Toshiro
Well-Known Member
(This is set after the YSS Sakura II arrives at Third Docks from combat with the Yui-class Scout Privateer Variant.)
Miyako fluttered her eyes a little when she stepped through the airlock. Her new uniform, or maybe it was her old uniform? It felt clunky, but she was still getting used to the body she had for all of three hours, even if she did enjoy the slight bump to her bustline she received, it didn't make the day any less strange. No less than 36 hours after she finished her last song on Himiko, as the pop sensation, 'Miyako☆', was she the brunt of a press conference announcing she would be reactivated to active duty in the Star Army to further highlight the process of reintegration from former UOC citizens, to the point she was already striding through the door to a private lounge to interview with the CO of a ship in a freshly minted body, oath taken, and prepped with new orders.
“Kotonoha Miyako, ah...reporting as ordered.” Of course she looked different: her hair had pink streaks in it in thin bands, well most of them, and she had grown it out for her shows to make it easier to color, the ways her stylists had risen to the challenge even of touring refugee cities had never ceased to amaze her. Leaving her bags outside, she strode inward to the pleasant sound of music and flitted her eyes around to adjust to the slight darkness. “Ah, there. I'm sorry I didn't see you.” Her eyes finally settled upon the officer, as she saluted, her arm whipping down as she realized who it was sitting at the table.
That was when her heart rose into her throat, and the one person capable of sending her heart into her throat since she was created, did. It was Yaichiro. A hot, furious boil rose into her cheeks as she stammered out a few words and tried to remember: breathing is from the lungs, Miya.
Yaichiro gave a very light but honest smile, the extent of which he allowed positive emotion escape him. He wore the same ship and fleet patches as she did, indicating that he was of the same ship, and white panels indicating his command in that role...but one other thing stood out which had changed since she last saw gim. He bore the rank of Taisa on his uniform, indicating that he's riden further in the command structure of the Fleet.
"Hello again, Miyako-Juni. It's been a long time...I was surprised to hear you were in the area and requesting an assignment. It's bad what happened to the UOC...but I'm glad to keep finding members of my old crew that are still alive. You're the second one to make the trip here. Lolion-Hei made it here too, and I know Mist made it out as well." He seemed honestly pleased to see her, whether this interview worked out ot not.
"Ah-...I-ju-..bu-..t..." Miyako spat out after a few moments, "I-ju..um, y-yes. Hi there..." The instant those words left her mouth the newly reminted soldier bit the inside of her cheek. Oh, way to go! I'm sure the fans would looooove to see this. She thought as her heartbeat shot up again.
"Sorry-...sir. I just never thought I'd see you again, I mean visiting colony planets and refugee camps doesn't seem like the sort of thing an officer would be doing ah, especially-anyway. It's good Mist is okay, I liked her a lot." She reminded him, "They took me with my things, but I was further away from it at the time, thankfully." A note of sadness crossed into her voice and left it just as quickly, she tugged at the sides of her new jacket so her hands would stop fidgeting endlessly behind her back, and finally remembered to bow, thinking he might appreciate it more than a salute.
"Well...they reactivated me. I have no idea who told them I graduated from OTS before I shipped to the UOC, but they found out sir." She replied, with still a bit of a quiver in her voice, "It...it is very good to see you ah-I am briefed on current standing orders and operations changes, though I am still getting used to..." She looked around, and bent forward slightly, "...cuuuurves...I-probably should've thought of what my fans will say before I had them redo me but I thought a new life, a new b-ody and all that."
Yaichiro seemed to ponder something, wondering why she was so nervous...was it due to the interview? He never really rode the crew that hard as long as they did their jobs. "Miyako-Juni, please take a breath and calm yourself. If you can handle a stage, you can handle an interview with your old Commanding Officer. And regarding your fans...it's your life. It's fine to dedicate your life to something, but...there are things which are unhealthy done to excess. We'll have enough stress keeping up on what the Army and Empire want us to do before your worrying about strangers justifying how curvy you look."
"Which brings me to my first question...and a rather large one...why are you rejoining the Star Army of Yamatai? While not a bad thing, I want to make sure you're doing it for a strong reason...we all had reasons to feel doubt toward our faith at that time, to various degrees of strength and justification."
"I...weelll..." Miyako hesitated, "...they can be a strange bunch sometimes, but since most of them were soldiers anyway I guess they won't hate me too much for it. This was hard enough. Ah, orders are orders, I was reinstated, though I guess...I need to get my commission back." She sighed, and rubbed at her cheeks while trying to breathe, "They are important to me, I worry about things like that, sorry. You-well, it is because you are you anyway, sir."
Deciding to dance a bit about the subject, the pop star bit her bottom lip, then nodded, "I guess you didn't see the conference, but they're right: I can do a lot of good back on the front lines or...wherever you send me, sir, as an example to the others. It's been a year and a lot of them aren't ready to go back to it, but if I can get some of them to realize they can still do what they wanted to do, help the galaxy, in their old uniform? Well...it...seemed easy as a choice. I kind of miss being onna' real ship anyway. I mean, well if you'll have me...but my biggest draw was that admiral that liked me, and pulled me up to be an XO-before I knew it I was there, transferred from that ship to sing and now here I am." It was cutting corners, but it was basically what had happened.
