Chapter 2 More than a Secret...

Rick rolled away as the Bioroid rushed Skull One, the old girl still as nimble as the day she was made, and came up in a crouch, the gun pod strobing as he let loose with particle gun fire. Ben and Max were already in motion, making to flank the beast. They all remembered the reports that read over as part of the required reading during training about the SDF-1 and all of the automated defenses that had been encountered. Expected ones such as turrets and computer hard locks. But the worst had been the Bioroids. Tall as a Zentradi and twice as mean from what they could figure out. The UEG hadn't been able to study any as once one fell, it self destructed, taking with it any information they could gleam from it. All they knew is that it took overwhelming firepower at the time to drop one. The others had to be lured out of the mighty fortress for the A-10s to lay into with their .30 Tank Killers they had tucked in their bodies. Rick winced as the Mecha spun to face him, black scorch marks dotting it's armored hide. "Oh crap. Think I pissed it off!"

The Bioroid gave a deep growl as it took a step towards Rick, the weapons attached to it's body began glowing a hellish red before a missile slammed into it, sending it crashing to the deck on it's right side. Rick snuck a quick look and spotted Ben's Battloid shifting to bring the pod to bare. "Let's hit this bastard together!"

The three human fighters unleashed a deadly storm of energy blasts into the downed monster, smoke from the sheer amount of impacts obscured it from sight before it blasted from the smoke and slammed hard into Skull. Rick grunted from the impact and reacted as fast as he could to recover.

"Why am I always they one they tackle?" Rick demanded as Skull's metal fist collided with the monster's armored head.

The blow gave Rick the chance he needed to get away as Max opened fire, distracting the Mecha long enough for Rick to get clear. He could have sworn he heard an enraged growl issue from it as he charged Max. It didn't get far before Ben slammed into it, his boosters blazing a bright blue and sent the beast crashing into the bulkhead. "This guys isn't going down easy Boss. Any ideas?"

"Yeah, don't die." Rick snarked.

"Yeah, already planned on that." Ben shot back. "Any idea how to kill this thing?"

"The head armor took a good hit Skipper. Think that may work?" Max asked as he leapt clear from an attempted rush. "This thing is fighting like it's feral or something."

"Concentrate on the head and hope once it's gone, hulk here drops."

His men flashed their agreement and as one, the humans aimed their weapons at the hulking beast's head and let loose with particle fire. It gave a loud roar before the head finally went up in an explosion as power relays overloaded. It fell to the deck with a final twitch, unmoving after it dropped. Rick eyed it cautiously before he deemed it truly dead. "Well...that was...anticlimactic."

"You seriously wanted that fight to last longer?" Ben demanded with disbelief. "Boss, I think you've been around Baker too long."

"Hey, that's a low blow Ben." Rick growled. "All I meant was that seemed too easy. Something is going to go sideways soon enough."

"I really hope you're wrong Skipper." Max stated as they turned to the still glowing computer. "Because for once, I'd really like a mission to go as smoothly as it appears to."

Rick gave a slight nod and activated the audio communications to the Zentradi Units that entered from the other side. "Starscream, report."

"Things go well Skull One. We've come across more bodies much like you did. However, no hostile contacts yet." The big man replied.

"Understood. Stay alert though. We just got a warm welcome from a Bioroid." Rick informed him. "Thing fought like a wounded animal."

"That is a sign that whatever is controlling it has degraded to a more base instinct."

"You think maybe one of the crew is still alive?" Rick asked with a surprised expression. "I guess fourteen years in this tomb could drive anyone left here alone crazy."

"Perhaps. We are moving to the primary sensor compartment and will see if we can scan the remains for life."

"Roger. We'll see about accessing the back up computer from here." Rick replied, turning to face the glowing console. "Looks like someone left it logged in."

"Good luck Human. Starscream out."

Rick closed the channel and walked to the controls, staring at them as he tried to make out the words. The built in computer in Skull had a base line translation program on it that could help him read the basic Zentradi language, but the program couldn't make out what was written on the screen. Which meant it was possibly the Masters language. "Well there is a comforting thought."

Rick toggled to the command channel and waited for Exedore to answer. Moments later, the more human like Zenrtadi appeared, his face showing his inquisitive stare. "Yes General? Have you found something?"

