Chapter 5: Will of the Gods Part 2

"I see." Night had fallen, or at least she thought it had. With the large barrier covering the city it was rather hard to tell. "So your magic is more… elemental?"

The pair flew over what was left of the town. Looking down on the buildings below her, Nanoha could see that the majority of the houses were surprisingly still intact. Although, they were probably unoccupied. Even the larger houses up at the top of the hill were most likely abandoned, or judging by the pools of blood littering the streets, the residents had already fallen victim to the hordes that were starting to come out of the shadows.

The lack of any noticeable magical barriers did nothing to lessen her fears.

"Um, I guess so." Sanae scratched the back of her head with her free hand. "By borrowing Lady Kanako's power, I can control the wind, and water to an extent."

"My power though…" The priestess scratched her cheek as she tried to think. "I guess it would be easier to say I can create miracles."

"Miracles?" That was certainly an unusual power.

"Yes. Um, what I mean is that I can bring about certain events." She tried to think of an example. "Oh, here's one. If I wanted to I could miraculously sneak past a group of people." She tilted her head at the white mage's concerned look. "O-or I could… oh, I can arrive just in the nick of time to save someone's life."

Nanoha felt a pang of guilt after hearing her last example, but quickly erased any possible expression that could give her away.

"What about your magic Miss Nanoha? I tried learning it a couple of years ago, but it was pretty difficult. What's your magic like?"

The brunette shook her head. This was a topic she could get interested in. "Midchildian magic is based around complex formulas and mathematical calculations. These formulas are used to gather and shape mana into a usable form for us to-"

A quick glance upward quickly pulled her out of teacher mode. Blank eyes were usually not a good sign when you're trying to explain something. "Anyways, Midchildian mages usually have their devices help them when casting." She shook Raising Heart for emphasis. "We sometimes have trouble with our spells as well."

While not exactly true, the little lie served its purpose. Light returned to Sanae's eyes and she started asking various questions about her magic.

Nanoha, wait! Her partner's voice echoed through her mind.

"Yunno-kun? What's wrong?" Before she could get Sanae to stop, Yunno ran down her staff and jumped onto one of the walls surrounding a large Japanese style house.

The two jerked to a stop above the abandoned house. Nanoha and Yunno had decided to forgo mental communication while flying, as they weren't sure if the young priestess would be able to hear them. Thankfully, if she was able to hear him she didn't show it.

Taking a look at the house in front of her, Nanoha saw nothing but an abandoned Japanese style house. At least until her partner jumped into the yard, only to vanish from view.

"A barrier?"

The duo descended in front of the house. Stretching her arm, Nanoha looked around. Now that she was focusing a bit more, she could feel a faint barrier surrounding the area. It didn't feel malicious like the black barrier surrounding the city or foreboding like the one at the temple. Instead it looked like it was simply used as concealment, and reflecting back, she realized how simple a spell it was.

The house wasn't abandoned, or at least, it didn't look like it upon further inspection. An illusion? No, it's far simpler than that. Whatever spell was placed upon this house fooled anyone who saw it into thinking it either was abandoned or simply didn't exist.

If the mages of this world are capable of spells like this, then maybe… Silently following behind the green miko, Nanoha created three small orbs behind her back. While Sanae curiously opened the gate, Nanoha released the orbs into the air, sending two down the street while keeping one hidden behind her.

"Whoa!" To the credit of whoever made the barrier, Sanae's excited yell was severely muffled. "Miss Nanoha! Look at this."

Nanoha stepped inside the gateway to find Sanae fawning over a motorcycle chained up against the side of the house. Judging by the amount of dirt covering it, she guessed it had been several years since it was last ridden.

"Huh? Miss Nanoha, what does this say? Ma-Mak-" Craning her neck over the girl's shoulder, Nanoha could see what looked like a name engraved on the bike. As the name was written in Japanese, she could make out the last name, but the first name was too worn off .

"Matou. I think."

"Is that what this is called?"

Nanoha laughed lightly. "No, this is a motorcycle. It looks like 'Matou' was the name of the owner."

"Oh, I see." The green miko pouted, like she wasn't allowed to play with a new toy. Straightening up, she looked at the door to the building. "Do you think anyone is here?"

