A Child of Two Worlds

Eight Months Later

It was midnight Moscow time when the messages arrived. Ordinarily, delivering electronic messages around the world in the modern age would have been a trivial matter, but it soon became clear this was anything but normal. Across all of the G7 nations, within the span of few minutes, in every Russian Embassy, a paper message was delivered, without any sign of entry of a visitor or intruder. More disturbingly, every single embassy's official ceremonial seal had gone missing. These were normally stored securely in every ambassador's office, often hidden where no one except the ambassador themselves should know their locations. Instead, they had all vanished without a trace. The seals themselves were of minor importance; they could be reissued, but the underlying message being sent was crystal clear.

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"No trace of a break in?" the SVR director demanded. Surrounding him in the center conference table were the entire board of directors from every directorate, ranging from Science, Operations, Economics, and even Personnel. Over the past few hours after the incidents were reported, surveillance recordings had been reviewed, guards had been interviewed, and every security barrier checked and confirmed as operational. Someone had managed to traverse the entire world, stop off at the capital cities of every G7 nation, steal the ceremonial seals right out from inside every ambassador's office, and leave behind a handwritten note on their desk with an identical message, and accomplish the feat all under five minutes.

"Our people from every office around the world have gone over every bit of security footage, checked every entry for break-in and not a sign. The items were simply... stolen. We are fortunate that the items stolen were merely ceremonial. We also tested the notes for any signs of chemicals or toxins, but they all came back clean."

To which, that was the point... everyone around the table knew. This was clearly a shot across the bow. Next, the message left behind made things even worse. This time, it was a paper note. They all knew that next time, it could be a bomb or worse.

"And the contents of the message?" the SVR director pressed.

The security officer read the provided copy: "Your actions have caused me to strongly reconsider any future relationship with your country. Those who committed such acts, along with those who ordered them must face punishment, or not only will I refuse any future business with your nation, I will also forbid any other nation from trading my materials with your country, or they will also be added to my embargo. The actions done last night were a mere demonstration; a kindness on my part out of mercy to your people. If you attempt to escalate this matter any further, then I will take much more direct measures. The next time you force my hand; it won't be paper notes and ceremonial seals."

The security officer paused for a moment, as the director and everyone else in the room all came to their own conclusions on the full implications of what had just been delivered. Those who had a more military background tried to wrap their minds around the idea of a strike that spanned across the globe in minutes, all without a single plane or other transport vehicle. The politically-minded ones struggled with the implications of the possibility of a shadow war against an opponent who had just demonstrated this kind of capability. Both parties looked at one another with the same questions, from opposite sides, with neither one liking where the path concluded.

The security officer continued: "I am willing to meet with a small envoy of your leadership to discuss terms at a time and place to be provided later. However, the one I'm willing to discuss terms with is Alexey Karetnikov. He will be allowed to bring his security detail and advisors, but no one else. Lastly, I require all actions against the people in Yamanashi Prefecture to cease immediately. Any harm that comes to them, I will revisit it on your country by orders of magnitude for such acts." The officer then folded the note and indicated he was done before ceding the meeting back to the assembled members of the board.

The SVR director looked around the room at the quiet and subdued faces. Normally he knew there would be a cacophony of opinions being shouted right about now, with each sub-directorate seeking to be the one who would have that one right idea that would rise about the rest, taking advantage of the crisis to advance in the ranks, possibly even to his position. In this case however, the silence told him more than enough. "So where is Director Karetnikov?"

Mikhail Fradkov looked up nervously, before answering. He had been the one to call the meeting of this board a week ago, bringing up Karetnikov's concerns about the Princess' growing closeness to the Western powers and stated that his own strategies threatened to undo any progress he was trying to achieve to mend their relationship. At the time, he dismissed his subordinate's concerns, preferring his own tried-and-true method of force and strength. Now in the face of helplessness, he was looking foolish; something that could be the death of his career. "He... was about to be sent on assignment..." he offered belatedly; in other words, I was about to have him fired for insubordination... clearly not an option anymore.

