Episode 1: New Mission
-Vajra War, AD 2059-
"Virgo 2, can you hear me?! There's a Vajra hot on my tail and I can't shake it!"
Kazumi Shinomiya in his VF-171 heard the voice of his squadmate, Virgo 4. He himself is being chased by a Hound Vajra and it is taking him all his skills to avoid being torn to pieces. The 171, although a good machine, is not really a high-performance unit compared to the upgraded VF-171EX and the more advanced VF-25 and VF-27 which Kazumi had been hoping to get his hands on for quite some time.
As a result, Kazumi has to compensate his craft's deficiency with his skill. He and the Virgo squadron had just arrived as part of the reinforcement from Macross Fleet 22. The distress call from the SMS Frontier branch turns out to be worse than he can imagine as they came face-to-face with a legion of Vajra.
"I'm a little busy here! Virgo 5, can you go help Virgo 4?"
"Can't! I can't shake this large bug- Uwaah!"
Kazumi heard the scream of one of his long-time friend and saw a nearby VF-171 exploded in a ball of fire. A hound Vajra emerged from the flaming wreckage.
"Virgo 5! Jun! Dammit!"
Kazumi deployed his valkyrie's legs to the front as he push the thruster to its fullest, propelling him and his valkyrie backward as he move his control to avoid the vajra behind him. Once the vajra passed him, he switched to battroid mode and pull the trigger on his gunpod. He aimed at the implant stabbed into its neck. Once it was destroyed, the Vajra calmed down. He also aimed at the implant on the Hound Vajra that killed his friend and shot it.
He grit his teeth in anger and look down onto the planet where the perpetrators who are using the Vajra awaits. He is not angry at the Vajra they are fighting right now. The alien creatures are just as much victim as them.
"Damn Galaxy pulling a stunt like this."
Kazumi cursed as he once again switch to fighter mode. He sped towards Virgo 4 who is still trying to shake off her pursuer. With the Vajra's attention focused on Virgo 4, Virgo 2 closes in from behind as Kazumi carefully takes aim at the implant embedded into the green Vajra. Once again he pull the trigger and the implant was destroyed, calming the Vajra.
"Carol, are you alright?"
He asked Virgo 4 through the comm. The girl piloting the VF-171 breathe out a sigh of relief as she got a temporary reprieve from intense combat with most of the battle in space nearly done.
"I'm alright Kazumi. But Jun and Josh! They're…"
Both pilots wanted to cry at the lost of their longtime friends. They have been together since their academy days and now two of them were killed in a split second. The voice of their commander did not allow them to do so though.
"Virgo 2, Virgo 4, Kazumi and Carol, are you guys okay?"
Virgo 1, the leader of Virgo squadron appears on the comm.
"We're fine Alisa. Where are…"
Kazumi never finished his question when a massive energy beam shot out from the atmosphere not far from them. Everyone was shocked with the massive energy shot from a macross canon that tears through quite a lot of the reinforcement army. Standing on the surface of the planet just in front of Frontier's main Island is the Frontier fleet's trump card and its very own Macross, the Battle Frontier. It is now covered in what appears to be body parts of a massive Vajra.
"Is that…"
"Battle Frontier?!"
Kazumi cannot believe his eyes at the thing that was once Battle Frontier. Have Galaxy become so crazy to do something like that to their sister fleet?
"…Virgo squadron, we got a new order. The fleet will descend and use the Quarters' quantum canon to hit the Battle Frontier simultaneously. We're going down."
""Roger!""
Obeying their captain's command, the Virgo squadron descend onto the planet. What happens next will be something Kazumi will never forget for the rest of his life. His first major battle and his first time entering an atmosphere and flying in the real sky… and his first time witnessing the golden wings.
When the Virgo squadron reached the planet's surface, they are again faced with opposition, this time not from the Vajra. A beam canon pierced through the cockpit of Virgo 4's unit, instantly killing Carol. Kazumi would've suffered the same fate if it weren't for his quick response but it doesn't change the fact that the Virgo squadron had now been reduced to just him and Virgo 1.
"Carol! What the hell… where did that come from?!"
Kazumi saw something flew past the two of them with unbelievable speed. It is a fighter, a VF with green color and a long rifle. Kazumi recognize those characteristics and considering who their enemy is, he should've expected to see one sooner or later.
"Kazumi, it's down to just the two of us! Be careful, that's a VF-27. Those units are monsters piloted by cybernetically enhanced humans."
"Tch, enhanced or not, I'll take them down!"
Kazumi turn his Nightmare Plus around to chase after the Lucifer. He look around to find other squadrons that had entered the atmosphere also engaged in their own battle against Galaxy's elite. He locked on his target with both missiles and gunpod. Once he pull the trigger, the VF-171 unleash its payload on the VF-27.
Unexpectedly, or predictably considering the pilot and machine's spec, the Lucifer valkyrie transformed to battroid mode and shoot down all the missiles while avoiding the shots from Kazumi's gunpod. Kazumi too turn his 171 to battroid mode and engage his thruster to its fullest when the 27 return fire with its own gunpod.
"Kazumi, don't face it alone! The VF-27's spec is above even the VF-25! You can't win in single combat!"
