ON> Hoshi no Iori Ring, Sector 1 Parking Area
"Heisho Yokitori?" a very young-looking cat-eared girl asked. She was dressed in a tight red-paneled uniform.
"Yes?" Yoritoki asked absently, turning.
This girl had a surprisingly high rank of Nitô Heisho, one higher than Aka was. Her hair was a vibrant red-brown that complimented her Japanese features and big, very dark eyes. "Ah! I've been looking for you. My new captain sent me a message to bring you aboard the ship."
"Ah, the Rave. Well Master Sergeant, thank you for finding me. I did not think i would be on board so early"
The girl's eyes narrowed into little slits for a second before she continued, "Yes...I'm Nishizaki Utsumi, Nitô Heisho, SARA Special Services, starship security. If you'd follow me, I'll take you to the Rave."
"Lead on, Nitô Heisho Nishizaki. I am sorry if i seem a little lax... I have been without orders on Hoshi no Iori for quite some time now and my superiors seem to think we are on indefinite leave..."
"Which would be nice." a tall muscularly built man said joining them from an adjoining hallway. He was carrying a large bag of possessions over his shoulder, he was wearing the usual red-plated security uniform with a sleeveless jacket but his Ittô Heisho rank pin was visible.
"I see. Well, you'll have to so some adapting to the Blood Fleets," Utsumi warned him. "There he is," she looked to the other guy.
"Ah... well, we are all headed for the Rave then? If so... do you know anything about the mission?"
Yoritoki turned to follow the Nitô Heisho, "If there is a mission that is..."
"That's right. Mistress-Taisa Yuuko is attending to business and will follow along on the Jade," Utsumi explained. "Your mission is secret. It will be revealed at a later time."
"Me? psh, Hell no, according to my orders, I'm on loan to the 2nd Division. Man do I feel like an object..." Rett said as he continued along with them. "Hmm secret mission eh?"
Utsumi nodded.
Rett's wandering hand came into play as he neared Utsumi and promptly patted her on the rear end. He slowed his pace to avoid a possible slap and just smirked. "Never heard of the Rave."
"Me neither... all i know is that i'm being stationed on it... and now it's for a secret mission... why me? I'm an infantryman! unless there's gonna be some planetside or ship to ship then I'm wasted on this"
"If we do actually go into combat at all... heh"
Utsumi whipped her head around so fast that the long, thickly braided tail of hair on the back of her head slapped Rett's chest like a belt. When she was moving, it looked like a Chinese dragon, long and coiling. She gave Rett a dirty look for a dirty man.
Rett smirked, the blow didn't really hurt that much. "I guess I should behave for once." He sighed.
Yoritoki turned to Rett and grinned as Utsumi stalked off. "I dunno... nice girl under that rank pin"
The giant doors to a massive shuttlebay stood ahead of them. The girl in red didn't explain whether there'd be combat or not. Such things we're provided to the ears of the public. Something in her eyes, though, hinted at the answer; danger was ahead. It wasn't long before they were loading up into a Ki-T4 "Fox" Aeroshuttle.
"Eh, doesn't matter to me really." Rett shrugged and continued on and loaded into the shuttle. Rett got a seat away from Utsumi; "So who runs the rave?" he asked her.
"Master Sergeant!" Yoritoki called as he hauled a heavy looking case into the cargo hold, "do we get to bring our weapons as well as our standard gear?"
The little girl looked thoughtful, "Hmm...if you want."
Rett simply put his bag on the floor of the Aeroshuttle with a bit of a thump; something big was probably inside. "The more the merrier." He chortled.
"Ooooh yeah!" Yoritoki grinned as he pulled out a weapon recently acquired from NovaCorp. "I gotta test this baby out" he murmured to himself, dragging his last case of clothing up the ramp and into the fox.
Rett whistled. "whoa what's that puppy do?" he asked in an interested tone.
The Fox series shuttles were a lot like the Kitty shuttles used a couple years back. Two seats in the cockpit area, and 2 fold-down benches in the rear, each made for three people
"Well it's pretty useless at long range but it can sustain fire of ten blasts per second for twenty five seconds... I liked the sound of it so i bought it. It comes with some nice inbuilt gear too...laser sight, variable scope, display that shows how much ammo you have left... the works!" As an afterthought he added, "long range being over two and a quarter clicks... pretty good in a firefight"
"Seriously." The big Ittô Heisho said. "Who made it? It's not WickedArms made." Rett asked looking at the weapon.
