| Book of Darkness | |
|---|---|
| Book of Darkness | |
| Device profile | |
| Other names | Buch der Dunkelheit Tome of the Night Sky |
| Master | Hayate Yagami |
| Gender | none |
| Language | German |
| Classification | |
| Magic system | Ancient Belka |
| Type | Lost Logia[1] / Unison |
| Production | |
| Japanese name | 闇の書 (Yami no Sho) |
| First app. | A's manga (prologue) |
| Last app. | A's (ep.13) |
| Voiced by | Alexandra Haefelin |
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The Book of Darkness (闇の書 Yami no Sho, Ger. "Buch der Dunkelheit") is an ancient Lost Logia that had been under TSAB investigation several years prior to the events of Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A's.
Appearances
The Book of Darkness appears in A's only. It first appears on Hayate's bookshelf in chains.
The Book of Darkness may be more accurately described as a collection of artifacts and technologies. In addition to the Book itself, which is a storehouse for stolen knowledge and spells, it also includes different components. The whole Unison Device is reprogrammed and renamed upon Hayate's awakening in A's episode 11. See the details below.
History
The origins of the Book are unknown. It was presumably created before or during the Warring Ages of Belka and originally served as a benign magical storage medium under the name of "Tome of the Night Sky" (夜天の書/夜天の魔導書). At some point in the past, however, tampering by curious mages caused its Defense Program to be corrupted, resulting in the book becoming parasitic and giving it its common name. From that time onward, it fed off the energy of its masters and eventually killed them if they didn't fill its pages with magic. On the other hand, if they did, the Defense Program would go out of control, kill them, and cause a massive dimensional dislocation before going dormant again in another part of the universe, allowing the vicious cycle to continue. The Book could be destroyed but not for long, as it would regenerate in a few years, beginning the cycle anew.
The penultimate accident tool place in the year 0054 of the New Calendar. The TSAB task force managed to secure the Book but it then went out of control and Admiral Clyde Harlaown sacrificed himself and his ship to stop its rampage. The final Book of Darkness incident took place in 0065. During the incident, the entire book was reprogrammed by its final master, Hayate Yagami, purging it of the Defense Program, which was then destroyed by Nanoha Takamachi and the others. To stop the Defense Program from regenerating once and for all, the Book's Master Program also had to sacrifice herself.
Functions
Unless the Book's pages are filled with Linker Cores, the Master Program can only communicate with her master telepathically. Full (non-material) manifestation of the Master Program's personality is possible after at least 400 pages have been filled. The complete physical manifestation and Unison Device functionality are only accessible after all 666 pages have been filled.[2]
Components of the whole set of Unison Device, before and after the reprogramming are as follows:
| Component | Before reprogramming | After reprogramming |
|---|---|---|
| Guardian Knight System ( |
Their existence started since the first awakening of the Book of Darkness in the past. They collect mana for the pages and protect their master. | Upon the recovery of their Linker Cores, they are separated from the Book of Darkness and thus do not need to be destroyed together with Reinforce. |
| Master Program ( |
The Master Program is "the will of the Book of Darkness" (闇の書の意志 Yami no Sho no Ishi). She is responsible for mana-control and ignition of the unison with the Book's Master. | Separated from the Book of Darkness and continued to be the Master Program of the new Unison Device "Reinforce".[3] |
| Defense Program (防御プログラム) |
The Defense Program is capable of regenerating the book infinitely. It was originally designed to protect the master and the Book content, as well as to back-up collected data. | The only part of the Book of Darkness that was not incorporated into Reinforce. Even upon its total destruction in A's episode 12, it would have still recovered in a few days, had Reinforce (its "root") not self-destructed. |
| The Book | The Book itself has 666 pages and collects data. Upon completion (and unison with its Master), it becomes a storage,[1] serving as a complement to the Master Program. | Same as the Master Program, the book becomes part of the Unison Device "Reinforce",[3] in its original name Tome of the Night Sky. The book was destroyed along with Reinforce, and Hayate made a new Tome of the Night Sky, using it as a storage medium for her spells. |
| The Staff | The existence of the staff was not known prior to Hayate's reprogramming of the book. | Appears as (or becomes) part of the Unison Device "Reinforce",[3] named Schwertkreuz. It was most likely destroyed along with Reinforce, but Hayate later constructed an identical staff to replace it. |
| The Fragment | N/A | The sole inactive piece remaining after Reinforce's destruction. It might have become part of Hayate's new staff (see Schwertkreuz). |