Author's Note: Upon reflection, I should have mentioned this in Chapter 1, as well--I may see if I can edit that to reflect this--but there is a LOT of background information on the characters, settings, and other stuff that is not within the main story, as its only laterally related, and humongous chunks of exposition would detract from the pace of the story. I mention some of this apocrypha in notes at the end of chapters, but others may not make it in if I don't think it's important enough. If this were a real novel instead of just for fun, I'd probably add more exposition and an appendix or two, but as I said, this story is just for fun, so you'll have to settle for my small explanations.

severstal: Neither of them really know exactly what the other is capable of--and Andrew especially doesn't want to play all his cards until he has to, since his job is to defeat all of the aces... One advantage he has right now is he knows more about how they fight than they do about him. And as for him letting her go... It comes up later, but he's actually a very conflicted person. He lets Nanoha go because he's able to justify killing people who are still resisting to himself, but he can't justify killing someone who's no longer a threat, even if they might come back later--you might notice, he was willing to let the last TSAB guy who attacked him go, until the guy said he'd keep fighting no matter what. As for the Arcadian decision to fight... Again, later, you hear more about them not seeing any other choice. They want to be independent, and they're getting pretty desperate about it. The Arcadian Combined Forces is their military, but they've spent years building up forces in secret, which is why they don't have a substantial navy (it's harder to hide ships). They're counting on the TSAB to be practical enough to not bombard their own world, and though it hasn't been mentioned yet (sorry to sound like a broken record, but it comes up later) they left a lot of defenses, half their manpower, and almost all of their fleet back on Arcadia. They don't plan on being on Mid for more than a week. Also, Orussia is a planet that's had a planet-spanning civil war going on, and there are only about 3000 Arcadian troops on Mid at the moment (more come later). The TSAB, btw, doesn't have the sort of manpower we would think as being big--this is one of the reasons why Chrono was pushing Nanoha and Fate to join up after the first series. Also, they're not used to actually fighting a war, they have more experience with police actions and such. Plus, don't forget that they have the rest of the planet to keep in order, as well as everywhere else trouble might be brewing. Is it still a little contrived? Probably a bit, I'll grant that. Thanks for your input and candor. I hope my explanations helped a bit.

Arcadian Command Post, that night…

General Goren stepped into the main command and control room, finding the already assembled multitude of commanders waiting for him. Every senior officer was present, and Commander Darkstar stood at the front, before a large map depicting the primary operational area.

Andrew nodded at the general as he took his seat. "General. People, analysis of the recent enemy movements has revealed an opportunity. The time for a major offensive operation is at hand," the young man declared with his usual bluntness, as ever striking directly into the heart of the matter.

There was a subtle stirring amongst the gathered officers. Goren couldn't blame them; all he had been told was to assemble for a briefing immediately and that Commander Darkstar had a plan of action. He didn't think anyone had expected this. A major offensive operation meant that they'd finally found a target that could seriously damage the TSAB—and more importantly, that they could successfully destroy it.

General Lagan sat up beside Goren. "An opportunity? You've located a gap in their defenses, then?" He frowned disapprovingly. "If you'd seen something in your analysis, Commander, the senior commanders should have been informed."

"All due respect, General, it was my impression that I had been given full command of the tactical planning here. You ordered me to find a way to defeat the TSAB forces by any means at my disposal, and I have found it. If you wish to be appraised of all of my actions in the future, I will do so if you wish," replied Andrew, managing to keep his annoyance out of his voice.

Goren suppressed a sigh. He could understand his protégé's feelings somewhat. Andrew had trained the men, planned every aspect of this attack, and didn't appreciate others looking over his shoulder and poking at his strategies. He especially didn't like General Lagan doing the criticizing, as the men were very much in opposition over how to conduct this attack. Lagan favored all out total war, doing as much damage as possible to targets of opportunity, while Andrew favored surgical strikes at high value targets. Still, Lagan was the superior officer of the two, and had certain privileges. "Though no doubt you had the best intentions in mind, Commander, in the future, please remember that we are in charge of overall strategy. Now that we are all here, however, let us hear your plan," Goren told Andrew, giving him a quiet look of reprimand. Don't antagonize Lagan, his eyes said quietly.

