Subject: [FFML] [FANFIC][MACROSS]Macross 4EVER pre-reader draft
From: "Phil Kwok" <pot_roast@hotmail.com>
Date: 3/7/2000, 3:53 PM
To: "FanficML" <ffml@fanfic.com>


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HEY, how's everyone doing?

Finish reading, and come visit me at http://members.xoom.com/Philkwok




-- Attached file included as plaintext by Listar --
-- File: Macross 4EVER.txt

[FFML][FANFIC][MACROSS][MACROSS 4EVER]

UN SPACY FRONTIER.13/4/2056.0900 TERRA..

It had started out like any routine covert operations. Their orders had been clear. Take out the core of the renegade Zentran vessel, and leave no traces of entry, don't let the Zentradi know they were there. Failure of either two was unacceptable. These words kept repeating through Nozomi's mind as she and the 17th Black Hornets were rushing down the corridors of the ship, with a horde of Zentran battle pods on their tails.

"Hornet Leader to Hornet flight! Take evasive actions! Escape plan Tango-Oscar! Do not shoot unless necessary! Repeat, do not shoot unless necessary!"

The 17th raced down the maze of hallways, dodging the lasers and missiles that the battle pods were firing at them. They had entered with 9 VF-17's, but as they continued their escape, it was evident that only 7 remained. The mission had gone smoothly until they reached their goal, when a misplaced step set off an alarm. Quickly overwhelmed by battle pods, two fighters were lost, as they bravely fought the odds so that the rest of them could escape. Now, it seemed their sacrifice would be in vain.

"Hornet 5! Adjust your speed! You're lagging behind!" Nozomi tried to stay calm, as she veered to the right to avoid the beam weapon that was aimed at her. 

"Hornet 5! Comply!"

The order was too little too late, as two Zentran power suits had caught up to the straggling valkyrie, and proceeded to dismantle it.

"Hornet 5! No, no , no!" This was the final straw. Stealth had failed, so Nozomi decided that it was the time for force. 

"Hornet flight, Fire at will!"

Happy to comply, all six Nightmare fighters immediately swung around, switching over to battroid mode, and unleashed their cache of short range concussion missiles, dropping the pursuing Zentran like flies. When the coast was relatively clear, they transformed back into fighters, and raced off again toward the exit point, which was only a few corridors away. They quickly reached the opening they had left in the armoured hull, and shot down any remaining pursuers. 

Once they had reached a minimum safety range outside, they transformed to battroid mode, and took out their gattling guns. Removing the Heavy Laser module from the compartments in the left leg of the mecha, they quickly fitted them to their guns, and took aim. Six beams of concentrated energy exploded out toward the Zentran vessel, surgically striking critical points on the ship's structure. With a sickening groan, the ship started to collapse on itself, before it finally exploded.

All the 17th could do was look at the debris, their own handy work.  Thousands of Zentradi warriors, three of their fellow pilots. Dead, their bodies dust forever-lost in space. A wave of guilt and anguish hit Nozomi.  She had lost three pilots. They were under her command, and she had failed them.

"Mission.. Failed." It was all Nozomi could say, as she put her head in her hands and started to cry in her cockpit.

* * *

UNSPACY TRIBUNAL, REPUBLIC OF NEW AMERICAS.TWO MONTHS LATER.1300 TERRA 

"All rise for the honorable Admiral Mayer."

Everyone in the room rised, as the decorated Judge Advocate General of the UN Spacy forces entered the room. He sat into his chair, and motioned the gallery to do the same. With steely eyes he gazed across at the room's occupants, resting stopping a moment on the defendant, before he reviewed the notes that were placed on his desk. He read over them quickly, and directed his attention back to the court.

"After reviewing the evidence given by both the prosecution and the defense, what we have here is still a sketchy outline of a operation gone wrong. Do you have anything left to say befor I give a sentence, Captain Kitabayashi?"

Nozomi looked at her lawyer, who gave her a nod of approval. She stood, and cleared her throat.

