Yamato had to make three continuous warps in order to reach a point at the edge of the outer solar system. Hachinoko decided against warping any further, for fear the ship would end up in a position which would severely compromise it. Yamato would remain for a while in the Kuiper Belt, among the dark comets circling the Sun in the realm of Pluto—leftovers from the dawn of the solar system when raw gases and ores were coalescing to make planets.

"First, we focus on reconnaissance," Hachinoko said during a speech to the entire crew on the starboard observation deck shortly after their arrival. Her voice was grim, her expression stern. "We do not go forward blindly without cause."

Enemy fleets were encountered along the way, and occasionally roused Yamato from her hiding place, but the Captain ordered her crew to avoid them. Subsequently, the return journey became longer, and the Environmental Officer recommended that half-rations be implemented. Hachinoko put the recommendation into effect.

The crew sat patiently while long range scanners sent out their wide net. Under the Captain’s guidance, Kylie sent batch after batch of coded messages, hoping Command or even a small observatory would respond. Tokugawa and his men were given ample time to ensure the engine was running smoothly. The crew went about the solemn task of preparing Yamato for battle readiness, should their worst fears come true.

During this time, Mamoru found himself feeling distracted, and had difficulty sleeping. Intrusive thoughts crept into his mind at night, worried as he was about what kind of threat Yamato was about to face, worried about his parents, about Earth. But there was something else, something he wanted. The elusiveness of his need made him ache with longing that tightened his chest and narrowed his focus. He found himself apologizing more frequently when having to ask his fellow officers to repeat the things they said to him. Kylie approached him one afternoon with concern, but he brushed off her sympathetic inquiry. Maybe a visit to the doctor would help was the suggestion she left with him. What could it hurt? he wondered.

In sickbay, Mamoru sat on an examination table clad only in his underclothes. Doctor Akisada had given him a physical, and from his seat was asking him questions about his functioning. He typed in the answers at his console.

"How’s your concentration?"

"It wavers once in a while."

"Sleep?"

"I’m down to four hours."

"Appetite?"

Mamoru smiled quizzically.

Akisada frowned, then smiled back in recollection of the half-rations. "Oh, that’s right! Never mind. How’s your energy level? Any trouble carrying out orders?"

Mamoru thought for a moment. "No, no problem there."

"Hallucinations? Seeing or hearing anything interesting that I don’t know about, but should?"

Mamoru chuckled at the Doctor’s whimsical tone. "No, definitely not!"

"Feeling more anxious than usual?"

Here, he hesitated. Suya’s face popped into his mind. He could feel his heart start to beat. It was happening a lot lately. Especially when he ran into her. Mamoru ducked his head. "A little."

"When?"

He kept his head down. "It’s too embarrassing."

Akisada frowned. "Well, if this could interfere with your combat duties, embarrassing or not, I need to know."

Mamoru looked at him, and protested with a wave of his hand. "No, it’s not that…it’s just…only some of the time. When I’m off duty."

Akisada clucked, and tossed the end of his scarf over his shoulder as he turned to his monitor. "Well, Kodai, there’s nothing physically wrong with you. No doubt about it, you’re in excellent shape. The stress of battle has everyone a little more on edge recently, so I would venture to say that you’re probably having a normal reaction to war-time events."

"But I fought in the Ilydrian War, and this doesn’t feel any different from that!"

Akisada typed a final note in Mamoru’s file. After a few moments, he sighed, and turned back to face him. "Then the only thing I have to offer you is that you’re either depressed or in love. I can help you with the former, but if it’s the latter, you’re on your own."

They exchanged rueful smiles. Mamoru dressed and left. When he returned to his station, Kylie popped over.

"I could have saved you a trip," she whispered in his ear. "You’re just lovesick!"

Still no intelligence surfaced, even a week later. The restless state of the crew lent the air a tension so taught even the merest tap would shatter it like delicate crystal. But the morning of the ninth day brought a visitor.

"A ship just came into view!" Jun said, having barely resumed her seat after reporting in.

"We’re being hailed," Kylie added. "It’s the Fitzcarraldo, a Peruvian merchant ship. They’re a long way from home," she remarked.

"Get it up on the screen," Mamoru ordered, "and alert the Captain."

