852/Walkies

Walkies
Date of Scene:	05 December 2023
Location:	Penguin Park
Synopsis:	Chrono and Nanoha go on a walk through the park with their familiars and discuss the magic of this world. Three things are learned. Magic is weird, how to use binding magic... and Yuuno looks so adorable in his widdle leash harness ohmygush socyute.
Cast of Characters:	Chrono Harlaown, Nanoha Takamachi

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Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown had been... out. For a while. Not good. And then dark energy, he well... he hadn't been training with the other girls for a bit. And he needed to catch up on them, discuss things. So he'd decided to start with Nanoha. In this case, asking if she wanted to come with him on a walk. It'd be good exercise for their familiars, too.

Yuuno probably hadn't liked that.

Either way, though, he was out in a nice bomber jacket (Thank you, Rashmi), and standing by one of the park's paths. Waiting for the other girl to pop up. His device in his pocket and Fenyx nestled on his shoulder, currently resting in the area between the coat's collar and his neck.

Nanoha Takamachi has posed:
Taking ferrets and birds for a walk sure is difficult when A: One rides on your shoulder most of the time and B: One flies and doesn't walk. Thusly, Nanoha Takamachi is here with a ferret, in a harness, and Yuuno hates this so much, but no, Mom bought it for him because she thought it'd look cute.

It does, kinda.

Still, Nanoha is here, with one of those retractable leads on the harness and is giving it enough slack as not to make Yuuno uncomfortable with the harness.

"Chrono! and... um." she says. "I don't believe we've met!" she says to the bird. "I'm Nanoha Takamachi!" she says as she looks to Chrono. "Have you always had a familiar, Chrono-senpai?" she asks, head tilting some.

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown shook his head. "No. I encountered her recently and... actually, now that I think about it I don't think she has attended any of our training sessions either." He reached up and the lidth's jay moved onto his hand so he could hold her out to him. "This is Fenyx, my familiar. I recently acquired her to help me locate the crew of the Arthra."

Fenyx, meanwhile, did a very awkward little bird bow. < Charmed, > she said telepathically. It seemed she was able to use his magic. the pink, blue and white bird then flew up! Moving over to her and landing on her shoulder, very lightly nipping her ear. < You are the artillery mage that Chrono has mentioned, are you not? >

Nanoha Takamachi has posed:
A Bird on the shoulder is worth two in the bush, or something.

Nanoha Takamachi giggles girlishly at the ear nip and then says back. < Oh! > she says. < Yes, I am! > she says. Yuuno stirs on the otherside of Nanoha's shoulder and gets grumpy when a bird occupies his shoulder space. What if there was an attack and he needed to change shoulder's quickly!? Still. The girl softly lifts her head a bit. < This is Yuuno. He's actually a boy. Not my familiar. But I guess he kinda is. >

< I am your teacher > complains Yuuno!

< That too! > says Nanoha.

"Um."

"How has that been going?" she asks quietly.

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown had a small twitch in his eyes when she asked that. "It has been going... less than well. Since the last find, there hasn't been any progress on that front. I have a... better idea of where they're not, at least. But as to where they are... that... is still a while off," Chrono.... was not fine with that. But he was trying to keep upbreat about it. It was hard, though.

"I was also infected with dark energy recently. It has since been purged from me but it has made the last few weeks... concerning. I've come to depend on the people of this world more than I'd initially realized. Which, reminds me..." He then pulled out a small card. "I realized there are probably more people I should trust with these now." He then held it out to her.

If she took it... and opened the display... A holographic ID card.

Name: Nanoha Takamachi
Role: Temporary TSAB Artillery Mage
Familiar: Yuuno.

Because Chrono was, also, a troll. It had her image on it. And of a ferret, under it.

Fenyx then flew back up, fliding a bit along the path. "Assuming you'd like the role."

Nanoha Takamachi has posed:
Nanoha Takamachi pouts a little when she hears that the search has been going poorly. Was it really that bad? She thought a little as she said. "How displaced was every one when the Artha crashed?..." she asks quietly as she considers. "Was it...like an emergency transport? Or did people just get... voomped!" yes, she says 'Voomped'.

