"Oh my…" The moment Megane let those words out of her mouth; her stunned expression vanished and was replaced by a different one that radiated a combination of surprise and joy. "It's very thoughtful of you to bring a gift over!"
"M-mom?" Lutecia was flabbergasted at how her mother seemed to be handling this situation. "What are you saying?"
"Well, you know how hard it is to store everything in the freezer when we have guests, especially those who like to eat healthy, over for a training trip. I certainly wouldn't complain of an extra storage unit sitting around when we need it. It could mean the difference between second and third helpings for those last dinners," said the older woman, her serene smile still perfectly in place.
"I… uh… wha…?" How was it that her mother remained perfectly calm in this weirdness?
While the younger girl tried to figure out what to say exactly in this scenario, Megane turned back to the guests in front of her. "I thank you kindly for the gift, Miss…?"
"I am the terror that flaps in the night! I am the bubble gum that sticks in that long purple hair… and ooh, it looks so silky! What shampoo do you use?" Material-L moved in closer to Lutecia and started stroking the younger girl's purple hair, much to her discomfort. "Ahhh… so smooth…"
"Rai, stop it. You're invading her personal space," said Yuuno in a slightly weary tone.
"Okay, Yuu-nii! Oh, right… lemme finish my intro." The Lightning Assailant cleared her throat while putting some distance from the mother daughter duo so she could do some posing too. "I am Material-L! But you can call me Rai-chan!"
"I am the Lord of Darkness, Material-D. You are only to address me as 'Your Majesty'," said the Hayate replica in a strict tone while hiding the bottom portion of her face with that fan of hers.
"If you want to make it easier for you to remember, just call her Yami-chan!" piped up Rai much to the other's annoyance.
"And I am Material-S, the Starlight Destroyer. You can call me by the name 'Seikou'," said the Nanoha replica with a slight bow.
"Hey, don't forget about Sette-chan!" Rai bounced back before she grabbed her sidekick's arm and shoved her to the front, giving Lutecia a brief shock on seeing one of Jail's Numbers here and now.
"You…?"
"Greetings, Lady Lutecia. It is…" Sette paused for a moment. "… welcoming to see you in good health."
"You two know each other?" asked Yami.
"We are old acquaintances. That is all there is to it." It was a short answer and the only one that the Combat Cyborg would give.
"I see. Well, since you introduced yourselves, allow me to return the favour. I am Megane Alpine and this is my daughter, Lutecia. I bid you welcome to this house. As guests, the only thing that I ask is for no violence or dangerous horseplay takes place on the premises."
"Your conditions are acceptable," said Seikou with a nod.
"Splendid! I admit that I wasn't expecting any guests for the evening so it'll be some time before I have a fully cooked meal ready for this many people. So perhaps you all can take a soak in the hot springs and if you wish, you can also explore the compound until dinner is ready!" Megane turned to her daughter, who seemed to be in a much calmer state. "Lutecia, can you take our guests over to the springs? I believe Garyu has finished his cleaning by now."
"Uh… sure thing, Mom."
"Megane-san, if you don't mind, I need to make some calls first to let the others know that I'm fine. They've probably been pretty worried about me when I didn't get a chance to check in earlier," said the Librarian.
"Of course. The communication window is by the fireplace down the hall and to your left."
"Oh, wait! Where can I put this?" asked Material-L as she pointed back to the fridge she had brought.
"If I were to add a new fridge, I do want to keep it near the freezer and have it share the same power source. Can you bring it this way?"
As Megane directed Material-L, Lutecia simply stared in amazement at how well her mother maintained control of the situation. Then again, she was a former TSAB investigator. Dealing with weird and dangerous people was probably just another day in the office back in her time.
It took some careful moving of the furniture to make space for the fridge but eventually, a place was found for it. "That works just fine. Thank you!" said the older Alpine woman.
"So… uh, let me lead you all to the changing area. We got some towels there. You can put your dirty clothes in the basket in the right hand corner so I can do the laundry," said Lutecia.
The three Materials started to follow the younger girl before Rai noticed that Sette wasn't with them. She turned back to see the taller woman head down the other hallway. "Sette-chan? Where are you going?"
"I have some business to look into and will require Yuuno's help once he has finished making his calls. Excuse me." She bowed once before taking her leave.
"What is she talking about?" asked Material-L in puzzlement.
"It means no opportunity for our Majesty here to confirm whether Sette's bust size is as big as hers," commented Seikou in her usual deadpan tone and a well concealed smirk.
"SHUT UP!"
Garyu took a moment to survey the work that he had completed to keep the hot spring in tip top shape. The surrounding areas have been properly hosed after the mineral cleaning fluids had been applied. And the source of the spring's warm waters has been properly inspected and the temperatures adjusted.
A satisfied click began to emit from the insect warrior's throat…
"WOW! A real Kamen Rider!"
… And was promptly halted the minute he heard an excited female voice. "… … ?"