"You could say that. A bioroid was standing guard over this console." Rick reported, his brow furrowed. "Can you make out any of this?"

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

"Hmm..." Exedore cupped his chin and eyed the script before him with some concern. "It looks to be a derivative of Ancient Tirolian. Much of it I can not make out, however...oh dear."

Roy cocked and eyebrow at the pale faced man as Exedore seemed to freeze. Rick was also eyeing him in concern. Roy gave a short cough before placing a hand on the man's shoulder. "What is it Exedore? What does it say?"

Exedore's eyes seemed to go unfocused as he looked skyward.

"Unless I have mistranslated, the Bioroid sent out a distress call to the RoboTech Masters upon impact with the moon." He looked to Roy who had gone ridged from shock. "We may be in grave danger if they have been alerted to our location."

"You aren't kidding." Roy muttered, recovering from his shock. "Rick, get that wreck secured and do it fast. You'll remain on station until we can move it to Mars Base Olympus."

Rick eyed his brother over the com. "As long as you're not sending me there with it, I can do that. You know I don't like that place."

"Don't worry. I promised you and Lisa that you'd both remain off that particular dust ball." Roy reminded him. "Just get the job done, aright?"

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

The crash site was swarming with both Humans and Zentradi as they began the process of sealing the wreck so as to ensure it could hold an atmosphere, allowing them to work with out the need for pressure suits which could be cumbersome. Rick watched with crossed arms as a few Zentradi dragged the body of the Bioroid out and dropped in onto a freight lifter for transport back to ALUCE, a station dedicated to scientific research and development. Not to mention it allow compartmentalization should something go wrong. His communications panel kicked on to show the face of Doctor Byron, a level headed and decent man. "All set here General. Thanks for clearing this thing for us."

"No problem Doctor." Rick grinned. "It's what they pay me to do."

"Go diving into crashed alien space craft a lot I take it?" The man joked.

Rick laughed and signed off before checking his systems before hailing the Zentradi ship that had given them a lift. Normally, a Veritech could make the jounrey themselves, but Rick wanted to stretch his legs. Also, Lang warned him against over taxing the Veritech again. He'd almost completely fired Skull during his battle with Khyron. "Hey, Starscream, mind giving us a lift?"

"Our prices are not cheap." The bald Zentradi grinned at Rick through the panel and Rick just chuckled.

"You can bill me later. We'll be on board in a couple minutes so don't leave without us!"

The Zentradi laughed and Rick flicked his com over to Max and Ben. "You guys ready to get home?"

"Boss, as much as I'd love too, I have to ask why we aren't staying as a guard?" Ben asked, surprised. The Old Rick would have been chomping at the bit to find out just what secrets this wreck held, including why the Bioroid managed to shrug off so much damage before it finally succumbed.

"Three reasons Bruiser." Rick began as they took of from the surface. "One, our objective here was to secure the wreck and post guard until the Science teams moved in. Check. Second, it could take months before they actually manage to find anything of value in the database if it's not too damaged."

And what's three Skipper?" Max smirked. "It better not be to check up on Baker!"

Rick snorted. "Yeah right. Baker may be an idiot, but he's not stupid enough to eat green pasta. No, the third reason is because I promised Lisa that this time, we'd have the family vacation."

Ben and Max smirked as they shifted forms to fighter mode and followed their lead towards the Zentradi ship, their exhaust kicking up a small dust cloud that obscured the surface from view.

"Been meaning to ask Skipper, but did you heard what Colonel Leonard was trying to push through?"

"If you mean a militarization of a civilian lunar base, than yes. I did." Rick scowled. "He's a decent officer but his win-or-die mindset will end up getting a lot of good people killed. He just doesn't understand that sometimes you can win more fights with words than bullets."

"Makes me glad the Admiral stuck around." Ben remarked seriously. "Can you imagine what it would have been like if he wasn't?"

"I try not to Ben." Rick answered. "Some of his comments worry me. Especially as he is completely against the SDF-3's mission. Hell, he tried to steamroll over us to get the SDF-2 pegged for Earth Defense only."

"I don't think he likes any alien species. Even our allies." Max's own face had a frown on it as he disliked the man for some rather pointed comments about the Zentradi, specifically that no one should even marry one. Rick couldn't prove it, but he knew Leonard would rather see Miriya behind bars or dead and Dana on a dissection table. The three fell into silence as they rapid approached the hanger, looking forward to going back home to their loved ones.

