TESTAROSSA
It's dawn with only a sliver of light on the horizon. Nanoha lands in front of a large hangar in the Terminal compound, and walks into Signum's temporary HQ, where the other unit commanders are already gathered, sipping strong coffees readying themselves to plough through the second day of this bloody war.
Nanoha notices Vita has arrived during the night. A short childlike red-haired soldier with a matching attitude, having a chat with Signum with a visible discontent on her face.
"-really, I should have smashed that silly Hello Kitty ashtray a long time ago." Vita is saying.
Nanoha joins in.
"Hey, that was a gift from me. All the way from Japan."
"OK, then you tell her to quit." Vita snaps. She looks up and down running her eyes over Nanoha.
"You got blood all over you." Vita points out.
"Oh…" Nanoha finally realizes why everyone has been asking her if she was hurt. The two longtime friends air-kiss and hug in greeting.
Subaru taps on Nanoha's shoulder. She has come over from the hill for the mission briefing.
"Nanoha-san, thanks for yesterday." Subaru leans in. "Hey, I brought something you've got to see. She looks just like-"
Signum slaps the back of Subaru's head.
"I think I know what that is, and no. The last thing I need is a confused Nanoha."
.
Signum walks up in front of her desk, with Agito hovering around her shoulder.
"Now, please be seated, people." She pulls out a giant map showing the area between the hill and the town.
"Princess has ordered an offensive, and here is how it's going to be." She points at the hill about 5km west of the town. The hill stands out like a pimple on a smooth face, jutting out in the middle of a vast rolling plain.
"Since we do not know where the enemy is heading, I'm going to present them a target they would want to prioritize. In three hours, I and the Raptor battalion will draw the enemy out into the open here-"
The Vaizen Air Wing's group leader raises his hand.
"What Raptors? I thought you guys were it?" asks Bug Boy.
"They were supposed to be delivered to Fedikia, but Princess flashed her charming smile on the right people." Signum flashes her own smile. "The Raptors are ours now."
She draws a vertical line halfway between the town and the hill.
"Once the enemy crosses this line, Anvil swings down from the north, Punchkid comes up from the south. I roll them from the front." She nods at Agito. "Agito will give you full detail shortly."
Nanoha raises her hand.
"I guess you want a squadron support per battalion?"
"That is correct." Signum nods. "Midchilda Wing go with Anvil, Vaizen with Punchkid."
"OK." Says the Vaizen leader. "Who's Anvil, by the way?" he asks.
"That's me." Vita waves from couple seats away. Bug Boy quickly glances at Vita's chest.
"Oh…I see. That's why."
Vita, of course, catches the glance. She rages.
"It's referring to me wielding a war-hammer!"
"Pffft!" Agito fails to hold the laughter. Vita points her finger at the little fairy girl accusingly.
"You of all people?"
#
.
It's still very early in the morning in Midchilda's Capital Defense Corps HQ. Hayate is asleep slumped over her desk in her office. The light is off with the windows curtained off, but the room is partially illuminated by multiple holo-displays floating over the desk, displaying force status, unit's readiness, tactical maps, etc.
Suddenly Reinforce pops out next to the Commander's sleeping head. The lights come on in the office, curtains are drawn, and windows flap open. Reinforce screams into Hayate's ears.
"Wake up, Hayate! Wake up!"
Hayate wakes up with a jolt. Rubbing her eyes, she yawns. Reinforce ushers her into the attached exclusive bathroom and helps Hayate wash her face and brush her teeth. The little fairy-like girl then produces a clean freshly pressed shirt and a new pair of stockings. She helps her Boss change.
"Signum sent me her plan so late in the night!" Hayate complains, yawning.
"That's her early morning. At least you got some sleep." Says Reinforce, buttoning up Hayate's shirt. "I bet Signum didn't get any sleep at all." She leans back a bit and checks Hayate's hair. She finds them acceptable.
"You wanted to invite JCS and the Security Adviser, remember?"
"Yes, I did. Is Signum ready?" asks Hayate, raising her chin so Reinforce can tie her necktie better.
"She's in position waiting for your green light."
The two return to the desk. Reinforce pours a mug full of freshly brewed coffee. Hayate takes a sip and sighs.
"Right. Let's bring them in."
Reinforce opens the double door, and uniformed men and women pour into the room, setting up displays and consoles. Signum's face appears in front of Hayate.
"Good morning, Princess. I'm ready to go."
