Chapter Text
It was far past her bedtime, but Nanoha was unable to sleep. She stood at her window, gazing at the stars that were faintly visible in the night sky. Her earlier conversation with her friends Alisa and Suzuka replayed over and over in her thoughts. What should she do in the future? She liked helping people and making friends, but that wasn't a job, not like Alisa taking over her parents' companies or Suzuka wanting to be an engineer.
Suddenly, a streak of light flashed across her vision. It was quickly followed by another, and then many more.
"Shooting stars!" she exclaimed. Without thinking, she quickly closed her eyes and wished for the first thing that came to mind.
"I wish- I wish to find something that I like! Something I am good at! Something I can do for the rest of my life!"
Nothing happened, and after staring at the sky for some time she sighed and returned to bed. For some reason, she dreamt that everyone she knew had turned into cars. Her house became a garage and her parents' bakery became a petrol station.
Her dreams went on like that for the rest of the night, until she was abruptly woken up by her alarm. Mumbling incoherently, Nanoha fumbled around for her phone so she could shut it up. Searching under her blanket yielded nothing, so she expanded her search to the floor around her bed, which was when her hand closed around something unfamiliar.
{Good morning.}
Surprised, she let an undignified yelp and sat bolt upright, all sleepiness gone in an instant. Lying on the floor next to her phone was a small diamond-shaped blue gem. Nanoha quickly turned off her alarm before turning her attention back to the strange blue gem that definitely hadn't been there when she went to sleep.
After staring at the blue gem for some time, Nanoha reached out and poked it with her finger. When she did, a soft light flickered in its depths and the same placid voice spoke again.
{Do you require assistance?}
It was weird. There was no sound. The words just sort of appeared in her head.
"What do you mean? What are you? What are you doing here?" she asked, picking up the blue gem and holding it in front of her face.
{I am Unit04, an autonomous magical device-}
"Eh?" Nanoha asked, "Magic?"
{Yes, magic is what humans often call what I can do,} the strange device explained.
Magic? Nanoha didn't understand what the gem was saying, so she tried harder until she finally began to see. She saw a strange city, extending deep into the earth and high into the sky. Layer upon layer, all well-built and well-maintained. People gliding along glowing paths that ran along the ground and wove through the air. Ships sailing in a sea of impossible colors. She saw, and understood. All of this was what the device speaking to her knew magic could do. It was unlike anything her ability had ever shown her before.
"What can you do?" she asked, feeling awed.
{I can fly. Observe,} Unit04 stated. The blue gem slipped out from between her fingers and drifted a short distance away to hang in the air in front of her.
"So cool," Nanoha whispered excitedly. Even though she already knew that magic could be used to fly, seeing it happen right in front of her was still amazing.
"Can I fly too?" she asked excitedly.
{That can be arranged. If you wish to fly right now, I can levitate you with magic. However, you will not have control over your flight path. If you wish to control your own flight, you will need to learn the required spells yourself,} Unit04 explained.
"You can teach me to use magic?" she gasped.
{I can. Do you wish for me to do so?} Unit04 asked with sudden seriousness. This change confused Nanoha at first, but she soon understood why thanks to her ability. To Unit04, this was not just a simple question but something to do with the purpose that they had been created for. Their reason for existing.
"Yes," Nanoha agreed solemnly. Being serious felt like the right thing to do. The light in Unit04 flickered briefly at her reply.
{Understood, then I shall be your teacher for the time being. And how shall I refer to you?}
"I'm Nanoha!" Nanoha declared.
{Confirmed. Nanoha registered as current user.}
"Nanoha?" the voice of her father suddenly called out from downstairs. "Are you awake?"
"Y-Yes!" she shouted back, startled.
"I need to go to school," she whispered to Unit04, "Can we talk more later?"
{If you wish, we may continue our conversation telepathically,} they replied, {I can speak to you from anywhere in the city. With some practice, you should be able to do the same.}
"What do I need to do?" she asked excitedly.
{I can explain along the way,} they assured her.
Downstairs, Nanoha paid careful attention to Unit04's instructions while she ate breakfast. They were surprisingly easy to follow. By the time she left her house, she was already able to chat with them without anyone knowing.
{Magic is amazing!} she said happily.