"Admiral Mayer, sir, and esteemed colleagues of the Jury. I don't ask for forgiveness in this situation, as I know the final outcome of the operation was disastrous. Thousand of lives were lost, including three pilots under my command.." 

She took a deep breath, and then continued, 

"But, I do ask you to believe me when I say, from the bottom of my heart, that I didn't mean for it to happen. Some events occurred that were out of my control, eventssuch that if they hadn't occurred, I would be back at HQ, congratulating my soldiers for a job well done. All eight of them.." 

Nozomi paused, gathering up her remaining courage, as she fought back a tear. 

"But what has happened can not be changed, and the mission failed horribly. All I ask is that you judge me for who I am, a officer of the UN Spacy defense forces, a woman who dearly believes in peace, and not as a blood thirsty killer that the story would make me out to be.."

"Is that all Captain?"

Nozomi nodded, and sat back into her chair. Tear were flowing freely down her face, and she felt emotionally exhausted. It had been a long two months, and she had hardly finished mourning after the memorial for her lost pilots before they released the charges on her court martial. Of course, UN Spacy had denied all responsibilty for the attack, and the Zentran Elders Council was in an uproar over the situation. Politics would undoubtably cast Nozomi off as the scape goat.  She couldn't help but to feel betrayed.

The admiral leaned back into his chair, and thought over the heartfelt words he had just heard. It took only a few minutes for him to come up with his decision.

"Captain Kitabayashi, by the evidence presented to me, I have decided that you are Not Guilty of Manslaughter to the first degree, as you were not responsible for the death of the terrorists and your fellow pilots. But responsible or not, many lives were lost, so I have also decided to demote you to Lieutenant 2nd class, with no chance of promotion or command, until another decision is made by a council in five years time.  Court dismissed."

The pounding of the gavel echoed through the room, as Nozomi sat in her seat in disbelief. She felt relieved, yet she couldn't get rid of the feeling of sudden doom...

* * *

Phil Kwok and WebMonkey Production present:

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Website: http://members.xoom.com/Philkwok/macross4/macross4.htm

CHAPTER 1 - NEW BEGINNINGS

* * *

JOURNAL ENTRY-Kitabayashi Nozomi

-Dear Journal,

Since I was a little girl, living near the air base in British Columbia, I have dreamed of being a Valkyrie pilot. The glory and honor that came with being a pilot for the UN Spacy forces seemed so appealing, a magnet drawing in starry eyed kids like me. I remember all the stories of Space War One, like the exploits of Roy Fokker and his infamous Skull Squadron and ace Hikaru Ichijo and the final battle with Boldoza, supported by Lyn Minmay's singing, that decided the war. But, I believe my favorite story out of all of them was Maximillian Jenius's story, and how he defeated the beautiful meltrandi Millia, and fell in love with her. To this day I still envy Millia. My mom said I was a fanatic, hanging posters of valkyries and Max all over my room. I said back then that she just didn't understand. I still don't think she does. There is not many things that beats being a valkeyrie pilot, a sensation of flight and power I have relished ever since I graduated from the academy five years ago, in 2051, when I was 17. Figure that I would be able to control 9000 pounds of complex military machinery before I could even drive a car with manual transmission. But things change. I was so afraid that day in court, as the Judge was just about to give the verdict. I thought at the time that they were going to strip me of all flight privelages, or worse, throw me in prison. There hasn't been a single day where I don't think about what I did wrong, and what I could have done to change things. But I can't change the past.

I'm lucky enough that all they did was demote me. After stepping down as the commander of the 17th, I was notified of my transfer to the 140th wing, Echo squadron aboard the Battle Carrier Eden. Maybe it will be a chance to start over, to show the old men of UN Spacy that Nozomi Kitabayashi can still fly, no matter how many stripes she has on her sleeve, or how many people were under her command.  And maybe if I'm lucky, I'll start believing that too..

-END ENTRY 

Nozomi looked up from her laptop, and sighed. It had been a long road, and she hoped that the post on the Eden would be journey's end. She leaned toward the window of her cabin aboard the Ark Royal class ship, and looked out into the void of space, as it twirled by at speeds faster than the speed of light.

"I wish I could see the stars.." 