"I'm not sure. But it's possible." If the barrier surrounding the house was still active, then it was certainly possible that the caster was still here.

Sanae's face lit up in a smile. "Great. Then let's go." Without waiting for an answer, Sanae jumped forward and started trying to unlock the door.

Laughing at the girl's energy, Nanoha stepped beside her and helped her with the lock.


To say she was disappointed was an understatement. The two had searched at least half of the rooms so far, and had not found anyone. The information she received from her search spell told her that most of the other rooms were empty as well.

Then again, she should have expected this after entering the building. The hallway leading to the sitting room, as well as the room in question, was completely bare. Whoever had lived here had obviously moved out some time ago. Most likely years before the current situation.

The only items of note she had found were a couple of books that were most likely forgotten during the move. Holding them in her hands, the first two looked like nothing more than textbooks, at least on the surface. The third book however, looked like a diary or memoir of some sort. She would have to look into it later.

"Darn it." It looked like the tedious search was beginning to get to her partner as well. "Nothing again. I was sure we would have found something by now."

Stomping her foot, the miko slammed the door before moving on down the hall.

"It doesn't look like there's anyone still living here. If they were we probably would have seen them by now."

"Ah. Maybe you're right." Sanae slammed the door shut. "Great. I can already hear Lady Kanako now. 'Sanae, you should be out gathering faith.' 'What have I told you about misusing our powers.' "Blah blah blah, don't do what you want to do, do what you're supposed to do.'"

Nanoha stifled a laugh at the younger girl's expense. "Well I guess that's to be expected though, right?" She opened up another door only to be greeted with an empty bed frame. It wasn't a person, but it wasn't anything useful either. "Gathering faith is necessary for maintaining your existence and powers right? I'm sure it's just her way of showing how much she cares about you."

"No. That's not it." Closing the door, Nanoha saw the green haired girl slumped over, her hair obscuring her face from view. "The only one Lady Kanako cares about is the original. Not me."

She froze. Original? It can't be. Taking a step towards the girl, she asked, "What do you mean? Sanae-san, are you a clone of someone?"

"Huh?" The girl jumped before turning around in confusion. "Cl-clone? No, no I'm nothing like that." Waving her arms in front of her, she tried to explain. "I'm not a clone. At least, not technically. I am Sanae Kochiya, but at the same time, I'm not the original."

Looking away she continued. "I guess you could say I'm a reincarnation of the original Sanae Kochiya."

Nanoha let out a sigh of relief. It's not the same. Hearing the word 'original' had immediately brought to mind several memories of the past. It certainly didn't help that Sanae's situation was eerily similar to Fate's in some aspects.

"She's always comparing me to my original." Looking over, Nanoha could see a plastic smile covering her face as she dived into unpleasant memories. "She was a powerful Youkai hunter and was well loved by the people of Gensokyo, or whatever it was called. Even my precious incarnation was stronger than I am."

Groaning to herself, Nanoha could only watch as the girl dove deeper and deeper into her mind.

"And what about you?"

"Huh?"

The miko perked up. With empty eyes, she stared at the mage clearly at a loss for what to do.

"What about you? I've been wondering for a while now how it is you're so knowledgeable about the TSAB. So I was wondering if you could tell me more about yourself." It was true. At the very least she was curious about the girl's past.

Sanae flushed a vivid pink before shaking her head. "M-me? Well, I guess so. M-my past isn't all that exciting, but if you really want to hear it?" She timidly looked up to see Nanoha nodding at her.

"Oh, well my previous incarnation died about eighteen years ago, I think, and I was reincarnated a couple of weeks later. At least from what Lady Kanako told me." She scratched her chin. "Um, I was born on a planet called Osin. It's a really pretty place, and I really want to go back there someday." Nanoha nodded to herself. Osin, if she recalled correctly, is a mostly rural planet under TSAB jurisdiction. Magical activity isn't common there, which would explain how she went unnoticed.

"I actually lived there until I was about seven. Lady Kanako said we had to leave so I could learn more and so I would be able to perform my duties as priestess of the Moriya Shrine."

Damn, she falling back into painful memories. Acting quickly, Nanoha asked, "And what about the TSAB? How did you find out about us?"

