A/N: First, sorry about being one review late but the next chapter was slow to start. Anyway, here is where it gets darker, oo scary! Behold, science and magic meet, and the nightmare begins… I wonder why the story suddenly took such a dark turn, didn't really expect this to happen... I'm actually beginning to think this actually falls under M already, but nah, I'm sure it will be fine at T! Not really satisfied with second half of the story though but whatever, on to reviews!
AbaddontheDevourer: So now that's Tristain done with. Guess they have to just conquer Albion, Germania, Romalia and Rub al' Khali then the entire world will be under the control of the US government. Can't wait.
You forgot Gallia but they won't act yet, they want to make sure Tristain is fully theirs first.
Guest: Darn... I was hoping Tristan would go to war.
Go to war and do what? Be annihilated? I plan to have at least one nation go to war so no worries, you will get to see America mow them down yet.
Reishin Amara: I agree about Tabitha Dragon! Don't you dare hurt the cutesy!
Besides.. Something tells me when they get ready to dissect her she'd scream out with her real voice anyway… And when she talks.. The oh shits go around.
But what about Johnson's steak? Oh fine, I actually already have something planned so Johnson can get dragon steak elsewhere.
inuboy86: It looks like the world is a changing, keep it up can't wait to see what reforms are made in Tristain.
This Chapter actually covers that in the second part.
trying to be so oh original: Wait she was asleep all this time!? Man Halkeginia was weaker than I thought and believe me that was putting the bar low. And my phrase was miswritten it's when you hit rock bottom you can see the top.
Alright, will keep that in mind. As for Halkeginia being weak, come on, you're asking them to use medieval weapons against a tank. Don't even try to add dragons 'cause tanks are obviously fireproof. Even Earth magic would at most be able to create a golem and toss the tank but if Tristain went to war and really tossed the tank the General was in, the gun embedded into the academy would start to bombard the city's palace into nothingness until the General was recovered by one of the helis. Then again, the mages could transmute the tanks to squash the people inside… Okay, I now know one way the nobles will try to fight with when they go to war.
TheManWhoWatches: Please make the story faster, I check the story for updates constantly.
Just make an account and link it to your e-mail or something then, it's gonna start to be slower and slower before Chapters come out because the review goals I set will increase at an increasing rate. If you want to know the formula I use, it is R = n(n + 4) where n is the Chapter number the story is currently on. Of course, remember the rule of me having a Chapter already written still applies.
Sane Light Aribeth: Sup LZW, see you made another story about Foz/Znt... Honestly, I think that this quite came out almost perfectly cooked, (few grammar errors here to there) but still quite good, I hope next chapter will still be as interesting as this one... Anyways, Cya later! (And no, i dont really think there is nothing to improve)
With no so much $anity left,
-Sane Light Aribeth
Yea, it is fun to write for Zero no Tsukaima, I just can't resist the thought of, instead of a regular useless person coming through the portal, something monstrous appearing and turning Halkeginia upside-down. Mind pointing out where those grammar errors are? Just telling me I have errors doesn't really help me find them. As for you, when are you gonna update The Demented Familiar, I've been waiting for ages…
Guest: Do another chapter darn you!
Review properly darn you!
ATP: Excellent work, but remember that ZnT is harem story - President should get all girls, including Eleanor and Agnes.
So what you're saying, is that I should make the President a huge pervert who conquers nations for women?
Appbeza: Ooh, it's nice to see this AU America treat their science subjects with civility. So, this America is not a hypocrite to their ideals. Subtle techniques are much more civilized than harsh one such as physical torture. That gives me hope that they will not use barbaric ways to study more into their magic.
I wonder if America will find a way to integrate mages into their society and be equal. Well, at least the the ones that were commoner raised or non-arrogant former nobles like the Princess.
Anyway, thanks for an enjoyable chapter.
- Appbeza.
Your welcome, though you won't be thanking me after this chapter.
Louise awoke and found herself unable to move in a dimly lit room. She looked down and saw that she had been strapped to a metal plate and forced vertically to the wall. She genuinely feared for her life now as not only had her wand been taken away, but her movement was also restricted. She then looked around and saw that to her sides, there were other mages, all in the same state she was but all unconscious. A voice then came through a hidden speaker behind her makeshift bed.
"Hello! It's your favorite Doctor Zelinsky! I see you are awake, fantastic, we can now begin the process."
"Process?"
