Author's Note: Realistically, this chapter and the previous one should have been a single chapter. If you add them together they're about the length of a usual chapter. It's just that... well. Fate's confused little 'Eep?' was too perfect a place to leave a chapter break on. I'm sorry.

Chapter 29: Step into the Abyss

Life had been so very nice for Valeria Simmetti, five minutes ago.

She had probably the best job in the Bureau; working in the central comm relay for Headquarters. Her job consisted of two things: facilitating long-range communications by acting as a relay point for units who were too far apart to talk directly. And transmitting direct orders given to her by the top brass. So basically she was some combination of a hyped-up telephone operator and the morning announcement girl.

Thing was, this suited her just fine. It meant she was a Bureau employee, with all the privileges of same (the medical plan was, quite literally, magical), but rather than go out to dangerous places and fight criminals or poke ancient machines and hope they didn't explode, she got to sit right in the center of the most secure installation in the known universe and press buttons. Not even a lot of buttons. Mostly she and her three co-workers sat up in C&C, occasionally reading off scripts they were given or telling people to report to specific departments, but mostly pushing buttons. They played cards, ate snacks, told jokes, and totally got paid for this. Awesome, right?

"If you move, I will kill you all." Tsukuyomi said. Her tone wasn't hostile in any way, just a plain statement of fact. And to be fair, the girl wasn't intimidating.

The giant axe held by the boy next to her was pretty scary, though.

"We're not going to move." Valeria squeaked.

"That's cool of you, really. I mean, we totally just came busting in here without even knocking, and you've been really cool about it. I wish everyone were as cool as you." Susanoo said.

So yes, Valeria Simmetti had a totally great job. Five minutes ago, before someone had somehow teleported right into the middle of her supposedly secure workspace and held her and her coworkers hostage whilst they broadcast an inappropriately flirtatious message throughout the whole of Headquarters.

Five minutes ago life had been so very nice for Valeria. Now? She was wondering if maybe she should have listened to her mother and gone into dentistry.


The reaction to Amaterasu's announcement was made without the slightest hesitation.

"Everyone sit down." Admiral Mizetto said, her voice as cold as ice and as hard as diamond as she looked around the table at half-a-dozen mages getting to their feet. "Do not simply go running up to the comm center, any of you."

"Niiiiiiice." Said the voice over the speaker. "It's good someone knows to stay calm, that makes things easier."

"Only because she's old enough to recognize the inherent flaws of starting a magical confrontation in the middle of a space station." Admiral Mizetto said. "That said, if you wanted a calm reaction this was not the way to get it."

"What can I say? I like making an impression." Amaterasu said. "And I vastly prefer a captive audience when I have something to say, so if I'm going to talk, I want to make absolutely certain that all you charming ladies and gentlemen are going to listen."

"And if we don't, you'll start melting holes in the superstructure. Wonderful." Chrono growled.

"Such a cleeeeeever boy." Amaterasu said. "I would pinch your cheeks if we were in the same room."

"Go. To. H-"

"Chrono! Language." Lindy chided.

"-ave a bad day, because I find you an unpleasant person." Chrono finished.

"How mean! Just for that, you don't get a kiss." Amaterasu said. The worst part was that she sounded genuinely hurt by possibly the lamest insult in the history of time.

"Go to Hell." Amy snarled.

"Oooooh, someone's got a cruuuuuush..." Said the voice over the PA in a sing-song tone.

Lindy sighed. "Amy. Chrono. This really isn't the time to exercise your crush on each other."

"We do not have a-"

"Now, what exactly are you here for, might I inquire? Negotiations, yes, but in detail." Lindy said, cutting them off with a sharp gesture.

"Ooooooh, sorry, I'm afraid that's not for me to discuss, and certainly not here." Amaterasu said. "Our Master wishes to discuss future arrangements with you. We're quite eager to just burst back onto the dimensional landscape. Really sink our teeth into things. But we figure that, you being the top dogs currently, we probably should talk a bit first."

"If your Master wants to talk, we can guarantee them safe passage." Mizetto said. "There was no need for these theatrics, nor for your hostility to this point. So why, then..."