"I see..." Yaichiro looked slightly displeased, but it was hard to tell with his personality as he stood, looking at a large volumetric screen, waiting several tense moments to think.
"I do not like it when people are conscripted to serve like this. Service should be something one chooses to do. Taking someone who has the media spotlight on them and conscripting them through some loophole to influence their fans isn't how I prefer to do things. If you truly choose this for yourself as well, then that is fine...but while you are here, serving, your duty is to your crew and your Empire. Not to whatever politicially minded Admiral came up with this little scheme. You will not shoulder the responsibility of being someone's posterchild. I will not have a member of my crew holding that extra burden on top of things. If they contact you and give you additional trouble, or if you feel yourself unable to serve after all, tell me and we'll try to resolve it."
Miyako waited several moments before replying, "It...is nice to hear someone say that. You remind me of-...before. Don't worry, I will say something, but I am even better than when I was aboard the Asuka, remember sir?" She asked him, drawing her fingertips through her intricately accented hair.
"Th-ere was a reason I was graduated through Kyoto, try ah, well you're right, I have sort of had a different life for the last few years. I guess I can't really contend that point. They did scheme it up, and I'm sure I am here to help get recruitment out of the camps easier, but I can do my work on my off time. I want to be an officer again th-is is just really great that you're here, I didn't think things would turn out like this again. If you'll have me on your bridge I will serve just as hard as back then, n-no harder!" She promised, nodding her head very rapidly a few times, enough that some strands of hair spilled over her shoulders.
"I wasn't really, I mean I'm sure I look horrible even on the feed from the press conference, but now I feel-...wonderful about it! It is what I always wanted from life anyway, I trained to lead by example I guess it is time I did-tha..at." She stumbled when she caught herself staring into his eyes again, quickly moving to a patch on the wall, "Co-nsequently..thank you for the use of the property in Tokyo...I took good care of it until the end I promise."
Yaichiro smiled, looking back at the girl...he couldn't get her really...she was always nervous around him even after stage training, but she didn't seem to hate him. Had she not worked for him before, he'd be worried if she could act professionally on the bridge with all the stuttering...but he knew what she was capable of.
"I see...in that case, you may certainly join...though there's another thing you should know. You're not the only pop idol assigned to this ship...the other one specificly asked for this assignment, so I don't think that same Admiral is responsible...she'd been pondering how to continue her career from the ship, while seeking inspiration from her service. I decided that as long as at didn't interfere with her duties, to cultivate that best I could. It's one thing to force someone to be a tool for rallying the people...but if a person wishes to be a source of inspiration, that I can support. I happen to be a shareholder in Nishitama Television, and can recommend content and music to that civilian company...so maybe that's why you were stuck here.
I do know that she was the lead singer of a group though, the Kyoto Project, and had trouble with her bandmates not wishing to continue. Perhaps you can work something out. One member of the virtual duo KOgama happens to be on the YSS Eucharis, as well. Her quarters are even soundproofed so she can practice without her roomates getting upset. I'm not sure if rooming you two together would help or hinder your musical careers."
"That...is strange. Well I could always use a duet project, that might make a good album. I'll have to talk to my manager, though." Miyako replied, "The name..doesn't-ah, yes the newer one. That's good news then, I guess I started a trend." She joked, rubbing her lips together when she got another look at the Taisa's face dead on, "We would have to mostly release albums or put together virtual performances, yes. Unless there is time between deployments, but it's not too bad. I can teach her how if she really needs. Eventually I was just put into Morale Command in Tokyo but there was a period...ah, anyway." The singer rattled on, "It couldn't hurt, I mean it might help hers, and I could use a bigger audience here at home. I'm the biggest name with the refugees but-..the rest of the Emppiiiire...? Not as much."
At least she wasn't arrogant, though that had never been her problem. Her only probelm at that moment was trying to hear over the sound of her own heartbeat between her ears, and to ignore the fact the man she'd been thinking about for three years was randomly in the same room with her, giving her absolutely no time to prepare. "If you think it would be good I'd definitely take it to wider networks, sir, but I think it is best you are sure I can handle my duties first, you still have confidence in me, I h-ope." Nodded his old pilot, and defacto XO.
"Is there...anything else?"
"...Last year, I learned that the Black Coats were actually conspiring against the people we once served. I possess a Black Box which even shows Black Coats raiding UOC craft and blaming it on pirates to justify increases in power and authority. Some even worked with the NMX to justify such things...one of the solar power stations I designed was refitted into a stealth weapon station and jamming platform to contribute to the blackout."