"Yes, the process of extracting your magic."
"What!?"
"It really is a hassle that we can't do it when the mages are asleep. Now let us begin, come along Miss Vallière."
The metal plate she was strapped to then started to move from its position on the wall. It jerked off its securer and the pole attached to the back of it followed a path in the ground. It made its way through a narrow hallway with a reluctant Louise stuck to it. She soon found herself whizzing past rooms exactly like the one she had been held in, all filled with mages. She could have sworn she saw the Zerbst in one of the rooms.
"I have to say though, it really was difficult to find a suitable container for your unique magic. We easily identified that Sapphires could hold Water Magic, Rubies could hold Fire Magic, Emeralds could hold Earth Magic and Quartz could hold Wind Magic but yours, yours was a tough one to figure out. We tried all manner of gemstones while you were asleep to see if any resonated with your magic but only when we tried a Diamond did we get a slight reaction. It was quite a hassle but we finally got a suitable Diamond to house your power."
"No! Let me out of here! I won't let you take away the one bit of evidence that I am a noble!"
"I'm afraid you don't have a choice in the matter my dear, the decision is final. Oh look, there's some Siphon Generators now! Look through those windows Louise, this is the power of what we can achieve when science meets magic!"
The soon to be de-maged girl looked out through the glass and saw huge metal monstrosities. There were four prominent types she saw. One seemed to be powered by a sparkling Sapphire and was transmuting water it pulled from the air into some strange substance. Another had a glowing Ruby in its back and was lighting the strange liquid on fire after it had been pumped into a strange metal cylinder. A third had a glimmering emerald and was fed rocks which were spat out as gold. The fourth variant had a shining piece of Quartz in it and was blowing a turbine.
"It really is amazing, your magic is completely self sufficient, it literally creates energy! This goes against some of the basic principles of Physic, not that it matters now that magic is involved. I originally thought that the amount of power required to keep the portal active would be too much to warrant a prolonged stay but now things have changed. How does it feel girl? To know that the very magic you nobles prided yourselves on is what allows us to continue our invasion!"
"No… This can't be happening, Brimir will save us! I believe in the Founder!"
"Hah, pathetic, you're worshipping some man who founded magic, you should be cursing him instead, for he is the one who brought you to your doom! Don't go thinking we will keep some of you with your magic to create more energy sources either, look to your left."
Looking to the left, Louise saw a machine with two slots for small objects. A lab coated man walked up to it and put two Rubies inside, one which was filled with magic and another that was empty. The gemstones entered the construct and after a few seconds came out. Now both shined with magical energies.
"Do you see that girl!? We can duplicate the magic in the gemstones with ease, we plan to drain all of you dry! You should rejoice, your people helped us to achieve what most people didn't even hope to dream of, Perpetual Energy!"
"Why did this happen… Why…"
"Cheer up, I'm sure you'll feel better afterwards."
They entered a room which housed a large ominous looking device. It was a large robotic arm with a claw at the back which held a perfectly spherical clear flawless Diamond. Louise's transport plate tilted to a thirty degree angle facing the machine and she closed her eyes in fear. An electric charge began to flow into the arm as it powered up.
"Now, try and relax Miss Vallière, this might sting just a little."
The hand of the arm opened up and latched onto where her heart was.
"Oh, did I say a little? I meant a lot!"
The machine activated and Louise's eyes shot open in pain. She felt as if her soul was forcefully being ripped from her body. Her entire form jerked and spasmed as she felt the magic being pulled out of her. Slowly she got more and more tired as her energy was drained from her. Louise eventually lost the will to resist and the pain started to numb bit by bit.
The process eventually ended and Louise, barely conscious, felt empty inside, as if a part of her was no longer present. That was to be expected of course, considering she just lost her magic. Strangely, with what little energy she had left, Louise smiled. Even she had no idea what she was smiling about.
Perhaps she was happy that no one would call her a Zero anymore since they would all lose their magic as well. Though that probably wasn't it because they could now truly call her a Zero instead of doing it as a jeer. Maybe she was relieved that her rival, Kirche, would suffer the same fate she had, that she would also be a Zero. Yes, that was likely it, the irony of how her rival's insult now applied to herself.
