Disclaimer: I do not own the Megami Tensei series or Lyrical Nanoha series. They belong to their respective creators.

Prologue: Starting the Countdown

He didn't know what had happened. It felt so unreal to the boy who was staring at the wreckage with an unreadable expression while on his knees.

It was just after midnight. While it was late, his family was invited to a party of some kind. Whatever it was, his parents don't seem to like it, with their irritated expressions and all.

He himself didn't understand it. Why would his parents don't like this party held by their family? Is there someone they hate over there, or is there a monster there that gives irritation to them? His parents are strong, right? They are technically stronger than him, so he believes in all his heart that they should be able to handle whatever that was going to be sent towards them.

…In any case, the event starts at half past midnight, something, in all logical sense, shouldn't be done unless it was a party of celebration or something that's worth celebrating. And by his parent's expression, the six year old believe it's not even worth celebrating.

His parents answered the confused child with one word, tradition. He still didn't get it.

He himself was brought not of tradition, but because of safety. The boy was a lone child, and if a thief (or worse, a serial killer) broke down and see him, there would be dangerous. Alas, as he was a child, as such; he can't really stay up too long and fell asleep in the car.

The blue-haired boy wondered how this accident happens in the first place. Isn't that car wreckage belonging to his father anyway? So that means he should be with them in the wreckage.

…Is he dead? He pinched himself (the only way he knows thanks to all types of cartoon and media) to confirm pain. It hurts. So no, he's not dead (or that's what he believed, anyway). So how is he outside anyway?

Kh! His left shoulder felt pain for some reason. It felt like the time he crashed on the wall accidentally while riding his bike. In any case, whatever happened, he could understand one thing.

His parents are dead now, and he was all alone.

…

…

…

The boy continued staring without a change in expression.

To say the boy was unaffected would be completely wrong. Hundreds of thoughts and possibilities began raining down his mind, questioning everything and was replied nothing except for one horrible truth.

His parents are dead.

Something in the boy snapped; a defense mechanism of sorts, which took all his emotion away. It was the only thing that stops him from breaking down and going to the wreckage to try saving his family and deny reality, you could say. Even so, it was failing, so to distract him from it, he began looking at the surroundings. His face showed surprise at the different scenery than what he expected.

Green. Those were the first words form in the boy's mind. The world, the sky and the moon was green. The sea was dyed in red, no; it was now made of blood, and there were traces of blood on the bridge itself and even puddles of blood are formed. There were no lights on the street lamps, and yet the world can still be seen, barely though. Whatever the case, he felt like in another dimension.

What's more intriguing to the boy was the coffins. Large coffins were all over the place, be it on the streets and some even in some cars (which, surprisingly, were not on the bridge they were in). The boy guessed that people are actually inside those things, but he didn't really care about that. He was distracted by a much more unknown sound.

-SHING!-

…The sound of metal colliding against each other. He tried turning to find the source, even though every fiber of his being screamed to not turn. What he saw… he was not very sure.

The first was a tall black person, but he can't see that person, mainly because of the distance, or the fact that that person was covered by the shadows of the bridge. Machine-like sounds was strangely heard though and even multiple gunshots (the boy was too surprised to flinch from gunshots).

The other person, if he could say that, was definitely not human, in any shape or form. The creature was cloaked in black clothing, and was floating while holding a katana. He couldn't see the face, since its back was turned towards him while it faces the other, it could be call a mercy for the boy.

Fear gripped over him, and a cold shudder was made on the very bones. His mouth was agape, and he seemed to hold on just not to fall. The boy looked at the creature again.

Death. It reminded him so much of it. Like the story the boy read, the creature was a grim reaper of some kind, one that promises the end of a living. It may not carry a scythe, but the creature seems to scream that feeling. The embodiment of the end itself…

All this while, the boy absently noticed tire marks on the road formed from ahead on the bridge, but his mind was completely chaotic right now, if not broken. Even so, he could not take his eyes of the scene, and by sheer force of will, he looked at the scene in front of him…

And he suddenly felt something. It wasn't pain by any means, but it was a feeling of…rejection? Something was happening to him, something was binding …no, morphing him into something he should not become.