"Again: Not my place to explain." Amaterasu said. "And Her Majesty does not leave the safety of Al Sethis. Ever. If you want to know what's going on... really KNOW... you come to us."

"Al Sethis...?" Yuuno muttered under his breath. His mind leapt in two different directions at once; the one cross-referencing that name from the list of worlds accessible from the Gate network and coming to the conclusion that it was indeed the top of the list, the other wondering if 'In the Shadows of Al Sethis' was a good title for the book (HA! Series of books!) that he would be writing about this world once he got to explore it.

"An ambassadorial delegation?" Admiral Mizetto asked. "And assuming we are interested in negotiating with known criminals... what guarantee to their safety do we have?"

"My word they'll be sa... HA! Yeah, I couldn't get that out with a straight face." Amaterasu said. "Realistically, you don't have anything. Anything that I tell you could be a lie. I'm a criminal, after all. But considering the people I just outlined as the requested ambassadors... tell me, how do you plan on STOPPING them from going?"

Mizetto stopped, looking around the conference room.

Each and every single person who had stepped into the field and fought against the invaders had the exact same expression of unwavering determination.

"Erm... Admiral?" Said a soft voice on another channel. "This... this is Fate, and... well, they requested that I go especially. It might be a trap, but..."

"But you want to go." Admiral Mizetto said dryly.

"Yes, ma'am. And I'm sure that Nanoha will say the sa-"

"I'm going." Interjected a slightly groggy but otherwise strong voice as Nanoha made her thoughts clearly known. "Even if you have to wheel me there in a hospital bed, I'm going."

Lindy cleared her throat. "Mmm-hmm. Admiral, if you don't mind... we seem to have an ambassadorial delegation. I'll be happy to act as the command officer..."

"I really shouldn't be surprised by any of this. Children are insane..." Admiral Mizetto sighed.

"That's half of what makes them so fun, though!" Amaterasu said.

Ignoring her, Mizetto said, "You do realize the odds that this is a trap and you are all walking to your dooms is considerable."

"Yes, so?" Chrono said.

"Acceptable." Signum said.

"Meh." Vita said.

"Would I be allowed to bring some analytical equipment to the lost world? ... Not for any particular reason. Just because." Yuuno said.

"How can we not go? This might be the only path left." Hayate asked.

"If we don't talk, we can never understand each other!" Nanoha said.

"W-well... they did politely ask me to attend..." Fate said.

"... ... ... I refuse to be out-braved by ten-year-olds, honestly." Lindy said.

"Yes, well... to the young lady using our communications systems without permission, I think we've got your ambassadors." Admiral Mizetto said with an air of defeat. "What comes next?"


What came next was actually pretty simple.

The Master Gate might have been the only thing that could breach the storm, but it was awfully good at doing that. The only thing needed to get the group where they were going was to have them stand clumped together, stand very still and not try to resist the transmission feed, and provide their exact coordinates. The wards around the station were simply not up to the task of preventing the Gate from going through them, at least not without increasing their power to the point that none of the TSAB's teleportation spells would work either. So beyond standing in a pre-determined location, the only thing they were told to do was make sure that Barrier Jackets were on and full defensive shielding was powered up completely.

"This is relentlessly stupid." Commodore Bentz said.

"We're still going, Taurus." Lindy said cheerfully.

"You know they could just teleport you into space, right? There's literally nothing to stop them from doing that."

"If they really wanted to hurt us, they wouldn't be allowing us our weapons and encouraging us to move in fully armored." Chrono said.

"Or they're confident they can just kill us anyway." Vita said

"Yes, or that." Chrono agreed. "Either way we're going."

"Relentlessly stupid." Bentz grumbled.

Nanoha smiled a little shakily. She was somewhat pale and using Raising Heart as a walking stick, but she was at the very least up and moving around. "The right thing usually seems at least a little stupid, I think."

"No, the stupid thing seems stupid. Admiral, sir, I think we should just raise full shields and..."

"I agree with many of your concerns, Commodore. But to be blunt, we do need as much information as we can get, and nobody going on this mission has not volunteered." Admiral Mizetto said, softly but with an air of finality.