"Aye, sir." Kylie spoke quietly into her headset as she switched on the video panel.

A visibly relieved merchant captain, about thirty or so years of age with dark, prominent eyebrows, came into view. "Yamato! Thank goodness we found you. I’m Captain Heurequeque…uh, oh, there’s someone here to speak with you." He stood aside, and an EDF officer appeared on the screen. Bloodshot green eyes stared out of a face made distinct by its regally patrician features, yet the man’s glossy brown hair appeared rather disheveled. Bangs normally folded neatly across his head now hung like a waterfall over his eyes. There was a bandage on the side of his neck. He began contact with a salute.

"I’m Lieutenant Kage Ryo, formerly of the battle cruiser New Amsterdam. Where is the Captain?"

"Captain Hachinoko is on her way, sir. I’m Combat Chief Kodai Mamoru. Is anything wrong, sir?"

Kage raised an eyebrow at the mention of Mamoru’s name, then his face lapsed into a grim expression. "Most decidedly. I regret to inform you that Earth is under attack."

Almost all of the senior crew jumped up from their seats, their comments jumbled together as they spoke over each other.

"What?"

"When did this happen?"

"How many casualties?"

"Who dared attack us?"

Kage frowned, but ignored the outbursts. "Are you sure the Captain is on her way?"

Mamoru ordered Cedro to head up to her quarters. He turned back to Kage. "Can you tell us what happened?"

"It was rather sudden. We were on a routine patrol near Neptune when communications were knocked out in the perimeter bases. EDF ships and satellites across the solar system were suddenly cut off from each other. A disturbance moved quickly towards Earth, some sort of ship within a solar storm, I heard."

Balaji gasped.

"We tried to track it on radar, but the electro-magnetic disturbance wiped out our instruments. We were dead in the water, so to speak. But it’s much worse than that. The shipboard computers completely shut down. No, that’s not entirely accurate. Someone, or something, was controlling the data. The ship’s functioning was so adversely affected that the environmental controls ceased to work. We were forced to don our space suits, and simply wait. Only ten of us survived long enough to be picked up by the Fitzcarraldo." Kage wiped at his brow with a handkerchief. "What I’m sharing with you has been reported to me in bits and pieces. There might be hundreds of ships scattered outside the solar system, unable to return to Earth. We encountered a few as we traveled, and were able to gather some intelligence about this threat." Kage motioned to one of his men. "I’m transmitting you some shots that were picked up by some of our forces."

An image of Earth appeared on the video panel as Kage provided commentary.

"As you can see, the ship, or fortress, whatever it is, took up a position hundreds of miles above the Arctic. I apologize for the graininess of the image, but it’s the best we’ve got."

The crew stared with horrified expressions at the screen. The picture they saw was of an immense citadel, easily one fifth the size of Earth herself. It lay swathed in gray-reddish layers of gas and dust, and spun slowly around. The shape reminded them of the great pyramids of Ancient Egypt, save for the countless, tapered obelisks that occurred with regular precision around the base, and rose higher than even the pointed tip in the middle. Lights blinked from every one of them, reflecting brightly off of its silver surface. The picture changed to show different angles, and Kage also provided them with scans of ships, military and civilian, that were derelicts in space as a result of its passing.

"We must return to Earth," Mamoru said firmly. "If this is some kind of enemy flagship, then I’m sure we can defeat it. We have the Wave Motion Gun!" He looked around at the other officers and cadets, who nodded eagerly in response.

Kage raised a hand to silence him. "There’s a reason we were so intent on finding you. Yamato can’t go back, shouldn’t go back. Any ship within a few thousand megameters of Earth risks having her instruments damaged. Worse yet, if the computer is affected, the ship is effectively defeated. There’s a graveyard of ships surrounding the Earth right now. Yamato can’t become one of them!"

Mamoru stared back in disbelief. "You mean…"

"I mean that to go near Earth right now is to risk instant defeat! Think, Kodai, if battleship after battleship has already been grounded or incapacitated by this menace, what effect does it have on Earth? If every database, every computer is affected, we’re crippled! Think of how many things are controlled by computers. If our technology is held captive, how can we fight back?"

