SonicANIME2010 here, bringing in part 2 of the Little Planet of Wind of the Night Sky. Sure surprised a few readers there with the approach while also playing homage to the Sonic series... There will be more Sonic elements in this chapter, so no worries there. Lastly, I own no canon characters, elements or locations, they belong to their respective companies (Sonic to Sonic Team, Nanoha to Seven Arcs)
"Say"
"Telepathy"
'Thought'
"Device"
[Non-Administrated Planet #97 "Earth"]
[South Island Archipelago: Never Lake]
[Little Planet]
[Collision Chaos: Act 0]
[Time Zone: Present]
[BGM: "Collision Chaos" Sonic CD (JP/EU)]
Accompanied by Alicia Testarossa, Sonic and the rest of his travelling party found themselves in an unusual psychedelic mechanized forest with an oddly established casino. Neon signs lined up across the zone with gibberish writing that not even the resident local was able to translate. A lake lay at the bottom of the zone, though it appeared inaccessible from the party's current path.
Rather than be taken in by the sights of the zone before them, the party's interest was more focused on Alicia, who seemed to be talking at a screen generated from Lucky Star. While the other mages knew what the small blonde was doing, Sonic, a newbie to the whole thing, was missing context.
"So, you're telling me she's not talking to herself?" queried the hedgehog, tone curious.
"She's communicating with someone." Nanoha answered, "We can use our devices to call others like phones and whatnot."
"Oh," The hedgehog was seemingly satisfied, though he, like the others, were still wondering just who Alicia was talking to.
Speaking of the small girl, Alicia had been reporting her progress so far with the same contact she had spoken to earlier. Though her tone was joyful, there were subtle hints of exasperation that she was unable to fully restrain. Thankfully, she was far enough away from the rest of the party, intentionally so, to keep them from overhearing.
"Yes, my imouto's fine, I'm fine. We're both fine!" Deadpanned Alicia, shooting a weird look at the screen, "Why are you worried?"
"Because Fate has been through a terrible ordeal, and your reunion triggered some of those bad memories." The woman on the other side spoke, "Also, Bardiche has been upgraded past its original design. You saw the new form and upgrades, did you not?"
"Yeah, she turned it into a sword like how I use Lucky Star's Riot Form," Alicia thought back to the fight in question, "And it also made that gun-like pumping sound that I'll have to ask her about."
"While you're at it, see if you can find out anything about the other three, but don't be suspicious about it. The last thing we need is to lose allies." Caution filled her tone, "Also, from this point on, I'll have to ask that you refrain from contacting me on this channel. I don't know if our enemy is capable of tracing the communications, and I'd rather not find out the hard way."
"Alright then. We'll be sure to stop by and check up on you." Declared Alicia with a neutral done
"Eh?!" one could hear panic comically sink into the older woman's tone and voice, "S-stop by? B-but-!"
"No buts! I'm already drawing a lot of suspicion when I told Fate that I knew everything about her." The shorter blonde was quick to argue back, her tone indicating that she had set her mind on this notion, "Besides, she deserves to know the truth. I'm just trying to find the best time to tell her."
"Be careful then…" Defeated, the older woman on the other side let out a sigh, "I believe you know what to do from here. End transmission."
A mixture of frustration and annoyance seeped into Alicia's expression as the call ended, which was unusual for the girl. Though the rest of her traveling party had heeded her wishes of privacy, there was nothing to stop the inquisitive, weird looks that they sent her way.
"I guess I made a scene." The small girl giggled in embarrassment.
"Indeed," answered Signum, her tone and voice as flat and stoic as she was.
"Is this something that you'd be able to share with the rest of the class?" Sonic questioned with a slightly humorous tone.
"I was just reporting in my progress so far, and…" Alicia fell silent for but a moment as her eyes locked on Fate's, "And... well… how do I say this…"
"If you're not comfortable, you don't have to say anything." Fate offered kindly out of respect for her original's wellbeing.
"I'm more worried about you." The smaller girl approached her sister with a somber expression on her face, "You deserve to know, but what I have to say will likely hurt you."
"Please, tell us…" Fate said kindly, politely as her hand reflexively grasped Nanoha's for comfort.
"Whelp, might as well rip the old bandage off." Alicia let out one last sigh before she spoke up, "Kaa-san is still alive."
"Eh?" Nanoha was the first to react, "You mean Precia-san-."
"Is still alive," the original raised her voice so that all around could hear, "Our mother, Precia Testarossa, is still alive."
[OP: "Eternal Blaze" Mizuki Nana, Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A's]
Sonic the Hedgehog: Wind of the Night Sky
Chapter 6
Little Planet Phase 2: A Sad Reunion
[Dimensional Space]
[Time-Space Administration Bureau Space Headquarters]
[BGM: "Kingdom City of Meltokio" Tales of Symphonia OST]
Deep within the vast Sea of Dimensions, light years far away from Earth, was a massive space station that served as the main headquarters for the Time-Space Administration Bureau. The main body of the station was a colossal central spire with several arms extending from it. Magnificence and beauty were few of many words that could describe the platform, but they would still do it little justice.
The main office of the Bureau housed countless offices for the government's enforcers, training grounds and even the Infinite Library, a nigh endless archive of records pertaining to history. In addition, it also housed the Administration Bureau's Dimensional Navy with supplies and facilities to accommodate ships such as the currently docked Arthra.
Throughout one of the many countless corridors strolled Lindy Harlaown. The admiral had just finished her debriefing and hearing regarding the recently concluded Book of Darkness incident, which saw to the unconditional, willing surrender of Admiral Gil Graham and his familiars.
The admiral's surrender was begrudgingly accepted, but incorporating it was up to the Inspection Department, or Internal Affairs basically. Most of the terms regarding his surrender were simple enough, including the immunization of the Wolkenritter and the Mistress of the Night Sky of any charges that could have stemmed from the actions taken.
Lindy had mixed feelings regarding that stipulation. She had little doubt that the higher ups of the Bureau would likely let the Admiral off with an early retirement and cover up his actions by using the former Book of Darkness's defense program, Nachtwal, as a scapegoat. That much was anticipated, especially after the specific mentioning of said program was emphasized, but she also felt that the Bureau was doing such to avoid another public relations nightmare with the press after drawing criticism for prosecuting a 9-year-old child abuse victim for the Jewel Seed incident. Given that, she had no doubt that the Bureau would take a more proactive approach and paint the Wolkenritter as heroic knights saving their 9-year-old master from becoming yet another victim. However accurate that portrayal was, it bothered Lindy that the Bureau would use it for the fickle reasoning of avoiding conflict with the press.
That was far from the only issue that was drawn from the incident. The fact that the Book of Darkness incident had happened on a Non-Administrated world meant that things could have been much worse. Even though the first contact with the Tome's guardians last September resulted in the draining of the Linker Cores belonging to two pivotal mages and one familiar, it drew the Bureau's attention to the world and forced an investigation. But the ghastliest fact of the matter, in which the Admiral voiced strenuously, was that had her probationary contract mage not have been allowed to visit her friend on that world, the incident likely would not have a happy ending to report on.