"... It's still stupid."

"That's why we're leaving you behind." Lindy said cheerfully. "So the Bureau will still have plenty of stupid when we're gone."

"... oh, ha HA." The giant man laughed bitterly. Then, in a much softer tone, he said, "You better come back alive, Lin. Last thing I need is Clyde haunting me because I couldn't keep his gal safe."

"His 'gal' has been the one keeping your idiot self safe all these years." Lindy said with a wink. "All right then. If everyone's ready to go, then I believe we just signal our 'friends' and... oh my that was fast."

And it really was, actually. One moment they were calmly waiting on the transit pad for some sign of what was to come, and the next moment they were...

Were...

... ... Somewhere. They were certainly somewhere. There was air, albeit thin air, and light, but...

The air was still and freezing cold. The light came not from sun or stars, but from automated panels scattered throughout abandoned structures stretching as far as the eye could see. The sky was a roiling black tempest, and there was not anywhere to be seen the slightest hint of life...

"Look at this place." Chrono said softly, in some combination of fear and awe.

"What happened here?" Nanoha asked in open horror. "It's like the whole world just... stopped."

"Yes... all the architecture is intact, but there are no people. It's as if the population simply died in mid-step." Signum agreed.

"It's... awful." Fate said.

"It's creepy." Vita grunted.

"It's amazing!" Yuuno said.

The silence following this comment was so heavy it could have crushed Yuuno to gel, if he hadn't been far too excited to notice it.

"Just look at it!" He said, his excitement clearly growing. "A fully intact city left by a lost civilization! Can you imagine what we can learn from all of this? Not just about their technology and their magic, but about their music, art, their culture and the cultures of other civilizations from the same time period... oh! Libraries! We have to find some kind of a data terminal and see if the libraries and museums have survived as well as these structures! This is the greatest find in history! I'll need to contact the Elders, this trove is enough to keep the entire clan busy for years!"

"Y-Yuuno..." Nanoha said with a nervous grin. "People do still live here, you know."

"And honestly, we're happy to have someone interested." Amaterasu said, the three gods appearing a short distance away from the diplomatic party. She went on, fairly well squealing, "Welcome! We're so glad you could all attend. Her Majesty is very eager to meet you indeed. You children have interested her greatly with your performance over the last few weeks."

"Hi Tess! Hi Vi! Hi Nanako!" Susanoo said.

"Nanoha!"

"Who?"

"Anyway!" Amaterasu said, interrupting before things could get weird(er). "Welcome, ambassadors. You're the first diplomatic convoy we've had in a great while, and we're looking forward to the experience. If you'll please follow me... keep your shields up, please, we've managed to more or less scrub the atmosphere back to within human tolerance but the void energies are still concentrated enough to be lethal without an active barrier jacket... we will direct you to the palace and Her Majesty's council chambers, where the actual negotiations will take place. If you'd like I can point out a few landmarks on the w-"

"Yes!" Yuuno said, fairly well sprinting to her side. "If I could get access to a databank, any databank at all, I wouldn't ask for restricted data, just basic cultural information, and can you discuss the purpose of that large marble domed facility that doesn't match the architectural style of the other buildings in the area, and what is your connection to Al Hazard?"

"Ha! We have a little intellectual." Amaterasu said. "Well, to answer your rapid-fire inquiries, cutie: I'll see what I can do, I'm sure an exchange of cultural information will be quite possible. That's... a medical facility, for lack of a better term. And asking about Al Hazard on this world would be a good way to start a fight if you were talking to someone who found you less adorable than me."

"A-a-a-a-a-adorable...?" Yuuno said, blushing furiously.

"Hee hee, so your devotion to academics only goes so far? Shy is cute." She said, tapping him on the nose with one finger. "Look me up in ten years, honey, I'll give you a real education."

... I don't like her. Nanoha thought. "Excuse me!" She said out loud. "It's just that most of our own legends of lost worlds revolve around Al Hazard. But if we're not on Al Hazard, then..."

Tsukuyomi said softly. "As before, this is Al Sethis. The World of Twilight, the Undying Star, the Heart of Infinity."

