults.
With that, the two aces made their way up the stairs and out of sight.
As soon as they were out of earshot, the four young adults simultaneous went, "Phew."
"So, what's the plan?" asked Vivio.
Erio crossed his arms smiling. "For now, we enjoy the party, but after this," his features fell, leaving an almost curious shine in his now serious eyes. "We need to have a talk with Fate and Nanoha about this tonight."
A few hours later...
The party had gone just like any other of Alicia's birthday parties: the Yagami family, along with Miura came to visit; Lindy, Arf, Chrono, Amy, and Alicia's cousins arrived with Yuuno. A few of Vivio's friends showed up shortly afterward. About three minutes later, Subaru and Teana appeared. Not too long after that, the cake came out. Everything seemed completely normal with the exception of an unusually quiet Nanoha, and a slightly stoic Fate. They cheered up whenever someone came to talk to them but those closest to them knew something was awry.
Hayate took the initiative on confronting them about an hour after the cake was served. "Hey, I just wanted to say that I'm-"
Nanoha stopped her. "It's fine. Did you happen to look at the new order for certain project survivors?" Nanoha stressed the word certain, and Fate did not look in the slightest bit pleased.
The commander nodded. "I'm actually fighting with them to change that, but there are apparently certain members of the higher ups who refuse to budge on the matter."
Fate's features darkened. "It's not just him you know. I heard that I, II, and III were ordered for termination as well. I'm surprised you don't seem bothered yourself, Hayate."
Hayate raised an eyebrow. "Of course I'm upset, but what exactly is the problem, Fate?"
The blond swordswoman sighed deeply. "They also ordered for X's termination."
An almost depressed frown worked its way onto Hayate's face. "I saw that." The brunette's voice suddenly grew silent.
Seeing the pain on Hayate's face, Fate said, "Look, Hayate, I'm sorry. I think there's just too much going on with this case."
Nanoha crossed her arms. "We're not getting anywhere arguing with each other. I suggest that we talk it over tonight after Alicia opens her presents and goes to bed tonight. The disk is in my room after al-" Nanoha paused in panic. She looked to find the disk detailing Yuusei exactly where she had left it on the table. "Crap."
Fate smiled nervously. "Don't worry, I don't think Vivio and Einhart would have-"
"They're with the TSAB now, remember? They could have opened the files. Erio and Caro are here as well," interjected Nanoha.
Hayate looked around to find Erio observing them from afar and Vivio making poor attempts to eavesdrop on their conversation with apparently no success judging by the look of struggle on her face. "I would," she paused, "Say they saw it."
Sighing, Fate suggested, "How about we open the presents now? We can talk after the presents. Everyone usually goes home after that anyway. Chrono and Lindy know already, but, Hayate; I think the knights have every right to know about this too. Signum and Vita have already seen one of them, so there's no point in hiding it any longer."
"Yeah, let's do that," replied Hayate. "Mind if we crash here? It sounds like this might be a long one."
Nanoha smiled, her radiance returning. "Sure!" Walking out into the crowd, she waved her hands towards the couch. "Hey guys! It's time for Alicia to open presents!"
"Alright!" yelled Alicia loudly. Dashing for her spot on the floor next to the presents, the little blond had somehow managed to slide between Signum's legs.
The Knight of the Sword smiled nervously. "She may look like you Testarossa, but she's far more," she paused, "energetic."
Fate smiled nervously, a sheepish laugh being her only reply.
Moments later, everyone was seated and Alicia tore into the first box. It had come from the Yagami family specifically. Her eyes almost glowed. "Wah! Is this a ground forces uniform?"
Hayate smiled. Poor Alicia, she didn't realize that all the commander wanted was for someone new to try on her costumes. The little blond was simply all too willing to play along. "I'm glad you like it. I can't wait to see you try out the new costu- I mean, uniform."
"Thank you guys!" cheered Alicia. While she easily could have listed the entire clan, she felt it best to thank them collectively.
Signum smiled almost pitifully. "She has no idea as to what evil she has just unleashed upon herself," thought the purple-haired knight sympathetically.
Vita snickered. "Ah well. At least you'll be off the hook for a while! Right, Signum?"
"Hmm. You have a point, Vita," replied Signum with excitement evident in her tone of voice.