Andrew nodded slowly, turning back to the board. "The TSAB has arrayed their forces in a particular manner, which has left them vulnerable. A coordinated strike, carefully planned and managed, can catch them off guard and throw their entire defense on this front into chaos. I promise you all, they won't even know what hit them."

As Andrew detailed the operation, finally Lagan was nodding his approval. "That's quite a bold plan, Commander. In one stroke, we can cripple them."

Goren stood as well. "True, but I would like to remind you all of the risk involved. If this plan fails, we may be forced to abandon the entire operation."

Andrew nodded slowly, before fixing the two with his dark eyes, cold fire burning behind them. The room fell into silence as he faced them, steely determination written on every inch of his body. "Then we won't fail, General. Arcadia will be free. If I have to fight the entire planet myself, I will liberate our world."

TSAB forward command area, 18 hours later…

The tension in the air hung like thick fog over the troops congregated. Fate tried not to frown. Just as it was difficult for the troops to contain their anxiety, knowing that the major battle they were expecting could come at any moment, it was difficult for Fate to calm them down, knowing that the strain placed on them by constant alert status would only chip the razor edge they were already on. She had to admit; even her nerves were becoming slightly frayed from the combination of the constant threat of Arcadian attack and trying to keep the troops focused.

Sighing to herself, Fate shook her head as if to clear her thoughts and walked into the tactical center. Inside, the staff officers were collating all the incoming data from the troops in the field, watching for signs of the attack they were anticipating. Fate noticed that Hayate was already uplinked from TSAB HQ several hundred miles away.

"Has there been any change?" Fate asked the intelligence officers.

One of them shook his head. "Not in the overall state of affairs, no. They've been reinforcing their flanks in the past 10 hours, and they've also reinforced along Phase Line Foxtrot, but we haven't seen the buildup you'd expect in preparation for a major attack."

Fate looked over the map herself briefly before turning to the video link with Hayate. "Over two days now, and still they haven't moved. Is it possible they aren't going to take the bait?" she asked, a slight edge of anxiety creeping into her voice.

Hayate frowned slightly, looking over some reports on her desk for a moment before answering. "I suppose I cannot discount that possibility. It seems unlikely, though. They need a big victory if they're going to gain any sort of traction. I think it's more likely that they're being cautious. Even if we've managed to conceal our trap, they'd still realize a broken operation in this situation could destroy them. They won't attack recklessly, regardless of the necessity of a victory."

Fate looked away. It was true that Hayate's reasoning was sound but… "Hayate," she began hesitantly, disliking to be critical to a friend and superior officer in the hearing of others, "it's just that… This constant alert, it's grating on the troops. Rather than raising our readiness, at this point, it's eroding it. If they don't attack soon…"

Hayate stared at Fate for a long moment, before nodding. "I understand your situation. If the attack doesn't occur in 24 hours, we'll have to go to our contingency plan for the time being."

They both knew what that meant. A long slog, the war turning into a conflict of attrition, which they'd assuredly win… But which also promised heavy casualties for the TSAB as well. Much as it might seem counter-intuitive, they both desperately wanted this engagement to happen. It would be a difficult battle, but in the long run, it was the best they could hope for.

Back on her side, Hayate looked at the map she had displayed on her wall. "Why aren't you moving?" she whispered, staring at the bright points indicating troop positions. She had observed every motion of this plan, and everything had so far gone as well as could be expected. The gap was there, if one looked for it. It was present, but not so obvious as to alert suspicions. The Arcadian commander had to see it. So why…

She sighed to herself. Unless he had seen it, and therefore wouldn't spring the trap. That was another possibility. But if so, wouldn't there be activity in other sectors? The Arcadians had to attack, to end this within a week or so, before forces could be launched against their own homeworld.