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

"Another failure."

The Masters looked at the brain dead clone with frowns. They could not understand why every time they came close to a viable clone, the brain began to fail at a rapid pace. "It seems we are nearing the end of our attempt."

"We can not fail here, brother." The middle spoke in a resigned voice. "If we do, we lose the secrets to Protoculture forever. And the Invid will finally take the victory they have been denied for so long."

"It may be best to focus our efforts on the capture of the Fortress." The left most being stated. "We have a more accurate fix on the systems location."

"Indeed. And a visual record of the human Mecha." The right one rubbed his chin in thought. "Impressive beings, but their power will be of no match to ours. We will take the Matrix. And their planet will either serve us, or burn."

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

Baker stared at the wall of the break room, his sullen mood casting storm clouds over his head.

"Why would the Colonel try to kill me like that?"

"Maybe it's because you're an idiot." Karen snarked from her place in front of the TV. "You always screwing around."

Baker opened his mouth to retort before he closed it and went back to glaring at a wall. Looking between her two wingmen, Sue sighed and wondered when they'd grow up and act like adults. Besides, she highly doubted the Colonel tried to poison him. She'd warned him not eat it, especially as it smelled like three day old road kill. And was green. Baker said it smelled fine to him. "Jack, I think you've been trying to hard."

Surprised, the young man turned to the other member of his team.

"What do you mean?"

"Well," She began slowly, "You are always trying to impress Boss. And it usually ends up in disaster. I think you need to just relax and be yourself."

"But, I don't want them to think I'm useless." He muttered dejectedly. "I want them to see me as more than just some wet behind the ears kid that hasn't cut his teeth in combat yet."

"Which describes you to a T Baker." Karen sighed, rising to her feet. Baker watched as she approached and felt his cheeks flush as she stopped before him, crossing her arms across her not so small bust. "You better listen closely and commit what I am about to say to memory Baker. Because I will not say it again and will deny I ever did. We clear?"

He was still trying to keep from passing out from how much his head was spinning. It was not secret he had a crush on her. "Crystal."

She study him for a moment before she spoke.

"When you aren't acting like a complete idiot with your attempts to impress out superiors, you are a decent pilot and a decent wingman." She paused and her eyes narrowed. "You're focing yourself to fight."

"But...isn't that what we are supposed to do?" He asked, confused.

"I don;t mean fight as fight an enemy you moron!" She rolled her eyes and planted her hands on her hips. "I mean, you are fighting your own instincts. A big part of flying is relying on your instincts. When you put your ego first, your making yourself deaf to your instincts. And each time you do that, you end up shot down in a blaze of stupidity. I've seen how you fly when you leave your ego on the ground. Stop handicapping yourself by acting like a buffoon and just be yourself. Respect is earned over time Baker. Not overnight. You want the respect of your fellow pilots, prove yourself. Now, I'm going to bed."

Baker watched her leave, his mind flooded as he thought about what she had said. Maybe she was right. He had been putting his ego first. Maybe...yeah, tomorrow, he'd push aside his own bruised ego and just fly like a pilot should. Sitting back and watching with a pleased smile, Sue's voice reached his ears. "I knew you two could be civil!"

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

Ben quietly closed the door behind him, sighing as he enjoyed the feeling of home. Turning to the front room, he spotted his pregnant wife fast asleep on the couch, and a loving smile crossed his face. While he was getting more and more nervous as her pregnacy drew near the end, he couldn't help but feel excited to meet his own little one. He and Sarah had talked for hours about names and hopes for their little girl. Seeing her sleeping on the couch, Ben silently made a vow to her and the baby that they would have a future they deserved.

"I should probably get her into the bedroom. The couch isn't too comfortable." He gave a wince as he realized that would mean waking her. "Oh I hope she's not going to pummel me for waking her up."

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

Lisa rubbed her eyes tiredly as she walked into the living room and gave a soft sigh as she spotted Rick laying on the couch, Kaylee asleep on on his chest. The little one had her thumb in her mouth, completely oblivious to the light snore from her father. Being as gentle as she could, Lisa lifted the toddler off Rick's chest and smiled as Kaylee gave a slight whimper and opened her blue eyes slowly to see her Mother's smiling face. Lisa's smiled quickly turned to a frown as she felt the child's soggy diaper and sighed before looking down to Rick. She had to fight back giggles as she gently shook his shoulder. "Huh? Wha? What time is it?"

