WARNING: This fanfiction is NanoFate and it is rated M for strong, disturbing, violent, and explicitly sexual, content and situations, as well as intimate scenes between women. If this type of content is not to your liking, or if you are underage, please do not read it.
DISCLAIMER: MSLN Characters belong to their rightful owners. All the situations and characters presented in this work are fictitious, any similarity with real, historical, or present situations or individuals, is not intentional.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Guest-starring characters: Yuri Natsume, along with other characters from Canaan. Yakushiji Ryōko-san from Yakushiji Ryouko no Kaiki Jikenbo.
TRANSLATOR'S NOTES: Thanks to all the readers all from over the world for taking the time to read the story. It's truly amazing and awesome to see NanoFate fans from all over reading these stories. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do, I cannot guarantee you won't suffer, but it's really so good...
The Shadow by Aleksei Volken
Chapter 2. A long, long day.
— X —
"The sad truth is that man's real-life consists of a complex of inexorable opposites—day and night, birth and death, happiness and misery, good and evil. We are not even sure that one will prevail against the other, that good will overcome evil, or joy defeat pain. Life is a battleground. It always has been and always will be; and if it were not so, existence would come to an end."
— C.G. Jung
— X —
"At last, she comes to her senses.
This part of our first encounter is always my favorite. It's when they are more alive than ever, when 'they open their eyes for the first time in their lives' and look around wondering where they are… and they find themselves naked… Then they start to remember and their breathing speeds up; their heart that was beating fast with the first awakening, beats frantically and wrenches desperately on their chests; their eyes open and their pupils dilate even more than in the climax of an orgasm… their bodies covered with the involuntary trickle of sweat… All their bodies exude the smell of fear.
They are beautiful in that state.
More beautiful than ever before or after.
If they could only stay like that forever…"
— X —
The girl woke up with a start... choking, fidgeting even more trying to recognize where she was.
A dark gloom surrounded her.
Vague memories of the night, trees... and a shadow that fell on her.
Pain.
Around her, she could only see rugged, dark walls. The area where she found herself is roughly six by six feet and she is huddled in a corner.
Suddenly realizing that she is naked, she huddled herself even further in the corner, hugging herself. The only sound she can hear is the wild beating of her heart in her ears. She took several deep breaths in an effort to compose herself.
In front of her, she can only see a row of dark bars separating her from a dark and gloomy corridor.
She is in a cell, in something that looks like a sordid enclosed space or basement.
She then perceives it.
A foul stench that surpasses anything she has ever smelled.
A mixture of putrefaction, dirt, debris… and something else… something dense and metallic that makes her gag.
Despite her efforts, her heart and her breathing are racing again.
Then she realizes that there is no floor in the tiny dungeon where she is, her feet are directly on the hard, earthy ground.
Her face feels numb and until then, she raises a hesitant hand to her nose to notice a misshapen and swollen lump. The pain feels dull and distant.
A long time goes by; she doesn't know how long until she, trying to overcome her nakedness, trembling, half-crawls, half-drags herself, as quietly as she can, up to the bars trying to see something.
The corridor is wide and dark, not as much as her dungeon, so she can see more bars like the ones in her cell in front of her. Beyond the bars, there is only darkness in front of her. As far as the eye can see, to the right and the left, she only identifies an endless row of bars.
Panting involuntarily, she wonders if there is someone in the darkness of those cells... just as she was in hers.
Then she hears it.
Something is crawling.
Petrified in place, she holds her breath expectantly, her eyes wide.
A bulk moves on the bars in front of her.
The girl gasps until a ghostly, impossible face looks at her without seeing through the bars.
Her cry echoes heartbreakingly in the silence.
— X —
TSAB's Headquarters, Section 6-9 offices, Special Unit of Violent Crimes
Midchilda City. Day 15, Tenth Month, 2044 - 10:00 hrs.
"What do we know so far?"
Enforcer Fate Testarossa Harlaown was sitting at the head of the long table in the main conference room of Section 6, a place usually held by Colonel Hayate Yagami, head of the section and Fate's superior.
Fate had seated many times in that place, leading her team of agents, experts in cracking the toughest, hardest cases.
