Disclaimer: Yeah, Yeah. None of this is official. I don't own Vandread, I own only my imagination.
A/N: I have realized a major oversight in the fanfiction responses. Everyone is writing about the journey whether it is the journey back or the journey away from Tarrak and Mejale. No one has bothered to write about what might have happened at Tarrak and Mejale while they were gone. I'm writing this to remedy that.
On board the new section of the Ikazuchi
The chief engineer watches in horror as all his work refitting and cleaning the old Ikazuchi (Which he was unable to finish because of the schedule. The cleaning part, I mean.).
He says, "NOOOO!!! I worked on that ship my whole career! And now it is gone. Boom, up in atoms."
He falls to his knees and punches a whole in the floor panel that is there. "I can never forgive him. He went too far. Not only did he destroy all the pirates, he destroyed the Pexis. It was an innocent being just being awakened from a century long sleep. No!!! I was making progress too. Argh!!! Damned generals, they understand nothing."
He gets up and looks sternly at his crew.
They flinch and get back to work. A worker come up to the engineer and asks, "Sir, do you want that panel fixed?"
His face lightens as he says, "No, I'll fix it. It'll get my mind off of things. Get back to your station."
The crewman salutes and goes back to his station. The engineer walks over to the equipment rack and grabs a plasma torch, pushes his glasses back up on his face, and a grabs a new panel from the storage room. He smugly looks at the damage he inflicted and sighs.
He touches his glasses and they film over with protective shielding. He ignites the torch and cuts the damaged panel free. He then places the new panel in place and sets the torch to weld. He welds the panel in place and puts the torch out. The glasses return to regular. He then sets up warning signs around it and leans back against a wall.
He thinks, 'I'm going to resign. But wait, what will I do after that? I guess I could start piloting a Vanguard. I AM certified.' He sighs again and pushes his glasses up again. A comm. screen pops up and the general says, "Engineering, we need a status analysis."
"Get your own stinking status report! I quit!" Shouts the engineer to the general.
The general is shocked and then says, "Chief Engineer Kagen Roklan, give me a status report or I will have you executed."
Kagen says, "Ok, here is your stinking report! You just blew up half the ship including the power source for the entire ship! Therefore the ship is running out of power. Mostly because you fired those missiles. Do you realize how much fuel you just wasted? We don't have enough to even land safely now! The reserve cells are almost depleted and then the life support will fail. I myself am leaving right now. So you are also out one specialist on this ship's systems. Bye!"
Kagen then takes a wrench from a worker and smashes the communications panel. He then turns to his shocked crew and says, "This will be my last order. Anyone who wants to leave join me. Anyone who stays will have to fix this panel to get more instructions."
He then throws the wrench down, gathers his personal tools and goes to his quarters.
He gathers his stuff and puts them in the same backpack as the tools. He then puts on his pistol belt and backpack. Last of all he puts on his ammo sash and picks up his MA5B Assault Rifle. As the door opens he dives behind the bed and guards come in. As they begin to search the room, Kagen opens a panel under his bed and climbs into the maintenance tunnels to run throughout the ship. He hooks his rifle to his backpack and starts to make his way to the life pod area.
He thinks, 'They'll eventually find out where I went, but they'll have to look at the schematics first. Thing is, they don't know where the schematics for this area are, so I have the advantage, seeing as I know this ship better than anyone. Heck, I designed the damned thing. Well, the working parts at least.'
He makes it to the pod bay and pulls out a scanner from his bag. He thinks, 'I usually use this to see into walls, I hope it works for looking out also.' He puts the sensor on the metal and the scanner finds open air on the other side. He opens the panel and goes to the pods. He sees 5 of his crew. He nods to them and they all get into a life pod. Kagen opens a panel on it and disconnects the beacon. The door closes and the pod ejects into space toward Tarrak.
Kagen guides it in manually into the atmosphere. He lands it in the desert. He then pulls out his scanner again and changes it to map mode. He walks about 5 miles and flips over a rock with his foot. Under the rock is an access panel. He opens it and inputs his password. He and all his crew go inside and Kagen changes the password. Kagen says, "Ok, I thank you for coming with me. Now I need some time alone. The break room is over there. If anyone calls, don't answer. I'll be in my work area."
Kagen walks off deep in thought. He makes it to his desk and sits down. He thinks, 'Now I'm glad that the Tarrak military was so quiet about the Ikazuchi. If it wasn't for that this facility wouldn't even exist.' I think I'll go look at the relic.
Kagen goes over to the "mini-hangar" (It is small because it holds only one machine, yet it still has a catapult for launching the craft.). He walks up and hits the light switch, revealing, "the relic". It is a very old armored suit. Or it was before Kagen had got his hands on it.
(Flashback)
Kagen's "Father" brings his son to the mini-hangar when he is 15. Kagen asks his dad, "What is that? Some new type of fighting machine?"
Kagen's dad says, "No son, this is the machine those other ones were based on. It was found on the Ikazuchi when they had started to refit it. I want you to have it, as a gift and inspiration. Don't be afraid to tamper with it though. If you break it I'm confident you can fix it. Now, go! Look at it!"
Kagen smiles and runs to the machine with tools in hand.