She watched as he let out a small stretch and looked at his watch. "Almost eight. And you may want to change your shirt."

Rick looked down at his black tee shirt and gave an annoyed snort before looking at his smiling daughter.

"She peed on me again."

She couldn't help herself as a laugh bubbled out of her and Kaylee just blinked at Rick, still waking up. Her father groaned and made his way to the bedroom, but not before stealing a kiss from his wife, and decided a shower was in order. He'd gotten back home late yesterday after giving his brief to Gloval and Roy. Both had been concerned about the distress call, which did make Rick feel uneasy. He only hoped this would help pull in more funding for the RDF so they could actually build a fleet to protect their still healing world. Giving a sigh, the young mother made her way to the bed room and set to work getting the baby changed. With a smug smirk, Lisa picked up the little girl as she once again, completed the task in record time. Rick was still baffled how to open a diaper one handed. She giggled as she came to the conclusion that Kaylee would be in pull ups by the time he mastered that trick.

"Well, at least until the next one." She corrected herself with a small smile.

"The next what?"

She turned and spotted Rick walking out of the bathroom, running a towel over his head as he held the other securely in his grip. She just smiled and told him to get dressed, she'd handle breakfast today. Though she wondered how he could shower so quickly.

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

"Alright Baker." Max sighed once more as he looked over the computer screen. "Give it one more run alright? You're doing good."

The young man's annoyed face appeared on screen. "Sir, how many times do we have to run the Macross Island simulation?"

Max closed his eyes and took a calm breath. Normally, Max was pretty easy going but even he had limits and Baker was pushing pretty close to the limit. His blue eyes opened and narrowed on the young Sergeant.

"We will run them until I feel satisfied with the results." Max glared at the man. "Now, do you want to keep up this argument or will you just run the simulation?"

Baker sighed and nodded his head as the communications channel closed. Ben was watching with a critical eye. He had, after all, been one of the primary instructors for one Jack Baker and knew what the kid was capable of. "You're pushing too hard Max. His sim runs are far above the norm. Hell, even the Admiral was impressed with how well he handled the Factory Assault."

Max looked to his friend and gave a nod.

"That maybe so Ben. And yes, he is good." Max admitted before he frowned. "But he's cocky. He'll get himself killed if he doesn't reign it in."

Ben nodded absently as he watched the display, mentally critiquing Baker's performance. "You've got a point. Hey, did you catch that report about the new fighters?"

Max leaned back and clasped his hands behind his head.

"Yeah. The Alphas look pretty on paper, but I know Rick and the Admiral will go through the roof once Lang tells them he needs to dismantle Skull One to get the Alpha program going." Max just shook his head. "I'm not sure why though. Granted, it one of the oldest serving Valkyries we have, so I guess it could show how much abuse it can take before it finally just fails out. But still..."

"Skull has become sort of the mascot for us." Ben interjected. Max nodded his head.

"Anytime that VF shows up, morale takes a huge boost." Max turned in his hair and placed his hands on his knees. "You take Skull out, you lose an advantage."

Ben remained silent as he considered Max's point and gave a shrug. "You have a point Max. But even Lang said she was a prototype. Never intended for a long service life. I'd rather have her pulled apart then go up in flames with Boss behind the controls because of some defect she may have."

Max grimaced and got Ben's point. "Okay, when you put it that way, it could be far worse. Still...to retire her. Seems too soon."

"That I can agree with." Ben glanced towards the display again to see Baker pulling off a rather impressive move that allowed him to nail six Gnerl fighters in quick succession. "Heard the decommissioning is in two days."

"Still too soon for my liking."

"Like all good things Max." Ben remarked sadly before the caught a beeping noise from the console. Max activated the console and Miriya's face appeared on the screen. "You ready Miri?"

The Zentradi woman gave a feral grin that made Ben wince. "Of course Max."

"Go easy on the idiot, alright?" Max cautioned her. She only smirked and the com cut off.

"She's not going to go easy, is she?" Ben asked.

"Nope."