Sanae flushed briefly before a happy smile graced her face. "Actually, remember how I said I could miraculously go someplace without being seen. When I was around five or six I started doing that." Sanae laughed to herself. "When I'm reincarnated, I don't retain any of my previous self's memories, so I have to relearn everything. Around that time I learned about my power, so I would use that power to go and play."

Still smiling, she opened the next door and peeked inside. "I actually found this one place that I really liked to play at. The only problem was it was at a school, so naturally, someone found me." Closing the door lightly, she moved on to the next one. "The kids there were pretty upset that I had been sneaking in, and they wanted to throw me out the same way I had come in." She made an arching motion with her hands. "Right over the fence."

Her staff hit the ground as she tried to keep herself from falling over. Waving away Sanae's concern, she motioned for the girl to continue.

"Well, before they could do anything, someone stopped them. I don't remember what he looked like. All I remember is him wearing this really cool uniform. He stopped the kids from throwing me out and actually convinced them to let me stay."

Nanoha didn't think it was possible, but the girl's smile brightened even more than before.

"He was a TSAB mage who had come to the school for a presentation. He let me stay and watch the presentation too."

She couldn't help but smile herself as a personal memory surfaced. She remembered Vita and herself being asked to speak at a local school once. The memory of the great Iron Hammer getting stage fright in front of a stadium of students continues to be one of her favorites.

"It was so cool. He spoke about what he did for a living, answered some questions, and he even showed us some magic. But the part I remember the most is one story in particular he told us. I'll never forget it." The priestess closed her eyes as she leaned against the wall.

"He told us how he managed to save this one boy's life during an incident. It was during a robbery gone wrong. One of the robbers had taken a child hostage and tried to run. The mage was able to stop him and protect the boy from being hurt. All the boy could say was 'thank you'. He said it was that moment that made him proud to be a mage."

I see. Since that moment she wanted to be a mage. A noble reason. To want to save lives and protect people. Oblivious to Nanoha's inner thoughts, Sanae continued to speak about the presenter from her youth.

"Unfortunately, we left the planet within the next year. I wanted to stay, but Lady Kanako didn't let me." Her smile faded. "At this point, I wonder if it's still possible."

"Of course it is." Green hair swished wildly as the miko quickly turned her head towards the white mage. "I don't see how you wouldn't be accepted."

Wide eyes stared at her as Nanoha continued. "Of course, the TSAB is essentially a military organization, so you would have to pass several tests just to start training for the position you wanted. But with your powers, I don't think you would have any trouble being ranked."

"R-really?"

Nanoha nodded. "Yep. Then again, Kanako-san might be an issue. Especially seeing as she doesn't like the TSAB for some reason." Seeing the crestfallen look on the other girl's face, she quickly waved away her worry. "Then again, I'm sure we can always come to an agreement. Besides, if you help people, wouldn't that be like gaining faith?"

Sanae laughed to herself, seemingly agreeing. She quickly opened her mouth and closed it, before eyeing Raising Heart curiously.

"Um, would I be able to get a device as well?"

A chuckle escaped her throat. "Yes, yes I'm sure you will be given your own device as well." Seeing the girl happy, all the complications that she would have to go through didn't seem that important at the moment.


Stepping out onto the wet grass, he quietly closed the door behind him. The small dojo was surprisingly clean despite no one being there in close to a decade. Whoever had used it previously had obviously taken very good care of it. That being said, it was rather unfortunate that he had been unable to find anything of use within.

Adjusting his glasses, he scanned the open yard in front of him. The only thing left to check was the small shed sitting in the corner. Ignoring the voices coming from inside the house, he started across the yard.

Looking up, he could still see the dark sky hanging above. Letting his mind wander briefly, he began to really appreciate the barrier surrounding the house. It didn't exude any noticeable presence, to the point where you wouldn't even know it was there unless you were searching for it, and it only had a single purpose. The barrier was designed to react to all hostile presences and warn the occupants. Then again, that was the inside barrier.

What had caught his attention had been the barrier surrounding the first one. No, it seemed more appropriate to call it a charm. Another simple charm, one that covered an area and made all who saw it disregard it. Extremely simple, and barely noticeable. It was perfect for hiding something in plain sight, and would have kept the house hidden possibly forever if not for one small detail. Whoever had cast the charm had made the field too big.

He laughed at how funny it was. The only reason he had noticed was because his partner had brushed up against the barrier.

