June 21, 826 A.S. Somewhere else on New Tokyo
"O-oh, okay" Nakamura took a nervous step back. "C-can I go now?" He starts eyeing the gang. Rikka steps up, sticking her arm around Nakamura while stealthily slipping something into his pocket. "You sure can buddy, and just remember what we talked about with the thing on the place, and forget our faces, kay?" Nakamura quickly nodded. "Rikka, quit it, let's go." Ryouichi commanded. Rikka shot him a side glance, crossing her feet to lean on Nakamura more. "Come on Ryo, just giving our little friend a pep talk alright?" Her attention snaps back to Nakamura. "Listen, just because we're sending you back doesn't mean we're giving you up. A part of you will always stay with us, right here, in our kokoros. Right guys?" She looks over everyone with a smile on her face. "Right! Alright, bugger off you little scamp you." She lets go of Nakamura and gives him a playful shove. "Go before we change our minds and bring you home with us." Nakamura, quite freaked out, takes off running. Rikka sighs. "They grow up so fast." Ryouichi mutters "You're so ******* weird Rikka..."
Early morning June 22, 826 A.S. Shikoku system
The Hyakki Yako exited the jumphole within the Saiun Cloud. Chika watched the scanner closely, before jumping there were some Farmer ships floating around. The cargo hold of the Yako was full of cardamine, just a small supplies being dropped off at various Chrysanthemum stations. She only had to stop at Morioka before dumping the rest of her cargo on Leiden. Thankfully the cloud should obscure the ship enough, if she took the long way around things should go smoothly. Maybe. She set course for the Shiun cloud, not giving any following ships a chance to catch up. The flight was quiet, until the Yako entered the deepest part of the cloud. Suddenly, a disruptor connected with the transport, stopping it in its tracks. That's when four Mamorus quickly approached the ship. "Thought you could sneak a target like this past Kagoshima without some kind of fallout? Try again Chrysanthemum. All ships open fire." Chika had no time to react before the bombers started ripping apart the ship's shields. Gods there's no way I can fight them she thought before opening up her comms. "Morioka Base, this is the Hyakki Yako, we need immediete help in the Shiun Cloud, we're under attack by Farmer bombers!" Chika sent off the transmission. She pushed the ship to top impulse speed, taking controls to start dodging enemy fire as the first nova connected with the armor plating. The ship was taking damage fast, as each torpedo slammed into the outer armor the ship got weaker and weaker.
June 22, 826 A.S. Shikoku
Misaki was on her way back to Morioka when she intercepted the distress call. She recognised the voice of the captain and altered her course towards its origin, while ordering 4 blossoms to come with her.
In the Shiun cloud, the Hyakki Yako came into view, its hull badly damage and under fire by FA ships. Misaki saw the ship would not last another minute and left a trail of debris behind it. "Engage those vessels, leave none of them alive!"
After the Skirmish, the FA ships and 2 blossoms were destroyed. Misaki and the remaining blossoms escorted the Yako to Morioka. "Hey, Chika, you okay? It seems like even the junkers wont want that ship anymore."
Early morning June 22, 826 A.S. Shikoku system
Chika drifted the Yako close to Morioka before the systems finally died, leaving it to the whim of gravity and intertia. Chika had to use her personal comms to call out. "Misaki-san, hontooni, arigato. I wouldn't have made it out of there without you." Chika sat on the floor of the bridge. Her few crew members running around trying to get any systems working. Chika stayed silent until the realization of what just happened set in. Attacked by Farmers, her ship on the brink of destruction, a close brush with death. She started to sob. She may have been a Chrysanthemum, but Chika did not normally have her life in jeopardy. Chika was immobile, overwhelmed with the situation with people running all over the bridge. Suddenly, one of the Pitbull's engines exploded, sending shrapnel and fire into the room. Chika did not react, she couldn't move until a crew member grabbed her arm, pulling her up and to an escape pod.
The survivors left the ship behind. Thankfully they were within sight of Morioka. As they approached the base, Chika could only stare out the window at the Yako. She had known the ship for years, even if she wasn't always pilotting it. It played a major part of her life. Without it she would have never met her two best friends, Ryouichi and Rikka. Without it she never would have earned herself a comfortable living fund. Of course it was still dwarfed by her family's fortune, but it allowed her to live without worrying about having to eat. Despite decades of work, not just to Chika, but to others as well. To Rikka with her time in the Rogues. To Ryo, who managed to make the ship flyable in lawful space. To the Raiders, where it served as a dependable long range smuggler. The ship had always been known as the Panic Attack, yet it only lasted 3 months as the Hyakki Yako.
And there it sat. Most of the armor plating gone. Multiple holes in the main container, cardamine seeping out into space. One engine in flames as the H-Fuel leaked uncontrollably. It's over she thought.
Mid-afternoon June 19, 826 A.S. Virginia system
Finally! Chika had been hunting all day. After being lead to the darkest parts of the Pittsburgh field, getting lost in the Badlands, and dodging patrols in Texas, Chika finally found her way to the Puerto Rico hole in Virginia. Liberty is so frustrating she thought, looking back to the dark clouds of the system. She pushed her ship forward to the jumphole, ready to finally hit her target.
Chika's view was filled with...almost nothing. Just rocks. The system had almost nothing to guide her. Just a neutron star, a normal star, and two planets. This place is almost as bad as Tohoku! But at least Tohoku has the Arch for navigation, she was almost hopeless here. Chika could just barely make out a station in the distance, slightly distinguishable amongst all of the rocks. That was her best lead, making a direct course. However, as she came closer, the station opened fire. She had no chance to make any communications, instead veering off. Not even a hello, bastards. I guess that gas giant might have something.