"Good morning, my dear lady knight. How are the new Raptors?" asks Hayate. Signum looks pleased.
"Brand new, up to date, impeccable, as good as it gets." The delivery package even included a Strike howitzer battery, much to Signum's delight.
"But you have to settle it with Fedikia at some point in the future." Signum suggests from another world. Hayate shrugs it off.
"Alright. I will bring JCS and the Adviser on board."
She initiates a video conference and the faces of Lindy and the Security Adviser appear next to Signum's
"Good morning, Madam Chairwoman. Good morning, Sir Adviser. We are about to commence." Hayate greets the two honored guests. She continues.
"I hope to deal a significant blow to their forces and rob them of the chance to regain the initiative."
Lindy smiles.
"Good luck, lieutenant general. This morning's success will be a huge morale boost across the Bureau."
The Security Adviser agrees with an appreciating nod. The public has become aware of the overwhelming enemy strength, and there already is a call for negotiation.
"Managing Directors need something to show to the public and say 'Hey, we can handle this'."
"Then you are in good hands, sir. Signum is my best." Hayate faces Signum and gestures dramatically.
"Unleash the-"
"Yes, commander!" Signum cuts off Hayate mid-sentence, leaving the young general awkwardly in the middle of a pose that was meant to be cool.
.
The brand-new Raptor battalion has relieved Punchkid on the hill. Enjoying the Vaizen's dawn breeze, Signum stands in front of the large-caliber Strike howitzer cannons manned by the combat droids. She raises a hand.
"One round! F-"
"Would you step aside, major general?" A Raptor droid suggests.
"Oops. Sorry." Signum moves away from the barrels. "One round! Fire!"
A single cannon fires off.
.
The shot lands on the quiet and still sleeping town's central plaza, creating a deafening explosion. The town comes to life.
.
Zafira's voice fills Signum's comm.
"That's impressive. You are on target; fire for effect."
Signum turns to the droids with a smile.
"Battery, fire for effect."
.
The masked invaders, now fully awake, rush out of their newly acquired houses to investigate what the explosion was about. They hear a lot of whistling and then suddenly the plaza erupts in earthshaking explosions, again and again.
The shock frightens the girls. They cover their ears, instinctively ducking low, some letting out a yelp of fear upon series of deafening explosion sounds.
The senior girl with the red ribbon quickly casts optics magic, trying to find the source of this great danger.
"It's coming from that hill!" she points to the distant high hill.
Then a stray round hits a grocery store, leveling it. The girls gasp collectively. They are furious.
"We gotta do something about this!" a nearby masked girl shouts over the noise.
.
"They are moving out." Zafira informs his division commander. Signum makes a round call to her unit leaders.
"All units, status?"
"Anvil is in position. White Devil is with me on the ground." Vita reports from a concealed position located north of the expected axis of the enemy advance.
"Punchkid and Vaizen Air ready to roll out." Subaru reports from the south.
Signum notices Agito floating nearby, covering her pointy ears with tiny hands, trying her best not to be blown away by the blast. The shock of artillery pieces firing nearby is having a significant effect on the tiny body. Signum gently embraces the little girl.
"Good. Stand by. Let them cross the designated line." Says Signum to her junior officers. Hayate's hologram face floating before her gives a thumbs up. So far so good.
#
.
Lieutenant Alph's platoon is just outside the Staging Dock, concealed and cloaked. One of the soldiers who have been observing the gate signals to the platoon leader.
"Lieutenant, something is up at the gate."
Alph moves next to the man to get a better look. She zooms in using optics magic.
A group of invaders is casting a spell right in front of the gate.
"What are they up to?" Alph wonders.
.
Once the masked girls finish the spell, an opaque projected image appears out of the gate. It's the hooded woman. She first seems disoriented but quickly gathers composure. A senior girl bows politely.
"Good morning, mother. Welcome."
The hooded woman looks around, surveying the world.
"Where is the ship? What is this place?"
"I'm sorry, mother, they had destroyed the ship themselves before we could do anything." The senior girl points at the wreckage. "But we've captured this place. And the town right outside."
The projected image of the hooded woman carefully examines the world. She takes in and reads the world's parameters. She knows this place.
"This…this is Vaizen."
"It's not Midchilda?" The senior girl sounds disappointed.
The mother slowly looks around, trying to determine what to make of the situation.
"No, but we are very close."