"I wound up having to stand against the Black Coats, and infiltrate a station of my own creation...I still don't agree with certain aspects of how it was handled, but its destruction was necessary. Something even the Lorath agree with, as they dealt the final blow...if we must stand against the corrupt faction of our old comrades one day -- to bring down remnants of the Tange-clan...could you do it? Could you bring down an enemy of the people even if it were an unpopular decision among the refugees they'd decieved?"
Miyako felt her cheeks burn a little hotter again, not that they had stopped too much since she came face to face with Yaichiro again, but details are details, "...that-...doesn't surprise me. Things became-...strained the more strange the Grand Peacekeeper became, bu-t it's not like there was really a chance to say much about it, sir. I had no idea it was like that, you just got these...ghosts, these strange whispering thoughts in the back of your mind."
A long pause filled the lounge, allowing the sound of a small water feature in the corner, though simulated, to take over for her voice as she gathered her thoughts.
"I am here, aren't I? Without complaint, I am he-re sir, and this is hardly a popular decision with a lot of the people who stayed, though others see it the way whomever cooked this up did, I-well, they had their chances to come home. All I've done since Tokyo was wiped to ash and memory is look into the f-aces of the people I let down. Please don't think I would hesitate to eliminate what stands between them, and better lives, Yaiich-, sir." She corrected, biting her bottom lip as her crimson eyes lifted from the floor to stare at him emphatically.
"...I just wanted to make sure you were prepared. Whispering thoughts...that actually sounds like a kind of psionic attack. Can you give me a deeper account of this? It may prove extremely important if this was caused by a type of extended psionic warfare...particularly since your ships were PSC equipped and it still happened. I always felt that the secession of the UOC was ill-timed, particularly when Katsuko became Empress and the UOC was about to get more of what it wanted. Also...Mellisson was responsible for informing the Nepleslians of the so-called Elysian plague. The Mishhuvurthyar set the events into motion for UOC's independence...this is a known fact." Her words got Yaichiro's interest...if someone high up was working with the Mishhu, the selective frequencies of the UOC-made PSCs could have been compromised, allowing subtle low power psionic attacks for long periods. The implications of this were of clear concern to Yaichiro.
The former Sub Lieutenant raised a hand to the bridge of her nose and rubbed, pinching there as she tried to remember for him, "I-...it was on the Vanguard. This creeping feeling like in e-very long shadow there was something waiting to get us all. N-ot the normal sort of attention you pay when you are in command, but it's hard to place...I just thought it was my being jittery away from the west but when I performed. I mean, a lot of the events had brass or politicans around."
The junior officer shifted on her feet, "The feeling was like a...have you ever been on a planet and you hear this high pitched thing in the space of silence? This sound that clings there to the ears, but when you focus on it dissipates into the nothing? It was like that, but there even when I had a crowd of fifty thousand screaming at me. Unsettling...like a creeping whisper was hidden in it, y-es. It's just as likely I was overworked, right?"
"...I...find what you say hard to comprehend to a degree...I've experienced the tone in silence you've mentioned, everyone has....but never when there were many people...and never after upgrading to the Yamataian body. It's known as Tinnitus, if I recall...and our bodies shouldn't be vulnerable...though it can be caused by hearing loss from loud noises...I want you to be checked for Tinnitus with our medical staff, and also...please hand me your communicator, and tell me if you hear it now." Yaichiro said, raising his eyebrow.
"How would that be possible, sir? I just got a new body uhmn, as you can see." She huffed out a bit heatedly by mistake when her eyes drifted downward, it was clear she'd gained a little height in the transfer too, and lost the etched, hollow star that had been placed along her neck during the earlier phase of her career.
"Tinnitus, well if you-think so. It will give me a chance to meet the medical staff anyway." She reasoned, blinking with some edge of surprise still left as she drew her communicator out and handed it over to him, "My old one is in my effects sir, outside. I haven't turned it on in-...oh, since we arrived at the camps really? I mean you're welcome to it, but I want to keep my old things, the uniforms at least. Even if they don't fit...I donated the rest of my wardrobe earlier today to help support the refugees, when I realized I don't fit in anything anymore..." That admission ensured she would continue to be flushed, despite her growing acclimation to suddenly being in a room, alone, with Yaichiro.
"That's true, you shouldn't have it in this new body, so that's out...but I still want to know if you feel any symptoms. I also want to see your old UOC one, and let it be scanned for anything oddball...I've become somewhat paranoid in things since the UOC days...but thus far, my concerns have generally been justified. And right now, something doesn't feel quite right about what I'm hearing."
"Oh...ah, sure! Just-one sec." Miyako smiled nervously at what she was hearing, and moved away from him, and out into the corridor. Moments later, she was pushing a small pile of bags into the lounge, before she proceeded to open one up and dig through the neatly folded contents, one of which was a command uniform for a UOCPF officer, "Ah! Got it." She called to him triumphantly before moving to return to the CO.
"I hope it is nothing. I feel pretty great back in a soldier's body again, sir. Just getting used to the new size. When I was born, I was a little thing." She reminded him, and biting her lip, sent an old picture of the Asuka crew together to him wirelessly while offering out the old UOCPF device. "You can take it apart or whatever you would like sir, I just, have it to have it."