Coming to a stop, he took in the object before him. From the outside it looked like nothing more than a normal tool shed. The rusted door lock and paint chipped windows not doing much to dissuade him.

Gripping the lock in his hands, he sighed as it started to fall to pieces in his hands. It certainly saved him the trouble of trying to unlock it. Then again, he was rather surprised at the lack of magical locks.

Opening the door to the shed, he had to suppress another sigh. His first opinion was that he had hit another dud. A pair of laundry machines lined the wall and various items littered the ground. He supposed there was a possibility that the ladder led to something of interest, but he wasn't hopeful.

He started into the small shed only to stop mid step. An old rug covered the floor, but that wasn't what made him stop.

Whisking the rug out-of-the-way, the man stepped back to better examine his find. He had finally found something of note, in the form of a large magic circle that was seemingly carved into the floor.

Kneeling down to inspect the circle, he came to a surprising realization. The circle itself had been created more than twenty years ago. Unfortunately, the purpose of the circle eluded him as his knowledge of this world's magic was still scarce. He would have to remedy that as soon as he got back to the library.

The real surprise however was the letters carved into the circle. Belkan script. A recent addition judging from the lack of wear. At least from the letters he could still see. Upon examination, he determined that whoever had added the script had used it for one purpose and then attempted to remove or destroy the writing. A long-range teleportation spell if he was reading everything correctly.

However, the question remained. How had this mage learned of Belkan script of all things? And who or what was sent using the spell?

A sudden uneasiness prevented him from continuing his current train of thought. Looking around the small shed yielded no answers and he quickly realized it wouldn't offer him as much protection as he would most likely need.

For the second time in minutes, he came to a sudden stop upon exiting the shed. The sudden uneasiness grew, and he quickly found himself holding his breath. He couldn't exactly place the feeling, but if he had to guess, he was being targeted. By what he could not tell.

The empty yard yielded no clues to the whereabouts of this possible assailant. A strange feeling as all the warning he received before it happened.

A piercing shot through the heart. His world turned black as his mind struggled to register what had just happened.

Taking a step forward, he managed to stop himself from falling over. Bringing a hand up to his chest, he felt nothing. No blood, no hole in his chest, no arrow.

Killing intent. He swallowed his fear and surveyed the yard again. Several yards in front of him he could feel something. He didn't know what or who it was, but this being, hidden in the very ether, had just produced enough killing intent to cause him to hallucinate his own death.

It took all the willpower he could muster not to erect a barrier in front of himself. The barrier surrounding the house, as far as he knew, would not hinder his magic if he used it. But he was not willing to take that chance when standing in front of an unknown enemy. All he could do was stare back at where he believed the being was and wait for its next move.

After several agonizing seconds, he could feel the being leave, seemingly satisfied with the man before it.

Breathing a sigh of relief, he sat down on the step into the shed. This would certainly be an interesting experience to relate to his partner inside. He briefly considered going back inside to study the circle in greater detail, but decided it wasn't worth the risk of provoking the being again.

With a few calming breaths, the man began walking towards the house, his body rapidly changing shape. He figured it was about time to meet up with his partner again.

Safety in numbers certainly made sense.


"That's everything." The white mage stretched her arms, taking care not to drop the books in her hands or hit anything with her staff. "I don't think we'll find anything else of value here."

Sanae nodded. While her mood had been lifted earlier, not being able to find anyone was a big letdown. As a result, now she wasn't sure what to do.

Her "mission", according to Lady Kanako, seemed simple. Her job was to protect the people still living within the city with her miracles, and was occasionally allowed to hunt for the "dead" that walked around during the night. Just thinking about it caused her to grind her teeth in disgust.

Her job was to protect, but never save. Even remembering the last conversation they had had on the subject was enough to make her start shaking.

"Are you alright, Sanae-san?" The worried voice snapped her out of her trance. She inwardly cringed as she realized she had involuntarily grabbed herself to stop shaking.

"I'm fine Miss Nanoha. Sorry about that." Shaking her head to clear her mind, she looked into worried purple eyes and put on her best smile. "So, where should we go next?"