Then again, she could also have been happy about losing her magic. It was a strange thought, one that did not really seem logical at first. Though after some consideration, it seemed to make the most sense. She had always lived with expectations by being born a noble and yet having failed to do proper magic. Maybe, deep down, she always wanted to be without magic, to be without the burdens and responsibilities of a noble and just live a simple life…
The American flag flew high above the palace as the city of Tristain came under new management. Firstly, the nation was dubbed Neo Tristain. Communications were difficult at first due to most of the staff not being able to speak olden French but they managed to link some words to the modern French they knew and the course they took the day before helped to improve understanding.
The first major course of action taken by the new government was, of course, the abolishment of the noble system and the gathering of nobles for 're-education' at the facility in Area 52. Next followed the conversion of currency. The terms were disliked by some but were generally accepted. People were to convert all their money into Halk Creds but there was an upper limit to the amount of money returned as it wouldn't do to have people like the nobles still being richer than the others.
A few days passed. Once the basic rules and regulations had been set up, education took priority as old or redundant buildings were converted into schools which taught people how to read and write English. The normal people gladly accepted the free education but some decided to continue working and only sent their children to school.
New food had yet to make its way into Halkeginia but kitchens and other area started to undergo renovations to transform them into more advanced forms, capable of more energy efficient, quicker tasks. Slavery was also abolished completely as all noble homes were turned inside out. One main offender was apparently Count Mott for the enslavement of many a maid and he never exited the portal again.
Plans were made to expand the city boundaries to a humongous five thousand square kilometres, enough to absorb the academy and Americo. Excavators were sent to look for precious metals and other valuables within the ground in and around the city before groundwork really began. Luckily, nothing was found and the plans were finalized. The people lived extremely happily under their new leaders and actually began questioning where the nobles had gone.
Many were ecstatic about the equal opportunity system of government and were glad that the nobles no longer ruled over them with a magic steel fist. The new technologies introduced in areas such as farming practically had them jumping for joy at the large increase in productivity which was about tenfold what they would normally yield.
As a result, no one went hungry in Tristain as coverage plans were created for the less fortunate and the price of many goods fell to astoundingly low prices due to the high supply available. The skeptics were quickly appeased in the few days following the change in government with these changes and began to actively support the new government.
There was of course some opposition from radicals which believed so faithfully in Brimirism that they wanted to be ruled by nobles but they were few and far inbetween. Those whose family members had been lost when the palace was attacked grieved the loss but did not blame the agents, instead blaming the nobles for forcing their loved ones to fight such powerful people or risk losing their jobs. It was obvious which they would choose and so fought to earn their pay.
Merchants were an interesting group as they helped to spread the word of the new government to the neighbouring states which was what originally got the other leaders to take an interest in the new government and send spies to investigate. Only thing, most of these spies either wrote back that they would not return or, in the case of mages, mysteriously disappeared without a trace.
To increase the defence of the area, multiple radio and guard towers were erected across the land which helped to relay transmissions and detect any foreign objects. More reinforcements were also called in from the homeland and a truly frightening force was now present in Neo Tristain. As an unexpected side effect, people from all across Halkeginia starter to migrate to Neo Tristain due to its new system which put everyone as an equal.
Smith and Johnson were having the time of their lives, they recently quelled the last bit of rebellion by the nobles. It was mainly from the Guldenhorf family which claimed it would not recognize America's leadership. Quite surprisingly, it wasn't the agents which brought them down, their very own oppressed employees turned on them and spiked their drinks. The main complaint was about the supposed Princess of Guldenhorf, Beatrice Yvonne von Guldenhorf, who bossed them around to no end.
They now relaxed in a hot spring after a hard day's work. Based on current intel, the higher ups would begin formal negotiations for trade with the other countries in two days. The plan was to first approach Germania as it seemed to have a slightly different noble system from the other nations which favoured hard work more. Trade would be simple at first, consisting mainly of food and drinks while the more advanced items would be kept isolated from other states.
As such, most leaders had to go by word of mouth and rumors among the common folk in their land for information on how the new government was run. The Holy City of Romalia was the most concerned, especially since the Tristain Void Mage had yet to be identified. What they gathered from the sources they had consternated them. It seemed that nobles were killed off or executed and the entire society was made up of only commoners who were allowed to rise in rank based on merits.
It made them rather concerned about the future of Germania as it seemed the governmental system in Tristain now seemed like a more developed version of what Germania used. However, there was also word of advanced machines which worked the fields in place of people. Machines which towered over any man and went at extreme speeds while clearing crop fields. There was also widespread success said to be present in the nation which shocked the Pope.
