A
Anonymous
After leaving her home in Xiuluria almost two months ago with her father's legacy, his old rank pin and some other supplies; The young half elf Rena skidded to a stop outside Central, the "Raven" armor shining in the bright sunlight. The lightly armored, slenderly built armor containing the 17-year old took a couple steps into the city itself. She looked up and around, blinking at the sheer size of this place and in a manly, barotone voice she muttered "Wow, this place is huge. I hope I can find at KFY or military office around here." With that, she continued on into the place in question, carefully looking around but wary of the military mindys that could stop her.
The Mindy that had been assigned to watch and escort her said, "Which are you looking for?" Central Uesureya was largely composed of manufacturing facilities, and in fact was the planet Yamatai's largest production center, making everything from food products to medical kits. The streets of the city were clean and the people were very polite. It was nothing like a Nepleslian city. It was hard to believe every person on the street was in the military or one of the major corporations.
Rena blinked at the sudden arrival of the mindy then giggled, quite odd with the voice changer on. "I'm looking for well, both; you see I'm searching for my father who went MIA in a pirate raid; and I want to finish his pet project he was working on...this." she said, pointing down at the armor. "I've come a very long way, I just hope they can help."
"Well," the girl in the Mindy said, "That didn't really answer my question. Which one would you like to go to first?"
"I'm sorry." Rena said, contrite. "Preferably the military." She replied.
The dark blue Mindy nodded, and led the way, prefering to hover just above the ground and speedily dart to the next street corner rather than walk. It wasn't just her. There were unarmored Nekovalkyrja floating and flying around the city, too.
Rena followed her at a quick pace, she realized how much her suit needed to compete with the other armors. The teen hoped it wasn't too far; the thought of a hot shower and soft bed comforted her and kept her going at this point. Rena had been on the road all night for one reason.
Luckily, it didn't take too long before they arrived at the gates to the YSSDF Armory. There was a pause as the dark blue YSSDF Mindy communicated silently with similar armors at the gate. Large obsolete mecha, including a kneeling HALMS-01, decorated the grassy entrance. A recruit with blond hair in a ponytail met them once inside, and led Rena into a power armor bay nearby. "You'll have to take that off to come in," she informed the girl.
"Oh. Not a problem" She said and proceeded to take her armor off, starting with the helmet. Once out of the forest green and tan armor; she stretched and ran her hands down her beige and navy blue bodysuit that connected her to the armor. The girl took a minute to quickly brush a hand in her hair to look presentable and put her favorite gold crescent moon hairpin back into it. "Alright, please lead the way ma'am." Rena said.
Her Escort Mindy removed her helmet, revealing a girl with French-looking facial features and short brown hair, and before Rena was led out of the room the escort flashed her a smile. "My name," the blonde Nekovalkyrja told Rena, "Is Chitose Anzu-Shoi." Anzu brought Rena to an office with comfortable leather chairs, a couch, and a desk that had a little blue Yamatai Empire flag on it. Sitting behind the desk, she reached over for coffee mugs and to a percolator, pouring tea for the both of them. "What can I do for you?" she asked.
"I'm Rena Larian, and I'm hoping someone here could help me find information on my father: Koji Larian. He went MIA about a year ago in a rumored pirate raid; my mother and I really wish to find him or at least know if he died if that happened." She said, sitting in the comfortable looking chair. "I hope it's not too much to ask ms Chitose Anzu."
"Shoi," Anzu quietly corrected. She wasn't mean about it, she just didn't like to have her rank ignored. Sliding one of the mugs of tea to Rena, she twirled her finger in the air and a PANTHEON interface appeared over in front of her. The Defense Force officer started going through records while asking Rena questions. "What ship was he on?"
Rena nodded "Gomen nasai, Shoi." she said as she was corrected and waited for the tea to cool enough to sip. "I'm afraid that, I um..." she paused, trying to remember. "forgot which one it was, but I believe it was a scout ship."
Anzu frowned, "Sorry. I know there's been a lot of reassignedments since the new, smaller fleet system was implemented. He wasn't in fifth fleet, was he? It was detroyed in YE 26 by the Mishhuvurthyar. We don't know if there were any prisoners taken, but the Mishhu have been known to do so."
"I don't think so, I think he said he was 2nd or 3rd XF." Rena said. "It's ok I appreciate any help I can get here, even if it's a little."
"I see. Well, the 2nd XF couldn't be it, since it was automated. 3rd XF...hmm...was that before or after Taisho Ashigari was assassinated?"
"After, I remember him telling us about that incident in person." Rena said.
"I see," Shoi Anzu said, with another frown. "Well, there are only 28 manned ships in the 3rd XF, and only 12 of those were scout ships. The only one listed as destroyed or missing is the YSS Rave (YD-523). No pirate attacks. Are you you sure it was pirates attacking? Usually it's the other way around, since pirates can't keep up with Star Army weapons and technology."