Yaichiro smiled as he recieved the picture. Yes, you certainly filled out nicely, though I hope you got that change for your own sake though, not just for your fans." He said, complimenting her and indicating his notice, as he took the communicator and accidently touched her fingers ever so slightly in doing so. He paid it little notice as he stayed professional, silently ordering the ship's MEGAMI to take a look at the UOC communicator for anything strange or unusual. He, meanwhile, started checking it for any intrusions or wireless communications.
"I want to see if you've been recieving telepathic communications which this has let through, ones which you may be unaware of...it may well have been overwork on your part, but given the time at which it started, and that it followed you and the refugees, I want to make sure it's not something deeper...and even if you're cured of it by having a new communicator and a new body, it means others may not be."
He said that! He actually said that! Miyako thought to herself, her throat suddenly a little dry, "Yes..." Is all she could get out at first, her heartbeat sticking between her ears again for what felt like ages before she heard herself add, "It was both, sir. Definitely both and-...well thank you." She decided would have to do as she was not foolish enough to not understand that he played it close to the cuff on duty like always.
"That is worth looking into, they deserve as much help as anyone can give them. I'll feel better when those cities no longer exist, but while they are there now if this is a threat it will be easier to help them, sir." His former crewmember acknowledged with a logical train of thought that went on to add, "Though they might not like being told to be reformed in such a large scale for seemingly no purpose, I feel a lot better, I just hope it is my being overworked though, to be honest."
"..." Toshiro opened up the back of the UOC communicator, and noticed something inside. Inserted into a port was a small transparent rectangular structure...containing a type of metallic dust. The dust, however, was dark grey and black, and the transparent fixture was clouded with the stain of smoke inside.
"...Some sort of femtomachine-derived circuit was in here, but the femto machines...overloaded themselves and destroyed the circuit. It's nothing more than dust now, and likely can't be salvaged...just what sort of thing did your communicator have inside it?" Yaichiro pondered before shaking his head and making sure that Miyako's new communicator was programmed properly.
"Something strange happened, that much is clear, but we have little evidence of it now. Of course, you're in the crew...though I want a full report of what you can remember of this later. I wish to be aware of threats, even if there isn't enough proof to make a confirmed report."
"What?" Miyako asked in a deadpan she didn't know she had in her, the rash of curiosity in her fighting to the surface again caused her to move closer to look inside her old communicator with him, holding her breath while she got herself a good look at the dust.
"That...is really disturbing, sir. The only thing I can think of is the command authorization encryption matrix? Or...it was something like that? Mostly for officer comms and the like so we could get priority channels, but I never really opened it up to look, well, ever to be honest." She replied, taking a careful step back when she realized she could smell him suddenly.
"I'll-submit it with records detailing where I was, too if that's all righ-oh I am? That's wonderful! I mean, thank you sir. It means-..." She searched for better words, but came up with none when she stared at the man, "...a great deal to me. All of my things are right here, I can get my kit on board as soon as you like, I am excited to meet the new crew. I hope we do /slightly/ better at keeping the bridge crew alive than on the Asuka." She noted, trying to make him feel better about what they both were spinning around in the minds, bouncing through endless loops of logic: what had been important enough to ensure a self-destruct protocol in her old comm unit?
"You're welcome. Now...you can pick which cabin you like, though if you room with the other musician, you will have to deal with each others' music. I'm not sure if you wish to do that or not...I can try to get the other rooms soundproofed next time we're in port as well. Lolion happens to be here as well, though he hasn't formally re-enlisted at this time. You may be able to visit him in the very least if he doesn't rejoin. Feel free to use the Ikoi's resources in your downtime, and familiarize yourself with the ship's rules." Yaichiro said, pleased she was backack...though hoping her stammering wouldn't impact her appearance to the rest of the crew. He worried they'd underestimate her.
"Well I have an idea. Assign me with her now, so I can get to know her, and the next time we get a chance refit cabin one with soundproofing and I can nudge into there or something, if need be?" Miyako asked, her ears giving a little twitch of excitement, something he'd probably not seen from her in years, dating back to the time she was a fresh recruit about three hours before being on a bridge alone, surrounded by the blood of her first executive officer.
"This is faaaantastic!" She gave a wince and looked to him sheepishly, the color spreading over the bridge of her nose finally, "I-apologies sir. It has been a while since I've been in a uniform and actually serving on a ship, I-guess I've become ah, more, ...er, vocal?" She worked out at a wonky bit of a cadence, before bowing to him once more, "I will be ready to come aboard as soon as you're ready. Thank you again, thank you thank you. I will do your command proud or di-e trying." She vowed, hoping it wouldn't come to the latter before the former.
"Alright, I'll put you down there. The First officer usually gets cabin one, but with so many capable veterans coming here, it'll be hard to make a choice right away...I'll have to see how everyone performs." It was a decision which had been weighing on him, but he pushed the thought from his mind. "In any case, welcome, and good to have you back."