Utsumi was up in the cockpit by now. "Everyone in?" she asked.
"Some new guys based up in the Fenyar Cloud, NovaCorp. They found some new metal there that's nearly as tough as Xintium so they set up shop and started making stuff."
"Yes, we're all here" he called up to the cockpit.
"Interesting." Rett said. "They make quality weapons?" He asked still interested. "The only thing I have in terms of firepower is this." He said pulling out a GP-12b with attached grenade launcher; the trigger was up so it was in safety mode.
The rear door panel of the shuttle that has served as a ramp before raised up and sealed itself as the back door of the shuttle.
"The weapons they make are good but they only have two personnel based guns so far." and added, "so... we're off..."
Rett leaned back in the seat, relaxing. "Yup now to wait til we get there. Hope the captain's cute."
"Heh. Hey Master sergeant! what's our ETA on the Rave?"
"Only couple minutes. It's not far outside the ring," Utsumi squinted. Every time he called her by the English rank, she got this cute slit-eyed look instead of her usual cuteness.
The shuttle launched and was in space in moments. There were no windows on the sides, though.
"Ms. Nitô Heisho, I apologize for my...wandering hand earlier." Rett apologized; he'd noticed her rank pin earlier. He figured if he was going to be stuck with her for a while, best not to get on her bad side.
Yoritoki grinned at Rett again and then frowned. "I hate space flight without seeing where I'm going... why don't they use transparent Zesaium in these things? Sorry, Zesuaium..."
Rett shrugged at not getting a reply. "I don't mind it, I've traveled so much I don't care anymore." he said.
The shuttle ride was very smooth, thanks to the inertial-dampening systems the small craft used. After a few minutes, there was a bit of a bump, and then Utsumi is entrapping her harness. "Destination," she chirped.
"We're here I guess." Rett said standing up. "Smooth ride as always." He chuckled.
"I can't wait to look around, never been on a ship other than troop transports and civilian liners" said Yoritoki.
The hatch in the floor of the shuttle opened, leading into the right rear compartment of the Rave. The lights switched on for them.
Yoritoki climbed down through the hatch into the now lit compartment, calling back "come on down!"
Rett climbed down and looked around once reaching the bottom (or top). "Man it's small in here."
Nitô Heisho Nishizaki Utsumi slid down the ladder that was beneath the hatch, holding the ladder by the insoles of her boots, once the men were out of the way.
"Bigger than most civvy ships though" Yoritoki commented, looking around.
"Maybe it's because I'm such a big guy." Rett chuckled and moved out of the way of the ladder into the hallway and looked down it.
"Nitô Heisho Utsumi should lead the way I think... after all, she's been here before"
"for a lot longer too"
The short Japanese girl went into the hallway as well. "You two will be staying in the security nest. Yep. And I'll be on the bridge." She went down the hall and pointed at a door on the right, and then went into a nearby armored door to the left.
Yoritoki looked over at Rett and said "hmm... so do we even get to grab our kit?"
"I guess so." He replied. Rett started down the hallway and went into the first door indicated and dropped his stuff off inside. "Stupid nests..." He said.
"Ah well" said Yoritoki once his kit was inside as well. "At least it's a room with a view..."
What immediately followed the disappearance of the young neko into the bridge was the sound of a ship getting read to really move. The sounds of the power systems and engines started at a low hum and rose to a whine. The ship was very fast for its size.
"True."he said sitting down on the edge of the nest. "My my how far we've gotten.." Rett said nostalgically.
"Ya... well where were you from? i got hauled in from the fourth fleet... probably for a long time now its in for a refit
"Everywhere, I've been wandering through the fleets, I don't have a ironed out affiliation to any of them." Rett said.
"Nice... you been in much combat?"
"Way too much." The older man sighed.
"I haven't been in any real combat... too much training for it. Makes me wonder if the entire GSA exists just to keep us occupied."
"It does." Rett chuckled.
The window outside became a swirl of color as the ship went FTL, headed for Yamatai. The route was long; it had to go around the Ketsurui Nebula.
Yoritoki wandered over to a computer terminal in the wall, "cool...you seen the speed these ships move at?"
"Yes I have." Rett said. "Gets faster every time."