It didn't take him long to track the source of the voice as a towel clad grinning young lady, who looked rather similar to a guest that the Mistress had in the past, came out of the changing rooms to get a closer look at him.
"Hey, c'mon, c'mon! Show me your moves! Rider Chop and Rider Kick! Ah, those are probably top tier special moves with crazy invincibility frames and stuff!" The strange woman then moved in a bit closer with that same odd grin on her face. "But I betcha it can't beat out a Shoryuken!"
"Rai, you shouldn't bother him," said another towel clad young woman with short hair who emerged from the same changing rooms. "Um… is that the proper reference for your friend, Miss Lutecia?"
He heard his Mistress respond. "He's actually my active summon who also works as a bodyguard around here. So don't mess around…"
"Or he'll mess us up with a Rider Chop?" asked that strange long haired woman.
"Sure, something like that." The head of his Mistress popped out of the changing room as well. "Garyu, we have some guests. Let's do our best to give them our star treatment, okay?"
He merely responded with his left hand giving a thumb up. It would be best to do his duties as best as he could and not to think about the weird sight he had just witnessed. And at the moment, these guests did not seem to be a threat to his Mistress or the Mother but he would be keeping a very close eye on them since the Mistress seemed to be somewhat uncomfortable in the presence of these guests.
Back in the change room, Lutecia began sorting out the laundry that needed to be done. The red cheongsam, the green dress and the purple leather had obviously been worn for some time without washing so a stronger washing cycle would be needed which should take about eighty minutes. She hoped that her guests would take a lengthy bath so it would give her time to clean these clothes properly and time to plan her next move.
Right now, she was highly concerned about how someone like Yuuno-sensei could get involved with these dangerous women. It didn't make any sense from what she knew about him and her own interactions with the Librarian when he had helped her in obtaining interesting reading materials to fill her personal library. If it hadn't been for his efforts in getting her books, she probably wouldn't have been able to learn how to build devices on her own or get involved in design work.
She shook her head and pushed aside her concerns for the moment so she could think. 'Let's see… if I give them the full treatment, they'll let their guard down. Maybe I can get the Bureau to send up a transport but disguise it as a luxury car to take them straight to a holding cell in Mid? I should tell them to disguise the limiters as fancy bracelets so they can put it on without thinking about it.'
The thought made her grin as she poured in the laundry detergent. If things worked out smoothly, she would be recognized for helping bring in some of the most dangerous criminals in the history of the Bureau. Her previous criminal record would be quashed undoubtedly. She could probably get rich and famous! Resort Alpine would be known as being a super awesome resort that got the most hardcore dangerous criminals to chill out!
"That's it…! That's how I'll do it! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"You…"
Lutecia froze as she heard the low menacing voice of Material-D coming from the left. 'Crap! Did she read my mind? This is bad!'
Despite being clad in only a towel, the posturing and that scowl on her face allowed her to look intimidating. The younger girl wasn't sure what type of magic Yami had at her disposal but right now, she was probably at a disadvantage since her magic is primarily for supporting others with her only offensive options being a shooting spell and her summons. And since those had a bit of start up time, Yami could probably blast her in a nanosecond.
While Lutecia panicked mentally on what to do, the Lord of Darkness merely approached her until she was inches away. And then she said the last words that the younger Alpine had been expecting.
"You're doing it wrong."
"… …huh?"
Material-D immediately began her lecture. "When you laugh like a noble, it should come from the gut! Take in the maximum amount of oxygen and then let it out to let the world know that 'YES! I am amused by what my enemies are doing! YES! I will easily crush them while taking fifteen minutes for tea time!' OHHHHHHH-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho-hoooo!"
'S-scary…' That was the only thought that ran through Lutecia's head until Yami stopped her laughing.
"Now you try it."
That was rather difficult to do, especially due to the fact that she was rather jittery. "Um… oh-ho-ho-ho!"
"LOUDER!"
"Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho!"
"ONCE MORE WITH FEELING!" commanded Material-D.
'This is the worst!' cried Lutecia mentally as she continued laughing her heart out.
"… and so I should be back in the capital city by around 4 PM, Cranagan time. Anyways, I hope to see you again real soon and I'm sorry for making you worry about me, Arf!"
With a light sigh, Yuuno disconnected the call and checked off the familiar from his list of contacts to update. He had been placing calls to every single one of his friends on his contact list for the past ten minutes or so after agreeing with Sette to help her on a particular task regarding an odd reaction from a microchip. So far, nobody's been picking up.
Of course with the seven hour time difference between Carnaaji and Cranagan, they would all be at their jobs, dealing with their usual Bureau morning duties. So all he could do was leave messages on their answering machines to let them know that he was fine and currently with the Alpines and that he should be back on Mid soon. He also made sure to apologize for worrying them all.
Strangely enough, he couldn't even get a hold of any staff member at the Infinity Library. Was it really that busy over there? It's still too early for the majority of university students to start holding long study sessions or getting reading materials for their academic papers. The only other explanation is another big information request from the Brass on some new major case.