"Al Sethis..." Yuuno said. Yes, it would sound good in a book title, definitely. "You're not affiliated with Al Hazard, but you're named similarly. Were your civilizations interconnected?"

Susanoo laughed, just a hint of bitterness in the tone. "Oh, kid, you have no idea."

"Be polite, Susa." Amaterasu chided. "'Al' just means 'World' in Ancient High Hazardi, which was very much the lingua franca for the majority of civilized space during the reign of Al Hazard. 'Al Hazard' means 'World of Thought'. 'Al Sethis' literally does mean 'World of Twilight'."

"The reign of..."

"We don't talk about that, preferably. Suffice to say that this world, along with most other known worlds, was once named by and under the control of the Thought Lords of Al Hazard. Very smart folks. Unfortunately also unpleasant, even by my standards, and not shy about sharing this unpleasantness with the people unlucky enough to be caught in their experiments." Amaterasu smiled viciously. "Then people started to get annoyed with their entire worlds being used as petri dishes in some insane hunt for ultimate knowledge. There was war. Several wars, actually, stretched out over the better part of two centuries."

"Th-then..."

"But really, this is neither the time nor the place. Suffice to say they're gone, and we're back. That's all that really matters." Amaterasu said firmly. "Now, if you wanted to see some of the larger royal libraries..."

"... ... ... okay, yes, I'd like that." Yuuno admitted, deciding to take what he could get.

"Heh. Cute kid." Amaterasu said, tousling his hair.

I don't like her. Nanoha thought again.

The unlikely envoys began their walk forward, following Amaterasu cheerfully playing Yuuno's tour guide. Even Nanoha had to admit that she was glad for this, because the tense silence among basically every other member of the group was palpable. Particularly since it was very noticeable that Susanoo and Tsukuyomi had taken flanking positions around the Bureau mages, allowing them to start a crossfire instantly if anything happened.

Susanoo fell back into the throng, smiling. "Hey Tess! How are you?"

"Arf almost lost her arm." Fate said coldly.

"And I got smashed with a giant hammer, but you don't see me whining." He said cheerfully. "These things happen on a battlefield. As long as everyone came out okay, holding a grudge is silly, right? So cheer up."

"Everyone didn't come out okay." Chrono practically snarled. "Your sister quite possibly killed a man. This isn't a game you son of a..."

"And it's regrettable. She shouldn't have done it, not at that point." Susanoo said, with perfect calm. "But that sort of thing happens in war. It's fine to be upset about it, but if you let it get to you too much you're going to lose your mind. All anyone can do is try to do the best they can to ensure victory with as little loss of life as possible."

"This isn't a war!" Nanoha protested. "It's just... if you would only talk to us, you wouldn't have to commit any of these crimes! If all you wanted was to escape from wherever you were trapped, why didn't..."

"Who ever said that is all we were after?" Tsukuyomi asked. "You do not yet have all the details of this situation. Until you do, please do us all a favor and be silent."

Nanoha did so, though more out of shock at the glacial tone than due to the instructions themselves.

"I... I apologize. This is a diplomatic envoy, and I should maintain my decorum." Tsukuyomi said softly. She appeared to be blushing slightly. "I... I don't really want to..."

"It's all right," Nanoha said, a gentle smile on your face. "Things didn't go the way I wanted them to, either. I hope you can forgive me."

"I... I..." Tsukuyomi said.

"Not the time, Tsuku." Amaterasu said mildly. "We're here."

"Holy Crap." Vita said.

It wasn't that they hadn't seen the palace coming. It was just that until you got right close to it, it was easy to mistake it as just the city skyline.

The Palace of Twilight was definitely the biggest building Nanoha had ever seen, and possibly the largest artificial structure, with only TSAB's space-station HQ as a comparable. It seemed to consist of a series of large towers extending up from a massive central facility, and was... oddly pretty. The workmanship was almost entirely a silver-streaked black stone unlike anything else Nanoha had seen on her progression through the city, and the effect of the towers extending from it made the whole thing look almost like a bizarre artificial coral growth, rather than a building. It was both intimidating and somehow beautiful. "Chrono..." Nanoha said. "This place is amaz-"

"Mother of God. This isn't a palace, it's a deathtrap." Chrono muttered under his breath.