"Well... looks like a pretty uneventful trip...at least we get to see Yamatai, even if it is only from orbit"
"That's true." Rett replied and headed to the door. "I'm gonna wander around to get a layout of this place."
ON> Yamatai, 12 hours later.
After a long trip at high speed, the Rave had finally made it to the heart of the Yamatai Star Empire, a beautiful blue planet on one side, and a grand display of sparkling night lights on the other. The ship headed towards the darkness.
Kikyô stood waiting for the shuttle tapping her foot, she wasn't happy with the change of assignment, but as her mother pointed out there was nothing she could do about it. She crossed her arms under her breasts and watched the sky impatiently.
Rett sat watching it with a couple fresh red hand marks on his face. "It never changes..." he said.
"Yoritoki, sitting near him and also watching the planet said, "You never try..."
After descending through the atmosphere, the Rave made an efficient landing somewhere around the city of Central Uesureya. The landing pad had a forklift, some soldiers, and palettes of supplies already waiting for it.
"Try what?" He asked.
Rather than sending down a shuttle, the Rave itself had landed, right before Kikyô's very eyes.
"With the ladies, you never try anything new... I'm surprised those red marks aren't scars by now" he said, grinning.
Kikyô adjusted her uniform and rank pin, "Didn't expect the entire ship." She said softly to herself as she started to walk towards it.
"It's funner this way." Rett laughed. "They never care any other way."
"Heh..."
"Well I wonder what we've got here today?" He wondered as he watched the people and supplies board.
There were some thumping noises at the ship's cargo was exchanged. The ground crew was dressed in white tops and loose red pants, rather than Star Army uniforms. They had rank pins on, though, and the ones that were free to do so bowed to Kikyô as she passed them. A ladder was lowered from the bottom hatch. The crews began to stuff the hallways with boxes of extra food. Lots of them.
Kikyô climbed up the ladder and into the Rave, she remembered the ship as one from the Third Expeditionary, her mothers fleet. As she finished her ascent up the ladder she wondered what had happened to the Celia.
"Probably resupplying the ship before we set out on our mission... I hope we get told what it actually IS now..." murmured Yoritoki then stood up. "Wanna go see what's happening? it'd be a change from looking out the window!"
Rett stood up and stretched. "I'm gonna go greet the new grunts." He chuckled and headed out and toward the hatch to climb up into the ship from. But waited a respectable distance away. from it.
"Hah! well I'll follow you" said Yoritoki, doubling pack from the pathway to the open cargo bay
It only took a few minutes for the ship to be fully restocked. The extra boxes cluttered the halls, but they were stacked in a way that the crew could still walk around.
Utsumi greeted Kikyô as the Taisa as she entered the main deck. "Taisa!" she saluted, then bowed.
Kikyô smiled happily, "Hi there!" Kikyô was a friendly person when it suited her and the happy nature of the woman standing before her was rubbing off.
Yoritoki stood to one side as a member of the ground crew brought one of the last crates of supplies aboard, he turned to Rett and said in a somewhat confused voice, "what the hell are we stocking up for? this could last us about six months!"
Rett put his hands on his hips and shook his head. "I have no clue...er...didn't catch your name man." He said.
"Oh... I'm Yoritoki Akamatsu" he said, holding out his hand, "and you?"
The big geshrin shook his hand firmly. "Rett Hinosama. Call me Rett." he said.
"cool... now, you wanna go see whats new? apart from the food that is!"
Utsumi giggled, and smiled widely. "Nitô Heisho Nishizaki Utsumi," she introduced herself, "I was transferred here from the YSS Philosophy (YD-117) to serve under Taisa Kessaku Yuuko."
"Yeah!" Rett laughed. "Maybe there's those new soldiers. Hope we're not the only guys..." he said and headed down the hallway, unknowingly toward the girls.
"I was transferred from SAINT, I used to serve under my mother when she was Taisho of the 3rd." Kikyo said, "Were there a lot of recent transfers?"
Yoritoki followed, muttering "and cold storage is full already... what are they gonna do with all this!?"
"Yes, the 1st XF is putting together a special team for the mission," Utsumi cheerfully nodded.
"Feed a small army?" Rett replied and nearly bumped into Kikyô before stopping from bumping into her but just barely. "oh excuse me ma'am, didn't look where I was going." He said rubbing he back of his head.
