text:
Author's Note: Okay daaaaaaamn I didn't finish this in time, I underestimated again how long it would take to complete the story. Sorry guys, next chapter would hopefully be the true end... hopefully.
"You baaastaaaaaarddd! Haaaaaaaaaaaahhh!"
Vita charged like a madman towards Fate Testarossa with a burning hammer in her arms, and without a second thought she swung downwards in a vertical arc with full intentions to smash her head open like a watermelon. Perhaps if given the time to think it through she would've realized that it wasn't exactly the best thing to do, but at that moment red hot anger had clouded her eyes completely. The supposed fake pulled out her energy blade and dodged quickly out of the way, but clad in silver flames with eyes cold enough to kill, Signum immediately crashed into the blonde with the strength of the meteor, and they both fell out of view. It did not matter. Zafira had already leaped immediately after the crash for Hayate's side, and Vita yelled rudely at the still-shocked Yuuno and Shamal; she wasn't in the mood to be civil, "What the fuck are you waiting there for!? Come and heal her already!"
As if waking up from a dream, the trip immediately rushed forwards and dropped down to their knees right beside Hayate. Yuuno immediately chanted a number of defensive barriers and healing spells at once, while Shamal focused all of her efforts into salvaging whatever's left of their Mistress' heart. They had no way of knowing whether Rein survived the blow, and Vita couldn't even bear to think of the worst outcome. How? Vita thought angrily to herself, Even if we were caught by surprise, we've secured this area with five fucking S class barriers. How did she get in?
But this was not the time to brood over past mistakes. With visible effort, the red knight turned her attention away from Hayate and glared hatefully at the other enemy. At her. Her entire body shook with terror and revulsion the moment she set her eyes on the imposter hovering well above them, looking exactly the same as Nanoha. The warrior felt her own grip weakened slightly with hesitation: What if she wasn't an imposter? What if Nanoha and Fate were being controlled by an invisible force? They looked too alike. Too similar. And it wasn't just the brunette's look; there was also the way she carried herself, the way she held her staff, that slightly misty but still recognizable glow in her eyes…
Vita shook off her hesitation, and gripped Graff Eisen tightly. It did not matter whether the Nanoha before her was a fake or not. If her friend was real, then Vita would beat the living hell out of her until she regained her senses. Otherwise, she would just murder this devil spawn of Grey Christmas. She looked up, and –
"… What?"
Nanoha was smiling. It was a gentle smile that Vita has seen for countless of times, but this time she only felt a horrible chill coursing throughout every one of her nerves. Then the brunette slowly lowered Raising Heart and raised her free left arm. Her thin fingers beckoned once, twice.
Something snapped inside Vita.
"Heeh, so you want a fight, huh? Then I'll grant your fucking wish! Eisen, GigantForm! Let's see how you like it when I bash your face in!"
It was all too convenient. All too timely. She could see it clearly now. To strike at the very moment when everyone's guards were relaxed, to attack their Mistress at the exact moment they were sweeping around that area once more… To hit Hayate where it hurts most, and worse. She no longer believed that Reunion's magic was absolute and impenetrable, and she was a fool to even believe it for such a long time. Everything that had happened thus far went exactly as whoever's behind this wanted. The moment they stepped foot in here they had already lost –they were like food being served into the demon's belly, and right now the digestion process was occurring rapidly.
But she will not admit defeat.
"Taaaahhh!" Leviathan stabbed upwards and fell straight down from the sky like a bloody guillotine of death. Once again Fate Testarossa has managed to evade the attack by the tiniest of distance. If she had been a millimeter closer the attack would've drew blood, but she was not, and that was that. As long as the lightning warrior continues to go all out defensive, she was bound to go down sooner or later. But Signum was getting both irritated and impatient. There were several reasons for that, but first and foremost would be that Testarossa had been fighting her all these time with a Scythe Form Bardiche. She had switched her energy blades into that form ever since Signum had crashed into the blonde like a truck from the sky, and for some reason it had irked her to no end. Then there was the weird hand gesture – it had taken her a full minute before noticing – that the blonde was making with her hands whenever they're free, counting numbers seemingly at random fashion,
"1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 0, 2, 9 –"
"Stop looking at her hands, it's just there to distract you!"
"I know."
Another blow, another miss. Suddenly, like some wild beast born of a fairy tale, her friend began leaping and bouncing all over the streets with the grace of a dancer, forcing Signum to halt her own blows as she fell into a guarding stance and watched with careful concentration. The blonde bounced off buildings, street lamps, dead trees, or anything that's close enough in every possible direction, seeking for a chance to throw in an attack.
That alone would not have fazed the former war general, except that Testarossa's movements were so jarringly wrong that for the first in a very long time, Signum felt cold sweat accumulating from underneath her palms. How could you predict the timing of the strike or even direction she was jumping to, when her foe had stuck out her leg seemingly to leap to the right, but became propelled to the left instead? Just what in the hell was going on? The absolute contradiction of body movements and battle physics that the knight was accustomed to gradually ate away at her confidence: What if she had struck from the top, but the blow actually came from behind instead? Could she block it? Could she dodge it? Could she even see it coming?
"Signum, don't get confused by her movements. Just treat her now the same as any other illusionary user and we would be fine."
"… Yes. Thank you for the advice."
But she was not alone. Agito had an uncouth mouth when they were out of duty, but in a fight she became transformed into a serious, sharp-eyed tactician who had saved her hide for countless of times. Signum took in a small breath, and watched. It did not matter if Testarossa was slippery. It did not matter if she couldn't predict her movements. All she needed was a single slip-up, to size that slim but sure chance and deliver the killing blow. To cleave this sword from shoulder down and incapacitate her friend from doing anything else, just in case if she was not an imposter, and even that could be optimistic. No matter. One blow was all she needed, and –
The blonde stopped abruptly a good ten meters away from her, staring back at Signum with no expression at all. Now what? With Bardiche lowered, Testarossa slowly lifted her right hand into clear view, and showed Signum a fist. Zero, Signum thought instinctively. Then an index finger popped out, and despite her attempts to stay focused, the warrior could not help but counted one. The numbers went by slowly at first, in ascending order, zero to nine, until gradually the blonde began to pick up speed, and the number went by faster and faster and faster –
Abruptly, Signum understood with terrifying clarity the true meaning behind the useless hand gesture.
She wasn't counting at a random order… she was just too fast I can't even see – !?
The blonde floated a smile. She disappeared.
" "Guuaaaaaaaaaaaaagghhhh!?" "
"Ugghh! Kaack…!"
"Vita, let me –"
"No," the red warrior glared at Zafira with burning eyes, "Stay here. This is not a matter of discussion. We must not make the same mistake as before."
Zafira personally think that it was pointless now, but there was no arguing with the angered warrior. It did not change the fact that the fight was overwhelmingly disadvantageous for her, and for the first time in a long while Zafira seethed with frustration at his own helplessness to aid against the falling tides. All of them knew the full extent of Nanoha's capabilities, and he understood clearly – even Vita herself – could not defeat Nanoha in an all-out brawl. However, the red knight's greatest attributes lies not at her monstrous strength, but her seemingly infinite endurance against any sort of punishment. The plan had been simple enough: Stall the fight as long as possible until Signum arrives to help them. Even though Vita may have appeared to be provoked easily, she had been battling the Ace of Aces with utmost carefulness and had successfully slipped way from most of the brunette's counterattacks. The plan should've been a success. Was a success, except that neither of them could overlook a certain, obvious fact blotting against their faces with the pain of a wasp's sting.
Nanoha could've killed Vita a hundred times over if she really wanted to. Nanoha could've killed them, the sitting ducks a million times over.
"Seeeeeiii!" The war hammer rammed downwards in a deadly arc to destroy their friend's neck, but a Round Shield easily blocked the full-powered blow with the simplest flick of a finger. A silent pink orb emerged out of nowhere from behind Vita and dove straight for her neck, but the small knight had already perceived the attack and slipped out of the way barely. Zafira watched as the small, insignificant ball of magic streaked towards a random skyscraper a few miles away, and gritted his teeth. He already knew what was going to happen, but he couldn't for life pulled his eyes away from the accursed pink dot.
There was annihilation. It was a horrendous understatement, he knew. One that shook the very ground he stood with a tremendous bang, rumbling everything on sight and his own heart to the core. TSAB buildings were built to be able to withstand both magical and physical bombardments, and that particular skyscraper Nanoha just disintegrated was one of the twelve pillars that supported all the shields and barriers that protected the Mid-Childan Office. This wasn't even a matter of Mage Rank anymore, it was simply fucking impossible for anything to have destroyed it so easily. And yet Nanoha was defying the very foundation of logic right before their eyes.
But the light in Vita's eyes was still there. She did not give up even with numerous wounds all over her body; the products of a cruel foe purposely missing and cutting her up with the most intricate of controls.
"Yuuno," Zafira asked with a throat far dryer than he would've thought possible, "Is it possible for you to block or deflect it if that mons… she decides to hit here?"
"… It may be possible to deflect it."
He didn't need to ask the rest of the questions. It was absolutely infuriating to see the imposter, or the controlled Nanoha, or whatever that thing was toying around with them, but it was also the only reason that they're still alive. He suspected that it was not due to any negligence or arrogance of sort, and the familiar did not wish to find out what the brunette was stalling for.
They need to get out. Now.
[Reunion. How much longer do we have to wait?]
[You mean, the ongoing negotiation with a bunch of idiots whether to do things the easy way that is to blast all of you and Cranagan into smithereens; or getting you guys out alive with two insanely powerful rogue mages at hand?]
[I am not in the mood to be funny.]
[Then don't ask the obvious question! Chrono would ram his warship into the Shroud if he has to, but right now no one has the authority to act without being labeled as a traitor and blasted to oblivion!]
Zafira's nature was that of a calm, mindful guardian who always placed duty above personal feelings, but at the moment he felt like ripping a few officer heads off just to get the rescue moving.
[How is Signum and Agito faring against Fate Testarossa?]
[Not good. She's weaker than Nanoha, but when our Ace of Aces could fire nuclear bombs out of the tip of her fingers the comparison seemed mute.]
[Can she win?]
Reunion did not answer, and Zafira understood. He made up his decision and rose from his position. Shamal noticed the look in his eyes and asked worriedly, "Zafira, what are you doing?"
"You've heard Reunion; I'm going to help Signum. It is the only chance we have of getting Mistress Hayate out of here safely."
"No," Yuuno said abruptly, "Don't go. I know what you're going to do. Hayate wouldn't want you to do this –"
"And Hayate would be alive to be mad at me… I'm sorry. I must go. I'm counting on you both to protect our Mistress."
"Zafira don't!"
Shamal screamed for him to stop, but Zafira forced his heart and mind into steel and ignored her. He did not expect to make it out alive when so many of others have perished, but if it meant protecting his Mistress and family from mortal danger, he would part with his life gladly.
The blue wolf leaped to the handrails of the building, and looked up towards Vita once. Then he was gone.
The great wolf was gone from view just like that, diving head first into incredible danger with eyes determined to die with its enemies. She had never seen Zafira so angry before, and she had never felt more helpless than she was right now. Hayate glanced downwards at Hayate's wounds, and she felt her eyes blurring up with tears again for the hundredth time. For all of her healing magic, all of her skills honed by thousands of years of training, and the most she could do were to create a magical pocket that acted as substitute for Hayate's ruptured heart, barely keeping her alive. It was absolutely impossible to regenerate the organ; they would need the science facilities to grow a new heart and replace it before Hayate could ever wake up again, and that's assuming that they could get out of this hopeless situation. She felt like despairing. She felt like giving up. But if she couldn't be strong, then Hayate would not survive. And so Shamal persevered and held in her tears. She persevered.
Yuuno checked on Hayate's wounds again, wiping another layer of cold sweat off his forehead with shivering hands, "Is it working? Is there anything else I should do?"
Shamal's answer was as transient as a ghost, "I think so."
"… How about Rein? Is she… there?"
Shamal visibly shuddered, and Yuuno wisely kept his mouth shut. That was another thing that the healer was trying hard not to worry about. The only reason their Mistress managed to survive a fatal wound this long was not due to her skills or even Yuuno's, but because she was in Unison Mode. Her body became stronger, faster, healed faster than normal men, in addition of having their Unison Device as a separate consciousness to aid greatly in many things such as mana and spell processing. But out of all these, opened only to the most compatible Unison partners, there was one greatest benefit that outweighed all of them in terms of value and importance. It was a simple wish that either one of the partners could make, as long as they willed it truly with all of their heart and soul.
Shamal hoped fervently that neither Rein nor Hayate had chosen to use it. Especially Rein.
"The mass teleportation spell is ready."
"Huh?" Yuuno's voice had rung from beside her as she stared blankly at the fight above her, and she turned around after some time to look at him.
"I'm sorry?"
"I could get us all out of here as long as there's a path to the outside world. With Reunion's Rare Skill, we don't even need to gather all at one place."
Finally Shamal broke out of her reverie and stared at Yuuno with disbelief, "Are you sure? Are you absolutely sure?"
Yuuno answered seriously, "There are no absolutes, but I'm positive that it would work. All we need is for someone from the outside to fire a strong enough cannon blast to puncture the shroud."
"But then…" Shamal thought back to Zafira's conversation with Reunion before, and her face darkened almost instantly, "We don't know whether they would even help us, and Admiral Harlaown would be in great danger if he tries to act against orders."
And so Shamal was very surprised when Yuuno laughed aloud refreshingly, "You should get to know him more. While the bastard might seem like a hardheaded man, he would fight against the Headquarters himself if it meant saving our lives, especially Nanoha's and Fate's – well I'm not so sure about my own though. So I need you to learn the spell too in case I got blew up by Nanoha; so you could be there to save Hayate and everyone. Okay?"
Yuuno winked at her once, and suddenly the healer understood that he was just trying to encourage her. Shamal the medic and psychiatrist had a long list of experience when consulting patients, but when the matter happened to be her own wellbeing she was never too perceptive. Of course there was a chance that his plan could fail. Of course there was a chance he might die before the path was even opened. But he believed in Chrono, and he believed in her, and his conviction that they would all survive this was firm as diamonds.
And he was right. It was way too early to give up.
"… So this is the man you've come to love, Hayate?" Shamal whispered.
"Nothing," The healer shook her head, "Just talking to myself… Thank you."
Yuuno grinned sheepishly, "You're welcome."
Shamal smiled a little, and stood up from her kneeling spot. Her legs felt cramped, but her fighting spirit was finally refreshed. Shamal glanced upwards to look once more at the battling duo. She may not be able to fight, but she was a healer, and a healer's first and only job was to ensure their patient's good health. She would learn the spell. She would wait for her chance. And when help came, they would finally be –
"Eh?" A pink orb dropped slowly before her eyes, glowing with a soft and gentle aura. It was so beautiful.
She reached out.
She heard a sound. A most peculiar shatter that caught her attention. Faint, but there. Insignificant, and yet for some unknown reason, she felt her interest piqued. What is it? What is it?
She ran towards it.
He wasn't exactly sure what he was seeing.
Pssssssssssshhhhhhhhhhhhhh –
A few second ago, standing in front of him was the naughty nurse who used to chase him around with a god forsaken needle because he was wooing her Mistress. An amazing healer whom he knew when filled with determination was capable of producing medical miracles he could only dream to achieve.
"Ah – Ah –"
He was drenched. He was completely drenched. The liquid still sprayed strongly into his face as if mocking his disbelief, and he could feel bits of slimy thing clinging all over his body. He tried wiping his face; his eyes felt completely dyed by the world's horrendous color. It did not work, she was still there. The half blown torso of a most gentle, dearest friend still stood as if it was alive and well and he could've sworn that she was smiling, spraying impossible amounts of blood to the heavens and his face.
Yuuno cocked his head slightly to the right, and saw the husk of a warrior whose vitality had seemed endless. Since when was she there? Time seemed to have lost its meaning. Her eyes were hollow, the corner of her lips quivered as if it would break. Her presence brought back some semblance of his self, and perhaps a little bit too much of his own mind's presence, but the young man was back. He needed to be there.
He began to go through his usual thought routine, and the first thing that came to mind was to console Vita. However, it would serve no useful purposes except perhaps setting her off like a bomb and have her punch him out cold as a favor. Worse, Yuuno himself had no words to offer to Vita, for his current feelings was one closer to the wretched beings in hell.