The rest of the room stared at Fradkov with stone cold silence and disbelieving eyes, until the SVR director concluded icily, "Then I suppose you had better cancel that assignment and call him back before us... it seems he has a much more important mission for the country."

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Mitsuha handed McKnight and the Wolf Fang Captain the official ambassadorial signature seals with the Russian Federation insignias on them with an amused smile. "Here... something for your souvenir cases. Mercenaries have those, right?" She had been seated in front of a bank of computers all logged into various satellite sites showing map coordinates all over the world. For all its culture of secrecy, even Russia's embassy locations were publicly known; wouldn't have done much good if the host country didn't know where to conduct foreign negotiations. Once those locations had been locked in, world-jumping between each location with mere seconds was a snap. The satellite cameras were so good, they even provided secluded spots near each embassy for her to jump to in high-resolution and real-time imagery.

The only difficult part was she was still physically quite weak. She could stand for a minute or two at a time before needing to sit back down, which meant she had to be quick and efficient at each location. To avoid suspicion, she used makeup and wigs to alter her appearance to match the locals, which is why this took her minutes instead of seconds. The notes she had written in Russian, with both team leaders helping with the wordings and list of demands before dropping a copy off at each ambassador's offices.

"What do you think they'll do now?" Mitsuha asked. "Go for it? Or try something funny?"

"Militarily?" McKnight offered. "If it were me? After that stunt you pulled last night, I'd be shitting bricks right now. But politically... hard to guess. With the political climate in Russia, the President, current state of affairs between the SVR, the GRU and all the groups underneath them, quite a bit isn't known to the outside world. We know who the head guys are, but not every relationship. Our sources are good, but not that good."

"Assuming they take the meeting, start thinking about your endgame," the Wolf Fang Captain suggested. "Like what you'd be willing to accept, in addition to just them walking away from the people on their HVT list. Don't get asinine like expecting the directors who ordered the raid to set themselves on fire or anything absurd like that."

There goes plan A... Mitsuha thought in a moment of dark fantasy before dismissing it. "Don't be ridiculous," she scoffed. "I'm not that sadistic or evil. Losing their position and a prison sentence is just fine with me, as long as it's an actual prison and not some slap on the wrist, and they aren't just running the show from the shadows."

"That can be tricky, but we'll do our best," McKnight admitted.

"Have you thought about where you're going to meet them?" the Wolf Fang Captain asked. "We all know you can world jump, but even so, it seems like a serious risk being surrounded by a bunch of Russkie security goons, even if their boss is supposed to be a moderate."

"Could we just meet here at Wolf Fang Base like we did for the world tour?"

"I think I've got a better idea," McKnight offered.

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Mitsuha and the Wolf Fang members pulled up by boat onto Aino Island, a privately-owned island, just off the Sea of Japan. They noticed the fortifications and headquarters around, along with the numerous personnel that ringed the facilities of Paladin's headquarters. With the concerns about security in mind, it had been decided to move the meeting here, so another note had been sent a few days ago, giving Mitsuha time to get established before they arrived.

In addition to being on an island, which gave them line of sight in all directions, Paladin's facilities had more personnel, radar, sonar and the AA and ASW* assets to back them up. Any attempts at treachery would be met with swift and certain reprisals. Mitsuha initially thought this was being overly dramatic... boys and their toys. If they actually tried anything, I could always just jump away. My health had recovered enough that I could easily pull that off now. But after everything I've been through, the last thing I probably should be doing was taking my own security lightly.

* anti-air and anti-submarine warfare

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Inside the base perimeter, the Wolf Fang personnel had been assigned proper guest quarters, with Mitsuha being provided a VIP suite, along with Nishimura and Ishii who continued to work on her medical needs. The size differential was immediately apparent; Wolf Fang operated at the Company level, dealing with individual crises or hostage rescues at the personal level. Paladin operated at the Battalion level, often being called into hot wars where countries wanted actions to be taken but didn't want to be seen directly getting involved. Mitsuha's introduction into the world had changed the game, and now what were once-clear lines of definition had become muddied as the new resources she had introduced now threatened to transform the world order into something new and unrecognizable.