However, that day was VERY different from any other in her life.
That day, the woman she loved and had longed for months, that she had waited for long days and even longer nights… had appeared out of the blue and was sitting at that table with the rest of her team as if nothing had happened.
But a LOT had happened.
Doctor Nanoha Takamachi was no longer an external consultant hired at a desperate moment that required a lot of desperate measures. No. From the little that Hayate had said before that meeting started, Nanoha had attended TSABs Special Academy in Vaizen to train as a special agent.
To do the work that they did with the right and knowledge.
To hunt monsters.
Like the one who had destroyed her life and her family's… and Fate's as well.
Despite that nightmare they had lived months before, Nanoha was sitting right there, focused, determined, renewed… beautiful.
Fate felt something breaking inside her.
And despite whatever she might be feeling, a new case had been assigned to her that morning. She had no time to break. Or to feel.
"Over the past few months, extremely complicated cases of disappearances and murders of women have been unfolding," explained Agent Shari Finieno. She was not part of Fate's official team but one of Colonel Yagami's technical assistants and who would give them the information to start working on. "These cases have been just assigned to us because recently, it was established that the disappearances and the murders were linked and everything seems to indicate that it's a serial killer. The Midchilda police have no solid leads and the same can be said for the Cranagan police."
"Cranagan?" Vice asked, confused. "I thought this case came exclusively from Midchilda's jurisdiction."
Fate's subordinate was already thinking that they would have to collaborate again with their friends, the Nakajimas, but the mention of Cranagan radically changed the scenario.
"It seemed like that at first and that was another reason why the case ended with us. The Cranagan and Midchilda cops didn't establish that they had a serial killer case before because they didn't cooperate… voluntarily at least," Shari explained.
"As the case covers the boundaries of both Midchilda and Cranagan, that gives it federal jurisdiction," Nanoha pointed out, releasing her newfound knowledge of the academy. Shamal, Alto, and Lucino gave her thumbs up approvingly with smiles.
"That's right," continued Shari, "The metropolitan area of Midchilda with its twin city Cranagan, covers an area of approximately three thousand square miles with a total of fifteen million inhabitants. Between the two, the statistics indicate that there are about six hundred and fifty homicides a year, more than a thousand rapes, and, unfortunately, an undetermined number of disappearances that can be estimated at hundreds. The actual number of murders of women for 'undetermined' causes is formally unknown but estimates establish a range of one hundred and fifty to two hundred per year."
"Just for undetermined causes?" Nanoha asked, astonished, looking at her colleagues, upon Shari's numbers.
Her colleagues nodded with sadness.
"Domestic violence, gender violence, racial violence, poverty, exploitation, sex trafficking… There are many reasons still, Nanoha-san," Shamal pointed out. "That's one of the reasons why we sometimes have so much work here."
Nanoha turned to see Fate, remembering her insistence when they had just met that she should 'always call the police'.
Those statistics were going to become part of her world from that moment on.
"Most of those cases are handled by the police; a reduced percentage, special, if you will, gets to our hands because it's the result of a serial killer," Signum said. "Just like now."
Shari manipulated some of the controls on the table and, on the screen, along with the photographs of the seven women that were still displayed, forensic photos of different human remains appeared.
"In past months, the Cranagan and Midchilda police have found remains of... human parts... amputated limbs in particular," Shari explained. The photos on the screen showed a foot wrapped in a plastic bag dumped in a park, one forearm floating in some kind of small lake, a hand covered in dry leaves… Among others.
"The remains were not found at the same time?" Fate asked right to the point.
"No," Shari replied and pointing at the picture of the forearm added, "The first finding occurred in Cranagan… twenty-five months ago."
"Over two years!" Fate's subordinates exclaimed, except for Signum who was looking at the screen with a frown. "How is that possible? How could they realize until now that it was a serial killer?"
Fate tried not to think about Scrya and Scaglietti, who had done as they had pleased for years… without anyone realizing. She did not want to look at Nanoha, fearing she would be thinking the same.
"Two months went by between the finding of the first limb and the next one," Shari continued. "At the beginning of the discoveries, the police were deeply disconcerted and different search efforts were started to try to find bodies. One of the first obstacles was that the remains were not found on the same dates and subsequent analysis revealed that the first parts found did not correspond to the same person."
