Dissonant Lyrics
Omake Special 1: Serpent of Sparta
Nanoha is embodiment of Sakura Kinomoto + Amuro Ray + Rx-78 Gundam molded into a girl's body.
Fate is Moe version of Char Aznable, and a daughter of Cloud Strife, and Niece of SANGER ZONVOLT! THE SWORD THAT SMITES EVIL!
And Subaru is human sized Gaogaigar, with cute face and tomboyish attitude and wearing Air Track.
So, WHO THE HELL or WHAT THE F*** is Yuuno in Dissonant Lyrics?
I do some research just after chapter 1 draft concept has been finished, and the result is…HOLY! Yeah, my little researches for developing Yuuno 'non-Canon' abilities are…BLASPHEMY! MADNESS! SPARTAAA!!!
1. Aegis
The Aegis (Greek: Αιγίς), as stated in the Iliad, is the shield or buckler of Pallas Athena or of Zeus, which according to Homer was fashioned by Hephaestus. "...and among them went bright-eyed Athene, holding the precious aegis which is ageless and immortal: a hundred tassels of pure gold hang fluttering from it, tight-woven each of them, and each the worth of a hundred oxen." (Wikipedia/ Aegis)
Related To Yuuno's heavy, Godlike defensive ability, yeah be damned the hard nutshell. This was perspective from 'Fantasy and Mythology' element of Nanoha (Inspired by Signum's Leivatein actually)
The Aegis Combat System is an integrated naval weapons system developed by the Missile and Surface Radar Division of RCA, and now produced by Lockheed Martin. It uses powerful computers and radars to track and guide weapons to destroy enemy targets. (Wikipedia/ Aegis Combat System)
WTF?! UNLRELATED TO GUNDAM? Fine, but at least related to his Missile-based attacks (and inspired the Aegis conception on the first place), next one is really Mecha related however.
Originally designed by the Divine Crusaders as an extensive defense network to ward off an extreme alien attacks, the Aegis Plan involves the creation of a network of satellites that deploy an energy barrier. This network and the various facilities that allow it to operate are collectively known as the Aegis System. Receiving energy from Moon-based microwave transmitters, the satellites project a barrier between each other, creating a bowl-shaped shield covering half of the Earth. In Super Robot Wars Alpha Gaiden, the Aegis System was used to block a massive gravitational shockwave created by the apparent destruction of the Excelion from Gunbuster. The majority of the power needed for the shield was supplied by Londo Bell's complement of super robots. In Super Robot Wars Original Generation: The Animation, a prototype Aegis System is used to defend the Hellgate Facility. (SRW Wiki/ Terminology)
Yeah, overkill about SRW homage, it's always essential, again, related to Yuuno's shield. This erspective took from 'Techno and mecha' element on Nanoha (And SRW LOL)
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2. SPARTA!!!!
Next, the Spartan joke…yeah, I really put it in for PLOT and TECHNICAL purpose, not just for some lame joke (Yuuno as Leonidas was awesome! And I stole the kick scene too! IT WOULD EVEN MORE EPIC THAN THAT! But everything should be keeping clear and went smoothly along with the fact and the plot) before the research, I suppose Vita will use this phrase instead as form of the parody, but after research, I feel we need real Sparta.
Vita Version:
"This is" "Zestorung" (Swing Graf Eisen) "HAMAAAAA!!!" "Hammer"
Yuuno initial Version:
"Resistance is Futile, Yuuno-kun! You know Your shield wont stand no matter what!" (aiming Raising Heart) "Load Cartridge" "of all things, this is madness Yuuno-kun! WHY SHOULD I BEFRIEND YOU?!"
"Nothing is futile Nanoha! And this ain't madness!!" "Variable Missile: Spartan Maneuver" (Launch missile, teleport and kick Nanoha) "THIS! IS! SPARTAAA!!!"
In chapter 5, it was revised so it sounds more serious and either Nanoha or Yuuno look less antagonistic. Ah, let's straight to the researching result:
Thucydides reports that when Spartan men went to war, their wives (or another women of some significance) would customarily present them with their shield and say: "With this, or upon this" (Ἢ τὰν ἢ ἐπὶ τᾶς, Èi tàn èi èpì tàs), meaning that true Spartans could only return to Sparta either victorious (with their shield in hand) or dead (carried upon it). If a Spartan hoplite were to return to Sparta alive and without his shield, it was assumed that he threw his shield at the enemy in an effort to flee; an act punishable by death or banishment. A soldier losing his helmet, breastplate or greaves (leg armour) was not similarly punished, as these items were personal pieces of armour designed to protect one man, whereas the shield not only protected the individual soldier but in the tightly packed Spartan phalanx was also instrumental in protecting the soldier to his left from harm. Thus the shield was symbolic of the individual soldier's subordination to his unit, his integral part in its success, and his solemn responsibility to his comrades in arms — messmates and friends, or often close blood relations. (Wikipedia/ Sparta)
So Shari is Yuuno's wife since she's the one gave Yuuno? Not really! What I emphasis here is that Yuuno's shield is one of aspect that keeps Yuuno 'alive' (What I mean is; Important) in Nanoha and Nanoha A's, if exaggerated, Yuuno's shield is Yuuno's life. True that Yuuno is capable as Support mage (with healing, teleport, and binding), but these aspect aren't the most awesome part (Arf can do it equally, and she can fight in offensive context. Shamal can do support even better except that she's not active in direct fight). Also, if you read chapter 5 in detail, you may find some reference to HALO, hell yeah! His shield is SPARTAAA!!!
