It wasn't the first time that she had seen a corpse, but even Fate Testarossa, the cool ace of the Navy, still got a little unnerved by death.

She was the commanding officer of this mission, though. Twenty-four Naval mages, including one teenager who she had specifically chosen to follow in her footsteps and become one of the elite Enforcers just like her, were relying on her for guidance. She had learned long ago to never show weakness in front of her subordinates.

Unlike her, many other members of the squad weren't as good at hiding their disgust. Quite a few of the party were making a conscious effort not to look at the glassy-eyed bodies staring lifelessly at the ceiling, and a couple were visibly pale.

The corpse directly below her's arms were spread-eagle, his weapon hanging limply from his right hand. She stepped carefully around the dried brown stain surrounding him and plucked it from his grip, turning it over to examine it. Model 97, she thought. The safety was set to lethal. She moved briefly to check the other body slumped in the cell, but there was no weapon on him. He should have been carrying one as well, she mused. Almost immediately, she got an idea of what had killed these two. The killer must have stolen the gun and ran. It was what was consistent with reports of deaths in nearby cells and the hangar.

However, these two bodies, and the four dead in the next cells over, were the only leads she had to go on. The hole blown in the hangar had already sucked the dead far out to space even for how quickly the Navy had responded to the incident. Two cruisers were patrolling the area to pick up any debris and bodies, but by the time the dead were found, they would already be frozen, bloated, and burned red by the vacuum and radiation, and it would be impossible to tell exactly what happened to them.

She pressed the button on the side of the blaster, and it opened itself in two to reveal a cube-shaped vial of luminous liquid. It was not full; this one had been fired as well. However, when Fate turned to look at the back of the wall of the cell, there were no scorch marks.

It was a little confusing to her at why the one blaster would have been fired when there were no signs of the bolt actually connecting, but more confusing was why these two had lethal weapons on them. They had no magical power; they were simply your ordinary, run of the mill TSAB agents. Only the highest-ranking Army members would be allowed to have a blaster that would fire lethal, and none of them would be assigned to be prison guards, like these men were.

She pulled her Device, which in its inactive state resembled just a yellow gem, from her pocket and instantly, a holographic screen with a girl's face on it manifested itself.

"Venture, this is Task Force-Sigel. Requesting update on the identities of the deceased."

The young woman on the screen pushed her glasses up on her nose. "Roger, Task Force-Sigel. Two TSAB personnel deceased in cell block B1-B are Gudfred Millebern and Roger Petrus, ages 24 and 22. Both enlisted into the Ground Forces and have served as prison guards for approximately nine months. They began their terms concurrently and were assigned to the same block."

"What was their service armory?" Fate asked.

"Non-mage guards in the maximum security sector are equipped with the Model 84 blaster and the Tiwaz electric stun gun."

"Did they have permission to carry lethal weapons?"

The girl paused for a second, then replied, "No, sir, as far as I can tell they did not."

"Can I get a check on the deceased prisoners?"

"Cell number B1-B-45, Combat Cyborgs Tre and Sette..." Instantly, Fate felt a sharp pain in her stomach. Deep down, she knew the fallout from the incident she had helped take care of nine months earlier was not over. It had been resolved far too conveniently. Her, Nanoha, and the four mages they handpicked as their successors had stopped the mad scientist and his supersoldiers from destroying their home planet, and they were promptly carted off to prison or placed in the TSAB forces, never to be seen again. In hindsight, she knew she should have paid more attention, but she just wanted some peace and quiet. Out of sight, out of mind, so they say.

"Cell number B1-B-46, Combat Cyborg Uno and Dr. Jail Scaglietti. All were being held on a life sentence."

Wasn't there one more?

"Cell number B1-B-47, Combat Cyborg Quattro, held in solitary confinement, is unaccounted for."

That was who did it, then? That sneering face that Fate still saw in the back of her mind sometimes?

"What about the hangar?"

"Our engineers are working with the prison technicians to get the airlock shut and the life support back up. One Klarwind-class cruiser is missing, along with three Alfeis-class shuttles and nine Ranulf-class fighters. According to the engineers, one of the fighters used its cannons to blow a hole in the airlock. Our only eyewitness testimony confirms that."

So that was the culprit. A vague picture of how the scene had played out in Fate's mind. The guards had come for a check, and had been killed with their own guns. Quattro shot her fellow Combat Cyborgs and creator, and escaped using the fighter in the hanger, killing everyone who got in her way.

Something didn't seem right about that, though. From the ones she had talked to, she knew the Combat Cyborgs were loyal and would never harm each other or their creator. They were as close as family, or at least she thought they were.

And then there were the guards. Why were they checking cells in the middle of the night? Why were they carrying weapons they weren't authorized to? Why was the one fired, if there were no marks to indicate it?

"Sir? Sir?"

"Uh...yes!" Fate replied, a bit startled.

"We've just received confirmation from Naval HQ that Task Force-Beorc of the Vanguard is on its way to assist with cleanup."

"Roger that."

Footsteps sounded on the metal floor behind her, and Fate turned to see a young red-haired girl, dressed in the same black uniform as her, running toward her. As soon as she saw the bodies, she stopped and took a step back, and Fate thought she could see a little color draining from her face.

"Commander!"

"Go ahead, Lieutenant Lanster."

"The coroners are being summoned. I've assembled a preliminary crime scene investigation if you would like to check it."

Fate followed her junior officer toward the cells on the right. As she turned to the first one, she saw two women, dead, on the floor of the cell.