As Signum began to daydream of her short vacation from her beloved master's hobby, Alicia began to tear into her new present. This one was from Miura. Again she found fascination in the item, but this time, curiosity overtook her rather than joy. "Hey, these are leg guards! Hmm, two presents that are parts to an armor… No way!" Eyeing the present from Fate and Nanoha to herself, Alicia's eyes gleamed with hope. "Thanks, Miura!"
Miura giggled. "You're welcome, Alicia!"
The little girl wasted no time in moving onto the gift from Corona and Rio. It was a rectangular box with something clanging around inside. Alicia raised an eyebrow. "This seems a tad too coordinated." Opening the next box, she found a guard plate for her core, very similar to the one Vivio wears in her adult mode. "I was right!" she mentally yelled. "Now all we need is the jacket really and I'd be able to store this in a device for later. Maybe I'll use these for ideas for a barrier jacket!" Not wanting to waste time, Alicia moved on to her next present. This one was from Grandma Lindy and Arf. Opening it, she beamed. The present was normal, but it was one of the more childish things on her wish list: a PlayStation Vita.
Vita felt her palm reach her face as she stared at the black game console. "Of course it'd have to be that game console," thought the red-headed knight sullenly.
"Yay! Thank you Grandma Lindy and Aunty Arf!" cried Alicia.
Lindy smiled and gave the little girl a pat on her head. "You're welcome, dear."
Arf beamed. "You're welcome kid! Knock yourself out!"
Alicia giggled, hugging the large wolf girl. An "Awwwww" surged through the room as a horde of cameras swarmed in on the originally tender moment. Various lights flashed away at the pair, leaving Alicia dizzy and Arf completely blinded for a full minute.
Chrono stepped forward to ruffle his niece's hair. "Happy birthday, kiddo."
The little blond mage nodded, gratefully accepting the gift he held in his hands. Tearing into it she found yet another item on the wish list: an iPod. Alicia thought for a second that she saw her mother's palm meet her face.
Vivio chuckled. It had taken her quite some time to acquire an iPod, but after using her cutesy side to appeal to Fate's motherly instincts, she had easily gotten one of respectable gig count. It was a shame that Nanoha had found out and "punished" Fate for it the following evening.
Indeed, Fate had very vivid memories of that night. It had been a long time since Nanoha had ever been annoyed with her like that. "Chrono probably got that for her as a gag. Stupid Brother."
"It's your fault for being tricked by a little girl," teased Chrono.
Fate almost gasped at the sudden message, looking over to a smirking Chrono, a giggling Nanoha, and a grinning Vivio; who quickly revealed the small item in question and placed it back into her pocket. As usual, Fate blushed a deep red and whined aloud.
Completely ignoring the scene before her, Alicia had gone on to accepting the next box, this time from Yuuno. Her curiosity got the better of her for a moment. Yuuno had hinted that she would obtain a device this year or that her chances of it were high. With that in mind, she thought to herself, "Maybe Yuuno got me something having to do with device handling." Opening the box, she couldn't have been more wrong. Her shock was replaced by awe as she pulled out a small white jewelry box with green outlining.
The librarian smiled. "Go on and open it. It won't bite."
Alicia did as she was told, opening the box to find a small locket inside shaped like Bardiche but perhaps a tad larger than him. Opening the locket she found a small picture of the entire group at their picnic a few months ago. Shari had volunteered to take the picture for them. The only addition to the group was Nanoha's family, who had sat right beside Nanoha, their smiles warm and glowing in the summer sun. The little girl gave Yuuno a hug. "Thank you, Yuuno. I really love it. I'll take real good care of it. I promise."
"You're welcome Alicia-chan." Again, flashes blurred the room, blinding the ferret changeling and the young blonde.
The blond mage could barely contain her excitement. Only two presents remained. She had decided to open the one from Subaru and Teana, but this one was exactly what she had been anticipating: the main jacket to a barrier jacket. This one was actually styled very similar to Hayate's barrier jacket. However, the colors were exactly like that of Fate's original barrier jacket as a child. It wasn't too bulky, but it had more protection than even her mother's at that age.
Subaru gave her a thumbs up. "We wanted to make sure you stayed safe while you fought! This oughta keep you intact just as well as Commander Yagami's barrier jacket does," she exclaimed in a cheery voice.
Teana smiled. "This jacket's made for bulk and speed. It will let you go as fast as your mom but you'll be able to take maybe one more hit than she can in sonic form. Just be remember to be careful. It's still a pretty fragile jacket. Nanoha's Divine Buster and Signum's Purple Lightning Flash can easily tear this thing open."
