[FFML] [nadesico] The Wrath

(Author�s Note: As you read this, it will no doubt occur to you, as it did to me, that this fan fiction would work better if it were set in post-�Prince Of Darkness� continuity. However, I hate �Prince Of Darkness� for the way it sabotaged the ending of the Nadesico TV series, and as such, do not consider it to be part of true-Nadesico canon. Therefore, this fic is set in the TV continuity.)

W*ING Higley Presents:

Nadesico II:

The Wrath Of Kahn

(Historians� Note: This story diverges from standard Nadesico continuity after episode #9, when the Nadesico came under control of the United Space Forces.)

Personal Log: Ryoko Subaru, Commanding Aestivalis Wing, Designation Beta: We are currently on the third leg of our patrol along the �buffer zone� between Earth and Jovian controlled space. So far, we have had no encounters with the enemy.*

Space was, boring. After two months on the Nadesico, it was the only real conclusion Ryoko had been able to make about her role as an Aestivalis pilot. Of course, it didn�t help when you were forced to spend hours upon end in the cramped cockpit of an Aestivalis, with nothing but the blackness of space to look at.

Conclusions.....

Something she had not been able to make enough of, it seemd, especially when it came to a certain

cook-turned-reluctant-pilot.

�Akito....� she said softly. Not softly enough, however.

�Oh my, it sounds like our fearless leader can�t get her dream lover out of her head.� Hikaru grinned evilly as her face popped up in a Comm-Window (tm).

�But of course, our fearless leader takes on all challenges, even vying for the affections of a man with whom two other girls have already laid claim to him.� Izumi Maki had her usual sardonic smile on. Ryoko wished she could punch through the Comm-Window, but that would have resulted in the cockpit window being smashed.

�Will you two cut it out, I DO NOT feel that way about Tenkawa! Really!�

Hikaru�s grin grew even wider. �So why are you blushing?�

�I am NOT BLUSHING!� Still, Ryoko could feel the heat on her cheeks.

�I just have a really bad sunburn.�

�Right,� Izumi said, �even though Mr. Prospector slashed the maintenance budget, and we haven�t been able to fix the tanning booths for a week now because of it.�

�Stop it, I swear, I don�t have any feelings for that dumbkopf....�

Ryoko�s words were cut off as the automatic alarm cut in:

�RED ALERT! RED ALERT! EMERGENCY DISTRESS SIGNAL RECEIVED!�

Megumi�s voice cut in, �We�re getting something from beyond the buffer zone. I�m patching it through.�

�This is the Kobayashi Maru, a Class-B freighter six days out of Moon Colony Alpha. We have struck a gravitic mine. Can you help us Nadesico?�

Yurika appeared on a Comm-Window. �It�s your call, Ryoko. We�re too far out of range, so you�ll have to tow them out of the buffer zone if we�re to render any help.�

Ryoko hesitated. Her consciousness screamed for her to order her squadron into the zone, and save these innocent people. Yet to do so may invite certain death, who knew how many Jovian robot ships could be waiting for them.

�Izumi, Hikaru, prepare to enter the buffer zone.�

Hikaru spoke up, �May I remind you Ryoko, that we would be entering into enemy territory.�

�I�m well aware of that. But we�ve got no choice. Lock onto that signal and head in, full thrusters.�

It took only a few seconds. �We are now entering into Jovian controlled space,� Izumi reported tonelessly.

Megumi popped up, looking frantic. �Ryoko, I�ve lost the Kobayashi Maru�s signal!�

�What?!!?�

�There�s no trace of them now!�

Ruri�s emotionless face then popped in, �Scanners confirm. Two Chulips incoming at your location.�

Ryoko tried not to panic. �Izumi, Hikaru, arm your weapons. Ruri, how long till Akito can get here to cover our escape.�

�Estimate 5 minutes for Tenkawa to arrive at maximum thrust.�

�Damn, that�s too long.�

�Too late, they�ve got a firing solution,� Hikaru said.

�Brace for impact.� Ryoko shuttered as the Chulip�s main cannons slammed into her Aestivalis.

�AAAGHHH!� Hikaru screamed as her Aestivalis disintegrated.

�I DON�T WANNA DIE! I DON�T WANNA-.� Izumi�s death screams were cut short as her comm system melted.