"He’s right!" added Balaji. "It seems as though this…dreadnought has somehow controlled, or learned to simulate, a solar storm." He stared intently ahead of him. "You should know, Lieutenant Kage, that shortly after we began the mission, we picked up traces of an incredibly strong solar storm. I thought it was just that!" Balaji’s fingers curled into a fist. "I alerted the Captain, but I should have been more thorough." His eyes closed. "We passed this thing on our way out! Earth has never been affected by a storm of this magnitude. And if this enemy can shut down our databases, couldn’t they also turn our own technology against us?"

The bridge grew intensely quiet. Mamoru began to pace. "There’s got to be a way!" he said.

Kage’s expression was stern. "I highly recommend that you take time to examine what resources are at your disposal, and help us find some way through this."

Mamoru nodded slowly, deep in thought. At that moment, Doctor Akisada rushed onto the bridge, followed by Cedro. They strode up to Kodai.

"The Captain is dead," Akisada announced.

Mamoru blanched. "What?"

Kage temporarily forgotten, the officers and cadets gathered around the doctor in a rush. They plied him with questions and distraught looks. Cedro walked over to his station, and quietly ordered for Suya to be brought to the bridge under escort.

Mamoru overheard him. "What do you think you’re doing?" he asked.

Cedro crossed his arms. "It’s too much of a coincidence, don’t you think? All of this loco business started after she came on board."

"I agree," Jun added. "Too suspicious. There might be a connection."

Mamoru glowered at them, but held back his retort.

The Doctor pursed his lips. "Speculate all you want to, but the Captain died of a natural cause, given her medical history."

Mamoru turned to him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that she suffered a heart attack. My only concern is the timing. She was in good physical health, but had an artificial heart. She hadn’t been feeling well recently, and I had to make some adjustments to it. I thought the problem had been addressed, but…" he paused, and tugged at his red scarf. "If exposed to certain kinds of energy fields, a person with an artificial heart is at some risk. The odds were hardly against her. I thought Balaji might help me to find out if the Captain was exposed to anything unusual."

The science cadet solemnly nodded, guilt welling in his heart over his perceived inattention to detail. The consultation with the Doctor would not take long.

"Perhaps…" Kage began, and politely waited for the crew’s attention, "perhaps we can continue our discussion in a short while."

Mamoru nodded, and Kage faded from view. He looked at Akisada. "Is she—"

"She’s in her quarters," he said. "I should begin arrangements for an autopsy."

Mamoru nodded, and watched as Akisada left the bridge. He exchanged glances with Tanaka, who stood beside him. "This is pretty awful," he murmured.

Kylie suddenly burst into tears, and sunk down back into her seat. "I want to go home!" she cried. Her sobs rose into the air, filling the bridge with their sound like the pleats of a lamb. "What if everyone’s dead? My Dad…my Mom…what if they’re hurt?" She struggled to speak through her cries. "They’ll run out of food. Everyone’s going to starve! How will they defend themselves?" Tears coursed liberally down her cheeks. Kylie pressed her face into her hands, releasing her fear and sorrow into them with abandon.

"Kylie—" Tanaka began, then stopped.

Mamoru had already gone to her side. He leaned against her console with one hand, blocking her view of the others. They could hear him speaking quietly. Whatever he told her had a calming effect, because soon she was nodding in acquiescence, and drying her eyes. Mamoru stood upright and gathered the bridge crew around him. Before he had a chance to speak, however, the elevator doors burst open. A livid Suya stormed onto the bridge. Four men followed her, trying diligently to keep up.

"Would you call off your dogs, please, Kodai?" she asked.

One of the guards smacked the back of her head.

"Hey!" Mamoru shouted at him. Grabbing the offender, he quickly shoved him against Tokugawa’s station.

At a brisk warning from Tanaka, Mamoru reluctantly let him go. Fuming, he took Suya’s arm and pulled her behind him. She peeked out curiously over his shoulder.

"What’s going on?" she asked.

Mamoru turned his head sideways. "Earth is under attack, and the Captain’s dead," he murmured.

"Eh?" She crossed her arms. "So they think I killed her, is that it?"