The projected image indicates the hooded woman pulling out a holo-map in front of her, examining it. She looks up to the sky, to the seaside coastal line, to the inland. She corks her head slightly, unsure.
"This should be an old Sail Force base..." She continues studying the map. "…and there should be a teleportation terminal that way...wonder if it's still there?" The mother points inland.
The senior girl does not understand what her mother is talking about.
"Mother, what is a teleportation terminal?"
The hooded woman is in a good mood. After all, Vaizen is practically next door to Midchilda.
"It's a place with hundreds of portals to other worlds. Permanent portals." She looks at the map again. "But my map is old. Too old." The projected image looks straight at the senior girl standing in front.
"Find me a new map, and I can be sure. Something that resembles this." She displays the old map, so the girl can have a better look.
"We will have sisters look for it, mother."
The hooded woman nods.
"Yes, but I also want you girls to press forward." She points to the west. "Follow the big road that way about 100km and there should be the Terminal…if it's still there."
"If we capture it, can we go to Midchilda?" The senior girl asks.
"Yes…At last."
The senior mage calls other girls over, points at the projected image of the map, and tells the girls to look for something resembling it. She also calls another group of girls and points to westward inland, explaining what is to be done.
The hooded woman gazes around, emotional. Despite the pseudo-reality of seeing Vaizen from millions of worlds away, she wants to have a better look. She removes the hood, revealing a dark-haired old woman with a determined face, savoring the view.
.
At the outskirts of the Staging Dock, Alph stumbles backward and falls on her behind.
"Holy fuck…"
#
.
The howitzer battery continues firing on the advancing column of the enemy. The invaders march onward, barriers fully deployed, braving the onslaught.
"What now?" The Security Adviser's hologram face asks.
"Sir, as you can see the enemy is about to step into the kill zone." Signum explains. Soon, she will set Anvil and Punchkid loose who will assault the enemy flanks with big guns blazing. Signum continues.
"We dissect them to pieces while I roll the front with the Raptors."
"I'm baffled." Lindy shakes her head. "Running across a long open field in plain view…to assault a dug-in high ground?"
"Generally, they'd want to suppress us with heavy bombardment while they advance, but…it's not happening." Hayate comments. "Noob punks, as I said."
Signum pouts a bit.
"But to be fair, commander, each and every one of them still is a formidable warrior equivalent to two or more of my regular squads."
"What a waste…" says Hayate in a slightly sad tone. "It's the lack of organization and doctrine that will get these capable warriors killed. What a shame."
Lindy and Signum nod in agreement. Signum checks the enemy's progress. It's about time.
"All units, commence-"
Signum is interrupted by Agito whispering into her ear. At first the major general looks at Agito with an expression that says, 'What's that got to do with it?'. Then she blinks a couple of times, puzzled.
"Who?" Signum demands.
.
Watching Signum's hologram face talking with Agito in hushed voices, Hayate senses something is up.
"What's going on?"
Signum faces the other three and clears her throat.
"Sorry about that. I just got an urgent report from my Recon. Irrelevant for the current mission, but still a significant intel."
"Bring it on, then." Hayate gestures. Signum clears her throat again.
"Right, commander. Recon sighted the enemy reporting to what appears to be a projected image of their leader."
"Inter-dimensional projection...Well, the gate is still open, so it's not too hard to do that." Lindy shows off her knowledge. Signum hesitates a bit before continuing.
"Here's the important bit. The enemy leader appears to be Dr. Precia Testarossa."
"Who?" Hayate blurts out.
"Precia Testarossa." Signum repeats. Hayate shakes her head to focus.
"Sorry, I meant…what? How is that even possible?"
"That's ridiculous. Are you sure?" Lindy cannot believe it either.
Signum, on the other hand, looks convinced.
"Madam, the report and the name come from none other than lieutenant Alph herself. She knows a Testarossa when she sees one."
Lindy and Hayate make the O-faces.
"Just who the hell is this Testarossa person?" The Security Adviser demands to know.
"She was… She is-" Lindy is about to explain but is interrupted by Hayate.
"Sorry to interrupt, madam. Signum, hold the attack. Do not engage. Stop the barrage."
"What?" The other three shouts in unison.
"Just…hold it." Hayate quickly makes a call. "Hang on a bit, please."
Seconds later, Teana joins the conference call.
"Morning, Hayate. Can I go to Vaiz-" Teana sees the other faces. She quickly snaps a salute. "Good morning, sir. Good morning, madam."