As everyone else in the base got situated, Mitsuha took some personal quiet time alone in her assigned room to think about the past year, both in and out of her coma to consider all that had brought her to this point. Back in the other world, they call me the "Lightning ArchPriestess"... ok that was my own fault. I've been given a title of Nobility and a position of responsibility for the lives of the hundreds who live in my province, with the rest of the nation who looks up to me as an example. I've seen wars and political battles throughout the lands, even saving them on more than one occasion. Now here on Earth, where I was once just a simple high school girl... now I've become some kind of political pawn in the game of geopolitical gamesmanship, dubbed "Princess Nanoha"... hey, I didn't come up with that one... and being courted by the major powers across the globe. She took a moment to look at the mirror and almost scoffed at the still-child seeming face that stared back at her. A child of two worlds... oh how Tsuyoshi-oniichan would be laughing so hard right about now. Then again, she paused and smiled inwardly, I did sort of make him the "King of Japan" in the little fib I told the nobles*, so really, he should be grateful.

* see Manga Chp34 / LN Chp15

Another part of her drifted back to that other life she had seemingly lived while she was in the coma... a path that could have easily been how her life would have turned out had things not gone... so terribly wrong. Would I have been happy living that life... a normal job, my family and friends around me, living their lives together? No great pressure to run a country... no world powers trying to extract value from everything I did... just a quiet life with food, friends and simple pleasures... maybe even my own family... and a child or two down the line...? She shook her head... that was a fork in the road that was long ago past; it seemed almost pointless to be looking back, and yet...

She sighed as her reverie was interrupted by the sounds of a training formation of soldiers jogging passed by outside her assigned quarters, with their voices chanting their cadences as the drill sergeant kept pace, leading their groups. In a way, it wasn't that different than how Wolf Fang spent their free time, other than scale. When they weren't on assignment, good soldiers and mercenaries stayed in shape, for pretty obvious reasons, if they wanted to stay in the game. The Wolf Fang Captain once privately admitted to her that front-line combat was a young man's game, and that eventually there would come a time that, even if injuries or casualties didn't take place, age eventually would, and it would be time for someone else to take the reins. He'd probably take on an administrative position at that point, not that he was looking forward to that day. That morbid thought though then led to her own situation. I'm the one person here that's not going to be facing that situation... was that a good thing or not...? Am I going to have to get to know the next Wolf Fang leader... the next King of Zegleus, or whichever lands I eventually end up? She then quickly stopped herself, as the line of thinking was going down a path she didn't want to entertain. No, no, no... I'll think about it when the time comes...! For now, I'm going to live my life, with the friends I have now! And right now, there's a problem that needs fixing and an enemy nation that needs to be dealt with. I'll deal with the future when it eventually comes.

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A week later, the Antonov An-148 aircraft came to stop on the airfield on the far side of the island, and was greeted by an official detachment of security and base representatives. McKnight had offered her the services of a professional political negotiator, but Mitsuha turned him down; this was something she felt was personal and she had to do herself. Besides, they were here to see Princess Nanoha, weren’t they? Let’s not disappoint them...

Inside the main conference building, the security personnel waited outside in the atrium, all the while under the watchful eyes of dozens of Paladin personnel. Inside the meeting room, Alexey Karetnikov and Dmitry Ivanov sat on one side along with one aide from the Russian Embassy based out of Tokyo, while Mitsuha sat on the opposite side, flanked by McKnight and the Wolf Fang Captain.

“Let me first address the biggest issue before us and issue an official apology, on behalf of my government, for the rogue actions of my people. I'm here to state that in no way were their actions a reflection of the position of my country or our people," Karetnikov began.