* * *

Nozomi sat in the busy terminal of the UN Spacy shipyard, waiting for her escort to the Eden. The trip had taken two days, and she felt the effects of post-fold sickness. She was on the 500th verse of One Million Bottles of Grog On the Wall, when an UN Spacy ensign stepped into the room, looked at the photoboard he had in his hand, making sure of the resemblance before walking towards her.

"Lieu-Lieutenant Kitabayshi?" he asked.

Awakened from her daydream, Nozomi looked toward the younger man with a jump. Calming down, she fixed up her uniform, trying to save what ever grace she had left.

"Yes?"

"Mam, I have been instructed to escort you to the UNSS Eden." With that, he gave her a stiff salute.  Standing up, Nozomi gave him back a half hearted salute, and gathered her luggage.

"Yeah, whatever. Lead the way.."


* * *

A left, a thousand paces, a few more turns, a million more security checks. Nozomi had never really liked the hospitality afforded to people, especially people like her who were famous because of court martials, at military installations. After what seemed like ages lost in the catacombs of the shipyard, they finally neared the docking bay. As the doors opened,

Nozomi was offered an all encompassing view of space, as the shuttle was connected to the base by a long glass tube-like tunnel. Walking down the tunnel, Nozomi paused, as she looked out and saw a New Macross Class carrier being fitted with supplies. 

The ship was gleaming from bow to stern, it's paint so fresh that it had hardly dried. Valkryie fighters could be seen launching and landing occasionnally on the polished main deck, performing their routine checks and controls. The bridge seemed busy, even at a distance, and Nozomi could just imagine the crew running around, making sure everything was in working order, and she could also make out the rail guns and missile launchers moving, as the technicians were calibrating the aiming system. Spurts of plasma shot out of the main engines, as maintenance destroids hurried over to cool of conduits before they overheated. The sheer size of the vessel dwarfed the personnel and cargo carriers that were docked alongside it.

"Ensign.."

The poor boy ran back as soon as she called.

"Yes ma'am?"

Nozomi pointed toward the carrier.

"Is that, that ship, is it the Eden?"

The ensign toward where she was pointing, and gave her a knowing smile.

"Yes ma'am. That ship right there is the UNSS Eden, fresh out of the dry docks 2 weeks ago. There is no ship that's newer in the UN Spacy fleet."

The ensign proceeded to load Nozomi's luggage onto the shuttle as she continued to look out at the battle carrier.

* * *

The bearded middle aged man looked over the file on his desk, as Nozomi fidgeted nervously in her seat across the desk. The room resemble a business office, but the naval furnishings attested the fact that she was sitting in the Captains reading room. The man was Admiral Ryker, the highest ranking officer in the forces to still command a vessel. He mumbled a bit as he read, and ran his hand through his beard, which was greying similarily to the hair on his head.  He finished reading and put the file down.

"Well Miss Kitabayashi, I reviewed your file, and I sincerely believe you will be an asset to our space defense force."

"Thank you sir."

Admiral Ryker closed the file that was in front of him, and looked up at the young pilot in front of him.

"You are a pilot of the highest caliber, and ever single one of your past CO's have sung about your skills with a valkyrie. It is just a shame that you had to be involved in that Zentradi fiasco. I fought in Space War One, and I got to tell you, those Zentran warriors are animals. Should have just killed them all right then, when they were at our mercy. But no, we had to make politicians out of them," 

He leaned over the desk as if to tell a secret, 

"And every single time we stop one of their renegade ships from destroying the very fabric of our society, the Elders Council bitches that we use too much force. That coming from a race that destroyed Earth just so they could get their hands on one measily space fortress. And who do they blame?  The common soldier. That's who. Those stiff coats with their desk jobs don't understand warfare anymore, and they send the ones that don't play their games, like me, into the line of fire!" 

He stopped his rant, and looked at the startled Nozomi. 

"Anyways, if it is any consolation to you, I thought that Mayer should have let you off completely."

Nozomi rubbed the back of her head in humility, unnerved by her new CO's behavior and unending praise for her skills.