Ryoko breathed hard. �Ejection systems fried, weapons off-line. Ruri, do me a favor. Tell Akito that-.� Ryoko�s words were cut off as a white light engulfed the cockpit.

�All right, that�s enough. Open her up,� Admiral Misamaru said.

Ryoko blinked for a second in the hard light, regaining her bearings. She chided herself for getting caught up in the fantasy. She wasn�t really in outer space, getting killed. Rather, she and the rest of the crew were at United Space Forces headquarters in Tokyo, undergoing training exercises as part of the Nadesico�s �annexation� into the United Forces fleet.

Admiral Misamaru surveyed the wreckage, acrid smoke emanating from the �blast points� where laser fire had �impacted� on the Aestivalis simulators.

�Could be worse, I guess. Ms. Subaru, take your crew to meeting room B for full debriefing.�

�Yes sir.� As Ryoko left the room, she was stopped by Megumi Reynard, the ship�s communications officer. She had an angry look on her face.

�Something wrong, Megumi?�

�I overheard that little argument,� Megumi stated simply.

Ryoko reddened, but quickly regained her composure. �So?�

Megumi sighed. �Look Ryoko, I�m already competing with the Captain for Akito�s affections, I don�t need anyone else interfering.�

Ryoko became defiant. �Look, Megumi, I said it to the Wonder Twins back there, and I�ll say it again. I don�t have any feelings for Akito, and you and Yurika are more than welcome to him.

Megumi studied her for a moment before saying, �Good. Look, I�m sorry if I jumped to any conclusions back there.�

Ryoko smiled. �Hey, no problem. Things like that seem to be pretty common among this crew.�

�Yeah, well, see ya.�

As Megumi walked off, Ryoko thought to herself, �I do not have any feelings for that cook, right?�

*****

After getting reamed out by her father over her crew�s poor performance in the simulator, Yurika was distracted enough that she almost failed to notice Ruri Hoshino�s presence in the foyer of United Forces HQ.

�Oh, I�m sorry Ruri. Was there something you wanted?�

�I merely wished to inquire about our crew�s performance rating today.�

Yurika sweatdropped. �It�s probably best if you don�t, Ruri.�

�I see. Oh yes, I also wanted to give you this.� She handed Yurika a large, old-fashioned print book, wrapped in a ribbon. �Happy birthday, Captain.�

�Oh, why thank you Ruri.� Yurika really don�t know what to say. This was so out of character for Ruri, who was usually so unsentimental. She removed the ribbon and flipped to the inside cover, it was a copy of A Tale Of Two Cities.

�I hope you like it, Captain. I know of your fondness for classic literature.�

Yurika smiled, fond memories of her precious Akito trying to teach her to appreciate the works of Dickens and Grisham back when they were children on Mars Colony. It had gone over her head back then (and still did, actually) but it was a link to Akito, so she began collecting classic novels shortly after her father began giving her an allowance.

Yurika flipped to the opening page and read aloud, �It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.� She grinned, �message Ryoko?�

�None that I am aware of Captain, except of course, happy birthday.� Ruri smiled slightly, which was even more out of character for her.

�Thank you. Well, if you�ll excuse me, I have to catch a shuttle back to Space Dock.�

*****

*Ship�s Log: Jun Aoi, 1st Officer, Reporting: The USF Reliant is now in it�s third week of surveying Sol System�s inner planets to find a suitable test site for Project Genesis. As it stands, our survey of Mercury is almost 35% complete. Captain Winfield remains confident that we will find a proper location for the test to occur. As for myself, all I can say is, THIS IS REALLY BORING!*

Jun Aoi liked to do things �by the book.� He had done things �by the book� for as long as he could remember. His military career had been �by the book.� Start out as a lowly private, work your way up to corporal, and so on. His one-sided romance with Yurika had been �by the book.� Always be there for her, make it plain that you care for her, and someday she�ll come around (at least, that was the idea, though so far it had been a spectacular failure). And so, deep down, Jun Aoi had come to hate doing things �by the book.�

As it was, doing things �by the book� was currently responsible for him sitting in front of a scanner board staring at the exact same section of Mercury that he had been staring at for two weeks now.

�Anything, Mr. Aoi?� Captain Winfield stood over his shoulder.

