Fate.
With the wind at her back, Nanoha was flying towards the outskirts of Uminari City as fast as the Acceleration Charge System would permit. Under ordinary condition, the journey from Cranagan would usually take about thirty or forty minutes by the executors' fastest helicopter. However, the Ace of Aces was going a lot faster than any normal aircraft, fuelled by her determination and desire as she pushed at the limits of her Barrier Jacket. Chrono's last words to her had been clear: if she didn't get to the detention facility in time to stop Fate's scheduled execution, then she would never see her again...
I'm not going to let you people do this to her!
The rocket boosters at the rear of Raging Heart's Acceleration Charge System were at full blast, flying both her and Tiana across the sky at high-pressured speeds which would surely crush the bodies of normal unprotected civilians. Vast squadrons of military aircraft approaching the city watched in mind-numbing shock as Nanoha overtook them all in a single heartbeat. She zigzagged between the executors' reinforcements to reduce any obstructions or possible casualties, for the magical power which wrapped around her and Tiana had become volatile, capable of obliterating anything which came too close. Their appearance could be likened to that of a blazing comet, tearing across the horizon in a colourful streak of scorching heat and energy.
Despite her desperate need to get to Fate in time, Nanoha wasn't completely blind to everything else. With one arm securing Tiana as she shot forward towards the city, the orange-haired sharpshooter was putting on a brave face to endure the extreme pressures on her body. But Nanoha knew better: Tiana just wasn't used to such insane speeds, and quite reasonably so. It wouldn't be right to drag her along like this for much longer without causing her considerable pain and discomfort; in the worst case scenario, her Barrier Jacket could be very badly damaged. The girl really needed a break from fighting gigantic monsters and bazooka-wielding assassins.
As their destination loomed before them, Nanoha attempted to reduce her speed, mainly to lower the chances of turning her trajectory into a suicidal dive and crashing into the middle of Uminari City. Unfortunately, she was going so fast that this turned out to be rather difficult. The Ace of Aces was forced to veer sharply around the perimeter of the city, flying round in a large curve as she finally began to slow down to a more agreeable pace.
With a jolt of horror, Nanoha saw that smoke was literally billowing out of Uminari City. She and Tiana had seen the signs from a great distance away, but they hadn't realised how pronounced the damage was until they had gotten up close. The effects of the rebellion had been significantly different here than in Cranagan: virtually the entire city had become a victim of arson.
In the end, however, the result would still be the same. The people who ending up suffering the most would be the ones who stayed indoors, doing just what the executors told them to do. Armed troops surrounded the city, continuing to prevent anybody from escaping.
I grew up here, the combat instructor thought, tears of anger coming to her eyes. I lived here and went to school with Fate Hayate, Arisa and Suzuka...The best childhood memories I have are all in Uminari City. But to burn it all and set my city alight? To turn my treasured moments to ash, and destroy the lives of everybody who lives here – people that, if I had lived in this world, I would have known and shared my happiness with? What could be worth this?
There had been people who had actively supported the Harlaown Program before this, and not just out of fear or a desperate need for acceptance. Even the executors were human beings, many of whom believed that what they were doing was for the best. And right now, for just a minute...Nanoha thought she could see why. Numerous cities were burning across the whole of Mid-childa, just because the Program had collapsed. What would be preferable – a forced peace controlled by fear and dictatorship, or needless violence and mass rioting as the world went up in flames?
She didn't know if it even mattered anymore. Mid-childa was destroying itself and there was nothing she could do to stop it. Even if there was, there probably wouldn't be any point, not if everything would just go back to the format of the Program or something similar...
"Tiana, are you okay?" she asked, relaxing her hold on her companion. The forward's face was an unnatural colour, looking as if she were about to throw up. Oh, no, Nanoha thought. Maybe I overdid it a little with the speed...
"Tiana!" she said sharply. "I'm going to set you down on the ground. Are you with me?"
She thought she caught a faint nod from the sharpshooter, but couldn't be completely sure. Quickly, whilst maintaining an even speed so as to not cause any more distress to the girl, Nanoha descended through a gap in the black smoke and settled down onto the roof of a narrow building. It was scattered with the bodies of rebels and executors alike, empty gun cartridges littering the place; evidently a great fight had taken place here. More importantly, however, it was free from any further violence from the rebellion. The combat instructor touched down smoothly and laid Tiana down upon the roof, worried for the forward's health.
"Tiana?" she said again with concern flashing across her blue eyes.
The sharpshooter groaned and held her head in both hands. She managed to keep herself in a sitting-up position, taking in deep breaths to stabilise herself better.
"I thought I was going to die," the forward murmured. "My stomach feels funny..."
"Tiana, I'm really sorry," Nanoha said in hushed tones, feeling more than a little guilty. She wished that there had been a better way to protect her from the effects of the acceleration, but there hadn't. "If we had more time to spare, I wouldn't have gone so fast. Please forgive me, Tiana – it won't happen again. For your first time, you did a fantastic job of enduring such high pressures." She stepped back from the orange-haired girl and towards the edge of the roof, preparing to search for Fate properly. "It was unfair of me to put you through such an ordeal. Just rest here until you get your strength back, Tiana. The rebellion has already passed to the east of Uminari City, so you should be safe here."
The orange-haired girl held her stomach in painfully as colour gradually returned to her face. "Nanoha, what's going on?" she asked, traces of fear in her eyes. "What happened back in Cranagan? Where did this revolution come from so quickly? You didn't tell me anything at all. I thought you were going to save Chrono - "
"So did I," the Ace of Aces replied softly. "But sometimes there are times when you can't save all the people you want to save, no matter how good a mage you are. This is just one of those times, Tiana."
She knew in her heart, however, that she would never let Fate be included in that category, nor any of her friends at all if possible. Because of her and the crisis with Oguba, her companions had been dragged into this alternative reality against their own will. It was impossible for Nanoha not to feel responsible for that, and she refused to give up hope until all of her friends were brought back together again. Once she had succeeded in doing that, they could focus on finding a way back to their own world. The rebellion here was too huge a problem for their small group to deal with.
"The collapse of the Harlaown Program must have been planned for a long time," Nanoha said. "That's why the rebellion formed so quickly – everyone in Mid-childa had already prepared themselves for it." The combat mage began to rise up off the ground, already casting around for any traces of magical power in the area. "Tiana, stay here until you've recovered fully. If you're in trouble, use Cross Mirage so that I can track you down by your own magic. I'm going to go after Fate."
Tiana's eyes widened. "Fate's here? In Uminari City?"
"Not for very much longer if I don't find her quickly," the Ace of Aces said fervently, her heart skipping another beat at the thought. There was no more time to waste. "I...I have to go, Tiana. Don't get into any trouble! I'll be back for you as soon as I can!"
With that, Nanoha shot across to the centre of the city, floating high in the sky between the acrid masses of smoke and the tide of the rebellion below her. With every passing second, Fate could have already been taken away from her. Maybe it was already too late. Maybe she had stormed all the way here to Uminari City only to find that Fate's execution had already been carried out, and that the two of them would never be together again. Never to hear her voice, never to see that smile of hers that she only ever reserved for Nanoha, never to feel her touch or have her by her side in this doomed world...
No, Nanoha thought, forcing herself into action. No, she couldn't afford to let such gloomy thoughts drag her down. Fate was stronger than that. Keep calm. Use your magic to find her. You'll recognise it easily enough, because you've fought by her side so many times that the pattern of her magic is second nature for you now. Concentrate. Don't lose the signal...
Her breath stopped in her throat when she realised that the thousands of executors fighting on the ground would also be giving off a significant vibe of magical energy of their own. With so many of them around, she might not be able to sense Fate at all...