"Uh, that wouldn’t be too far off the mark," Mamoru told her. He painted his face with confidence and looked around at his comrades. "Listen up! I know you’re all worried, and want to get back as soon as possible. Blaming each other is not going to win this war. We have to assume Earth is cut off from all help, that everything is shut down, and the Plague is prepping for invasion at this vulnerable time. Earth needs us. For all we know, Yamato is all she has left. Let’s not disappoint her! Our families are counting on us! I want all of you to brainstorm with me. Throw every idea out onto the table. Anything at all. We’ll meet again in two hours to see what we’ve got."

"Kodai!"

Mamoru turned to Kylie with a quizzical look.

She looked up at him with a shy smile. "You’ll make a great Captain one day."

Mamoru smiled back, and reached over to tousle her hair. "I’ll take your word for it, sport!"

As they dispersed, Suya tapped Mamoru on the shoulder. "Kodai, can I have a word?" she asked, her features etched in an angry glare.

He nodded, and suggested they meet in the senior officers’ conference room. Suya charged inside, and then turned on him.

"What’s the matter with this fucking crew of yours? I’m sick to death of these constant accusations and innuendoes. It seems I get blamed for something every time I turn around!"

"Most of them are cadets. They’re still learning."

"Well, they’ve got a hell of a lot to learn. I have feelings, you know. I’m not a bloody robot!"

"Then stop acting like one!"

Suya blinked at him in surprise.

Mamoru, still reeling from recent developments, suddenly found her comments rather irritating. "You constantly keep everyone at arm’s length. What else are they supposed to think? The crew may be young and inexperienced, but they work hard. And at least they know how to act like a team. You could stand to learn a lot from them. Yes, you could, so be quiet! Things are going to be hard enough as it is without us always fighting each other on every little issue."

Mamoru softened his tone at the crestfallen expression on her face. "Look," he said, leaning onto the back of a chair, "I know you had nothing to do with anyone’s death, past or present. I’m sure of it, even if others have doubts. And I know you’re doing everything you can to help out. But you’ve just got to earn their trust. You can start by working with us, instead of on whatever personal agenda you have. We all want the same thing."

That’s what you think, Suya thought. But she knew he was right, and immediately ground the antagonistic thought into dust. She more than any of them needed resolution of recent events. There had to be a reason Yamato appeared at Daedalus when she did. Suya worked her voice into the gentlest tone she could manage. "I’m sorry I yelled at you. I’ll do what I can to help defeat this thing."

Mamoru nodded in acceptance, and promised to brief her and the rest of the crew shortly on the new developments. "By the way," he added, "are you concerned at all that what happened to the Captain might affect you?"

The question surprised her. "No…the Doctors never mentioned anything."

"Okay." Mamoru rubbed his hands together and nodded. "Well, inform me immediately if you notice anything different."

"Yessir."

He nudged his head toward the door. "Come on, we’ve got a lot of work to do."

Mamoru contacted Lieutenant Kage, and invited him aboard to discuss the best course of action. They agreed that as many ships that could be found, both military and civilian, should be gathered into the strongest fleet possible. They also agreed that Earth’s best chance of survival lay with Yamato, and Balaji was called upon to develop some kind of shield or counteractive measure against the citadel’s deadly magnetic fields. Mamoru briefed Kage on what was known about the enemy fleets, and showed him the results of Akisada’s autopsy. Being neither a medical nor a science officer, Kage did not know what to make of it.

Mamoru advised that the Fitzcarraldo stay away from the enemy sector, and to take the lead in locating what other ships it could. A future rendezvous was planned two weeks hence. Mamoru ordered that whatever supplies could be spared be sent to the Peruvian freighter, and Kage left two days later with a firm promise to build a terran fleet.

Being next in command (and looked to by the crew as unofficial captain), Mamoru had his hands full trying to make sure the ship’s operations ran smoothly. He and Tanaka had decided on a course to Earth, one involving as much stealth as possible. They both felt it was too premature to engage the Plague’s fleets again. Yet problems seemed to crop up on board one after the other, ranging from political in-fighting between departments to shoddy repair work. Is this normal? he wondered while turning in late on the second night since meeting with Kage. How did Hachinoko do it?

He was aware that the crew was perplexed about which steps to take first, and that some had more to do than others, creating even more tension. Time was short. Kylie’s fears about starvation or defenseless cities weighed heavily on his mind. Balaji was working diligently on developing a covert approach plan for Yamato to take towards the citadel. Mamoru knew he was irritating him with his frequent inquiries about his progress, but he didn’t know what else to do. I can’t be sitting here putting out fires all day, he thought. Soon after Fitzcarraldo’s departure, Mamoru turned his attention to another important task.