All at once, alarms started blaring. One adjutant looked up from his monitor, looking Fate's way. "Colonel! We've just lost contact with Recon Squad 4!"

As Fate looked up at the screen, checking that squad's location, other reports started coming in of massive troop movements, units pulling out of contact, others blasting through, but all of them heading for one point. Fate's eyes narrowed; Squad Four was directly between the main Arcadian base and the CCC site which she was trying to lure them to.

"They're finally moving," Hayate murmured on the monitor, having apparently seen the same information Fate had. So they had been fooled after all; of course, their commander was simply being cautious. The troop movements bore it out; a hugely organized and carefully orchestrated attack, funneling all their resources to hit the target. They hadn't been waiting, they had been preparing. But so had Hayate.

Fate looked over at her close friend and nodded slowly. "Don't worry, Hayate, the plan will work for sure." Hayate nodded in return and with that, Fate rushed out the door to meet up with the troops who would confront the Arcadians and close the trap behind them.

Forward Command and Control Center, one hour later…

Andrew Darkstar, swathed in his jet black armor, flew at the head of a huge force of Arcadian air and ground troops. Much of their manpower on-world was concentrated here, leaving their command post dangerously exposed, but they had no choice. In order to win this war, they had to make bold moves. Though the plan was risky, and General Lagan had argued against the danger Andrew was placing them in, in the end he had agreed that while not ideal, it was necessary to accomplish their aims.

Within sight of the facility, he held up and signaled for the transports to begin debarking their passengers. Strictly speaking, it would be easier to strike if they landed on the immediate perimeter of the target, however, it would also leave them highly vulnerable to any defenses the TSAB had placed here. Better to engage them now rather than risk a large part of his force being shot down without a chance to fight at all.

As he looked over the troop deployments, one of his lieutenants flew up next to him. "Commander, our men are in position, awaiting your command."

Andrew didn't look at him, turning his attention towards the CCC site, just over a kilometer away. "What about enemy disposition?"

The lieutenant shook his head. "There are a few troops dug in here, like we expected, but it seems most of the garrison has been sent to the front lines, like we expected. The TSAB forces are mobilizing, though. They'll be pulling back to try and cut us off soon."

Andrew nodded. "Alright. Let's move out. Keep the troops in formation. We have to do this without error or we'll all be sitting ducks."

The man nodded and flew down. Within moments, the advance had begun in earnest. By Andrew's calculations, the TSAB lines would take nearly an hour to pull into a cohesive formation to launch a counter-attack. They had to destroy the targets before then, or their force could be surrounded and destroyed.

As the lead elements of the attack group broke into the clear just beyond the facility, however, a massive group of new contacts came swarming from the surrounding area. Aerial mages, escorting TSAB dropships, which immediately began spewing their loads of ground troops. As Andrew watched, a TSAB force surrounded the CCC site, with large bodies of skirmishers fanning out on the flanks.

Fate hovered with the lead column, directing the deployments. "Don't get caught too far on the extremities. We don't want our forces to get divided and chipped away." She glanced at the assembled Arcadian troops, which had momentarily halted their advance. "They may try to break contact and pull out instead of fighting," she warned her adjutants. "If that happens, we have to press the attack and inflict as many casualties as possible."

She zeroed in on the man in black, Andrew Darkstar, who had shot down Nanoha. He would be the one giving the orders. For the moment, she settled in to see what his next move would be. As her visual scanners resolved, however, she saw he was smiling.

"What is he up to?" she muttered. Her forces outnumbered his, and they were deep behind the TSAB lines. What possible reason could he…

Andrew turned to his lieutenant. "Contact the support unit. Activate the teleportation field, just as we planned."

The man nodded, smiling grimly. "As you command, sir."

Within moments, the bright light of a huge teleport field blazed through the Arcadian formation. Fate's eyes widened in horror. "It can't be… They're doing a teleport now… But that's impossible, to do one that wide-scale this fast…" She examined the magic sigils closely. "A pre-sighted area? But how? Unless…" The stark realization sent a chill through her body. "He anticipated the trap!" She turned to her troops. Her only chance was to hit them right now. The teleport would make them vulnerable for a few seconds. If she could do enough damage… "General attack! Pick your targets and fire!"