That thought, however, will not be in the boy, and will never be. Because darkness overtook him few seconds later.

"I'm… sorry…"

-Hospital room-

"Ugh," a groan escaped the boy's lips.

The boy tried opening his eyes, but then closed it due to the bright light. After a while, he slowly opened them, his vision finally cleared a bit, he himself now looking… at a white ceiling. The blue-haired boy blinked. Where was he? And how did he get here?

Slowly trying to sit straight, the boy realized that he was in a bed in a room, a comfy one too. At one of the corners was a wide screen television. There were also some cabinets on the side of the room, opposite of the room. He quickly deducted that he was in a hospital, but from what?

…Oh, and a maid was beside his bed, who was staring at him. The same maid that his family personally hired, to be exact.

"Young master. You're finally awake." The older girl (well, she's actually just above teens) spoke in a deadpan like tone. That's only to those not close to her though. To the boy who knew her six months, she's actually very worried.

The girl, Kano Sayuri, was a very skilled maid who trained when she was about his age. Coming from a very poor family, she sold herself to the slavery in the hopes of getting money for her sick family. Unfortunately, it seems some group of thugs have invaded her home and murdered everyone, leaving her as an orphan.

The boy didn't know what the full background of her life, only know little bits and pieces, but he won't be nosy about it until she decided to tell him. Everyone's have secrets that they have to hide after all.

The so-called young master shook his head. He seemed to have forgotten something, but let's concentrate on the situation at hand first.

…Offhand, the boy noticed that he seems to think differently than that of a normal child, like he has a different view in life right now. No matter, back to asking the maid.

"What happened, Kano-san? Why am I in the hospital?" The maid seems to be surprised at the boy's question, her face now looking unsure of what she should explain to the boy.

"You were involved in an accident." -! Both maid and boy turned to look at the newcomer, entering the room while holding a cane for support. It was an old man in his seventies, wearing some dark blue clothing and hat in contrast to his white hair. Even with the cane, his was standing tall and proud, his back almost straight, and his posture releases confidence. Anyone would think him as a boss of some rich company, or even a yakuza.

"Grandfather…" The boy looked at his old man with an even stare. At the corner of his eye, he saw some auburn hair just behind the old man's back. The owner, a red-eyed girl who was about his age gave a glance at him before hurryingly hiding back when she realize that he was looking at him.

The boy decided to ask the matter. "Accident?" The boy questioned.

"Yes, at Tatsumi Port Island, at the bridge, your family's car seemed to have slipped and went to the side." The boy narrowed his eyes. Something… was wrong with how his grandfather said it, as if he didn't believe any detail of it. But he decided to question it later, and knowing his grandfather's personality…

The boy said, "…I see. Then how about father and mother?"

"…" A complete, awkward silence looms in. Both the maid and girl showed a complicated expression. The boy seemed to realize the reason.

"…They're dead, aren't they?" Shock and surprise seemed to fill the maid's face, while his grandfather was as no-nonsense as ever. The girl from before looked at him from behind grandfather worriedly, as if she's afraid the reaction of what's going to happen.

"…Yes." The white-haired old man agreed.

"I see…" The boy looked at the maid again. It seems that's the reason she's so worried.

…

…

…

"…I see," The boy nodded again, as if agreeing to the statement and not caring much about it.

Both maid and child looked at him again, surprised by his lack of reaction. "Young master, are you okay?"

"Hm, I'm alright."

"That's not what I meant!" The maid looked outraged by his lack of reaction. "Your family has just died in front of you! Moreover, you're just a child, one who still depends on his family! And you're telling me that you don't care about the very people that causes you to exist in this world!?"