"Well that was said in the official report." The young woman said, pouting a bit as this wasn't going well. she held her breath then let out a sigh and sipped her tea. "Perhaps it may have been, it is a possibility." She said.
"Do you have the report?" asked the Shoi.
"Um...." She dipped into her bag of supplies and pulled out a copy of the report and handed it to the Shoi. "Here we go. Glad I held onto it all this time."
Anzu looked over the report. "This doesn't appear to be a real report. I'm not sure where it came from, but according to the system, your father was in the third fleet during the battle of Nepleslia. That means that...whoever was phoning you about the assassination wasn't really on the Celia at the time, and that your father was already dead at the time. Someone was impersonating him?"
Rena closed her eyes as the bad news hit her, cupping her face in her small hands she whimpered quietly; the poor girl was fighting back the urge to cry. She sniffled a little and looked up, though tears were subtly forming in her sad blue eyes. "But..why?" she asked in a choked voice. "Why would someone impersonate my dad?"
"I don't know, sweetie," the Nekovalkyrja woman said quietly, sad to see yet another victim of the Mishhuvurthyar aggression.
"At least he left me something.....that armor I arrived in." The young woman said, trying to look strong.
The Shoi tapped the glowing screen floating over her desk a few more times. "Although your father has no grave, there is a memorial on Nepleslia that is dedicated to the 3rd Fleet's bravery in the Battle of Nepleslia. If you...need a place to talk to him or leave flowers..." she trailed off.
Rena shivered at the mention of Nepleslia. "He always warned me not to go there for any reason...too dangerous." She said. "But I should go at least once, but I'd like to finish his project so he'llbe proud to see his work completed. I've heard KFY works on power armor systems, is that true?" She asked. Rena was amazingly resilient for a young girl who'd just learned her dad passed on.
"Yes, Ketsurui makes the Lamia, Mindy, and Kylie armors," Shoi Chitose nodded, taking a sip of her tea.
"Well I'd best go talk to them about helping me complete the 'Raven'. It stillneeds things I can't get ahold of or install myself." She said, sipping her tea, quickly finishing it up. Rena rose to her feet and bowed at the waist to Shoi respectfully; "Thank you for taking the time to look up those sordid details for me." She said.
"It's my honor and duty to help you," the YSSDF Ensign nodded, leaning for forward over her desk (and through the floating screen) to offer Rena a hug. "I'm sorry for your loss. I myself was in the battle. Since then, I've never been able to go back into space...I hope you find more courage in yourself than I have."
Rena hugged her gently, rubbing her back much like her own mother did to her to calm her down. "I'll be ok." she said, "And you have courage, it takes a lot to live through hell like that and continue to serve." She said, reassuringly.
The Mindy that had been assigned to watch and escort her said, "Which are you looking for?" Central Uesureya was largely composed of manufacturing facilities, and in fact was the planet Yamatai's largest production center, making everything from food products to medical kits. The streets of the city were clean and the people were very polite. It was nothing like a Nepleslian city. It was hard to believe every person on the street was in the military or one of the major corporations.
Rena blinked at the sudden arrival of the mindy then giggled, quite odd with the voice changer on. "I'm looking for well, both; you see I'm searching for my father who went MIA in a pirate raid; and I want to finish his pet project he was working on...this." she said, pointing down at the armor. "I've come a very long way, I just hope they can help."
"Well," the girl in the Mindy said, "That didn't really answer my question. Which one would you like to go to first?"
"I'm sorry." Rena said, contrite. "Preferably the military." She replied.
The dark blue Mindy nodded, and led the way, prefering to hover just above the ground and speedily dart to the next street corner rather than walk. It wasn't just her. There were unarmored Nekovalkyrja floating and flying around the city, too.
Rena followed her at a quick pace, she realized how much her suit needed to compete with the other armors. The teen hoped it wasn't too far; the thought of a hot shower and soft bed comforted her and kept her going at this point. Rena had been on the road all night for one reason.
Luckily, it didn't take too long before they arrived at the gates to the YSSDF Armory. There was a pause as the dark blue YSSDF Mindy communicated silently with similar armors at the gate. Large obsolete mecha, including a kneeling HALMS-01, decorated the grassy entrance. A recruit with blond hair in a ponytail met them once inside, and led Rena into a power armor bay nearby. "You'll have to take that off to come in," she informed the girl.
"Oh. Not a problem" She said and proceeded to take her armor off, starting with the helmet. Once out of the forest green and tan armor; she stretched and ran her hands down her beige and navy blue bodysuit that connected her to the armor. The girl took a minute to quickly brush a hand in her hair to look presentable and put her favorite gold crescent moon hairpin back into it. "Alright, please lead the way ma'am." Rena said.