And so he turned his attention upwards. Yuuno saw in his eyes a figure of his former friend. The human that was once Nanoha now turned into something different. Something unspeakable. He knew that this godlike Nanoha staring down on him was not an imposter. He didn't know why he know; perhaps it was because he was her first magical friend, perhaps it was because he shared an intimate relationship with Hayate and hence grew to be have more affinity with Heart Seeker. One thing was certain: This beautiful woman staring down on them with eyes colder than black and an expressionless befitting of the gods was none other than Nanoha Takamichi.
Somehow, he felt like chuckling a little. So his dear friend – friends, he must not forget that there's Fate, and even Hayate, the Living Lost Logia – had the qualities to become a god. It was a wonder why that he'd never thought about it, because supposed that they were born a couple hundreds of years earlier, then every one of them would definitely carry an epic legend of their own. No wait; they were already living legends now. It was a wondrous thought. A wondrous dream.
A dream.
He clenched his fists.
"Vita… stay here and recuperate. I'll need your help later on."
The grey blue eyes stirred a little, and the little knight responded numbly without thought, "What are you talking about? Shamal is… you can't…"
"Shamal is gone, and we are alive. If we don't survive this, then her death would mean nothing… We must save Hayate, remember?"
"Shamal died… Hayate…" Vita's mind was still not there, but she was a little more aware than before, "Shouldn't you stay… And heal?"
"We have done all we can. The fastest way to get out of here now would be to stop her," Yuuno glared at Nanoha as the woman floated yet another smile, "I will buy ten minutes of time. In the meanwhile, stay inside the healing circle and recuperate. You must get a hold of yourself, or else more people will die. Get it, Vita Yagami!?"
The shout at the end shook Vita out of the nightmare, and she finally started to realize that Yuuno was going to fight. The sheer incredulity on her face told Yuuno enough that her confidence level at his fighting abilities was… not very high, "What the hell are you talking about!? You're a defender, you can't win against –"
Without waiting for her to finish, Yuuno jumped to the skies and began chanting. His hands began to glow bright green with magic when the brunette responded by raising the tip of Raising Heart towards his head and began charging a football-sized magical bomb. It seemed that his former friend gave quite the high credit for his defensive capabilities, considering that the fist-sized ones had obliterated nearly all of the skyscrapers as far as he could see. Yuuno gave himself a bitter smile and increased his speed, charging headfirst towards Nanoha without even the slightest hesitation. He could hear Vita shouting, "Stop it you idiot! You're going to –"
The pink orb exploded towards his head with the speed of a bullet. With barely a hundred meters between him and her, even with his greatest reflexes the most he could do was to either block it with a shield or barely dodge out of the way. But Yuuno had been watching Vita's battle closely from the beginning, and he had learned that the once-Nanoha could easily change the trajectory of her spells at any time, any angle and any speed. There was no point in dodging; he did not have Vita's tough strength and would very likely fall the instant he failed to escape or block any of her shots.
But he didn't need to.
"Round Shield," Yuuno whispered to himself. Two football-sized magical shields – coincidentally the same size as Nanoha's shot – appeared at both ends of his palm, and without hesitation he swung the first one directly at the incoming blow like a chakram. The two spells came into contact, and the Yuuno's shield cut right through it.
"What!?" Vita exclaimed.
The brunette too seemed to be shocked by the unexpected outcome, and her reaction was slow by a fraction of a second. The cleverly improvised Round Shield clashed against Nanoha's automatic shielding, and it actually managed to cut through an inch deep where Vita's full power had failed. Yuuno immediately seized on the chance and threw two more Round Shields at where the first had struck, and when the brunette tried to respond she found both her hands chained and bounded by a Bind that had come completely out of nowhere.
"The real Nanoha who fights with skill and caution is someone I could never defeat, but for a fool like you who relies solely on power?"
The second Round Shield clashed into the first one that's stuck with perfect aim, sinking it deep into Nanoha's shield and just an inch away from her nose. When the third did the same, her seemingly impregnable defenses finally broke down, and it took the once-Nanoha a panicked swerve to the right to avoid having her head completely cleaved. Yuuno glanced coldly at his former friend, "That is a totally different story. You better fight seriously, or I might just accidentally kill you."
The Ace of Aces slowly turned to stare at Yuuno, and for the first time she grabbed Raising Heart with both her hands and assumed a proper stance. The atmosphere seemed to freeze literally with the goddess' unspoken anger, and the young man sighed deep in his heart.
Now then. Only nine minutes left.
Signum stood by the charred remains that was once the Guardian Beast Zafira, completely unmoving.
Why is he here?
She couldn't understand. The wolf was supposed to be protecting Hayate. He should be high, high up the tallest skyscraper of the Mid-Childan Office.
Not here.
"Signum! Signum! Get a hold of yourself, she's coming! Signum!"
The knight jumped sluggishly for the left, and she accidentally tripped on a nearby foot hole, falling head first to the ground. The mistake actually saved her life, because the scythe of death cut right through the space she was before, leaving strands of pink hair fluttering helplessly against thin air. She looked up from where she sat, and there was terror and death staring right down at her with the form of a friend she loved dearly, smiling as bright as the sun.
[Ten minutes ago]
Signum opened her eyes to find herself pinned underneath a rubble of rock and steel. The very essence of the world to distort before her eyes as she blinked rapidly to clear her vision. Her body burned with mind numbing pain, and she knew that she had broken no less than twenty bones throughout her body. The only reason she was alive was thanks to Unison Mode, and a reaction of pure instinct on her part. Confused as she was, Signum could remember all too clearly how she had been defeated – no, destroyed – by her rival, and she swore aloud angrily at her own stupid mistake.
"Keep quiet! If she notices us before you heal up then we'll really be dead!"
"I can move."
"What's the point if your so-called 'movement' is slower than a snail's? Just, shut up!"
Signum wondered how long did she black out. She cocked her head sideways and tried to listen for the sound of anything out of the ordinary, but could discern none. That was a relief to say the least, and she could not help but take the time recall the horrendous defeat earlier. Fate Testarossa had took advantage of her surprise completely and rammed into her belly like a bullet, knocking all of the wind out of her. She had understood immediately after that they would be dead if she did not respond to the following blow, and through pure luck alone she somehow blocked the fatal scythe as Signum swung Leviathan to the right. However, the strength behind the blow far exceeded what Signum could ever imagine, and before they knew it they had crashed through a god damn building and landed themselves in this heap of mess.
"How much longer until I can fight?"
"I can't say. It'll take five minutes of healing at least for you to move without limping."
"That's too long. Two minutes. Just get my feet and right arm moving, and we'll do the rest later in battle."
"Are you crazy?! That's impossib – argh fine, have it your way. Just don't. Move during these two minutes."
"Thanks. Anyway, what do you about Testorossa's current fighting style?" Signum inquired. Agito's advices have always been invaluable in duels like these.
"Other that she's sneaky, creepy, and scaring the living hell out of me? No idea. But what I really don't understand is why she doesn't just swarm us with her speed," Agito said doubtfully.
Signum agreed with most of the statement, except that she actually understood the why to Agito's question. She added some more, "Have you also noticed that all of her attacks have thus far aimed at my neck or the heart?"
"… No. What are you trying to say?"
"I believe that she's playing the Grim Reaper. It is a death god that apparently claims the souls of the living by cutting either the neck or the heart. I remember Nanoha joking to Fate once that she looked like one of those grim reapers in the books with Scythe Form, and since then she rarely uses it ever again."
"I'm sorry, so let's say you're right: what is the point? Why even do such a stupid thing?"
"I have no idea. However, with that I know that her fatal blows would only come for the neck or the heart. She is also mostly defensive, because the moment she attacks would be the death of her enemies. We have dodged one. All we have to do is to kill her before the next fatal blow."
"Aren't you putting a little too much confidence in this theory? She did fucking kick us in the stomach just now, you know, and I count that as an attack."
"Well, even a Grim Reaper can improvise, right?" Signum said aloud this time, and she moved her sword wielding wrist around to get a good feel on her palm, "It's just that I've been noticing it for quite some time now, and I can't help but think that if she wasn't trying to imitate one we would've dead a hundred times already."
"Huh? What are you talking about –"
And then she noticed it as well. There was a tiny, totally insignificant crack to the right of the crumbling ceiling, and what made it peculiar was that, while every other cracks or holes had shone with the same depressing blood red color, this tiny little crack had shown a different color. It was of a darker red mixed with a bit of black, and for some reason it seemed to be holding a gleam that one should not see from any sky. It's almost as if –
Every bloody in Agito's veins turned ice at once. It wasn't the fucking sky that she was seeing through that hole, it was an eye. A human eye. Fate fucking Testarossa peeking down at them for god knows how fucking long –
"Shiden, Issen!" Signum slashed her sword directly at the eye, and as the view exploded into a clear, red sky once more, the knight knew that her assumptions were dead right. Testarossa's figure soared through the air as gracefully as a bird as she landed nine feet away from them, and when she finally looked up with that smile again even Signum could not suppress a shudder.
"I'm sorry, Signum. Can we just kill her and be done with it?"
"No can do. Also, we must capture her now without any delay. I fear for Hayate and the others above; Nanoha is an even stronger monster than Testarossa."
"Oh Kaiser."
Signum readied her sword and stared intently at her foe. Once again the blonde began counting numbers with her hand, but this time the knight simply ignored her completely and got ready to charge. Her left feet was mending even as she thinks, and as soon as it was adequately mended, she would –
It's as if she realized that Signum wasn't going to look at her hand gestures any longer. Testarossa began moving her mouth slowly, and suddenly they realized that she was speaking without voice. Again Signum picked up the words almost instinctively,
"Signum…" Agito started.
"I'm on it already!" Signum dashed towards the blonde with her blade brimming with fire. This time she was not going to make the same mistake before and allow Testarossa to escape by a hair's breadth, "Karyu –"
Suddenly the woman vanished, and Signum stopped abruptly with her eyes wide open. Where is she!? Agito yelled, and she swung around to see her friend mouthing just in time,
Suddenly she felt a weird twinge in her heart ringing like a thousand alarm bells. What? What just happened? But the slight hesitation gave room for her opponent to maneuver, and just as the blonde looked to be moving again, she slashed out,
"– Issen!"
The fire dragon sung, and the land before her erupted like the roar of a volcano, and the resulting dust and debris more or less prevented her from seeing anything. Almost immediately Signum began to regret her decision; what if she had accidentally killed Testarossa? Even if she had tried to lower the strength of the attack, her impatience just now might have cost her control. And the blonde might be an imposter, she might not. But what worried her even more would be what if she did not at least incapacitate her foe. Then she had just placed herself in a far worse situation.
"Let's fly up and get clear –"
"No. It is too risky. We'll wait for the debris to clear."
Almost as if hearing her call, an unnatural wind began to blow at the view blocking dust until everything became clear again within the matter of seconds. Signum did not dare move an inch as she opened up all of her senses to the max and tried to detect exactly where Testarossa was.
"… To your four o'clock!"
The knight spun around, half expecting another explosive dash for Testarossa as she held up Leviathan defensively in a sturdy full guard. The blonde came to view with that eerie smile still hanging on her face, and slowly she opened her mouth again and began to spell,
Abruptly her foe held up her hand and pointed to the right. Before Signum could comprehend what was happening, a tremendous burst of electrical energy exploded from Testarossa's arm and headed straight towards nowhere. Thunder Rage? What is she doing? The fire general turned to look at where the woman was aiming.
She saw Zafira.
The desperate shout finally pierced through the fog clouding her mind, and she swung out Leviathan just in time to block the incoming blow.
"Mm!" Her feet slid backwards, and Signum felt her arm wobbled against the tremendous pressure. The ice cold face that was Testarossa continued to smile like a broken doll, but Signum's only response was to simply stare at the distorted face. She was angry. She was very angry. Why, did Zafira have to die? Why, did Fate have to kill him? What, she thought so angrily until her view seemed to dyed red with fire, happened to have changed their entire world so drastically without any reason?
Abruptly her thoughts were interrupted by a certain voice.
[… Signum? Signum? Can you hear me?]
The general glanced downwards at Fate's wide open stomach, and responded with a solid kick that separated them both at least six feet away. She took a few step backwards and muttered, "Yes, I hear you. What is it?"
[No, it's just that the connection was just fine when I spoke to Zafira before – Oh.]
Signum took note of the boy's stunned exclamation, and her mind seemed to clear up a little. She asked with a twinge of worry, "Are you okay? It's… not something you should see too long."
[I – I know. It's just that he… said he wanted to help, so I thought that he wouldn't… fall this easily.]
"He was at the wrong place at the wrong time," Signum glared at the blonde before her who didn't seem to show any inclination to attack. She would be damned if she let her guard down though, "How fares the others? I'll end this as soon as I can."
[They're still fine, but… Shamal…]
So that's explained the weird feeling in her heart before. Both Signum and Agito accepted the news with great sadness, but to her surprise she neither felt any anger, nor despair. Whatever resentment that seemed to burn away the very fabric of sound judgment was just… gone. Instead, they were replaced with love and concern for the boy, worried that his mind might be scarred by the ghastly deaths of her allies. And it wasn't just our Zafira and Shamal too, Signum recalled sadly. There were others. So many others. Even she, who's to say that she'll survive this fight?
And just like that, a sudden revelation hit her. It came out of nowhere and was completely unexpected, but… suddenly, Signum felt like she understood what she needed to do.
"… Signum?"
"Reunion," Signum nodded a mental sorry towards Agito before continuing, "I would like you to watch my battle to the end."
"I am sorry, but to be honest, I do not think that I will survive this," Signum noted the various broken bones all over her body, and the pain that she had just come to realize was assaulting her with utmost ferocity. Unison Mode was unfortunately not invincible; she was almost at her limit, "I will put my all onto the next attack. It is the only chance."
[Signum, don't say it like you're already lost, you're –]
"I know when I'm at a disadvantage, Reunion," Signum stated flatly, and even Agito did not try to contradict here, "I especially know when my enemies are toying with me. But that is not the point. All you have to do is to watch… Not my end, not Testarossa's end, but just… watch me."
She said nothing else to the boy, and he wisely kept quiet. Perhaps he even knew what she was thinking, since they were now connected in the heart. Signum turned her focus towards Agito, and apologized, "I am sorry, Agito."
"For what?" Agito replied bullishly, "Are you giving up already? Are you admitting defeat? Is that the extent of determination as a knight? Because if that's what you're saying, you know that I'll kill you first before Testarossa will."
"No," Signum shook her head, "I am not giving up. I am not admitting defeat. As long as I have a single breath left in me, I would use it to perform my duty. To protect Hayate. But you already know," the knight said with mild amusement, "that I am simply giving an accurate assessment of the situation."
"I do know it," Agito nodded firmly, "I just don't like it when you always start off with an apology, then tell me something that I don't like to hear. I am not running away."
"But –"
"Our bond isn't so cheap, Signum," Agito said fiercely, "I am your Unison Device. I will live and die for you. I am sorry, but your Mistress is not my highest priority. You are."
Those were the last words Signum never wanted to hear, because she would not be able to refuse Agito then. But even so, warm tears nearly fell from her eyes and she struggled very hard not to show it. A pointless effort, she knew, but she tried.
"Thank you. You... you are… my one and only partner. Forever," Signum said with feeling.
"Yeah. That's all I need to hear. Now let's burn that lousy bitch all the way to hell!"
"Manners, Agito."
The fire general dropped into a stance, and in response to her challenge Testarossa lifted her scythe pointed it right at her. Despite the fact that her sword wrist wasn't moving quite right, not to mind the screeching pain that burned at various places such as her hip, her knees and so much more, Signum had never felt more powerful than she was now. She had never felt more convinced. This is her determination, her oath, this is everything that made up Signum Yagami. Whether or not this strength could defeat Testarossa no longer even mattered in her heart. Could you see, Reunion? Signum thought to herself, This is my soul. Grey Christmas may be able to take my life, but it will never, ever change me of what I am. And so you too must stay true to yourself, and never allow your own will to be corrupted. Remember me. Remember Agito. We are the knights of honor, and we did not give in.
Her foe – no. Friend – leaped forwards like a bolt of lightning.
She swung her sword with conviction and strength, the flames of heart never ceasing until the very last moment.
The last remnants of the silver flames winked out of existence.
She came across something interesting, and stopped to take a look. They were two dead bodies of the people she knew, and a pair of names floated into her mind, "Teana Lannister" "Subaru Nakajima". Why are they here, she wondered. She was so very curious. Suddenly a sparkling note popped into her hands, and like the good girl she was, she began reading,