No! Don't panic. Don't panic. Where did Chrono say she was being held? The detention facility in Uminari City. That's where Fate was scheduled to be executed. If you can find out where that is, then -
Slowly, Nanoha turned towards to see the broken rubble of the detention facility to the south-east of her. It had been completely razed to the ground; as a hated symbol of the Harlaown Program, the rebels would have spared no aggression towards the building. For a split second Nanoha thought to check the ruins for survivors, but it was already covered by the roaring flames of the revolution. If Fate had been trapped inside the facility when it was destroyed...
That's not what I should be thinking. What I should be thinking is: if Fate escaped, then where...?
With her heart pounding, Nanoha realised that she could sense the residue of a fluid form of magical energy directly above where the detention facility had stood. The presence of the energy awoke a sudden heat within her, sending the blood rushing to her head. She could immediately tell that the magic belonged to none other than Fate.
Fate's here. She got out of the facility before the rebellion crushed it. That means she's still alive!
She raised Raging Heart swiftly, her voice feeling dry in her throat. An enhanced tracking spell could be disrupted by the presence of the countless executors on the ground, so she would have to go back to basics. Besides, she knew now that the blonde Enforcer could not be too far away.
"Area Search," Nanoha chanted.
Brilliant streaks of pink and white light flowed upwards from the tip of her device, curving round into multiple strands of magical energy which began to scan her surroundings in an extended radius. Soon enough, she was receiving plenty of positive signals, but virtually all of them were coming from executors on the ground. Carefully, the Ace of Aces released some surplus mana into the spell to filter out these rogue traces, the ones that she needn't bother with. It took a little while, but soon she was able to eliminate all the traces from her search, save for the magical residue that she knew to belong to Fate alone...
She was in for a surprise, however. As each reading came back to her, Nanoha discovered that there were actually several different traces of strong magic present in Uminari City right now. The energy used was too high to belong to an executor, but nor was it high enough to match Fate's level of power. The only explanation was that...it belonged to another Bureau mage. In other words, there were other members of the TSAB here in Uminari City along with Fate.
The Wolkenritter, perhaps? Nanoha wondered. If the Wolkenritter was here too, alive and well, then finding the rest of the scattered members of the Bureau would become much easier. It was possible that Fate could already have made contact with them.
That would have to wait, however...because she had just locked onto Fate's trace of magic here in the city. From the results of the Area Search spell, the Enforcer was gradually moving away up towards the north districts. Her pulse racing in anticipation, Nanoha swiftly traced the signal back to its source to pinpoint her exact location...
Right there. I can see you, Fate!
The Acceleration Charge System powered up across Raging Heart's length once more, increasing her speed drastically as she directed herself straight ahead. Her magical field powered up intensely to match the limitations of the device, lighting the sky up around with a comet-like glow and burning through the surrounding smoke with ease. It was the smoke which obstructed her more than anything else – if not for the black fumes rising up from the ground, Nanoha might have been able to find her way to Fate without any magic. In the end, however, she had still succeeding in getting around it.
As Raging Heart's acceleration approached its peak, the twin rocket boosters at the base of the device fired up simultaneously to accelerate Nanoha all the way towards Fate's position, wind and smoke blasting across the sides of her cheeks in open resistance. Uminari City went past her in a blur of colour as she moved into cleaner skies, picking up more speed with every passing second. The presence of the Enforcer's familiar pattern of magical energy was almost overwhelming at this point, and it almost seemed to Nanoha that she could reach out and make contact mentally...
The Ace of Aces shot through the last of the smoke, right at the end of the northern district,
and there was no longer any need to rely on Area Search. She could see her with her own eyes: the tall figure of a Bureau mage with beautiful blonde hair flowing down her back exactly as Nanoha remembered her...
"FATE!"
Her desperate cry was drowned out by the harsh sounds of the rebellion, reaching only a minimal distance ahead of her; she wasn't close enough to Fate for her voice to reach that far. The Enforcer's back was turned to Nanoha as she continued to fly away from her at high speed, red eyes fixed ahead. One hand was poised before her to grip Bardiche in a defensive position as she scanned the ground below. For a brief moment, Fate turned her head to the side slightly as if sensing Nanoha's presence – she must know I'm here, the Ace of Aces thought, it's not just something that she would be able to ignore or block out - but then the blonde mage put on a further burst of speed which almost took her back into the concealing smoke again.
"Fate!" Nanoha shouted in frustration, pushing the A.C.S. system back into full speed to catch up with the Enforcer once and for all. Stop running away from me! she wanted to yell through the storm of noise welling up from within the city. I'm right here!
Even at this range she could mentally trace the curves of her lover's cheeks and neck beneath her hair, the curves of her body under her armour...The familiar pattern of magic radiating off the Enforcer was mere confirmation that it was undoubtedly Fate. Nanoha only had to look and know it was her. Nevertheless, it hurt that the Enforcer still hadn't noticed her at all. It was true that there were a lot of other distractions in the area, such as the civil war and the fact that the whole of Uminari City was practically burning to the ground, but...
I need to get closer than this, Nanoha thought furiously, weaving back through the smoke as she followed Fate's telltale streaks of golden magic. If I can just catch up with her and get her attention, just for a moment...just to stop her...
She shot through the next cluster of smoke and saw that in fact Fate had already stopped...and that there was somebody else with her, floating in the sky next to her.
It was a woman of the likes that Nanoha had never seen before. Shimmering clothes of red and purple wrapped around her body as she exchanged quiet words with Fate that could not be heard outside their conversation. The woman's hair was tied up in a bun, with her face covered almost entirely by a great veil. Two blood-red eyes gazing outwards with cold apathy. Most astonishingly, there was a lack of any magical energy emanating from her body at all...
Who is she?
As Nanoha's speed brought her closer to the two women, she saw Fate's face as clearly as if she were seeing her up close. The Enforcer was arguing with the veiled woman, almost pleading with her, it seemed. From her expression, she was obviously hurt and frightened by what the other was saying, her distress rising steadily as they continued to talk. Whatever the veiled woman was saying to Fate was causing her great emotional pain.
Though Nanoha was unable to hear anything of their exchange from this distance, the sight of Fate being hurt or threatened by someone else in any way at all caused a burning feeling to rise up in her throat...
I don't know who you are, she thought angrily, the Acceleration Charge System driving her faster towards the two women. The roar of the wind was an intense howling in her ears as her Barrier Jacket shuddered under the sheer pressure. But I don't act favourably towards anyone who hurts Fate like you're doing now. Not a single soul. I don't know who you think you are to try and cause pain to her in front of me!
As Nanoha's magical field came within a hundred yards of the Enforcer, Fate's face seemed to come alive all at once. Her mouth opened slightly, eyes widening in shock and hopeful happiness. The distance between them had been shortened enough for her to know of her presence...
"Nanoha?" Fate whispered, turning her head round in wonder. "Nanoha?"
The world seemed to go in slow motion for the combat mage. She was close enough now to see her lover close-up, close enough to touch her skin and hair, close enough to look into Fate's eyes and see the deep passion for her within. She saw Fate's lips move to whisper three syllables, twice; words that were lost in the howl of the rebellion, but words that Nanoha could read on her face nonetheless. The blonde mage was mouthing her name with need and desire, reaching out for her as happiness and fright ran through her eyes in equal measure...
The mysterious veiled woman had reacted to Nanoha's presence too, but not in as warm a fashion. Her crimson eyes settled onto the Ace of Aces with open hostility, and a savage hiss came from her throat.
"Poor human," I.C. said, a strange sympathy in her voice. "Do you believe in angels?"
Time seemed to return into normal all at once. With Raging Heart's acceleration at maximum, Nanoha slammed into the veiled woman at point-blank range and released all of her pent-up magical energy into that single target at once.
"Acceleration Charge System Drive!"
