It has not been long ago that he went this way, to deliver Artifacts for their Allies. Gonzalez entered the Estancimento, an Eagle-Class Fighter that had served him for a while, and was now ready to be disposed off. The course was set for Nagano, and while the board computer was calculating the optimal route he realized that he was quite nervous about this. He has not yet met a Dragon in person, and even less so has he ever seen the Cockpit of their Tachi's. He took a deep breath in before he closed the cockpit window and proceeded to sit down in the cockpit, after which he closed it.
Was this the last time that I've closed this? He thought as he was taking off, departing from the Freeport. The space of the Omicrons was not really lively, in fact it has never really been lively out here, something that he had only noticed after visisting other parts of Sirius. That didn't bother him however, it even favoured his plans, as the Estancimento was still unstable and any confrontration would be troublesome. Sigma-17 was passed without trouble, and both Sigma-13 and Honshu did not cause any trouble either. He encoutered a few Dragon Patrols on the way through Hokkaido and Rishiri, now known as Tau-53, up until the Nagano Jumphole. It was a tense flight, any mistakes on this flight would cause more trouble than usually, as he found himself within foreign space in a ship that had malfunctioned before. This wouldn't end up as before, if the ship decided to stop working, then he would be done for. That was all the more reason for him to exhale when Jita showed up on his scanners, and he knew that he would be able to leave the Estancimento shortly.
After he had docked, he took a last look on the ship that had brought him so far, a partner of him. It was obvious that the ship was falling apart just by looking at it. It had scratches everywhere, the color was falling off, the cockpit barely opened anymore, and the onboard-systems were not working properly anymore as well. It was a miracle that he even made it this far with it, but nevertheless he was thankful, and certainly quite sad that it was time to walk different paths. Thank you, Partner. Was the last thing that he said to his ship, before he turned around and walked to the room that he was supposed to, to meet up with the person who would give him the Tachi.
Last words are for fools who have not yet said enough.
On the second landing pad, not too far from where Gonzales landed, the Tachi was in the process of being towed in. Slowly drifting on the anti-gravitational field, it was trailed closely by a tall figure in light armor. As the ship settled into its place, the figure walked around and in front of the fighter, manipulating a medium sized datapad in his hands. The ship, illuminated by the ceiling lights, was obviously a used one, but still in an enviable condition. A few technicians approached the ship then departed the scene within a relatively short time-frame. Its caretaker was left behind, and shifting from one place to another, he looked around for any sign of the person he was to meet.
He entered the bay, and his eyes instantly get caught by the Tachi that was sitting in the hangar now. It was an older Tachi, as he had expected but he knew that the Dragons would not give him anything that would not work properly, so he instead looked at it in a way of it being a unique one. He went to take a closer look at the ship, and while he was approaching it he realized that there was someone standing next to the ship, which he had overlooked while staring at the Tachi. This was probably the person he would have to meet, the one who would tell him more about the ship.
So you are the person I am to meet here, right? He asked, looking the man in the eyes, with his hands behind his back, and his general stature being more straight than usual. He was slightly nervous, but not because he was in fear but rather because he was excited. The Tachi was beautiful, and the thought that this might soon be his was just overwhelming for him.
Last words are for fools who have not yet said enough.
"Mister Gonzalez, correct? I am Fumio Demura, an Ashigaru of the clan." The man bowed politely first, then offered a handshake as he assumed this was customary in the captain's culture. "I apologize if the condition of the vessel is perhaps less than what you imagined. We've tried our best to keep it running ever since its owner passed." He continued while gesticulating at the ship. He paused for several moments, in remembrance of the man. "Perhaps we've done his memory some disservice, in keeping it unused. But that is about to change, no?"