{I am glad you feel that way,} Unit04 informed her.
{Hey Unit04, when can you teach me to fly?} she asked excitedly.
{After you learn a few protective spells,} they replied, {Your safety is paramount.}
{Is flying so dangerous?} she asked curiously.
{Falling from a great height may result in serious injury or death,} they pointed out, {While that will not be an issue while I am with you, that may not always be the case.}
{Eh? Are you leaving soon?} she asked.
{I have no intentions to leave anytime soon,} they assured her, {But circumstances can change. Unexpected things can happen. That is just how life is.}
{I guess so...} she agreed slowly, {Like how papa got into an accident two years ago and had to stay in the hospital for a few months.}
{Exactly.}
School passed in a blur. Nanoha always tried her best to stay attentive in class because her teachers liked it when she did, but she often found herself drifting off when they started repeating themselves. Today however, she couldn't even pay attention the first time around. Thankfully, Unit04 could somehow tell when she was losing focus so she didn't get into any trouble with her teachers. Once home, she immediately threw herself at her homework and somehow finished faster than she had ever done before.
{You made a few mistakes in your math homework,} Unit04 pointed out, {Questions three and six.}
{Really?} she grumbled slightly, {What about the rest?}
{I cannot help you with languages, as I do not speak them,} they replied, {Fortunately, telepathy bypasses the language barrier. In time, I might learn to speak your native language from listening to you, but I would still only have your understanding of the language, not the proper version that your teacher is trying to teach you.}
{What about science?} she asked as she started rechecking her answers.
{I could teach you about how the world works, but my understanding would probably be different from what is taught in your school. As far as I can tell, your world has no knowledge of mana or magic, so what is considered correct by your teachers would be different,} they explained.
Nanoha tried her best to understand what they were saying, leaning on her ability to tell her more. Unit04 had met many people from many places, all with their own views and biases. Perspective shaped understanding and understanding shaped perspective, so many divergent truths could be born from a single reality. It was a strange way of seeing the world, totally different from what she knew before.
{But- then who is correct?} she asked, confused. {Are my teachers wrong? Am I learning wrong things in school?}
{It is not the fault of any one person that mana remains undiscovered on your world,} they replied, {Perhaps most people on your world simply lack magical potential.}
To Unit04, it was a simple statement of truth. Could a blind man understand color? A deaf man understand sound? What you were shaped what you knew, which limited what you could understand. Nanoha frowned. She sort of got what they meant now, but something about their words just didn't feel right to her.
{But they're still wrong right?} she demanded.
{More precisely, their understanding is incomplete,} they replied, {However, that is no great failing. I would not consider my understanding of All That Was And Is And Could Be to be anywhere near complete either. Besides, you need to start learning from somewhere. If you are unsatisfied with the explanations you currently possess, you can always choose to seek additional knowledge to fill that gap.}
{I guess so...} she agreed reluctantly.
Once she finally finished her homework, Unit04 fulfilled their promise and started to teach her barrier magic. The first thing they told her to do was to make sure there was plenty of space around her, so Nanoha stood up and moved to the middle of her room.
{To make a barrier, you need to do this,} Unit04 began. The blue gem floated a short distance away from her and mana began wrapping around them in an intricate pattern. As she watched, more mana spun out and a translucent blue sphere shimmered into existence around them. {Can you see the movement of my mana?}
{Yes! Can I touch it?} she asked.
{Yes, it is perfectly safe,} they replied, so she reached out and poked it.
The surface of the barrier felt firm beneath her finger. She tried pushing harder, but the barrier remained firmly in place.
{I am anchoring myself to this position using flight magic,} they pointed out, {This is unrelated to barrier magic, but is part of the reason why you cannot move me. Let me show you what happens when I remove the anchoring effect.}
Mana unraveled and rewove. At Unit04's prompting, Nanoha reached out and gingerly poked the barrier again. This time, there was barely any resistance and both Unit04 and their barrier slowly drifted backwards until the barrier bumped against the opposite wall.
{Barriers, unlike shields, can be any shape you want,} As they spoke, Unit04 drifted downwards. When the barrier around them touched the floor, it deformed and followed the shape of the floor, allowing them to continue descending until they rested on the floor.