The ensuing shockwave slammed into I.C. before Nanoha's charge could make complete physical contact. It blasted the woman away from Fate in a rush of energy, sending her flying backwards through an entire building and out the other side in a rush of concrete and heavy plaster. A split second later, the Bureau mage crashed into I.C.'s body explosively with the full force of her gathered momentum. The veiled woman raised her hands to shield herself, hands which glowed with a sinister energy of their own, but she could only put up a small amount of resistance. The A.C.S. Drive pinned her down in a raging whirlwind of destructive magic, crippling her defenses and pushing her back through the sky.
Breathing hard whilst she fought to overpower her opponent, Nanoha drove Raging Heart forward as I.C. struggled against the massive tidal wave of energy. The veiled woman had braced her own body against the incredible force, her own power gradually beginning to give away. She had cocked her head over to one side, shaking her head slowly. It was difficult to know how she meant the gesture.
"You've hurt someone that I hold very dear," the Ace of Aces said, her voice throbbing. Maintaining her attack, she flooded the surrounding airspace with Raging Heart's magic, caging I.C. in at all sides with a controlled net whilst the maelstrom of power continued to crush her adversary. "Keep away from Fate. Do you understand me?"
The veiled woman gave a hard laugh under her veil, a sadistic gleam in her eyes even as she shrank away from Nanoha. An instant later, the powerful spell had seized hold of her body tightly, twisting her around multiple times whilst she continued to laugh madly. The typhoon of destruction reached its peak and smashed I.C. out of Uminari City completely, throwing her into the open sky for miles and miles. The light of Raging Heart's attack was still crackling all over her body as she disappeared over the horizon, leaving a pink and white glow blazing across the city skyline.
Nanoha watched the light in the sky until it finally faded away, signalling that I.C. had been removed from Uminari City for good. Only then did she breathe a great sigh of relief. The threat had been removed, and she had managed to protect Fate from this unknown enemy.
Who was that? she wondered. Even though I.C. was now gone, her presence was still unexplained. When I cast Area Search before, I wasn't able to detect this woman at all. They must have been a mage of some kind, given that they were levitating freely, but there weren't any signs of magic coming from her. I've never seen anything like that before. Either she was somehow flying without magic, or she had found a way to hide all trace of her own powers.
The combat mage winced in pain, feeling the effects on her body after using such a powerful spell for an extended period of time. She had poured her own physical energy into that attack just to maintain it, and it had taken quite a lot out of her in the process. It would probably be a while before she was able to use a spell like that again. Using the Accelerate Charge System to get from Cranagan to Uminari City as quickly as possible, which had involved keeping it active for at least fifteen minutes, and then using it again to help out Fate...The strain on Nanoha's body may not have been as pronounced as it would have been with the now-disabled Blaster System, but it still went a little further than she was used to.
"Nanoha?" came a soft voice from behind her. "Is that really you?"
She turned around, her heart beating fit to burst as Fate approached her. With concern written all over face, the blonde mage flew over to her until they were just inches apart from one another, taking hold of her wrists gently. Nanoha swallowed, her lower lip trembling slightly as Fate gazed into her eyes with deep longing, blinking hard in a small attempt to fight the tears that were coming.
"Fate?" she whispered, her voice shaking. "I..."
Her words felt tongue-tied and useless in her mouth, unable to communicate the depth of what she was feeling right now. She'd searched for Fate long and hard ever since they had been separated, almost thinking of nothing else, and now that they'd finally found each other again...For some reason, Nanoha just didn't know what she could say to her in words. Her throat had gone dry as her gaze moved down to the Enforcer's lips. Forget words. She should just kiss her.
Fate had moved close enough to her until their noses were almost touching, close enough for her to feel her breath against her skin. The sensation was not at all unpleasant.
"Are you hurt?" the Enforcer asked seriously, her arms moving up to her shoulders. "Are you okay, Nanoha?"
Nanoha felt a relieved smile break out across her face, her tongue finally untangling itself. "Yes, I'm fine," she said. "I was going to ask you the same thing. I just...I mean, I..." She swallowed again, feeling a faint prickling at the corners of her eyes as she gazed up at her lover again. "I really, really missed you, Fate. I...I don't want to lose you ever again. Ever."
The blonde mage seemed just as emotionally tense as her, if not more. One gloved hand had released Nanoha's shoulder to stroke her cheek as their foreheads touched. Her chest moved up and down against the other mage's body in near-perfect rhythm with her. As Fate pressed her fingers against the base of her neck and stroked her hair passionately, the Ace of Aces breathed in sharply. Cupping her chin delicately with her other hand, the Enforcer pressed herself tightly against Nanoha with a need that was still unfulfilled, each of them unable to look away for a single second.
"I never stopped searching for you, Nanoha," she said then, a warm feeling burning acutely down her tongue as she spoke. "I never gave up, no matter what happened to me, no matter how alone I felt without you by my side. I couldn't." Fate's lips were only inches from hers as the tears began to fall. "I just knew I'd find you again. I knew you had to be looking for me as well. The world can't stop us from being together, Nanoha - nothing can. Even if the whole of Mid-childa were to go up in flames, we could never be separated again..."
Nanoha cradled her neck, her blue eyes burning fiercely into hers as she pulled the blonde mage closer against her. "You think too much of me," the combat mage breathed, guilt shooting across her features momentarily. "I can't imagine what you must have gone through, Fate. No one should have to be alone." Their lips brushed against each other softly without engaging completely. "I heard you were going to be executed. It broke my heart, Fate. I wasn't there for you, I should have been there to save you - "
The Enforcer put two fingers against her lips. "Hush, Nanoha," she said quietly. "Don't be so hard on yourself for my sake. None of this was your fault." She planted a kiss on the combat mage's forehead and smiled. "I got myself out of that one without too much trouble. If you're going to blame anyone, then blame me for not being able to help you."
"I'm not going to do that! Why would I blame you?" Despite herself, Nanoha was smiling back as well, although she didn't know why. She just knew that she couldn't possibly be down while Fate was so happy to be with her. "I can't stand being here in this world, Fate. Time travel, alternate realities, constantly separated from those I love, civil war...I just want it all to end. I want to find the rest of our friends and get back to our own world right now. And I didn't know how I could possibly achieve all of that by myself. I watched Chrono die in front of me. I had to let go of the only companion I had because I was so desperate to find you again. I witnessed the rise of internal rebellion right here in Mid-childa. And I thought...how much longer can I go on like this? Alone?"
Fate caught her in a fierce hug with both arms, squeezing the combat mage tight. "But you don't have to do it alone, Nanoha," she whispered reassuringly in her ear. "Not anymore."
"I know." The Ace of Aces flashed her a dazzling smile which took her breath away. "Because now I've got you back again, Fate...I feel that we can do this. The world feels like it's crumbling away from me, but all this is still possible..."
She pulled her arms up around her lover's neck and captured Fate's lips in a full-on kiss, a kiss that she had been saving for a long time. Her tongue moved within and brushed against the inside of the other woman's mouth, pushing herself forward with pure passion and prompting a quiet moan from deep within the Enforcer's throat. Nanoha's fingers gripped loosely at her lover's long blonde hair, pulling a little but not too hard, just how she knew she liked it. Her mouth relaxed for a moment as she bit down slightly with her teeth, running the tips of her fingers against the sides of Fate's neck.
The Enforcer responded immediately to her touch, sensitive around such an area. Her mouth lifted from Nanoha's with traces of saliva clinging to the corners of her lips, her breath coming hard and fast and her cheeks deeply flushed. Eyes lowered, Fate kissed underneath Nanoha's chin and began to trace her tongue down her neck, sucking and biting slightly as she did so. Her lover gasped out in surprise, pulling at the blonde mage's hair some more as one hand reached up to loosen her collar. Nanoha's eyes shut tightly with pleasure as Fate continued the same movement, even leaving a few love-bites around her throat. The combat mage's hands drifted from the Enforcer's hair to her mid-back, wrapping round to brush against her breasts.