"What did they do next?" Fate asked again.
"When it was determined that the remains found belonged to women, the Cranagan police department made a call through the database of missing persons, exclusively for girls within the age range that was estimated in the victims, and several relatives brought samples for DNA matching. The process, as you can imagine, took weeks, during which there was no way of knowing if the limbs found really belonged to missing women or not…"
"How do we know they are dead?" Signum asked a last, pointing at the seven women that appeared on the screen. The seven images corresponded to beautiful smiling women, they were not forensic pictures.
Then Shari displayed them.
Despite her efforts, Nanoha's slight jolt was visible to everyone.
Fate clenched her jaws. There was no use getting mad at Shari. They had always done it that way. It was what they had to do and what they had to deal with. Nanoha knew it. Even before becoming an agent, she had been in heinous crime scenes.
Until she became one of them herself.
Six decapitated heads in different states of decomposition, discarded as garbage like the other remains, were displayed on the screen. A torso was recognizable in a gigantic pile of garbage. None of those remains seemed to be related to the smiling faces of women they saw on the other part of the screen.
"When the first head was found, about ten different limbs had already been found, some of them shared DNA, but others did not. The first head was correlated with three previous samples found at different times."
Shari paused to let her companions absorb the information and prepare for what was next.
"Between finding the first limb and the corresponding head, six months went by," Shari said and expanded one of the photos on the screen.
"Kaori Makimura was the first victim to be identified, although the first limb found was not hers."
Shari stopped to manipulate some controls on her device and send all the information she already had to Fate and her team. After that first introduction, they could already understand the terrible mess of data they had.
"Have all the confirmed victims appeared… in parts?" Fate asked, reviewing the data she had just received. Signum looked at her. They were having the same line of thought at the time.
"Not a single victim has been found… in its entirety," Shari said. "We have the certainty that the seven are dead because their heads were found. In the case of Kyoko Tokiwa," the photo of a beautiful university girl with reddish-brown hair and glasses was then enlarged on the screen, "the DNA of the torso corresponded to the samples provided by the relatives of missing persons, only for that reason could her identity be determined. So far, neither her head nor other parts of her body have been found."
Fate knew that the worst of that introduction was yet to come.
"Have all the parts that have been found been associated with missing women?" Shamal asked at that moment.
"All the parts found have been associated with female DNA. This particular MO is common to both the Midchilda and Cranagan cases, but the links between the two police departments were not established until very recently. DNA samples that were delivered in Cranagan matched the remains found in Midchilda, for example, and that delayed the association," Shari answered. "However, not all the remains found so far have been identified."
"How many?" Fate asked with her face hard as a rock.
"In addition to the seven women that we can confirm have been murdered, several amputated limbs have been found corresponding to another twelve. Among these, it has been possible to associate the identity from DNA, only of two women who were in the database of missing persons."
Fate stood up at that moment.
"Thoroughly review all the information that Shari has provided us. Apart from what we have, we will have to meet with the officers in Cranagan and Midchilda who were conducting the investigations; Signum, establish contact with them and request if we can see them this afternoon if possible. Shamal, go through all the forensic information we have and let me know if something is missing, and whatever you can tell us about what this guy is doing. Alto and Lucino, review all the information available in our databases of confirmed victims, do not go only with the points of rigor. We need everything, absolutely everything about them, to know at what point they converged with the same individual. Vice, as soon as Zafira returns from his examination, I need you to do a geographic analysis of the areas where the victims are estimated to have disappeared and where all the remains have been found... Nanoha…"
Finally, Fate had reached the point she feared the most.
Nanoha was looking at her with full attention, her body tense ready to launch into the mission they were facing. Fate took a deep breath, like someone who is going to dive into very deep waters and does not know when will be able to breathe again.
"...Nanoha, I need you to work both with Shamal as well as with Lucino and Alto; we need a profile of this subject. We need to understand the victimology to capture him."
"One more thing, Fate," Shari added and everyone looked at her expectantly. "The timeline in this subject's flow has been quite erratic and hard to determine, however, there is a point that triggered the urgency to hand this case to TSAB despite some resistances… During the past month, the remains of five different women have been found."
