[x]Tentatively accept the deal.
-[x]Ask to be put in Vita's group.
You stretch and stand up, tapping your lips. That you're being allowed to work with your immediate commander is a fairly big concession, if you remember correctly - it's more like being a mercenary rather than actually being part of their unit. You stare at a point on the wall for a moment, then flick your eyes over to Verossa. "I ... suppose it's agreeable." He sighs in relief.
"Alright, then. General Gaiz has already selected the unit you will be joining - no, it will not be Vita's," he says, dashing your hopes and making you pout. "That particular unit is already quite powerful; if we added someone as powerful as you to it, there would be quite reasonable concerns regarding the purpose of the unit. Once the unit has had a chance to prepare itself for your arrival, you will be taken there. Do you have any other questions or concerns?" You nod, eyes sharp.
"Just one. This is, of course, a temporary arrangement. Might I propose that in six months' time, the individuals who drafted this agreement meet again - with me - to determine whether the situation is acceptable to all parties?"
"That is quite a good idea, Miss Scarlet. I don't think anyone will have a problem with it." You nod. Of course they won't; besides, now you have six months to make sure that non one will have any problems with it ....
It wasn't too long before you were taken to the unit. Verossa, who seems to have been named ambassador to you, drove you in his carriage. It was really quite interesting ... although his amusement at your apparent inability to drive one was aggravating. All you would need is your clones .... Now, however, you're sitting in a chair in the office of the man who is supposed to be your commander.
"Hrmph. So, you're Flandre Scarlet, are you?" He moves a few sheets of paper around on his desk, then sighs and leans forward. "Well, let's get a few things straight. I'm Major Alfio Marino, and I'm supposed to be your superior; what that means is that if I give you an order, you're supposed to follow it. Normally it would also mean that I'm at least as good a mage as you, but I've got twenty combat mages in my unit, and counting myself only three are B rank or above, while you've been tentatively assigned an AA rank ... which, if accurate, would mean that you could go through this entire unit by yourself without any problems. I have been appraised of your ... particular needs ... and we'll do our best to accommodate you; some things that you ask for we may be able to get, but other things you'll have to do without. This isn't the Navy or the Air Force."
He's an older man, dark hair turning grey, but still fit and physically imposing. You didn't actually see anyone else when you came in; Verossa took you into the office and left you with him, but since the building is much larger you suppose the others are being kept back until you've had your 'interview.'
"As for what you will be doing ... well, to be honest, you probably won't be doing much that you consider interesting. Some testing, to see what you're capable of, some training, and probably a whole lot of waiting. We're part of the Capital Defense Corps, which means we're responsible for keeping Mid-Childa safe ... but you won't see many people trying to attack it. The only major thing going on right now is that Drone situation ... and that is, unofficially, 'not our problem.'" He scoffs. "Unless we get called in, or it affects us directly, we aren't supposed to do anything about it. What we mainly do is help with criminal investigations and takedowns, but since we're primarily a combat unit, we don't get called in unless they're fielding equipment the investigation team can't deal with. And, of course, we aren't supposed to kill anyone."
"Why not?" He blinks at your interruption. "Is there a particular reason to not kill someone who's breaking your laws?" He stares at you for a moment, then snorts and shakes his head slowly.
"The current administration ... believes that it's better to imprison and rehabilitate criminals. Deaths are not always avoidable, but the way things work now, you're supposed to capture criminals, and deaths are usually investigated to see if they could have been avoided. They're too soft ... I don't agree with the General on everything, but I do on this. It's one thing for the Navy to take that stance, all the best mages try to join that service. Here? We don't have their luxuries, but we're supposed to play by their rules ...." He sighs, then rolls his shoulders and stands up. "Well, I suppose I should make sure you know who's on your side if we ever do have to fight someone." Interestingly, his left leg below the knee isn't natural - it's metal, and he makes no attempt to hide it, not even with a shoe.
Almost two weeks pass. You do meet the other members of the unit, but you barely bother to remember them; you remember Lieutenant Tarbin only because she's the only other person who appreciates a good cup of tea, so you forced her to join your daily drinks. It only took her three days to stop breaking the cups, too. Marino was right that things would be quite different - even if you don't know what everything does, you can tell that a lot of equipment is older or second-hand, and nothing is the quality you've come to expect. Except the effort they put into you, that is.
Their 'medical tests' consisted of drawing blood; apart from them not really knowing what they got, you aren't too sure what they learned from it. They've been working on a Device for you, too. In fact, you've destroyed two already, so the engineer told you that they'd start simple - a heavily-reinforced Storage frame, optimized for high-capacity mana flow, and with only the Barrier Jacket to start with. If he can get that to work, he said, he can start working on integrating new functions. You don't really care about the other parts, though - a Barrier Jacket means you'll stop ruining clothes. You've already ruined two of the brown uniforms they gave you, and those were supposed to have been reinforced!
You ruined the first set on your second mission. The first mission was really just an observation, so you knew what you were 'supposed' to do ... but all you really learned was that Marino was right, you would go through his unit like they didn't exist. So, of course, when you were let loose on your second mission, you did what came naturally - you went through the walls, and 'accidentally' killed most of them. Because the major asked you to, though, you did let the ones who managed to surrender live.
The second set you lost when you finally got to play with Vita. You won, of course, and it was such a very short time you got to play with her, but it was still fun, and you think she might even like you a bit more! Not that you've been sitting on your laurels; you managed to get Tarbin to look up information on Vita, and her unit. Nanoha Takamachi, the 'Ace of Aces,' and so-called "White Devil;" that person is someone Vita respects and cares about. More worrisome to you, though is her commander. Hayate Yagami, Vita's Master ... and also a member of her family. That is something that made you think. When it was just a matter of finding Vita's Master and convincing or killing him, that was one thing; Vita would be upset, but what was done was done, and there would be no barriers to your being her new Master. But if her Master is family ... you know how you would react if someone tried to kill Remilia and make you listen to them. You've even done it before! And Vita would probably react the same way ....
Right now, though, you're watching the same screen everyone else in the unit is watching. Apparently, something major is happening outside, but most units are in standby ... Vita's unit is dealing with it. And to tell the truth, you're nearly as amazed as everyone else is at how fast they managed to sweep the sky clear of the Drones. You'll have to make sure that you don't let them engage you in a group .... You watch, along with everyone else, as the helicopter begins flying away - and is attacked, from seemingly nowhere. But unlike everyone else, you aren't focused on the helicopter, or on its miraculous survival thanks to Nanoha's intervention. You are focused on the beam. You know that beam; it's the same one that attacked Vita when you first arrived. And you even know how to get there from here!
What do you do?
[ ] Stay and wait. You haven't been ordered to intervene, so you have to watch. How boring.
[ ] Kill whoever that is. Maybe Vita isn't your servant, and maybe she won't be, but you're still mad. Who cares if you're disobeying orders? You have a score to settle.
[ ] Sneak out and follow them. Maybe they'll be able to get away from Nanoha, but you're much sneakier! And since you'll be making them surrender, it'll even be alright with everyone else!
DM Note: No, I'm not off-screening Flan vs Vita; I'll be putting it in an omake. Mainly because I don't want to do it in second-person. I'm sorry if this is ... disjointed, I think ... I'm probably not thinking clearly enough to be writing something that's supposed to be coherent, but if I didn't get started when I did I probably wouldn't have a chance until sometime tomorrow.