Alisa warned. Kazumi slicked his tongue in annoyance. Alisa is right. The difference in spec between their machines is just too great. Kazumi knew he is a good pilot but there's only so much he can do with a vastly inferior machine.
"We'll take it down together!"
"Right, let's do this!"
"Chiheisen wo yusaburu kaze
honoo wa mada moeteiru ka"
"Ehh… this is…"
"Sheryl Nome and Ranka Lee?"
For a moment Kazumi's attention was grabbed by the source of the song he is hearing. Inside the Island 1 right in front of SMS Frontier branch's Macross Quarter on a stage stood Sheryl Nome and Ranka Lee together. Singing in the middle of the battlefield. This reminds Kazumi of the stories of how Lynn Minmay's song ended the first ever space war.
Kazumi had always wondered about that. A single song can end war? How does that even work? There are records of Macross 7's Sound Force being effective but Kazumi still finds it dubious. And now he is witnessing something similar happening.
"Furuenagara sekai no iriguchi ni tatsu
omoi todokeru made shirenai."
But if there is one effect he could notice immediately is that everyone's spirit seems to go up.
"Kazumi, let's finish this!"
"Yeah, let's."
"Sono tsubasa wa valkyria
kizutsuita senshi no mae valkyria."
"Ghost-V9 approaching."
"They're just AI!"
Now flanking the VF-27 the two remaining member of Virgo squadron are two Ghost-V9. But this does not deter Kazumi at all. Transforming into fighter mode he push the Nightmare Plus' thruster to its limit as he charge ahead towards the enemy.
"Take down the Ghosts first. Shooting down that 27 will be harder with those things around."
"Roger."
"Maioriru gensou no koibito
sono tamashii michibiku tame niji no hashi wo wataru valkyria"
Kazumi felt his head clear as he focus on taking down the Ghosts first. His hands on the controls of his unit. He could feel it.
"Even if you have better spec… I'm still the better pilot!"
The Ghosts and Lucifer open fire. To the shock of the Lucifer's pilot, Kazumi calmly move the controller of his unit and managed to dodge the volley of bullets all by mere inches. His fighter made precise movements as he tilted it left and right to avoid being hit.
"I can see it."
Though following the Ghosts' movements is hard, Kazumi felt like he could see it. Taking aim with his gunpod, Kazumi calmly wait while dodging the shots from the enemy units. As he finally got closer, Kazumi pull the trigger and shot down one of the Ghosts. At the same time, Alisa came from behind with her own 171 and taking the computer by surprise shot down the second V9.
"Unmei ni somuite mo valkyria
namida ni hikisakarete mo valkyria"
"We got them!"
"Right. Time to attend to our frie-"
Alisa never managed to finish her sentence when she experience heavy turbulence caused by her fighter being shot through the right wing by the 27's deam canon. Sparks flew inside her cockpit as the damage in her VF spreads.
"Tch, too early to celebrate."
"Alisa!"
"Damn, I'm eject-"
The comm line was suddenly cut as Kazumi watch his squad leader's VF losing altitude and explode.
"Alisa!"
"Yoake mae ni kagayakanai inochi wa nai
Aishiteru"
Tears flow out from Kazumi's eyes as the leader of Virgo squadron fell in battle. They had been together since the academy days. They have flown a few battles and emerged unscratched. But one single major battle and now only he is left alive.
"So this is war huh. Well I'll show you."
Kazumi switched his fighter to battroid mode and once again push it to its limit. Utilizing all thrusters available, Kazumi maneuvered through the rain of bullets and missiles that the VF-27 unleashed. Kazumi kept shooting down missiles as his 171 danced through the barrage.
The 27 switched to fighter mode once Kazumi got too close for comfort.
"Hikari no yoroi kono mi ni matoi sora o kakeru
valkyria… SAYONARA NO TSUBASA"
Kazumi gave chase in his fighter mode. He kept the enemy unit in his sight as he chase the 17 while firing shots that the cyborg pilot only barely able to avoid using his superior reaction time and the unit's high spec.
And then once more Battle Frontier shot.
-March, AD 2068, Planet Ragna-
-Macross Elysion-
"Hah, a replacement for Messer? I thought we don't need one."
"Why do we need one now, captain?"
The entirety of the famous Delta platoon gathered in the briefing room together after Arad Moulders called for them. Instead of Arad, it was Kaname Buccaneer who answers Hayate's question. Kaname manipulated her terminal and shows a holographic image of each Walkure member and then an image of the protoculture ruin in the star system.
"I understand your feeling but we're not just replacing Messer. We do it because we need to. After the final battle against Roid Brehm, we were informed that some NUNS higher up have become aware of Walkure's role in the battle, especially Mikumo and Freyja."
"The official story is that Mikumo was captured due to her strong fold wave and was brainwashed to sing for Windermere."
Arad said. Everyone is now paying attention to what Kaname will say next once Mikumo and Freyja's name came up. They dreaded it and hoped that the incident will be an isolated one but of course such a large battle will be made known sooner or later. As expected, the aftermath is something they should worry about. Kaname begin her explanation.