"Balaji, hurry it up!" called Uchira as he passed by the science lab. Out in the corridor, he trotted in place while waiting.

Balaji rushed out the door, smoothing his uniform and hair as he did so. The pair traveled as quickly as they could to the port observation deck. The entire crew was gathered there to pay their final respects. Akisada and his team had prepared the Captain’s body, and it lay in a casket which would later be launched into space. Mamoru, feeling completely out of his element, initiated the memorial on the dais with a few awkward words, and invited others who chose to do the same. There were some teary farewells, and even some humorous anecdotes from crewmembers who were at the receiving end of Hachinoko’s adroit method of discipline. Tokugawa had been chosen to wheel the casket into the launch tube, and did so shortly thereafter amid the salutes of a full contingent of senior officers and cadets.

After the observance ended, many of those not having to return immediately for duty lingered in the great room singly or in small groups to think alone or to talk. Mamoru spotted Suya, who stood in one corner staring out into space. He went and stood to the left of her, and leaned his elbows on the handrail.

"Hi."

Suya gave him a nod. "Hi yourself." She turned her gaze back to the deep black sea of stars.

"It’s been really strange, lately, huh?"

"Mmm."

Mamoru cleared his throat and rubbed at his temple. "What do you think, Suya? Am I leading everyone in the right direction?"

She remained silent.

"I feel like we’re drifting," he continued. "We have the Wave Motion Gun, but what good is it if we can’t even get close? A lot of people here have families back home. They’re scared, but their first instinct is to go back as fast as they can to help. But I don’t feel we can risk the ship that way." Mamoru sighed deeply, and dropped his head. "The Captain would’ve known what to do. And my dad."

Suya turned to him then, this seemingly vulnerable soldier who (she thought) wore his heart on his sleeve. She spoke in a quiet voice. "I feel…I don’t know…drawn, somehow, to the path we’re on." She chuckled briefly. "Isn’t that dumb?"

Mamoru straightened, and unabashedly sought her gaze. "No, not at all," he said softly. His eyes dropped to her hands, which loosely cupped the rail. Light as a feather, he brushed his fingertips against the back of her left hand. "Suya," he began.

She snatched her hand away.

"No, wait! Hear me out," he pleaded.

Suya deliberately avoided his gaze. "I have some work to do," she mumbled, and strode quickly away.

Mamoru’s shoulders sagged in tandem with his crestfallen expression. "I love you," he whispered after her.

Kodai Residence

The warm blush of a candle sent a modest sheen dappling across the walls. Kodai awoke with a start, and cursed the seemingly thousandth sleepless night he had endured since Earth’s capture roughly two weeks ago. Every military ship, every shuttle, every fighter plane was grounded, and so there was nothing he could do. Global communication was completely inactive, and efforts initially focused on aid to needy cities and communities. What power existed was scant, and provided by backup generators. It’s use was restricted for hospitals or military purposes. Numerous riots broke out, and knew no borders or limits. He and Yuki were at EDF Command daily to seek out answers, and gather with their colleagues to develop some kind of defense against an enemy they had not even laid eyes upon. But it was not enough, not nearly enough, and the restlessness that stirred in his bones agonized him. The people of Earth watched the skies fearfully in anticipation of the first attack by whoever had completely, utterly crippled them.

Rubbing his eyes, Kodai sat up to seek out the interruption. The room was quiet; a light breeze trickled into the room to lap at his skin. When he moved aside the covers, he found the cause of his restlessness. Yuki had gotten up, but was not in their bedroom.

Dressed only in a pajama bottom, Kodai scratched absentmindedly at his chest, and went downstairs. First he checked the kitchen and living room, but was only met with the dismissive glance of their drowsy cat, sprawled across one of the chairs. Kodai tickled her between the ears before moving on.

He found his wife in the study. She was crying; it had been the soft resonance of her weeping that led him to her.

Yuki sat curled up on one end of the couch there. She immediately turned her head to wipe her tears when Kodai came through the door.

He sank down next to her. "What’s wrong?"