…That's right. Her family died when she was away, wasn't she. She's one of those people who likes her family and doesn't regret selling herself for their sake. He'll admit, if it was the boy before, he would have cried, screaming at the world for the injustice inflicted. The boy at the present, however…

He felt nothing. Not literally, but the feeling of attachment from before seemed to have disappeared. He's not very close to his parent's, but he'll also admit that there's always a bonded feeling with his parents no matter how far apart they are. The boy now though felt uncaring, it's as if he became a different person, while the same body, but a different mind.

…No, it's not feeling anything, the boy realized. It was more accurate to describe it as a feeling of acceptance, an emotion that seems to calmly receive any trials that was sent to him without a single regret in the world. Accepting one's fate sent towards him.

…This will be annoying to him in the near future, won't it?

The boy wanted to give a reply to the maid, but stopped himself when he saw the auburn haired girl was crying, even feeling sad. Why was it? Why was she crying?

"Why are you crying, girl?"

"…You seemed to never be able to cry anymore, so I'm crying for you," -! This girl… The boy sighed.

"…Alright, that's enough both of you." The boy looked at his grandfather again, all business. It was a different characteristic his old man is showing right now, the posture of a predator, a leader in fact.

The boy sighed when he got questioned what really happened. While he can believe the accident did kill his parents, he didn't even believe that it was an accident. The boy questioned that should something like this be questioned in front of other people, but his grandfather seems to not care about that. Besides, his grandfather added, they also wanted to hear this.

The boy understood why the maid wanted to hear, but not the girl though. But alas, he just shrugged.

The boy began explaining what he remembered, all the details, but omitted the green world trivia and the fact that he saw two …beings on the bridge. He didn't know why, but for some reason he did not want to tell his grandfather of it. Who would believe a green world where blood is just around the corner of a pool, anyway?

His grandfather, arms crossed, just looked at him, eyes narrowed as he digested all the information thrown to him. He then asked, "It's that all?"

The boy nodded, still maintaining the stoic image and remain unflinching towards the elder man's questioning gaze. For a few long seconds it was quite suffocating to the two other people in the room, both unsure what to do, and having fear of breaking the atmosphere.

Eventually, the old man sighed, breaking said atmosphere. "Very well, it seems that you truly do not know what had transpired. Your mind might be unconsciously locked those memories away..." Grandfather began muttering some words to himself, now deep in his own heated thought.

The boy mentally sighed. Once the old man's like this, it'll take a long time for him to stop… or so the boy thought when his grandfather stopped just as he finished that line of thought. Is there something else that is needed to be said?

"Starting tomorrow, you will be transferring schools." That certainly what the boy had in mind, but before he could even questioned his old man, his maid beat him to the questioning, asking politely.

"What's the reason for this, sir? Young master has lost his parents, and for him to transfer this sudden would be losing his only bonds with people other than his family." The boy wanted to disagree, but then decided to just watch the scene unfold in front of him.

"His school is in Tatsumi Port Island now, and staying there might make him remember the events happening at the bridge. A change of scenery would be better for him, wouldn't you agree? "While it continued, the auburn haired girl went closer the young master, looking at him curiously.

"T-that's certainly true but what about his friends in school? Won't they miss him?" The boy noticed the girl and turned to look questioningly at her. The girl didn't seem surprised by that (or just didn't care), and continued looking at him, seemingly curious.

"I don't really know, but since it's already been a week," -! ...A week? He was out cold for a week? "And since his so called friends didn't visit him, they shouldn't care too much about him right?"

"Sir, be more sensitive." The older girl said with a huff. If it was the old him, the boy would have laugh instead. But since he's not, he'll just sigh. "Maybe they didn't know he was here, or maybe they feel offended if they-"

"Kano-san, please don't worry too much about it." The boy decided to intervene. If it continued any further, the boy feels like he will gain a headache.

"But, young master! That's-!" the maid tried to argued back, but was silenced after seeing the boy gave a look a finality.