Not all the Combat Cyborgs had been imprisoned. Some, just like she had been many years ago, were deemed coerced and offered spots in the TSAB ranks, under supervision. Three had been classed as co-conspirators and given sentences, but one of the ones who was given a coercion judgement couldn't bear to leave her older sister behind, so she ended up thrown in the prison alongside her. And this is what it got her.

Unlike the previous cell, this one directly had scorch marks on the back. Fate could tell that these two were killed by the same blaster that ended the guards' lives.

Unlike the guards, though, they didn't bleed.

Fate immediately turned and continued to the next cell. One woman, just like the other two in the previous one, was slumped on the floor, almost like she was asleep, but a man sat in the back, a blaster hole through his head. Where he had bled out was readily apparent. Out of the corner of her eye, Fate could see Teana turn her head away. She seriously looked like she was about to be sick.

Fate steeled herself and moved forward to check the corpse. The man didn't seemed to be alarmed by meeting his fate. He was almost smiling. This one didn't fear death.

She knew that face. She was the one who had captured him, after all. And she remembered her words that very day she took him and his Cyborgs in:

No harm will come to you.

She had told a lie and she didn't even realize it.

And then another part of her popped up, saying Why do you feel sympathy for him? Do you remember what he tried to do to you and all those you loved? You should be relieved he got what was his.

Fate shook her head. She had already given him what he deserved. That was the hard part in being an Enforcer. Her purpose was to be an instrument of the universe's justice, not her own or anyone else's. It was not her place to hold a grudge. She had neutralized a criminal, and he had been given his sentence. That was all she should do.

Someone else may have not thought that way, perhaps. Or maybe someone only killed him out of selfish ends. Regardless, Fate felt a twinge of sadness. She had promised this man that he would be able to live his life out to the end, and she couldn't even guarantee that.

Once again, another dissenting voice rang in her head. It's not your fault. You were doing other things and you don't oversee anything going on here. You can't be responsible for what happens to him.

Fate knew that voice was right, but even if it was illogical, she felt like she had at least played a part in this man's death.

She could tell that Teana recognized him too. She had played just as big a part in fighting against his attacks on Midchilda as Fate had.

"Can you send me the report?" she asked no one in particular.

Almost on cue, her Device popped out the holographic screen. Teana's first crime scene report honestly looked great. If Fate didn't know, she would have thought a veteran wrote it.

...Four suspects of interest dead. Cause of death: Model 97 pistol.

...Perpetrator unknown. Possible suspects include...

...Combat Cyborg number 4, codename 'Quattro'.

"This is very good," Fate remarked nonchalantly as she closed the file. "I see you've done as I taught you."

"Thank you, Commander." Teana made a slight bow. "I thought my perp list was a bit too small though. I tried to think of somebody else, but I couldn't..."

"MI will take care of that when we send it to them. Don't worry about it."

"I mean, I don't know if I'm even right though..."

"Do you think she did it?"

"I don't know." Teana blinked and looked to the side.

"Do you think she could have done it?"

"I mean, it's possible."

"Then that's what these lists are for. You didn't do anything wrong. Listing someone as a possible perp doesn't mean they're guilty. And if she was truly the only possible suspect, I don't blame you for not being able to find out yourself."

They were quiet for a minute, then Teana spoke up. "Commander, do you think Quattro did it?"

"I'm not sure myself," Fate sighed. "We won't know until we find her."

It was the first deaths and escape from an Orbital Prison in apparently thirty years, from what Fate could tell. No one was supposed to be able to get out.

"This seems really strange to me," she continued. "I mean, she could have been breaking out and killed the guards who tried to stop her, but what's her motive for going back and killing the others? They didn't have any communication, so they wouldn't have anything she wanted them to keep quiet about her escape. And from everything I've experienced, Combat Cyborgs wouldn't kill each other or Dr. Scaglietti. They are like family...yet she's the only one who I can think of who would possibly be the perp."

"Did you find anything suggesting she did it?"

"One of the guards' guns was stolen. Here's the weird part: the other guard's gun was also fired."

"Does that mean...the guard-"

"I hope not."

The next few minutes were spent in silence, as Fate pored over the evidence, until an alarm sounded. She, leading her unit, strode down the hallways of the prison to the hangar airlock, where a young blonde woman in a sky-blue uniform, trimmed with gold, stood, next to a slightly taller redhead in an Enforcer's black. Behind them were the Naval personnel, all standing around, talking, or doing nothing in particular. The two snapped to a salute as they saw Fate approach.

"Captain Greta Katzenschuss, Military Intelligence," the blonde announced. "This is Lieutenant Ernestine Hagder." The redhead nodded. "We are from the Beorc Battalion of the Vanguard."

Fate returned their gesture. "Greetings. Sigel Battalion of the Venture. We've compiled the reports and evidence of the scene of the crime."

Katzenschuss stared at Fate with what almost seemed like disdain. "Please turn them over to me immediately. Due to a directive from the TSAB, you are relieved of your command over this situation. We are taking over from now onward."

This couldn't be right. All Fate had been told was that another team would be coming to assist her, not that anything of this sort had been planned.

Before she could open her mouth, Teana jumped in. "Wait, where's your proof? We've already got this under control!"

On cue, a holographic text popped up in front of both their faces. "Right here," Katzenschuss smirked. "Think before you speak to a superior officer like that next time, little girl."

A look of fury crossed Teana's face, and she looked like she was just itching to say something back, but Fate held out her arm in front of her. "Enough. Thank you, Captain Katzenschuss. We'll turn it over to you."

Teana bristled, but silently fell back in line as Fate and the unit headed toward their ship that would carry them away. No one said a word.