"A special mission that seems to require a lot of supplies." She smiled, "Well I certainly hope it is 'special' enough to drag me into another branch of the military."
Rett bowed to Kikyô after a moment of spotting the rank pin. "Sorry, Taisa." He said.
Kikyô nodded, "Like I said, not a problem."
The last of the loading crew was now gone, and the ship's hatches and doors were all closed up again. Apparently, Kikyô was the only one form this stop that was staying. Utsumi smiled girlishly, but didn't say anything else.
"My name's Rett Hinosama." He introduced himself. "Pleased to meet you."
Kikyô looked at the man, "Taisa Ketsurui Kyoshi Kikyô." She extended her hand to the man.
He perked a brow in surprise. "My my, a Ketsurui. I am honored to meet you." He said and shook her hand.
"My mother was adopted into the clan by the Empress." Kikyô said simply and turned her attention back to Utsumi, "Does Taisa Kessaku require anything of me or am I free to head to my quarters?"
"She'd like to stay in the visitor's quarters, if you don't mind," Utsumi informed Kikyô. Yuuko had been using the officer's quarters as her make-out spot before James left and it was a very sensitive area for her.
Rett had backed off and waited for them to finish, he had a couple questions of his own but could wait.
Kikyô nodded, "Very well. Do you by any chance know what happened to the Celia?"
"It is supposed to be going to Nepleslia, I think. I heard something about it dropping off a prisoner. I'm not certain."
Kikyô nodded, "Makes sense. That was a great ship." She turned and looked at Rett, "I think he might have questions for you."
"Hrm?" Utsumi peered at the old guy.
"Just one actually, Where are we going for this 'mission'?" Rett asked in a serious tone.
"Nepleslia," Utsumi answered. "We're looking for the Empress Yuumi. She's rumored to be there."
Kikyô arched an eyebrow, "Interesting..."
Rett whistled. "Whoa. That's a new one on me. Should be fun." He smirked. "If you lovely young ladies will excuse me, I've got to go get something to eat." He said with a grin.
Kikyô nodded, "I'll come with you."
"If you so desire ma'am." he said "Might want to put your things in yoru room first. though." Rett added.
"Heisho Yokitori?" a very young-looking cat-eared girl asked. She was dressed in a tight red-paneled uniform.
"Yes?" Yoritoki asked absently, turning.
This girl had a surprisingly high rank of Nitô Heisho, one higher than Aka was. Her hair was a vibrant red-brown that complimented her Japanese features and big, very dark eyes. "Ah! I've been looking for you. My new captain sent me a message to bring you aboard the ship."
"Ah, the Rave. Well Master Sergeant, thank you for finding me. I did not think i would be on board so early"
The girl's eyes narrowed into little slits for a second before she continued, "Yes...I'm Nishizaki Utsumi, Nitô Heisho, SARA Special Services, starship security. If you'd follow me, I'll take you to the Rave."
"Lead on, Nitô Heisho Nishizaki. I am sorry if i seem a little lax... I have been without orders on Hoshi no Iori for quite some time now and my superiors seem to think we are on indefinite leave..."
"Which would be nice." a tall muscularly built man said joining them from an adjoining hallway. He was carrying a large bag of possessions over his shoulder, he was wearing the usual red-plated security uniform with a sleeveless jacket but his Ittô Heisho rank pin was visible.
"I see. Well, you'll have to so some adapting to the Blood Fleets," Utsumi warned him. "There he is," she looked to the other guy.
"Ah... well, we are all headed for the Rave then? If so... do you know anything about the mission?"
Yoritoki turned to follow the Nitô Heisho, "If there is a mission that is..."
"That's right. Mistress-Taisa Yuuko is attending to business and will follow along on the Jade," Utsumi explained. "Your mission is secret. It will be revealed at a later time."
"Me? psh, Hell no, according to my orders, I'm on loan to the 2nd Division. Man do I feel like an object..." Rett said as he continued along with them. "Hmm secret mission eh?"
Utsumi nodded.
Rett's wandering hand came into play as he neared Utsumi and promptly patted her on the rear end. He slowed his pace to avoid a possible slap and just smirked. "Never heard of the Rave."
