Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha

Salvations March

Prologue

It’s probably most irritating, and most embarrassing, when something you were expecting to happen happens when you least expect it to happen.

Hiccupping is like this. You know that it’s going to happen soon, but when you think it’s safe and go to say something, it strikes and leaves you a bit red in the face. Lightning strikes and thunder can be the same. Family can be the same too. They always come over when it’s least convenient, and often too early.

You can’t help but to say, or think to yourself at the time, ‘Cor... That came rather quick!’

However, in the far reaches of the Dimensional Sea is a small and awkward planet that goes by the name of Cylphea – that’s pronounced Sil-fay – where within the great desert of Karos, several small tribal clans were experiencing this very embarrassing problem.

It all started when one of the tribes near the desert coast of the Perflaxian continent disappeared within big, thick black clouds. Several tribe members in several neighbouring tribes looked at each other and said, ‘Oh dear... that could happen to us!’ which is surely enough did. And news eventually started spread around the Karos Desert about the strange phenomenon.

One day, just like it happened to most of the other tribes, the news reached the chief of one of the more central tribe chiefs as he rested under the shade of an oasis palm tree, watching the thick black clouds raise from the ground of where one other tribes was supposed to be. He listened intently to the news being told to him, like the other chiefs, nodding as the story progressed. A solemn face washed over him as the story ended and he strained in though, and then smiled wearily, waved a dismissive hand and said, ‘No, that couldn’t possibly now!’ and went back to enjoying the shade, as the other chiefs did.

So the next day, when a strange whistling noise came from the sky which caught the curious attention of everyone within the tribe, the chief thought about the story that he was told, just like the other chiefs did. A realisation came to him. ‘Cor...’ he said out loud, much like the chiefs did, gaining the attention of the rest of the tribe. ‘That came rather qui—