"They're not the only ones. Your men have confessed that they received the approval and support from two of your highest officials," Mitsuha coldly replied. "Operations of this scale and nature would not be possible otherwise. Until they are also brought up on charges, and removed from your government, my position remains that I will no longer be doing any business with your country."

"Our men are still alive?" Karetnikov inquired. Secretly, he had actually hoped they weren't. These were the fools that had started the whole chain of events that had brought their country to the brink of ruin, and the fact that they had broken under interrogation quite frankly made them liabilities.

"Aside from a fright or two, they've been treated humanely," Mitsuha reported. "Despite great personal temptations, I'm here to present them to you to face the same justice I expect your senior officials to face."

"I see," Karetnikov nodded, before leaning over to Ivanov where the two whispered to one another, looking over notes they had prepared. As part of their preparation, the Russian Security Council, in direct conversations with the President and his advisors had prepared talking points and measures on how much and how far they were prepared to go. "And what of the men of the Вепрь*... do you require their punishment as well?"

* Vepr / Wild Boar

Mitsuha hesitated for a moment, then leaned over towards McKnight, then back to the Wolf Fang Captain. Truthfully, she hadn't even considered them, nor did it cross her mind that the men of the Spetsnaz 3rd Special Purpose Brigade had all went down with the Kuzma Minin. After a quick consultation, they came to a decision. "I seek no punishment for men who follow orders given to them from corrupt officials. However, I do seek full financial restitution... not for myself, but for the four men who died rescuing me and the families they leave behind. I can't bring their fathers back... but I can and I do require that they will be taken care of... "

Karetnikov nodded and scribbled several notes. Truthfully, the Presidential board was prepared to send the men of the Вепрь onto the sacrificial chopping block if needed, so in a way, that was actually a point in their favor. They still didn't have answers why they had launched a torpedo into the Kuzma Minin, as no one had ordered that, and as far as they were concerned, those men were of no use to anyone, even if they were returned. Nevertheless, he would use the opening in an attempt to shift the position in his favor. "Of course, it would be our privilege to ensure the care for the families your pilots left behind, and we are grateful for the mercy you have chosen to show our men, as their families will be."

"Make no mistake however..." Mitsuha warned. "I have no such mercy for officials, no matter how well connected they may think they are, for those who think it's acceptable to play dice with people's lives, especially mine, and think they can get away with it because of their station. Russia can play realpolitik if it wishes, but until those officials are sentenced appropriately, I will be withdrawing and embargoing my resources as promised. Those remain my conditions."

"And what of the ones who replace them? Do you have any further demands with regard to those who serve under them and the ones who would follow?" Karetnikov inquired. He had his own ideas, of course, but he knew any demand on the record coming from the Princess would carry far more weight, so all he could hope for was his name wasn't on her list to be purged when he presented her instructions to the Presidential board.

"I'm told that you're a reformer," Mitsuha offered, then placed a small object on the table. "And I believe 'Karetnikov' means carriage-maker," as she placed a small metallic carriage on the table. "This piece of metal was forged from a weapon from my world that started the entire chain of events that has brought us here today. I retrieved it during my trip around the world... it couldn't be used more than once, so I had it reforged for this negotiation." She didn't bother mentioning that the sample was only a small portion from the dagger and that she had given the rest to Paladin and Wolf Fang as a reward for their efforts, to do with as they wanted, most likely to auction it off to rival countries or corporations for substantial amounts of money. "Perhaps you can take this back to your leadership council as a suggestion on my part on your dilemma. This might not be my world, but my interests are better served in a peaceful world than one at war. It's no secret that my world is not as well developed as this one, and we could have much to learn from your nations... however, if all there is to learn here is war and death, then perhaps the less contact we have with your culture, the better. In any event, take this sample back to your leadership. Let them know, that they have one week to consider new leadership in your directorships, or this sample will vanish into thin air if they do not make the correct decisions."

Karetnikov looked momentarily startled, "Y-You can do that...?"