She pulled at Fate's clothes, annoyed at the obstructing features of the Barrier Jackets, and licked down at the nape of her neck. Some stray strands of blonde hair caught in her mouth, and Nanoha tugged at them playfully with her teeth. As Fate raised her head up towards her again, the combat mage kissed her again and traced her fingers all the way down between her breasts, breathing through her. The Enforcer shuddered and reached at her in a similar fashion, forcing another harsh moan from her lover's throat.
And right then and there, just for a few moments, Nanoha's mind went blank. She lost concentration over her magic, disrupting her levitation as she started to fall out of the sky...
She yelped out in surprise as she started to plummet, but fortunately it was only temporary. In the next moment, Nanoha had taken control again and had maintained her altitude. She looked up towards Fate, seeing worry reflected in the other woman's eyes.
"I'm sorry," Fate said, still breathing heavily with the experience and looking rather embarrassed. "I guess I got you too excited."
Nanoha felt her face turn red. She was embarrassed? "This is really unprofessional and dangerous," she muttered. "If we're going to do this, it should be on the ground."
"Down there? There's a civil war going on, Nanoha." The Enforcer raised an eyebrow and smiled teasingly at her. "You'll really make out with me anywhere, won't you?"
"All right, all right." The Ace of Aces drew herself up and tried to make an attempt at being serious. "This isn't the time or place for this. We'll continue this later when it's more...appropriate." The look that Fate gave her in return made her blush furiously and stumble over her words again. "Right now we have to find the rest of the Bureau," she said. "We should meet up with Tiana first."
Fate sighed, clearly disappointed at having to stop their lovemaking for now, but also seeing that other things were much more important. "I guess we should do that, then," she said. "So where is Tiana?"
"I left her on the roof of a building," Nanoha said bluntly.
The Enforcer looked at her with a puzzled expression.
"It's not," the Ace of Aces tried, "as bad as it sounds. And I was in a hurry. She's probably still there."
"You left Tiana on a building," Fate repeated. "Our only other companion is stranded on the roof of a random building in a burning city."
The combat mage pouted at her. "It sounded much better when I said it. It really did."
"Nanoha, I love you more than anything else in the universe," the Enforcer said kindly. "I really do. But this is one of the reasons why you need me around."
"It's not like that, Fate!" the other mage protested. "I needed to drop Tiana off somewhere so that she could rest. It's not like I can't find her again. Besides - "
"Internal Singular Teleport!"
The cry came out of nowhere in the middle of their conversation. As the two mages whirled around to see where it had come from, a great bubble of black magic arose from the surrounding airspace. It immediately clasped around Fate's body, absorbing into her skin like a sponge. The Enforcer's face was pale as she stared at her gloved hands in wide-eyed terror.
"Fate!" The Ace of Aces rushed over to the blonde mage as the bubble of mana disappeared completely. "Fate, are you all right? What just...happened..."
Her voice trailed away as Fate raised her hands in front of her face. The colour drained from Nanoha's features as she realised...that Fate's hands had become see-through. They were now ghostly and transparent, as if about to fade away completely. And as the Bureau mage watched, the same thing was happening to the rest of the Enforcer's body...
No! What's going on? Who's out there? Who cast that spell on her?
"Fate," Nanoha whispered, reaching out to her. Her hands went right through her body: it was as if she were completely incorporeal. "Fate, stay with me. Stay with me!"
The Enforcer was mouthing something to her, no longer able to speak. Three words, repeating in a constant pattern. She was trying to say three words to her, and knowing exactly what they were didn't make Nanoha feel any better. If anything, it threatened to break her heart in two. This couldn't happen. They had finally found each other after what seemed an age...they had been so happy...
I'm not going to lose her again! she thought determinedly, trying to think of some way to halt the spell. I'm not going to let her -
But it was too late. Before her, Fate's image shimmered faintly...and then disappeared into thin air without a single trace. Even her magical field had been removed from the air itself. The unknown spell had reached its conclusion; Fate had been taken away from her again, and this time there really was no way of tracking her...
No, Nanoha thought, wildly clutching at the air around her where Fate had once stood. She was gone. Please, no. I tried so hard to find her. Don't take Fate away from me again...please...don't...
It had happened so suddenly that there was almost nothing she could have done to stop it. Somehow, that hurt even more. With agony twisting through her heart, Nanoha realised Fate wasn't going to be coming back...it even felt like it was permanent this time...
Think, the Bureau mage said to herself, forcing herself away from the inevitable tears. Think. You haven't lost her yet! Somebody out there cast that spell. The incantation of the spell used was something to do with transportation, and the energy pattern was similar as well. A transport spell, then, taking Fate away to another location. All you have to do is find the person who took her away, and then -
"Who are you?" I.C. said calmly, hovering about a foot above her, the veil still covering her face.
Slowly, Nanoha lifted her face towards the veiled woman. The hole in her heart created by Fate's sudden disappearance was now filled with a much more volatile emotion. The reason for her pain was standing right in front of her.
"You," the Ace of Aces breathed in white-hot anger, bringing Raging Heart up. "What have you done to Fate?" Her arms were shaking. "Where did you take her? Tell me!"
The veiled woman regarded her icily with blood-red eyes for several seconds. Even now, there was still a lack of any magical energy emanating from her, despite having already cast a spell right at them.
"Fate," I.C. repeated in a harsh venomous hiss. She cocked her head over to one side. "Why...why do you think yourself worthy of speaking her name? Fate and I have risen above the tragedies of humanity. I saw you, worthless human. I saw what you were doing with my Fate."
Nanoha felt a surge of power rise within her as she prepared to fire an attack spell at the first opportunity. It was astounding that this enemy was still alive after the pounding she had given them just minutes earlier. Whoever this mysterious woman was, they were certainly something else entirely.
"Where is she?" the Ace of Aces demanded. "I warned you to keep away from Fate. I'm not in the mood for games."
The veiled woman's eyes blinked slowly. "She will dine as my guest at my place of residence upon this blighted planet, just as intended," she said. "Fate...is not your concern. I have let you play around with your laughable magic and your harmless toys, because it amuses me. But in truth?" One hand rose high above her head as I.C. fixed her chilling gaze upon Nanoha. "You are just a weak fragment of the human race who is doomed to die along with this world. My Fate will never return to you, not in this world or any other..."
Sensing the rising danger, Nanoha grasped Raging Heart in both hands and hardened her resolve. She would get very little information out of this encounter, at least whilst her opponent remained undefeated. It was time to take action now.
"Acceleration Charge System Drive!"
There was a blur of red and purple, and the veiled woman was suddenly right in front of her, her arm raised to strike. The flat of her palm slammed into Nanoha's forehead. Though there was no pain, a strange vibrating effect went through the combat mage's body, nullifying her spell and taking away the remaining power left in the A .C. S. Drive...
"Do you believe in angels?" I.C. asked, turning her wrist to the side.
What did she just do? Raging Heart isn't responding any more! I can't do any spells! That can't have been magic that she did -
"Imprinted Psychic Stream," the veiled woman chanted. "Gauge 3 Lock. Quickened Absolution. Demonic Cadaveria. Testarossa Lightning Storm."
The spells were coming one after the other, and yet nothing seemed to be happening. Nanoha couldn't feel any ill-effects or any change at all. What was going on? Was her opponent just saying random words without meaning? With no spells in her arsenal, she had to find a way of defending herself somehow -
"Gauge 3 Release," the woman said in an empty voice.
The Bureau mage screamed as the previous three spells ripped through her simultaneously.
The feeling was virtually indescribable, as if she were being hacked to death by a series of blunt instruments on all sides whilst something exploded inside her from within. Multiple bolts of lightning were shooting through her mind, destroying her control over her magic completely. As tremendous waves of constant agony came over her, her Barrier Jacket was reduced to shreds in no time.