Furthermore, as the Admiral had stressed in her debriefing, the Book of Darkness incident had been the SECOND to happen on the same Non-Administrated world within the past YEAR alone, the first being the previously reported Jewel Seed incident. That was enough to open the eyes of her superiors to the dreaded realization that the Bureau had spent so much effort on the Administrated worlds that the Non-Administrated ones were forgotten. In addition, the admiral made a confident declaration that the next incident for the Bureau on that world was likely about to happen, and with a far more dangerous threat. That was enough to make her superiors shake in their seats in shock. The admiral left shortly after that, as her debriefing had concluded.
Much like she would do on other occasions following certain stressful hearings, Lindy took a long walk through the corridors of the base to relieve her stress. She was shortly joined by her longtime friend and fellow admiral, Leti Lowran from the Resources Department.
Leti was a woman around Lindy's age with purple hair, matching eyes and a birthmark on her forehead in a nearly identical pattern to Lindy's, albeit indigo in color. Her outfit was also identical with the only difference being the necktie being a bluish indigo. The identical uniforms were likely due to both women sharing the same rank. The biggest standout feature for Leti were her eyeglasses, the lenses set in a thick half-frame.
"Well, I'd say you certainly shook things up in there." spoke the woman calmly in regards to Lindy's extended debriefing regarding Earth, "I haven't seen our superiors startled that much since your last incident debriefing."
"I only wish I wasn't exaggerating." replied Lindy with a solemn sigh, "It's almost like the Jewel Seed incident opened the floodgates because it has been one incident after the other."
"So, you mean to say the next incident on that world is already happening?" Leti quirked an eyebrow upward curiously, "That would explain the unnatural confidence you had back then."
"I have Chrono keeping tabs on it, but before that debriefing, I received word from my information specialist on earth." Lindy nodded her head, "We picked up a distress beacon from an undocumented mage close to the city where Nanoha and Fate live. Seeing as they were already on location and the Wolkenritter were needing something to do, Amy sent them out."
"You suspect foul play." Presumed Leti neutrally but knowingly.
"Given the location." Nodded the other admiral to confirm, "I have no doubt that the source of the beacon is a mage under duress. I have reason to believe that a fledgling mastermind is making their move towards conquest, starting with that area."
"You also have reason to believe that you'll need more than a few locals to deal with this threat." Admiral Lowran watched for Lindy's reaction, "As you know, that world is non-administrated, so our power is limited here."
"I'm well aware," Lindy shook her head, "But given what is known from eyewitness accounts and the local news reports, this mastermind can be dangerous. Not to mention the fact that the Mistress of the Night Sky and her guardians have expressed a desire to atone for their crimes.
"And given that the Bureau won't prosecute her to provide an easy means for taking responsibility, I need something." Frowned Lindy, "Something to help her and protect that world."
"I believe I can be of assistance then." spoke a new, aged female voice from up ahead.
The voice belonged to an aging woman with graying bluish hair dressed in a rather important looking uniform not dissimilar to other uniforms in the higher ranked admiralty. Her appearance and aura alone was one of great importance and her identity was well known to the trio approaching her. This woman was known as Midget Crowbel, one of the three "Legendary Admirals" who served as the de facto leadership of the Administration Bureau.
"Director Crowbel!?" Lindy was the first to speak as she and Leti stood at attention with a military salute, "You honor us with your presence."
"At ease," The elderly woman waved off the formality, "I came here to discuss your report in greater detail, Harlaown."
"Was my reporting insufficient?" questioned Lindy, reasonably nervous.
"Far from it. Your report was well beyond satisfactory as usual." the Bureau Chief of Staff reassured her, "I noticed that you have a little predicament regarding a certain planet and I believe I have a solution. If the two of you would follow me?"
"Of course." there was almost a hint of a stutter in Lindy's tone, "Lead the way."
A mirthful smirk lightly graced the lips of the elder admiral as she made a hand gesture for the other three to follow her. Not one to disobey a request from one of the highest levels of the organization, Lindy and Leti followed the aging woman closely.
[Non-Administrated Planet #97 "Earth"]
[South Island Archipelago: Never Lake]
[Little Planet]
[Collision Chaos: Act 0]
[Time Zone: Present]
[No BGM]
Much to Alicia's shock, the bombshell that she had dropped regarding her mother had drawn less of a reaction than what she had anticipated. Upon being asked, Fate, while still uncomfortable by the revelation, felt that it made sense given how much Alicia knew. Fate reasoned, logically, that her mother would have told her original about her at some point and while she was still uncomfortable, she believed that she could finally get Precia's answer.
"If I can ask though," Fate queried cautiously, "How did you and kaa-san get here?"
"Hmm…" Alicia pondered for a moment, "We simply woke up here, I guess."
"That's all?" Signum asked dryly.
"Well there is more to our story, but I don't want to get into it yet." the shorter girl shook her head, "Not when we have a few zones to clear first."
"How many?" Sonic was the one to ask this question, his adventuring spirit awakening in anticipation.
"Including that last one, seven." answered the resident guide, "Here, this is easier explained on a map."
With the help of Lucky Star, Alicia pulled up a topographic map of Little Planet. The mass of land was divided into seven sectors, each labelled with a different color, number and name. Sonic and the party were represented by a gathering of cartoonish, chibified versions of themselves placed on the map.
"We are here, the second zone, called 'Collision Chaos'. Our house is over here," Alicia pointed to an area between the third and fourth zone, "Moustached Egg has taken over the future of every one of these zones. We'll have to liberate them as fast as we can."
"And how do we do that?" Vita asked, though immediately regretted such when she saw the smirk on Alicia's face
"Hehe~!" The girl giggled as she dismissed the map, "I think it's time to introduce you to… THE TUTORIAL!"
[Collision Chaos: Act 1]
[Time: Present]
[BGM: "Collision Chaos" Sonic CD JP/EU]
Alicia's energy and vigor were on full display as she was dead set on showing the supposed newcomers how things worked on the planet. Many of the simple rules were laid out as the team began their descent into the zone. The first rule she laid out was somewhat unconventional for an aerial mage like herself.
"First off: No flying any higher than the average jumping distance." Alicia could not stop a cringe of phantom pain, "Learned that the hard way."
"I'm guessing because of the terrain." Sonic noted, drawing from his personal experience, "Floating platforms were a thing my last time out."
"Correct, and there are many natural obstacles that discourage taking to the skies" the local girl added, "Next up. Bad guys."
Alicia had said that right as the party encountered a wave of robots lay before their path. They were five in total, three of them were shaped like moths and were thus called "Ga", while the other two, designated as "Kama-Kama" were mantis-shaped and had the ability to launch their blades as boomerangs.