"Un! Thank you!" replied an ecstatic Alicia. Hugging the two, she quickly slid the jacket on and took a picture between the two girls. Subaru held Teana around the waist as the picture was taken, causing the gunslinger to blush bright red as she tried to hold in her embarrassment.
After the moment had settled, the final present sat before Alicia. This one was from her mothers. She had waited for this all day. The little mage was so excited that she could barely breathe as she slowly, almost tensely, removed the wrapping paper from the package. It revealed a steel-colored canister. She was prompted to identify herself.
[Please place your dominant hand's thumb onto the blue screen to identify yourself.]
Alicia did as she was told. The machine began to read off a few random facts.
[User: Alicia Takamachi-Harlaown. | Magic System: Mid-Childa. | Confirm?]
Alicia nodded. "Yes!"
[Affirmative, releasing device, serial XGS-001: Caliburn to registered user Alicia Takamachi-Harlaown.] The canister's lid popped open, the lid slowly unscrewing as steam filled the room. Slowly as the smoke cleared, Alicia stood at the center of the room holding a small, navy blue and black sword pendant.
The little mage stared at the small pendent in awe. "Th-This is?..."
Fate nodded. "Your own device. Shari and the crew made this special for you. Nanoha and I requested it for you."
Nanoha giggled gleefully. "Vivio and Einhart helped with the design while Erio and Caro chose the colors. You could say it's a little something from all six of us."
Alicia was far too pleased to express herself with words. She merely jumped up and down while frantically hugging her mother. "Thank you!"
Fate embraced her daughter and smiled. "You're welcome, Alicia." Seeing that the fun was over, all of the guests with the exception of Arf, Chrono, Lindy, the Yagami family, and Yuuno had left.
An hour later, after telepathically explaining the situation to Chrono, Hayate let out a heavy sigh. "We'll be back down soon, but I want you guys to watch Alicia for us. It may be awhile." Looking towards Vivio, Einhart, Erio, and Caro; she added, "I don't think they are too pleased about not being informed about all of this."
Chrono crossed his arms. "To be honest, I'd be kind of mad too," he answered softly. "Look, we'll watch her for you guys. Just go up and let them in on everything."
Looking to her knights for a brief second, Hayate quickly saluted Chrono. "Very well, sir."
Chrono laughed. "Very well."
With that; the four young adults, Nanoha, Fate, and the Yagami family made their way up the stairs and into Nanoha and Fate's bedroom. Not much had changed since they had first brought Vivio home except maybe the extra bed they had brought in during Alicia's terrible twos. There were several chairs and a lot of space on the bed. Everyone sort of took a spot at random and gathered around Hayate, who had taken the center of the room with a chair of her own.
"Are we all here?" asked the commander.
Everyone nodded.
Once more, Hayate let out a heavy sigh. "Alright, for those who aren't entirely aware, we are here today to discuss a potentially dangerous matter. Now, who here is familiar with Project Photon?"
Most hands were raised with the exception of the knights.
"Well then, the basics of the project were simple: to utilize ideas from Project Fate in order to create genetically engineered soldiers for combat in the TSAB. Some of which were created with the DNA of some of the TSAB's greatest mages including Fate T. Harlaown, Takamachi Nanoha, and myself: Yagami Hayate; however, there was a lot of corruption among the staff members and there were even rumors of the eclipse virus being used on various test subjects. Eventually, the project was forced to a close." For a moment, Hayate thought Vita was going to burst out, but she seemed too shocked to speak.
Signum crossed her arms. "So someone in the TSAB was using Project Fate to not only clone but actually make children with certain powers or abilities?"
Hayate nodded. "Yes, that's correct."
Erio's face twisted, his features revealing an unusual glint of anger. "So they're making kids like me, but just for the sole purpose of using them as war machines?"
Fate did not seem any more amused than Erio, her features slightly darkening at the mention of Project Fate.
Hayate nodded. "Unfortunately, yes. Thankfully, as I mentioned before, the project was deemed far too unethical and was eventually shut down."
The Knight of the Sword huffed. "Unethical indeed."
"That's not all," said Hayate, "While it was initially shut down after the first two successful births, the project was put back on rails two months later. Nanoha, Fate, and myself were first requested to donate blood at the local blood bank for what we were told was a blood drive hosted by the TSAB. We couldn't possibly have been anymore wrong."