"Me neither... all i know is that i'm being stationed on it... and now it's for a secret mission... why me? I'm an infantryman! unless there's gonna be some planetside or ship to ship then I'm wasted on this"
"If we do actually go into combat at all... heh"
Utsumi whipped her head around so fast that the long, thickly braided tail of hair on the back of her head slapped Rett's chest like a belt. When she was moving, it looked like a Chinese dragon, long and coiling. She gave Rett a dirty look for a dirty man.
Rett smirked, the blow didn't really hurt that much. "I guess I should behave for once." He sighed.
Yoritoki turned to Rett and grinned as Utsumi stalked off. "I dunno... nice girl under that rank pin"
The giant doors to a massive shuttlebay stood ahead of them. The girl in red didn't explain whether there'd be combat or not. Such things we're provided to the ears of the public. Something in her eyes, though, hinted at the answer; danger was ahead. It wasn't long before they were loading up into a Ki-T4 "Fox" Aeroshuttle.
"Eh, doesn't matter to me really." Rett shrugged and continued on and loaded into the shuttle. Rett got a seat away from Utsumi; "So who runs the rave?" he asked her.
"Master Sergeant!" Yoritoki called as he hauled a heavy looking case into the cargo hold, "do we get to bring our weapons as well as our standard gear?"
The little girl looked thoughtful, "Hmm...if you want."
Rett simply put his bag on the floor of the Aeroshuttle with a bit of a thump; something big was probably inside. "The more the merrier." He chortled.
"Ooooh yeah!" Yoritoki grinned as he pulled out a weapon recently acquired from NovaCorp. "I gotta test this baby out" he murmured to himself, dragging his last case of clothing up the ramp and into the fox.
Rett whistled. "whoa what's that puppy do?" he asked in an interested tone.
The Fox series shuttles were a lot like the Kitty shuttles used a couple years back. Two seats in the cockpit area, and 2 fold-down benches in the rear, each made for three people
"Well it's pretty useless at long range but it can sustain fire of ten blasts per second for twenty five seconds... I liked the sound of it so i bought it. It comes with some nice inbuilt gear too...laser sight, variable scope, display that shows how much ammo you have left... the works!" As an afterthought he added, "long range being over two and a quarter clicks... pretty good in a firefight"
"Seriously." The big Ittô Heisho said. "Who made it? It's not WickedArms made." Rett asked looking at the weapon.
Utsumi was up in the cockpit by now. "Everyone in?" she asked.
"Some new guys based up in the Fenyar Cloud, NovaCorp. They found some new metal there that's nearly as tough as Xintium so they set up shop and started making stuff."
"Yes, we're all here" he called up to the cockpit.
"Interesting." Rett said. "They make quality weapons?" He asked still interested. "The only thing I have in terms of firepower is this." He said pulling out a GP-12b with attached grenade launcher; the trigger was up so it was in safety mode.
The rear door panel of the shuttle that has served as a ramp before raised up and sealed itself as the back door of the shuttle.
"The weapons they make are good but they only have two personnel based guns so far." and added, "so... we're off..."
Rett leaned back in the seat, relaxing. "Yup now to wait til we get there. Hope the captain's cute."
"Heh. Hey Master sergeant! what's our ETA on the Rave?"
"Only couple minutes. It's not far outside the ring," Utsumi squinted. Every time he called her by the English rank, she got this cute slit-eyed look instead of her usual cuteness.
The shuttle launched and was in space in moments. There were no windows on the sides, though.
"Ms. Nitô Heisho, I apologize for my...wandering hand earlier." Rett apologized; he'd noticed her rank pin earlier. He figured if he was going to be stuck with her for a while, best not to get on her bad side.
Yoritoki grinned at Rett again and then frowned. "I hate space flight without seeing where I'm going... why don't they use transparent Zesaium in these things? Sorry, Zesuaium..."
Rett shrugged at not getting a reply. "I don't mind it, I've traveled so much I don't care anymore." he said.
The shuttle ride was very smooth, thanks to the inertial-dampening systems the small craft used. After a few minutes, there was a bit of a bump, and then Utsumi is entrapping her harness. "Destination," she chirped.
"We're here I guess." Rett said standing up. "Smooth ride as always." He chuckled.
"I can't wait to look around, never been on a ship other than troop transports and civilian liners" said Yoritoki.
The hatch in the floor of the shuttle opened, leading into the right rear compartment of the Rave. The lights switched on for them.
