On the Precipice Between Worlds. Chp. 5
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Wordcount: 2500
Commissioned by Marteddu
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The amount of information Emiya provided them stunned not only Fate, but the TSAB's upper echelons which reprimanded her, Nanoha, Hayate, and Yuuno.
They hadn't simply recovered a potential ally with vital intelligence, but someone who spent years of his life hunting down their current foe, tracking their members, and sabotaging them.
To say that he knew of the organization would be an understatement.
He knew more than most of the individuals involved.
The organization was built off of several dozen cells, each one specializing towards one goal, but relatively self-sufficient. Each cell worked to achieve their independent objectives, decided by a singular cell that communicated, guided, and "ruled" over the rest. While the many cells profited from each other's work, they all remained isolated from one another, as a form of protection for both themselves and their opportunistic comrades.
Destroying one cell barely slowed the others, which was the reason why the organization in question continued to exist, despite being surrounded by a society which would crush them the moment they were found. The structure of the organization, how they discarded one another with utmost ease, frightened both Fate and the upper echelons of the TSAB.
Who, after all, wouldn't be afraid of a foe who would callously throw aside their own allies without a moment's consideration, if it meant their victory?
That piece of information alone changed the nature of the operation completely, and would've been enough for the TSAB to rescind the discipline action they intended to level upon Fate and her friends, but Emiya considered that a singular fact… and was more than willing to share everything he knew.
Fate prided herself in being present for briefings, and remembering every detail of a mission, but as Emiya continued to dictate and clarify the intricacies and horrors of the foe they now faced… she had to excuse herself.
Otherwise, she feared that she would've broken something in the infirmary.
…
After an hour, Emiya left his room on a wheelchair, but wearing only a hospital gown instead of being completely garbed in bandages. He wasted no time, scanning the hallway for her, and approaching her the moment he found her sitting on the floor of the hallway. Fate watched him from the corner of her eye, while taking deep breaths, and calming herself down.
He parked himself beside her, and watched her for a moment, before speaking to her.
Once again, Fate found herself surprised by her new ally's words.
"It's fine to dislike them, or even hate them. They've done terrible things." Emiya spoke softly and leaned against the back of his wheelchair with his hands on his lap. A sigh left his lips, just as Fate lost her tempo. "I should've contacted the TSAB earlier, and helped you all, instead of trying to work with them. A lot more lives would've been saved."
Many would be pleased with those words, but they only confused Fate.
"By going to us for help, you had to abandon your entire world, and everyone you know." Fate could barely imagine the scenario. Abandoning the TSAB, her friends, and her life to serve another people, so that she could save lives, at the cost of nearly everything she held dear. Emiya had abandoned his Earth, his place, for the sake of strangers he never met in an organization that he barely knew. "Don't make your decision so simple, Emiya-san. You're doing yourself a disservice."
From what Fate could tell, her new ally seemed intent on erasing personal cost whenever possible. As he spoke of months spent undercover, locating facilities, and traversing different worlds without support, he made no mention of any family whatsoever. He went in alone, entering multiple worlds, in order to get rid of a threat that continued to elude him again and again. However, not a single ounce of regret showed upon his face as he recounted his travels and the sacrifices, he had to make to make it all happen.
Even as he smiled at her words, Fate felt Emiya Shirou barely comprehended what she said.
So, she spoke once again.
"There's no need for you to do that in order to save lives with the TSAB. We'll never ask you to do such a thing." Clandestine missions to investigate possible threats were aplenty within the TSAB, however they didn't do it as the Clocktower did. They didn't put the weight of an interdimensional crime syndicate on the back of a capable agent. They used an entire task force, teams, or at least an Intelligent Device. "I swear… we are not like those of your Clocktower, Emiya-san. We will not force you to make do such things."
He was her age, not even in his thirties, yet he recounted battles where he had to wade through the bodies of those he slew. While she officially became an Ace, he walked through deserts, in order to locate secret hideaways with the most mediocre amounts of clues. As she got her office, and began looking after a new generation of cadets for the TSAB, he walked between worlds, alone, in order to save as many lives as he could.
And, now, while she had a home, friends, and an organization that backed her, he chose to exile himself in order to save more lives.
A part of her felt anger, but after she took control of herself, all she felt was the determination to do better
Starting now.
Fate stood up and offered her hand to her new ally.
"Fate Testarossa, I look forward to working with you, Emiya Shirou."
It was silly, but she knew no better way to make it clear to her new ally that he was truly working for a new organization. The TSAB, even with all its faults, could at least attest that it truly worked to police and protect the people under its jurisdiction, and prevent terrible things from happening all across time and space. She knew that she'd fight for their cause without regret, and if they committed any wrongs, she would do her best to make things right. However, she did not expect him to understand nor accept her words, so she decided to make things clear through action.
Fate breathed a sigh of relief when Emiya took her hand, and gave a small, honest grin at her words.
"Emiya Shirou. Please take care me. I'll do my best."
It was merely a smile and a handshake, but it was progress.
…
Fate couldn't help but frown the more she learned about the abilities of their new foes.
Not because she feared their power, but the length they were willing to go for it.
While the common "magus" of Emiya Shirou's worlds did not commit such horrible crimes as the ones researching and harvesting Linker Cores, they still risked everything for the sake of their magic, and had a society which would tolerate heinous acts, if it did not cross certain taboos… or were kept secret long enough.
Fate sighed and shook her head, trying to get rid of her discomfort by crossing her arms and holding herself ever-so-slighty.
Nanoha, naturally, noticed her discomfort and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"They're scary and pretty obsessed, huh?" Fate didn't know how her friend could smile so warmly, after learning such horrible things. A part of her wanted to ask her friend how she could smile, but she stopped herself. The question sounded cruel, especially when she knew that Nanoha merely wanted to help her. "Are you okay, Fate?"