Fate and Nanoha looked at each other.
"He's escalating," Nanoha said. "We don't need a profile to know that his desires are getting out of control. Something triggered that change."
— X —
"No miss… what did you say your name was?"
Fate, who was reviewing the information recently integrated and compiled from the case they were investigating, raised her gaze as she heard Shamal's voice very near her office. The doctor had been there with her a few minutes ago to give her what she had found and to let her know Nanoha would meet later with her.
"Ryōko… Yakushiji," replied a dazzling woman with short and carefully tousled golden hair, "but for YOU I am Superintendent Yakushiji… doctor 'whatever your name is'."
Shamal, in her spotless white coat over her black uniform, raised her eyebrows to look up and down at the woman in front of her. Ryōko Yakushiji wore a very elegant, tight, and short, especially short, designer-tailored suit over an exquisite red silk blouse with a formidable cleavage. She completed her outfit with red high-heeled shoes, VERY high; brand-name sunglasses that she held smugly in one hand along with a bag, also red, so small that Shamal didn't understand what could fit in it.
Nothing, she supposed, since when looking a couple of feet behind 'Superintendent Yakushiji' the doctor saw for the first time a man with strong oriental features loaded up to his head with documents, various artifacts, and... bags from a famous shopping mall.
"Agent Yagami, 'Superintendent'," Shamal clarified coldly, making an emphasis on the other's title.
"Yagami? ...Yagami?" Ryōko muttered looking to one side as if trying to remember. "I've heard that name before…"
"Superintendent Yakushiji…"
Shamal and Ryōko turned to find Signum striding towards them.
"Superintendent Yakushiji, we spoke this morning, I'm agent Signum Yagami, from Section 6. I asked you to receive us in Cranagan to discuss a case…" Signum explained once in front of Ryōko and Shamal, only to then ask bluntly, "What are you doing here?"
"Right… Signum Yagami," Ryōko said, looking winsomely at Signum. "This image DOES match the voice I remembered."
Shamal went from feeling ice-cold to feeling a scorching heat.
"Are you having a party here or what?" Fate asked, getting finally out of her office to see what the fuss outside her door was.
"Party? Who authorized you to have a party in the office?" Hayate said as she was coming closer from one of the sideway corridors to Fate's office.
For a few seconds, all the women gathered in front of Fate's office looked at each other, except for Superintendent Ryōko who was looking alternately only at Fate and Signum.
"Fate… Colonel… The Superintendent of Cranagan's Police Department, Ryōko Yakushiji. She was in charge of the serial case killer that…"
"I AM in charge," Ryōko pointed out interrupting Signum, getting close to her with a provocative smile. "And I am also delighted to have your help, Agent Yagami."
Shamal took a step towards the Superintendent with the clear intention of twisting her neck but Fate stepped between the two just in time.
"Superintendent Yakushiji, I am Agent Fate Testarossa Harlaown. I asked Agent Yagami to get in touch with you. I appreciate you coming down here since there are a few points we need to clarify," Fate said with a professional and serious tone. "First of all, allow me to introduce you to our superior, Colonel Hayate Yagami."
"Ryōko is fine for you," Ryōko said looking at Fate, feeling happy at the slight blush she caused in the blonde, and then turned to Hayate. "Colonel Yagami, nice to meet you. Is it mandatory to have that last name to work here? I keep running into it surprisingly often."
"Nice to meet you as well," Hayate replied with a very understood smile. It had been long since she had faced someone like that Superintendent Yakushiji and she had her suspicions on why she was going to turn out to be a formidable opponent. "Yakushiji? As in Masamoto Yakushiji?"
"Indeed," Ryōko replied with her smile widening as she looked with new respect at Hayate. "The little one isn't as naive as she appears to be," she thought before adding, "General Masamoto Yakushiji is my dear and beloved grandfather."
General Masamoto Yakushiji had completely retired from the army for several years already when Hayate was still at the officer's academy. She had never met him in person, but she knew in detail the stories that were said about him.
More than a military, he had been an excellent and successful businessman.