"Thank you sir, but the records make me look far better than I truly am..and I truly appreciate the support over my case. But if I hadn't been demoted, I wouldn't have arrived here right?"

The admiral chuckled, and took out a pipe from his desk.

"True, true. Maybe I should thank Mayer for the favor eh?":

They both enjoyed a light laugh, but in quickly faded. Playing with her pony tail, Nozomi sat uncomfortably in the silence.

"Sir, would it be okay if I met my squadron now?"

"Sure. Let me see where they are. One moment." He pressed a button on his terminal, 8 dots appeared on a map of the ship.

"Well, it says here that most of them are in the lounge, but the squad leader is in the hangar. That kid. You're lucky Miss Kitabayashi, that squad leader of yours is a very determined fellow. Won't let you down."

The last words rang in Nozomi's ears, and the pain stung at her heart. She stood up, and saluted her superior.

"Thank you sir, I enjoyed our little talk."

"Come by any time. I would love to here some of your ops stories."

"I would sir, but.."

"Then you would have to kill me. I know, I know. Get out of here! Go meet your squad!"

Nozomi left, heading toward the hangar, and Ryker leaned back into his chair, and lit a match to light his pipe. 

"Politicians..Never learn.."

* * *

Traversing the interior of a New Macross Battle Carrier was much easier than a shipyard, as everything was clearly marked and identified.  Inquiring the nearest terminal about the location of Echo Squad's hangar had immediately produced a map, and now all Nozomi had to do was follow it.

"..Now all I got to do is go down this hall, and it should be the fifth hatch on the right.." She looked up as the door slid open, and into a enormous hallway that stretched out almost past Nozomi's line of sight, with a large hatch door every hundred paces.

"Crap."

Nozomi started walking down the hallway, until she got to the fifth hatch on the right. Printed on the hatch was the emblem of Echo Squadron.

"Here goes nothing."

Pressing the switch, Nozomi stepped back as the large doors hissed open, sending a large gust of air towards her. As her eyes got accustomed to the bright lights, Nozomi walked into the large hangar, containing 9 shiny new VF-19's, gleaming in their blue and white paint scheme. A tall young man with light blond hair wearing a flight suit was instructing a few tech's on how he wanted his valkeryie to be prepared before a sortie.

"Hey!"the man yelled in a slightly british accent, 

"Watch where you throw those tools around! I don't want a hole in my air supply when I'm got bogies on my tail!"

The techs shook their head, and started bowing sarcastically.  Nozomi just watched this unfold, albeit amused.

"I guess he's the guy.."

Nozomi walked up to the pilot, and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Excuse me, are you the Echo Leader?.."

The young man turned around, and recognition struck the both of them almost instantly.

"Lucas?.."

"Nozomi?.."

They stood there in silence for a moment, and the next they were in a extremely friendly bear hug.

"Lucas! How long has it been?! I haven't seen you since the academy!"

"Bloody, look at how you've grown Nozomi! You must have had to beat off all those 'orny fly boys with a stick!"

They broke off the hug, and started to walk away from the bewildered techs to get some privacy.

"So you're Echo Leader now? I'm so proud of you Lucas! My wingman and tutor at the academy, Echo squad commander. I should have known it was you the moment the Admiral told me that everyone was in the lounge except for the squad leader. I guess I have to call you sir now."

Lucas chuckled nervously.

"Well, you know me. Duty first. But you, you're the ace around here. Captain Kitabayashi, Black Hornet Leader, Covert Ops. That sounds exciting."

"Don't remind me. And it's Lieutenant 2nd class now.."

"Oh sorry. That's right, old wounds. Won't bring it up again."

"That's okay Lucas. How about you pay me back by showing me around the ship?" and Nozomi gave nim her best kawaii pouting face. 

"How could I resist." Lucas smiled as he took her arm. 

"This way my lady."

* * *

"So, after the incident, they gave me a purple heart, and the next thing I know, I get promoted to Lieutenant 1st class, and I get my own squadron on the brand new flagship of UN Spacy's expeditionary fleet." 

Lucas said, ending the story.

"Wow, that's amazing story Lucas. I always knew you had it in you."