�Nothing. This section of Mercury is completely devoid of life, except......�

Winfield arched an eyebrow. �Except?�

�Well, we are on the planet�s dark side, so our scanners can�t operate at peak efficiency. As such, we�ve run into a discrepancy on scanner #5.

�What type of discrepancy?�

�I know this may sound silly, but it looks like some sort of escape pod is sitting on the planet�s surface.�

�An escape pod?�

�Yes sir, a large one, about the side of a football field?�

�African or European?�

Jun looked confused, �I�m sorry?�

�Uh, inside joke, never mind. Well,� Winfield said, patting Jun on his back, �looks like we�ll have to go down there and see what this is all about. Crewman, prepare a shuttle.�

*****

Mercury was, by the Solar System�s standards, something of a garden spot. Not when compared to Earth or Mars, mind you, but when compared to Venus, Jupiter and the other gaseous nightmares on the outer fringes of Sol, it wasn�t that bad a place to visit.

Still, Jun Aoi thought, he wouldn�t want to live here.

Actually, Jun didn�t want to be here at all, especially without an Aestivalis to back him up. As it was, he and Captain Winfield were protected only by their pressurized space suits.

�Interesting,� Winfield said. He shone his halogen flashlight over the hull of the massive escape pod that now lay revealed on the dark side of Mercury.

�Mr. Aoi, how could something like this escape scans from Earth?�

�As I said, sir, Mercury�s dark side prevented us from finding it. The scanners work on a system of energy waves being bounced back by the object being scanned. Unfortunately, the dark sides of planets have a nasty habit of absorbing scan waves, which is why it�s taken us two weeks to get this far along with Mercury�s mapping.�

Winfield stared at him. �Jun...�

�Yes sir?�

�I never want to hear that much techno-babble from you ever again. Even the audience is scratching their heads at your last speech.�

�Yes sir.�

�Ah, here�s a door, let�s go in.�

�But sir, shouldn�t we conduct a security scan first?�

The captain ignored him and went on in. Jun turned to face the audience.

�You see, this is the stupidity I have to deal with on a daily basis. You understand why I act this way, don�t you?�

*****

The inside of the escape pod was what you�d largely expect. Cryo tubes for interstellar travel, bunk beds, and lots of dirty clothes laying around. By all evidence, the pod had, until recently, been inhabited.

As Jun rummaged through the personal effects in the crew quarters, he discovered something he wished he hadn�t, the pod�s dedication plaque from the ship it had launched from.

�USF Cha Cha Maru? OH NO! CAPTAIN, WE�VE GOT TO GET OUT OF HERE!�

Jun tugged at Capt. Winfield�s arm and pulled him out of the pod.

�What are you doing Aoi? Leggo of my arm, this is most unusual....�

Winfield�s sentence was cut off as he stared at the thirty or so people adorned in ragged space suits that now surrounded the escape pod.

*****

Jun�s worst fears were realized as the leader of the group removed his helmet, revealing a man in his mid-50s with shaggy gray hair and a craggy face.

�Khan...� Jun said as he recalled the man�s name.

To Be Continued.....

*****

Author�s Note: And so, the first non-lemon Nadesico fic turns out to be a fusion of Nadesico and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. I�m sorry.

My apologies to anyone abhorred by the idea of a Ryoko-Akito pairing, but I like it. Yes, I know their relationship in the TV show turned out much different, but the same thing is true for Asuka and Shinji in EVA, yet we get tons of fics putting those two together.

*****

In-Jokes:

Dumbkopf- reference to the fact that this is the second series to cast Tiffany Grant and Spike Spencer as giant robot pilots.

African or European- reference to the swallow joke in Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

Cha Cha Maru- name of the ship in �Plastic Little.�

Capt. Winfield- reference to actor Paul Winfield, who played Capt. Terrell in Star Trek II.

In-joke listings- reference to the in-joke listings in the fic Ryoga: The More Things Change.

*****

Cast:

Yurika: Jennifer Earhart

Jun: Mark Laskowski

Megumi: Jenni Strader

Ruri: Kira

Ryoko: Tiffany Grant

Admiral Misamaru: Ted Pfister

Capt. Winfield: Paul Winfield

Khan: Ricardo Montalban

Nadesico II: The Wrath Of Khan written by W*ING Higley, adapted from the screenplay for �Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan� by Nicholas Meyers.

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