The air in the room stiffened. Vivio looked around, she was still somewhat lost. "What? What happened, Mama?" She looked towards Nanoha for answers.
Nanoha only looked away, seeming almost too ashamed to answer.
"Then, they asked from something else: three egg cells from each of us for what they claimed was some form of new cell research using egg cells. It was never elaborated on as to what they would be used for, but at that moment, we knew something was wrong," answered Hayate.
Einhart raised an almost disturbed eyebrow, Erio's face went from angered to confused, while Shamal seemed to be piecing everything together.
"So they?" asked Shamal.
"That's right," answered Hayate. "From those three cells from each of us, one egg cell each had been converted into sperm through chromosomal-cell-change, a new kind of science Mid-Childa's been working on to allow for same-sex couples to have children. Obviously, since it's done through machine, it's not exactly perfect. A week later, we had found out that one of Fate's eggs had been fertilized by one of Nanoha's, well, 'sperm.'"
At last, realization crept its way into Erio's eyes. "So, what you're trying to tell us is-"
"Seems like you've got it, Erio. Fate and Nanoha do have a biological daughter."
No one said a word. There was silence for a brief moment.
"Hayate, why did you not use Alicia's name when you said that just now?" asked Einhart quietly.
Everyone looked from Einhart to Hayate, equally as curious. "Well, the best way I can answer that is because that particular child is not Alicia."
Vita actually gasped, Signum's eyes widened somewhat, Erio seemed to be putting two-and-two together, while Caro raised her hand to ask a question.
"W-Wait a second Commander Yagami!" cried Caro. "If Alicia's not their daughter, then who is-"
"She is Fate's daughter, but she is not their daughter," answered Hayate quickly.
Caro ceased her questioning.
Silence fell over the room as Hayate searched within herself to find a gentle way to explain the coming pieces of information. "That first child, the first success using two above AAA rank mage's DNA to create a child with special talents, was a success. The child was placed within Fate's womb a day after we had received that call. As you all can guess, it was born a healthy young girl who could easily pass for Alicia's twin, but even from a young age, she bore the Takamachi smile. She also had Nanoha's nose if I remember correctly. Her name was Ivory, Ivory Takamachi-Harlaown. Or according to the project: Photon IV."
Nanoha said nothing, opting to stare off into space instead.
Caro gripped the edge of her dress. "So that's what happened," she thought to herself quietly.
Vivio's confusion from earlier this morning skyrocketed with this new piece of information. "Hey, Mama, where did Ivory go then?"
No answer.
"Mama?"
Nanoha finally spoke, her voice so grim it gave even Signum chills. "They… They took her away, Vivio."
No one said a word. It was rare to hear the white devil sound so lost.
It was Signum's turn to raise a question. "Testarossa, I hate to ask this of you, but I want to know, what in the world happened to that child?"
Fate looked down toward her shoes. "That's just it Signum, we don't know. We chased them through Mid-Childa and even Vaizen. Hayate helped us, but they somehow managed to escape. We think they had an escape ship waiting for them somewhere on the outskirts of town. They picked a great time too. You and Vita were mobilized with the forwards that day, remember? I was also recovering from giving birth so I," the blond swordswoman paused. "I couldn't do anything." Fate's voice cracked just slightly on her last four words.
Erio clenched a fist. "Those bastards. If I find out who these guys are, they're toast!" Lightning began to surge from the red-haired lancer's body, but he quickly received a chastising glance from Signum.
"Erio, you'd do well to calm down," advised Signum.
"But!"
"No buts! This is a delicate matter. Letting your emotions grasp control won't do you any good right now." The Knight of the Sword's words were calm, but Erio could hear the resentment that hid within them. The red-haired lancer looked away. He knew Signum was right, but to see two people who meant so much to him in so much pain churned something deep inside of him. Whatever it was, he didn't like it.
Vivio said nothing, another piece of the puzzle slowly coming together in her head. "It all makes sense now," she thought to herself. "There was that one time Fate-mama took a year-long trip to another world. Nanoha-mama visited her at least once every month. So that's what was going on." The golden-haired bruiser was at a loss for words. She wanted to ask her mothers why. She wanted to know why no one told her. She wanted to know why she wasn't there to protect her baby sister. Suddenly, a thought rang out in her mind. "Wait, but then Mama did the same exact thing a year later! So then-"
Hayate took the silence as the signal to go on. "A few months later, they employed Nanoha for the job. She accepted with the same results, but this time, the baby was confiscated by the TSAB after a week for reasons they refused to disclose."