"No buts. That will be my decision." It was surprising to the boy much authority he made with that sentence. Heck, it seems to affect both the old man and the girl as they look at him in surprise. Whatever the case, it seems that the maid agreed, reluctantly though.

The young master sighed. There are times when his maid is really stubborn, so he's quite happy that she managed to agree so fast. Looks like his transfer would be okay after-

"I only have one condition, young master." ...Hm? The boy looked at the maid in confusion. "Whatever place you are going to, I'm going with you."

-! W-what!? The boy was taken completely off-guard by this revelation, but before he could argue back, she answered him. "No buts, young master. That will be my decision." ...The boy felt that the world just insulted him when she uses the same words back at him.

The auburn-haired girl (with silver barrettes forming the roman numerical XXII, the boy realized) was now giggling at the antics between the two of them. His grandfather just gave a grin, which somehow annoys the boy to no end.

What happened had happened. And as such, the boy accepted it, whether he fears it or not. He will accept and overcome all challenges that were sent towards him with all his might.

...The boy wondered if the accident changes his way of thinking.

In any case, he stayed in the hospital for another two days, his maid on his side, checking and looking at school recommendations sent by his grandfather while idly checking the net.

While he would generally accept any school, his maid would say otherwise. It seems that she firmly believes that the boy needs to have a good school for him to live a good life. Case in point, when he pointed at a school that's actually famous for good students, the maid apparently dug up the untold facts about the school that made the young master confused when she didn't wish to discuss what was written about the dark facts.

She took her job seriously, that Kano Sayuri.

Still, he appreciated her protectiveness and much is she willing to do for his sake, but this also means that finding a school for him is going to take a longer time than what was needed.

After a while, they finally found the perfect place for him (well, it's more accurate to say that Kano-san found the place herself), located in Japan of course. The distance is quite far from Tatsumi Port Island, but that's not such a big deal.

The maid had been very busy in packing and cleaning stuff while he went to his old school with his grandfather, telling his homeroom teacher that's he's going to another place because of 'business'. "Quite unfortunate, but that's how it is, sir." The blue-haired boy said politely.

Said teacher gave a look of curiosity when he entered with his grandfather, but didn't complain much, even when he's transferring. He just looked at him for a few seconds before nodding in agreement. He did exclaim surprise when the teacher heard his reply when he asked if he wanted to tell his friends about the sudden transfer.

"No thanks, I don't think it's needed for me to tell them."

It was actually pretty accurate term, as while he did have friends, he didn't think he would be needed to tell the kids that he's going to be gone. He's not that close enough with them to be call friends anyway.

The boy also rejected the option of telling his entire class that he'll be transferring (which surprises the teacher again) as he wished to take shortest option and not wasting time, as selfish as it sounds.

It was lucky enough the teacher was kind enough to heed his wish, though he's still annoyed when he gave him a few chances at changing his mind in at least saying goodbye. The boy mentally sighs. What is it with adults and their persistency?

Either way, the boy finally managed to walk back to his house (while ignoring the curious stares of the students at the school) while his grandfather was busy with a few arrangements for his new living home. By the noise coming out from the house, it seems that Sayuri-san is still clearing out some stuff, so he decided to just sit at the living room while reading at the booklet his maid printed about the new school he's going to attend.

"Seishou Elementary School..." he mused before saying sarcastically. "Should be an exciting school life..."

The boy had no idea how true that statement is going to be.

-TO BE CONTINUED-

Author's notes:-

...Can't believe I actually wrote this.

D.Z.: Your own fault for thinking possibilities after possibilities for trying to mix Persona 3 and Lyrical Nanoha.

Shush, you. Anyway, this is an idea that literally pop out when I was reading some crossover fics after unable to write a few days. It was a small possibility, the draft and possible plotline written all over the place, but then I realized that it might just work.

Then again, I'm not much of a good writer, how it's expressed might be undesirable to most people. ...Eh.

Review if you guys want. ...Although I might not be focusing this most of the time. Still need to re-watch the series again...