A few of the more forward units and the aerial mages got a volley off, but the damage was minimal before the majority of the Arcadian forces winked out. Left behind was a smaller force which had apparently not left the ridgeline during the main force's advance to draw out the TSAB forces, and which was now at least minimally dug in. Fate grit her teeth in frustration. Not only had Andrew Darkstar apparently anticipated that this was a trap, he had completely played them, leaving this force to tie them up while the main force went… where?

Fate hurriedly contacted Hayate back at the command center in Cranagan. "Hayate, we have a problem."

"We're seeing it," Hayate responded, the strain evident in her voice. "We're searching for their teleport location right now." A moment later, Hayate's voice returned. "It's bad, Fate-chan. The Arcadian force has teleported to the South Reach power station, and are attacking in force. There's a small security detail there, but…"

Fate nodded, face grim. "But they'll be quickly overwhelmed." Fate glanced at the forces arrayed below her. She had to act fast. If the power station was destroyed, it would severely hamper the entire left flank, and leave the area crippled. Fate looked at Hayate's face in her monitor. "Hayate, I'll have the troops here engage the Arcadian forces set up on the ridge. We need to chip away as much of their strength as we can. In the meantime, I'll take the aerial forces and the faster transports and try to get to South Reach in time."

Hayate pursed her lips, considering the plan, but finally nodded. "Alright. I'll try and whistle up some reinforcements if I can, but we're stretched pretty thin in the area already. Unfortunately, our lines have been ordered to hold position. The General Staff is spooked pretty bad right now."

Fate suppressed a frown. Andrew Darkstar's bold actions hadn't just given him a chance for a big victory here; he'd completely seized the initiative. If the General Staff was afraid to move, he'd be able to attack with impunity. "Don't worry, Hayate," Fate reassured her old friend. "I'll make sure things don't go the way they're planning."

Not speaking of the ironic echo of those words, Hayate simply nodded as Fate cut the connection and raced towards South Reach, desperate to halt the Arcadian attack.

South Reach power station, 25 minutes later…

Andrew Darkstar hovered over a scene of destruction, face impassive. The defenders of the power station had given a valiant fight but had ultimately been destroyed by the overwhelming Arcadian superiority. As the troops finished their mop-up work, Andrew flew down to the demolitions specialists. "The facility has been cleared. Place the charges and get back into position," he told them before glancing off at the horizon. "They're coming…"

One lieutenant followed his gaze. "An intercept force? Should we…"

Andrew shook his head, cutting off the man's apprehensive query. "Don't worry about it. This was one of the possibilities I considered. Stick to the plan, and you won't have anything to worry about."

Still, the lieutenant was unsettled. "Sir, I don't mean to question your judgment, but… It's an awful risk you're taking."

Still Andrew refused to face him, only staring into the bright Mid-Childa sky. "War cannot be won without risk, lieutenant. Focus on doing your duty, and be assured that's all any of us can truly do." This is all we've got left… If I can't win, we're all dead anyways.

The other man stared at his commander for a long moment, then finally saluted and returned to formation. As the sappers also headed back to the gaggle of troops assembled below, the streaking forms of the aerial mages led by Fate Testarossa blazed in on the horizon.

Fate spotted the Arcadian troops in a cluster near the power station, which, remarkably, appeared to be intact. As she examined the surrounding area, however, she saw that the light defenses were a smoking ruin. "They must be planning on using explosives," she told the mages with her. "Once we make contact, a group will have to enter the facility and stop the demolitions crew." Unless they've already completed their work, she thought bitterly. If that were the case, then their priority would be the lone man who hovered in the air before them. Andrew Darkstar had been at the crux of every victory the Arcadians had had so far. If they could take him out, it would change the entire texture of the conflict.