"Teana, I need you to check something really quick." Says Hayate.
"Sure, but you've got to get me to Vaiz-" Teana shuts up as Hayate holds a hand up.
"I want to you look up one Precia Testarossa. She was presumed dead, so the file should be in the archive."
Teana starts querying through her device.
"Testarossa…Testarossa… wasn't that Fate's name?" She finds the file. "Here it is!" she quickly skims through the document.
"Dr. Precia Testarossa; Wanted for illegal handling of forbidden magic, destruction of a Bureau transport ship, and oh my god, the Jewel Seed incident. Missing, presumed dead."
"Hold up, hold up." The Security Adviser butts in. "Commander Yagami, I think I know where you are getting at, but-"
Hayate ignores the man. She presses on.
"Teana, what's her status?"
"Missing. Presumed-"
"I meant her citizenship!" Hayate yells, much to everyone's surprise. She is clearly very upset. "I don't care if she's a criminal or presumed dead whatever! Is she a citizen?" Hayate asks. "Now she's turned up alive, is she still a citizen?"
Lindy, too, realizes the implication and gasps. The Security Adviser just face-palms, sighing heavily.
"Yes. She is a citizen. What do you-" Hayate drops Teana from the comm. She slams her desk with both fists, again and again, letting out a long scream of frustration while her staff and the three faces floating in front of her watch in silence. Shortly, she regains her composure, but on the verge of tears.
"Abort, Signum. Abort. Call it off."
.
On the hill of Vaizen, Signum's face turns red in anger.
"Are you mad?"
Not far from her, Agito is busy handling incoming calls from the unit commanders. She's telling them to hold, which is growing more and more difficult. Signum continues.
"Abort? We are this close to decimating the enemy, and you want me to abort?"
She looks at Lindy and the Security Adviser for support, but they just shake heads.
Hayate has her face buried in hands.
"Remember yesterday? Subaru said something about her killing Fate-chan?"
"Yes, I do remember." Signum shoots back, fuming with frustration. "What's that got to do with our situation now?"
Hayate is almost crying, upset.
"We have no enemies. They are fucking Alicia clones! Led by Precia fucking Testarossa! And she is a fucking citizen!" She screams.
"So fucking what?!" Signum screams back, her veins bulging.
Lindy clears her throat and reluctantly offers the explanation.
"Major general, Armed Forces are prohibited from operating against Bureau registered citizens in Bureau territory. The Office handles citizens' misconduct."
Signum is stunned. She gapes at the Chairwoman of the JCS.
"Misconduct? Madam Chairwoman, with all due respect, these people invaded Vaizen, which technically makes it a war." She points at herself. "Soldiers fight the war, madam." She points at the direction of the Staging Dock. "My men and women; they died yesterday fighting a war! Not some misconduct!"
"I understand your frustration, major general." The Security Adviser intervenes. "But Commander Yagami is right." He sighs and continues. "The moment she became aware of their citizenship, anything she does unto them thereafter is illegal."
Agito is looking at the video faces with bewildered eyes, mouth open. Signum takes half a dozen deep breaths to calm herself down.
"Alright, sir, Precia Testarossa is a citizen. I leave her alone. Executive Office arrests her or whatever. OK, I can live with that. But this army here…these clones-" Then she abruptly stops, realizing what she is saying. The Security Adviser nods with a knowing expression.
"It's not that easy, is it?" says the man.
"What about the clones?" Agito has to ask.
The Adviser lets out a sigh.
"It's a fundamental issue, little girl." Should the Bureau regard the clones as some meaty tools of a wanted criminal, or as legitimate individuals? If a clone of a citizen, created by a citizen, engages in criminal activity, does the Office apprehend, try, and judge the said clone as a legitimate citizen, or just have it be destroyed on sight? It is an issue that cannot be handled by mere guidelines or acts but is something that goes all the way up to the Bureau Charters. Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on one's view, there is legal precedence; a case of exactly the same nature as the current situation. And the subject of the said legal precedence, ironically, now heads the Bureau's law enforcement, making sure the laws are upheld and the integrity of the Charters protected.
"Fate 'Testarossa' is a legitimate citizen. Never once during the Jewel Seed incident had the Bureau considered her otherwise." Lindy says through gritted teeth. This hits Signum hard. Her face is no longer red, but pale. Her shoulders sagging, head hung low, she hails her junior officers.