Signum cringed. "How cowardly."
Vita scowled. "What the hell does that mean?" she yelled. "They can't just-"
"Because we never had substantial evidence to prove anything, the TSAB's case won out. The child, known to us then as Yuusei Takamachi, was then conveniently taken to a local doctor for research purposes. We never saw him again."
Erio shivered. He remembered those dark days in the research facility. They were dark days, terribly dark days. He didn't want anyone to have to go through that; however, everything was beginning to make sense now. "So then after Ivory and Yuusei, they tried again."
"After the first two incidents, Fate was called up again, this time having just Fate as the mother. They wanted to try the same experiment from before, but Nanoha at the time was," looking sympathetically towards her dear friend, Hayate continued, "in no condition to bear such stress. She had suffered more than enough. Fate however was willing to try one last time. This time however, we were ready for them." Indeed, Captain Yagami remembered that day so well it was almost painful. "We had Yuuno seal the entire hospital with a barrier. Meanwhile, we had Einhart and Vivio waiting outside. If you remember, Signum, that was the day I had you stationed outside of the hospital. Vita, if you remember, we were with Nanoha and Fate at the time."
Vita nodded with a loud snort. "Yeah, I remember. I had no idea that Fate could scream so loud. It was incredible!"
Fate flushed at the remark.
Hayate merely shook her head with a giggle. "Anyway, the child born from that experiment was the Alicia that we all know and love today. Due to all of the political and legal processes that were apparently involved with these children, I had Captain Chrono and former Captain Lindy set things up prior to the birth; as a result, the baby was protected and we still have custody of Alicia to this day."
Erio crossed his arms. "What still confuses me is how they swindled Yuusei legally. I mean, Vita's right. Can they seriously do that?"
"It was all a lie," answered Hayate with a cold countenance. "It was entirely under a fake medical record that claimed he had certain medical needs that were located only in a certain hospital and that his mothers were non-compliant in allowing him entry into that hospital. They claimed that since Yuusei was not yet competent, they as his health care providers had more authority and say over his family, who supposedly didn't have his best interests in mind."
Einhart frowned. "That's just so cruel."
Nanoha and Fate said nothing. The room was actually dead quiet. Finally, a hand was raised. Surprisingly, it was Zafira's hand.
"Go ahead Zafira," answered Hayate.
Zafira nodded. "Mistress, you've mentioned a great deal of important information to us but you also mentioned that you had to give cells and blood too correct? If so, then why were you never called in? I'm sure they would easily have wanted to clone someone of your rank."
Signum nodded. "It makes sense."
Vita growled. "If they laid their dirty hands on Hayate, I'll clobber 'em!"
Shamal sighed. "As much as we'd all love for you to do that Vita we'd probably get in trouble."
Vita turned to Shamal. "Huh? What's your problem? Look at what they're doing! They've torn an entire family apart and for what? A tricked out science experiment? They're kids! Not toys!"
Signum huffed. "That's correct, but these ideas were obviously passed by higher ups. Meaning, someone in the higher ranks is letting all of this happen on purpose and is covering his tracks very, very well. If it's someone of higher standing than we can argue with, we could easily be detained for opposing him or her and then what?"
Vita let out another growl but slowly sank in her chair, sighing in defeat. "Fine, I get it."
Hayate finally readied herself to speak. "You're right, Zafira, I was called in and that was that ten month vacation I went on nine years ago, remember? I too, delivered. I named my little girl Sora, but she, just like Yuusei was taken away under the same pretense. Due to my status among many higher ups, it was hard for me to even argue. In the end, I lost and Sora was taken from me." Hayate did a better job of holding up, but no one could deny the sheer amount of sorrow leaking from her eyes.
The room was quiet. Everything seemed to pause for eons. It seemed as if the story was finally over.
Nanoha chuckled, almost darkly. "So, now you all know."
Signum nodded. "I," she paused, "am very sorry to all three of you for what has transpired."
The room shifted back to silence. No one knew what to say.
Vivio raised her fists, bringing them together as her mana built around her. "Well I'm not sitting here and doing nothing. I'm gonna go get them back!"
Einhart nodded, her gauntlets at the ready. "I second this notion. What has transpired is appalling and must be stopped."