"Isn't that a bit unfair to the kid?"

Max grinned. "Nope. Maybe this will help to deflate his ego some."

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

Rick ran a hand over the nose of his fighter, sadness in his eyes as the old girl seemed to know the end was here for her. Emil had explained that he needed the stress analysis data of VF-1S to help with the Advanced Veritech Fighter Program and the only way to do so was to dismantle the old girl and test her parts at a molecular level. Rick hated it. It felt like he was losing a part of his family. Someone who had been with him through it all. He sighed and gave her one final pat, a lone tear slipping from his eyes as Vince began the final procedure to bring her to a fully shut down state.

"Well, looks like this is it." Rick remarked with a forlorn smile. "You've been a good friend. We've done a lot together. You've brought me home every time since I took the controls. Sorry to see this day come."

He could swear he felt her protest to the plan, a sorta of low hum as the reactor had it's fuel source removed. His heat broke as the final power connection was pulled and with a low, weak hum, Skull One, VF-1S, was fully and completely shut down. Wiping his eyes, Rick turned and left the Hanger and saw the sadden face of his wife, his friends, and his brother. Each of them owed their lives to that plane. It had done so much for them. Hearing the low rumble, Rick spun on his heal and raised a salute to an old friend. The people gathered around him, his family, all gave a respectful salute as Four Veritechs from Skull Squadron gave a final pass over her hanger. Rick lowered his salute as Emil Lang stepped over to him. Rick looked the man in the eye, still not happy about the unfitting end to such a fine fighting machine. "You make sure this is worth it Doctor."

"It will be General, of that, I assure you."

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

Roy walked quietly through the halls of the RDF headquarters situated in Monument City with a frown. Three weeks had passed since Rick and his men had successfully secured the wrecked control tower of the SDF-1, and he'd just recently finished the preliminary reports that had been sent to him. From what little they could gleam, when Zor sent the fortress away after being fatally injured during some kind of revenge attack by the every mysterious Invid, he had never activated the defense systems. After speaking with Exedore this morning, the Zentradi had speculated that the redundant memory core had become corrupted after the tower was jettisoned. This fit so far as the eggheads up on the Moon stated a remote shutdown command had been sent from who they guessed was the Masters. As to why the tower was separated from the ship instead of the whole vessel dropping from hyperspace, they didn't know. Roy gave an annoyed sigh as his temper flared for the fifth time this week. Between the decommissioning of VF-1S and this recent unwanted surprise, it made sense he was feeling his nerves fray.

"Just another day I guess." Roy muttered as he entered his office. The rather simple room didn't really contain much for an Admiral. A few photos sat proudly on the desk as the warm, inviting sunlight spilled in through the massive floor to ceiling windows. A few models doted the shelves along with awards and his promotion warrants as well. All in all, a rather spartan office. This wasn't on the blonde man's mind as he made his way to the computer terminal and dropped into his office chair deep in thought.

'If that Bioroid was being remotely controlled by the Masters, then we are actually in some serious trouble.' he thought as he spun his chair around until he could see the grand view of the bustling city. 'This whole thing has set up written all over it. Maybe we should postpone the Pioneer's mission. For all we know, the Masters are already on their way.'

Roy gave a tired sigh before his office door opened, breaking him from his thoughts. Looking up, he spotted the reflection of his father. "Hey Pop."

Mitch leaned against the door frame and watched his oldest, his graying beard hiding his face as it always had.

"Any news on your wonder toy?"

Roy snorted. "Yeah, and none of it good."

The Admiral turned his chair and motioned for the seat across from him. Mitch gave a short nod before taking his seat and leaned backwards, the chair groaning as it did so.

"Anything you can share?" The old man asked I with a level tone.

"A lot of it is still classified." Roy sighed, rubbing his tired eyes. "But let's just say that the first report doesn't exactly put my mind at ease."

"It's about those crazy Masters, isn't it?"

"Righ in one Pop. I can't help but feel we're playing right into their hands." He admitted softly. "It seems for every move we make, something pops up and sets us back five."

Mitch nodded in understanding. "Yeah, it can feel like that."

"I just don't know what to do. We need the Trip to find the Masters and try to find a peaceful option for us." Roy frowned before lacing his fingers together. "On the other, with the amount of fire power she's being slapped with will be a huge boon for us. Especially if they come knocking sooner than we expect."

