Episode 9 - Decisive Battle Over the Ocean
Introducing Nanoha and Yuuno to the Arthra's crew, Lindy explains that they've come on board to help recover the remaining Jewel Seeds. Meanwhile, at Nanoha's school, the teacher announces that Nanoha will be absent for a while for "family reasons"; Alisa volunteers to take notes for her while she's away.
With the Arthra's support, Nanoha and Yuuno continue to capture Jewel Seeds over the next several days — but so do Fate and Arf. However, the trail eventually runs cold, with six still unaccounted for. Both sides theorize that the remaining ones may have ended up in the ocean rather than on land.
In the meantime, Amy searches for information on Fate Testarossa, with no luck. Chrono recalls a powerful mage named Testarossa who was exiled some years ago for causing a major dimensional incident, and wonders if there's a connection. It seems that Fate herself has strong protective magic that prevents her from being tracked.
As they wait around on the Arthra, Yuuno apologizes to Nanoha for pulling her away from her family and friends. She replies that she's used to being isolated, revealing that she had to spend much of her childhood alone at home. Her father was hospitalized for a long time after being injured at work, and her mother and older siblings had to take care of him while also running the café. For his part, Yuuno says he never really had parents, but was raised by his whole tribe.
An emergency alert sounds, and they rush to the bridge to learn that Fate has shown herself. She's creating a massive magic circle over the ocean to reveal the remaining Jewel Seeds by forcing them to activate. Chrono notes that she can't possibly seal all six at once, and will just exhaust her strength in the attempt — so all they have to do is wait until she collapses, then recover the Jewel Seeds themselves. Horrified, Nanoha tries to protest, but Lindy agrees with Chrono. Realizing Nanoha can't just stand by, Yuuno opens the Arthra's dimensional transit gate, and they rush to the scene before the crew can stop them.
Seeing them arrive, Fate and Arf brace for a fight, but Nanoha says she's there to help — and uses Raising Heart to transfer some of her own mana to Fate and Bardiche. With Arf and Yuuno providing support, Fate and Nanoha manage to neutralize and capture all six Jewel Seeds. As they wonder what to do next, Nanoha recalls what she was telling Yuuno. Realizing that she's drawn to Fate because she recognizes the loneliness in her eyes, she tells the other girl that she wants to be friends.
At that moment, the Arthra detects a massive inter-dimensional magic attack heading straight for them. All they can do is brace for impact as the ship is rendered helpless by the blast. Down on the surface, Fate has just enough time to whisper "Mother?!" before purple lightning appears from the sky and strikes her. Arf rushes to catch Fate, then turns to grab the Jewel Seeds — only to be intercepted by Chrono, who has just arrived. Desperate, she blasts him aside, but he manages to grab three of the jewels. She fires another blast at the ocean, blinding everyone; when their vision returns, Arf, Fate, and the remaining Jewel Seeds are gone.
Tropes
- Call-Back: For the first time since episode 1, Nanoha uses Raising Heart's full activation speech.
- Fish-Eye Lens: Conspicuously used in several shots.
- Good Is Not Nice: Chrono (and, by implication, Lindy) appears to be quite willing to let Fate die in her reckless attempt to seal all the Jewel Seeds, noting that it's the most pragmatic way to recover them. This may be another manifestation of Early-Installment Weirdness — it's hard to imagine Lindy supporting such a callous strategy in later seasons, even if she hadn't ended up adopting Fate.
- Reclining Venus: In one of the Arthra's corridors, Nanoha and Yuuno briefly pause for a conversation directly in front of a huge painting of an artfully posed nude woman.
- Running Gag: Lindy has green tea on the bridge, and once again adds copious quantities of sugar — and milk — before drinking it with relish. Nanoha, who is standing behind her, makes a face but says nothing.
- Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!: After Fate forcibly activates the remaining Jewel Seeds, rather than wait for her to exhaust herself and potentially get hurt or even killed, Nanoha defies orders and rushes to help her.
- Ship Tease: The briefing room scene has a strange moment where Nanoha and Chrono make eye contact. Nanoha beams at Chrono, who blushes and turns away, prompting Yuuno to do a double take and glare at him. Nothing else in the entire series hints at any kind of romantic chemistry between Nanoha and Chrono.