"Teana Lannister. Cause of death: crushed cranium. Bashed to death by her best friend, Subaru Nakajima."
"Subaru Nakajima. Cause of death: excessive bleeding. Shot at multiple non-fatal parts of her body by Teana Lannister, and she died at the end crying like a baby."
Vita could scarcely believe her own eyes as she watched Yuuno duking it out with Nanoha in one of the most spectacular aerial mage battle she has ever seen.
"Hmph! That all you got? Chain Bind!" Yuuno dodged past yet another set of Axel Shooters, and extended his hand towards Nanoha. Immediately the brunette flew out of the way expecting numerous amounts of magical chains to burst out and restrict her movements, but once again Yuuno had defied her expectations. Instead he had already teleported on top of the brunette's head and apologized jokingly, "Oops, sorry I lied. Shield Break!"
The young man smashed both his fists directly against Nanoha's Sphere Protection, and they shattered into fragments like broken pieces of glass. But the brunette was also capable of melee combat, and immediately she swung Raising Heart upwards and began jabbing repeatedly as if she was wielding a spear. Meanwhile the hundreds of Axel Shooters began closing in rapidly onto Yuuno from all directions again, effectively shutting off any escape routes except by teleportation. That was what Vita expected him to do, that was what Nanoha expected him to do, and as the brunette responded honestly with a vicious jab to his nose the genius defender calmly dodged out of the way and grabbed a hand onto Raising Heart. They had not for a moment expected that.
"I'm not exactly fond of being blown to death. You on the other hand –" This time the Chain Binds did erupt from his hand, and they quickly slither all over Nanoha's body to trap her in an inescapable hold, "seems to have a date with a number of lovely pink bombs. Don't be rude, go and say hello!"
With a single flick of his wrist, he flung the brunette bodily towards the incoming Axel Shooters, and as she crashed into them like a rag doll the resulting booms reminded Vita about lots of fireworks. She had only fought Yuuno once in the past, when he was just a nine years old kid who had showcased extraordinary talents in defending and multitasking. She remembered failing to break through any of the boy's barriers and when things looked dangerous, he always managed to pull out a clutch bind and buy enough time for himself to safety. However, at that time they were both still immature, and the notion of tactics hadn't even begun to bud on Vita's brain except for the most basics of basics. Now she was a full-fledged combat mage with a decent amount of battle experience and knowledge, and even though she tried to disregard her own personal feelings, in truth the red knight felt absolutely mortified that the freaking librarian was fighting far better than she ever did against Nanoha.
One minute left. My wrists… they're moving reasonably well. Feet fine, slight discomfort on the heels but… I can do this.
But this obviously wasn't the time to feel rivalry against Yuuno. If anything, she had an apology to make for belittling his abilities. Vita tightened her grasp over Graf Eisen and stared at the sleeping figure beside her. Hayate's face was pale white as a ghost, and her lips were tightly clenched as if trapped in an unforgiving nightmare. Weak. Defeated. Dying. She could not bear to look at Shamal; that would not be the look she wanted to be remembered anyway. But Vita dug nails into her palm's flesh and forced herself to look at Shamal. It did not matter if she was a headless corpse. It did no matter if her death had been ghastly and terrible. Shamal was her family, and that was all that mattered. She will never forget what had transcended today, and she would make out of this place with Hayate… alive.
[Vita, Chrono is prepared to ram Claudia into the Shroud. You just need to hold out for three more minutes.]
[For real?]
[Ram it into the Shroud then fire the cannons. The TSAB fucking Admirals can go fuck themselves, he said. You should've seen it.]
[Holy shit.]
Reunion popped into her head just as sudden as it has always been. At first she had thought the boy intruding and even dangerous, but over time she came to realize that he about as dangerous the nine years old Hayate, owner of the Book of Darkness. In the end, no matter how wise or age old his mind was, he was still just a nine years old kid. Now that her life was in mortal danger, the little knight regretted not spending more time with him.
[Vita, I… need to tell you something.]
"I already know," Vita whispered quietly. They are the Wolkenritters, and they shared a bond with each other that no one could break. Even if the magical connection between them linked by the Book had subsided over the years, there was no way she couldn't feel her family member's death. Signum had failed, and that stupid Zafira was gone as well. The one time he exhibited true emotion to protect what's important to him, he was gone as quick as the wind. Still, Vita was proud of him. Still, Vita was proud of her. Fate may be coming, but she would not be in time. Signum would never allow her enemies to leave the battlefield unscathed.
[I… I think I loved them as well.]
[That had better be shyness talking, or otherwise Hayate would slap you until your cheeks are swollen.]
Vita stood up. One minute's up, and while she still felt a little more battered than usual, ferret boy had said to buy only ten minutes of time, and so she better joined in the battle or he would get his ass whooped. She lifted her sworn partner onto her shoulders, and took a little bit of time to enjoy the soothing coolness that permeated from Graf Eisen's metal.
[Hey… I've only told Signum about it, but… you knew, didn't you?]
"Huh? Ah, you mean my friends? Well… I guess I did. They would not have been so late otherwise."
[I'm sorry… for keeping it quiet. I just – Hayate's not –]
"Reunion," She cut him off sternly, "You don't need to apologize. I would've done the same thing, though with a more formal reason… But I guess there is something I should tell you before I go."
"Have faith in Hayate, and support her always. She's always trying to be strong for someone else, and yet never doing enough for herself. So stand with her. Smile with her. That's the least we can do for someone who gave our lives meaning again. That's the least we can do for our mother… get it?"
[… Yes.]
Vita looked up to the fight again and her mouth formed into a small O, "Oookay, looks like I've dallied a little bit too long. Would you look at that trail of fireworks chasing after ferret boy like a horde of angry hornets."
"If you have time to enjoy a scene then come and help me Whoa – please!?"
"Yeah, yeah. Guess we have to cut our chat short, little one. I'll see you later," Vita grabbed Graf Eisen with both hands, and watched for the perfect timing to dive for Nanoha's flank.
[Er, sorry, little one?]
"Oh yeah. I never did introduce myself properly to you, did I?" Vita smiled from ear to ear, and said from the bottom of her heart, "Nice to meet you, little brother. My name is Vita Yagami, and I am your elder sister… Welcome to our family."
She flew.
Yuuno threw yet another Round Shield at the brunette, to which the latter had ignored it completely as it became lodged against her Sphere Protection and simply dived for his person. It would be difficult to get a good aim in at such a speed, and if she kept up the pressure and dogged on his tails he would have no time to make clever tricks. Great, she's catching on to my weakness, Yuuno thought blankly to himself. His breath felt ragged, and his limbs felt so heavy that he might as well be flying with four sacks of steel. But finally he sensed that a certain red warrior was inching to get behind the brunette, and abruptly he decided to take a risk. Yuuno stood his ground and as he closed his eyes, pure strands of slender green erupted from his core like a blooming sunflower as they danced and swayed and circled around the blonde warrior as if alive. He may be lacking in terms of magic quantity – a major reason why he did not pursue a more combative career – but if there was one thing he did better than anyone, it would be technique and processing. It was also the only reason why he never needed a Device: he was doing better without them.
But maybe this time his fatal weakness would be his downfall. Without even slowing down Nanoha silently activated the A.C.S Driver as energy wings erupted from Raising Heart to give her an even bigger boost of speed, and the tip of the energy blade at the center of it all seemed to be gleaming in anticipation of its prey's flesh. Strike Flame. Oh I am so honored, even if I do take Starlight Breakers to the face often enough to feel numb about it. By now was calling upon every dredge of magic from his Linker Core and with some quick makeshift version of spell to collect mana from the surroundings, Yuuno supposed that he was about a quarter ready to test the strength of his greatest barrier against Nanoha's shield piercing technique. There was no way in hell or heaven he's going to block this. The young man regretted deeply not asking Nanoha or Teana beforehand about the black secrets behind Starlight Breaker.
"Do get this one right, will you? I'm dead if you missed her."
"That's actually a pretty good idea now that I think about it. Maybe I'll just slow down a little –"
With the ritual of cracking-a-joke-right-before-you-die done, Yuuno's eyes flared up completely with power as he stretched his hands forwards. Abruptly, all the energy swirling around him bent sharply to his will and gathered at the center of his palm as a single, almost tiny core. Within it hid the strength and soul that made up Yuuno Scrya. Within it hid a power strong enough to rival Nanoha's Starlight Breaker. But he was no good at offensive spells, and so he was only going to do the one thing Yuuno Scrya does best in a brawl. To defend. He would probably have no strength to fly after this, and whether he lived or die depended entirely on the outcome of the battle and Vita's benevolence. It was the latter possibility that made him winced and smiled at the same time.
He would not doubt their own victory.
The determined defender whispered, "Cone Protection." At once the magical core extended outwards from his palm, and as the title of the spell said it began transforming rapidly like wild flower into a condensed, cone-shaped forcefield. The spell covered just enough to negate any damage from Strike Flame's offensive field, and at the center of his palm where its magical power was the strongest bloomed a sharp tip of green, capable of piercing through even the strongest of defenses. After all, to Yuuno Scrya the greatest offense is the greatest defense. The young man was now prepared to bet his life and limb to secure this one, single victory against one of the greatest mages he had known and taught.
"You've become better, Nanoha," Yuuno smiled a little as Strike Flame dove straight for his face, "But I am still your teacher."
Yuuno focused his eyes, and instantly the world slowed down to a crawl as he could see with impressive clarity exactly where the energy blade of Strike Flame was headed. The young man's eyes wasn't particularly special, and on most occasions he have had worn a pair of glasses because his work involved a lot of eye strain. But Yuuno had realized since he was a child that the ability to catch the barest movements with his eyes, to be able to see what was too fast or invisible to most people was not a talent, but an invaluable skill that could be honed. And so he had trained eyes over many years to the point that not even a mosquito could escape his view (P.S: It is hard to keep up with a mosquito especially across different backgrounds; you could try). The skill would once again prove its worth as Yuuno stared and waited and stared at the incoming death as it sliced air into vacuum with searing heat and terror, not daring to blink while praying to every god in the world not for a droplet of sweat to hinder his vision –
"Haaahhhh!" The young man shouted in a battle cry of both hope and despair, and slammed the tip of his own magic directly at the point forming the energy blade. Sparks of magic cut leaped dangerously close to his face as his eyes became completely blinded by white, pink, and a struggling green trying hard not to be destroyed. Yuuno felt the tendons in his right arm ripping into pieces, and he had to clamp his remaining left arm onto the right and hold the damn thing there. He would kill whoever that tries to ask about the pain.
"Vita, where the hell are you?" Yuuno thought telepathically to his friend desperately, "You have less than two seconds to make your move, I'm – !"
He guessed wrong. Abruptly the magic burned out, and as Yuuno rolled to the side desperately by pure instinct his right arm detonated with impossible pain. The young man didn't even need to see to know that he had just lost his right hand forever, and the only thing that's left on his shoulder was a broken, ugly stump. Kaiser, Yunno thought dimly as his consciousness faded in and out, I'm never going to fucking duel Nanoha in a match ever again.
But the sacrifice paid off. Out of nowhere Vita flashed into existence, and she zipped like a bolt of furious lightning straight for Nanoha's belly. The brunette didn't even seem to notice, and even if she did it was too late, "Good job, ferret! Taaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!"
Graf Eisen rammed bodily into soft flesh, and Yuuno could practically feel the feral satisfaction leaking from the corners of Vita's lips. But the wild lady was far from being done. As Nanoha found herself propelled helplessly upwards to the sky, Vita had already reappeared at the perfect spot where the brunette would come to a complete stop, a giant warhammer clutched tightly in her hands.
"Nanoha… I'm sorry."
The red knight slammed downwards. The resulting noises was one that Yuuno wished that he would never have to hear ever again for the rest his life. His former friend exploded upon impact into a mess of flesh and bones and blood, and whatever remained of the sack of flesh crashed down to the ground below with the strength of a meteor. Then there was heavy silence.
"Is it over?" Vita asked as she breathed heavily like a dying person, a slight hint of hysteria creeping up on her voice. Yuuno took a glance, and with Graf Eisen drenched in blood and her own clothing dirtied by bits of meat; the red knight certainly did not look okay. But what else did he expect when they've just murdered their best friend with worst ways possible? He probably looked like shit himself.
"Well, probably not. Is Fate still alive?"
"Ha, hahaha, do you know how crazy your question sound? Ahahahaha!"
Yuuno would've chuckled along if his bleeding stump wasn't threatening to kill his consciousness with just pain alone. Then suddenly he began to feel better, and he heard Reunion's voice speaking into his head,
[Well, I wouldn't say good job, but you get what I mean. I'll take away some of the pain, and you focus on getting the teleportation spell working. Chrono's about to ram his ship in at any moment now.]
Yuuno's mouth fell slightly open, "What? I know the guy's crazy, but ramming Claudia in here? What if Grey Christmas somehow, I don't know, swallow the damn thing up?"
Vita snickered at his loss of verbal control, but at the moment he definitely didn't feel like being conservative with the explicit, [There was no other way since the other warships refused to help. Anyway we're officially traitors of TSAB now, so who cares? If worse comes to worst, he'll just push the self-destruct button; all the other personnel has left the ship anyway. See? Everything's fine!]
Now he really couldn't control his stomach. As he chuckled weakly while waves of agonizing laughter swayed the young man left and right, he began making his way back towards Hayate's still form, "Okay, I shall not panic when giant laser beams drilled into the ship. Anyway, I'm going to get Hayate now. How many seconds until you make your entry?"
[Twenty. And do make absolutely sure that you do not get yourself squashed if the ship proves too heavy or something, okay? That would be hilarious.]
Yuuno smiled bitterly, "Right. Anyway, Vita, can you take watch while I get Hayate? Don't really feel like getting stabbed in the back right now. It'll be quick."
"Vita? Are you lis –"
He turned around, and all breath left his lungs at once. He saw a golden figure that was Fate Testarossa floating in the air, and she looked both divine and beautiful and without a single scratch on her skin. Even her Barrier Jacket looked unblemished. On one hand she held the collar of a certain red knight's body, her head missing from its torso and spurting occasional streams of blood. On the other hand held a long black scythe brimming with golden electricity at its blade, and at the end of the blade's tip was a certain knight's missing head, her face still floating the remnants of a gentle smile that seemed to sink right down into his soul.
"Hahaha… I must be dreaming…"
[… Yuuno. Stop looking, and listen to me. Get Hayate now. Ten seconds left. Yuuno, listen to me!]
But it was no use. The young man was completely shocked silly, and it was a wonder he hadn't wet his pants or anything of that sort. He had been optimistic. He had let his guard down even though he knew there was yet the missing Fate Testarossa was a potential danger. He didn't watch Vita's back and was too engrossed in the afterglow of victory. It was his fault that Vita died – he should be the one at the end of that scythe. The world distorted. He couldn't seem to hear Reunion's voice. Everything seemed to be warping in red, but even then the only thing that stayed clear and true was Fate. His best friend. She smiled at him gently, and looked towards the ground where she had fallen. He couldn't resist. He turned to look.
What happened next could scarcely be described with words. Broken bits of flesh crawled across dirty gravel and into that thing. Bones of all shape and sizes straightened upwards as if they have life as they jumped unsteadily at the same direction. Blood so crimson he could barely make out with his magically enhanced eyes was being absorbed from the splatter pool and into the wriggling flesh. Fabrics became joined, pieces were sewed. The popping sounds he never wanted to hear again popped. A lot more sounds that he could delete permanently for his memories became stuck forever in his mind. And there she was standing perfectly whole again, complete with her trademark well-tied ponytail fluttering against the wind. Then she turned to look at him, and smiled.
He did not move as she flew slowly to his front.
He did not respond when she whispered a gentle kiss to his cheek.
He felt hands pressing against his neck, then tightening. They felt cold. So, so cold.
She continued her journey towards the shattering sounds. She counted six, and they were all unique with its own ethereal quality. She was curious, oh so curious. But as she made her ways towards them, she began to see more and more bodies. She counted them, and there were She didn't like them, for although they were all interesting, they made many weird twinges inside her heart. Still the note popped into her hand. Still she had to read.
"Ginga Nakajima. Committed suicide by digging out her own heart."
"Nove Nakajima. Death by car accident as a bone stabbed up her heart. She died not knowing that she sacrificed her life to save an illusion."
"Wendi Nakajima. Beaten to death. Her sisters ripped her apart as she was drowned by guilt towards ghosts of the past."
"Caro Ru Lushe. Raped to death. She broke halfway through the ordeal, but machines have no feelings."
Erio Mondel. Death by fire, before he was gobbled up whole by a certain very mad dragon. If only he could have heard the Voltaire's satisfied burp..."