And apparently, his granddaughter had followed his same steps and applied the same methods.
"This morning, by the way, he granted me the favor of speaking with Admiral Phils regarding this case. Leone called me shortly before I left Cranagan to say that he would speak to Gil Graham personally but, apparently, they have not been notified yet. My helicopter seems to fly faster than the news at TSAB," Ryōko finished with an innocent smile looking at Hayate from her towering and expensive red pumps.
Admiral Leone Phils was TSABs General Director. The maximum authority in the Agency.
"Will this be the punishment for everything I have done in my life? Major Natsume and this Superintendent Ryōko are too much for one day… and it's not even five in the afternoon," Hayate thought smiling at Ryōko's statement, without her face showing anything of her dark thoughts.
"It is a pity that you did not solve the case at hand with the same alacrity... Superintendent Yakushiji," said Shamal, to whom the mention of all the distinguished personalities of TSAB had not made her forget how that skank had looked at Signum, "It would have saved you the trip here."
Fate and Signum were, however, startled by Shamal's scathing remark.
"Ehmm… Superintendent, I believe we have several points to talk about," Fate was prompt to reply. "Please come into my office and let's talk."
"Of course, sweetie," Ryōko said smiling, and as she passed right next to Fate to her office, briefly caressed her cheek. "Working with you and Agent Yagami is going to be fabulous… Junichirō! ...Hurry up please and bring everything we need."
The man that was up to his neck with the superintendent's load hurried behind her to Fate's office.
Fate, who had been rendered speechless, turned to find Nanoha's blue gaze as she had come to see her just seconds before.
Enough ones to see Ryōko caressing Fate's cheek.
— X —
Finally, after several negotiations and dabbling, back and forth between TSABs top desks, it became painfully apparent to Hayate and Fate that they weren't going to be able to get rid of Ryōko Yakushiji so easily.
What's more, just like with Yuri Natsume, they weren't going to be able to get rid of her at all.
Hayate and Fate didn't know, but superintendent Yakushiji could simply not leave any case unsolved. It was a matter of honor and something else… a certain sense of slightly twisted possessiveness that could easily be misinterpreted as a desire for the centre-stage.
But that couldn't be farther from the truth.
As for this case, Ryōko Yakushiji was not interested in the spotlight. She had an ulterior interest far more compelling and powerful than anything else in that case.
And she wasn't going to let those feds take it from her.
Although she could not get full jurisdiction over it thanks to the intervention of Gil Graham, Lindy Harlaown, and director Carim Gracia, she did manage to make it 'a joint collaborative effort'.
TSAB, specifically Section 6, would have federal jurisdiction over all cases and the Cranagan Superintendency would have jurisdiction over cases that had been reported in its territory. Fate, as the leader of the investigation team in charge of the 'federal' part of the case, would have to work on an equal footing with Ryōko.
Hayate knew it was an inevitable tangle of interests.
They would have Ryōko Yakushiji sticking her nose even in their soup, whether they wanted it or not.
"So, Fate… Signum… where should we start?" Ryōko asked, crossing her legs which made even more obvious how short her skirt was… and how beautifully shaped her legs were.
Hayate looked at her older sister and her best friend for life as if saying "Do you want to get rid of her? ...Solve this case as quickly as possible," and discreetly left the conference room.
As soon as Hayate left, Shamal got in, dragging Nanoha along with her.
"Hayate told us that you needed the summary of the progress… so far," Shamal said with a deadly cold voice staring at Fate.
Fate took a deep breath as imperceptibly as she was able to.
"Yes, that's right… Superintendent Yakushiji…" Fate started but couldn't say much more.
"Ryōko, please… it doesn't seem fair that I call you by your name and you have to use that long title," Ryōko insisted, smiling. "Also, we are going to work so closely, from now on we are partners, so it's only natural."
"Ryōko..." Fate finally gave in, trying to ignore Shamal's murderous gaze on her, "Agent Shamal Yagami and Agent Nanoha Takamachi are our medical and scientific team, they have integrated and analyzed the forensic information available so far."
After a brief pause, Fate looked at Nanoha and continued, "Agent Takamachi is working on a profile of the subject who may have committed these murders and that will give us an initial guideline to begin the search."