"Watch this!" Alicia grinned as she took her gun to her left hand, "Lucky Star, Photon Lancer!"
"Photon Lancer, semi-automatic fire," confirmed the device as five turquoise bolts appeared before them in straight horizontal line.
The following scene before the others could be best described, by Nanoha, as something straight out of a western movie. Not that she would have known; she had absolutely no way of drawing that comparison, no way at all. No, that was not a blush of embarrassment, the neon light just hit her cheeks in just the right way.
Alicia fingered the butt of her pistol like a cowboy as she lined up the shots. One could practically imagine the targets within the crosshairs, a cute skull icon appearing in the middle and a tumbleweed somehow rolling across the path.
"It's high noon…" the chibi gunslinger spoke ominously for a dramatic effect, "Draw!"
Within an instant of saying that dramatic word, Alicia drew her gun and fired all five rounds in succession. As if the girl had calculated, the robots fell where they stood. Each of them self-destructing in one shot, leaving blooming flowers in their place.
"Quintuple Kill!" declared Raising Heart, accurately, drawing a weird look from her master.
With a confident grin, Alicia turned to see how the rest of the party had regarded her multi-elimination streak. Her jaw went slack as most of the reactions ranged from a subdued admiration from Nanoha and Fate, the unimpressed Sonic and the indifference from Vita and Signum. The small girl sighed in comical defeat, so much for trying to impress her allies out of the gate.
She soon took notice of several shadows hovering over her and her mouth gaped in shock. Her guard had been let down long enough for six ladybug shaped robots, codenamed: "Tentou", to position themselves above the girl, ready to drop their payload.
"Heh… heh…" Alicia chuckled weakly, "Aw, c-!"
Before she could say another world, the girl was cut off by the sound of a sonic boom as a spiky blue ball blazed right past her. As if in slow motion, she could see the ball roll at an insanely high speed and rip straight through the mechs, one by one in succession. She was barely able to track it, but she watched as the ball uncurl to reveal a smirking Sonic.
"Sextuple Kill!" Raising Heart pinged again, which made Nanoha make a mental note not to leave the device near her brother's computer when it was in standby mode.
"Thanks for the demonstration, girly." The hedgehog patted her on the shoulder, "But I think we know what to do."
"Wh-wha?!" Alicia gaped in shock as she watched Signum and Vita follow the hedgehog up ahead, "B-but…"
"Sorry, Alicia-chan," Nanoha offered apologetically, "But this really isn't our first time doing this sort of thing."
"If it makes you feel any better," Fate came up on the other side, "I thought it was nice."
"Mou…" the small girl pouted, "This is wrong! I shouldn't have to be the one comforted."
Alicia soon made a quick enough recovery from her shocked stupor to rush ahead and take the lead as sure enough, the party reached an obstacle that she needed to explain. It was a plate-like signpost much like the one from the previous zone that was labeled "Future", only this one had the word "Past" printed on the plate in the same font.
"Hey, didn't we just see this thing?" Sonic asked.
"Yeah, but it said 'Future'." noted Vita, "This one says: 'Past'."
"I bet you're wondering what that means," Alicia guessed accurately given the expressions from the others present, "Well, allow me to show you."
Before anyone could dare to stop her, the small blonde produced her harisen (paper-fan), loaded up her swing and slammed the sign hard enough to make the signpost spin at a ridiculously fast rate. Much like what had happened with the sign in the previous zone, the group was whisked away by a flash of light.
[Collision Chaos: Act 2]
[Time: Past]
[BGM: "Collision Chaos ~P" Sonic CD JPN/EU]
The first thing that Sonic and the others noticed once they got their bearings straight was the strange orange tint to the forest part of the zone and that most of the casino's features had yet to be built. As such the neon signs that were in the present were replaced by airborne structures of rock. The lake was also present in the background, though still inaccessible from their current path, but at least it made for a majestic backdrop.
"Whoa…" Nanoha said in awe.
"That's the second time this thing has happened," Sonic sent a weird glance at the smirking Alicia, "Okay~, what gives?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Alicia grinned in joy, "We travelled through time to the past!"
"You're joking, right?" Vita questioned in disbelief.
"Do I look like I'm joking?" deadpanned the shorter blonde in response, staring at Vita in emphasis, "That thing I just hit was a 'Time Warp Plate'. We use them to travel between time periods, namely past, future and present, here."
"Huh…" the blue hedgehog thought out loud, "I thought you use a blue police box for that."
"What kind of idiot thinks that is a viable time travel method?" scandalized Alicia in surprise.
'Actually, it seems better than using signposts.' thought Nanoha to herself, "At any rate, we're here for a reason, right?"
Alicia confirmed the chestnut-haired-girl's question as she explained the situation to the best of her abilities. The future time period in each zone had been altered by their nemesis. Eggman had placed teleportation devices and demoralizing projectors in the Past of each zone. She had only been able to affirm this because she had cleared the past Palmtree Panic of its respective teleporter and projection devices.
"If we take out the teleporters and the projectors, we should be able to clear this zone of Moustached Baldy's influence like from the first zone." Alicia reasoned validly, evidence stating from her last zone, "That should free the future."
"Sounds like a solid plan, but I think there's one thing…" Sonic took a deep breath, "Multiverse theory's a -!"
"Sonic-san!" chided Signum sternly and swiftly before the statement was finished, "Watch your profanity."
"I was gonna say 'rotten egg'." The hedgehog deadpanned.
"This place doesn't run on that." Alicia was able to figure out what Sonic was saying anyways, "Every zone has three time periods that these plates travel to. Any actions taken here in the past, such as what the bald creep did, directly influence how the future looks."
The girl let those words hang with responsibility over the heads of her party as she started to press on once more. She knew almost everything there was to know about Little Planet and had seen firsthand what the doctor's madness had spawned in the first zone. Despite the disbelief, the others were quick to join her.
Much like Alicia had said beforehand, flying through the zone was out of the question. The low-hanging obstacles and narrow pathways, while easy for the ground-based hedgehog, proved to be difficult for the aerial mages. Eggman's robots were many and had been placed strategically well, but Vita was able to demonstrate how Graf Eisen was just as effective as the hedgehog's quills in destroying them.
The robot teleporter and projector devices were placed conveniently close together. While that allowed for the enemy robots to spawn close by, it also had the downside of allowing the party to destroy them in succession. Sonic was all too pleased to be rid of the latter; the robot was an eyesore to look at.
With both machines dealt with, the time came for Alicia's theory to be tested in full as the party closed in on the future time warp plate. If there were any concerns about repetition regarding tracking down the time plate in the present, Alicia dispelled them by hitting the plate with at least twice the amount of force as before, allowing them to skip the present and warp straight to the future.