"All units, stand down. Stand down. The mission is…" She swallows hard. "It's a no go."
The comm erupts in chaos as her unit officers demand an explanation. Signum looks at Hayate's face, lost.
"To. The. Letter. Signum, to the letter. That's what we do." Says Hayate firmly, despite herself looking very upset.
"Your commander chose to do the right thing, major general." The Adviser offers. "Right thing, but frustratingly, not the best thing for our current situation." He sighs. "Nobody's fault. It's beyond the scopes of the Armed Forces." Indeed. The entire Bureau system was designed specifically so that such things are not decided by powerful men and women wielding weapons. "I gotta talk to the Managing Directors."
Signum nods and thanks the man sincerely in appreciation. Hearing those words from the Security Adviser gives a little sense of pride in her heart. Always feels good to see someone appreciating her Princess.
"Understood, sir." Signum gets on comm again. "All units, shut up and listen. An order from Princess; No offensive actions whatsoever are to be initiated from our side." She looks at Hayate for approval and gets a nod. Ignoring the loud protests filling the comm she continues. "Self-preservative measures only and with precision weapons. Do not shoot unless they shoot at you first. Do not shoot at who's not shooting at you."
The protests get more heated.
"Just shut the fuck up and say yes!" Signum yells into the comm. She calms herself down. "Assemble at my position. We are pulling out."
.
Agito has been wondering for a while and she has to ask.
"So…sir, if the Armed Forces are not allowed to fight-"
"That's a good question!" The Adviser gives a hearty smile. "We are dealing with a wanted criminal and her minions...It's technically Executive Office's job, is it not?" He turns to Lindy.
"It is…" Lindy agrees, but she knows what that means. Hayate exhales a long sigh.
"But is the Office even capable of dealing with this? Or…more importantly, can we really ask Fate-chan to come and face her clone sisters, and…" Hayate trails off.
"That'd be an inhumanely cruel thing we do to her." Says Signum, bitter.
The Security Adviser blinks a couple of times. Speaking of Fate…
"Where is she any-"
Something traveling at beyond hypersonic speed passes the top of the hill. The sonic boom hits the ground, knocking everyone down.
#
.
The marching girls are caught completely off-guard by the sudden appearance of Fate, who has seemingly come to existence out of thin air in front of them. Still in her now all crumpled Executive Office uniform she wore when she rushed through the gate, her long blond hair a tangled mess, eyes wild and breathing heavily, Fate's appearance is that of a train wreck.
"Stop! It's a trap! Turn back!" She shouts at the top of her lungs, arms stretched out trying to block the girls from passing her.
The masked girls are, understandably, confused. Fate continues.
"It's a trap! They will kill you all!"
.
"Erm…uh…" Signum is lost. "OK, we are pulling back. I will report again from the Terminal." She salutes to her superiors and drops off from the conference call. The floating video faces disappear. Signum signals Agito to cut all visual feeds going to Midchilda. She has no intention to let Midchilda know whatever the hell Fate is doing.
"What the heck is she doing?"
Signum zooms in using optics magic to have a better view.
.
After mumbling goodbyes, Hayate ends the conference call she was hosting. As soon as the faces of Lindy and the Security Adviser are gone, she rolls on the floor, her shirt getting all crumpled and the skirt riding up as she flails arms and legs throwing tantrum.
"Arrrrggggghhh! I was this close!" She cries. "Whyyyyy! Why Testarossaaaaa! Why nooooooow!"
Her junior officers watch in awkward silence. Reinforce ushers them out of their commanding officer's room.
.
The first thing the Alicia clones ask Fate is, of course, "Where is your mask?"
"This is wrong! Mother is using you!" Fate is shouting as loud as she can hoping all the girls can hear her. "To her, you are nothing but failed replacement for dead Alicia!" She continues, almost choking from the sudden rush of her own past memories and emotions sweeping inside her mind.
"Turn back now! The soldiers are going to kill you all!"
The clone girls are confused. They look at each other's masked faces. A little one steps up.
"Sister, what are you talking about? Of course, we are not Alicia."
"Wha-what?" Fate is stunned.
"Besides, what's wrong about helping mama bring Alicia back?" the little one looks around, trying to get supports from her sisters. The girls all cheer.
"Yeah!"
"What are you talking about?" Fate does not like where this is going. She has not accounted for the possibility that the girls know what they are doing. She presses on regardless.