They both took a sip out of their sodas, and looked out the window of the officer's lounge. The starry sky was framed by the web-like structure of the shipyard, it's stillness contradicted by the hustle and bustle of machinery busily preparing the Eden for her maiden voyage. Lucas finished his drink, and looked back at Nozomi.

"And then, the moment I heard about your demotion, I went to Admiral Ryker and asked that you were transferred to Echo Squadron. We really needed a pilot of your skill for this journey Nozomi. And I could use a officer of your calibur to help me keep the squad in control."

The straw dropped out of her mouth as she stared at him with disbelief. Her heart started beating faster, and she could feel her face reddening. She quickly looked away, trying to calm herself down.  Lucas had always been ther for her at the academy, helping her study Military history and Zentran language classes.  He had always been a big brother type for her, but she had wanted more from the relationship.  After they had graduated, they were seperated, assigned to posts clear across solar systems from each other.  Nozomi had thought she had gotten over her crush, but now as she saw the handsome young man in beside her, she couldn't help the feelings growing again.  She had to fight for her words, as her heart threatened to jump out of her chest.

"I don't know what to say Lucas. I mean, I owe you a lot now. If it weren't for this post, I'd probably be flying a cargo cruiser for a two bit company."

Lucas chuckled at her words.

"Don't belittle yourself Nozomi. A pilot with your kill ratio would have found a job with plenty of posts. I'm just lucky that I got my request in first."

Absorbing the words, she felt better than she had since the incident.

"Thank you Lucas."

And she meant it with all her heart.

* * *

The next day, the pilots and techs of Echo Squadron were assembled in the briefing room. There were rumors floating around what the meeting was about.  Corporal Yang had suggested that squad leader was going to give them a raise, while Sergeant Pourtous thought that he was going to yell at them for spending so much time in the lounge playing cards and VFX 2054 on the big screen. But, the most believed rumor was that Lieutenant Everett was going to choose one of them to be his wingman and deputy squad leader. They were chatting up all the possibilities when Lucas walked in, and the talk abruptly stopped as they all stood and saluted their superior.

"At ease gentlemen." He motioned his pilots to sit, as he prepared his visual aids.

"As you well know, Echo squadron has NINE, count them NINE Excalibur advanced variable fighters. Now, there's one of me, and seven of you that can actually fly these things. That makes eight. Does anyone see where I'm going with this?"

The Hispanic pilot raised his hand.

"You going to sell it for scrap and take us on vacation sir?" He said, as his buddies patted him on the back. The room erupted into laughter.

Annoyed, Lucas spoke up.

"Well, Sgt. Mendez, for that remark, no one will get shore leave."

The laughter stopped 

"Good. Before I continue, I will like to tell you jokers a story.  Lights please."

The lights turned off, and the holo projector turned on, showing a picture of the UN Spacy academy.

"As most of you know, in 2051, I graduated from the UN Spacy Junior Flight Officers Academy. I had the honor to learn under some of the greatest aces ever to touch the stick of a valkeryie fighter."

The picture changed to a picture of a younger Lucas in a academy uniform with a bunch of his colleagues.

"During that time, I met a very talented pilot, whose natural ability allowed her to attempt maneuvers in the VT-11's that you slackers can never hope to achieve."

The picture changed to a picture of Nozomi, in a flight suit climbing out of a VT-11. This caused a reaction, as all 15 of the male pilots and techs started to hoot and holler.

"Eh boss, who's the babe?"

"That "babe" is Nozomi Kitabayashi, former squad leader of the 17th Black Hornets and she has a kill ratio of 63 gentlemen." 

This effectively stopped the hooting. 

" She is also the new pilot who will pilot the extra Excalibur AVF we have, and will be your new deputy squad leader. Nozomi, will you please come in."

The door opened, and Nozomi walked in, and the crew started to hoot and holler again.

"Sorry about this, but I don't think they've seen a woman save in a magazine for a while" Lucas whispered to her.

"Eh, that's okay." She faced the crew. 

"Wow, what a welcome! I'm flattered to say the least. And to think I was worrying about my weight. Do you think I'm fat boys?"