"The details still remain classified to everyone but some NUNS people knew about Mikumo's role as the Star Singer and Freyja's song was the one that stopped her. We received words from Lady M that there are elements in the NUNS military that are targeting her for her power."
"The power that could destroy a whole NUNS fleet and put a whole star system under her control, there are people who would love to get their hands on that kind of power. This is different from all previous conflicts such as the Vajra War. This time, loathe as I am to admit it, Mikumo weaponized her song and almost put the whole Globular Cluster under Roid Brehm's control.
Hayate, Mirage, and Chuck don't look too happy but they can see where their captain is going with this.
"Walkure, especially Mikumo and Freyja, need the Delta flight's protection now more than ever. The four of you won't be enough. There needs to be at least one pilot for each Walkure member. Lady M had decided to give us one more pilot so each Walkure member will have one pilot as their partner."
Hayate felt like they are replacing Messer, which they are, and is not very happy with the new arrangement but he can see why it is important. Indeed if Walkure is being targeted then they will need more manpower to help protect them. If one pilot is to be assigned to one member of the Walkure then they are one pilot short. Hayate can accept this logically but that doesn't mean that he has to be happy about it.
The faces of the Delta platoon member began to appear above the hologram of Walkure members. Above Reina is Chuck, above Makina is Mirage, above Kaname is Arad and above Freyja is Hayate. This is obviously the pairing arrangement between pilot and diva. Since Mikumo's pilot slot is the only one empty, that means the new pilot will be assigned as her protector.
"The setup is determined by how well the pairing work together. Chuck had been on missions with Reina before and considering his unit and Reina's specialty, this pairing was decided. Hayate is obviously paired with Freyja and Mirage with Makina since the captain will be with me. The problem is Mikumo. Let's just hope that she can get along with the new pilot."
Kaname said. Everyone nodded in acceptance. They have no problem with this arrangement and indeed the pairings have been arranged to be the best for each of them, though Mikumo's new partner is concerning because he's a new face and most of all, because the pilot will be paired with Mikumo, the very reason this arrangement was made in the first place.
"So who is this new pilot we're getting?"
Hayate ask out of curiosity.
"He's… someone Lady M had admitted to be more than a match with Maximillian Jenius."
…
"So this is Ragna huh?"
A twenty four years old Kazumi Shinomiya look up to the sky of Ragna seeing the sun shining down onto the planet. It's hard to believe that not long ago this planet was the site of a major battle between Chaos' Ragna branch and the Kingdom of Windermere. Everything seems just normal… apart from the protoculture ruin still standing right on the sea of Ragna.
He was a former NUNS pilot now working for Chaos after quitting NUNS. Graduated as top of his class in the military academy at the age of fifteen, he flew with the NUNS for three years until he quits and join Chaos after feeling that working with the NUNS is not in his best interest, especially after losing his entire squad in their first major battle and the matter with the special force that led him to quitting.
The black haired man smiled as he felt the wind brushing against his face. He won't waste this opportunity. He will be joining the now famous Delta squadron after all. He heard that they're one pilot short after their top ace was shot down and never got round to replacing him. Messer Ihlefeld, the Shinigami. He'd heard the name. He also heard that someone else managed to best the pilot who shot down Messer in the first major battle in Ragna.
Kazumi turn to the towering figure of Macross Elysion. That's where he needs to go. It's going to be a long walk for him but he doesn't mind. He still has some time and it would be nice to get to know the planet he'll be working on from now. Kazumi was about to start his trek towards the Macross when he heard a beautiful voice carried by the wind.
"Itoshiki kimi yo ima doko ni iru no…?"
'A song? Is it one of the Walkure?'
Curious after hearing the voice, Kazumi follows it to the source which leads him to a beach. It's not far from the path he took and he still has time to spare anyway. The young pilot finally found the source of the voice and was met with the sight of a woman with very long violet hair divided into four sections with a bun on top spreading her arms as she sings on top of her lungs.
"Iro mo imi mo nakushita sekai. Takaku tooku toberu hazunanoni. Mienai sora ni tsubasa chigireru…"
At that moment, Kazumi Shinomiya was taken by the sight he is seeing. Her figure singing under the sun facing the sea is just so beautiful. Her voice so captivating that Kazumi can do nothing but stare at the sight. It took him a minute to finally realize that the woman had stopped singing and her red eyes are now locked with his.
"Uhh… hello?"
Kazumi felt like he should know the beauty that could match a goddess who is now facing him but he just can't put where. He knew he should know her but he just can't put the face with the name. Truthfully, he had met with many famous singers in his work, including the Fire Bomber's Basara and Mylene and Frontier's Sheryl Nome and Ranka Lee. But to him, not even the glamorous Sheryl Nome could match with this woman who he is sure is part of Walkure.
"You are… the new pilot commander Arad spoke about, right?"
"Yes. How did you…"
It was then that Kazumi finally realize who he's speaking to. She is without a doubt the one known as Mysterious Venus and lead singer of Walkure. No wonder she looks so familiar. He was so entranced by her singing that he managed to forget who she is for a moment. The beauty he is looking at is Mikumo Guynemer.
The one said to be the Star Singer.