What...what is she?...
Barely conscious of what was happening to her, Nanoha began to fall towards the ground at a deathly speed. Unable to hold her device in her hands anymore, Raging Heart fell from her grip, heading for the same fate...
"You are a sad specimen," I.C. said softly, hovering above her. "Usually, I would leave things like this, since you have learned your lesson in warfare. However...I saw what you were doing with my Fate, and that disturbs me. I can't let things stay like this. I would never permit someone like you to lay hands on my Fate."
Blood streaming from her forehead, the Ace of Aces managed to raise her eyes towards her attacker. And for just a moment...she thought she recognised the veiled woman. It seemed crazy, but those blood-red eyes had a very similar shade to what she had seen in Fate. The type of emotions contained within them were completely opposite, but...
"Merge through equals and opposites divine to disrupt the course of nature," I.C. hissed, releasing her finishing attack as she had done on the people of Uminari City previously. "Antimatter Converse!"
A colossal shockwave erupted from her hands and hurtled towards the wounded Nanoha. Eyes wide, the Ace of Aces tried to find a way to avoid it, but there was no longer any hope left. Raging Heart had fallen from her grasp, her magic departing her. Her Barrier Jacket was barely hanging onto her body and afforded her only intimal protection. She whispered Fate's name one last time and closed her eyes peacefully, barely feeling it as purple and golden light engulfed her body in a single spike of killing magic. The powerful spell split the earth beneath her and opened up a gigantic crater in Uminari City as Nanoha was taken away into oblivion...
The cataclysmic impact shook the entire city for nearly a minute, most notably the grounds of the hospital situated not too far away from the scene. Rows and rows of executors surrounded the facility on all sides, blocking off all entrances and maintaining control of the area. All previous attempts to penetrate into the hospital had failed repetitively, as many of them had discovered; an invisible force field around the building shocked anybody who got too close. With their forces preoccupied with dealing with the rebellion and still unable to enter the strange facility, the executors had instead kept the hospital under heavy guard whilst keeping a close eye on any suspicious activity. There were more pressing matters to deal with than magically-shielded buildings, and as long as the place wasn't being used by the rebels it could be overlooked temporarily.
With the force of I.C.'s finishing spell, however, almost all of the gunmen had been thrown off their feet completely. Some of them had broken ranks and fled in terror despite the nature of their disciplined training; others had gotten back up and raised their weapons towards the bulging smoke, wondering what kind of monstrous weapon had descended on them from the sky above. All of the executors, however, had turned their eyes away from the facility they were meant to be guarding.
And so it was that none of them saw the main doors of the hospital slide open, nor witnessed the figure of an old man step through into the open air. A dim glow of magic glimmered around his hands as he passed through the force field without any trouble.
"Please remove yourselves from my path, gentlemen," Grylmark said irritably, walking briskly towards the stunned executors whilst they were still picking themselves up from the ground. "Though you will scarcely believe it, I'm in a bit of a hurry."
The soldiers reacted to his voice as if the old man had openly threatened them. In the space of a few seconds, the summoner found himself staring down the muzzles of nearly twenty plasma rifles as the executors aimed their guns right at him. It had to be a new record. Many of the gunmen were still jumpy and near-paranoid after the recent quake had hit, ready to fire at anything that moved.
"Who are you?" one of the soldiers demanded. "Are you with the rebels? How did you get out of that building?" Their finger tightened around the trigger. "Did you make that earthquake?"
With a sigh, Grylmark raised his hand upwards, time magic curling around his fingers with malicious intent. Immediately, the executors opened fire on him from all sides in a frenzy, already on edge from first-hand experience of the war around them. Many of the shots were fired wildly and without thinking, bullets going astray and disintegrating against the active force field of the hospital before they could reach the summoner. The shots which did make it towards Grylmark, however, met with a slightly different kind of resistance.
The old man braced himself to absorb the plasma bullets with his own hands, but somebody else got there first. As the executors yelled out and fired constantly, a strange humanoid creature detached itself from the shadows of the hospital wall and raced in front of Grylmark to shield him. Of the newcomer, only one of its arms was alive and functioning; the other was stiff, rotting and dead. The alien grabbed hold of the dead arm with its one living arm and deflected each of the projectiles in the other direction until the executors had to start dodging their own bullets.
"Ungore," Grylmark said, sounding mildly offended. "I did not call you and Srethis out here to protect me from mice."
The tall creature turned its head slightly to glare at him from within the cover of its hood, looking as if it wanted to spit on the ground. Razor-sharp spikes protruded from its shoulders, visible through the multicoloured garments which covered its body from the neck down.
"Then what did you call me out for, Grylmark?" Ungore rasped. "To witness the destruction of the human race? For that, I would gladly do."
There was movement from their left as a winged reptilian being with dark-green eyes and razor-sharp talons emerged silently to stand at their side. Scales rippled down the length of its body as Srethis raised its head, gazing up towards where black smoke had virtually blotted out the sky. The lizard blinked sadly at the sight, breathing in deeply as it turned away.
"Give uss your ordersss, Grylmark," Srethis hissed in a low voice, tensing its muscles in preparation. "Thingss are different now...we have an agreement. Srethiss will follow where you lead."
"What the hell are those things?" one of the other executors exclaimed, staring at the lizard and alien in horror. "Where did they come from? Shoot them!"
Another concentrated hail of bullets came hurtling towards the three of them, only this time their opponents were targeting the two non-humanoids instead. Seeing this, a shade of alarm passed across Grylmark's face; Ungore was more than capable of protecting themselves, but Srethis' body was weak in comparison and quite vulnerable to the executors' weapons. The summoner cursed, knowing he could not afford to lose any of his allies here. Time was was not on their side.
"Tyrannic Degradation!" he cried, flexing his fingers upwards like talons.
The spell curled out from his fingertips to encircle the line of executors in a mesh of red, blue and green magic which revolved around them at a rapid speed. The soldiers' weapons began to crack, break down, and finally explode in their hands, putting a swift end to the storm of bullets. As cries of pain sounded from within the circle, the spell whipped around them faster still and threw the executors off their feet to crash onto the ground in a heap.
"For goodness' sake," the summoner muttered to himself, walking forward over the bodies. "You can't even walk in your own city any more..."
There was the sound of marching and shouting all about him as another line of executors rounded the corner of the facility. Seeing Grylmark framed in plain sight standing over a whole squadron of their downed comrades, the new regiment of soldiers raised their weapons angrily to take him down. Behind them, another squadron of executors were already waiting to take their places, and then another...
I don't have time for this foolishness, Grylmark thought. And neither does anyone else, even if they don't know it yet. The basic concept of war is simple ignorance from start to finish; the only thing truly achieved is the pointless deaths of many.
"Srethis. Ungore." He walked forward confidently until he was at the edge of the hospital grounds, knowing that the executors' bullets would never reach him. "Come here for a moment."
As the two creatures stepped forward on either side of him, Grylmark clasped the palms of his hands onto the backs of their necks. Taking in a great breath from the scorched air before him, the old man released a fraction of his own magic into their bodies as the two of them writhed in pain and tried in vain to get away. Soon, however, their struggles ceased, leaving a pale glow of eerie blue light surrounding their figures...
"You bastard, what did you just do to us?" Ungore gasped, trying to shove him away with its one arm. "If not for your offer, I would tear out your - "
"Calm yourself, cretin." The summoner released them both with an unexpected suddenness that sent them both reeling. "I have given the two of you a small fraction of my power to use as you see fit. I do not give out anything of mine without good reason, so I suggest that you use it sparingly." His eyes flashed as the rows of executor began to shout angrily and head straight towards them. "Now, I have a little task for both of you. With the aid of my magic, draw away these executors and dispose of them elsewhere. I cannot afford any more of these pointless interruptions, or I will never be able to get anything done."