Suffice it to say, the hollering got louder. Nozomi noticed that 

Lucas visibly embarrassed, so she leaned toward Lucas.

"See, I told you it wasn't a problem." She whispered to him. She turned back to the crew 

"Anyways, I would like to say how honored I am to be.."

She was cut off as claxons started to sound off. 

"Red Alert, Red Alert. Meltrandi Attack. All crew to battle stations. I repeat.."

The rest of the message fell onto deaf ears, as the crew had already rushed toward the hangar.

* * *

"Falcon, Excelsior and Griffin squadron are clear. Toro, Raptor and Echo prepare to launch."

The nine pilots of Echo were already snug in their cockpits, but Nozomi was still uncomfortable with the idea of getting into combat again.

She was checking her ailerons when Lucas's face appeared on her comm screen.

"Nervous Nozomi?"

"A little Lucas. I haven't flown in combat since.."

"I know. I know you'll do great." He gave a thumbs up, and then his screen turned off.

Nozomi turned her attention back to the control checks, but noticed as Lucas' fighter was launched off with the catapult. She felt movement as her own fighter was being led by a dolly to the catapult.

"Well, this is it. Don't lose it now." She looked over to her right, and gave the tech a thumbs up.  Her fighter was launched off, and she quickly tried to catch up with Lucas' fighter. They were soon joined by the rest of the squad, and they headed off toward the combat zone. The area looked barren, until a long line of explosions gave evidence of the first engagement.

"Echo Leader to Echo squad. Orders are to disable. Lethal force is unadvised." 

"Roger." they chimed.

"Ok, Echo squad break!"

The squad broke formation, and started to engage the Meltrandi. The Meltrandi were known across the galaxy for their savage fighting techniques, and they proved it, forcing the UN Spacy forces to regroup, lest suffer heavy losses. Even though they seemed to be winning, it was evident that the attack was ill prepared, as the Meltran did not seem to know which of the docked ships to attack. It seemed to be a simple attack in desperation.

Nozomi noticed this early during the fight, as she launched off her preliminary medium range missile volley. She tried hard not to think about the incident, and decide to let her instincts take over. As she got nearer to the apex of the fighting, five Quedlunn Rau armors popped up from her right, and Nozomi had to bank hard to avoid their laser fire. Breathing erratically, Nozomi frantically tried to regain her composure as explosions blossomed around her. She pulled hard on the controls, her knuckles whitening under the pressure, and forced the fighter to pull an inverted loop, right into the path of a battle pod.

Nozomi screamed, sure of the inevitable, when the battle pod exploded, revealing an Excalibur fighter in battroid mode, it's gun still smoking from fire.

"Eh, ma'am, I thought you were an ace?" the hispanic voice of Sgt. Medez cackled over the radio, 

"Or are you chicken to fight when the enemy knows you're coming?"

Nozomi looked at the smiling face of the amused pilot on her comm screen, and gritted her teeth. She knew his words weren't true, yet they still stung. Gripping her controls, she fingered the trigger.

"I'll show you who's the chicken, punk." she spat as she closed the connection, firing her boosters back toward the battle.

It was war now. If not for the safety of civilians, then for her pride. Nozomi knew she had to show the squad she was every bit the pilot Lucas said she was. And she knew she had to prove it to herself too. She quickly spotted three battlepods chasing a friendly fighter, so she rolled the fighter to intercept. With a burst of laser fire, she shot down the closet one, then changed to gerwalk mode, and unleashed a flurry of gunfire, obliterating the last pursuing pod, and several others in the area. The pilot waved in thanks, and flew back into combat. Satisfied with herself, Nozomi looked at her radar for more bogies.

Lucas was enjoying the battle tremendously, darting between the battle, soaking in the thrill of combat. He noticed the pod following him, and shot it down with his rear facing head lasers. He was about to turn around and aid another squad when the radio crackled to life.

"This is Eden control to all AVF squadrons. Distract the enemy until the mothership arrives. We need time to charge the Macross Cannon."