As she exited the asteroid field, she saw another station in the distance. Floating around the gas giant, just as she thought. She made a direct course. Her gaze was then brought to the neutron star. So that's what they look like. It's not every day that you get to see one, let alone see it and live. Chika was still intimidated though. I can't stay here too long.
As Chika entered the scrap field surrounding the planet, the station remained neutral. Maybe these guys are Junkers and can help me out. She hailed the station. "Watanabe Chika of the Golden Chrysanthemums, requesting to dock." The station responded quickly. "A Chrysanthemum? The hell are you doing all the way out here? Whatever, you're clear, just don't cause trouble." Just giving a noise in agreeement, Chika landed in one of the hangar bays.
Midday, July 25, 826 A.S., Shikoku System
Doko...doko...doko...doko The Hachiman Kyudo drifted through the Saiun Cloud. The ship had combed the nebula for hours in search of an untrackable object. Suddenly the sensors pinged, the radar dish on top of the ship detecting an anomaly at the edge of the nebula. Asoko! Chika steered the gunboat towards the object's direction. After a few moments it came in to view: the jumphole leading to the uncharted system bordering Kusari. Yatta, it's still here!
Everyone seems to have forgotten about this place. Nobody talks about it, nobody visits, whatever conflict was there has died down. The perfect location. Chika sent some pings through the jumphole, testing that it is still active and accurate. Once confirming, she left a beacon and turned towards Morioka.
July 28, 826 A.S., Morioka
Chika was at the bar. Rin sat down next to her and offered her a cup of warm cha.
"I see you do well, Watanabe-san. My trip to Bretonia was prosperous and I managed to obtain the cargo you requested. The Fuyuzora had never been in Bretonia before, so the experience and updated navigational computers are an extra blessing, ne?"
She take a sip of her own cha and then continues.
"Whenever you have need of the shipment, send me a call. I will bring the cargo to the appropriate location."
Morning, July 31, 826 A.S. Shikoku system
Chika sat by a window, the glow of the nebula filling the room with a soothing blue light. Faintly through the fog there was a white source of light. Bright enough to be noticable, but faint enough to be passed over. Chika was reviewing some paperwork. Various cargo deliveries, bank statements, building codes, piles of paperwork. Suddenly, the faint white light faded. There was a noticable difference in the room. Chika's head turned to the window, whatever anomaly existed was no longer there. "...ara?"
3:27 a.m. January 26th, 827 A.S. Shikoku system
Chika was sitting on her bed. She was a mess. Her hair was dishevelled, her clothes unwashed, and it looked like she can't remember the last time she showered. She endlessly cycled through papers upon papers relating to the base, Kinkaku-ji. Why did I come up with this stupid idea. I can't handle all of this. She pulled a paper out of the stack. The station's finances. It kept a log of every major transaction processed through the base since construction. Her eyes scanned the paper. A few hundred million to the QC, a solid billion to the Dragons, bounty payouts to the Hackers. She peered at the deposits. Chika Watanabe, Chika Watanabe, Chika Watanabe, Chika Watanabe, Gen'an Treasury, Chika Watanabe, Gen'an Treasury, Gen'an Treasury, Dragon Contribution, Gen'an Treasury, Gen'an Treasury. All of the initial startup costs, straight from her own pockets. She counted what she spent. 4 billion credits? Did I really stick my entire life's savings into this? Losing the Yako, the fights with Rika, all for a base that isn't mine? Chika's emotions started welling up. She tried to hold them, pushing the pain below before it started to spill out. She started sobbing, tears splattering on the papers she was hunched over. Everything was so simple on Ainu. She sat like this for what seemed like an eternity. The same thoughts tried to break through her subconscious. Easier on Ainu. But I can't drop everything. But it was easier on Ainu. But I'm supposed to be needed here. Then she heard the thought she wanted to hear. I want to go back to Ainu. I'm going back to Ainu. She threw herself out of bed realizing what she wanted all along. She frantically ran to her closet, wading through piles of old papers, dirty clothes, and empty fast food containers. After digging through her closet she tossed a suitcast out behind her, shortly followed by a pet carrier. She returned to her room, grabbing random clothes off the ground with no organization in mind. She stuffed the suitcase until it was full. Chika's pet cat, roused from all of the chaos, tried to escape to the bathroom for peace before being scooped into the pet carrier. Chika quickly wrote out a note.
I can't do this anymore. -Chika
She ran out of her room, suitcase and cat in tow. It didn't take long before she was at the main office for the station. Not wanting to see anybody, she stuck the note on the door and continued to her hangar. That's where she saw her fleet. Her eyes scanned the bay. A Griffin, Blossom, Orchid, and Falchion sat in their usual spots, peaceful through disuse. Her eyes then locked to her Bulldog, Chika's prize from the Congress. It felt like she was given the ship ages ago, yet she never really flew it. She was drawn to it, not thinking twice about her choice. She loaded her cargo on the ship, taking off in a rush. Once surrounded by the Saiun Cloud, Chika took one last look at the base. It had expanded a lot since they first settled in, other pilots in the cell taking over the supply chain. She could make out the figures of two ships, the Futatsu and Kyudo. I guess the Gen'an can keep those. Never really were mine anyways. She swung her ship around, now pointing for the Kyushu jumphole.