Srethis nodded weakly, ready to obey without question. Ungore, however, was not so easily persuaded, looking for a moment as if it were about to challenge the summoner's orders. The one-armed alien was breathing harshly as its body tried to bear the pressures of time magic conflicting within itself. A second, however, it settled only for flinging a look of disgust towards Grylmark; the creature had evidently not forgotten how the old man had treated them in the past.
"Very well," Ungore said quietly, hunching forward on both feet. "But bear in mind, Grylmark, that I am only helping you because of your promise to me earlier. I do this for the survival of my species, not out of any respect for men like you."
"Of course," the summoner replied smoothly. "You are bound to do as I say. But at the same time, you should understand why I am going out into the midst of the rebellion like this. With the Bureau's presence growing stronger, I can no longer rely on you and Srethis alone. I must go to seek out another powerful ally here in Uminari City and boost our chances of survival. Together, we will all be able to progress successfully."
"The Bureau iss here, you ssay?" Srethis said, blinking slowly in surprise. "Have the friendss of Vita come for her?"
Grylmark gave no indication that he had heard anything the lizard had said. He had already begun walking towards the ranks of executors whilst bullets whizzed overhead. "After you have cleaned out the area," the old man called over his shoulder towards them, "return to the facility and wait for me. I will be back with a new addition to our cause." Grylmark waved one hand at them dismissively, keeping his eyes fixed ahead. "Now, if you do not wish to perish, do as I have told you!"
Without another word or glance towards him, Srethis and Ungore ran past the old man on both sides and threw themselves headlong into the squadrons of executors marching towards them. Almost immediately, the constant stream of gunfire shifted away from Grylmark; the soldiers were being forced to deal with the two creatures causing significant chaos within their ranks. Cries of pain sounded from all sides, a sign that the boost in power he had given to Srethis and Ungore was surely working its magic.
Ignoring them all, Grylmark pushed forward through the widening gap in the squadrons, his path now clear of all annoyances. It was time to meet with his contact in Uminari City and recruit her to their cause. There wasn't any possibility that she would turn him down, because Kagura would have no other choice. She was in great need of money and work, as Feeder of the Family of Labinnac.
I didn't expect my meeting with Yagami last night to go so badly, he thought, heading straight for the eastern district. I had been relying on her for additional help in the future if I needed it. And now that I do need assistance...she simply refuses to see me anymore. Even without Yagami's extensive network of assassins, however, I am not completely cut off from my sources. I still have a back-up plan...it seems that a visit to the Labinnac Sisters is in order.
From his past experiences, Grylmark knew only too well what the Family of Labinnac was like. They were unethical and perhaps a little uncivilised, but they were a little easier to talk to than whatever Yagami had turned into these days. It was important, then, that he went there in person; sending Srethis or Ungore in his place would only ensure that they made a complete and utter mess of things. The summoner despised having to go to such drastic lengths to find someone at the last minute – there were only a few hours left, after all – but Kagura wouldn't care that it was at such short notice. She would just act, and that was exactly the kind of person he needed.
As gunfire and explosions of magic went up around him, Grylmark continued to walk swiftly in the direction of Kagura's residence. The flames rising from Uminari City veered away from the old man's body no matter how high their temperature, kept at bay by the stream of Oguba's magic circulating around his body constantly. Rebels and executors alike fired at each other as he went deeper and deeper into the heart of the city, but Grylmark saw nothing of it, passing through the streets as if he were scarcely there at all...
With mixed feelings of excitement and unease in her heart, Exoria stepped out onto the landing of the first floor of the House of Yagami with Hayate held gently in her arms. The unconscious bodies of mansion guards crowded the corridor at every corner, evidence of the Legion's handiwork. In the distance, the sounds of fighting could still be heard as the cyborg continued to engage in close combat with members of Yagami's security forces, laying out every guard in its way whilst it created a clean path to the ground level. It seemed that the Legion's offer of assistance to Exoria – and Hayate too, for that matter – had been completely genuine after all. The thought of trying to escape from the House of Yagami and take on all those guards without the cyborg's help was not a pleasant image to either of them.
For Exoria, it felt as if she were walking across the edge of a precipice, pulling herself forward by the chains which had shackled her for so long until she could sense firmer, solid ground lying ahead of her. Though the risks were unbelievable high, the light at the end of the tunnel would be worth it. If their daring escape attempt ended in failure, then Yagami's fury would know no bounds once she found out. The Legion would most likely be dismantled, Hayate would be at the complete mercy of the mistress' whims and desires, and as for herself...the Time Mage's hands started shaking at the thought of going back to being tortured by Felicity again...
But if they succeeded? If they were somehow able to escape from the House of Yagami once and for all, if she could finally be free from Yagami...Exoria's eyes lit up, her heart beating faster at the thought. She could leave all of this behind her. She could start anew and have a life that was truly worth living. Even if the Bureau weren't very sympathetic to her, despite what Hayate had told her, they couldn't be worse than Yagami had been...
"Exoria?" Hayate enquired, moving in her arms slightly. "Is this a good time?"
The Time Mage looked at her with mild annoyance. When she had commented sarcastically before about holding Hayate in her arms, in order to protect her whilst the Legion took on the guards, she hadn't realised that the Bureau mage would actually take her seriously. And yet here she was, doing exactly that. Exoria knew she would never do something like this for anyone else, that much was for sure.
"First floor landing," the dark-haired girl replied in a surly tone. "There's security guards lying unconscious everywhere. The Legion's making a path for us. No one seems to be giving us much trouble, Hayate, so we're doing fine." Exoria took a deep breath, trying to force down the fear from within. "So far," she muttered.
It was a strange sensation for her to be protecting the girl for whom she had held such near-hatred for the past few years, whilst not really knowing her at all. Yagami had lied to her about Hayate, oh, she had lied to her about so much...This time, Exoria knew that she had made the right choice. Deep down, however, the thought of turning against the House of Yagami itself terrified her, especially since the Family had sheltered her for so many years. They would not react positively at all once they discovered what she had done.
If we can just make it outside the grounds of the mansion, the rebellion will cover us, Exoria thought, tip-toeing across the bodies of another heap of security guards and reaching the stairway at the end of the corridor. Yagami-sama's servants won't pursue us into a warzone, not even for someone like me. Their duties keep them fixed to the boundaries of the House. Maybe an assassin might be sent to come after us, but that's pretty unlikely in the circumstances...
"So we're escaping," Hayate said contentedly, a smile on her face. "Exoria, as soon as we're out of here, I'm going to do my best to make contact with the rest of the Bureau. We can help you. You don't have to worry about anything anymore."
"I do have to worry!" the Time Mage snapped at her. "If it was really so easy to escape from the House of Yagami, don't you think someone would have done it before now? Before us? You're too relaxed about this, Hayate. If the Legion runs into trouble and we get swamped by guards, we're done for! I can't fight and protect you at the same time!"
"Protect me?" The commander of Riot Force 6 shook her head as she raised the staff of Reinforce in her hands. "Just because I'm blind doesn't mean I can't fight, Exoria. I'm fine as long as someone points my spells in the right direction." After a pause, she added, "And maybe some extra time to recite some lengthy incantations."
Carefully, Exoria carried Hayate down the staircase leading to the ground floor. Although there was more than one exit from the House of Yagami, the Legion would have drawn too much attention already for them to take any way out except the nearest one, and that led straight through the reception area. It was heavily guarded, though mostly by electronic machines and not actual human guards, and was only a few rooms away from their present position. Exoria's heart leapt in her chest at the thought of freedom being so close to her, so close that she could almost touch it. Maybe...maybe they were actually going to make it...