"All mother cares about is Alicia. She doesn't care about you at all!" says Fate, but her voice has toned down in volume. "She's just using you...making you do bad things!"
The girls are still confused. The little masked one speaks up again.
"Yeah, so? We care about Alicia, too!"
Her sisters agree loudly. Another one steps up.
"If it wasn't for Alicia, mother wouldn't have made us at all!"
Fate's jaw drops. No matter how sad and twisted that statement is, it is so true Fate cannot argue with that. She simply has never thought of it like that. Another masked girl, this time a senior, shouts from the back.
"And I got to meet my sisters. And I'm grateful for that!"
The girls cheer again, some even clapping.
"This is the least we can do for Alicia!" the little girl shouts, and the two thousand Alicia clone girls cheer loudly.
"For Alicia!"
.
Punchkid battalion is lying low far south of the masked invaders, vehicles camouflaged and engines running. Subaru and her assistant use optics magic to observe what is going on. They are, like everyone else, confused.
"Can't make out what's she's saying, but they are cheering. That's a good sign, right, major?" The assistant asks.
"Well, she is a very inspiring person, indeed." Subaru answers, meaning it. She is relieved to see Fate alive but is confused at the same time. Who's that girl I killed?
"I really hope it works out." The assistant means it. "But, major, aren't we supposed to head back to the hill?"
"Hmm…" Subaru wants to stay around. "If something goes bad, Fate-san would need our help." She turns to her assistant and gives a weak smile.
"Maybe I'm worrying too much since Chief Enforcer seems to have a good show going on there…" She trails off. "But…"
"But?" The assistant is curious.
"But I have this feeling Nanoha-san will fuck it up." Says Subaru.
"Let's not jinx it, major."
#
.
Nanoha comes down from the sky and lands next to troubled Fate, who is at a loss what to say to the girls. The White Devil has her staff ready to fight, carefully watching the masked girls.
"What are you doing, Fate-chan?"
She surveys the invaders. The girls are tensing up.
"They…they aren't listening." Fate takes a step forward. "You are invading Vaizen! It's wrong!"
Nanoha pulls her dear friend back.
"Fate-chan, it's dangerous. Let's get you out of here."
Fate pushes Nanoha's hand away.
"Whatever the reason, you shouldn't be doing this!" Fate still tries to persuade her clone sisters.
"Sister, you sound like you are on their side!" the little girl points out.
"No! I'm just trying to help you!" Fate shouts to the girls, but they are not convinced.
Nanoha forcefully grabs her life partner.
"What are you doing! Let's go!"
Fate struggles to set herself free from Nanoha's strong grip.
"Hey, leave her alone!" the masked girls are agitated at the sight of their sister struggling. Nanoha tries pulling Fate away from the girls, but the blond Enforcer keeps resisting.
"Nanoha, please. I have to save them."
Nanoha has had enough.
"Save them? Just what exactly are you doing here, Fate-chan! The mission is canceled. Nobody's going to kill them today!"
"No, that's not it." Fate pleads, tearing up. "They are like me. Please, I can't let them go on."
Nanoha is confused. She loses the strength in her grip.
"Like you? What do you mean?"
Fate gestures towards the girls.
"My sisters! They are all Alicia's clones!"
.
Suddenly the time slows down to a crawl for Nanoha. She can hear her own heart thumping, drowning the muffled arguments between the masked enemies and Fate. Come to think of it, they all sound exactly the same as Fate. A masked girl is shouting something, pointing at Nanoha.
"It's her! The flying devil!"
Nanoha looks at Fate's face. The flustered face is slowly shouting something to the clones. Alicia's clones. Each and every single one of them the very incarnation of Fate's own miserable childhood; Years of abuse and violence and abandonment. Nanoha studies her friend's face. Clearly Fate is suffering. Facing her worst nightmare…and two thousand of them. Nanoha can't even fathom the pain Fate is feeling apart from her own immense sadness and rage. This shall not be.
Nanoha turns to face the masked Alicia clones. They are drawing weapons, shouting to Fate.
"Sister, get away from her!"
"Save her!"
'No, you get out of my Fate's life' Nanoha thinks. Her heart is beating like crazy. This is unacceptable. Absolutely unacceptable. These demons suddenly appearing and tormenting Fate. Simply by existing these girls are causing unimaginable pain to her dearest. This shall not be.
