Hello, everyone! Here's another chapter of our little mystery drama. This should end in about five more chapters or so...

Disclaimer: I don't own Nanoha, people!

Chapter 9: Downhill

Yuuno opened his eyes to see sunlight filtering in through the leaves of the tree he was under. His back was sore, and every part of him felt like it was on pins and needles. He sat up slowly, and raised a hand to scratch his head-but that was when he was yanked downwards onto a sleeping body. This action also woke up Joseph, who looked ready to leap out of his skin.

"What's going on?" He looked down to see Yuuno on top of him, and practically threw him to the ground. "Get off me, Scrya!"

"Unfortunately for you, Joseph, it's a little hard to do that. We're handcuffed to each other, remember?" Yuuno replied, holding up his left hand, which currently held the cuff in place. Joseph sighed.

"Well, now we've got to figure out a way to get these cuffs and get the heck out of here," Joseph muttered.

"And I've got a bunch of worried friends waiting for me back home," Yuuno sighed. "I can only hope Nanoha isn't panicking or anything..."

"What does she do when she's worried? ' Joseph asked.

'Well...let's just say there's a reason she's called the 'White Devil' of the Bureau," Yuuno replied nervously, "and leave it at that."

'I see...she's one of those overprotective types, right?"

"Overprotective doesn't begin to describe it," he said. "I mean, I love her as a friend and all but-"

Yuuno was interrupted when a gunshot rang out through the woods. Joseph leapt to his feet, yanking Yuuno up with him. The librarian stumbled to a standing position before he almost fell back down again.

"Do you think that's-"

"It has to be. We do have restrictions on hunting and poaching here, remember?" Joseph replied. "I wouldn't be too surprised if they spent the night looking for us."

"If that's the case, they must consider us to be too dangerous to be kept alive," Yuuno replied.

His suspicions were confirmed when Joseph shoved him to the ground as a volley of bullets crashed into the tree behind them. Yuuno looked in front of him, and he saw movement in the bushes.

Joseph's eyes were wide with terror. "Oh, crap. Run, Scrya, RUN!"

Yunno needed no second bidding. With a tug of his wrist, he led Joseph up and took off running. Adrenaline pumping through him, he raced at a speed that would rival an Olympic medalist's, desperate to get away from the assassins following him and Joseph.

Just when he spotted the van below, another gunshot rang out, and Joseph cried out in pain. The next thing Yuuno knew, he found himself being lagged down to the ground, falling midrun. He fell face first onto the ground, right on top of a rock. the impact cracked his glasses and sent blood rushing up his nose. The world around him swam as he tried to regain his bearings.

It was at that moment that he became aware of loud gasping coming from behind him. Craning his neck around, he turned to see who was currently sounding like a fish without water. His green eyes widened in unbridled terror as he took a good look at the scene behind him.

Jasper stood behind Joseph, a 9 mm pistol in his hand. It was currently pointed at Joseph, who was writhing on the floor like a worm, his hand grasping his stomach. Blood splashed onto his shirt and on the ground as he continued to make small, choking gasps of air.

Jasper's eyes were narrow slits of black. "I'd figured you might be a tough on. This time, the second one's going to silence you permanently," he said. He cocked the gun back and then aimed, this time at Joseph's head.

"No, STOP!" Yuuno screamed. "Don't shoot him!"

"You two know too much! You're too dangerous to be kept alive!" Jasper shouted back. "Once I take care of him, I'll be taking care of you, Blondie!"

In that instant, impulsiveness and rage took over the librarian. Thrusting out his free hand, a set of green chains shot out and slammed into the assassin, throwing him back. He flipped over and over as though he were nothing but a rag doll, before finally laying limp on the ground.

Panting from the exertion, he reached over to Joseph, who was barely breathing. He removed the man's hand and grimaced when he saw the deep wound. This wasn't something that magic could heal. He would have to get him to the hospital. Yuuno got up to haul the man over his shoulders, but that was when two other shapes flew out of the bushes.

He didn't need to guess. Mariel and Atenza Polonez looked like they had spent the night in a mud pool. Their clothes were caked with the stuff, and their faces were lined with cuts, bruises and strands of branches. The eyes that glared at him, however, told him it was way too early to start worrying about appearances.