"…I will be." They were together in a small classroom, with a few other officers of the TSAB, who were assembled in order to deal with the current threat they faced. Hayate gave the report, along with Yuuno, with excerpts given by both their captive and Emiya regarding the Linker Core Disappearances and the Clocktower. Needless to say, Fate was simply one of many individuals who felt disgust at both of the societies they now face. "Thanks, Nanoha."
"Any time. Let's keep looking to see what we can do, eh?"
Fate nodded and accepted her friends words, and refocused.
Some even questioned why the Clocktower wasn't considered an organization to be attacked, until it was pointed out that their magical systems gave them no choice in how their society formed.
The answer mollified very few people, but it allowed everyone to focus on the Linker Core Disappearances until the end of the briefing.
The information provided by Emiya was the cornerstone of the entire organization.
A cargo ship, modified with an unknown artifact from the "Age of the Gods," which ferried resources and people from various worlds under TSAB control back to Emiya's homeworld. It was dubbed the "Charon" and Emiya's description of it hung was presented for all to see, and it didn't at all remind Fate of any maritime container ship she'd ever seen before, due to an incredible amount of modifications.
Emiya told her Fate that it cost the fortunes of several generations of Magus Families and it showed.
The vast ship was lathered in gold and marble, resembling a massive, floating temple instead of a ship. Instead of sailing on the seas, it glided above the waves, barely disturbing the ocean in its wake. Its prow was as an utterly massive, armored ram, which Emiya theorized literally battered its way into other worlds.
In essence, it was a Greek Trireme, bereft of sails, and scaled up to immense size.
The more Fate looked at it, the more she felt as though the massive "eyes" painted upon it were staring at her.
As though it held a sort of sentience, and was not simply an emulation of ancient magic, but something far more sinister and terrifying.
"If we can find it, and sink it, we'll be able to set things right." Nanoha, of course, looked upon the massive construct that many of the TSAB officers in the room desperately tried to ignore, and thought of the best way to cause it to flounder and break apart in the ocean's depths with devastating firepower. Fate took heart in that, more than she normally allowed herself, but her nerves were well and truly rattled after looking at the picture. "We might not even need to hunt down other cells… we can just wait for it to pop up and… boom! Problem solved!"
Fate couldn't help but smile at her friend's words, until the door to the room opened, and Hayate arrived with Emiya following behind her with a crutch.
The break was over, and they would learn more about their new foes, so Fate gave Nanoha a small nod before refocusing.
It would be nice if things were as simple as Nanoha envisioned.
However, she would like to be prepared for the absolute worst, just in case.
…
The TSAB's strategy against the organization dubbed "Charon," after their ship, was simple on the surface.
Chase down, defeat, and imprison all the cells they could.
With their knowledge of which cities to protect, coastal cities with high populations, they were able to narrow down locations to search to a mere hundred. With the TSAB's available fleet, resources, and available assets, reconnaissance teams were sent out armed with the right magics to detect the magics Magi used to hide, and were instructed to call for reinforcements before engaging.
Reinforcements in the form of specialists who knew what to expect of the enemy.
However, before Fate and Nanoha could call themselves specialists, and be the core of the new doctrine, they had to learn how their new foe worked first.
And, they only had one person willing to teach them.
Fate held fast against the twin swords that collided with Bardiche, only to see from her blind spot the arrival of another pair of swords from the very faintest corner of her vision.
With a grunt, she took to the skies and moved to ready Bardiche to fire, but the two blades she blocked were already coming her way, and were being followed by the pair she sought to escape. The principles of the paired magical blades were that they attracted every instance of themselves, so even if they lacked intelligence, Fate found that Emiya was more than capable of using three pairs of the black-and-white, curved swords to force his foes into untenable situations.
So, before she moved to evade, she searched for the third pair… and found them rushing towards her from her back.
They were the first pair of blades he threw, and they'd existed since the start of the battle, but now they were coming into play again.
Fate rapidly calculated the speed, arcs, and patterns of the blades and found only one vector which she could use to dodge all three.
A vector which she was sure Emiya was going to fire upon with his bow the moment she leapt into it.
Therefore, the correct answer was the same as the one she'd discovered early in their lesson.
Overcome skill with sheer power.
"Bardiche! Emit Shell!" It was the same sort of attack that Nanoha used to overcome the various constructs in the Clocktower, during their rescue operation. It created a burst of energy which her Jacket had to endure, but worked well against the somewhat fragile constructs created by Magi. It took into account her superior power, courtesy of her Linker Core, and brought low perfect skills and techniques. Initially, she'd disliked using it, until she realized that she had no choice, if she wanted to live. "Ten percent!"
Ten percent meant she would be sacrificing ten percent of her Barrier Jacket's protection, but that was far better than having to endure being struck by one pair of the blades, and incredibly better than being hit by one of Emiya's arrows.
The first attack, upon landing, took fifteen percent.
The latter took thirty-five.
And, of course, with all the attacks thwarted she was given an opportunity as "Emit Shell" created a flash of light, much like flashbang, which she used to her advantage and close the distance between herself and Emiya.
He raised his arms up in surrender when she laid Bardiche against his neck.
It was his loss… but Fate took note of how easily he breathed, and the lack of sweat on his brow, while she herself was breathing hard.
Fate arrived at the correct answer after considering that fact.
"Again, Emiya. I need to be better."
She was greeted with an understanding smile, and two summoned swords.
"Understood. Get ready, Fate-san."
Thus, they joined in battle again to better fight against their common foe.