The Taiho had come to rest in an atmospheric dock. The crew made preparations for refueling and resupply while Nicole and Satsumi left the bridge, heading down to one of the many hangar bays, boarding a personal OSC shuttle. Launching from the internal bays, they descended down to the planet. It had been ages since Nicole had been to Planet LA, the vast oceans mixed in with the large landmasses was something she would never get used to. Satsumi, on the other hand, has never been down to LA. She was all but pressed against the window, looking out as the shuttle began the descent down to the planets surface.
"You come down here all the time, Nicole?!" The curious girl was shocked at the view, having only been on Planet New Tokyo, she'd never seen any other worlds before, aside from in space. "Not all the time, most of the time I'm on Manhattan or Houston, visiting Miles." She piloted the shuttle down to a common landing pad near one of the major metropolitan areas on the planet, letting the shuttle come to a rest before sending Olivia a text as to where to land at so she can swap over to the shuttle. In the meantime while waiting, Nicole looked out at the bustling city, it was just past noon, perfect time for eating.
Olivia circled around the trail of traffic that led from the orbital docking ring down towards Los Angeles' surface, waiting to receive the coordinates for the meeting. Her Lich shook in the upper atmosphere, buffeted by strong winds. A chime sounded from the cockpit speakers and the communications screen lit up, revealing an incoming message from Prower.
The directions pointed the mercenary towards one of the planet's larger cities, on the coast of one of the major landmasses. Olivia typed the coordinates into the nav console and let the autopilot handle the descent through the turbulent atmosphere.
A few minutes passed, with the mercenary gazing out of the cockpit canopy over the rapidly approaching planet's surface, making out enormous crop fields amidst the plains and forests. Here and there, human settlements dotted the countryside, occasionally overshadowed by larger cities. Up ahead, her destination came into view, an impressive skyline highlighted against the bright blue of the ocean beyond. The autopilot steered the ship down towards the landing zone on the metropolis' periphery, settling on an empty gravity cushion.
As the canopy slid forward, Olivia glanced around the airfield, quickly finding Prower's shuttle nearby. She clambered down the extending access ladder to the cement ground below and hurried over as quickly as her recovering body allowed.
Nikki watched the Lich set down, disembarking to meet her friend, although she was a bit worried to see her try to hurry like that. "Hey now, slow down. No need to hurry like that, Olivia, we're not going anywhere. We'd wait all day if need be. You don't need to push yourself for our sake. Come rest in the shuttle, it'll do you some good." Nikki embarked into the shuttle with her friend, taking her to the seat where the sister sat. Satsumi herself seemed to be enjoying the outing, still glued to the window, looking out on the metropolis. Nicole made it a point to pull her back down by her hoodie's hood. "Don't be rude, sis, we have a guest.""Yea yea, I never get to see planets. Heya Ms. Sable~ I'm Satsumi, Nicoles sister! It's nice to meet you. She's told me some nice things about you, although that you need some rest as of recently. I do hope everything's okay."
Nicole had climbed back into the pilot seat, lifting off once more and heading towards the city skyline. Weaving elegantly through the various tall buildings and keeping in line with metro air traffic, they would find themselves seemingly lost in a city that looked like it could go on forever. Despite this, Nicole knew exactly where they were, thanks to the GPS anyhow, and had guided the shuttle towards a closer landing pad, one that was paid for by the hour for their use. "I had you land back there simply because it's easier, and frankly, safer. Wouldn't want your fancy new ship to get scratched or worse in the city. Not to mention the landing pad charges per hour are usually ridiculous. But that's something I don't have to worry much about, and didn't want to burden you with."
Soon enough the shuttle finally touched down, securing itself to the landing pad and allowing it's occupants to rest a little bit before disembarking, giving Nicole some time to visit with Olivia before lunch. "Anything in particular you're hungry for?"
Olivia leaned back in the passenger cabin's plush seat. She appreciated Nicole's concern for her health, but felt it was unnecessary. A steady diet and exercises combined with the medication she had been prescribed on Denver had helped her regain much of her weight and muscle mass. She still looked thinner and less fit than her usual self, but in a few weeks time, she was sure, she'd be back to normal.
The mercenary gave the two sisters a pleasant smile.
"Good to meet you in person," she said, nodding to Satsumi. She was curious to know what exactly Nicole had told her sister about her - they didn't know each other particularly well, and Olivia felt that her behavior prior to her disappearance had been less than endearing.
She turned to face the older sister.
"I hope the locals have more to offer than just food paste." She chuckled. "I'm not picky, you choose."
Nikki couldn't help but chuckle. "Don't worry, they've got real food. You won't be eating no gross food paste or synth gel. Well, I promised Satsumi something good to eat, so I was thinking of this nice family restaurant that's nearby. It's just a short walk away." Nicole got up, motioning for the two to follow her as she disembarked, followed by her sister and Olivia. The streets were busy and bustling, people trying to get around while some others, likely vacationers, simply took their time, enjoying the time in the big city.