As they approached the Arcadian forces, Fate signaled for the TSAB mages to fan out, leaving her to hover directly in front of Andrew Darkstar. She knew that dueling him alone would be a dangerous, difficult fight, but none of the other mages here were above AA rank; they wouldn't have any chance of even slowing down an S+ like him. The man in black stared right back at her, hazel eyes reflecting nothing, before glancing down at his troops.

"Captain Brighton, you know what to do," he said, voice low but commanding. The officer he had addressed nodded slowly, then keyed in some sort of command.

As Andrew Darkstar turned to face Fate once more, before her horrified eyes, for the second time today, the flash of a teleportation spell lit up the sky. An instant later, the multitude of Arcadian troops, save Andrew Darkstar alone, had vanished from her sight.

Eyes boring like lasers into Fate's, the man almost casually pressed a control on a holographic display next to him, and the power station exploded in an incredible conflagration. Only seconds after the initial fireball, the entire facility had been consumed. During that entire time, Andrew's eyes did not leave Fate's for an instant.

Closing down the holograph, Andrew addressed her in his quietly dangerous manner. "My forces have teleported back to the CCC site," he informed her, without a hint of smugness or superiority. Perhaps none was needed, Fate thought. It was clear who was the victor in that matter. "As I see it, you have few options, none of them particularly palatable. Should you fail to reinforce your troops there, who are now outnumbered and face with fresh troops, the CCC site will also be destroyed, in addition to this power station. Return there, however, and I escape, and your coming here will have been for nothing. It's time to decide, Enforcer Testarossa Harlaown."

Fate's eyes narrowed. It was almost insulting how politely he referred to her. She tried to calm her fraying nerves and consider her situation. Despite the fact that he was her enemy, his assessment of the situation was entirely correct; she was between a rock and a hard place. Clenching her hands around her intelligent device, Bardiche, she knew that her only choice was to counteract his audacity with a bold move of her own.

Without turning to look at her subordinates, she told them, "All of you, head back to the CCC site as quickly as you can."

Hesitating, one of them asked, "But ma'am, what about you? What about him?"

Letting her grim determination fill her, Fate answered bluntly, "I'll deal with him alone; the rest of you would only get in the way." When they still didn't move, she added, louder this time, "Go!"

As the TSAB forces finally responded to her directions, Fate found herself alone, facing the dangerous opponent who had defeated even Nanoha, as smoke roiled into the sky around them from the burning power station. "Let's go, Bardiche," she murmured.

"Get set," replied the unflappable device.

"Plasma Lancer! Fire!" cried Fate, filling the air with her deadly electric daggers. Firing the projectiles to cover her advance, she sped towards Andrew, knowing he'd have the advantage at this range. At short distances, she'd certainly be the superior.

Instead of dodging or intercepting the shots, however, Andrew only leveled his own weapon. "Solare Flare. Execute."

His blast bore straight in at Fate, forcing her to take evasive action and slipping to the side. As she recovered, she spotted him above her, having deflected her projectiles his own shot didn't disperse, and readying another attack. "Cosmic Blast, Hurricane Burst."

His directed attacked lanced out, its projectiles dancing in a swirl around Fate. She fired off her own projectiles to intercept them, and gave another burst of speed to try and close in on Andrew.

"Shooting Star, Nova Strike Mode."

"Nova Strike Mode, engaged," responded his device in its efficient, feminine tones.

Fate ground to a halt. That was his more powerful form. She had to put him on the defensive, now. "Bardiche!"

"Get set."

A burst of electric energy formed at Fate's fingertips. The two combatants brought their attacks to bear almost simultaneously. "Plasma Smasher!"

"Solar Flare!"

The incandescent beams crashed into each others, hers golden, his cerulean. For a moment, the contest appeared even. However, as Fate watched, her own beam began to be pushed back. Gritting her teeth, she applied more energy, and a concussive blast rocked the battlefield as the beams exploded upon each other.

Not bothering to locate him again, Fate sped towards his previous location. As she pierced the smoke, she saw she had indeed closed in on him, as he danced away below her. Locking her weapon into its Zanber form, she swung a mighty blow at the man.