(End Flashback)
Kagen smiles as he looks walks to the machine. He puts his hand on it and says, "It's been awhile hasn't it, old friend." The eyes light up and Kagen looks into them. Kagen chuckles and says, "Eager as ever aren't you?" He sets his bag into the cockpit and his rifle in its rack inside.
He closes the cockpit and brings the jade giant to its feet. A green glow surrounds him from behind and fills the cockpit. He says, "What the Hell…" and passes out.
An hour later
The crew members open the cockpit and pull him out. Kagen mumbles as he wakes up. "Uh, where… Ok, ok I'm awake. Now why have you guys stayed around? I figured that you would've left by now."
Crew member 1 says, "Sir, we'd never leave you. Not in this state anyway."
Kagen asks, "What is your name? I left my crew roster on my computer on the Ikazuchi."
Crew member 1 says, "My name is Mark."
"Well Mark, you're my new best friend. You can call me Kagen."
Kagen gets up as a comm. window opens nearby. "Corporal Kagen, we require your assistance! The ship is going to crash, the general ordered us to land the Ikazuchi and as you said, the ship doesn't have enough power to stay stable during reentry!"
Kagen says, "Link me with the General."
The panicked crewmember does so.
Kagen says to the General, "Are you an idiot? I told you that you don't have enough power to land that thing safely!"
The General just grunts and closes the communication.
Kagen connects to the crewman again and tells him what to do to repair and stabilize the ship during reentry.
Mark asks, "Why did you do that? Now that idiot is gonna get all the credit!"
Kagen says, "I can't just stand by and let those people die! Then who would be worst? Me or the general? All of you go to these coordinates and help them when they arrive. I have to prep my machine."
"Yes, Sir!" They all load and board the transport with tools and some medical supplies.
Kagen climbs back in the Van-type 0 and starts up the systems. He stands up and activates the catapult by moving the big switch forward. (The catapult is designed to be operated by a Vanguard)
The big doors open above the Vanguard. First set open with out a problem, second the same, the final door gets stuck. Kagen quickly pulls the Vanguard's arm up and fires a wrist rocket at the door, blowing it off its hinges.
Kagen thinks, "Stupid sand must've gummed up the hinge. Should've checked that beforehand. He checks his boosters and then deploys the airfoils. The Vanguard floats down in a powered descent. He lands and starts the machine running along the sand. (He had already adjusted for the sand while in the air.) He covers the 20 mile distance in about 10 minutes and arrives before his crew. He sees a stuck hatch and pulls the entire airlock off the ship. The transport arrives and the crew takes care of the injured and put up tents.
Kagen pulls his shield from his back and sets it in an angle with his Vanguard holding it up. He then kneels down and gets out of the cockpit. He then strides over to the makeshift shelter he had just made.
The panicked crewmember comes up to him and says, "Thank you, we all owe you our lives."
Kagen says, "Don't worry about it. The only one I didn't want to save was that stupid General. He has been a pain in the ass ever since he got command. That and he blew up the old Ikazuchi. He has effectively destroyed my family's life's work in about an hour."
The crewmember walks away dazed. The General starts to walk up to Kagen to give him a speech on leaving his post. Kagen pulls a pistol and shoots him in the foot without looking. The General falls to the ground holding his foot.
Kagen walks over to him and says, "You deserve more pain than that but I'm not the one to dish it out." Kagen spits on him and looks at his chronometer. He says, "Rescue teams will be here in 3 minutes."
A few weeks later
Kagen is in a Vanguard standing at attention for a big ceremony. Kagen is furious.
'I save the ship and he gets the credit. I have a position in a Vanguard group and then he requests my squad to be on "Ceremonial Duty" While he gets his frickin medal!'
(Cue "So Cold: Acoustic version" action is slowed down for effect)
Suddenly as the General approaches the podium a great shadow covers the whole city. Kagen looks up at the sky and says, "That's a Mejalen bomber! Everyone crimson alert! Protect the civilians!"
Kagen pulls his non-regulation rifle from the Vanguard's back. He aims at the bomber and kneels down carefully avoiding the civilians. He looks down once more at the General as he runs in fear. All the personal guards are running as well.
"Hmph, some heroes they are!" He looks at his squad mates as a bomb hits one. Kagen says, "You'll pay for that!" His beam rifle is fully charged and he fires a shot right through a bomb that was leaving the bomber's bay, igniting all the other bombs that the ship was carrying. The ship starts to fall. Kagen calculates the trajectory and marks the position. He then takes the shield from the Vanguard's back and places it above its head to shield the civilians from debris.
(Music end)
He jumps out of the cockpit and runs to a transport. He hotwires it and quickly goes to his Van-type0. He launches it straight at the ship and uses the boosters to steer the ship to a harmless landing in the desert. Kagen considers it for a moment as he looks at the markings on the ship.
He thinks, 'This is a military ship, but I can tell that pirates have gotten a hold of it. I think they stole it for this purpose. Must be trying to retaliate for us blowing up their ship. Better hide them from the military. He hits a switch in his cockpit and the ground opens up beneath them.'
The ship and the Van-type0 drop into the holding area that had once housed the Ikazuchi while it was being rebuilt.
A/N: It was getting too long. I'll put the next one up soon. Read AND Review please. I would like some comments on my work.
I've been gone for far too long. So Cold is a song by Breaking Benjamin, The acoustic version is on a special disc, but it doesn't really matter which one you use. It adds emotion.