His closest advisors assured him it would only last for a few weeks at most without nobles to guide them. Some even accused the entire country as heretical for being without nobles, which were supposed to lead them as said in the Founder's teachings. The idea of a nation wide religious crusade was briefly tossed around but was ultimately dismissed in fear of an all out attack leaving the Holy City undefended.
A meeting between leaders was held but Albion was unable to attend, due to the civil war, and so only the three other nations could attend. Germania largely didn't care, instead asking if they had good meat. Romalia and Gallia discussed the situation but Joseph was just bored and simply agreed with what the Pope said without much thought. They decided to send envoys, one from Romalia and one from Gallia, in a week to seek out the new leaders and establish formal meetings.
Ironic it was, that Germania, the one that didn't really care, would formally meet with the leaders of Neo Tristain first. The two days passed uneventfully and, as usual, Smith and Johnson were sent to negotiate with the locals due to Smith's proficiency in the language and Johnson being the most skilled agent on hand currently as all other agents were busy blocking communications and rumors about the new world from exiting America.
Very few politicians actually knew about the new world, that had been aptly named Halk, and military information was restricted to a need to know basis. So Johnson and Smith were once again sent in alone to speak to the leader of the country. The President gave strict orders not to cause any issues this time as they wanted to fortify and set up industries in Neo Tristain before making any attempts to conquer more areas. For now, the agents had orders to maintain friendly relations.
General Hoffman dropped them off in the Apache near the borders where they met the escorts sent by the Germanian Emperor, Albrecht III. von Germanien, to bring the representatives to his palace where he and his close confidents would meet with them. The agents were on a strictly diplomatic mission this time and so only brought along a tranquilizer pistol and combat knife for self defense rather than full combat. They also brought a transponder linked to a detector.
They had their safety relatively assured despite their lack of armaments as the General waited at the border for the transponder to show a signal. State One would signal him to move in safely for pickup as the meeting ended peacefully. State Two would signal to him that the mission has gone south and to go in guns blazing and launch the missiles to breach the walls to extract the operatives.
Word from the servants in the palace of Tristain had apparently reached far as some of the people they walked by actually recognized them as the ones who took over Tristain. Of those some, most looked in awe but a few looked in terror, fearing how two regular people could infiltrate the palace and escape alive.
Some nobles also took notice of the agents but paid them little heed from their high horse, still ignorant of the power held by the foreign force that invaded Tristain. Once they arrived at the palace, Smith looked at the size of it and whistled. They had expected something maybe twice the size of the one in Tristain but were skeptical when they saw the ginormous structure in the distance. The palace was in actual fact, five times bigger than the one in Tristain and had guards at practically every corner.
"You think they're scared of us?"
Johnson nodded in agreement as he took in the sights as they entered the gates into the palace.
"You think their gonna be mad we took that Germanian girl back at the academy?"
"Don't worry Johnny, we can just offer to return her, I'm sure that crackpot Zelinsky hasn't killed her off yet. At least, I hope he hasn't..."
"Better get that transponder ready, I read in the intel report that she was the daughter of some esteemed family said to be the first line of defense in the case of an invasion. Ain't exactly impossible that one of her relatives show up at the negotiations."
"Great, what else could go wrong?"
As if dictated by the laws of the universe, Smith's question was answered when he saw a poster on the wall about a marriage between the Princess of Tristain and the Germanian Emperor.
"Well... We're screwed."
"What?"
Smith merely pointed at the poster which caused Johnson to burst out laughing.
"Hahahaha! Oh boy, this is gonna be a fun session! I don't remember seeing that in the intel though!"
"It was probably there and we just skimmed past it, that damn thing was as thick as the dictionary."
"Hey, maybe we'll luck out and he's as jolly a man as that poster shows..."
"Yea, and maybe I'm an alien..."
"Who knows, the Princess did end up havin' purple hair."
"Double or nothing?"
"You're on!"
A/N: Slow wordy chapter… It took me three days, such a slowdown from Chapter Three. Well, story will start to slow considerably from this point on I guess, since my brain is telling me to study and my ideas aren't flowing as smoothly as earlier. Next Chapter's review goal is thirty-two.
As usual, review, favourite and follow if you've enjoyed. Don't forget to check out my other stories, community and poll as well. Story status information can be found on my profile and you can make suggestions on my forum.