"Jasper! Get up and finish them!" Atenza yelled at the assassin, who was starting to pick himself up. Yuuno took the opportunity to sling Joseph over his shoulders, and started to limp away from the scene, his legs aching from the fall he'd taken earlier.

"Don't even think of running away!" he heard Atenza yell. There were footsteps and then the dramatic cocking of a gun.

"Atenza, no!" Mariel screamed, but her brother charged past her and shoved her to the ground. At that moment, Jasper jumped up to join him and they both took aim.

Yuuno had no time to react as he felt Joseph remove himself from his grasp. He felt the tug from the cuffs come loose. He felt a rough shove push him forwards and send him to the ground again. He felt an explosive ringing in his ears as Jasper and Atenza opened fire. Five loud thwacks sounded as the bullets slammed into their first target, and once it was over, a loud thud as something heavy hit the ground.

Yuuno whirled around to see an ugly sight. Joseph was on the ground, five bullet holes on his midsection and one in his chest. His eyes were wide open in horror, and his mouth quivered as though to speak. Mounting terror rose in Yuuno as he realized what was going on.

No...

A very hoarse, almost ghostly whisper broke the silence. It was so low that Yuuno had to strain to hear it, but he didn't need to know who it was who said it.

"I'm sorry, Scrya..." Joseph said, his left hand grasping the librarian's. "Y-You'll...have to...go it alone..."

And then his hand went limp. Yuuno stared in utter horror at the sight, tears threatening to spill from his eyes. It was Mrs. Froy all over again...

NO!

"One down, one more to go." Jasper's lazy, apathetic voice cut in through Yuuno's thoughts. The assassin pulled out another bullet casing, and loaded it into the firing chamber. "This should be relatively easy compared to that dog you called a detective."

Yuuno's eyes were blank pools of green as he stared at the three assassins who stood in front of him. They had just killed the one person who could help him solve this mystery, who could help him get home, for God's sake...and they had the nerve to mock his death.

"I'm sorry, Yuuno," Mariel said. She did seem to be genuinely upset. "I actually did like you. But you're too much of a hassle for us to put up with any longer. You've left us with no other choice but to kill you."

"It's been nice knowing you, Blondie. Real nice. But don't worry about being lonely in the next life," Atenza said. "Soon, your friends will be joining you. Joseph just called dibs first."

The mention of his friends got Yuuno to snap out of it. He stared up at the man, who gave a smug, cruel smile.

"Wha...what did you just say?" he whispered.

"What's the matter, cat got your tongue? Those friends of yours in the TSAB will need to have some place to go once we take over everything. It obviously won't be here," Atenza said. "I'm most interested in getting rid of the one they call 'The White Devil'. If she's as dangerous as they say she is, it'll be one heck of a fight."

Yuuno froze. There was only one person he knew who went by that nickname. "N-Nanoha? Are you talking about Nanoha Takamachi?"

"Ah, yes. You're one of her childhood friends, aren't you?" Mariel said mockingly. "It didn't occur to me beforehand, but when we were assigned this mission, Yuuno, I realized that Nanoha Takamachi would come after us if she discovered that we murdered Chrono. So, we added her to our hit list."

The words hit Yuuno in the gut. He could barely get a word out, let alone breathe. Mariel kept talking about how she and her brother were going to do the same to the rest of his friends, but he tuned her out. His mind was running on one thing.

Nanoha.

Nanoha, the kindhearted, somewhat naive girl who would do whatever it took to help her friends.

Nanoha, the persuasive, aggressive combatant who would blast her opponents into submission should they refuse to listen to her.

Nanoha, the White Devil of the Bureau who could put the fear of God in anyone who dared to cross her.

And now, they were planning on robbing her away from him. They had robbed him of Mrs. Froy, they had robbed him of Joseph, they were planning to rob him of Chrono...and now, her, not to mention his friends.

At that moment, something in Yuuno snapped like a rubber band. Desperation, rage, shock and horror all came together in a cataclysmic mix of emotions that he let out in a high pitched, ear-splitting scream. It was so unexpected that the three assasins stepped back, completely caught unawares by what was going on.