"Damned if you do, damned it you don't." Mitch commented. "You talked to Henry about your thoughts on this?"

Roy gave a small shake of his head. "No. I'm going to sit down with Admiral Gloval tomorrow during our meeting and lay out my worries. See what he says. Maybe he'll see something I'm not."

"True. At least the fleet is taking shape." Mitch commented as he laced his hands behind his head, squiring as the sun sank lower in the sky. "Tristar looked nearly finished."

"She is. Shakedown is set for next month." He gave a small grin. "It's going to be one hell of a surprise."

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

Doctor Byron looked over the Bioroid before him, amazed at how complex this machine truly was. It operated in away they couldn't yet understand. From the reports written by Doctor Miles Cochrane and his colleague, Doctor Sampson Beckett, the bioroid was in fact piloted by a highly telepathic being unless the pilot was wired directly into the mecha. At that point, it functioned like a power suit This one however, appeared to be of a level beyond the few they had managed to recover. Some were calling it a Commander where as Byron preferred to label it as a Type III.

"Doctor?"

Byron shook his head breifly before peering at his assistant with a questioning look. "Yes?"

"You seemed to have spaced out for a minute sir." The young lady stated, her gaze worried. "Are you okay?"

"Yes. I am quite fine." He smiled gently, thankful for her concern. "I was merely pondering if we can somehow apply this technology in some way to our own mecha."

The Doctor took one final look at the beast laying on the tabel before his eyes narrowed and he glanced to his assistant.

"Can you contact Doctor Lang? Tell him it is an urgent matter."

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

Emil looked to the screen in sheer amazement. "This...this could help us fix the issues we are having with the Prototypes."

"I thought so too." Byron spoke up as an internal scan appeared, showing the overlapping strands of what looked to be bioorganic circuitry packed in tightly as if they were muscles of the Bioroid. "While the actually stimuli for this Mecha is currently unknown to us, the way it is constructed shows it can be used as a power suit. With that being the case, we can possible adapt this to our own advanced designs."

"Perhaps." Emil storked his chin, the computer screen the brightest light in the room at present. "We are years away from applying this, but if we can at least duplicate it to a less complictaed manner..."

"The Cyclones will truly be a force to reckon with."

"Maybe Doctor." Emil corrected with a frown. "Even with this incredible discovery, they would still lack the ability to fight on even ground with any Zentradi The Masters may bring with them."

"That is true Emil, but think of it this way." Byron countered. "In every engagement, our ground forces have had to rely on the Air Wing and Armored Divisions to combat any hostile action taken by the Zentradi over the course of the last five or so years. While not giving them the same edge as say a Veritech or a Tomahawk, the Cyclone can be useful as a scout and a raider force."

Emil's frown deepened as he took in the Doctor's words. It was a very true statement, but Emil didn't want to place as much faith as others on such a temperamental design that was still one the drawing board. "Byron, the Cyclones may only be a pipe dream. We must think of uses for this in the Advanced Veritech Research Program at the moment. If we do move beyond the design stage for the Cyclone, we can revist this idea then. Until then, we shall move our efforts fully to the database that was recovered."

Byron looked ready to protest before he sigh and looked at Emil in annoyance. "Very well. I shall shelve this topic for now. Good day, Doctor Lang."

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

Byron scowled at the screen and leaned back in his chair, his mind racing. He understood the need for the AVRP, truly he did. But to pass up on a possible edge for their survivial? No...Byron did not agree. Perhaps...

"I wonder if Anatole is awake?" He pondered, his fingers tapping on the desk before him. "I'm quite sure he would be able to put this information to use rather than let it gather dust in some dingy corner of a records room."

-x0x-x0x-x0x-

Rick turned his head, curious as the cell phone began to vibrate wildly on the end table. Lisa glanced at him as Kaylee went about watching the Lion King, one of her favorite Disney movies. When questioned why Rick even watched it, he said it was only because Kaylee enjoyed it so much. They all knew the truth even if he tried to hide it. After a moment of Rick just looking to the device in a sepculative way, Lisa nudged him with her shoulder. "Are you going to answer that?"

He glanced at her with a thoughtful expression.

"I don't know yet. The last thing I want is a phone call telling me something else has gone wrong, or a new disaster is heading towards us."