Even with the moonlight streaming in, Yuki could barely make out his features. "Aihara called," she said, and gestured to the phone. "You slept through the ringing."

"What did he want?" Kodai’s eyes narrowed. "What did he say to you?"

"Oh, he’s just worried about Kylie." Yuki sat sideways to face him. "He called on the pretense of having come up with some kind of rescue plan, but all he could talk about was her. He wanted to know if we had heard anything, which of course we haven’t. I told him that Mamoru was there, that he would look out for her." Yuki paused, and pressed a hand to her lips. "He’s always there for people, isn’t he? Any time a friend is in trouble, they come to him." Yuki stopped again, and a tear slid down her cheek. "I should have taken the assignment. I could have been there all this time!" Burying her face in her hands, she began to cry anew. "Who’s going to take care of our son?"

Kodai closed his eyes and was silent. After a moment, he reached out and pulled her too him. "It was supposed to be a routine training mission. I really didn’t think you needed to go."

Yuki drew up her head. "It’s not your fault. I didn’t mean to imply that!"

Kodai nodded. "I know," he whispered. "But don’t forget about Yamato. She’ll take good care of him. As she did for us."

Yuki looked at him, and was comforted. They embraced, and kissed, their tears mingling mournfully with their love.

A few days later in the mess hall, Mamoru set his tray down and took his now customary seat. The distance between Yamato and Earth was shortening, and she now approached Neptune. He assumed a deliberately cheerful tone. "I am so famished! These rations just aren’t cutting it." He finished off the vegetable portion in three bites.

Suya was staring over his shoulder. A table of four crewmembers eyed her with blatant expressions of annoyance. "I don’t think they approve of you sitting with me," she said.

"Who?"

Suya made a sweep with her fork for emphasis. "Everybody."

Mamoru shrugged. "I don’t care what they think." He took a sip of water, and smiled. "But I do care a lot about what you think."

Suya paused mid-chew. She flashed him an embarrassed look before dropping her eyes. "You’re stupid!"

Mamoru gazed at her in bemusement. He leaned forward so closely that their noses almost touched. "Do you always blush this much when you call someone that?"

Suya palmed his face and threw it playfully back. "Just shut up and eat!"

"I’ll take that as a yes!"

She snorted. "If you do, I’ll kick your ass."

"Keep that up, and I’ll have to marry you!"

Suya looked at him in astonishment. When their eyes met, they burst into laughter. Heads turned in their direction the harder and louder they laughed. Suya threw down her fork in mock surrender. It would be some time before they calmed down enough to finish eating.

You run so hot and cold, Mamoru thought, thinking back to her icy reaction the day before on the observation deck. Do I actually have a chance with you now?

A voice broke over the loudspeaker. "Kodai to the main bridge, please. Attention, Kodai to the bridge."

Mamoru sighed; break times were getting shorter and shorter these days. He and Suya parted, and he jogged his way up to the bridge.

"An Ilydrian cruiser just contacted us," Kylie reported when Mamoru arrived. "You have a visitor," she said coyly, and winked.

"Let them aboard. I’ll be in the hangar."

Suya’s interest was greatly piqued when, while busily attending to Fireball in its berth a few stories up from the hangar’s deck, her eyes and ears detected the sight and motion of the bay door opening. A white Ilydrian shuttle by its markings (she knew that much from the news service while still at Daedalus; updates on the war two years ago had come to them daily) floated gently inside. Guided by some of the hangar crew, it taxied slowly forward. Suya watched curiously as Mamoru entered the hangar and approached the shuttle alone. When the oxagonal portal circled open, a figure ran out and dove towards him. She was petite, with sparkly blonde hair, and threw her arms desperately around him. Mamoru’s lips broke into a wide smile as his hands encircled her waist, and he returned the embrace. A trickle of laughter drifted upwards. With a hand thrown casually over her shoulder, Mamoru escorted her out of the hangar. The Ilydrian pilots emerged to stand guard at the shuttle’s opening, and the crew dispersed back to their tasks.

Suya took a long, slow breath, and slunk back into the shadowy corner of the berth. She slumped to the floor, staring morosely ahead. Even angry thoughts eluded her in the paralyzing shock of what she had just witnessed. A feeling of abandonment began to course through her veins. Kodai, why didn’t you tell me? Why did you lie?