[Collision Chaos: Act 3]
[Time: Future]
[BGM: "Collision Chaos ~G" Sonic CD (JP/EU)]
As a stark contrast to the present and past zones, the good future zone was a futuristic, inviting casino which had seen it's blue-colored motif shone under the pink-tinted sky. The plants were both mechanical and natural while the water was clear and clean, both adding to that peaceful, beautiful appeal.
The sight was enough to draw extended gazes from Nanoha, Fate and Sonic, but the former of the three felt that they were too young to be in the zone. A sentiment that was boosted by Alicia stating that the casino looked good but had no business for as long as she was there.
Still, the gorgeous casino zone had provided a backdrop to admire as the group pressed onward. With nary a robot in sight and the obstacles easy to work around, the trek was quite straightforward as Sonic took the lead for some strange reason.
It was only when the group had arrived at a clearing in the zone devoid of any obstacles that Sonic had halted the party. He seemed confident that his reason for taking point was about to come to fruition.
"Stop~!" chimed the hedgehog almost musically, much to the confusion and some annoyance to the others.
"Oi, what gives?" Vita grumbled impatiently.
"Well, our chibi-exposition-guide here said that this was our tutorial, right?" Sonic asked drawing an annoyed look from the local girl in question, "And what tutorial level would be complete, if it didn't have a tutorial boss?"
"A fair point," noted Signum, neutrally, "And this area does seem to be advantageous for an ambush."
"What makes you think that we'll be ambushed?" asked Alicia, "We haven't faced anything big so far."
As Fate looked between the party in some uncertainty as which side to take, she noticed the strange look in Nanoha's eyes. Curiously she prodded her friend in private, which led the auburn girl to cautiously note her agreement. The situation presented before them was reminiscent of ones that were in the video games that Nanoha played with Arisa and Suzuka. As such, she was leaning towards Sonic and Signum's side of the argument.
A loud, noblewoman-like laugh that was all too familiar to Sonic echoed throughout the zone and the hedgehog was proven right as Doctor Eggman appeared. The mad scientist had dropped in front of the party riding on a pink-painted walker-type mech with bumpers attached to the arm, spikes on the back and feet.
"So, you're the ones who were playing games with my army." The Doctor spoke neutrally though there was but a hint of frustration in his tone, "I should have figured that my enforcer snagged up the wrong hedgehog earlier."
"Wow, the giant Moustached Egg talks," Alicia stated in wonder, drawing a few snorts from the hedgehog.
"Moustached Egg?! How dare you?! I'll have you know that I am the brilliant scientist, Doctor Eggman!" roared the doctor in comical rage as he slammed his fist on the console, "And I will not tolerate such childish insults."
"You say that after throwing an equally childish tantrum triggered by a simple observation," countered Vita with disinterest, "For a self-proclaimed genius, that's a stupid thing to say."
"Ooh she burned you there," muttered Sonic humorously,
"Doctor Eggman-san, you said that your enforcer robot captured another hedgehog," said Nanoha, drawing attention to what the scientist had said prior, "Did you mean a pink one?"
"Yes, and she put up quite a fight, even damaging that robot," confirmed the doctor, "I had thought that she was the source of the resistance, but your presence here refutes that. She was nothing but a nuisance, but she'll be great material for my next robot."
"That nuisance is an acquaintance of mine, her name is Amy Rose," Alicia did not take kindly to Eggman's attitude regarding the pink hedgehog, "Where is she?"
"Do you really think I am so foolish as to reveal that?" questioned Eggman, offended.
"Foolish enough to let a hedgehog ruin your plans the first time," countered Sonic cheekily, "And I'm not afraid to crack your egghead wide open again."
Eggman said no more once he finally realized that Sonic, the blue nuisance who had foiled his plans on South Island, was present and unafraid to face him once again. It was at that point that all conversation, witty banter and questioning had ended. The time for action had come and the mad genius, with a few button presses on his walker's console, sprang into action.
[Boss: EGG-HVC-001]
[BGM: "Boss" Sonic CD (JPN/EU)]
The first action was taken by the doctor as with a few button presses, his walker accelerated at a high speed and attempted to ram the party, impaling anything or anyone in the way. Much to Eggman's frustration and dismay, the mages were able to spread out and evade his attack well before it could connect.
"Attack him in waves. Try to figure out his weak points." Nanoha, quick to take the role of the strategist, started to form a plan in her mind, but she needed to gather more information first. "Vita-chan, Sonic-kun, you two strike first!"
"Got it!" Vita acknowledged easily, she was going to attack first anyways. The knight sent a challenging grin at her teammate, "Try to keep up, blue boy!"
"Hehe~!" The hedgehog equally grinned, "You too, red girly."
The two immediately went on the offensive by attacking from both sides. Sonic curled up to utilized his spin-attack, sharpening his spikes to an appropriate level of cleaving metal while Vita shifted Graf Eisen into its missile form for extra penetration power. Sadly, their attacks met the bumper arms and the two were bounced up into the air harmlessly.
"Ha! Did you think that would work?" Eggman let out a cocky guffaw, "These springs can deflect any attack that hits them!"
"Oh wow, egg-ceptional egg-secution," Sonic deadpanned, his puns drawing a few snorts and giggles from Nanoha, Alicia and privately Vita, "You hatched yourself a good one."
"Shut up." grumbled the mad scientist.
"Fate-chan, Alicia-chan!" Nanoha called out to the next wave, "Attack the main body, try to avoid the bumpers."
"Understood." Fate confirmed with nary a second thought. She sent a knowing look at her original, "Let's go, Alicia-nee-san."
"Heh, you must really like that girl." The smaller blonde grinned teasingly, savoring the blush she drew as a reaction.
Both Testarossa siblings approached the walker with a different tactic in mind. The smaller girl used her devices as a gun to fire off a wave of Photon Lancers to cover her sister's approach. Fate, opting to save Zanber form for later, used Bardiche's crescent form for a direct attack on the main body. Much to their combined surprise, the limbs attached bumpers on the HVC-001 were able to move in most directions and render the energy scythe and lancer volley completely useless.
"O~ Ho!" Eggman grew cockier as the attacks failed, "You can't hit me! You can't hit me!"
"Don't let yourself get complacent, Doctor." Signum's lengthy silence was broken as the swordswoman took a few steps towards the walker, "Many a foe have fallen due to carelessness."
"Um, Signum-san, those limbs look like a weak point," Nanoha sent to the woman via telepathy, "If I can draw his defenses, do you think you can take them out in one go?"
"One cartridge should be enough." the pink-haired woman sent back, "I'm counting on your support, Takamachi."
The woman watched as the girl in white took to the skies above the EGG-HVC-001 and fire off wave after wave of Axel Shooter rounds. An unspoken command had Laevatein load a cartridge as the wielder gripped the handle. Signum waited until Nanoha had finished the second wave before drawing her blade and making her move.
"Shiden Issen (Purple Lightning Flash)!" Signum called out as Laevatein was covered in flame. Faster than anyone could have predicted, the woman rushed to strike the limbs of the walker.