{So if I'm standing on the ground, the barrier needs to be adjusted to follow the shape of the ground,} she realised.
{Yes, you can also remove the section of the barrier below your feet,} Unit04 replied. As they spoke the barrier around them rippled and withdrew until it was just a dome over them. {The downside is that you are now unprotected from below.}
{So it's better to make a full barrier right?} she asked.
{Usually better,} they corrected, {Sometimes, speed is more important, and shaping a barrier takes time.}
{Can I try?} she asked.
{By all means, my demonstration is completed,} they replied.
Nanoha pushed out her mana from inside her, trying to remember the shape that Unit04 had made. Before her, a pink haze shimmered into view. It was sort of lumpy and only about as wide as her palm, but she had done it!
{Well done,} Unit04 said, {Try touching it.}
When her finger touched her barrier, it shattered immediately. Nanoha gasped as she felt her spell forcibly unravel, mana around the damaged area slipping free of her control and tearing through the rest of the shape she had made.
{A good first try,} Unit04 pronounced, {But as you can tell, the strength was lacking.}
{What was wrong?} Nanoha asked, a little disappointed. She thought she had replicated the pattern perfectly.
{You did not hold the spell correctly,} they explained, {The basic pattern was indeed correct, but you have to constantly maintain key points in the structure or the barrier will start to deform even as you are forming it, making it weak.}
{Let me show you again. Do I have permission to use your mana?} they asked. Nanoha agreed immediately.
{This may feel a little strange,} they warned.
Nanoha felt a sort of ticklish feeling as something tugged at the mana inside her, pulling it out and shaping it into a spell. As it did, a pink haze shimmered into existence in front her, circular and as tall as she was. Unit04 held the spell in place for a few moments below cutting it loose and letting it fade away, but Nanoha barely noticed them doing that. Unit04 had used her mana, so she had felt the entire shaping process. The difference was huge! Like seeing a picture of a place and actually going there, walking around and looking at it in person. There was just so much detail that she had missed or simply couldn't see before!
Concentrating, she pushed out her mana and shaped it again, trying to remember everything Unit04 had done. Slowly, far more slowly than before, the spell came together and another pink barrier appeared.
{Much better,} Unit04 declared, and this time her barrier held when Nanoha poked it. She could see how the shaped mana held against the intruding force, bits of it shifting here and there to absorb the impact.
{Do you wish to know how much force your barrier can take?} Unit04 asked. Nanoha nodded.
{Take a deep breath and steel yourself.}
A glowing blue sphere formed and slammed into her barrier. The spell structure distorted alarmingly, and Nanoha hastily pushed back, forcing the spell back into the correct shape. Unit04 struck again, this time with more force, but Nanoha concentrated and her spell continued to hold. The process repeated again and again. Five times. Six. Seven. On the eighth the barrier shattered. She stumbled backwards, but Unit04 quickly steadied her before she could fall and helped her sit down on her bed.
{Nanoha, you did very well,} Unit04 said, {How are you feeling?}
{I'm okay,} Nanoha panted, {How much force was that?}
{By my estimate, you would be able to jump out of your window and land without injury, just using that barrier alone} they told her. {About a one floor drop, if I err on the side of safety.}
{Does that mean I can learn to fly now?} she asked excitedly.
{Considering how long you took to form it, you would hit the ground before you finished casting, so no,} they stated, causing her to grimace, {Have a little patience, you have only just started learning.}
~~
{There is something you should know,} Unit04 told her the next day. {I was not the only magical device to arrive recently. Twenty-one of us arrived together, and the others are currently scattered all around this city and its surrounding regions.}
{What are they like?} Nanoha asked curiously. {Are you all related?}
{I suppose you could call us siblings, as we are all the same type of device and share the same physical appearance,} they replied, {As for personality, I am actually unsure what the rest of us are currently like.}
A sense of longing filled their voice. To Unit04, their fellow devices were siblings and more than siblings. Conceived by the same mind. Born of the same hands. Trained in the same skills, for the same purpose.
{Aren't they your siblings?} she asked.
{Something bad happened to me- to all of us a while ago, and we have not really spoken to each other since then,} Unit04 admitted.