Mitsuha's eyebrow raised. Her powers couldn't actually do a delayed teleport, but the Russians didn't know that, so she decided to try that card and nodded, "I believe we're done here."

Karetnikov and his party stood and all did a quick bow in unison. "In that case, we bid you all farewell, and will convey your positions to our government. You will have our response expeditiously."

____________________________________________

The Paladin group and Mitsuha watched as the Antonov An-148 lifted off and headed west into the sky, taking the Russian delegation, along with the three agents back to Moscow. For her part, Mitsuha felt as if a weight had been taken off her shoulders and she was finally coming to the end of a long journey, and while there was some satisfaction in getting justice against the people who tried to kidnap her, it was just as well to put it behind her and get on with the rest of her life. "So do you think they'll stick with it?" she asked.

"Like a famous man once said, 'trust but verify'," McKnight sighed. "I'll have the meeting minutes forwarded to the State Department and they'll reach out to Central Intelligence to do the follow up on their response. Is Wolf Fang Base still your best point of contact for these matters?"

Mitsuha nodded, with the Wolf Fang Captain adding, "She checks in from time to time, for weapons practice and some trips to the stores in town. We've got a private encrypted email account set up, along with storage facilities on base."

Mitsuha turned back to McKnight. "There are very few people on this world that I consider allies; after what your people have done for me, and from what the Captain has told me about you, I'd like to consider your organization among those numbers, if I may."

"Ma'am, that'd be our honor," McKnight returned. "I understand that Wolf Fang will always be your first point of contact, but should you ever need additional assets, don't hesitate to reach out," as the two of them shook hands.

"I will," Mitsuha promised, before turning back to the Wolf Fang Captain. "I guess it's time we headed back to your base."

Once the Wolf Fang entourage gathered up, along with Nishimura and Ishii, Mitsuha did a quick check to make sure no one was missing before the entire group vanished in a quiet whoosh of air, leaving a group of dumbstruck Paladin troops staring in disbelief. Hell of a way to travel, McKnight thought before shaking his head and thought about everything he was going to have to put into his report to the Western Governments.

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Mitsuha paced carefully around the room with her hand on the rail. Behind her, a trainer kept an eye on her to make sure her balance was solid. It had been another few months, and two operations. The last of the metal shards were finally removed. She still felt some discomfort inside, but it was finally beginning to fade... the miracle of magical healing powers. She was told that between the surgeries and muscular atrophy, anyone else would have likely been looking at years, if not ever being able to walk again like this. A part of her wanted to pick up the pace and jog, but she was strongly told not to push her progress or risk a set back from a nasty spill.

Her upper body still needed quite a bit of work. Even when she was healthy, Mitsuha was never one for working out, something that quickly became evident once they brought in a kinesiologist to help retrain her basic coordination. Now I remember why I hated gym class, she groused. Her muscles ached down to her fingers after every session, and being told by Ishii that those aches were normal as muscles were rebuilding didn't help in the slightest.

"You're looking much better," The Wolf Fang Captain said, as he walked into the training room. "Maybe another month, you'll be running the assault course outside along with the boys, eh?" he added light heartly, referring to the military obstacle course of tunnels, walls, rope ladders, and bars the soldiers were even now tackling under the watchful eyes of drill sergeants.

"Eh... no, I wasn't doing that kind of stuff, even before the attack, not my thing," Mitsuha admitted.

"Suit yourself. Once you're up to it though... say another couple of weeks, give or take, assuming the doc says you're ready, I would suggest you come out to the range and get some practice rounds in. Shooting's a perishable skill, and after what you've been through, it'll almost be like retraining your body all over again to reacquire your muscle memory to be useful in a combat situation."

"Sure, I'll do that," Mitsuha agreed. "But while we're getting ready for that, can you track down some people for me? I'd like to settle some debts before I leave."