"Eh?"

"Those towers?" Chrono whispered to her. "They're weapon emplacements."

"... ... ... they're bigger than some of the skyscrapers!" Nanoha said, eyes widening.

"I know. And... if you look back through the city... about every third building seems to be exactly uniform...?" Chrono asked, trailing off.

"They're all..."

"I think so. And I spotted a couple oddly textured sections of road that could be deployment sites for drone defenses. Remember that giant cannon drone they used on Dysval?" He asked. "No wonder they're confident; the pretty architecture aside, this entire planet is a fortress, and an insanely well-armed one. If this defense grid isn't just restricted to this city, if it's planet-wide... I honestly don't know if our fleet could even get close. This kind of ordinance would tear us to pieces."

"Which is why they didn't just bring us straight to the palace. They wanted us to notice that and lose confidence. Don't fall for it." Lindy said. "Also, everyone else went inside already, so you should maybe stop standing out here whispering."

"Eep!" Nanoha said, eloquently.

You see? She and Fate really were a lot alike in many ways.


Vita whistled softly. "Okay, this is nice." She admitted.

Either the Void must have had a preservative effect on those things it didn't kill or the cleaning robots were superb, because the palace interior was very nearly immaculate and by far the most expensive-looking building any of them had ever seen. Pieces of art hung were evenly spaced along every wall; not merely paintings, but tapestries and sculptures, most of which appeared to have some precious metal or gem worked into them (and in many cases among some of the more lavish sculpture, seemed to be carved of nothing but them). The floors were silver-streaked black marble, the pillars were delicately carved with lovely floral patterns and inlaid with what appeared to be platinum... the entire interior of the structure brought to mind a massive museum as much as it did a royal palace.

Yuuno was drooling.

This was not exaggeration in any way.

"As you see, it was a customary, though not required, tradition for new member worlds to submit a work of art to the royal gallery." Amaterasu said, still enjoying her role as tour guide far too much, "These were almost always among the most priceless pieces each world had to offer... though not always, and indeed the exceptions were some of the most valued for their unique nature. For instance, Al Tiel contributed a small tree worth nothing more than the wood it was made of, as their culture considered the natural world to be the only true 'art'; the current Twilight King immediately had their planet's forests declared a nature preserve, he was so amused by the sentiment. To your left and right you see the main gallery segments; with over 10,000 member worlds at the height of the Empire, several entire new wings had to be added to the gallery to hold all the submissions. And as we walk, please note the engraved pattern on the ceiling above..."

"Does she ever stop talking...?" Signum muttered.

"Nope." Susanoo muttered back. "Especially not when someone listens."

"Oh, this is just... art is not my personal specialty, but if I could have a few hours alone here to take image-scans and catalog artist names and completion dates..." Yuuno said, unable to keep his eyes still for a moment.

"Well, she has that..." Nanoha said with a slightly embarrassed chuckle.

"It's nice to have someone else to appreciate the art..." Tsukuyomi said. "So many don't."

"Oh, are you an art-lover, Tsukuyomi?" Nanoha asked.

"Yes and no... I've never cared much for the traditional artist community, but I like looking at interesting works and I'm told I always enjoyed painting." Tsuku said wistfully.

"You're... you're told you always...?" Nanoha asked in confusion.

"I was told what?" Tsukuyomi asked.

"... ... ... ..." Nanoha said. She chose to take it as a good sign that Tsukuyomi was speaking in her direction, even if it was mostly to confuse her.

"And here!" Amaterasu said with a flourish. "The climax of our tour, the royal conference chamber, used alike for cabinet meetings and diplomatic negotiations

"Welcome, all. Her Royal Majesty, Enlil Te Larsea the Third, the current reigning Queen of Twilight, will see you now."

In stark contrast to the lavish palace, the conference hall was simple and elegant. The table was made of a dark, polished hardwood, and the chairs were comfortable-looking, and that was... about it.