Like a knife through butter, Signum's blade sheared straight through a limb that had a bumper attached, severing it cleanly. While the flames covering the sword were still hot, the swordswoman cleaved through the second bumper's limb and separated it from the main body. With both of the defensive bumpers separated, the HVC was left vulnerable.
"Oh…" It was at that moment that Eggman realized just how screwed he was in the current predicament, "Crapbaskets."
"Begone!" The woman, for good measure, sliced through the part of the walker that was attached to Eggman's Egg-mobile. The explosive burst from Signum's final strike had triggered a small explosion that threw the mad scientist high into the air until he became nothing but a little twinkle in the mid-morning sky.
-Victory!-
[Jingle: "Level Clear" Sonic CD (JPN/EU)]
Nanoha and Fate, without even realizing that they were doing so, had twirled their devices in something of a coordinated manner before resting them at their sides. Signum and Vita, neither one to partake in any true celebrations of battle, merely sheathed rested their respective weapons on their shoulders. Sonic, on the other hand, was fully into post-battle celebration antics and went into one of his cool little poses with his trademark fanged grin and pointed finger.
"Hee, hee~!" Alicia giggled at Nanoha and Fate, "You two look so coordinated, so cute!"
"W-wha?" Fate sputtered, cheeks red.
"Ah… um..." Nanoha fidgeted nervously, a similar redness to her cheeks
The blushing reactions from both girls were just the ones the smaller blonde had been looking for. It was at that moment that Alicia knew that their meeting was a blessing. She found someone to protect in Fate, and she would not let her go. If Fate was to leave Little Planet after its liberation, Alicia swore to go with her, regardless of what it took.
"If we have nothing else to keep us here, I suggest we press on," Signum spoke up neutrally, her attention focused on the smaller Testarossa female, "Your mother is in the next zone, correct?"
"At the end," Alicia confirmed, "Between zones three and four."
"If we keep at the pace we're going at, a little detour won't harm anything." The swordswoman seemed to have sensed the desires from both blondes regarding the idea of reuniting with their mother and was set to adhere to them. Truthfully, she also had a few things to say to the matriarch as well.
[Eyecatch #1: Sonic: Wind of the Night Sky bio card #11: Arf]
Name: Alph ("Arf")
Katakana: アルフ (A-ru-fu)
Gender: female
Master: Fate Testarossa
Age: 16*
Height: 152 cm (human), 104 cm (Wolf)
Weight: 51 kg (human), 38 kg (Wolf)
Color: Orange
System: Mid-Childa
Rank: A (Mana Capacity)
Device: None
[Eyecatch #2: Sonic: Wind of the Night Sky bio card #12: Lindy]
Name: Lindy Harlaown
Katakana: リンディ・ハラオウン(Rindi Haraoun)
Gender: Female
Age: 31
Height: 165 cm
Weight: 55 kg
Rank(Military): Admiral
Color: Mint green
System: Mid-Childa
Rank: AA+ (Synthetic)
Device: Durandal
[Uminari City: Residential]
[Yagami Residence]
[No BGM]
There were many words that could describe the wolfgirl that was Fate's familiar, Arf. She could be temperamental, blunt, brash, but at the same time, she was also loyal, undyingly so. Granted, it was hard not to feel such to the girl who had saved your life when you were but a young wolf cub abandoned by your pack after contracting a disease. For Arf, it was beyond that, her loyalty was not forced, as Fate's terms for creating her as a familiar were to live in freedom, but she willingly swore to serve as Fate's protector for the rest of her life.
Since her near-death, Arf had served as Fate's unbreakable shield. Even when Fate was broken by Precia's words, the wolfgirl still went to fight the mad woman at the Garden of Time. She was set, stubbornly so, to protect her master's wellbeing and happiness. Given her feelings and status, it was understandable that the familiar was not too pleased to be left behind while her master set out for Little Planet over an hour ago, but she knew that to protect Fate's happiness, that also extended to guarding her friends like Hayate.
That resolve of hers was briefly strained and put to the test within that past hour, when she felt Fate's despair through her familiar empathetic link. She had reached out to her master in order to find out what had happened, but was told that everything was going to be fine and that she should remain behind.
Since that episode, Arf had seated herself on the couch with her eyes firmly set on the door that her master had let through, patiently waiting for her return. Not that she was trying to hide it, but her near emotional outburst had been noticed by the others in the household. From the corner of her eye, she could see Reinforce approach her with a glass of tea.
"You're, worried about your master." Reinforce had an understanding look to her face as she handed the wolfgirl the cup.
"Yeah," Arf said as she took it, "I felt her emotions flare up. It took all of the self-control I had not to bolt out of here."
"What stopped you?" queried the unison device with a small bit of curiosity in her tone, though she had a guess as to the answer.
"She told me not to." the familiar answered, calmly taking a sip of the tasty herbal concoction, "She wanted to deal with this herself."
"You were okay with that?" Though Reinforce felt that she had no need to ask, she did so anyways.
"What do you think?" Arf had no intention of snapping at the device, but her frustration over the issue at hand had that effect. She had swiftly realized her mistake and looked down in shame, "Sorry…"
"It's alright," Reinforce calmly sat down next to the temperamental wolfgirl, "I understand your frustrations. your master had made a request that you weren't comfortable with following, "My knights went through a similar situation with my master."
"How do you handle that?" Arf asked, "Your knights went against Hayate's wishes, but they did it out of necessity."
"Sometimes, that's what you have to do." The woman spoke kindly, sparing a glance back to Hayate in the kitchen, "In order to protect the ones we love as guardians, sometimes we have to go against their wishes. They may hate us, dislike us, but that is what we have to do."
"I guess…" shrugged the wolfgirl, unable to offer any retort. Truthfully, she was torn, she had owed so much to Fate and promised to protect her, yet she was absent for her master's most recent episode, "I hope she's okay…"'
[South Island Archipelago: Never Lake]
[Little Planet]
[Tidal Tempest: Act 1]
[Time: Present]
[BGM: "Tidal Tempest" Sonic CD (JPN/EU)]
Humorously, it was not Fate who needed to be consoled or helped, but Sonic. The strike team had found a zone that had given the poor hedgehog far too many flashbacks to South Island's Labyrinth zone. The region rested at the base of several rocky structures and volcanoes. Pipes carried water between regions while stone pillars adorned certain parts. Oddly enough, the water had a greenish-clear tint to it as the elevation was at a normal level.
The resemblance had struck so close to the hedgehog that he had positioned himself as far away from the water as possible and in the fetal position. If anyone was close enough, they might have been able to hear the blue boy let out a few sniffles.
"Um… Sonic-kun?" Nanoha called out to him but was given no response, much to her subtle shock
"Is he always like this?" Alicia asked the others in concern. Privately, she felt the scene to be quite cute and endearing.
"Eh..." Shrugged the iron knight, unconcerned for likely a good reason "Give him a minute, he'll get over this."