About two dozen clone girls are jumping on Nanoha with their beam blades ready to cut and slice. Fate has thrown herself in the path of the masked abominations, trying to protect Nanoha.
Raising Heart is heating up because Nanoha's heart is raging. Her face distorts with the White Devil's wrath. Nanoha has come to a conclusion; erase these nightmare demons out of existence.
All her senses return to normal and the time flow returns to as usual. Nanoha suddenly blinks into the middle of the masked girls in mid-leap, slamming one down with her staff. The unfortunate masked clone simply explodes to meats and bones. Even before the gore hits the ground Nanoha has already moved onto a little girl; a violent tap on the face with Raising Heart and the little head behind the equally little mask bursts like a watermelon, spraying the girls behind with little brain matters. Nanoha grabs the edge of a beam blade that was swinging down on her and shoves it into a masked face, ripping the arm attached to the blade off of the owner in the process.
The enraged White Devil is about to strike down another clone girl, but Fate's intelligence device, Bardiche, now in its blade form, blocks the swing. The impact sends a pulse of shock wave that knocks the clones down, cratering the ground.
"I can't let you kill them!" Fate yells. She is surprised at herself for pulling her weapon against Nanoha.
"I won't allow them to be!"
Nanoha gets up in the air, preparing for a bombardment spell, weaving through the javelins fired by the clones below. She is interrupted by the sudden appearance of Bardiche's sharp blade swinging down on her face. She has no other choice but to parry. Another shock wave knocks the girls below flat to the ground.
.
From far north, the Midchilda flight mages take off, breaking out of concealment.
"She just attacked the group leader! That's it. Engage!"
"No, you get back!" Vita tries to stop them. "Get back down here!"
Nanoha's 1st squadron ignores Vita and heads towards the clone army at top speed.
.
A large group of Alicia clones is in the air in hot pursuit of the White Devil while the rest of the sisters are shooting up, hurling death magic in their attempt to kill the lone enemy.
Every time Nanoha tries to attack and kill Alicia clones she is interrupted by Fate's jabs and swings. The blond enforcer skillfully switches between scythe and blade making her mode of attacks unpredictable, forcing Nanoha to prioritize dealing with Fate. Nanoha sometimes parries and maneuvers around, and sometimes counter-attacks on her dear friend in order to make the much-needed space for another attempt at killing the masked girls. The air is in constant vibration and turmoil stirred by the magical power overflow from the two Midchilda mages clashing each other. The Alicia clones, despite their efforts, can't keep up with these two titans.
Fate once again closes in on Nanoha. As she is about to swing her blade a volley of offensive magic discharged by the Midchilda flight mages land on her, engulfing the space with bright flashes of explosions and smoke.
"No!" Nanoha, horrified, screams.
"No!" The Alicia clones for once share Nanoha's sentiment and they scream, too.
Fate flies out of the smoke cloud, unhurt and unfazed. She stops midair at a distance from Nanoha and dusts off her uniform. A fierce battle erupts between the Midchilda's Air Wing and the two thousand Alicia clones, while Nanoha and Fate float motionless with sad expressions, their eyes locked on to each other's.
.
Subaru turns pale.
"Shit! 1st squadron just shot Fate-san!"
"You jinxed it, major!" the assistant yells accusingly as the Vaizen Air Wing takes off. Bug Boy is leading the charge.
"Squadron, engage those lunatics! Protect Chief Enforcer!"
Subaru grimaces and makes her mind up.
"Fuck it. Battalion, move out! Assault formation!"
Punchkid's armored vehicles break from their hidden positions, and rush across the open field, their heavy-hitting guns firing non-stop.
.
Vita on the other side of the plain bites her lips. The flight mages have gone crazy and are shooting at each other while simultaneously trying to take on the invaders. Vita can't just sit there and watch it any longer.
"We can't let the flyboys fight them alone! Captain Mondial, take the point!"
A young officer nearby snaps to attention.
"Yes, major!" The young captain then rushes to his company. "Company, we are on point!"
"Anvil, assault! We take the heat off from the Air Wings!" Vita shouts her order into the battalion comm channel.
#
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Midchilda's 1st squadron is protecting their boss from the clone army and at the same time trying to attack Fate, who in return is protected by the Vaizen flight mages, who at the same time are also fighting off the airborne invaders.
The local Air Armament comm channel is filled with Midchilda flight mages and their Vaizen counterparts demanding to know what the fuck the other is doing.