Sensing the attack, Andrew blocked with a barrier. Despite that, he was knocked off balance by the weight behind the blow, and saw Fate charging in, pressing her advantage. Bringing up his own weapon, he barely intercepted her next blow.

Locked against each other, Fate's crimson eyes glistened with hard determination, as she strained to force him down so she could deliver another heavy blow. For his part, Andrew marveled at the prodigious power her lean body was producing. Just like Nanoha, he mused, this woman was everything the stories said. Focusing briefly, knowing he'd have only one chance, he summoned a single projectile into being. If he failed in this maneuver, she'd have him. "Cosmic Blast Arrow Shot."

Fate's eyes widened, and she dodged, narrowly avoiding the bullet that had been aimed at her exposed flank, having been summoned inside her barriers. Even if it had been only one, against just her barrier jacket, it could have done serious damage. This man's skill and power couldn't be overstated; though the attack didn't hit, it forced her to dodge. That sort of precision in a critical situation like that was nearly inhuman.

As he fired another blast at her, she sheathed her body in magic, accelerating her movements. "Sonic Move!" intoned Bardiche as she vanished from his firing line.

Appearing near his side, she swiped at him with her Zanber, cracking his barriers as he just shifted away in time, firing another few bolts in her direction. As she dodged his attack, he used his own fast move magic to open the distance on her again.

Fate didn't bother pursuing, instead firing another wave of golden projectiles at him. As he evaded and intercepted her attacks, she closed in with another Sonic Move, raking his side with another attack. His barriers crackled as a tear appeared on his barrier jacket as he again barely kicked away.

As Fate made to deliver another blow, her body suddenly felt heavy. Glancing about quickly, she discovered she was within a binding field, targeted about the whole area.

"Gravity Hold."

Fate scowled to herself as the momentary slowing allowed Andrew Darkstar to escape one more time. But right now, she had the advantage. Her speed was slowly corralling him.

The man in black summoned another wave of blue projectiles, and Fate twisted about the sky, desperately avoiding his attacks. He had a lot of power, and his wide scale bolts made it tough. Spotting him as she avoided another bolt, she spotted him hovering nearby, having apparently circled around while she was dodging, trying to line up a kill shot. This was her chance.

"Sonic Move!"

Moving above him and setting her weapon back in device mode, she unleashed her Haken Saber energy slash, forcing him back on the defensive. Charging back in, she locked her Zanber back in and aimed another attack. But suddenly, she felt her body slow again. The binding field from before! It's still here! As she brought down her blade, slowed by the bind, he was an instant faster.

"Comet Pierce!"

The fast, charging shot caught Fate off guard, but she was just able to block, the binding field having slowed him down a fraction, too. However, she quickly realized Andrew had made a critical error. Their weapons were locked in against each other once more, and he couldn't use his energy beams fast enough at this range.

As she readied her next attack however, his eyes, which had previously shone only cold resolve, softened for just an instant, reflecting a deep sadness. "It's over, Enforcer. Comet Breaker."

Too late, Fate realized she had been the one trapped. He had planned this move all along. As Bardiche responded to her mental orders, preparing for another quick move, she knew it would be too late. The blast from his weapon, slower but stronger than his Comet Pierce, washed over her, and the world faded to darkness.

Andrew watched as Fate slowly dropped from the sky, unconscious. Even at that range, his attack hadn't completely destroyed her barriers, adding on to the fact that her own device had caught some of the blast. He had been lucky; a clean counter like that against an opponent that strong was difficult to achieve. Truth be told, it was her own speed that did her in; an instant slower, and she could've avoided the first hit, and he'd likely be the one crashing down right now. A fight like this was totally different from the one against Captain Takamachi, where every move inched you closer to a win. Here, with every move you balanced yourself on a thin edge between life and death; one wrong move and it'd be over in an instant.

As he watched her, he suddenly found himself wondering who would miss her if she died, who cared about her, who her family was. What am I doing here…? Slowly pointing his device at the falling blonde, he murmured, "Gravity Hold."