"Exoria?" came a woman's voice from beyond the foot of the stairs. "Whatever are you playing at?"
Oh no, the Time Mage thought, the happiness in her immediately dispersing. No. I feared that this would happen. Guards I can deal with, even a fair number of them. But...a staff member? A high-ranking one, given that they've been here long enough to know my name...?
"No," the dark-haired girl whispered as her hopes began to fade away. "No, no, no...we've come so far..."
Hayate stirred against her, sensing the girl's alarm. The Bureau mage's tightened around her device, ready to lend assistance if needed. She concentrated for a few seconds, trying to pick up any magical signs or abilities from the other woman who had spoken to Exoria, but detected nothing at all; as far as she could tell, the newcomer was not a magic-user. Why, then, did the Time Mage seem so on edge?
Before them, the petite form of the Family's head maid stood framed in the doorway, hands on hips and a stern expression on her freckled face. Short brown hair swept just below the base of her chin as her grey eyes settled onto Hayate momentarily.
"I can't believe you would do something like this, Exoria!" Noriko exclaimed, looking genuinely hurt. She creased one hand against the folds of her blue and white uniform and stepped into view. "You never think of the rest of us!"
The Time Mage hesitated for a second, not quite sure how to react. As far as she was aware, Noriko wasn't an assassin. The head maid was completely dedicated to her job, often to the extent that she failed to notice anything else going on around her. Maids like her didn't go around carrying dangerous weapons – she should be quite harmless, or at least as harmless as anyone could be in the House of Yagami. Maybe the maid really was here to clean the place as usual...but even Noriko couldn't ignore what she had seen here.
The reception area is just a few rooms away, Exoria thought, her mind racing. If Hayate and I can make it past Noriko, then we'll be home free. The Legion's doing a good job in fighting off the other guards, but they can't hold on forever, so I'm going to have to do this as quickly as possible. They say that Yagami-sama's senior staff members number among the elite in her Family...but I can do this. She's just a maid, right?
"What are you doing here, Noriko?" Exoria said thickly. She lowered Hayate to the ground and unsheathed her initiate's dagger in a sliver of metal. "Don't think you're going to stop us from escaping this place! If you don't get out of our way right now, I'll - "
Her voice trailed away when she realised that Noriko wasn't even listening to her. The head maid had ignored her completely, rushed over to where the unconscious guards were lying in an unsavoury pile in one corner, and was single-mindedly trying to drag each of the bodies out of the room by herself. Due to the overbearing weight of the bodies, however, she was not having much success.
What is she doing? the Time Mage thought in bewilderment. Is this how she usually behaves?
"Exoria?" Hayate said faintly from where she had been deposited on the floor. "Why did you put me down? Your friend...she isn't a magic-user."
Noriko's head jerked up to face them suddenly, her face filled with what was either a great deal of annoyance or something approaching mild fury. Probably both.
"No! I'm not!" she said huffily, crawling down on her arms and knees as she heaved another body upright. "Do you understand how much work a maid has to do in the House of Yagami? Do you really think I have time to go around attacking people?" Noriko drew herself up angrily, glaring at the Time Mage. "I'm not impressed with your behaviour, Exoria. Do you understand me? I am not impressed! Your cyborg friend is beating up every guard on sight and making a tremendous amount of dirt everywhere everywhere they go, and do you know has to clean that up? I do! Do you know who has to remove all the bodies each time? I do!"
"Noriko, this isn't the time..." Exoria started to say, but the maid was already in the middle of her tirade and could not be stopped.
"And guess who has to sweep up the broken glass? The smashed-in doorframes? The blood on the floor?" Noriko passed one hand in front of her eyes, looking as if she dearly wished to faint on the spot. "Oh no, don't even get me started on the blood! God, it makes me mad, washing those stains out again and again. Guess who has to clean up all of that around here?"
"You do," Hayate chimed in.
"That's right." The head maid stooped down to seize hold of another guard with a small groan, beads of sweat running across her forehead. Then she swung herself round towards the two mages again, panting with exertion. "And really? Really, Exoria?" she said in a dangerously quiet voice. "You come down here with bodies everywhere, bodies that Iwill have to clear up, and you have the audacity to tell me to get out of your way? I am the head maid of the House of Yagami, thank you very much! Don't tell me to get out of your way, Exoria. Don't ever, ever tell me that!"
The Time Mage tensed up, her hands tightening around the hilt of her dagger to defend herself. If she really was going to attack them -
"Because you're the ones who will get out of my way!" Noriko said furiously, turning back to moving the bodies again. "You're introducing even more dust into the room just by standing there!" She pointed imperiously to the door behind her. "Out!"
"I'm sorry," Hayate said quite sincerely. "We were just leaving. Literally."
"We're leaving right now," Exoria joined in, sheathing her dagger and picking the Bureau mage up off the floor again. Under her breath, she whispered to Hayate, "You're not supposed to apologise to her..."
She quickly scurried around Noriko whilst the maid was still pre-occupied, picking up her feet as she virtually ran out into the corridor and almost tripped over another heap of unconscious security guards lying there. The Time Mage cursed, having nearly dropped Hayate. Though there was still no sign of the Legion, the end of their escape was now in sight. The reception area was in sight from here, and beyond that...freedom.
"So what just happened?" the Bureau mage said conversationally as Exoria continued to carry her along the winding corridor. "Why did she let us pass?"
"I don't know," the Time Mage said darkly. "She didn't really let us pass. She just chased us out in the direction we were trying to go in the first place."
"Because we were making dust?"
Exoria shrugged. She didn't even care anymore. "Because we were standing there. I guess everyone just hates me in general."
The Bureau mage patted her arm sympathetically. "Don't say that. I don't hate you."
"Thanks, Hayate." The Time Mage shook herself to clear her head, stepping over another outstretched body in the middle of the hall. The words meant only a little to her. "But you're the only one."
She began to pick up speed now as she ran along the corridor, though not too fast out of concern for the Bureau mage held in her arms, near-breathless with excitement at the prospect of leaving here forever. Ever since she had made the decision to withdraw from the House of Yagami, Exoria had felt that she had lost the connection which had brought her to the mansion in the first place. Already, she had become completely detached from the rest of the Family – Yagami-sama's continual hurtful abuse towards her, the complete lack of help or kindness from any other staff member with whom she might have once shared friendship, Dr Kaizen's belittling of her character; even Noriko yelling at her for literally no reason just then, despite having been so friendly and welcoming to her at their first encounter...
No, it no longer made any sense to remain here. Hayate was right: this was not where she belonged. Perhaps it never had been from the start.
Hayate. Exoria couldn't deny that she was developing a slightly unhealthy interest with the girl, a personal fondness which made her to want to get closer to her. It wasn't just because she looked like Yagami, nor even because Hayate had showed her the only way forward. The Time Mage had had such strong, passionate emotions towards the House of Yagami and everything it stood for. With her withdrawal from the organisation, however, the same feelings had hooked onto the only person who had showed her the love and friendship that she needed so much. Exoria was well aware that it wasn't psychologically healthy, however, not for her or Hayate, and definitely not something that she should ever act on. With hope, the feeling should die down once they were able to contact the rest of the Bureau, and then she could feel at peace again in her heart...
Exoria reached the end of the corridor at last, rushing into the reception area where the main exit doors were located. The Legion was standing in the middle of the reception area, as silent and motionless as a rock.
The cyborg was surrounded by at least twenty or thirty bodies of guards in an uneven circle, having successfully eradicated all resistance in its path. Had they been waiting for her and Hayate to catch up? There didn't seem to be anyone else blocking their path, now that all the guards in the area had been dealt with, and Noriko wasn't going to suddenly run back after them.