text:
AN author and life coach for children visited Hale Barns to speak at an event on how to help children to be their best.
Organised by the Big Birthday Appeal, which fundraises for respite care for children with special needs, Naomi Richards also answered parents questions on topics ranging from how to stop sibling squabbling to how to get kids to tidy their rooms without being nagged.
Known as 'the kids' coach', Naomi aims to help children to resolve a wide range of behavioural and emotional issues in an interactive, creative and supportive way.
She is the author of The Parent's Toolkit and writes for numerous parenting, teenage and women's magazines.
Suzy Glaskie, co-founder of the Big Birthday Appeal, said: "This was the first time that Naomi had spoken in Manchester and we were very privileged to be able to gain some new insights and practical tips to help our kids to thrive."

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Pitbull - International Love ft. Chris Brown MP3
Pitbull's official music video for 'International Love' ft. Chris Brown. Click to listen to Pitbull on Spotify: http://smarturl.it/PBSpot?IQid=PitIL As featured on Planet Pit ...
International Love
PitbullPitbull Went from Mr. 305 (Dade County) To Mr. Worldwide (all around the world) Now we're international, So international, international, So international You can't catch me boy (can't catch me boy) I'm overseas at about a 100 G's a show Don't test me boy (don't test me boy) 'Cause I rap with the best fo' sho' 305 till the death of me Cremate my body, let the ocean have what's left of me But fo[...]
you put it down like new york city!! MP3
You put it down like New York City, I never sleep! ♪♬♪ MP3
mian atique you put it down like new york city MP3
Mary-Kate And Ashley: ''Put It Down Like New York City'' MP3
{HD MAKES YOU BE MICHELLE TANNER xDD} Ok, Im Going To Take A Two Week Break on Dance Moms, And Edit Different Things Like, Mary Kate And ...
{KnB} Put It Down Like New York City MP3
Watch In H.D. It really does make a difference} This didn't take me long. So i started to watch this two days ago and i already love this show :D If you have not ...
"Put it down like New York City";) New York trip Spring 2012 MP3
Ant Morris putting it down like New York City MP3
The Chainsmokers - Don't Let Me Down (Audio) ft. Daya MP3
The Chainsmokers- Don't Let Me Down (Audio) ft. Daya Itunes: http://smarturl.it/DLMDItunes Spotify: http://smarturl.it/DLMDStream Beatport: ...
Don't Let Me Down
The ChainsmokersCrashing, hit a wall Right now I need a miracle Hurry up now, I need a miracle Stranded, reaching out I call your name but you're not around I say your name but you're not around I need you, I need you, I need you right now Yeah, I need you [...]
Pitbull feat. Chris Brown - International Love MP3
International Love - Pitbull Ft. Chris Brown (Faster Tempo HD) MP3
Chris Brown feat. Pitbull - International Love [HQ] [LYRICS] MP3
International Love Pitbull Feat Chris Brown MP3
Chris Brown ft. Pitbull - International Love [Lyrics] HD MP3
International Love - Pitbull Feat. Chris Brown (Lyrics In Desc.) MP3
International Love (You Put It Down Like New York City) MP3
Provided to YouTube by Kontor New Media International Love (You Put It Down Like New York City) · Flo Dancer Fast Car ℗ TAUCHER Released on: ...
International Love MP3
Chris Brown ft. Pitbull - International Love [Lyrics] HD MP3
Chris Brown - International Love ft. Pitbull Lyrics | New Song 2011 MP3
Jeremih - Down On Me ft. 50 Cent MP3
Music video by Jeremih performing Down On Me. (C) 2010 The Island Def Jam Music Group.
Down On Me
JeremihShe want it I can tell she want it Want me to push up on it 'Fore she know when I'm all on it We get the party going liquor flowing this is fire 50 and Jeremih number 1 there's nothing higher (won't you go and) Get it get it (I see you, baby) Work it work it (Won't you, just put it down) Get it get it Work it work it Break it, break it, down... O.K. she headed to the dancefloor and she slowly start to poppin' it S[...]