Her Escort Mindy removed her helmet, revealing a girl with French-looking facial features and short brown hair, and before Rena was led out of the room the escort flashed her a smile. "My name," the blonde Nekovalkyrja told Rena, "Is Chitose Anzu-Shoi." Anzu brought Rena to an office with comfortable leather chairs, a couch, and a desk that had a little blue Yamatai Empire flag on it. Sitting behind the desk, she reached over for coffee mugs and to a percolator, pouring tea for the both of them. "What can I do for you?" she asked.
"I'm Rena Larian, and I'm hoping someone here could help me find information on my father: Koji Larian. He went MIA about a year ago in a rumored pirate raid; my mother and I really wish to find him or at least know if he died if that happened." She said, sitting in the comfortable looking chair. "I hope it's not too much to ask ms Chitose Anzu."
"Shoi," Anzu quietly corrected. She wasn't mean about it, she just didn't like to have her rank ignored. Sliding one of the mugs of tea to Rena, she twirled her finger in the air and a PANTHEON interface appeared over in front of her. The Defense Force officer started going through records while asking Rena questions. "What ship was he on?"
Rena nodded "Gomen nasai, Shoi." she said as she was corrected and waited for the tea to cool enough to sip. "I'm afraid that, I um..." she paused, trying to remember. "forgot which one it was, but I believe it was a scout ship."
Anzu frowned, "Sorry. I know there's been a lot of reassignedments since the new, smaller fleet system was implemented. He wasn't in fifth fleet, was he? It was detroyed in YE 26 by the Mishhuvurthyar. We don't know if there were any prisoners taken, but the Mishhu have been known to do so."
"I don't think so, I think he said he was 2nd or 3rd XF." Rena said. "It's ok I appreciate any help I can get here, even if it's a little."
"I see. Well, the 2nd XF couldn't be it, since it was automated. 3rd XF...hmm...was that before or after Taisho Ashigari was assassinated?"
"After, I remember him telling us about that incident in person." Rena said.
"I see," Shoi Anzu said, with another frown. "Well, there are only 28 manned ships in the 3rd XF, and only 12 of those were scout ships. The only one listed as destroyed or missing is the YSS Rave (YD-523). No pirate attacks. Are you you sure it was pirates attacking? Usually it's the other way around, since pirates can't keep up with Star Army weapons and technology."
"Well that was said in the official report." The young woman said, pouting a bit as this wasn't going well. she held her breath then let out a sigh and sipped her tea. "Perhaps it may have been, it is a possibility." She said.
"Do you have the report?" asked the Shoi.
"Um...." She dipped into her bag of supplies and pulled out a copy of the report and handed it to the Shoi. "Here we go. Glad I held onto it all this time."
Anzu looked over the report. "This doesn't appear to be a real report. I'm not sure where it came from, but according to the system, your father was in the third fleet during the battle of Nepleslia. That means that...whoever was phoning you about the assassination wasn't really on the Celia at the time, and that your father was already dead at the time. Someone was impersonating him?"
Rena closed her eyes as the bad news hit her, cupping her face in her small hands she whimpered quietly; the poor girl was fighting back the urge to cry. She sniffled a little and looked up, though tears were subtly forming in her sad blue eyes. "But..why?" she asked in a choked voice. "Why would someone impersonate my dad?"
"I don't know, sweetie," the Nekovalkyrja woman said quietly, sad to see yet another victim of the Mishhuvurthyar aggression.
"At least he left me something.....that armor I arrived in." The young woman said, trying to look strong.
The Shoi tapped the glowing screen floating over her desk a few more times. "Although your father has no grave, there is a memorial on Nepleslia that is dedicated to the 3rd Fleet's bravery in the Battle of Nepleslia. If you...need a place to talk to him or leave flowers..." she trailed off.
Rena shivered at the mention of Nepleslia. "He always warned me not to go there for any reason...too dangerous." She said. "But I should go at least once, but I'd like to finish his project so he'llbe proud to see his work completed. I've heard KFY works on power armor systems, is that true?" She asked. Rena was amazingly resilient for a young girl who'd just learned her dad passed on.
"Yes, Ketsurui makes the Lamia, Mindy, and Kylie armors," Shoi Chitose nodded, taking a sip of her tea.
"Well I'd best go talk to them about helping me complete the 'Raven'. It stillneeds things I can't get ahold of or install myself." She said, sipping her tea, quickly finishing it up. Rena rose to her feet and bowed at the waist to Shoi respectfully; "Thank you for taking the time to look up those sordid details for me." She said.
"It's my honor and duty to help you," the YSSDF Ensign nodded, leaning for forward over her desk (and through the floating screen) to offer Rena a hug. "I'm sorry for your loss. I myself was in the battle. Since then, I've never been able to go back into space...I hope you find more courage in yourself than I have."
Rena hugged her gently, rubbing her back much like her own mother did to her to calm her down. "I'll be ok." she said, "And you have courage, it takes a lot to live through hell like that and continue to serve." She said, reassuringly.