Signum spared a glance at the hedgehog and let out a sigh. While Sonic's reactions were somewhat understandable, if a bit predictable, given what he had spoken of in South Island, it was not the most jarring issue at hand. Her real concern was on the water itself and the impact on their current situation.
"Sonic-san's episode aside, we have a more pressing concern with the water." The swordswoman spoke, "Our path lies submerged in it."
"Yeah, these sunken ruins are unavoidable," Alicia noted, "And if you're not careful, the current can mess you up."
"Just like Labyrinth all over again." sighed the hedgehog, despondently, as he approached the rest of the group, "I hope you're all good at holding your breath."
"Breathing was what you're worried about?" The shorter blonde sent a weird look of disbelief, "You have a mana output ranking at least in the A level and you haven't thought of using any spells for that?"
"Alicia-chan, please understand, Sonic-kun only just found out about our magic recently, so he hasn't learned any spells yet." Nanoha quickly jumped to the hedgehog's defense, "Also this is our first mission in this sort of area. We're kinda in the same boat."
"Also, this isn't an administrated world," added Fate, quietly, "So most civilians here won't know of magic."
"Oh right, sorry." the small girl said with a sheepish rub of her head, quickly realizing where she had faulted, "I can cast a water breathing spell on him that converts water into breathable oxygen, then have Lucky Star send your devices the programming for incorporating this into your Barrier Jackets like I did."
"Acceptable," Signum confirmed.
The data transfer took little time and neither of the mages or knights, with their different systems of magic, had any issue implementing the new spell data from Alicia into their respective Barrier Jackets and Knight Clothing. Once that was complete, the small blonde turned her gaze towards the blue hedgehog.
"Alright, the spell I'm about to cast will let you breathe underwater, but be careful," The girl forewarned Sonic, "It can deflect minor bullets, but any dangerous attacks may break the spell."
"Can I still use my abilities?" queried the hedgehog.
"Yes," Alicia said as she pointed the gun in her left hand right at him, "It's programmed to ignore actions by the user within."
"Aqua Barrier!" Lucky Star declared as its master fired off the spell.
Sonic could both feel and see the results of the spell affect him within mere seconds as a bubble-like barrier encased his form. The spell was clear, but touching it felt wet, bouncy, bubbly like, well a bubble. And despite how it looked, the hedgehog was still able to breathe normally.
"Cool~." Sonic grinned, gleefully poking the bubble like a kid his age might do.
"If everyone else is ready," Alicia spoke once more to gather attention, "Follow me, the first Time Warp Plate is just up ahead."
Following Alicia's lead, the team took the deep plunge into the water. Their new spell additions had immediately taken effect as a small bubble-like barrier enveloped their heads, allowing for underwater breathing. Sadly, the spell additions were unable to keep their clothing from getting soaked, but not even magic could help with that.
Alicia had soon been proven right as her team found the first Time Warp Plate; and, as fortune would have it, it was the one that led to the past. The tricky part was the activation as the water had cut down the attack power of Alicia's harisen. Luckily, Vita was more than able to compensate with Graf Eisen and soon the team was sent into a time warp.
[Tidal Tempest: Act 2]
[Time: Past]
[BGM: "Tidal Tempest ~P" Sonic CD (JPN/EU)]
The time jump had led the group to an underground cavern that had been untouched by mankind and machinery. Much like the present, pipes still carried water from one zone to the other. The water level was fairly low in comparison to the present, resulting in a darkened tint for the water within the caverns.
"Hey, the water level's lower!" Sonic noted happily.
"That doesn't make it any easier," Alicia noted, "A majority of this zone is still underwater."
"Enemies also lay in our path." Added Signum.
The enemies in the underwater ruin zone came in a variety of four types: Taga-Taga, Tonbo, Yago and Amenbo. The Tonbo were large mosquito-shaped robots that were designed to dive-bomb any intruders from above. Amenbo, designed to resemble water spiders, were programed to swim back and forth on the surface and fire missiles at any target. The Taga-Taga were the lobster-shaped mechs that were made to swim low in the water and impale foes with the spikes on their back. Lastly, the Yago were larva-shaped robots that swam back in forth in a circular pattern, only breaking their pattern to ram any threat head on with its metallic head.
In addition to the robots, the strike team also ran into the natural obstacles from the zone, namely the pillars and the shifting current. Even though the water spells supplied by Alicia kept them from drowning, the water still hampered some of their abilities such as Sonic's speed and a majority of the magic cast by Fate, Alicia and Signum due to their mana conversion affinities for lightning and flame respectively.
Despite that, the team was still effective in dealing with the robots as Nanoha and Vita more than made up for the magical and physical power while Signum, Fate and Alicia still had their respective weapons. Their underwater agility was also boosted by Nanoha's "Axel Fin", Fate and Alicia's "Sonic Sail" and Vita and Signum's "Pferde" spells, which normally allowed the mages and knights to fly about the air with superior agility. This made dealing with the platforms and pillars much easier made the underwater sections flow by smoother.
Also, much to Alicia's regret in hindsight, Sonic had discovered a rather amusing gimmick in the aqua barrier. Combining it with his ball form, the hedgehog was able to literally bounce off the floor like a basketball, and he absolutely abused the newfound ability to no end, taking out robots just as the others, namely Vita, were about to finish them off.
"Oi! Blue boy!" the hot-blooded berserker knight shouted at Sonic, "Stop stealing my kills!"
"Sorry~!" Sonic declined musically as he bounced about energetically in the water, protected by his aqua barrier, "Be faster next ti-"
"Enough." Signum, unamused, swiftly intercepted the bouncing boy and leveled a glare at him, "You've made your point."
"Y-yes ma'am!" The hedgehog conceded in fear that was just as much justified as it was comical; few had been able to fully stand bravely when faced with the stern look from the stoic sword knight.
It took little time for the group to find the teleporter and fortunately it was in one of the few areas that was dry land. Likely it was placed there as a precaution as Eggman was unsure if he could trust to leave his machine underwater. After the teleporter came the projection machine. Much to Sonic's annoyance, the projected robot still had that annoying resemblance to him and he was glad that Vita took out her frustrations on the device and not him.
With their work completed, the team still had to navigate through the tricky and dangerous labyrinth of a zone in order to find a time warp plate to the future. Nanoha had almost suffered the embarrassment of getting caught in current that was drawn into a pipe, but Fate was there to keep her stabilized. Soon they had reached the signpost, which was fortunately above water again. With her strength unhampered by the water, Alicia took a mighty hack at the sign to send them past the present and on into the future.
[Tidal Tempest: Act 3]
[Time: Future]
[BGM: "Tidal Tempest ~G" Sonic CD JP/EU]
Free of Eggman's influence, the future of Tidal Tempest was exactly what it should have been, at least according to Alicia. It was a turquoise aquarium that was completely operational and held much plant life within hydroponic cases. Fish swam freely through the pleasantly light-turquoise tinted water, which was also clean of any robotic impurities. If there was any complaint, it was that the water level was far higher than both of the previous timelines.