text:
What is JotForm?
JotForm is a free online form builder which helps you create online forms without writing a single line of code. No sign-up required.
At JotForm, we want to make sure that you're getting the online form builder help that you need. Our friendly customer support team is available 24/7.
We believe that if one user has a question, there could be more users who may have the same question. This is why many of our support forum threads are public and available to be searched and viewed. If you'd like help immediately, feel free to search for a similar question, or submit your question or concern.
Website says Heroku / No such app?Asked by Nicole Porter on February 05, 2016 at 01:32 PMOur site is www.sportskidzaz.org but the site does not come up it says Heroku / No such app and thats all that comes up.IMPORTANT: Your support form would not accept my email although I tried it several times. My work email affiliated with the company site is email@example.com. Foster (email above) just set up the site for us.
Thanks, Nicole Porter
JotForm Support
I believe this error message is not related to us. Please contact your webmaster or the one who setup your account to see why the app is not properly loading.
I checked your email email@example.com and your forms are working properly if you are opening them directly using their URLs or links.
For the other concern you have regarding the support form, please refer to this link instead: http://www.jotform.com/answers/765800. We will address that one accordingly. Thank you for your understanding.


text:
Fixodent Plus 0%
£4.99 (£12.48 per 100g)
Product Summary
Fixodent PLUS Premium Denture Adhesive Cream with 0% flavours and colourants. The best adhesive for natural mouth feeling; no zinc added. 10x stronger hold vs. no adhesive. Strong hold: keeps denture securely in place throughout the day. Improved comfort: cushions between gums and denture for customised fit. Superior food seal: 75% thinner nozzle helps prevent food particles from getting beneath your denture. For full and partial dentures. The only denture fixative approved by the British Dental Health Foundation.Gain confidence with secure dentures and a natural mouth feeling. Fixodent PLUS 0% is the perfect ally in your everyday life when it comes to a long-lasting hold. A unique, thin nozzle forms a superior seal to prevent food particles from getting beneath your denture and it therefore protects your gums from irritation and soreness. Its innovative formula guarantees 0% colourant, 0% flavour and no added zinc. Feel confident with a strong hold and a comfortable fit. Fixodent PLUS 0% goes further to boost your self-confidence and well-being.
Please note that while we take every care to make sure the product information displayed on our website is correct, product recipes are regularly changed. This may affect nutrition and allergen information therefore you should always check product labels and not rely solely on the information presented here.If you require specific advice on any Waitrose branded product, please contact our Customer Care Team. For all other products, please contact the manufacturer.This information is supplied for personal use only. It may not be reproduced in any way whatsoever without the prior consent of Waitrose Limited nor without due acknowledgement.