Miyako fluttered her eyes a little when she stepped through the airlock. Her new uniform, or maybe it was her old uniform? It felt clunky, but she was still getting used to the body she had for all of three hours, even if she did enjoy the slight bump to her bustline she received, it didn't make the day any less strange. No less than 36 hours after she finished her last song on Himiko, as the pop sensation, 'Miyako☆', was she the brunt of a press conference announcing she would be reactivated to active duty in the Star Army to further highlight the process of reintegration from former UOC citizens, to the point she was already striding through the door to a private lounge to interview with the CO of a ship in a freshly minted body, oath taken, and prepped with new orders.
“Kotonoha Miyako, ah...reporting as ordered.” Of course she looked different: her hair had pink streaks in it in thin bands, well most of them, and she had grown it out for her shows to make it easier to color, the ways her stylists had risen to the challenge even of touring refugee cities had never ceased to amaze her. Leaving her bags outside, she strode inward to the pleasant sound of music and flitted her eyes around to adjust to the slight darkness. “Ah, there. I'm sorry I didn't see you.” Her eyes finally settled upon the officer, as she saluted, her arm whipping down as she realized who it was sitting at the table.
That was when her heart rose into her throat, and the one person capable of sending her heart into her throat since she was created, did. It was Yaichiro. A hot, furious boil rose into her cheeks as she stammered out a few words and tried to remember: breathing is from the lungs, Miya.
Yaichiro gave a very light but honest smile, the extent of which he allowed positive emotion escape him. He wore the same ship and fleet patches as she did, indicating that he was of the same ship, and white panels indicating his command in that role...but one other thing stood out which had changed since she last saw gim. He bore the rank of Taisa on his uniform, indicating that he's riden further in the command structure of the Fleet.
"Hello again, Miyako-Juni. It's been a long time...I was surprised to hear you were in the area and requesting an assignment. It's bad what happened to the UOC...but I'm glad to keep finding members of my old crew that are still alive. You're the second one to make the trip here. Lolion-Hei made it here too, and I know Mist made it out as well." He seemed honestly pleased to see her, whether this interview worked out ot not.
"Ah-...I-ju-..bu-..t..." Miyako spat out after a few moments, "I-ju..um, y-yes. Hi there..." The instant those words left her mouth the newly reminted soldier bit the inside of her cheek. Oh, way to go! I'm sure the fans would looooove to see this. She thought as her heartbeat shot up again.
"Sorry-...sir. I just never thought I'd see you again, I mean visiting colony planets and refugee camps doesn't seem like the sort of thing an officer would be doing ah, especially-anyway. It's good Mist is okay, I liked her a lot." She reminded him, "They took me with my things, but I was further away from it at the time, thankfully." A note of sadness crossed into her voice and left it just as quickly, she tugged at the sides of her new jacket so her hands would stop fidgeting endlessly behind her back, and finally remembered to bow, thinking he might appreciate it more than a salute.
"Well...they reactivated me. I have no idea who told them I graduated from OTS before I shipped to the UOC, but they found out sir." She replied, with still a bit of a quiver in her voice, "It...it is very good to see you ah-I am briefed on current standing orders and operations changes, though I am still getting used to..." She looked around, and bent forward slightly, "...cuuuurves...I-probably should've thought of what my fans will say before I had them redo me but I thought a new life, a new b-ody and all that."
Yaichiro seemed to ponder something, wondering why she was so nervous...was it due to the interview? He never really rode the crew that hard as long as they did their jobs. "Miyako-Juni, please take a breath and calm yourself. If you can handle a stage, you can handle an interview with your old Commanding Officer. And regarding your fans...it's your life. It's fine to dedicate your life to something, but...there are things which are unhealthy done to excess. We'll have enough stress keeping up on what the Army and Empire want us to do before your worrying about strangers justifying how curvy you look."
"Which brings me to my first question...and a rather large one...why are you rejoining the Star Army of Yamatai? While not a bad thing, I want to make sure you're doing it for a strong reason...we all had reasons to feel doubt toward our faith at that time, to various degrees of strength and justification."
"I...weelll..." Miyako hesitated, "...they can be a strange bunch sometimes, but since most of them were soldiers anyway I guess they won't hate me too much for it. This was hard enough. Ah, orders are orders, I was reinstated, though I guess...I need to get my commission back." She sighed, and rubbed at her cheeks while trying to breathe, "They are important to me, I worry about things like that, sorry. You-well, it is because you are you anyway, sir."
Deciding to dance a bit about the subject, the pop star bit her bottom lip, then nodded, "I guess you didn't see the conference, but they're right: I can do a lot of good back on the front lines or...wherever you send me, sir, as an example to the others. It's been a year and a lot of them aren't ready to go back to it, but if I can get some of them to realize they can still do what they wanted to do, help the galaxy, in their old uniform? Well...it...seemed easy as a choice. I kind of miss being onna' real ship anyway. I mean, well if you'll have me...but my biggest draw was that admiral that liked me, and pulled me up to be an XO-before I knew it I was there, transferred from that ship to sing and now here I am." It was cutting corners, but it was basically what had happened.