Tucked away in a side street, they entered a nice little restaurant, a cozy feeling in the building. A waitress guided the trio to a table and seated them, handing them menu's and taking drink orders before leaving to give them time to decide. "I can get anything I want?" Satsumi's eyes seemed to light up at the choices on the menu, from salads to meats to bread, she'd not seen a large palette except for when Nicole cooked at home. "Anything you want, and that goes for you too, Olivia. I'm buying lunch today, and I really feel like some ribs. They're really good here."
The mention of their destination made Olivia shudder inwardly. The last family restaurant she had dined at had met a rather unpleasant end not too long after - at the behest of someone she knew only too well, at that. But those times were over. This would be a harmless visit to a harmless establishment with harmless company.
The restaurant turned out to be nice enough - certainly a step up from the dives she had become accustomed to over the years. A cozy interior was matched by the polite service of the wait staff. Olivia couldn't help but smirk at the younger Prower sister's excitement about Nicole's invitation.
"I've never actually had ribs," the mercenary admitted with a chuckle. "But if they're on you, I guess there's no harm in trying."
"Try anything you like, I don't mind. Anything that's extra you can take home." Nicole smiled, picking out the ribs as the waitress returned with their drinks. "Hey sis, I can get the soup and salad, with the burger?" Despite having been told she could get anything, she still felt it necessary to ask. The older sister simply nodded, making the younger even more giddy and excited.
In due time the waitress after the trio had decided for lunch. Nicole had ordered the BBQ ribs and a small salad, while her sister got a dumpling soup with a small salad, and a seemingly large sounding burgers. After Olivia ordered, the waitress smiled and departed back to the kitchen. To help pass the time, Satsumi couldn't help but ask a question."Hey Olivia, Nicole says you're a better pilot than her, how'd you get so good?"
Olivia glanced across the table at Nicole, raising a curious eyebrow.
"Did she say that?" She couldn't help but chuckle. She was grateful that Prower had clearly not mentioned her recent circumstances to her sister - circumstances that had taken a serious toll on her abilities as a pilot. "Well, I grew up on a freeport out in the Taus. Hung around a lot of skilled pilots as a kid, listened in on their stories. Soon as I was old enough, I got a permit myself and headed out into the void, working escorts and that sorta stuff. You gotta fly quick out there," she gave the younger sister a mischievous smirk," otherwise you end up pasted across the side of an asteroid. And with all the pirates and Maltese raiders roaming the region, you need to learn how to fight quick, too."
She leaned back and reminisced in silence for a moment before going on.
"I was a fast learner. Had to be. Then, a few years flying for the Bretonians during the war taught me everything else I had to know."
Nikki couldn't help but smile innocently. Satsumi listened to her explanation, happy to listen to how she had gotten so good. She smiled a bit, listening to her explain to everything. She couldn't help but share a bit of her own, and by extension, her sisters' histories. "After Dad had passed away, the family kinda.. split apart. We had a big family, in line with tradition and all. Somehow most of us came out as girls and only a couple boys. We all still care for and visit Mom, but the family kinda scattered after his passing. We all ended up in difference places. Nikki and Miles went off to the Navy, Erika and Jake went off to Rheinland, Akika and I went to Kusari. I don't remember where Sarah went back then but she runs freelance cargo now. It was weird times. I maybe fell in with some bad crowds in Kusari to start with. Learning to dodge both rival gangs and police patrols helped me learn how to fly quickly, but soon enough I left those gangs behind. I found a new home and been with a bunch of girls that are almost as close as my family. Despite the fact that we spend some years apart in the beginning.. we all still find each other, like on Hanazuki. I think what happened was, we all kinda went out to find ourselves in the sector. Some of us got hurt, yea, but we're still together as a strong family. Even found new family in the sector, Nikki seems to be the one to find the most new family members."
Satsumi couldn't help but snicker at the last comment, which embarrassed her sister a little bit. "We've learned that family isn't always those you're born with, but those you choose to care for too. Sometimes family isn't the closest, but being there when in need matters alot."
Olivia could not help but smile as Satsumi finished. The girl's last statement felt strangely relevant to the mercenary; indeed, she did not have much biological family left to speak of, relying instead on people she met along her journeys to fill the void - on the rare occasions she allowed them to. Of course, she would not easily admit such thoughts to anyone, nor, even, to herself.
"Sounds like the Prowers have infiltrated just about every house in Sirius," Olivia joked, glancing back at Nicole. "All part of the chief spook's plan, perhaps?"
She turned back to Satsumi.
"I'm glad you all are still able to get together despite of everything." Her tone had a hint of bittersweetness to it.