And then, the world went green for ten blinding seconds. Atenza and Jasper jumped to the ground, while Mariel was practically blown away. She struggled to regain her balance, but only succeeded in skidding across the dirt path.

The green light faded away to reveal Yuuno clad in his Barrier Jacket and free of the cuffs that had kept him down. His hair flung loose around him, and his eyes were glowing bright green. Tears leaked from them as he glared at each of the assassins in turn.

For the first time in his life, Atenza could say that he was truly and utterly afraid. His eyes were wide in horror, and his jaw hung slack. Jasper was scooting away in terror, while Mariel remained motionless, her face paler than paper.

Yuuno surveyed the three in turn, and then spoke, his voice backed with an unholy amount of power and wrath.

"You...you've already robbed two people away from me. You won't touch my friends. And since you've threatened the one person who's mattered to me the most, not to mention threatening my life, I'm going to make it my personal mission to end yours."

That did it for Jasper. He jumped up and took off running, screaming the whole way. This action also awoke the siblings, and they likewise scampered for safety, terrified of the enraged librarian.

Yuuno didn't let them get away that easily. Throwing out his hands, he called up the power necessary for the spell he was about to cast. He hadn't used this spell in a long time, and while he had stocked up on a few other spells like it, he usually reserved those for special cases.

This would definitely be one of those times. It was one thing to go after him. It was a whole different story when his friends' lives were in jeopardy.

Two green Mid-Childan circles sprang up from his hands. Green chains shot from his left hand, closing in on his fleeing opponents. The first set of chains wrapped around Atenza, who was lagging behind Mariel and Jasper. The assassin screamed as the chains snapped around his waist.

To his dismay, Yuuno wasn't done. A second set of chains burst from his right hand, and encircled Atenza in a wide arc. His eyes widened as he saw that this was no ordinary binding spell. He struggled to move, but quickly gave up on that when he found that the set wrapped around him was currently holding him down.

Yuuno closed his eyes, and initiated the trigger for the spell. "Arrester Chain!"

The second set of chains snapped onto Atenza with crushing force. There was a bright flash, and then the entire area lit up in a brilliant green explosion. The sky rumbled with the force of the spell, and more than a few trees were knocked down. A great black smoke cloud hung in the air, and then Atenza dropped from it like a doll, slamming into the ground. He rolled onto his stomach, and struggled to regain his balance, but he collapsed into a heap.

Yuuno panted heavily from the exertion, the adrenaline wearing off on him. He looked over at the man, and realized immediately that he didn't kill the man. It was a good thing he'd chosen a spell with magical damage instead of using one of his defensive moves for offense. If he had, it would've gotten really ugly, really fast.

But he wasn't out of the woods yet. Jasper and Mariel had escaped the forest, most likely planning a retaliation. He wasn't limitless, and using that much power for an offensive spell left him drained. He had to get out of here, and now, or else-

A gunshot exploded into the silence...and a sharp, searing pain slammed into Yuuno's right arm, nearly tearing it off. Another gunshot, and the same pain hit him in the gut. He barely had time to cry out in pain before he was flung backwards and hit the ground. He found himself facing upwards at the sky, which was quickly beginning to darken with clouds. Black spots began to fill his vision as he began to hear footsteps clatter towards him.

And then Mariel was standing there, mascara running down her face and her mouth twisted up with anger. She was shaking and hiccuping as sobs wracked her frame.

"Congratulations, Yuuno Scrya," she said maliciously. "You just killed my brother."

Yuuno felt his heart leap in panic. "I...I wasn't trying to-"

"Oh, can it. We all saw you rage out after we mentioned we were going to kill Takamachi. Which, by the way, we're still planning on doing," she continued, ignoring his brief look of hot anger. "But we've also got other problems. Her girlfriend, Enforcer Fate T. Harlaown. Lieutenant Colonel Hayate Yagami, and her knights, the Wolkenritter. We've also got the former members of Riot Force 6 to worry about. And you already know what's going on with Chrono. I don't need to explain this again, do I?"