"I see..." Yaichiro looked slightly displeased, but it was hard to tell with his personality as he stood, looking at a large volumetric screen, waiting several tense moments to think.
"I do not like it when people are conscripted to serve like this. Service should be something one chooses to do. Taking someone who has the media spotlight on them and conscripting them through some loophole to influence their fans isn't how I prefer to do things. If you truly choose this for yourself as well, then that is fine...but while you are here, serving, your duty is to your crew and your Empire. Not to whatever politicially minded Admiral came up with this little scheme. You will not shoulder the responsibility of being someone's posterchild. I will not have a member of my crew holding that extra burden on top of things. If they contact you and give you additional trouble, or if you feel yourself unable to serve after all, tell me and we'll try to resolve it."
Miyako waited several moments before replying, "It...is nice to hear someone say that. You remind me of-...before. Don't worry, I will say something, but I am even better than when I was aboard the Asuka, remember sir?" She asked him, drawing her fingertips through her intricately accented hair.
"Th-ere was a reason I was graduated through Kyoto, try ah, well you're right, I have sort of had a different life for the last few years. I guess I can't really contend that point. They did scheme it up, and I'm sure I am here to help get recruitment out of the camps easier, but I can do my work on my off time. I want to be an officer again th-is is just really great that you're here, I didn't think things would turn out like this again. If you'll have me on your bridge I will serve just as hard as back then, n-no harder!" She promised, nodding her head very rapidly a few times, enough that some strands of hair spilled over her shoulders.
"I wasn't really, I mean I'm sure I look horrible even on the feed from the press conference, but now I feel-...wonderful about it! It is what I always wanted from life anyway, I trained to lead by example I guess it is time I did-tha..at." She stumbled when she caught herself staring into his eyes again, quickly moving to a patch on the wall, "Co-nsequently..thank you for the use of the property in Tokyo...I took good care of it until the end I promise."
Yaichiro smiled, looking back at the girl...he couldn't get her really...she was always nervous around him even after stage training, but she didn't seem to hate him. Had she not worked for him before, he'd be worried if she could act professionally on the bridge with all the stuttering...but he knew what she was capable of.
"I see...in that case, you may certainly join...though there's another thing you should know. You're not the only pop idol assigned to this ship...the other one specificly asked for this assignment, so I don't think that same Admiral is responsible...she'd been pondering how to continue her career from the ship, while seeking inspiration from her service. I decided that as long as at didn't interfere with her duties, to cultivate that best I could. It's one thing to force someone to be a tool for rallying the people...but if a person wishes to be a source of inspiration, that I can support. I happen to be a shareholder in Nishitama Television, and can recommend content and music to that civilian company...so maybe that's why you were stuck here.
I do know that she was the lead singer of a group though, the Kyoto Project, and had trouble with her bandmates not wishing to continue. Perhaps you can work something out. One member of the virtual duo KOgama happens to be on the YSS Eucharis, as well. Her quarters are even soundproofed so she can practice without her roomates getting upset. I'm not sure if rooming you two together would help or hinder your musical careers."
"That...is strange. Well I could always use a duet project, that might make a good album. I'll have to talk to my manager, though." Miyako replied, "The name..doesn't-ah, yes the newer one. That's good news then, I guess I started a trend." She joked, rubbing her lips together when she got another look at the Taisa's face dead on, "We would have to mostly release albums or put together virtual performances, yes. Unless there is time between deployments, but it's not too bad. I can teach her how if she really needs. Eventually I was just put into Morale Command in Tokyo but there was a period...ah, anyway." The singer rattled on, "It couldn't hurt, I mean it might help hers, and I could use a bigger audience here at home. I'm the biggest name with the refugees but-..the rest of the Emppiiiire...? Not as much."
At least she wasn't arrogant, though that had never been her problem. Her only probelm at that moment was trying to hear over the sound of her own heartbeat between her ears, and to ignore the fact the man she'd been thinking about for three years was randomly in the same room with her, giving her absolutely no time to prepare. "If you think it would be good I'd definitely take it to wider networks, sir, but I think it is best you are sure I can handle my duties first, you still have confidence in me, I h-ope." Nodded his old pilot, and defacto XO.
"Is there...anything else?"
"...Last year, I learned that the Black Coats were actually conspiring against the people we once served. I possess a Black Box which even shows Black Coats raiding UOC craft and blaming it on pirates to justify increases in power and authority. Some even worked with the NMX to justify such things...one of the solar power stations I designed was refitted into a stealth weapon station and jamming platform to contribute to the blackout."
"I wound up having to stand against the Black Coats, and infiltrate a station of my own creation...I still don't agree with certain aspects of how it was handled, but its destruction was necessary. Something even the Lorath agree with, as they dealt the final blow...if we must stand against the corrupt faction of our old comrades one day -- to bring down remnants of the Tange-clan...could you do it? Could you bring down an enemy of the people even if it were an unpopular decision among the refugees they'd decieved?"