"Oh that sounds bad. Dark Energy. That's bad." she says with a series of nods. "Isn't that the energy that jerk boy in the labcoat uses?" she says softly.

Then Nanoha gets a holographic ID Card and her eyes go wide in sparkleshine. "I accept!" says Nanoha.

"I hate you." says Yuuno, in sarcastic scoffing tone.

Yuuno scampers off. Or tries to, but is suddenly yoinked by the leash, as he 'awks!' and flails.

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
"The first," Chrono said nearly instantly. "Most of the crew had already abandoned ship when our navigation went down. Ten of us remained behind to try and save the Arthra, but we were unsuccessful. The ship was being torn apart by the dimensional distortions and we had no choice. We performed an emergency teleport to the nearest liveable environment. In this case, Earth."

"The biggest problem, however, is that I'm the only one that remembers. There are procedures to reconnect in situations like this, but when I arrived we were separated. All of their devices came with me and they... were separated. None of them can even remember their time on the Arthra due to the veil. Once I can locate them, I can re-calibrate their devices and keep a permanent log of their status, but until then they're... cut off from me. It's... entirely possible that something has happened to them by now. I've seen enough of the magic on this world to know how deadly it can be to those who are no longer able to defend against it."

... While his mask was a serious one, his tone was quite solemn. He hadn't given up... but...

"Yes, the dark energy is exactly that kind of magic. It's.... dangerous. I'd channeled it through my device and that alone was enough to damage it. Worse, it is insidious. I wasn't even aware it was affecting me until Riventon taunted me over it. It managed to avoid my scans and.... frankly... is all the more dangerous because of it. As dangerous as any lost logia I've encountered and at times makes me question my own capability to make choices. Without access to the TSAB, I'm missing one of the most powerful counterbalances I have."

"... Enforcers are powerful and have a great deal of authority. But we're only supposed to operate alone, without oversight, for short times. Here? There is no checks or balances to me aside from those I designate. If dark energy can corrupt me in such a manner without me noticing, there's no telling how much destruction I could cause if it was more powerful. If not... for Rashmi? I might have very well killed Riventon or his friends."

... Still, despite the somber mood, he smiled none the less when Yuuno scoffed at him... and very lightly snickered when he was yoinked on the leash.

Nanoha Takamachi has posed:
Nanoha Takamachi can't help but stifle the giggle and presses the button on the leash gadget she has that lets it spool free so Yuuno can go scamper away a git so her and Chrono can talk. "Oh. So." she says. "These people don't remember? That makes things even more difficult, I wonder if there's a way to jog memories, somehow..." she trails off.

"Hrmf..." she considers a little and taps her chin.

Still, she gasps when the point is brought up she could had killed Riventon and his friends. She says. "That sounds really dangerous... Even Raising Heart's only taught me to fight to disable and Yuuno's done the same..." she says as she trails off.

"I assume, that like the general rule is not to kill people. In any given case. I assume the TSAB has a similar stance, right?" she asks.

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown gave a small nod. "It really... is. I spent hours trying to get through to the first one I found, all I did was... cause them a lot of distress. I've since tried to be calmer when I meet with them."

"As for the TSAB... yes. We generally try to disable and capture threats. However, in severe situations, killing threats deemed too dangerous or who will become too dangerous is permitted. Under normal circumstances, ending Riventon's life would have been the ideal solution. He is a dangerous threat that keeps growing more dangerous. He even created his own device. However... I realize, now, that was the wrong choice. While I... tried... I, fortunately, failed. While he is a threat, I do not believe him to be a irredeemable threat. More importantly, I have seen a lot on this world to teach me that things do not operate the same as they do in TSAB space."

"... As a general rule though, no, I would not recommend any temporary mage go for a lethal approach. Taking a life has an effect on a person that, frankly, considering the limited amount of training most of you have, I doubt most would be prepared for. It can damage your mental stability and is likely a gateway for dark energy to infect you."