Much like the previous timeline, the team still had to contend with navigating the arduous and tricky terrain, but thankfully Alicia was there to guide them. There was, however, still a matter of the uneasiness in the atmosphere that grew. Perhaps it was the knowledge of the Testarossa matriarch looming far ahead, or maybe it was something more. But for Alicia, there was something on her mind, an unanswered question, that she felt the need to suddenly clear up.
"Speaking of time, I have a couple of questions that I have been trying to get answered all day," Alicia, suddenly spoke up, "I tried asking this from Amy Rose earlier, but she got confused,"
"Go ahead," Signum held no objections, given the girl's helpfulness so far.
"Firstly, What world is this one attached to?" queried the little girl, "And what is the current year and month according to the New Calendar?"
"We are on Non-Administrated World #97." replied Fate accurately,
"Also called Earth~!" chimed Sonic oh so musically,
"And we just celebrated the New Year, so we're in the first month, January. I can tell you what year it is here on Earth," added Nanoha in an attempt of being helpful, though she had a feeling that she was coming up short, "But I think we follow a different year calculation so I don't think that's what you're looking for…"
"We are in year 0066 according to the New Calendar," Fate provided, always happy to help
"Wow… so we've been here for less than a year," Alicia did a bit of math in her head, "The Jewel Seed stuff ended before the end of last spring."
"How do you know about all of this?" asked Fate
"That's…" Alicia sighed as her gaze shifted towards Signum, identifying her as the de facto leader, "A long story…"
"Tell us what you can." the swordswoman was less inclined to give the girl an easy exit from the topic.
Without any other hesitation, Alicia spoke her story to the best of her abilities and memory. The story was far simpler than anyone could have guessed. After Precia and Alicia fell from the Garden of Time, they had somehow found themselves on Little Planet, alive and rejuvenated. At first, the two had thought that they died and found heaven, but the passage of time had refuted the idea outright.
[BGM: "Rydia's Theme" Final Fantasy IV OST]
For but a few moments, Alicia and Precia were able to live somewhat in peace, until the older woman suffered a night terror triggered by a nightmare of her past self. That opened the floodgates and soon Precia suffered bout after bout of guilt and depression, all the while Alicia was kept in the dark as to why. The suffering mother did not want her daughter to know why in fear of her reaction.
Her daughter, understandably so, felt confused and helpless as she had to watch her mother suffer from whatever had pained her. Alicia felt scared herself, she begged for her mother to tell her, but every time she was turned away. Whatever it was, her mother was dead set on keeping it to herself.
The pain of guilt soon became too much for Precia to bear and one fateful day the woman was ready to end it all. It was a day that Alicia remembered all too well because of the ramifications it had on their relationship.
"I remember seeing kaa-san trying to throw herself off the cliff in the Palmtree Panic zone." Tears started to fall from the smaller girl, "Maybe it was my selfishness, or maybe it was my fear of being alone, but when I saw her fall, something inside of me snapped."
It was when Precia had thrown herself that saw Alicia's latent magical power awakened. Before the old woman was even halfway to the ground and her demise, a turquoise streak caught and carried her back to their home. Alicia had neither known nor cared how fast she or how far she flew, she was just glad that her mother was safe.
"When we got back, I had kaa-san take me to her study and refused to leave until she told me everything." Alicia shook her head, the tears falling, "And so she did… she spoke of the accident, my death, Project Fate, my clone, the Jewel Seeds, Al-Hazard."
"Alicia…" Fate reached out only for her original to pull her into a tearful embrace so tight it stopped short of suffocating her.
"Kaa-san did more than just tell…" the smaller girl sobbed into her original, "Her device recorded everything and I watched. I watched you suffer kaa-san's insanity. All of the horrible things she did to you, I watched it all!"
"Y-you…" the taller of the two couldn't stop the tears, "You didn't have to-!"
"YES! I! DID! I needed to watch! I wanted to know what pained kaa-san. It was so horrible, I couldn't wait for it to end." Alicia paused for a moment to regather her feelings and composure, "After it was over I stormed out of the house. I needed to cool my head and take some time away from her…"
"And then?" Signum cut in neutrally, taking note of the various reactions from the rest of her party. She could see Nanoha torn between simply listening and trying to comfort, while Vita and Sonic looked away, the latter of the two was far too young to listen to the tragic tale.
"I returned home later that evening and I told kaa-san just how I felt." Alicia steadied herself, "I told her that I wanted to hate her for what she did, I wanted to call her stupid, insane, any word my five-year-old brain could think of, but I couldn't. I couldn't bear myself to hate her. And the reason, our promise."
"Promise?" Fate asked in confusion.
"Remember the picnic?" The girl spoke like she did, "I still remember the crown of flowers and kaa-san's smiling face when she asked me what I wanted for my birthday…."
Fate recalled the memory in question. It was somewhat of a blur given the difficulty that holding memories that she had not personally experienced, but Alicia aided her. She remembered their mother as who she used to be, a kind if a bit awkward woman who never had enough time away from work. The picnic was one of the few times that she could spend with her daughter. The young girl's birthday was around the corner and, like any mother would do, she asked what the girl wanted. Alicia's answer had stopped Fate in her tracks.
"A sister!" Fate nearly shouted as the words hit home, "You wanted a little sister!"
"One to play with, care for, or even help kaa-san around the house." Alicia nodded, tightening her embrace with the clone like one would their favorite blanket when scared, "When I saw you, my heart skipped a beat. You looked like me, differences aside. I saw the pain you endured from kaa-san's whip and words. That's when…
"That's when I knew, beyond any doubt, that you were the one." Alicia's and Fate's identical eyes locked and feelings were sent, "You were the little sister that I wanted. The little girl I wanted to play with, raise, help kaa-san, but most importantly, the one I wanted to protect."
"The one you wanted to protect…" Fate trailed off, her mind thinking of the chestnut-haired girl in white, Nanoha, "I can understand…"
"I know that I kinda forced this on you last zone, but I want you to know," Alicia looked up at her clone, no, sister, once more, "I don't see you as some failed clone like kaa-san used to. I see you as my little sister, and, if you'll accept me, I want to be the big sister for you."
Acceptance, that was not a word that Fate was expecting to hear from the small girl. She had played out possible encounters with the girl before in her dreams, but what Alicia just said had rendered her shell-shocked. Still, Fate had but one answer and it was a simple one.
"Yes."
It was at that moment that a new bond was forged. A truly touching scene unfolded as sisters embraced and let their tears of joy and happiness fall. The gathered crowd watched with but only a small variance in expression. Nanoha had to bring all levels of her own self-control to keep her from full-out breaking down into tears herself, merely settling for wiping her eyes. Vita and Sonic shed a few tears as they felt a slight warmness in their hearts, though the former would never admit it outright. Signum dipped her head in a sign of respect, it was a rare honor to see a true bond, familial or not, be formed before her eyes.