text:
Involving clinical professionals in managing and planning servicesBMJ 1998; 316 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.316.7128.379 (Published 31 January 1998) Cite this as: BMJ 1998;316:379
- S T Athertona, director of medical services
- a St Helens and Knowsley Hospitals, Whiston Hospital, Prescot, Merseyside L35 5DR
A change of government should bring a new and fresh approach to the problems of the NHS, which in turn will invigorate the service and go some way towards correcting the inequities of the past. It is in this spirit that the new white paper on the NHS has been received by most health professionals.
From the doctors' perspective the important chapters are 4, 5, and 6—those on health authorities, primary care groups, and NHS trusts.
Health authorities will be responsible for assessing the health needs of the population and drawing up strategies (health improvement programmes) to meet those needs in concert with all other agencies concerned, including organisations outside health care. This provides an opportunity to rethink our approach to planning patient care. Assessing needs first and subsequently determining the resources needed to meet those needs is an approach that should be …
Sign in
Log in using your username and password
Log in through your institution
Free trial
Register for a free trial to thebmj.com to receive unlimited access to all content on thebmj.com for 14 days.
Sign up for a free trial


text:
Lesson for Chapel Services on Wednesday, May 17, 2017
John 14: 1-14
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way to the place where I am going."
Thomas said to him, "Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?"
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him."
Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied."
Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves. Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it. "
and the People respond, "Thanks be to God."
As a child, I always heard, "In my Father's house are many mansions," and I had an image of heaven that looked something like Beverly Hills. You know the look: mile long driveways behind guarded gates, 10,000+ square foot homes, swimming pools and tennis courts. I now realize what an image of isolation I had cooked up!
What are your impressions of what heaven is like? None of us have any firsthand knowledge. Heaven for me is a place where God's will is done: love one another. For me, the emphasis is not on what I need to do to get to heaven, but what I can do now to help bring heaven to this earthly life.


