Shiba Residence

Tokyo, Japan

"Onii-sama, dinner is ready!" The younger Shiba sibling stood in the doorway to her elder brother's basement R&D lab. She still wore the dress, styled like a conservative French Maid, that she'd worn to prepare dinner.

"You were listening in on my conversation?" Tatsuya asked without turning, though he could already assume the answer. In his role as her Guardian, he kept her within his "sight" at all times, and she'd spent the past five minutes with her ear against the door to this room.

Miyuki was instantly repentant. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make Onii-sama think I mistrust him!"

"No, I didn't think that at all. You worked hard to prepare an exquisite dinner for us, so thank you. But Miyuki, what have I told you about wasteful use of magic?"

"Huh?" Miyuki pretended like she didn't understand.

"Your apron. You used restorative magic to clean it, rather than just changing. Without even thinking you invoked an activation sequence that most magicians aren't even capable of. If you get into the habit of so casually using your power, you will raise questions about our identities in public."

Miyuki crossed her arms. "There was nothing wasteful about it! I went out of my way to procure this dress just for tonight, so I could give Onii-sama a special reward for his hard work recently! And besides, nobody will notice what we do in the privacy of our apartment. Why should I care what other people might think here?!"

Before Miyuki could realize the danger in that line of thought, Tatsuya spoke up. "Stubbornly cute, as always. Thank you Miyuki. You look lovely tonight. Please, lead the way to dinner."

Whether Tatsuya knowingly teased her or was cruelly oblivious, his words set Miyuki blushing furiously as he followed her to the western-style dining room. There they feasted on bouchée à la reine as appetizers, before Miyuki brought out an entree of expertly braised coq au vin . In the French spirit (and in violation of a municipal ordinance) the siblings split a bottle of Bourgogne 2049 Tatsuya had acquired from a grateful French client of Four Leaves Technology.

Dinner was quiet with many sweet glances and soft words exchanged. For a little while, Miyuki and Tatsuya were able to enjoy a taste of life as an affluent young couple. At the table they were no longer the Yotsuba family successor and her guardian. Not magician and soldier, nor brother and sister; they were just happy to be with each other. Even if it was but a fantasy, Tatsuya and Miyuki cherished those precious moments, and buried for a while the pain of knowing their blissful arrangement could never last.

After dinner, Tatsuta retired to the sitting room while Miyuki cleared the table and made coffee. She also changed; when she returned with two cups of coffee, her maid's dress was gone, replaced by casual clothes for the evening's planned excursion.

"Onii-sama, what is so important about this artifact Ushiyama has acquired that you can't wait until morning to visit the research lab?"

"Miyuki, are you aware of the theory behind sorcery boosters?"

"Are you referring to those infernal devices used by the terrorists who assaulted Yokohama?"

"Yes,"

"Don't tell me you're experimenting with them too!? Even for the Yotsuba, that's too much..."

"No, even our aunt wouldn't approve of devices that turn magicians into equipment. I only asked if you understand the theory behind their operation. There is a possibility this artifact is a synthetic Sorcery Booster."

"Honestly Onii-sama, I found them too horrific to study in depth."

"I understand. Then, I will spare you the explanation. The thing we are looking at tonight might be capable of strengthening magic sequences. A magic capacitor, if you'll accept a comparison to electrical physics."

"I understand. Such a part adapted to CADs would be revolutionary. But you said might be? Had it not been tested yet?" Miyuki frowned at the thought of her brother's gift, the unique magic Elemental Sight, being used for menial research.

"The case is resistant to conventional analysis. I would leave it in ushiyama's capable hands, but there was a small complication…"

"You mean the singing? That implies some sort of intelligence, correct?"

"Right, Miyuki. It might not be a sorcery booster at all. All I'm going to do is confirm if it is synthetic or not. If it uses a magician's brain as a mechanical part, I'll decompose it and that will be the end of things. Otherwise, the lab can handle it on their own."

"I understand. One last question, will that woman be there?"

Tatsuya just shook his head in reply. He parsed that woman as their father's new wife and their stepmother, Sayuri. Though neither sibling (nor the Yotsuba clan) had intentions of seeing her as anything more than Tatsurou Shiba's mistress.

Beacon Academy

Weiss Schnee charged through the doors of the Beacon Armory, her rapier raised and ready to strike.

"Ruby?" Weiss called out for her partner.

"I'm over here!" The response came from a darkened corner of the room. Cautious of an ambush, Weiss cast an illuminating dust glyph. Ruby was sprawled across the remains of a smashed bookshelf.

"Don't move! I'm coming to you." Weiss stepped across the wreckage of the armory. Ruby had put up a hell of a fight, for sure. Scorchmarks and gashes marked the path Ruby's scythe had cut through the room as she faced a "ghost".

"Weiss, I'm fine! Don't worry!" Ruby tried to sound cheerful.

The heiress checked her scroll, "I'd be more inclined to believe you if your Aura wasn't in the red. It's amazing you're still conscious!"

"Nah, Uncle Crow's training was way tougher than this! I just need some milk and a good nap. It's gone, whatever it was. We're safe for now."

Ignoring the implications about team leader's family life, Weiss kneeled by her side. "What did this to you?"

"Like I said, it was a ghost!"

"You mean an attacker you couldn't see?"