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3. Serpent
Then, how about Aegis Serpentis? Serpentis (Latin) = something that creeps (Rough English) =Snake (Literal English) it was related both to the Ouroboros and Aegis legend, and another legends originated from Japan.
The Ouroboros or Uroborus is an ancient symbol depicting a serpent or dragon swallowing its own tail and forming a circle. The Ouroboros often represents self-reflexivity or cyclicality, especially in the sense of something constantly re-creating itself, the eternal return, and other things perceived as cycles that begin anew as soon as they end (compare Phoenix). It can also represent the idea of primordial unity related to something existing in or persisting from the beginning with such force or qualities it cannot be extinguished. The Ouroboros has been important in religious and mythological symbolism, but has also been frequently used in alchemical illustrations, where it symbolizes the circular nature of the alchemist's opus. It is also often associated with Gnosticism, and Hermeticism. (Wikipedia/ Ouroboros)
Virgil imagines the Cyclopes in Hephaestus' forge, who "busily burnished the aegis Athene wears in her angry moods--a fearsome thing with a surface of gold like scaly snake-skin, and he linked serpents and the Gorgon herself upon the goddess' breast—a severed head rolling its eyes." furnished with golden tassels and bearing the Gorgoneion (Medusa's head) in the central boss. Some of the Attic vase-painters retained an archaic tradition that the tassels had originally been serpents in their representations of the ægis. When the Olympian deities overtook the older deities of Greece and she was born of Metis (inside Zeus who had swallowed the goddess) and "re-born" through the head of Zeus fully clothed, Athena already wore her typical garments. (Wikipedia/ Aegis)
Yamata no Orochi legends are originally recorded in two ancient texts about Japanese mythology and history. The ca. 680 AD Kojiki transcribes this dragon name as 八岐遠呂智 and ca. 720 AD Nihongi writes it as 八岐大蛇. In both versions of the Orochi myth, Susanoo or Susa-no-Ō is expelled from Heaven for tricking his sister Amaterasu the sun-goddess. (Wikipedia/ Yamata No Orochi)
Snakes were associated with wisdom in many mythologies, perhaps due to the appearance of pondering their actions as they prepare to strike, which was copied by medicine men in the build-up to prophecy in parts of West Africa. Usually the wisdom of snakes was regarded as ancient and beneficial towards humans but sometimes it could be directed against humans. In East Asia snake-dragons watched over good harvests, rain, fertility and the cycle of the seasons, whilst in ancient Greece and India, snakes were considered to be lucky and snake-amulets were used as talismans against evil.
In northern Europe and West Asia, snakes were associated with healing whilst in parts of South Asia, snakes are regarded as possessing aphrodisiac qualities. Greek myth held that people could acquire second hearing and second sight if their ears or eyes were licked by a snake. Tiresias gained a dual male-female nature and an insight into the supernatural world when he killed two snakes which were coupling in the woods. (Wikipedia/ Serpent Symbolism)
Snake heh, Snake also represent of flexibility and hardess at the same time, usually regarded as true evil (Medusa's hair, Yamata no orochi, too much to be mentioned), but in this case, it reflect Yuuno's genius brain to do some trick in the fight. And also, his Serpent Anchor (Snake Anchor before upgraded) related to Japanese Mythology: Yamata no Orochi, mainly because the number (eight anchors = eight snake head).
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4. Ferrets
Kung-Fu ferrets, no, really. No Ferrets for now, maybe later. (Author)
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I just hoped that Yuuno wasn't changed to an OC, at least in personality…Yuuno being Jerk-ass, Bad-Boy-wannabe (see chapter 5) already making me headache! Please tell me if that happens for real, not for Invoke Nanoha!
And yes, no ferret reference, I'll save that for later use! So, sorry for now.
Whew, finished the Roaring Rampant of Techno Babble, I wouldn't making non-Canon things without at least little research, so, see ya for the next chapter and Omakes.
TV Tropes Made My Day, so does Wikipedia (And Nanoha Wiki for some extent).