"You...wouldn't...dare!" Yuuno gasped out.

"Oh, I would. You shouldn't have killed my brother if you wanted your precious friends to live!" Mariel screamed angrily. "And even if you didn't, you would be dead anyway, since I'm not going to let you ferret us out to the cops. Speaking of which, didn't you used to be the Bureau's...ferret boy?"

"Shut...up."

"So you don't deny it. Having the ability to shape shift is rare, but why you changed into a ferret will always be beyond me." An amused smirk came onto her face. "Well, it looks like the Bureau's going to be losing a very important part of their facility, won't they? And it would happen right before the entire government collapses. All because of the ferret who knew too much about us."

Jasper came running up to them then, looking halfway out of breath and ready to collapse. "Mariel...I just got a word from the boss. She doesn't want us to get rid of him just yet."

Mariel looked at him as though he were insane. "He ratted us out to the cops, he killed my brother, and he knows too much! What could she possibly use him for?!"

"She said he needs to find that out for himself," Jasper said, glaring down at Yuuno. "And she said that he can't find out if he's filled with holes."

Mariel looked ready to ignore Jasper's warning and just shoot Yuuno anyway. But one look at the barely conscious librarian was enough to make her change her mind. He couldn't move now, and with him under her boss' mercy, she would be free to do whatever she wanted with him. She would have her revenge on him soon enough. For now, she had to be patient.

"Bind him," she ordered coldly. As Jasper ran off to grab some ropes, she got down on her knees and got close to Yuuno's ear. "You'll soon get what's coming to you, ferret boy."

Yuuno's eyes flickered in a moment of brief horror as he realized the gravity of his situation. Then, just as quickly, the world descended into a grey haze, and then everything went black.

The doorbell at the Takamachi household rang for the tenth time that night. Sighing, Nanoha got up from her position on the couch, but Hayate put her hand on her arm.

"Nanoha, you really need to sit down. Remember, you pretty much had a freak out after Fate-chan told you the news..."

Nanoha froze at the mention of 'news', but she quickly waved away her discomfort with a brave smile. "Hayate-chan, I'm fine. Or at least, I will be when Fate-chan gets home," she said.

"Are you sure? You look paler than a ghost," Vita muttered.

"Geez, you worry about me too much. I'm fine, really," Nanoha said, laughing nervously.

The concerned, icy stares she was getting from the Wolkenritter and Hayate made her stop. When the pounding on the door started, Nanoha ran over to the door, desperate to avoid the stares from her friends.

She swung open the door only to be crushed by Fate, whose eyes were red with tears. Nanoha did her best to console the blond woman, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw Chrono, Amy and Arf standing there.

"We came as soon as Fate called us," Chrono said as he let himself and the others in. He quickly shut the door to block out the cold coming in. He sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. "This...this is just insane."

"Y-Y-You're telling me..." Fate released herself from Nanoha and started wiping her eyes with a tissue. Nanoha decided to guide her over to the couch. "It feels like my world is shattering into pieces..."

"Has anybody else heard about this?" Hayate asked.

"N-Not that I know of, no," Fate said, her voice steadier. "Isn't there something we can do? Apply for protection for Nanoha and Vivio?"

"I'll do everything I can to protect Nanoha, Fate," Chrono said seriously. "I know how much she means to you."

Nanoha pulled her girlfriend into her arms, gently massaging her shoulders to calm her down. "You'll have to get protection too, Fate-chan. Whoever's coming after me might go after you as well," Nanoha said.

"I've already issued a city-wide hunt for the Polonez siblings and their cohort, Jasper. They apparently work for an organization, but I haven't been able to get anything info on that," Chrono said.

"Teana told me that she was working on that," Fate replied. "I can only hope that she finds out who they are and why they want Nanoha dead. When she does, I'm going to hunt them down, I'm going to find them, and kill them."

The air hung with Fate's last words. Everyone present looked utterly surprised and shocked that the normally demure Enforcer was making a death threat. When that happened, you knew things were bad.

"Well...that's something I never expected to hear from you, Fate," Amy said, swallowing slightly.

"You know what they say, Amy," Chrono replied, "love makes you do the craziest things."