Miyako felt her cheeks burn a little hotter again, not that they had stopped too much since she came face to face with Yaichiro again, but details are details, "...that-...doesn't surprise me. Things became-...strained the more strange the Grand Peacekeeper became, bu-t it's not like there was really a chance to say much about it, sir. I had no idea it was like that, you just got these...ghosts, these strange whispering thoughts in the back of your mind."
A long pause filled the lounge, allowing the sound of a small water feature in the corner, though simulated, to take over for her voice as she gathered her thoughts.
"I am here, aren't I? Without complaint, I am he-re sir, and this is hardly a popular decision with a lot of the people who stayed, though others see it the way whomever cooked this up did, I-well, they had their chances to come home. All I've done since Tokyo was wiped to ash and memory is look into the f-aces of the people I let down. Please don't think I would hesitate to eliminate what stands between them, and better lives, Yaiich-, sir." She corrected, biting her bottom lip as her crimson eyes lifted from the floor to stare at him emphatically.
"...I just wanted to make sure you were prepared. Whispering thoughts...that actually sounds like a kind of psionic attack. Can you give me a deeper account of this? It may prove extremely important if this was caused by a type of extended psionic warfare...particularly since your ships were PSC equipped and it still happened. I always felt that the secession of the UOC was ill-timed, particularly when Katsuko became Empress and the UOC was about to get more of what it wanted. Also...Mellisson was responsible for informing the Nepleslians of the so-called Elysian plague. The Mishhuvurthyar set the events into motion for UOC's independence...this is a known fact." Her words got Yaichiro's interest...if someone high up was working with the Mishhu, the selective frequencies of the UOC-made PSCs could have been compromised, allowing subtle low power psionic attacks for long periods. The implications of this were of clear concern to Yaichiro.
The former Sub Lieutenant raised a hand to the bridge of her nose and rubbed, pinching there as she tried to remember for him, "I-...it was on the Vanguard. This creeping feeling like in e-very long shadow there was something waiting to get us all. N-ot the normal sort of attention you pay when you are in command, but it's hard to place...I just thought it was my being jittery away from the west but when I performed. I mean, a lot of the events had brass or politicans around."
The junior officer shifted on her feet, "The feeling was like a...have you ever been on a planet and you hear this high pitched thing in the space of silence? This sound that clings there to the ears, but when you focus on it dissipates into the nothing? It was like that, but there even when I had a crowd of fifty thousand screaming at me. Unsettling...like a creeping whisper was hidden in it, y-es. It's just as likely I was overworked, right?"
"...I...find what you say hard to comprehend to a degree...I've experienced the tone in silence you've mentioned, everyone has....but never when there were many people...and never after upgrading to the Yamataian body. It's known as Tinnitus, if I recall...and our bodies shouldn't be vulnerable...though it can be caused by hearing loss from loud noises...I want you to be checked for Tinnitus with our medical staff, and also...please hand me your communicator, and tell me if you hear it now." Yaichiro said, raising his eyebrow.
"How would that be possible, sir? I just got a new body uhmn, as you can see." She huffed out a bit heatedly by mistake when her eyes drifted downward, it was clear she'd gained a little height in the transfer too, and lost the etched, hollow star that had been placed along her neck during the earlier phase of her career.
"Tinnitus, well if you-think so. It will give me a chance to meet the medical staff anyway." She reasoned, blinking with some edge of surprise still left as she drew her communicator out and handed it over to him, "My old one is in my effects sir, outside. I haven't turned it on in-...oh, since we arrived at the camps really? I mean you're welcome to it, but I want to keep my old things, the uniforms at least. Even if they don't fit...I donated the rest of my wardrobe earlier today to help support the refugees, when I realized I don't fit in anything anymore..." That admission ensured she would continue to be flushed, despite her growing acclimation to suddenly being in a room, alone, with Yaichiro.
"That's true, you shouldn't have it in this new body, so that's out...but I still want to know if you feel any symptoms. I also want to see your old UOC one, and let it be scanned for anything oddball...I've become somewhat paranoid in things since the UOC days...but thus far, my concerns have generally been justified. And right now, something doesn't feel quite right about what I'm hearing."
"Oh...ah, sure! Just-one sec." Miyako smiled nervously at what she was hearing, and moved away from him, and out into the corridor. Moments later, she was pushing a small pile of bags into the lounge, before she proceeded to open one up and dig through the neatly folded contents, one of which was a command uniform for a UOCPF officer, "Ah! Got it." She called to him triumphantly before moving to return to the CO.
"I hope it is nothing. I feel pretty great back in a soldier's body again, sir. Just getting used to the new size. When I was born, I was a little thing." She reminded him, and biting her lip, sent an old picture of the Asuka crew together to him wirelessly while offering out the old UOCPF device. "You can take it apart or whatever you would like sir, I just, have it to have it."