Ryōko looked at Shamal and Nanoha doing what seemed like a small nod as greeting.
There were only six people in the wide conference room of Section 6: Fate, Signum, Nanoha, and Shamal for TSAB and Ryōko with her assistant who was perfectly polite and invisible.
With cool and collected efficiency, Shamal explained to everyone how the most disturbing feature of the case was that the remains that had been found at both Midchilda and Cranagan showed clear temporal differences.
"Let's take the case of the first identified victim," Shamal explained. "Kaori Makimura. Three amputated limbs were found with months between each other. However the analysis and level of decomposition of the remains indicated that each had between fifty and seventy-two hours of have been removed from the body. The level of cell degeneration present on the limbs was not tantamount to advanced decomposition or freezing conservation."
"That means….?" Ryōko asked with a serious countenance for the first time.
Shamal found no pleasure in confirming the superintendent's suspicions, "The victim was alive when the limbs were amputated."
"How long was it between the discovery of the first limb and Makmura's head?" Signum asked without emotion.
"Seven months," Shamal replied. "Except for the case of Tokiwa Kyoko, who was identified by DNA, all the other victims were treated with the same MO. The shortest period of time elapsed between finding a limb and the corresponding head is three months."
Fate, who already had an idea of the kind of monster they were dealing with, knew that she couldn't spare Nanoha any of that horror. Furthermore, at that moment she realized how much they were going to need her for that case.
"Nanoha…" Fate said in a soft voice to indicate to the rookie agent her turn at the presentation.
The way in which the Enforcer looked at the investigator and the shift in her tone of voice did not go unnoticed by Superintendent Ryōko.
Controlling her nervousness, Nanoha stood next to Shamal.
"The identified victims have the most diverse characteristics. At first glance… it would seem there is not a defined pattern in the subject's preferences, however, it's not like that."
Ryōko sat up straight in her seat staring at Nanoha. That point the redhead mentioned was one that had had her department spinning around like a dog chasing its tail despite all their efforts to advance.
Synchronizing her device with everyone present, Nanoha sent them all the names of the murdered girls and their detailed files.
"Kaori Makimura, Kyoko Tokiwa, Jun Shiratori, Lacus Clyne, Cagalli Yula Athha, Miriallia Haw, and Sylia Stingray... All of these women couldn't be any more different from each other. Different ethnic and racial characteristics, different socioeconomic strata, different ages, different backgrounds and professions, none of them knew each other, nor did they have friends or common antecedents," Nanoha detailed with precision, "Except for three aspects... All, without exception, were exceedingly beautiful women, they were all very successful in their professions, and they all… were exceptionally independent and self-sufficient."
After a short silence, Ryōko, for whom the characteristics that Nanoha mentioned were mandatory in any woman, asked, "How does that help us to catch the subject?"
"It's not a coincidence that he chooses them like that," Nanoha explained. "His preference for this kind of victim tells us that he is not an opportunistic killer. He chooses them, and to that effect, he must get to know them. He must know them in-depth before capturing them to have the certainty that they meet all the requirements he needs… However…"
Nanoha interrupted herself for a moment, frowning.
"What is it, Nanoha?" Fate asked, standing up.
Nanoha looked at Fate with absolute concentration.
"He surely has a universe of candidates with the characteristics I've mentioned, but there is something, besides all those points, that makes him choose especially ones over the others… He's a collector, Fate. All these girls are as valuable and precious jewels to him…"
"What a way to show his appreciation," Ryōko pointed out sourly.
"His method speaks of extreme sadism," Nanoha continued. "For him, owning them, which includes kidnapping, torturing, and ultimately killing them, is a source of pleasure."
"That means," Fate added, "that he's not gonna stop until we capture him."
Signum, who had spoken very little until then, caught Fate's attention.
"There is something that bothers me a lot about this case, Testarossa... from what we see, this guy kidnaps the girls and systematically keeps them alive... We don't know for how long, but there is a possibility that twelve girls could be in his hands right now."
Fate nodded seeing Signum's point.