"No, I saw it. But it wasn't THERE, you know? All floaty and ghosty and stuff. Like when I hit it, crescent rose went right through it! But if it touched me, it just started draining my aura. I think I wounded it though, because I shot it with dust rounds and it shrieked and left the room."

"Ruby, let me get this straight. You saw a...floating apparition, it attacked you and drained your aura, and it left when you fired dust-infused rounds at it? Are you sure you didn't hit your head?" Weiss picked the rubble from Ruby's hair as she talked.

"I already said I'm fine! But I just remembered something! It stole that silver thing on Professor Port's workbench!"

Weiss suddenly remembered her misgivings from earlier. "That thing!? Ruby, I'm so sorry. I had a bad feeling about that earlier but I didn't say anything. I'm sure that thing is related to our mysterious ghost. Let's get you back to the room so you can rest."

"I said I'm fine! Let's go ghost hunting!" Ruby's stubborn streak lasted all of a second. She made it about three steps forward before she collapsed from exhaustion.

"You dunce! What in the world is wrong with you? Are you trying to make me worried?" With that, Weiss scooped Ruby up in her arms and started walking towards the student dorm block.

Four Leaves Technology

Tokyo, Japan

The fifteen minute ride from the sibling's apartment to FLT's research lab was uneventful.

The guards at the front entrance were already expecting Tatsuta, and recognized Miyuki on sight. They opened the gates with a smart salute and waved Tatsuya through.

Ushiyama showed them to the examination room where the artifact was being held. An array of psion detectors, cameras, and imaging devices were pointed at the small silver box, but they revealed nothing

The device itself was ornately engraved with unknown symbols. Several blue lights dimly glowed around the edge of the case.

Tatsuta suspected the scrollwork related to ancient magic, but they matched nothing in the records. He made a mental note to show his classmate Mikihiko a sketch and get his opinion as an ancient magic user.

"Miyuki, I'm not comfortable with this thing, whatever it is. Not even military hardware is so well shielded. Stay behind me and ready your CAD." Tatsuta had sense of danger not worth ignoring.

"Synthetic or not, a sorcery booster is based on the neurons of a magician, correct Onii-sama? Then might my magic Cocytus be an effective way to deactivate it without destroying the thing?"

"Perhaps, Miyuki. But that would require removing your seals on my power. In this situation, I don't believe that's appropriate."

"Onii-sama, if it's for you I will take full responsibility. My powers are yours to command,"

"Miyuki, please don't talk like that here. I wouldn't want Ushiyama here to get the wrong idea from your jokes."

"Of course Onii-sama. I will be more discreet."

For his part, Ushiyama glanced awkwardly away, filled with a sense of seeing what should not be seen.

As Tatsuya prepared to use his Elemental Sight, a magic sequence formed above the box for a second, shattering before it could activate.

FuNCTionalITY BeYOnd acCepTable PaRAMeterS

"What's this, Ushiyama? Has it ever done that before?" Tatsuya addressed his lab partner and lead researcher Ushiyama, the other half of the legendary engineer Taurus Silver.

"No! It must be reacting to you and Miyuki. What kind of sequence was it?"

"Even I can't read a sequence that hasn't finished, but from what I saw, it's something similar to restoration."

"So it's trying to repair itself?"

"So it would appear. I don't like this..."

THrEaT DeteCTeD

EnEMy TyPE: HuNTsMan CLasS

The lights that were once pale blue now blazed red.

Tatsuya jumped back as four new magical sequences appeared. He recognized each one as an archaic form of Rupture - an A ranked lethal spell. Without hesitation he erased them with Gram Demolition. A bullet of unformed magic blew away the lethal attacks as they formed.

The siblings instantly reclassified this mysterious box as a threat. For the time being, the impossibility of a machine using magic didn't matter.

Miyuki unleashed a devastating Inferno spell that froze one side of the lab as the other burst into flame.

Tatsuya switched magazines in his favored pistol-shaped silver CAD and fired Decomposition twice at the box...except nothing happened.

It took Tatsuya a whole second to overcome his shock. Upon closer inspection a tiny hole appeared in the case. Somehow the construction of it made it appear as many thousands of small objects to Tatsuya-and his upper targeting limit was 25 independent bodies.

ReEvAluAtIng ThREaT

EnEMY TyPE : maiDeN ClaSS

proTOcol FoUr aCtIoNAble

Locked in the control booth, Ushiyama felt like he was witnessing a battle between gods and demons.

Tatsuya and Miyuki clung to each other. With his free hand, Tatsuya fired Gram Demolition. It was a race to crush the enemy's magic once and for all. Miyuki worked furiously at her CAD, preparing a magic that could freeze the very soul of the thing it hit.

Tatsuya was fast, but even he couldn't overcome the endless stream of offensive magic from the hostile device. An enemy sequence completed and struck his chest, erupting in a spray of blood and charred bone. Even as his regrowth healed the wound, something snapped in Miyuki. With an animal's yell she unleashed a forbidden magic-Cocytus.

The room fell silent for a moment.

Just as Miyuki began to weep at the horror she'd just witnessed, comprehending for the first time what trauma Tatsuya carried from that day she'd died in Okinawa...

An old demon's last trick played out. A magic sequence appeared beneath Miyuki and Tatsuya. In the instant before even he could react, there was a brilliant burst of light, than nothing.

The world around the siblings dissolved into light.