Fate pouted slightly, and a ripple of much needed laughter came into the room. In the middle of teasing Fate for being 'yandere', Hayate's phone rang. Sighing, she excused herself to answer it. The number displayed was unfamiliar, and there wasn't an ID for the caller. At that moment, a sense of foreboding came on Hayate, as though it were letting her know it was bad news.

Swallowing slightly, she hit the answer button. "Lieutenant Colonel Hayate Yagami speaking."

A female voice came on the line. "Ah...Lieutenant Colonel, eh? It's wonderful to make your acquaintance."

"Who is this?" Hayate asked gruffly.

"You can call me Beatrice. Beatrice Corolla to be exact. I've come to give some very unfortunate news."

The sense of foreboding came back to Hayate again. "And what kind of news is that?"

There were a few seconds of silence as Hayate listened to what Beatrice had to say. Her eyes widened in utter horror, and her mouth quivered for a moment.

"Are...are you serious about this?" she said, the horror clear in her voice. Behind her, all conversation died as everyone listened to what she was saying.

"I'm afraid so. I don't really have all the details on this, but I'll be sure to get in touch with my source about this. She said she saw it all happen. You can only take my word for it," Beatrice said. There was the sound of a door opening, and someone shouted from it. "Alright, I'll be right there! Sorry about that. That was just my friends coming in. Well, looks like I'll have to go now. I'm so sorry for your loss. I really am. From what I heard, he wasn't the type to get into serious trouble."

Before Hayate could even stammer out a reply, Beatrice hung up. The lieutenant colonel stood there, completely tuned out to the world around her, her mind focusing on what Beatrice had just told her.

"Hayate?" Vita's voice cut through her thoughts. "Are you alright? You look terrible!"

"There's a reason for that." Hayate turned around stiffly to face the crowd before her, who was watching her with concerned stares. "You're not going to like this, but..."

"For Kaiser's sake, Hayate, tell us already!" Chrono yelled, startling everybody. "I can't stand the suspense anymore!"

"Fine, I'll tell you flat out, Chrono!" Hayate shouted back. "I just got a call from this person called 'Beatrice' who said that she had to give me some unfortunate news! And then...she..." Her voice got quiet as the conversation came up in her mind. Her mouth trembled and tears poured from her eyes.

Vita ran over to Hayate in an instant, grabbing her by her waist and looking at her with a frightened look. "Hayate! What's wrong?! Did she threaten you?"

"N-no, Vita, she didn't..." Hayate sniffled. "It's awful...he's actually dead..."

"Who's dead, Hayate? I-It wasn't anyone we know, right?" Vita asked.

"I-I'm afraid so," Hayate said. "Why...why did it have to be Yuuno-kun? He didn't do anything to deserve to die!"

The world froze in that instant. Everyone's faces ranged from horror to shock to, in the case of Chrono, pure regret and anger. Nanoha's face was a mixture of all these at once, and tears started leaking from her eyes.

"Y-Y-Yuuno-kun's...dead?" she said softly. The auburn haired woman couldn't hold it in anymore and burst into tears, collapsing against Fate in a heap.

And just like that, two little words caused everything to come crashing down.

Why, yes, I am leaving you on a cliffhanger again.

This chapter is one I'm proud of, since it had more action and introduced the real reason why Nanoha was targeted. My original plan was to have the cast be led on a wild goose chase, believing that it was Nanoha who was being attacked, when really it was Chrono. Around the middle of the story, I decided to have Mariel and the others go after everyone, Yuuno included, just to ensure nobody could stop them.

I hope I didn't make Yuuno too OOC when Mariel told him what they were planning to do to Nanoha. Although to be fair, after overhearing a murder over the phone, finding out your friend's a target for an assassination, and THEN learn that your childhood friends are going to be killed, right after you witness a murder up close, you can't really blame Yuuno for snapping at that part. I used his Super from Gears of Destiny, Arrester Chain, as the spell he used to kill Atenza.

Next chapter...nah, I'm not going to tell you what happens. Just know that Nanoha and her friends will probably be out for blood now. Read and review!

God bless, iheartgod175