"Where does he keep them? Where could he perform such atrocities like amputating arms and legs and still keep them alive?" Signum finished, struggling to keep self-controlled.
"I need you to work with Zafira and Vice to cover all the possibilities, Signum," Fate said. Between Cranagan and Midchilda they had a vast area where this man could be doing those atrocities that Signum had detailed.
"There is a point that intrigues me, Fate," Nanoha interjected.
Fate motioned for her to continue.
"Tokiwa Kyoko, Sylia Stingray, and Lacus Clyne… of the seven victims, they present differences on the forensic exams."
"What do you mean, Nanoha?" Shamal asked puzzled, she had not yet seen those differences.
"Oh, yes, I'm sorry Shamal-san, I've been thinking about it but didn't have the chance to tell you before. From Miss Lacus Clyne and Miss Sylia Stingray, no other part but the head has been found… the positive identification was direct and immediate because of that and also because they had been reported as missing by their families."
"Maybe the discarded limbs from them have not yet been found, Nanoha. I believe that the geographical area in which this subject moves is quite extensive. There is no guarantee that the limbs that have been found are the only ones, there may still be more to be found," Fate replied gently.
"I know that's a possibility, Fate, but… the evidence we have, for now, lead me to believe that this has more to do with a decision from the subject," Nanoha said, and before receiving the questions, added, "Just like HE chooses which woman we will take to be a part of his collection, he also decided which part of her he will discard and at what moment. And surely, there is a reason for that to be."
Ryōko raised an eyebrow as a sign of her appreciation for what Nanoha had just said.
"On the other hand, in the case of Tokiwa Kyoko, only the torso has been found, and I must say," Nanoha continued without realizing Ryōko's analysis on her, "that it's her case that intrigues me the most. Her torso appeared but completely hollowed… like a discarded eggshell. Unlike other victims, she cannot be alive, even if her head has not been found yet."
"As Agent Testarossa said, she might not have been found… yet," Ryōko said at last.
"Yes… Or it may be that the killer still has her in his power," Nanoha said looking at the superintendent.
"Nanoha is right," Fate intervened, who did not want Nanoha to have so much interaction with Cranagan's superintendent, "Signum, Alto and Lucino need to focus their efforts more on those three victims for the moment. We need to determine if they make a difference for any reason."
Until that moment they realized that it was already past six in the afternoon.
Much to Shamal's regret, Fate sent her and Nanoha back to the scientific area. Signum and Fate would still stay to discuss some operational points with Superintendent Yakushiji.
Fate watched Nanoha walk away from her with Shamal trusting that she would be able to talk to her later, when she had already gotten rid of Ryōko Yakushiji, at least for the rest of that long, long day.
— X —
Two hours later, Fate was on her way walking as fast as she could through the hallways of Section 6 towards the medical and scientific area.
Nanoha had told her they would talk 'later' but she had not specified when that moment would be.
Fate did not feel capable of waiting much longer when she had been waiting for months already.
Everything indicated that Nanoha was fine, that she had made a significant life decision. That she had grown more capable and stronger over the past months. In the months they had been apart.
Also, Nanoha's first day in Section 6 had been brilliant. Hayate had been very pleased with the report Fate had given her minutes ago about the work of the new member of her team…
However, Fate felt a tightness in her chest that she couldn't explain.
And the only one who could vanish that oppression was Nanoha.
The blonde and the red-haired almost crashed into each other when the first was rushing inside the scientific area and the second one, was on her way out.
The 'almost' crash brought Fate back memories that surprised her for their warmth. The first time they crashed into each other had not been an 'almost' one.
"Fate!" Nanoha said with surprise. Her hands ended almost in Fate's shoulders to avoid the impact and Fate, almost by instinct, held her by the waist.
The Enforcer felt Nanoha tensing up by the contact, and smiling sheepishly, released her.
"Almost…" Fate said trying that her voice would sound light and normal.
"Almost…" Nanoha said in turn, "I… was on my way out… Shamal-san told me she would let you know."
"Your device can link to mine at any moment," Fate said in case Nanoha didn't know already.
The red-haired merely nodded.
Right there under the white, brilliant light of the scientific wing, Fate felt uncomfortable without knowing what to say.