The Time Mage felt a relieved grin stretch out across her face. They'd done it. With the aid of their loyal escort, the three of them had taken down Yagami's security almost single-handedly and made it to the main exit. It hadn't even been that difficult. Finally...finally, they would all be able to escape from -
"Lady Exoria," the Legion said in a slightly shaky tone as she and Hayate entered. "Please stay behind me. We are in danger."
She stared at the cyborg for a moment, not quite understanding. But then Exoria's gaze travelled across the room to the tall figure blocking the main doors, and her limbs immediately seized up with panic and fear. The woman barring their way was recognisable to every member of the House of Yagami, light blonde hair flowing down her shoulders and legs braced firmly before her as she regarded the scene with distaste. A black and yellow security uniform covered her body, with two shining bracelets tight around their wrists and a great longsword strapped to their belt.
Oh no, Exoria thought, swallowing hard. Not her. Anyone except her. We were lucky to get past Noriko, but this time...
"I'm surprised at you, Exoria," Arisa said, displeasure in her voice.
The Time Mage's arms were shaking a little, remembering long ago how she had trained with Arisa for hours on end to improve her skills as an assassin. She remembered being told what an honour it was to have the head of security as her personal teacher. She also remembered that she had never been able to hold her ground against such a fighter, and had been beaten constantly every time they sparred. It was true that wielding a dagger in combat was quite different from the ways of the sword, but still...
"I didn't think you would actually attempt to escape, not after so many years as a submissive and loyal servant of Yagami-sama," the head of security said. Her green eyes were locked onto the Legion, but there was no doubt that the head of security was quite aware of her presence in the room. "Whatever could have changed your mind?"
Held loosely in her arms, Hayate had reacted to Arisa's voice in clear recognition. The Bureau mage looked as if she were about to say something in response, perhaps call out to the familiar voice of her friend...but then kept quiet, choosing instead to listen diplomatically before she acted.
The Legion shifted forward by a half-step, its hands clenched into hard metal fists. "Lady Exoria," the cyborg said in a low voice, "I will attempt to distract her. As soon as the way is clear, I advise you to run. I have already dealt with all of the guards on this floor - "
"Could it be that none of you are aware of the situation you are in?" Arisa asked, her voice beginning to rise. "Earlier this morning, Wyvern came to me with a small concern that he had. He was concerned about you, Legion." Her hands had still made no movement towards the sword at her waist. "You see, in this day and age, combat cyborgs are not supposed to wander off by themselves and follow an independent pattern of logic. They are supposed to follow orders, just as expected of any other soldier. Just like you have been failing to do recently, Legion."
She breathed in deeply, gazing deep into the cyborg's eyes. "Exoria has been with us for quite a long time. I think it's fair to say that she knows me a little. And so she knows that I value the opinions of all of our staff, no matter how great or small they may be, if only because somebody has to. You see, Yagami-sama dismissed Wyvern after barely listening to what he had to say...but I didn't. I reinforced the security on all areas of the mansion in case something like this happened." Arisa brushed back a stray lock of her hair casually, seeming completely calm in the process. "The guards that you defeated, Legion, are decoys that I set in place to pull you into a false sense of security. I'm afraid I have to inform you that you have made no real progress whatsoever."
"Decoys?" Exoria repeated. Her mind swam as she struggled to keep up. Had they been walking into a trap all this time? "But...but what about...?"
"So that was why the guards were so easily defeated," the Legion said quietly, its eyes lowering. "We were allowed to escape this far. The real security of the House of Yagami is probably waiting to take us down."
"I'm sorry?" the head of security said, frowning. "I think there's been a small misunderstanding here. If any of my guards are wounded or killed in battle, I'm the one who has to report it to Yagami-sama and explain the reason for the security breach. There are better ways to spend the resources of the House of Yagami than to waste them on you, Legion. Unfortunately for you, you're really not that high a priority." She sighed heavily. "I can only imagine the amount of paperwork I would have to fill out if you had started fighting the real guards. No, rather than risking injury to my colleagues, I decided to deal with this personally. I always like to take an interest in the affairs of ex-members of staff – that's you, by the way – and I am more than enough to handle the two of you by myself."
Hayate nudged Exoria in the ribs slightly on hearing this. "Two of us?" she whispered.
She hasn't realised Hayate is here too, the Time Mage thought. It was true: Arisa was too busy concentrating on the presence of the Legion to look in her direction fully. The blonde woman was aware that Exoria was standing there, but she obviously hadn't been expecting Hayate to be with them as well...maybe that was something they could use to their advantage...
"And Noriko?" the dark-haired girl said testily. "Is she in on it too? Is that why she let us pass so easily?"
Arisa looked confused. "Noriko let you pass?" She snorted, finding the whole concept rather amusing. "The maids of the house have nothing to do with my security procedures. Noriko was probably just acting her usual self. In respect of her wishes, though, I will try and make as little mess as possible, since I know how much she hates having to clear it all up - "
The Legion lunged forward whilst she was still speaking, swinging a metal fist towards her face with full force. The head of security tilted her neck to the left slightly, watching as the blow went past her and pulled the cyborg off balance. Another fist came towards her, but Arisa absorbed the punch in her other hand as if it were nothing, squeezing powerfully. There was an agonising crunching sound as the Legion's metal fingers were bent back under the exertion of tremendous force, and the cyborg staggered back by a single step.
The blonde woman clenched tighter still, not even bothering to reach for her sword, her bare knuckles turning white. Without moving from where she was standing, she twisted her arm round and flipped the Legion round in the air, smashing them hard into the floor with an almighty crash. The ground buckled and cracked under the impact, shuddering slightly. As the cyborg struggled to rise to its feet again, Arisa blew on her hand almost experimentally and wrenched one of the creature's arms up behind their back. Within moments she had her opponent virtually immobilised.
"I have a lot of respect for Wyvern's creations," the head of security said in a sympathetic tone. "And I know you were repaired fairly recently, Legion. If you surrender, I won't rip your arm off and beat you to death with it. Does that sound like a fair exchange to you?"
The cyborg struggled in her grip, trying to get at her with its other hand, but Arisa easily stopped its movement with her other wrist. She pushed upwards by the smallest amount, putting increased pressure on the joints in her captive's shoulder as Exoria watched in frozen horror.
"I have lost more than just limbs, Arisa," the Legion managed to gasp. "I serve...another mistress now. You cannot intimidate me so easily..."
"That's a shame, Legion, because I wasn't really trying to intimidate you." The blonde woman shook her head sadly. "I was being quite serious. Still, if that's your choice - "
"Stop it, Arisa!"
The outburst had come from Hayate, forcing her way out of Exoria's arms until she stood on the ground with her own two feet. Though she was still unable to see anyone except the Time Mage, she didn't need her sight to know what was going on in front of her. The Bureau mage rammed the staff of Reinforce heavily against the floor, gathering everyone's attention in front of her.
Before her, Arisa's mouth fell open slightly upon seeing Hayate. The shock in her eyes was so pronounced that she must have thought it was Yagami at first. In her surprise, the head of security released the Legion completely so that the cyborg crumpled onto the damaged ground, breathing heavily. It bent its arm forward again, testing it for any permanent damage.
"This has gone far enough!" Hayate shouted, her eyes flaring up. "Stop this at once, Arisa! You're better than this!" Her free hand clasped onto Exoria's, bringing the mage forward with her. "I'm not going to watch anyone else get hurt here! No one has to suffer, and no one dies. We can all come to an agreement about this without mindless violence." She marched forward towards the head of security, using both Exoria's hand and her staff to guide her way. "Here's how it's going to work. We're all going to walk out of here unharmed, and no one has to be afraid of each other anymore." The look in her eyes could melt steel. "Does everyone here understand that?"
A/N: Okay, I know things look bad for Nanoha and Fate, so I'll put them in the next chapter again.
I know, they've been separated again, but it's not going to be anywhere near as long as last time, I promise. :3