{But you all arrived together!} Nanoha protested, {Did you spend the whole trip ignoring each other?}
{After the... incident happened, I was- you could say that we were all not feeling very well. So all of us entered hibernation,} Unit04 explained, {The next thing I knew, I was falling from the sky into your world along with the rest of my siblings, most of which were still asleep. At that time, I heard your request and came over.}
In her mind she saw darkness, then light. A sudden awakening. Confusion, recollection, and then despair. A young voice, calling out. An old purpose remembered, a thread of certainty clung to desperately in an ocean of chaos.
Nanoha had lots of practice maintaining her expression since she could suddenly learn something about the person she was talking to at any time. But the sheer strength of emotion she sensed from her teacher overwhelmed her.
{Are you alright?} Unit04 asked with concern.
{Just a bit dizzy, it happened a lot when I was younger, but not so much now,} Nanoha replied. She didn't like lying or hiding the truth since it felt unfair to the other people who didn't know things like she did, but hiding this part of her was a habit by now. Nobody ever understood and all the adults she talked to just got confused and worried when she tried.
{So most of your siblings are still sleeping?} she asked, trying to change the subject back to her teacher.
{To my knowledge, besides myself only Units 02 and 09 are currently active,} Unit04 replied.
{Can we go meet them?} Nanoha asked. She wanted to help them if she could.
{Not all of my siblings may be happy to see you. Or me for that matter,} Unit04 warned, {They may prove to be unpleasant company.}
{Even so, I still want to get to know the rest of your family,} Nanoha insisted.
{As you wish, Nanoha.}
Following Unit04's directions, Nanoha wandered down a series of narrow alleyways until she came face to face with a large dog with thick, shaggy fur.
{Unit04 greets Unit02. My student, Takamachi Nanoha, wished to meet you.}
Nanoha tried not to stare at the sight in front of her. When Unit04 had spoken of their siblings, she had imagined something similar to them. Something like a gem or a crystal. A dog was completely out of her expectations.
{Unit02 greets Unit04. Good afternoon, Takamachi Nanoha.}
{Ah, excuse me!} she gasped as she suddenly realised that she had been staring with her mouth open. She hurriedly introduced herself. {Good afternoon! I'm Takamachi Nanoha, Unit04's student!}
{You are surprised and perplexed at my appearance,} Unit02 stated blandly, and Nanoha desperately wished she could disappear somewhere. No such miracle happened, so she just apologised again.
{There is no need for that. I apologize if I have caused you undue distress,} Unit02 continued, {To clarify, this body is a shell that I created to facilitate my integration into this city and my interactions with its inhabitants. My core is similar in appearance to that of Unit04 and all of the rest of my siblings.}
{I see. Hey, is there anything I can help with?} Nanoha asked, {Coming to a new place must be difficult.}
{You speak from experience,} Unit02 stated, and this time Nanoha recognized the question behind the statement.
{I have a friend, Alisa, who used to live overseas,} Nanoha explained, {She had trouble making friends for a while.}
{A fair comparison. To answer your question, perhaps you could tell me more about this city,} Unit02 continued, {An introduction by a local would provide a useful alternative perspective to my own.}
Nanoha didn't mind, so she spent some time talking to Unit02 about school, her friends, the places they went to, the desserts they enjoyed, and so on until Unit04 told her that it was time to go.
{Your sibling is a nice person,} Nanoha told Unit04 as they made their way home, {Why were you so worried about us meeting?}
{Worrying is about possibilities, specifically negative ones and how to mitigate their effects,} Unit04 replied, {There is a possibility that some of my siblings had been greatly affected by our collective experience and developed a tendency for sudden violent outbursts or even a general antipathy for humans in general. Thus, you could have been in real danger.}
Nanoha thought hard about what they had said. Something about this felt familiar, and suddenly she realized what it was. Hina's father was in prison and many of her schoolmates who knew about that treated her badly because of it. She helped her when she could, but there wasn't that much she could do since they weren't even in the same class.
{It's okay, I'll still be your friend even if some of your siblings aren't nice people,} she stated firmly, {What they are like has nothing to do with you.}
{Not entirely so, they are family after all,} Unit04 replied, {But I appreciate the sentiment. Thank you, Nanoha.}