Yaichiro smiled as he recieved the picture. Yes, you certainly filled out nicely, though I hope you got that change for your own sake though, not just for your fans." He said, complimenting her and indicating his notice, as he took the communicator and accidently touched her fingers ever so slightly in doing so. He paid it little notice as he stayed professional, silently ordering the ship's MEGAMI to take a look at the UOC communicator for anything strange or unusual. He, meanwhile, started checking it for any intrusions or wireless communications.
"I want to see if you've been recieving telepathic communications which this has let through, ones which you may be unaware of...it may well have been overwork on your part, but given the time at which it started, and that it followed you and the refugees, I want to make sure it's not something deeper...and even if you're cured of it by having a new communicator and a new body, it means others may not be."
He said that! He actually said that! Miyako thought to herself, her throat suddenly a little dry, "Yes..." Is all she could get out at first, her heartbeat sticking between her ears again for what felt like ages before she heard herself add, "It was both, sir. Definitely both and-...well thank you." She decided would have to do as she was not foolish enough to not understand that he played it close to the cuff on duty like always.
"That is worth looking into, they deserve as much help as anyone can give them. I'll feel better when those cities no longer exist, but while they are there now if this is a threat it will be easier to help them, sir." His former crewmember acknowledged with a logical train of thought that went on to add, "Though they might not like being told to be reformed in such a large scale for seemingly no purpose, I feel a lot better, I just hope it is my being overworked though, to be honest."
"..." Toshiro opened up the back of the UOC communicator, and noticed something inside. Inserted into a port was a small transparent rectangular structure...containing a type of metallic dust. The dust, however, was dark grey and black, and the transparent fixture was clouded with the stain of smoke inside.
"...Some sort of femtomachine-derived circuit was in here, but the femto machines...overloaded themselves and destroyed the circuit. It's nothing more than dust now, and likely can't be salvaged...just what sort of thing did your communicator have inside it?" Yaichiro pondered before shaking his head and making sure that Miyako's new communicator was programmed properly.
"Something strange happened, that much is clear, but we have little evidence of it now. Of course, you're in the crew...though I want a full report of what you can remember of this later. I wish to be aware of threats, even if there isn't enough proof to make a confirmed report."
"What?" Miyako asked in a deadpan she didn't know she had in her, the rash of curiosity in her fighting to the surface again caused her to move closer to look inside her old communicator with him, holding her breath while she got herself a good look at the dust.
"That...is really disturbing, sir. The only thing I can think of is the command authorization encryption matrix? Or...it was something like that? Mostly for officer comms and the like so we could get priority channels, but I never really opened it up to look, well, ever to be honest." She replied, taking a careful step back when she realized she could smell him suddenly.
"I'll-submit it with records detailing where I was, too if that's all righ-oh I am? That's wonderful! I mean, thank you sir. It means-..." She searched for better words, but came up with none when she stared at the man, "...a great deal to me. All of my things are right here, I can get my kit on board as soon as you like, I am excited to meet the new crew. I hope we do /slightly/ better at keeping the bridge crew alive than on the Asuka." She noted, trying to make him feel better about what they both were spinning around in the minds, bouncing through endless loops of logic: what had been important enough to ensure a self-destruct protocol in her old comm unit?
"You're welcome. Now...you can pick which cabin you like, though if you room with the other musician, you will have to deal with each others' music. I'm not sure if you wish to do that or not...I can try to get the other rooms soundproofed next time we're in port as well. Lolion happens to be here as well, though he hasn't formally re-enlisted at this time. You may be able to visit him in the very least if he doesn't rejoin. Feel free to use the Ikoi's resources in your downtime, and familiarize yourself with the ship's rules." Yaichiro said, pleased she was backack...though hoping her stammering wouldn't impact her appearance to the rest of the crew. He worried they'd underestimate her.
"Well I have an idea. Assign me with her now, so I can get to know her, and the next time we get a chance refit cabin one with soundproofing and I can nudge into there or something, if need be?" Miyako asked, her ears giving a little twitch of excitement, something he'd probably not seen from her in years, dating back to the time she was a fresh recruit about three hours before being on a bridge alone, surrounded by the blood of her first executive officer.
"This is faaaantastic!" She gave a wince and looked to him sheepishly, the color spreading over the bridge of her nose finally, "I-apologies sir. It has been a while since I've been in a uniform and actually serving on a ship, I-guess I've become ah, more, ...er, vocal?" She worked out at a wonky bit of a cadence, before bowing to him once more, "I will be ready to come aboard as soon as you're ready. Thank you again, thank you thank you. I will do your command proud or di-e trying." She vowed, hoping it wouldn't come to the latter before the former.
"Alright, I'll put you down there. The First officer usually gets cabin one, but with so many capable veterans coming here, it'll be hard to make a choice right away...I'll have to see how everyone performs." It was a decision which had been weighing on him, but he pushed the thought from his mind. "In any case, welcome, and good to have you back."