After an hour or so of nursing hurt feelings, Suya crept into the pilot’s prep room. Rin was the only other person there. He peeled off his gloves and shoved them in his locker. "Kodai’s looking for you," he said, as Suya walked past him.

"So?" she said tartly.

Rin sighed; he was used to her moodiness by now. "I’m just the messenger," he said, and slammed the door shut.

Several ship-wide pages followed for Suya, but she ignored them all. For the next several hours, she sat hidden in the bathroom of her quarters, and brooded.

But even she could not ignore the call to arms; a red alert broke through her haze. An enemy cruiser had inadvertently crossed Yamato’s path, and had decided to engage her in battle. When Suya arrived for duty, the Ilydrian shuttle was gone, and the Black Tigers were gearing up for another attack. Several hours later they returned, after efficiently destroying a squadron twice their size. Suya’s comrades were far more elated then she.

Rin caught up with her just as she was leaving the hangar. His face shone from the recent exhilaration. "Come on, let’s talk in the mess," he said. "I want to go over some more sequences while we eat."

Suya nodded and they headed for the mess hall. Rin was full of praise for the team, for himself, for her, and like the proud father of a newborn, recapped the battle in an excited monologue. It barely seemed to register with his co-leader, but he attributed it to her normally inscrutable character.

Rin was still spouting off ideas for new strategies when they finished a late dinner. By this time, Suya actually welcomed the distraction. They ambled casually through the corridors on their way back to the hangar.

"Suya!"

Rin stopped walking, and glanced backwards. "I, ah, guess you’ll catch up with me later," he said, and strode on ahead.

Suya suddenly felt like her feet were made of lead. Mamoru appeared before her. His chest heaved from running to catch up with her.

"Where have you been? I was looking all over for you! Didn’t you hear the pages?"

Suya deliberately kept her gaze averted. "I was busy. We had a little skirmish earlier, in case you hadn’t noticed." I don’t want to see you; I don’t want to talk to you, she thought.

Mamoru was unfazed. "Yeah, well, I mean before that. There was someone I wanted you to meet."

With a hand clamped firmly on her hip, Suya turned a livid gaze on him. "Did you have fun with your little girlfriend, Kodai? Well go tell someone else all about it, because I really couldn’t give a shit!"

"What?" He grabbed Suya’s arm as she pivoted to leave, and a laugh escaped through his lips. "Who told you she was my—no, wait!"

Suya had broken out of his grasp, and started to walk away at a brisk pace. Mamoru ran and blocked her path.

"I think there’s been a misunderstanding." His lips quivered as he tried to hold back another laugh.

"Oh, it’s absolutely hysterical," she said, her tone icy with sarcasm.

Her comment just made him giggle. "No, no, I’m sorry!" he said hastily. "Listen, come with me. There’s something I want to show you."

Suya pushed his arm away when he reached out to her shoulder.

"Come on, it’s important!" Mamoru’s voice deepened. "It’s also an order."

Suya bristled, but complied. Fuming, she let him lead her to his quarters. He poked his head in first to see if any of his cabin mates were about, but it was empty. Motioning for Suya to join him, he went to stand at his personal storage compartment. He stuck his arm in and rummaged about near the back. Pulling out a mini-photo album, he propped it open on his palm and began to flip through the pages. He pointed to one of the images, and showed it to Suya.

"Is that the culprit?" he asked.

Suya looked at it reluctantly. A girlish blonde female in the photo was standing next to Mamoru. They were at a beach. Suya nodded slowly. It was the same woman from the Ilydrian cruiser.

"That’s my sister Miyuki," Mamoru said. "And this," he turned back two pages, "is my mom. That’s my dad."

Suya reached out her hands. He let the album sink into her palms.

"I just wanted you to meet her." Mamoru chuckled. "If you knew her, you’d understand why I thought it was so funny you thought she was my…girlfriend." His voice suddenly trailed off.

Suya was staring intently at the photos. Mamoru half-grinned as a thought dawned on him. Leaning in close to her, he asked, "Suya, were you jealous?"

Suya ducked behind him and sat on the nearest bed. "Of course not," she muttered, but kept her attention downward.

Mamoru sat next to her. Their thighs touched, but she didn’t pull away. He watched as she ran a finger delicately across one of the images.