Lucas finished off a loop-spin maneuver, ending with a missle volley to take out five Meltrandi, and signalled Nozomi.

"How are you holding up?" he asked.

"I'm fine, fine, hold on.."

Nozomi spun her AVF, and transformed, spraying the two Queadlunn Rau power armors pursuing with fire from her gunpod. Then she diverted her attention to the screen

"Yeah, it feels good."

"Ha! Just don't embarass me in front of the boys with all your kills okay?" he joked.

Lucas could see Nozomi grin even behind her visor.

"Well, if you can't keep up, it's your fault. Echo 2 out."

The battle continued, as Echo squadron held it's own, keeping the blood thristy Meltran away from the Shipyard and the Eden. As if on cue, the Meltran mothership folded in behind the Meltran cruisers to give reinforcement, unknowingly stepping right into the trap. The UN Spacy forces immediately retreated, leaving the Lamprez class ship in plain sight of the charging Macross Cannon. The Meltran realized the trick, but it was too late as the cannon fired, obliterating everything within a 2 mile radius.

As the debris settled, the AVF squadron's quickly captured all remaining Meltran.

* * *

As Nozomi stepped out of her cockpit, she was mobbed by the rest of the squad. They put her on their shoulders, and started to carry her toward the exit hatch.

"Guys, guys," She pleaded, "Let me down!"

"Come on Nozomi, you deserve it!"chimed Lucas,"You probably took out more bogeys than the rest of us combined."

"Really, it was a lucky break, I got them in a missile spread, but yeah, I was pretty good out there wasn't I?"

"Ma'am," one of the pilots added, "If I had your skills, I'd brag my ass off."

"Eh,"interrupted Mik Mendez, "I was the one who saved her ass in the start of the melee.."

They all stopped, and looked at Mendez, and seemed to all shout at once.

"SHUT UP MENDEZ!"

"Eh, I was just stating a fact.." he said as he big sweated. 

They continued toward the door, and started to sing "For she's a joly good pilot" when they got to the door and were knocked over by the gust of air, sending Nozomi flying.

"Haha..AHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

*THUD*

* * *

JOURNAL ENTRY-Kitabayashi Nozomi

-Dear Journal,

I can't begin to describe how good it felt to pilot a valkyrie again, feeling the rush of combat overwhelm me, knowing I protected fellow citizens of UN Spacy from harm. This time, I knew I did the right thing. I feel like I belong, I feel like I am needed. Perhaps it was a blessing that I was transferred to Echo, because I never would have saw Lucas again, or any of the crew I now serve with. I am certain that everything will turn out alright.

-END ENTRY 

Nozomi turned off her terminal, and reapplied the icepack to her head. It had been a frantic month, but now she felt comfortable with her surrondings, the first time she had been for a while. She walked over to bed, and looked out the window, where she could see the star filled vastness of space. She had to admit to herself that they were as beautiful as when she first looked at the sky so many years ago.

"I wonder if he's got a girlfriend yet?" She sighed as her mind wandered. She looked out the window for a liitle while longer, before she got up and went to the washroom to prepare for bed.


TO BE CONTINUED

Next Chapter 'UNNS EDEN HASHIN (LAUNCH)!" 


Author's note: As a kid, the first anime that I could remember watching was Doraemon. I can still recite the theme song, I still own some of the manga.  The second anime I can remember watching is SUPER DIMENSIONAL FORTRESS MACROSS - DO YOU REMEMBER LOVE?. Man, this movie rocked. If it weren't for Macross, I don't think I'd be the artist and pilot (Yes ladies, I have a pilot's license ^_~). Well, other than the fact that my aunt was a fashion designer and I also saw Top Gun that is. But you get my point.  Anyways, I thought that there isn't enough Macross Fan fics. And I don't mean Robotech fics. Don't get me started about Carl Macek. So I decided to write one. I was not planning to add all the mecha action so early, wanting to rely more on story than mecha, like Mobile Police Patlabour, but the story was a bit short, so I added it. I was never known to be very long winded in my story telling. Short and sweet. I hope it works though.

Phil Kwok, pot_roast@hotmail.com

 

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