[No BGM]
The scene was truly a heart warmer, no one would have been so foolish as to interrupt it. At least, that would have been the case, but an egg-shaped fool, who had just saw the group below, flew down anyways. The scientist's hovercraft revealed a machine gun in the carriage and let loose a volley of bullets.
Signum's eyes narrowed as she immediately positioned herself in the path of fire. The woman's form was poised and practiced as she held the sheathed Laevatein before her. To the surprise of the hardboiled scientist, the salvo was deflected by only scabbard that was drawn.
"Doctor Eggman," Signum's voice was controlled, but held a great deal of killer intent within, "To disrupt the touching moment of a familial bond, have you only depravity in your soul?"
"When one is a scientific genius, why should they revel in such pleasantries?" countered the doctor as he floated down before the group, "At any rate, I came here for one reason. Legends surrounding Little Planet spoke of powerful jewels known as the 'Time Stones'."
"What do you want with them?" Alicia tensed visibly, which went noticed by all but the scientist.
"Isn't it obvious?" Eggman questioned arrogantly, "I want to harness their powers and convert this place into my own personal robot factory, but I can't do that without the Time Stones. Now, where are they?"
"I don't know." the small girl turned away from the doctor, "Now get lost, you interrupted my sisterly bonding scene."
"What?" the mad scientist slammed his console in rage, "How dare you just dismiss me?! I'll have you know that I-!"
"You know, you should really read the mood a bit better," Sonic cut in suddenly as he stepped forward, his hand holding one of the prototype rings that was given to him by Reinforce to test out, "You're not wanted here, I'll give you about ten seconds to egg-scuse yourself from this area before I do it for you."
"Really?" deadpanned the doctor, "Another egg pun? Serious-?"
"And time's up." the hedgehog gripped the ring within his gloved hand.
Sonic almost winced as he felt the sudden rush of power enter him from the ring. The power felt almost like the same level, but it also felt wild, potent. A light-blue aura enveloped the hedgehog much like before, only this time there were little swirls of wind that briefly emanated off his body. Something that went easily noticeable by the magically sensitive females.
'That's the wind…' Signum thought to herself, 'Could it be?'
Without a second of hesitation, the hedgehog launched off in his spin form and slammed into the egg-mobile. The impact generated a wince-inducing sound of sharpened quills scraping hard against the metallic surface. Adding onto the firm statement of Sonic's undeniable speed was the familiar sound of the sonic boom as the hedgehog had shattered the sound barrier on a turn, which made a shockwave so powerful that it sent the Eggmobile, along with the scientist piloting it, well off into the distance, becoming but a twinkle in the afternoon sky once more.
"Well, now…" Sonic said as he landed, "That felt a bit different."
"That was a ring generated from the Tome of the Night Sky," Signum noted, "I imagine it would be unusual compared to other sources."
"Well, it worked this time, so I'm not going to question it," shrugged the hedgehog, indifferent, "Now then, don't we have a house call."
[Tidal Tempest: Act 0]
[Testarossa Residence]
[Time: Future]
[No BGM]
The Testarossa manor could have been accessed in any time zone, as noted by Alicia, due to their ingenuity of building the manor in the past. For reasons unknown to the smaller girl, Precia had spent a majority of the time in the future. It was for that very reason, that Alicia led her new friends plus sister to her home in the same timeline.
The house itself seemed rather modest and somewhat small, but appropriately sized for a family of two. Rays from the midday sun shone lovingly over the house, creating a warm, welcoming, homely feeling, but for some, it was the presence inside that contrasted that.
Fate felt her body go rigid for a brief moment as she realized that within those doors was her mother. The very same woman from her memories, both past and, painfully for her, present. Despite the phantom pain, Fate was determined. She wanted- no, she needed- to know if her mother had changed. Deep down, through the fogs of her traumatized mind, lay the girl who wanted to see her mother smile. Never had she seen her mother truly smile in her own lifetime, she had discounted the times from Alicia's memories as they were not her own.
A warm sensation from both of her hands had rendered the blonde at ease. From the corners of her peripherals, she could see Nanoha and Alicia respectively on her left and right side. She allowed herself to fall at ease with a smile and her courage built up again.
"Alright, Signum-san, Sonic-kun, Vita-chan," Nanoha spoke up to address the three directly, "Fate-chan and Alicia-chan's mother is waiting for us. She is a VERY powerful mage, so please be on your best behavior. Precia-san is said to be a SS rank mage by the Bureau standards, and that is… um… really powerful!"
"Given the stories spoken, a direct confrontation is hardly what I have in mind," Signum replied back before Sonic or Vita could say anything. The knight of the sword sent a very stern look at the red and blue ones before her, "You two will behave, is that understood?"
"O.K~!" Sonic nodded rapidly.
"Right." Vita added.
Fate and Alicia exchanged glances once more. There were no words spoken, but the feelings they transferred between one another through their eyes provided more than enough for a conversation. Fate had told herself that she would not hesitate, and Alicia was prepared to hold her to that. With nothing to hold them back, Alicia opened the door and entered.
The inside looked as modest as the outside, it reminded Fate of the house they had before the relocation to the Garden of Time while Alicia often reminisced of the home she had before the accident. For but a moment, the hall they had entered from the entrance was dark, but that changed when the lights turned on.
Waiting for them at the end of the hallways was a woman with graying-purple hair and dark-indigo eyes. She was fairly attractive, looking much younger than what her age was. Her attire was casual, consisting of a light-purple, long-sleeved v-neck shirt with a black low-cut t-shirt underneath, a long, dark-purple skirt was secured to her waist and common black shoes on her feet. The woman's face was somewhat youthful, but bore a tired expression, either from her age or something else entirely.
"Welcome home, Fate…" The woman said with a tired voice that was all too familiar for the blonde's ears, "My beautiful, second daughter."
[To be Continued]
[Ending: "Mi-Ra-I" Run & Gun, Sonic X OST]
[End of Chapter 6]
Author's notes: First, the asterisk for Arf's age is an indication of it being official, so according to the TSAB. Though, in reality, Arf is almost the youngest in the series, being made after Fate was.
Now for other notes… Yes, the cliffhanger for Precia's appearance, the dialogue should be vague enough for some folks. I will also note the location shifts. While I focused a majority of the time on Little Planet, there were still other side-stories to look at such as Lindy in the Bureau and Arf getting frustrated over her master's stubbornness (How unlike HER). I also needed a bit of world building to show how the Bureau works and what not. Now there are a few questions still left unanswered… what does Precia's appearance mean on Little Planet, how does she regard Fate as of now given what has been stated here. Also, the Time Stones… I love to hear some theories on how Alicia and Precia ended up on Little Planet in the first place along with what their presence in the arc means as an impact.