Hayate smiled. "I admire your courage, but we can't take this so lightly Vivio. Einhart. We don't even know where to find them. It would take some luck to randomly run into them long enough for-"
*BOOM!*
The room shook. It felt like a dimensional tremor. Everyone in the room immediately stood from their seats.
"Wh-What the heck was that?" yelled Caro.
Erio readied Strada. "Sounds to me like we won't have to wait too long for that chance after all."
Another tremor shook the room, knocking some of the group off of their feet.
Chrono soon burst into the room with Arf and Lindy. Alicia quietly trailed behind them. "Is everyone alright?" yelled the raven-haired mage.
"Yeah," replied everyone else.
Alicia looked up to the taller adults. "What's happening?"
"A dimensional tremor! Alicia, we need you to go to your room for now! We'll be home in about an hour!" answered Fate.
Alicia gaped. "What?" she yelled. "Aw man! I was going to show you my barrier jacket! I just finished everything!"
Fate quickly gave her daughter a hug. "And we'll be right back to see it. Please be a good girl, okay?"
Reluctantly, Alicia nodded. "Fine."
With that settled, most of the group set out for the mission, with Chrono leading Alicia to her room. Little did the older mage know, Alicia had a plan…
In the streets of central Mid-Childa, crimson flames were sprouting up from beneath the ground at astonishing rates. At the center of it all was the young boy with blue eyes and wild auburn hair. Floating above him was a young grey-haired man wielding a black scythe. "Can I leave the rest to you, Yuusei? It seems that I will be busy helping Pandora entertain the TSAB mages."
Yuusei nodded. "Yeah. Go right ahead, Prometheus."
Prometheus laughed aloud. "Oh come on, kid! You gotta lighten up a little! Let yourself go! Take any frustration you have out on the city! You have a whole hour to do so!"
Yuusei said nothing, wincing as the dying screams of a woman caught in the flames reached his ears.
Prometheus scowled. "You're a real boring brat, you know that? It's no wonder your mother left y-" Prometheus halted his insults when the blade of Yuusei's divider was held at his neck.
"Not. Another. Word," threatened Yuusei.
Prometheus grinned. "That's more I like it. See you around, kid!" As he performed Dimensional Transfer, the grey-haired boy yelled, "Try not to get cornered this time! Pandora won't be able to bail you out. We'll be busy with our own fight!"
Yuusei looked towards the flames. "That's completely fine with me." A faint memory of a photograph flashed across the auburn-haired boy's mind: the vaguely familiar smile of a beautiful woman with flowing auburn hair and deep blue eyes. Her warmth was greater than the sun. Beside her was a taller woman with long blonde hair with ruby red eyes. Even from that image she gave him the image of gentle soul. Pushing it back to the corners of his mind, Yuusei muttered, "It's not like I have anyone to go home to anyway." His divider lit aflame as he made his way towards a random building, hoping to stir more fire in order to attract the bureau.
In the confines of her room, Alicia sat alone. Chrono had gone to make a phone call outside, but this is just what she had hoped for. Opening her window, she slowly floated down towards the grass, quickly ran several blocks down the street, and hid in a bush. Looking at Caliburn, she asked, "You ready for this?"
[Yes ma'am!] answered Caliburn.
Alicia nodded. "Let's go, Caliburn! Seeeet UP!" A glowing, gold light engulfed her as she changed into her barrier jacket. Moments later she emerged, Caliburn turning out to be what looked like a real mass weapon long sword. When one looked at the hilt however, a revolver had been placed to utilize the cartridge system as well as holes for steam on the actual blade, also allowing for cooling for the plasma reactors stored beneath the blade's exterior. "Heard you were built from Ancient-Belkan Orichalcom. Let's put you to the test!"
[Ma'am!] replied Caliburn. With that, the two were on their way toward the scene.
Moments later, Chrono opened Alicia's door, asking if she wanted a snack. He paled when he noted her absence as a single thought crossed his mind: "Fate's gonna kill me."
Author's Notes:
Returning readers may have noticed by now, but the recent chapters are just two chapters from the original glued together with a few edits thrown in. This pattern will play out up until we basically get to where I left off on the previous story, perhaps with a bridging chapter between the original Chapter 9 and 10. That aside, I hope you enjoyed the latest installment of Magical War Chronicle Lyrical Nanoha: Photon.
KaiserPhotos, signing off!