Yoritoki climbed down through the hatch into the now lit compartment, calling back "come on down!"
Rett climbed down and looked around once reaching the bottom (or top). "Man it's small in here."
Nitô Heisho Nishizaki Utsumi slid down the ladder that was beneath the hatch, holding the ladder by the insoles of her boots, once the men were out of the way.
"Bigger than most civvy ships though" Yoritoki commented, looking around.
"Maybe it's because I'm such a big guy." Rett chuckled and moved out of the way of the ladder into the hallway and looked down it.
"Nitô Heisho Utsumi should lead the way I think... after all, she's been here before"
"for a lot longer too"
The short Japanese girl went into the hallway as well. "You two will be staying in the security nest. Yep. And I'll be on the bridge." She went down the hall and pointed at a door on the right, and then went into a nearby armored door to the left.
Yoritoki looked over at Rett and said "hmm... so do we even get to grab our kit?"
"I guess so." He replied. Rett started down the hallway and went into the first door indicated and dropped his stuff off inside. "Stupid nests..." He said.
"Ah well" said Yoritoki once his kit was inside as well. "At least it's a room with a view..."
What immediately followed the disappearance of the young neko into the bridge was the sound of a ship getting read to really move. The sounds of the power systems and engines started at a low hum and rose to a whine. The ship was very fast for its size.
"True."he said sitting down on the edge of the nest. "My my how far we've gotten.." Rett said nostalgically.
"Ya... well where were you from? i got hauled in from the fourth fleet... probably for a long time now its in for a refit
"Everywhere, I've been wandering through the fleets, I don't have a ironed out affiliation to any of them." Rett said.
"Nice... you been in much combat?"
"Way too much." The older man sighed.
"I haven't been in any real combat... too much training for it. Makes me wonder if the entire GSA exists just to keep us occupied."
"It does." Rett chuckled.
The window outside became a swirl of color as the ship went FTL, headed for Yamatai. The route was long; it had to go around the Ketsurui Nebula.
Yoritoki wandered over to a computer terminal in the wall, "cool...you seen the speed these ships move at?"
"Yes I have." Rett said. "Gets faster every time."
"Well... looks like a pretty uneventful trip...at least we get to see Yamatai, even if it is only from orbit"
"That's true." Rett replied and headed to the door. "I'm gonna wander around to get a layout of this place."
ON> Yamatai, 12 hours later.
After a long trip at high speed, the Rave had finally made it to the heart of the Yamatai Star Empire, a beautiful blue planet on one side, and a grand display of sparkling night lights on the other. The ship headed towards the darkness.
Kikyô stood waiting for the shuttle tapping her foot, she wasn't happy with the change of assignment, but as her mother pointed out there was nothing she could do about it. She crossed her arms under her breasts and watched the sky impatiently.
Rett sat watching it with a couple fresh red hand marks on his face. "It never changes..." he said.
"Yoritoki, sitting near him and also watching the planet said, "You never try..."
After descending through the atmosphere, the Rave made an efficient landing somewhere around the city of Central Uesureya. The landing pad had a forklift, some soldiers, and palettes of supplies already waiting for it.
"Try what?" He asked.
Rather than sending down a shuttle, the Rave itself had landed, right before Kikyô's very eyes.
"With the ladies, you never try anything new... I'm surprised those red marks aren't scars by now" he said, grinning.
Kikyô adjusted her uniform and rank pin, "Didn't expect the entire ship." She said softly to herself as she started to walk towards it.
"It's funner this way." Rett laughed. "They never care any other way."
"Heh..."
"Well I wonder what we've got here today?" He wondered as he watched the people and supplies board.
There were some thumping noises at the ship's cargo was exchanged. The ground crew was dressed in white tops and loose red pants, rather than Star Army uniforms. They had rank pins on, though, and the ones that were free to do so bowed to Kikyô as she passed them. A ladder was lowered from the bottom hatch. The crews began to stuff the hallways with boxes of extra food. Lots of them.
Kikyô climbed up the ladder and into the Rave, she remembered the ship as one from the Third Expeditionary, her mothers fleet. As she finished her ascent up the ladder she wondered what had happened to the Celia.
"Probably resupplying the ship before we set out on our mission... I hope we get told what it actually IS now..." murmured Yoritoki then stood up. "Wanna go see what's happening? it'd be a change from looking out the window!"