On the ground, Rapid Response's two battalions are attacking the Alicia clones from both north and south flanks, despite frantic comm from the division command post ordering ceasefire.
The clone girls have desperately dug holes and took up defensive stances, mimicking what they saw from the Bureau soldiers the day before. With the element of surprise gone and air support now non-existent, the attack has come to a stalemate on both flanks. The soldiers have dismounted from their carriers and begun firing their rifles, using the armored vehicles as covers. The Alicia clones lay low as endless streams of thick deadly magic fly over their heads, hurling their own death across the field.
In the air amidst this chaos, Nanoha and Fate remain motionless, eyes locked onto each other.
After what feels like an eternity, Nanoha moves her eyes to the ground for a fraction of a second, to the Alicia clones, then locks her eyes back onto Fate's again. Raising Heart transforms into its cannon mode, glowing in translucent pink, indicating it is charging for a heavy attack.
Fate's Executive Office uniform morphs into a tight form-fitting aerodynamic mode.
Nanoha, eyes still locked onto Fate's, slowly moves her cannon, centimeter by centimeter, to aim at the mass of masked girls below. Fate responds by lowering her stance, preparing to dash forward at any moment.
"Charge complete." Raising Heart breaks the silence between the two women who when back home share the same bed at night.
As if on cue, Fate blinks forward and appears in front of her dear Nanoha, her blade swinging down with a full intention to connect.
With a loud clang, Bardiche is parried by a double-edged sword engulfed in the red flame that has appeared out of nowhere. Fate winces from the intense heat radiating from the sword. At the same time, a strong hand has jerked Nanoha's cannon upward, sending the massive area bombardment attack magic up into the air, hitting nothing.
A fiery lady knight in armor has appeared between the two mages. Her facial expression makes it clear Signum is fuming with rage.
"CEASE. FIRE!"
Booming across the chaotic battlefield, Signum's voice is so loud and carries such commanding authority even the Alicia clones stop in their motions.
"Cease fire…" Signum whispers this time, but everyone has by now stopped whatever the hell they were doing and can hear her loud and clear, paying unprecedented attention to this single angry Wolkenritter floating in the air.
"Major Nakajima. Major Vita." Signum whispers into her comm.
"Yes, madam!" Vita and Subaru in their respective command posts on each side of the field snap to attention.
"Back to the hill."
"Yes, madam!"
Signum descends to the ground. The masked clone girls make space for the flaming lady knight. The knight general silently surveys the invaders for a moment, meeting the curious and awed eyes behind each mask. She finally breaks her silence.
"By now you should have realized I had a trap set up here, prepared to kill you all."
That information makes the girls take further cowering steps away from Signum. She points with her sword at Fate in the air and continues.
"Thanks to her persuasion, I will let you live today. Now, go."
The clones do not seem to know what to do. Signum continues.
"I give you 48 hours to make a decision. Surrender or die." She then proceeds to draw a thick line on the ground with her flaming sword.
"If you cross this line in the meantime, you will face my wrath!"
The Alicia clones who are on the 'wrong' side of the line quickly shuffle across.
"Now go." Signum glares at the hesitating clone girls. "Go!"
"Battalion! Move out!"
Vita shouts her order at the top of her lungs, making sure the invaders can hear her. With that, Anvil's soldiers get into their personnel carriers and start pulling back towards the hill with the mounted weapons still pointed at the invaders. Punchkid follows the suit.
Signum raises her sword and then points it inland. The flight mages take the visual cue and head west, the two squadrons keeping a fair distance between them.
Cautiously, the Alicia clones start to retreat towards the town.
"Sister, come on!" One of them turns and shouts at Fate in the air.
"She comes with me!" Signum intervenes. She thinks for a second and adds. "I give you my word she will be unharmed."
"But…how can we trust you?" asks the clone girl.
The flame surrounding Signum and her sword flares up in rage.
"You dare question my honor?"
The clones reluctantly at first, but then eagerly leave the battlefield, heading east towards the town.
.
When the invaders have moved a good distance away Signum rises back up in the air to the two remaining Bureau mages. Signum is not sure if she can handle it. An unthinkable has happened between these two.
"Nanoha. Fate. Let's head to the Terminal. We should talk." Signum pleads.
Nanoha, her eyes still locked onto Fate's, transforms Raising Heart back to its staff mode. Fate, too, morphs her sonic form attire back to the usual Executive Office uniform.