The brunette tilted her head in thought. Closing her eyes, she began, "I'm not sure. I'm worried about the rest of my unit, but I want to check out the rest of the to-"

Purple eyes snapped open, and the white mage quickly turned to look up the street. Confused, Sanae moved next to her and tried to look for what had startled her, a hastily created paper seal clenched in her hand.

"Miss Nanoha? What's wrong? Is it an enemy?"

"No, it's not that." She pointed with her staff up the hill, towards the more western houses. "Earlier I sent a Search Spell out to see if there were any other barriers like this one." She smiled. "It looks like I found one."

A Search Spell? What does she mean? Her brow furrowed in confusion before a more pressing question came to mind. "Wait, Miss Nanoha, do you mean you were looking around outside while we were inside the house? How?"

Nanoha's body jerked slightly, apparently she hadn't been expecting to be asked. Laughing to herself, she shifted the books under her arm and turned to the green-haired girl.

"Well, that's…" She shifted her head towards the staff in her hand. A couple of seconds later, it finally clicked.

That's right. Miss Nanoha said something about her staff helping her with spells. Looking down at the gold and white staff, she couldn't help but be envious.

"Sorry Sanae-san. I'll be happy to answer any of your questions later." She turned to look up the hill. "But right now… That barrier worries me."

That is so cool! Shaking her head to regain her composure, Sanae smiled and walked to her side. "Then we should go together. It'll be faster if we go together."

Already expecting agreement, Sanae started forward, only to be stopped by a single word. "But…"

Turning back, she could see the white mage looking up at the barrier covering the city. "Would that really be the best course of action?" Lowering her gaze, her eyes bore into Sanae's. "Sanae-san, about how long has this been going on do you reckon?"

She gulped unconsciously. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, how long have these people been imprisoned here?"

He mind blanked. Imprisoned? Old memories began to resurface. Memories that she had tried to forget.

Why is she doing this? Why here? Why does this feel like a prison? Questions from long ago jumped into her mind.

"Ah, sorry." Refocusing her eyes, she saw the brunette look away in embarrassment. "Perhaps 'imprisoned' was the wrong word."

Forcing back memories of black eyes, she shook her head. "No, you're right. It is a prison."

Never to leave, to always be protected, but never saved. All to gather faith. She hated that black dome. "But it's impossible." It's impossible to save these people. After all, the barrier is 'her' work. Then again, this is all supposed to be for… me. Right?

"So you can't break through the barrier, huh?" A single nod was her answer. "I'm guessing Kanako-san can't do much either. She did say she was bad with curses." Another nod.

The brunette laughed quietly. "Well then, why don't we all try together?" The green-haired girl could only look at her in shock. "I'm pretty sure all of us can break through with enough force. Plus, while he may not look it, Yunno-kun is pretty good with field magic and barriers."

Turning towards the wall, she caught the brown familiar shake his head in… exasperation.

The thought of working together with her to break the barrier had never even crossed her mind. Then again, none of the other mages in the city had shown any interest in working with others either.

But, is that really for the best? Despite her inner protests, she found herself smiling. This was finally her chance. Her chance to do what she wanted, rather than what she had been forced to do. Ever since the barrier had gone up, she had wanted to protect the people who needed help to the fullest extent of her abilities.

She had been told not to save them. But now she had the opportunity to leave, and maybe even become a mage. She would just have to get Lady Kanako to listen to her.

Faith. Her smile faltered. This whole situation was created to gather faith. She hated that. As far as she knew, Lady Kanako had gathered more than enough faith from the people here as well as from other planets they had visited. Which meant that it was all to gather faith for her. To make me as strong as my predecessor or the original.

She hated that thought.

"Further east."

Nanoha was pulled out of her thoughts by the sudden exclamation.

Picking up her head, Sanae continued, "Further east there's a group of people hiding out. I can find them and bring them to everyone else."

The white mage smiled. "Okay." She pointed her staff towards the city. "The majority of my squad is searching the city for anyone hiding out." She shifted her staff over towards the edge of the city. "I left two members of my squad to try to find a way through the barrier. I'm not sure how well they're doing, but they should have made some progress by now."

"I planned to gather everyone I could find at the park there and, if necessary force our way out."

"Okay." She thought she understood what the mage wanted to do. "So I just have to bring everyone there, and we'll try to get everyone out. Right?"

"Not try. We will protect everyone we can." With those words, she felt more determined than ever.