Seated across the room, at the head of the table and the right hand, were two figures. The one to the side was recognizable instantly; Precia, looking somewhat the worse for wear. Her skin was pale and ragged, her usual outfit was replaced by a simple gray dress, implying she did not have the power to maintain her Barrier Jacket, and in general she looked almost as bad as when Fate had seen her fall in the Garden. As Fate had expected, the woman's eyes were lit up with loathing... though unusually, not for Fate herself. Her venom-filled glare was split almost perfectly between Lindy (who, to Fate's shock and, she had admit, amusement, waved cheerfully at her in response)... and oddly enough, the bizarre figure next to her, at the head of the table.

It was covered, completely, in a heavy gray cloak. The cloak itself appeared to be silk or a similar, very fine, material, and was clasped at the neck with a silver clasp set with a large diamond. But more than anything, Fate couldn't help but notice how small it was; even seated, obviously shorter than Precia. The hands peeking out from the cloak were small and delicate as well, no larger than Fate's own. A child...?

"Greetings, former enemies. As the Twilight Queen, it is both my duty and my privilege to welcome you to our newly restored home. Be welcome on my world and in my palace, and know that so long as you are here under flag of truce no harm shall come to you." The figure said in a high, clear tone. She had a trace of an accent not shared by her knights, but it was subtle and did not interfere with the clarity of her words. Fate blinked regardless... something was strange about that voice. She couldn't tell what it was, but something...

"What the...?" Lindy muttered.

With a start, Fate's eyes turned to her adoptive mother. Lindy... Lindy!... was utterly shocked, and she wasn't the only one. Casting her eyes about, nearly every member of the diplomatic party seemed to be in some state of confusion.

"Now, then... simply having guests would be exciting enough, but more than that, though, my Knights have brought back to me nothing but tales of your bravery and determination; even though it was directed against my agents, these are qualities that I can respect. So please, all of you, be seated. We have much to discuss, and I have every reason to believe that we will be able to reach a mutually beneficial conclusion to this entire messy situation." Enlil said, gesturing to the empty seats with a delicate hand. "Would you care for refreshments? We have little enough at the moment, but water and some light fare should be quite possib-"

"Pardon me, your Majesty." Lindy said. "But might I confirm something before we begin talks?"

Enlil paused. "I do not appreciate being interrupted, Admiral, but as you are not a subject, I shall allow it this once." She said, her tone slightly cooling.

"Would you please," Lindy said, briefly pausing as if to decide on her wording... or as if she was afraid of the answer. "Would you please allow me to ask why this particular group was chosen to be ambassadors, here?"

Enlil's face was not visible, but the slight smile shone through in her next words. "Why, for the reasons I just said. I have heard nothing but favorable stories of you from my servants, and I wished to meet such interesting children personally, see them with my own eyes. Most particularly in young Fate. The estranged daughter of my dear ally Precia, I believe? I was quite curious to meet little Fate."

Precia said nothing. But the hatred was rolling off her in waves. And now Fate had a question... why would Mother ally herself with someone she so clearly despised? She thought to ask this, but it simply wasn't what came out of her lips when she opened them to speak.

"Why... why me?" Fate asked. The air in the room was so tense it was like a physical force, above and beyond even the pervading chill of the darkened world.

Enlil pulled back the hood of her cloak of office and said, "Curiosity, as I said. I have been somewhat interested in meeting you ever since I learned of your existence, which your mother quite cruelly kept from me. I am very curious about your circumstances, my dear."

And then Fate understood. She understood why her mother was working under these people. She understood what could have coerced Precia... Precia Testarossa!... into a life of servitude. She understood why mother would hate this woman so thoroughly, and at the same time be so totally unwilling to do anything to oppose her.

The Twilight Queen's voice... the voice had seemed so oddly familiar because, slight accent aside, it was her own voice.

"A... Alicia...?"

"After all," Enlil said, as the stunned Fate watched her own lips curl into an amused smirk. "We're practically sisters."


Author's Note: Hee, hee, hee. Before anyone cries foul, read back through the story. I did hint at the end there, more than once.

Congrats to Sunder the Gold for being the first person to figure it out. And mupetersas for being the second.

And congrats to me for having hints subtle enough that only two people figured it out on their own.