Lisa rolled her eyes and made to grab the phone herself, but Rick caught her hand before he finally answered. He noted Ben's name, but the Super Mario ringtone gave it away. "Where's the fire Ben?"

Rick winced and pulled the phone from his ear as he heard a Ben's frantic voice yelling at him. "Baby! Now! Sarah!"

Rick gave the phone a confused stare before putting it back to his ear, Lisa had her eyes narrowed and her head cocked to the side in thought. "Ben, please tell me you didn't pocket dial me during...uh..."

He noticed Lisa's pointed look and sighed as Ben replied.

"No! Sarah is going into labor!" Ben was panicking. "What do I do?"

From the other side of the line, Rick snickered as he heard the irritated voice of one Sarah Dixon. "First, calm down you spaz! Second, it's labor, not a homicide. Third, get your pants on and take me to the hospital you putz!"

Lisa snorted, her own mind going back to Rick's own frantic phone call the day Kaylee was born. At the time, she hadn't really paid it much mind, but now, it was a funny story to tell. Rick smiled at Lisa as he spoke into the phone.

"You just follow the directions from your wife buddy. I'll call Max and we'll all meet you at the hospital."

"Okay! Sarah! Wait! I still have to get my pants on!"

The phone clicked off and Rick gave a chuckle as Lisa rose to her feet and got Kaylee ready to leave. She had, after all, promised her friend she'd be there for her own baby being born. Rick was quickly tapping Max's name in the contacts and waited as the phone began to ring. After a moment, Max's easy going voice answered.

"What can I do for you Skipper?"

"Hey Max." Rick greeted, still snickering at what he heard over the phone. "Ben just called."

"Yeah, I know. Sarah is in labor." Rick could almost hear the eye roll from his Second in Command. "I saw his rather short update on Facebook. Miriya is already getting Dana ready."

"Wait, he posted it already?" Rick was surprised before he frowned. "Why didn't I get a notification?"

A split second later, the phone pinged at him and he took a look before he frowned. "Never mind. Just came through. We'll see you at the hospital."

Rick closed his phone and grabbed his car keys as Lisa exited the bedroom, carrying a grumpy looking toddler. Kaylee hated being changed out of her Flight Suit pajaymas once she was in them, but Rick knew that once she was grown and saw the pictures, she'd be forever gratful her parents would save her that embarrassment. Not that they didn't already have enough. "Are the two most important women in my life ready to go?"

"No." Kaylee grunted out, pouting.

Rick just laughed and the Hunter family headed out the door to go welcome the newest member of their family.

A/N: Alright, so I'm setting up the story line here in the next two chapters before I start getting to the nitty gritty of the rebuilding of the fleets and things they discovered in the crashed tower. Something to note, in the Macross Saga, no one knows why the original tower was jettisoned from the SDF-1. Kind of a cool thing to play with. Don't worry, it won't break the timeline, but it will make it a bit easier for them to deal with the coming threat. Something Fer and I discussed in Alight was how each Generation of ship put out by the RDF and the REF seemed to be ill equiped to take on each new threat. Now, I'm not saying they'll have super ships or anything, but more well balanced ones that don't die as quickly.

And andrewjameswilliams, from the information i came across, you are mostly correct that the Masters didn't use Bioroid too much but Zor did. But yeah, you guessed it. And yes, Byron and Leonard will have a slight antagonistic role in this tale, but the main baddies are still to come. I'm thinking an old friend would stop by to say hello later in the arc.

Also, the scrapping of VF-1S, also known as Skull Lead was in the original timeline, broken down in 2015 to help with the development of the later generation Veritechs and such. As for the Cyclone mention in this chapter, again, setting the stage for their eventually inclusion into the story. So no, Max won't be doing a wheelie down main street or anything like that. And no, the Playboy Bunny Hovertank isn't going to come strutting in this soon either. The current Gen Mecha are still good enough to handle most problems. And cjusa1234, oh yes, the VB-6 will most definitely be used here! Any big guns that go boom are always going to find it's way into my story. BTW, sscaldwe, hope your feeling better!

Well, hope you enjoyed it and yes, the action wasn't very long, but trust me, I have a lot of in between material to cover that will make it so worth the wait. Please drop a review or I'll bring back Khyron just to spite you all!