"Your mother’s very pretty," she remarked.

"Thanks," he answered. Mamoru added commentary as she looked through the album. "That’s Miyuki at her graduation…that’s me a few years ago…my parents took a vacation in America, and I thought the photo really captured their trip…," and so on. "Anyway," he added when she had seen the last picture, "Miyuki’s married to the Ilydrian Emperor. I asked her if she could arrange for one of their fleets to supplement our forces." Mamoru grinned. "She said they’d send two!"

"Your family seems nice," she said, and cleared her throat. "Kodai, did I…did I ever tell you about my parents?"

Mamoru frowned. "I think so. The Doctors, right? They raised you, and helped train you."

Suya shook her head. "They aren’t my real ones."

"They’re not?"

"No." Suya put the album down, and sat cross-legged on the bed. "I was born in Cepheus Colony. My parents worked for the Hecla mining company."

"Cepheus?" Mamoru echoed. I wonder if I was near her house, he thought, his mind flickering back to the Ilydrian invasion there. "Where are your parents now?"

"They’re dead," she said matter-of-factly.

Mamoru gave her a sympathetic look. "I’m very sorry."

Suya shrugged. "Well, I think they’re out of their misery," she said, and began to tell him about the years of poverty and abuse she and her mother had endured. Mamoru’s eyes grew wide as her story unfolded.

"And then, when I was twelve (let’s see, I’m twenty-six now, that would be fourteen years ago), it was the last straw. One night he was so drunk that he started beating me over a few crumbs on the floor. My mom tried to stop him, but he was too strong. After pummeling me, he went after her." Suya’s voice softened, and her eyes misted over. "She died trying to protect me. I don’t remember it, but they told me she shielded me with her body."

"That’s incredibly brave," Mamoru said, his voice a whisper. "How did the Doctors find you?"

Suya bit her lip as she thought. "An article…or something, over the news service. They had me shipped to Daedalus."

"Did they make you into…is that how you…"

"A cyborg? Yeah. Apparently, I was in the right place at the right time. They were medical doctors, with advanced degrees in cybernetics. I guess you could say I was one of their experiments."

Mamoru frowned. "That doesn’t sound very nice."

Suya waved her hands. "Oh, no, no! The Doctors took care of me. I would have died if it weren’t for them. I had a head injury, and broken limbs…goodness knows what else was wrong. They built me back up using cybernetic components. I have more mechanical parts in me than any other human being, or so they said."

"More than Sanada-San?"

Suya just grinned.

"What does it feel like?"

She shrugged. "I don’t feel any different from when I was a kid. The alloy they used has similar density to bone, but of course it’s much stronger." She stuck out her left arm. "Here. Feel it. You tell me if it’s different from normal."

Mamoru looked at her curiously, and reached out to encircle her forearm. He squeezed her lightly between thumb and index finger. He shook his head. "No different."

Suya nodded and let down her arm. "Of course, I have to work out regularly, to build up equal strength in my right arm."

"Bano!" Mamoru said, and laughed.

"Exactly!"

They looked into each other’s eyes, and were silent for a moment. Mamoru felt a sudden welling of affection.

"Suya," he said, and closed a hand over hers, "I don’t know if this is the right time, but, uh…" He blushed, and took a deep breath. "I’m really in love with you!" he blurted out. "When this is over, I want you to come back to Earth with me. There’s so much I want to show you!"

Suya’s mouth was agape. Her breath quickened, and her hands felt warm beneath his touch. She swallowed nervously. I’m no good for you, she thought. Go find someone who’s a lot less trouble! Besides, I don’t think I’ll make it to Earth! Why that last thought passed through her mind, she didn’t know. But she told Mamoru none of it. Instead, she pulled abruptly away and stood up. She carefully unwrapped his fingers from her hand.

"Kodai," she murmured, with a doleful glance, "you’re just mistaking pity for love."

With that, she rushed out the door.

"Suya! Suya!" Mamoru tumbled out after her. He looked wildly up and down the corridor, but it was empty. "Oh, god, Suya," he wailed. "Don’t do this to me!"

Some men emerged from their room across the way. They gazed at Mamoru with puzzled looks. He ran off, unsure of where to go in order to bury his anguish.