'Well, if they want to get a hold of me, they know what to do.' It looked like that he was all wrapped up here but before he could step away from the communication window; he heard the chime of an incoming call. He quickly accepted the call and saw the rather anxious expression on the face of Chrono Harlaown.
"Yuuno, is that really you? Thank the Kaiser…!"
The Librarian noted the type of expression that his friend had used at the end. He must have been worried sick for a while. "Yeah, it's me. I'm sorry that I wasn't able to report in earlier. I actually had a chance when we made a stop a while ago on Ruwella and-"
He was cut off by the Admiral on the other end. "Say no more, Yuuno. It was probably too risky for you at the time but what matters is that you're safe now."
Yuuno blinked in surprise upon hearing what Chrono just said. "Too risky?" After a moment to think about it, he realized that the Admiral must be referring to the mana exhaustion condition that Seikou and Yami had at the time. "How did you know about that?"
"It's pretty obvious when you're the prisoner of three insane and highly dangerous mages.
"Wait a second! Where did you get the idea that I'm a prisoner?" asked the Librarian upon realizing that his friend was referring to something else.
"You… aren't?"
"No, I'm not. I consider the three of them as good friends since they've all treated me pretty well for the most part. Okay, I admit that they can be rather weird but they're nice girls once you get to know them!" Just as soon as Yuuno finished saying that, a dreadful laugh echoed throughout the household.
"OHHHHHHH-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho-hoooo!"
"Just what was that?" asked Chrono from the other side.
"Oh, that's just Yami letting it out and enjoying herself." Since he had spent quite some time around her, he recognized that prideful tone anywhere. Even when laughing heartily.
"… … and that doesn't sound like the laugh of an Evil Empress to you?"
Yuuno chuckled nervously. "I guess I can't argue that. And her Majesty does have that image-"
"Ferret boy, she looked like someone who would lead an army against us to ensure our destruction… or at the very least the destruction of our top officers to cripple the Bureau!"
Seriously, his friend was just being too much here. "Chrono, you're overreacting! She's actually a fairly reasonable person most of the time! Sheesh, next thing you're going to suggest is that she runs skanky websites to inspire loyalty and obedience in her Legions of Terror like www(dot)EvilEmpress'(dot)budoir(dot)live(dot)com or www(dot)EvilEmpress'(dot)pit-of-despair(dot)live(dot)com!"
There was a moment of silence before Chrono seemed to calm down, although he still looked somewhat distracted. "So right now, you're at the Alpine residence with… your friends?"
The other man nodded. "That's correct."
"Okay. Hang tight. I'll send over a security detail to escort you all back to Cranagan."
"Don't forget to bring some extra limiters! Their high magical point values really kept throwing our flight paths off! And tell the others that I'll be back soon! I left messages earlier for Nanoha and the rest but it may be easier if you told them that I'm fine and stuff."
Chrono paused for a moment while taking in this new information. "No problem, I can do that and arrange for limiters. Just how high are those magical point values?"
Yuuno thought about it. "I don't have a precise number. My guess is that the Materials are at least one rank higher than their counterparts."
Once again, there was that distracted look but he managed to slip back to his usual neutral face. "That's good to know. Just hold your position and I'll get some of my people to bring you back home."
"Thanks, Chrono."
"Stay safe."
The Admiral leaned back in his office chair on board the Claudia after ending the transmission, taking a moment to calm his nerves while he ran over the information that he had managed to learn. The good news was that Yuuno was alive and well. And now he has information of the location for the Librarian along with the Materials. Unfortunately, that seemed to be the only good news.
Yuuno had been mentally compromised in some fashion which deeply disturbed Chrono. At the minimum, he was betting that his friend had Stockholm syndrome since he did talk about getting some degree of kind treatment by his captors. The worst possible scenario is that Yuuno is now a sleeper agent of sorts and the moment he got back into Mid, he would probably inadvertently spill all sorts of secrets and other information from the Infinity Library back to his captors. There was no doubt in Chrono's mind that Yuuno would make for an excellent target due to his security clearance and access to sensitive data.
And the bad news doesn't stop there. If what Yuuno told him was true, then the Materials would be able to overpower their strongest mages in a prolonged fight. Of course, maybe it was the brainwashing talking to give out false info and cause panic on the Bureau side. One way or the other, it was best to assume the worst case scenario and work from there.
Regarding the brainwashing, Shamal would have to do a proper diagnostic once they got him back. First, he would have to get in touch with everyone who received a message from Yuuno and inform them to stay calm and vigilant while he handled things to get their friend back safe and sound. Chrono pondered whether that will stop Nanoha. After giving it some thought, he decided to lock down her ability to board an interdimensional transport in the event that she gets a brilliant idea to head straight for the Alpine residence and force a confrontation.
He quickly got back to his workstation so he could start issuing orders. There was much to do and little time to do it.