Rett stood up and stretched. "I'm gonna go greet the new grunts." He chuckled and headed out and toward the hatch to climb up into the ship from. But waited a respectable distance away. from it.
"Hah! well I'll follow you" said Yoritoki, doubling pack from the pathway to the open cargo bay
It only took a few minutes for the ship to be fully restocked. The extra boxes cluttered the halls, but they were stacked in a way that the crew could still walk around.
Utsumi greeted Kikyô as the Taisa as she entered the main deck. "Taisa!" she saluted, then bowed.
Kikyô smiled happily, "Hi there!" Kikyô was a friendly person when it suited her and the happy nature of the woman standing before her was rubbing off.
Yoritoki stood to one side as a member of the ground crew brought one of the last crates of supplies aboard, he turned to Rett and said in a somewhat confused voice, "what the hell are we stocking up for? this could last us about six months!"
Rett put his hands on his hips and shook his head. "I have no clue...er...didn't catch your name man." He said.
"Oh... I'm Yoritoki Akamatsu" he said, holding out his hand, "and you?"
The big geshrin shook his hand firmly. "Rett Hinosama. Call me Rett." he said.
"cool... now, you wanna go see whats new? apart from the food that is!"
Utsumi giggled, and smiled widely. "Nitô Heisho Nishizaki Utsumi," she introduced herself, "I was transferred here from the YSS Philosophy (YD-117) to serve under Taisa Kessaku Yuuko."
"Yeah!" Rett laughed. "Maybe there's those new soldiers. Hope we're not the only guys..." he said and headed down the hallway, unknowingly toward the girls.
"I was transferred from SAINT, I used to serve under my mother when she was Taisho of the 3rd." Kikyo said, "Were there a lot of recent transfers?"
Yoritoki followed, muttering "and cold storage is full already... what are they gonna do with all this!?"
"Yes, the 1st XF is putting together a special team for the mission," Utsumi cheerfully nodded.
"Feed a small army?" Rett replied and nearly bumped into Kikyô before stopping from bumping into her but just barely. "oh excuse me ma'am, didn't look where I was going." He said rubbing he back of his head.
"A special mission that seems to require a lot of supplies." She smiled, "Well I certainly hope it is 'special' enough to drag me into another branch of the military."
Rett bowed to Kikyô after a moment of spotting the rank pin. "Sorry, Taisa." He said.
Kikyô nodded, "Like I said, not a problem."
The last of the loading crew was now gone, and the ship's hatches and doors were all closed up again. Apparently, Kikyô was the only one form this stop that was staying. Utsumi smiled girlishly, but didn't say anything else.
"My name's Rett Hinosama." He introduced himself. "Pleased to meet you."
Kikyô looked at the man, "Taisa Ketsurui Kyoshi Kikyô." She extended her hand to the man.
He perked a brow in surprise. "My my, a Ketsurui. I am honored to meet you." He said and shook her hand.
"My mother was adopted into the clan by the Empress." Kikyô said simply and turned her attention back to Utsumi, "Does Taisa Kessaku require anything of me or am I free to head to my quarters?"
"She'd like to stay in the visitor's quarters, if you don't mind," Utsumi informed Kikyô. Yuuko had been using the officer's quarters as her make-out spot before James left and it was a very sensitive area for her.
Rett had backed off and waited for them to finish, he had a couple questions of his own but could wait.
Kikyô nodded, "Very well. Do you by any chance know what happened to the Celia?"
"It is supposed to be going to Nepleslia, I think. I heard something about it dropping off a prisoner. I'm not certain."
Kikyô nodded, "Makes sense. That was a great ship." She turned and looked at Rett, "I think he might have questions for you."
"Hrm?" Utsumi peered at the old guy.
"Just one actually, Where are we going for this 'mission'?" Rett asked in a serious tone.
"Nepleslia," Utsumi answered. "We're looking for the Empress Yuumi. She's rumored to be there."
Kikyô arched an eyebrow, "Interesting..."
Rett whistled. "Whoa. That's a new one on me. Should be fun." He smirked. "If you lovely young ladies will excuse me, I've got to go get something to eat." He said with a grin.
Kikyô nodded, "I'll come with you."
"If you so desire ma'am." he said "Might want to put your things in yoru room first. though." Rett added.