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The town of Fujikawa awoke as it did every morning with the usual buzz of activity typical of a small town, other than those unusual events that took place nearly a year ago. At the hospital, Dr. Hatsuka Minatsuki was finishing up a double-shift that had stretched into the night and was getting ready to head out for a much-needed break, when she noticed the package that had been dropped in her inbox. The package was surprisingly heavy and she noticed it had none of the usual postage or delivery company markings, but apparently had been hand-delivered, with no return address. Had she been a more suspicious person, she would have called security to have the box checked, but at the moment was too exhausted to bother with such matters, so she simply opened it. Underneath the wrapping was a latched box. Opening it up, she momentarily gasped at the stack of gold coins. She recognized the insignias; the same as the ones that were carried by that strange girl last year. There had to be more than a hundred... more than enough to handle whatever medical bills that would have been incurred, had that actually become an issue, and a substantial amount above and beyond. On top of the stack was a hand-written note:

"It's been a long time since I've needed to be saved by anyone... but when the time came, you and your team were there for me when I needed it most. I wanted you to know that I will be forever grateful for what all of you have done for me. If the time ever comes where I can be of service to you or your families, please reach out to my allies and they will do their best to contact me."

At the bottom, there were two numbers, one being an international number, the other she recognized as the one Dr. Nishimura gave to the hospital administration. She silently snorted with a slight smile... I always suspected he knew much more than he was letting on. She was tempted to reach out to Dr. Tatsuya Sato to see what he knew, but suspected he was probably getting a similar package right about now. She made a phone call to the nurses station, asking for a quick meeting; may as well give them the good news. Many of them could use an unexpected bonus to their regular pay, but that wouldn't answer the burning question that all of them had been asking ever since that fateful day a year ago... who was that mysterious girl...?

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Nishimura listened to Mitsuha's breathing and heartbeat with a stethoscope while Ishii brought in a set of printed results for him to review. Looking them over, he nodded with approval. "Bloodwork looks good, no more sign of the toxin. Your reflexes are still slightly off, but I guess within the margins of error. You're not going to be setting any records in track and field but you should be able to get around relatively safely, as long as you're careful. If you do start feeling some discomfort however, I can provide you some prescription pain medication if you'd like."

Mitsuha shook her head, "Nah, I'd rather let my regeneration do the rest of the work, if that's OK... and yes, I'll be careful about anything physical, at least until I'm fully recovered."

"So, how our patient?" the Wolf Fang Captain asked as he came in.

Nishimura finished his report and nodded. "I'd say she has a clean bill of health, aside from some muscular weakness, but she can rebuild that herself as long as she sticks with the regimen we've laid out for her."

The Captain nodded, then turned to Mitsuha, "Listen... we'll keep an eye on things overseas while you're gone... make sure the Russkies hold true to their agreement, one way or another. On the other hand... and I know it's not my business per say, but given what you went through, once you get back there... you might want to start taking a look around... see who it was that shanked you in the first place... make sure they ain't around to try it again. You might not get so lucky a second time."

"Oh, I absolutely will be doing that..." Mitsuha coldly vowed... no one stabs a Yamano in the back and gets away with it...!

Yeah... I should have known that was a dumb thing to say, the Captain thought and shuddered as he could see the evil look in Mitsuha's eyes. Now I almost feel sorry for those poor bastards once she catches them...

"So, I guess this is good bye," Mitsuha said, with a twinge of regret.

"I still want to see you back in six months for a follow up, if possible," Nishimura reminded her. "Reach out to my office in Otsuki when you manage to get yourself reestablished back in your Kingdom. If you do experience any symptomatic flareups, contact us immediately."

"I will... " Mitsuha nodded, then smiled. "Thank you for everything... and... if there's anything I can do for either of you in future, let me know, and if it's within my ability, I'll make it happen."

"Stay safe out there," Ishii nodded. "Hopefully next time we see you, it'll be under better circumstances."

"Go get'em, lil' lady," the Captain touted.

A moment later, Mitsuha vanished, leaving a quiet whoosh of air.