text:
Are these girls spammers? Sometimes they message back about wanting to get to know you, sometimes the message is so nicely formatted it looks like a notice. SEriously WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?
Most Helpful Guy
Haha, yeah, I got one the other day. Chick claimed to be in the US army. I knew it was BS but just for yuks I reverse searched the image. Came up as a picture from Beautiful Ladies of the Israeli Defense Forces, haha. If you get them you can just report the user.00|00|0


text:
Statute Of Westminster 1931 Canada
December 11, 2011 by staff
Statute Of Westminster 1931 Canada, The Statute of Westminster 1931 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Passed on 11 December 1931, the Act established legislative equality for the self-governing dominions of the British Empire with the United Kingdom. The Statute remains domestic law within each of the other Commonwealth realms, to the extent that it has not been implicitly repealed by subsequent laws.
The Statute is of historical importance because it marked the effective legislative independence of these countries, either immediately or upon ratification. The residual constitutional powers retained by the Westminster parliament have now largely been superseded by subsequent legislation. Its current relevance is that it sets the basis for the continuing relationship between the Commonwealth realms and the Crown.[2
Please feel free to send if you have any questions regarding this post , you can contact on
Disclaimer: The views expressed on this site are that of the authors and not necessarily that of U.S.S.POST.


text: Sorting type: Most visited Most visited Alphabetical | Pages in category "Deus Ex series" " The weapons used in the computer game Deus Ex can be divided into 5 separate categories... Weapons in Deus Ex Retrieved from "http://gaming.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Deus_Ex_series?oldid=46529" Ad blocker interference detected! Wikia is a free-to-use site that makes money from advertising. We have a modified experience for viewers using ad blockers Wikia is not accessible if you've made further modifications. Remove the custom ad blocker rule(s) and the page will load as expected. Categories: Video game series


text:
|Atari's Go
|Created by:
|Un-named Soshi Shugenja
|First used by:
|Shosuro Atari
|Currently in the possession of:
Atari's Go table was made by a Soshi Shugenja at the orders of Shosuro Atari, with the pieces of one broken Meiwaku Fan. [1]
Creation Edit
An Ide Diplomat revealed a plot of an Atari's ancestor, who suffered a great loss of face, ending with the fan destroyed. Atari had sought to redeem the fan's loss. The broken wood of the fan edged the board, and the fan's silken cloth lined the bowls holding each player's stones. The shugenja reproduced the powers of the original nemuranai, albeit in a reduced fashion. [1]
Abilities Edit
Any who willingly accepted an invitation to a game of Go at the board reduced his ability to discern deceit, misdirection, or similar tactics. Shosuro Atari used to lose games, learning simple information, minor blackmail, or an understanding of an opponent's deepest desire or darkest secret. [2]
|This Scorpion Clan related article is a stub. That means that it has been started, but is incomplete. You can help by adding to the information here.


text:
STEVE Hansen today insisted there will be no player tantrums and sulks throughout what will be at least a five-week long World Cup tour.
So many rugby expeditions have been blighted by over-inflated egos and gripes from the ranks about selection, with the British Lions sojourn Down Under two years ago the latest and most glaring example.
But Hansen says he does not expect any fits of pique, long faces or cliques to develop, even though the necessity to win the opening three matches could mean limited action for some members of the squad.
"We have not experienced any of that sort of thing on any of the tours we have been on before and I don't expect it this time," said the Wales coach.
"The way to avoid all that, is to make sure that win, lose or draw, we are honest and up front with people.
"We have a 30-strong squad and it is going to be a 30-man effort on the field and a 42-strong group effort overall.
"We are going to need that to be successful.
"Some people's work will be unseen and they won't get the credit they deserve.
"But within the group we will know what they have done which is the main thing.
"As far as performance on the pitch goes, we will not get what we want unless the players who may not have been selected for a particular match don't help on the training ground."
The Wales squad go through their final training session on Sunday morning before beginning their journey later that day.
Certainly in fitness terms, there is little more that can be done.
Skill levels have been worked on too, so crucial after the shambling display against England a few weeks ago, and even tactical foundations laid.
Hansen stopped short of saying his team would be ready, if the World Cup started tomorrow.
But the Kiwi emphasised that how his troops use their time between now and the first game will be vital.
"We have to ensure that we use every day wisely," he said.
"We have a long plane trip in front of us, that much we know, and I suppose there is only so much preparation we can do from here on in.
"It will be fine-tuning really, but we have to adopt a smart approach.
"As far as the skill levels are concerned, we believe they have improved because that is what we have been emphasising.
"We have done a lot of ball work in the last couple of weeks.
"It's the type of thing we need to do if we are going to play a multi-skilled game."


text:
Status: Closed
Know more about this business than we do? Cool! Please submit any corrections or missing details you may have.Help us make it right
We aim to please our customers which is why we go far out of our way to keep our products as fresh and delicious as possible.
Gelotti Ice Cream features Homemade Ice Cream and Italian Ices. We sell Bulk Ice Cream and Italian Ices in large quantities. Our retail location also sells Soft Frozen Yogurt, Sherbet and Gelato. Wholesale and Retail customers served. Restaurants and Food Service Businesses are welcome to call for pricing on our products.
Be the first NJ.com user to add photos or videos of Gelotti Ice Cream
There is no place like home the icees are the best!
Best ice cream !!!! Fast service !!!! This place is wonderful place to go with your kids...
Wholesale & Retail, Soft Frozen Yogurt, Sherbert & Gelato, Homemade Ice Cream & Italian Ice, Bulk Ice Cream & Italian Ices
We sell top of the line gelato, ice cream, italian ice, frozen yogurt, and much, much more!


text:
Cockburn Sound Regatta
This is the biggest event in our Calendar and is well known to sailors and yachties around the State
Go to link
Click here to download the CSR Kite Nomination form
Catalpa Classic
The Catalpa Classic is held annually early in the summer sailing season and commemorates the escape of six Fenians from Fremantle Gaol and the shores of Rockingham in 1876. Yachts from TCYC representing the escapees start first in the race to Fremantle. They are then pursued by the Fremantle boats starting later and representing the West Australian authorities.
The race is conducted on a handicap basis. Due to the size of the magnificent trophy, it is held at TCYC for all members and visitors to admire.
Ode Saw Memorial Race
This race is in memory of Ode Saw who was a long time member of the club and who sailed in a variety of classes over the years.
Cockburn Cup
Yachts from Fremantle Sailing Club race down in the morning to have lunch with us and then we join them for this race back to Fremantle. It is a teams event with the victorious club being determined by an aggregated performance of their competing boats.
Dvoretsky Cup
This trophy was put up many years ago for a race from Fremantle to Rockingham and is one of the oldest of its type. Keelboats racing up to Fremantle participating in the Cockburn Cup usually stay overnight and then compete for this cup on the return journey. The race is usually a pleasant cruise back with a light easterly but if the southerly is in early, it can turn into quite a test for the yachts.
Lady Skippers' Race
The race this year will be held on a Sunday starting at 10.00am in an attempt to get more starters. All the cruisers join together as one fleet and the winner is decided on handicap.
A consistent performer Cheri, sailed by Shirley Rowland showing her style.
Anzac Cup
The Anzac Cup is held on the 25th April of course and starts at 1.00pm to give skippers and crew time to attend the march and to get on the water. The weather is often light at this time of year and makes for interesting racing. The early start and finish means there is plenty of time to hang around at the club for a barbeque.
Garden Island Gallop
The Garden Island Gallop (GIG) was introduced to the sailing programme to encourage sailing around Garden Island. However, there is a twist in that you can choose to sail clockwise or anti clockwise in the annual GIG. The notice of race is made available to all vessels that can sail under the Garden Island causeway via the coat hanger bridge. There is also a course of similar distance for boats that cannot fit under the coat hanger so all boats are catered for.
The event is not restricted to club members only but all skippers shall be responsible for their boat and crew and abide by all regulatory requirements
Jib and Main Cruising
Jib and main cruising is scheduled to start at 1700 hours in November and March and at 1730 hours in December, January and February. It is open to all cruisers big and small and starts will either be off the end of the jetty or Rabbit starts by general agreement of the skippers involved. The course is set to bring the boats close into the Rockinghan foreshore to provide a spectacle for all observers.
Boats should aim to be off the course before the sun sets.
On particularly pleasant nights we have had up to 16 boats of different descriptions sailing around and it really is a case of the more the merrier. After sailing it's back to the bar or to the Hardstand for a quick drink and to reflect on the evening cruise. Note that this is not a sanctioned club event and there is no safety vessel on the water to look after you.


text: Golosian was the language of the Gholos. It sounded like crackling and rustling and was made of a series of signals framed in semiotic strings. It was significantly more complex than any human language and even the TARDIS' translation circuit was unable to translate it. It took fifteen years for the translator Loozly to begin to understand it. (AUDIO: Bang-Bang-a-Boom!)


text:
Low-Cost All-in-Ones
cartridge testing
cheap ink jets tend to use low-capacity cartridges. to get an idea of how much these aios can print per cartridge, we ran our business applications suite repeatedly, until the ink ran out, using the cartridges that came with each printer.
the 4315 printed just 82 pages with the black cartridge and 149 with color. the lexmark did better for black, at 129 pages, but worse for color, 116 pages.
the clear winner in this test was the brother mfc-5440cn, which has a separate cartridge for each color, so you don't have to throw out unused ink because one color runs out. it printed 301 pages with the black cartridge, 533 with cyan, and 578 with yellow. with magenta, we gave up counting after nearly 600 pages.
these results aren't comparable with our official rundown tests, because they use a different image and aren't as rigorous. (in our formal tests, we test at least three of each cartridge, and ignore the first cartridge we install.) still, it's clear you'll be changing cartridges a lot less often with the brother than with the hp or lexmark.