"I came to see you…" Fate said, gathering her courage. "Can I give you a ride home?"
Nanoha looked at her in a way Fate was not able to read.
"Kyoya… my brother, is picking me up," Nanoha replied with a smile that seemed to Fate everything except a happy one. "I… am staying with my parents still. It's been a few months since I had last seen my family."
With a similar smile, Fate was prompt to reply. "Yeah, that's right… sure, silly me. Hayate mentioned something this morning… I just… I mean…"
Nanoha felt her heart aching at Fate's fluster.
"Yeah, it's fine… I still have to get organized with the change… but… we will have time to talk…"
Fate's gaze brightened at Nanoha's comment.
"Vivio is going to be happy when she sees you," Fate said with a warmer smile.
"And I'll be happy to see her. Colonel Yagami told me that she is now living with your brother and his wife… as her legal guardians."
After that comment from Nanoha, the two women fell silent just looking at each other.
"She has missed you so much," Fate said after a while, while she thought. "And so have I."
"I have missed her a lot too…"
Fate wished she had the courage to ask Nanoha if she had missed her too, but destiny decided that the meeting would take another direction.
"Nanoha-chan!"
Fate did not need to turn around to know who that voice belonged to, but she did anyway, in time to see her mother reaching and heartfully hugging a very surprised Nanoha.
"Admiral Harlaown…" the red-haired exclaimed in the arms of the effusive Admiral.
"Welcome! ...Having you with us has been excellent news…" after saying that, the Admiral turned extraordinarily serious. "But I'm not willing to forgive you just yet that you did not come to say hi on your first day as a special agent for Section 6."
Nanoha made a truly apologetic pout at that statement.
"I'm really sorry Admiral," Nanoha said, clasping her hands in front of her. "Today was a day... particularly…"
Lindy smiled warmly again and putting an arm around Nanoha's shoulders, urged her to walk down the hall.
"I know, perfectly well, don't worry… we don't have many days like today, thank goodness…" Lindy said. "However that does not exempt you from coming home for dinner one of these days. Clyde and the kids also want to see you very much."
Nanoha felt safe and warm with the hug and the welcome of the Admiral.
And something ached inside her being very conscious that such an exceptional woman was also Fate's mother.
"Of course, Admiral," she replied, trying to hold back her emotion.
Throughout the way from the scientific unit to the exit of TSAB employees, Lindy spoke animatedly on various topics. Although there weren't many people on the premises at this time, the few they passed were slightly astonished at the cordial treatment the Admiral provided the young rookie.
Fate among them.
The Enforcer, who was walking a couple of steps behind her mother and Nanoha, was wondering about her mother's attitude. Lindy Harlaown was not affectionate in that way with anyone in the office. Not even with Chrono or her.
Upon reaching the door, Lindy bade goodbye affectionately to Nanoha and stood by Fate's side as the red-haired stepped out into the cool, starry night.
"I wanted to talk with her, mom," Fate said flatly as if that fact wasn't obvious, especially to someone like Lindy.
As the Admiral did not reply, Fate dared to add. "You knew she was in Vaizen and that she would be coming to work for TSAB."
Lindy just smiled enigmatically and said, "There is a proper time to every purpose under heaven, Fate... a time to hug each other and a time to say goodbye... a time to be quiet and a time to speak... true wisdom is reached when you can figure out when it's one and when it's the other."
That said, she turned around and went back to her office. She said goodbye to her daughter on the move and without turning around.
"Drive safe on your way home, dear… I have the feeling that you sometimes go over the limit with that car of yours."
Fate was with her feet stuck on the floor wondering what karma she was paying for that day, through all the women she had had to deal with.
Including her mother.
— X —
Location Unknown
Day 15, Tenth Month, 2044 - 23:30 hrs.
Just as they had predicted in their first message, that morning had been just the beginning.
A small test to measure the forces of the enemy.
A first shake to see who jumped after them.
Now they knew.
And it was not the first time they met.
She knew they were adversaries of her level but for the moment they were doing exactly what was expected of them.
The true plan was yet to begin.
The woman in the nondescript gray car continued on at a normal speed after Fate's car entered through the automatic door of her building.
— X —