His bind spell slowed her fall even further, and her body gently touched the ground on the edges of the burning power station. Relief workers would arrive soon, he judged, and they'd see that she was cared for. Looking at the fallen woman one last time, he turned to go, whispering softly, despite there being no one else around. "War is such a terrible endeavor."

As Andrew returned to the CCC site, the battle was still raging on, though the tide was slowly turning back against the Arcadian forces with the arrival of the aerial mages Fate had diverted. Despite that, in the time they had gone, severe damage had been done to the CCC facility itself, though not enough to really put it out of operation for any reasonable length of time.

Looking up, Captain Brighton glimpsed Andrew's approach through the haze of battle. "It's the Commander! It's Commander Darkstar!"

As the cheer went up across the Arcadian lines, pressing them harder into the fight, the TSAB mages looked on, stunned. If he was here, then it could only mean that the legendary Enforcer Fate Testarossa Harlaown had failed. It seemed incomprehensible to them that not only Nanoha Takamachi, but also Fate Testarossa, could possibly fall. Just who was this man?

Andrew flew down to hover beside Brighton. Glancing across the battlefield, he fired off a projectile attack before turning to his lieutenant. "Captain, prepare to fall back. More TSAB reinforcements will be here shortly, and our casualties are already reaching the maximum allowable for this mission."

Brighton glanced sidelong at him, noting the status of the CCC site. "But sir, we haven't yet crippled the CCC facility. Shouldn't we…?"

Andrew shook his head. "I'll take care of it. A retreat by the numbers, if you please. There's no need to expose our backs to the TSAB. We've won this round."

Brighton nodded. "As you say, sir." Flying back down, he began an orderly retreat of the Arcadian forces.

As Andrew watched, he saw the TSAB try to press them on their retreat, hoping to inflict more casualties. Hefting his weapon, he flew down to the center of the battle. As he hovered before them, he could almost feel the tense hesitation in the TSAB mages, reluctant to confront him directly.

"Cosmic Blast, Tempest Burst." As his device flashed, a veritable wall of magic projectiles began appearing. The TSAB forces barely had time to disperse before the hundreds of shots cascaded upon them. As the TSAB mages scattered like dust on the wind, Andrew took aim at the CCC facility before him.

"Let's go, Shooting Star," he murmured.

"Satellite Stars," it confirmed, detaching the rear fins, which hovered beside Andrew, having been transformed into backup emitters.

Magic power began focusing at all three emitters as Andrew zeroed in on his target. "Solar Cross Break. Execute."

At his command, the three beams converged, and coalesced into a tremendous attack, lancing towards the facility. It touched the outer walls, only for an instant, before bursting with a light that seemed to outshine even the sun. When the intense light faded, the forward section of the building had crumbled, and most of the exterior was cracked and burned.

With one final look across the field, Andrew lowered his weapon and flew away, silently hoping that the terrible carnage he had wrought this day need not be repeated.

Author's Note: And now, I'm sure, the screams are getting even wilder. Yes, how dare he not only beat Nanoha, but defeat Hayate's plan and beat Fate all at once? OK, I'll admit, the battle against Fate didn't work out as well as I had hoped. On a later pass for some parts later, I added a couple lines that I hoped explained this battle better, as well as some more parts to the battle itself, and I think it ended up working out OK, though I'm still dissatisfied with it. I was also having trouble with her character throughout this story. I'm so sorry, Feito-chan, I adore you, I promise. Also, had Fate gotten a chance to use Sonic Form, she'd have won, maybe 6 or 7 times out of 10; Andrew's not fast enough to counter Sonic Form very effectively. Further, while his plan seems super complicated, it's actually not; his line of thinking is "If it's a trap, I'm prepared, yeah we might lose some guys, but we catch them out and blow up the power plant. If it's not, then we say, whatever and blow up the CCC site." What made his plan nasty were the multiple contingencies he had worked up, though it's interesting to note that if Fate had beaten Andrew, they would have been slaughtered, even though the power plant would be gone.