text:
Britt Hayes
Britt Hayes is a writer, movie lover, and sensible sweater enthusiast living in Austin, Texas. She watches too much TV and never eats her vegetables. Her mom is worried about her.
Today we mourn the loss of Carrie Fisher: Iconic actor, talented author, brilliant script doctor and, most of all, an incomparable force to be reckoned with. There are so many great adjectives you could use to describe Fisher: Uncompromising, unapologetic, fierce, witty, relatable, real, honest. She took all of those qualities and put them to work in her books — from memoirs to novels, Fisher had a knack for telling poignant and painful stories with wit and wisdom. Writing a worthy obituary for one of the best and boldest women on this planet or any other is surely an impossible task…so it's a good thing that the perfect obit basically already exists, and unsurprisingly, Fisher came up with it herself.
Comedian and actor Billy Crystal had been close friends with Muhammad Ali for many years, beginning with his appearance at an event honoring the legendary boxer in 1974. That moment — featured on ABC — helped launch Crystal's career, and the comedian and boxer remained friends until Ali passed away last week. A special service was held for Ali last night in Louisville, Kentucky, where Crystal spoke at length about his dearly departed friend, delivering a eulogy that was equal parts heartwarming and humorous.
It has been way too long since Beck Bennett's Mr. Patterson made an appearance on SNL, but the man-baby makes his hilarious return this week, transitioning from running an office to running for office — it really doesn't take much to see how this sketch came to be, but it's still absolutely delightful nonetheless.
It's been several years since Dana Carvey's Church Lady graced us with her benevolent presence, but Church Chat finally returns to SNL — and not a moment too soon. With Donald Trump running for president (what a world) and pop culture run amok, we, as a nation, are truly in need of sage wisdom from Carvey's shrewdly devout Church Lady.
Not only did Kyle Mooney's sketch actually make it to air this week, but he finally gave us another update on the life of Chris Fitzpatrick, aka every high school kid you knew who was into Nu Metal and rap-rock. So what's Chris up to now? He started a metal band over the summer with a couple of his equally obnoxious friends, and they want to crowd-fund their new homemade action flick, Johnny Shadow.
It's been six years since Julia Louis-Dreyfus hosted SNL, but with her hilariously irreverent HBO series Veep entering its fifth season, it's about time for the former cast member / Seinfeld star to make her return. After poking fun at her forgettable SNL tenure in the monologue, it's unfortunate to see Louis-Dreyfus given so many forgettable characters in sketches that are mostly vanilla and that feel written for a target demographic made up entirely of suburban women with Activia dependencies. That said, the usual wacky antics of the last 15 minutes combined with the undeniable greatness of Louis-Dreyfus and the occasional moment of hilarity save this episode, taking it from a four up to a solid six.
With Game of Thrones Season 6 just within our grasp, Peter Dinklage drops by Studio 8H for his SNL hosting debut. You may recall his hilarious cameo as Peter Drunklage with Bobby Moynihan's Drunk Uncle back in 2013, but that was only a hint of the greatness Dinklage brought to his first proper SNL appearance. Everyone brings their A-game to this week's brilliant, hilariously absurd show, which made ranking the sketches pretty difficult — but hey, I still tried. Read on for our ranking of this week's SNL sketches from best to worst (hey, they weren't all great).
Jonah Hill returned to SNL this weekend, and while he doesn't have any new films to promote (aside from his small part in last month's Hail, Caesar!) until August, an appearance from Jonah Hill is always a welcome one. So, how did Hill do in his fourth outing as SNL host? More importantly, did Adam Grossman make an appearance? Read on for our ranking of this week's sketches from best to worst.
In addition to all the great new stuff hitting Netflix Instant in March, several titles will be exiting the service. Now's the time to stop procrastinating and watch these movies before they leave the service — perhaps for good. Lucky for you, Netflix isn't letting too many titles expire in March, and we even have a few alternatives to recommend.
While much of Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent's origins remain faithful to well-known iterations of the characters, at least one person's backstory in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is getting a makeover. Zack Snyder has given Batman / Bruce Wayne's loyal butler Alfred a bit of a promotion, upgrading him from devoted servant and caretaker to former British Special Air Service officer with expertise in weapons, vehicles and various other useful skills.
It appears that you already have an account created within our VIP network of sites on . To keep your personal information safe, we need to verify that it's really you. To activate your account, please confirm your password. When you have confirmed your password, you will be able to log in through Facebook on both sites.
*Please note that your prizes and activities will not be shared between programs within our VIP network.
It appears that you already have an account on this site associated with . To connect your existing account just click on the account activation button below. You will maintain your existing VIP profile. After you do this, you will be able to always log in to http://wblm.com using your original account information.
*Please note that your prizes and activities will not be shared between programs within our VIP network.
Please fill out the information below to help us provide you a better experience.
Not a member? Sign up here
Sign up for 102.9 WBLM quickly by connecting your Facebook account. It's just as secure and no password to remember!


text:
Due to system changes with OverDrive, you may be experiencing compatibility issues with your device. Here are some options depending on the device you use.
Adobe Digital Editions (ADE)
Some users have had problems downloading library eBooks using Adobe Digital Editions (ADE) 2.0 or below. As a solution, we recommend always using the latest version of ADE (currently version 4.5).
Customers are invited to uninstall their current version of ADE, download the latest version and authorize with their Adobe ID. Click here to access online help for various operating systems.
Some Windows XP users have continued to experience issues after upgrading ADE, so they may still have difficulty downloading library eBooks. Microsoft discontinued support for XP in 2014, and unfortunately there is no solution for these users at this time.
Sony Reader Wi-Fi
Sony Reader Wi-Fi devices no longer allow users to download library eBooks directly on the device.
Users can still download library eBooks to Sony Reader software on their computer, then transfer eBooks from their computer to their Sony Reader.
NOOK GlowLight Plus
Users cannot currently open library eBooks that they've transferred to the NOOK GlowLight Plus. Barnes & Noble is aware of this problem and working on a fix, which should be released in a future device software update.
We apologize for the inconvenience. If you have further questions, please call 905-683-4000 to speak to staff.


text:
Where We Were Eating: Doc's All-American
Dori Zinn
Few things are more all-American than baseball. Doc's All-American in Delray Beach is definitely in the running. Yesterday's participants correctly guessed where we were eating.
After opening in 1951, Doc's hasn't changed much in the last 60 years. Set on the outskirts of downtown Delray Beach, customers can walk up to the window, order a classic cheeseburger, and sit outside to enjoy the all-American meal. You may even leave signing the national anthem.
For extra patriotism, grab a handmade oreo milkshake. Doc's was voted Best Milkshake by New Times in 2006.
Follow Clean Plate Charlie Facebook on Twitter: @CleanPlateBPB
Related Location
10 N. Swinton Ave.
Delray Beach, FL 33444
Get the Food & Drink Newsletter
Find out about upcoming events and special offers happening in the South Florida dining scene.
Recommended for You
Powered by SailThru
Popular Stories
Sponsor Content


text: Forget about the uncomfortable waistband with Pearl Izumi's P.R.O. Bib Shorts. Their anatomic multi-panel design delivers an awesome fit and feel, while Pearl's P.R.O. Transfer fabric wicks and breathes so you stay dry and comfy all day long. In what will surely be your favorite bib shorts, the P.R.O. Bib also boasts the cushy support of Pearl's P.R.O. 4D seamless chamois, Direct-Vent panels for extra ventilation, reflective accents for safety and a chest strap to keep the bibstraps in place!


text:
Ice Queen is a villain in Adventure time. Voiced by Grey DeLise, Ice Queen is a character created by Ice King in a Finn and Jake fan-fiction entitled Fionna and Cake. She serves as the main villain of Fionna and Cake and Five Short Tables, and as a minor villain in the comics.
Adventure Time
In Fionna and Cake, during Fionna and Gumball's conversation, Cake's tail frizzes up, sensing incoming danger. Fionna rushes to the balcony and sees the Ice Queencoming down from dark clouds to kidnap Prince Gumball. She breaks into the castle, forms a slush beast around herself and goes after Gumball. Cake turns into a morning star that Fionna uses to smash the slush monster, with Ice Queen and Gumball inside. The room fills with snow, and Prince Gumball appears unharmed, but Ice Queen has mysteriously vanished. Prince Gumball then asks Fionna to "go out" with him, and Cake agrees for her to meet him again in an hour at the Castle Gardens. Later, he invites her to his ball as his date, but when he takes her to his room, a drop of water lands on her shoulder, she looks up to see the real Prince Gumball trapped inside a giant icicle on the ceiling. The fake prince is revealed to be Ice Queen, now taking off her disguise. Enraged by the deception, Fionna takes out the crystal sword to fight, but the sword is another one of Ice Queen's tricks and turns into a ball of ice around Fionna's hands. Cake hears noises from downstairs and senses Fionna is in trouble. Undaunted, Fionna uses the ice to beat Ice Queen over the head. Ice Queen pushes her off in burst of snow, which allows Fionna to get close to enough to break Prince Gumball free. Ice Queen gets knocked down by the broken icicle pieces just before Cake bursts into the room. Seeing Gumball standing next to Fionna in her torn dress, Cake jumps to the wrong conclusion and lunges at the prince. Fionna stops Cake from hurting Gumball and tells her it was the Ice Queen all along. Just then Ice Queen recovers and blasts Cake away from Fionna with a torrent of icicles. Fionna knocks her magic tiara off, squelching her powers, and then punches her for "yanking her heart-guts." Cake then uses the tiara's power to bury the Ice Queen in snow.
In Five Short Tables, at the Ice Kingdom, Ice Queen reads to her penguins the story of Ice President reading his own fan fiction to Flynn the human being and Jacques the Raccoon. When she finishes, she asks the penguins how they liked it and becomes upset when she sees that they are all distracted by Cake's flapjack art. Cake offers to make a flapjack portrait for Ice Queen, but she reluctantly refuses and begins to attack Fionna. Cake uses her newly developed pancake skills to make Fionna a flapjack sword. While Ice Queen and Fionna attack each other, Fionna compliments Ice Queen on her story before deflecting an ice beam that freezes the queen. Cake puts a flapjack face on top of Ice Queen's actual face and leave.
In Issue 16, it is revealed that Ice King created a real life, giant Ice Queen to put in his dungeon, which he abandoned 200 years ago. When they meet again, Ice Queen rebuffs him and attempts to kill Finn and Jake; however, Ice King flies through her chest, causing her to shatter to pieces. This also frees an old lady Ice King used to power her "secondary regality processor."