"I'm sure the group hiding out will feel more comfortable if you go to them." That was true. Plus, she could fly. As the hiding group was further away she would be able to make the journey quicker.

With a short nod from both women, the white mage started up the hill, her familiar following behind her.

Without a sound, The green miko pushed off from the ground and took to the sky.


The scenery passed below her at a frightening pace. She knew the path. She had taken it upon herself to learn the location of each group of people in hiding in case something had ever happened.

With a speed that surprised even her, she flew between the houses lining the streets. Finally finding the one she was looking for, she skidded to a stop on the road.

The house in front of her was a rather dilapidated building. The second floor had already caved in. An effect of the curses surrounding the city. She wasn't worried however, as the people were hiding in a hidden basement.

Without a care for her own safety, she jumped over the broken gate outside the house and headed inside. Her sneakers dully thudded on the dusty tile.

She had a clear goal. So what if this was all done for her sake. It wasn't what she wanted. Why should she gain anything from the suffering of others. If it meant more power, she didn't want it.

Throwing open the steel grate, the mage's words echoed through her mind.

Those with power will use it. The only question left is how that power is used. Will it be for the good of the self or for others?

She had her answer. No, she had her answer a long time ago.

Jumping down the hole, she thought of what she would say. I have come to save you. Not the most eloquent message but it would do the job.

Hitting the ground with a splash, her words died in her throat.

The room was pitch black, yet she could see perfectly. The lamps that were used to light up the room were broken and scattered across the floor. Several indistinct shapes were strewn about the room and a strange liquid covered the ground. In the center of the room on top of a small table, probably used for meals, sat a young girl in a purple dress.

"Ara, Sanae, what are you doing here?" Without turning around, the girl brushed off the brown hat in her hands and placed it back on her head, the strange eyes on the top of the hat blinking in the darkness.

She was trembling. "L-Lady Suwako?"

With a happy laugh, the blonde turned towards the trembling miko, her eyes closed. "Yes, Sanae?"

She slowly looked around the room, the shapes gradually becoming clearer. "What is this?" She knew the answer. But she needed to ask. She needed to hope.

"Oh, this? Just getting rid of some garbage." The blonde opened her eyes to reveal orbs of gold surrounded by pure black.

The miko took a step back out of reflex. A loud splash sent a shiver up her spine.

"Why?"

"Why, you ask?" The girl jumped off the table into the puddle below her. "Because they lost their faith."

What? Words failed to form as her mind tried to take in the situation. Because they lost their faith?

"So you killed everyone?" Her voice echoed through the small room. For such a stupid reason!

"Of course." Her blood froze. "The only reason they were alive in the first place was to provide faith for you and Kanako. If they can't do that, then there is no reason to keep them around."

I-I could have…

"Or were you just thinking you could restore their faith." Gold eyes bore into her. "Do you really think you are skilled enough to restore someone's lost faith?"

She was comparing her to the original again. Setting a bar that she had no way of meeting.

But, "That's still no reason to kill them." She was shaking. "I wanted to save them. I wanted to protect them. To protect everyone."

"Could you?" Golden eyes looked up at her, filled with pity. "Sanae. Why do you think I did this?" She took a step forward. "I did this for you. You are a God, yet you've lost so much of your power over the many millennia. Without faith, you cannot live." Another step. "And you certainly wouldn't be able to protect anyone."

Cruel. That was all she had known the blonde Curse God as. If something wasn't right, she would fix it, usually in a way that would cause the most chaos. She was the one who had created the barrier overhead, let the 'dead' run free, and removed any obstacles to what she saw as a noble cause.

In the God's eyes, everything was done for the sake of those she loved. That was the reason the miko feared her.

"I-I didn't want something like this." She was crying now. Her dreams, the life she wanted, she would never be able to have them. As a God her destiny was already decided.

A small hand landed on her shoulder. "Go home for now Sanae." The blonde floated next to her. "Everything will be as it was soon enough."

Without another word the girl flew up to the surface and disappeared into the night.

The miko finally collapsed onto her knees. Why? Faith, Youkai hunting, Gensokyo. I don't care about any of those things so why?

Unable to come up with an answer, all she could do was sit and apologize endlessly for the actions of the only family she had ever known.