Nanoha Takamachi has posed:
Nanoha Takamachi listens intently as she takes this all in, seeming to close her eyes, as she walks along.

"I think. Killing is wrong. I mean. There's no take backsies from that." she says in her young manner. "If you make a mistake, I mean. You can't. Take back death." she says.

"But."

"It's not like there's a magical jail. At least here on Earth. Maybe if there was a way to make a limiter...." she ponders a little. "Like. House arrest. Stop someone from using their powers... their abilities...." she looks at Yuuno and on his lead, Yuuno is chasing a butterfly.

"Does such a thing exist in TSAB Space?" she asks. "If not. Maybe we can make one?" she wonders.

"I dunno. This sounds more like Yuuno's wheelhouse and he's just an archeologist."

"Hey. I'm just an archeologist like you're just a bombardment mage." he says, cute eyes narrowed, as the butterfly lands on his head.

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown gave a small nod. "Indeed. Killing is something you can't undo. Unfortunately, there are times where it is required. There are forces that can't be bound, people who can't be stopped. Those who will keep taking lives no matter how many times you stop them, until you permanently stop them."

"All of this must be weighted before you take a life. Because it is something you can *never* take back. I hope the time never comes when any of you have to make that choice... but I hope, if the time does come, you can make the right one."

"As for magical jail, yes. There is that. We also have limiters. The problem here is that there doesn't seem to be any way to contain dark energy users. I've tried to stop and bind them, but nothing seems to work. I'm unsure if it's an aspect of the magic itself, or if I'm missing a fundamental part that is needed." He then glanced towards Yuuno and smiled despite himself. Okay, the ferret was kind of precious like that.

"Both I and your familiar are from TSAB space. However, magic here operates differently. At this point we'd be practically creating a new magic entirely, one that might operate entirely outside of the realms of midchildian calculations."

"... Though, that is a thought. You ARE from this world. Perhaps teaching more of the nature of binding magics would allow you some benefit in that. Tell me, have you learned any binding spells?"

"Would you like to?"

Nanoha Takamachi has posed:
Nanoha Takamachi sighs. "Dark energy seems. Malleable." she says. "Like you can just morph out of what you're stuck in." she says. "Or make clones of yourself or do lots of things. I wonder what the drawbacks are of that..." she says trailing off. "Surely there's a weakness there. Maybe we outta look more into it." she says.

"How'd you get rid of the dark energy anyways?" she asks. Before she listens to the rest.

"Oh! I don't know many binds, just this simple one and it isn't very strong..." she says , admittedly. "Would you be willing to teach me how to use it better or teach me new ones?" she asks with hopeful wide eyes.

Chrono Harlaown has posed:
Chrono Harlaown nodded. "It is. As flexible as normal magic. But it's also incredibly blunt and toxic. It damages its users, a lot like injecting yourself with a poison that makes you stronger. It'll give you power in the short term, but long term? It's likely to destroy you. Undermines your very thought processes. Subtle and dangerous. After getting it removed, well... I still feel a little sore from it. Channeling it through my device did damage as well, as it kind of... forces its way through. Regardless."

"As for how I got it out of me... there was this magical girl known as Sailor Moon. A friend of Sailor Pluto's, I believe. She had something called Moon Healing Escalation, it burned away the dark energy. Painful and exhausting, but I felt much better in the end."

He pulled out his device card, a smile on his lips. "Well then. How about after our walk we head out to that field for a training session. I could teach you some of the bind spells I use and you can see which ones feel most comfortable to you?"

Nanoha Takamachi has posed:
Nanoha Takamachi frowns a little. "Hrm..." she seems to think on this for a few moments before she merely says something obvious:

"Magic is weird."

She tugs Yuuno's leash back and Yuuno gives her a look before she sheepishly says. "R..right. time to go then." she says. She looks towards Chrono again. "Huh. Maybe stuff like that is gonna be paramount in fighting dark energy then." she says. "But yes, let's go find a nice comfortable field to train in. Away from everywhere else..."

"--and I can take Yuuno off this ridiculous leash!"