Again, I'm not waiting for lots of reviews to update the first chapters. I know reviews will come in due time. Enjoy!
--Cowboy Bebop: Bounty Hunters in Space; the Story of Afterwards--
Chapter 2: Destination Earth
1:37 P.M.; Earth: Ed's house
Ed lets out her usual maniacal laughter as she rushes about the debris-filled, barren landscape of Earth. Though all Space-born people thought the planet as little more than a desolate wasteland which held little meaning in its present form, Ed saw it as nothing less than home. Even the magic and adventure which space held for her could never make her think less of the once-green planet it served to be. Not even the fiercest of meteor showers could make her think differently.
It had been at least a month, she figured, since her father, Appledelhi Siniz Hesap Lutfen left with Macintire on their quest to map Earth's geography. The idea of being a cartographer on Earth, though, proved to be a poor choice in occupation, as the daily meteor showers meant their maps would be constantly updated. Unfortunately for Ed, they had left her behind during the last major impact on Earth. However this time, it was far away from the orphanage run by Sister Clara, meaning it was back to Ed being alone. At the very least, though, she had Ein to keep her company.
Without her father, however, that longing to return to the crew of the Bebop would often come to her. And such, every day, she would track the Bebop's movements and activities, as she'd done before. Often she wondered if, by chance they would someday return to pick her up for more adventures in space.
Currently, though, her main focus was how to have fun. Save for the meteor showers, it had been extremely uneventful the past few weeks. There weren't even any police or ISSP officials that came looking for her, that she could borrow their vehicles from. Given this, she found herself with little more to do than run around barefoot, as she usually had done prior.
On the off chance she might come across something interesting, however, she chooses this time to roll over to Tomato, her laptop, which looks as though it had been modeled after the 1980s Apple IIc. Though nobody but Ed herself quite new where this computer came from, it could be conceived that, given the ancient technology scattered about the planet, it is likely the old computer's frame had been used in the making of this.
Preferring to sit on her arms instead of her legs, for the moment, she uses her toes to place her odd computer goggles over her eyes. She looks up at the monitor, as her toes type with rapidity, soon finding the Weather Channel. How she could watch TV on her computer was another mystery, but more likely than not, she would hack into the still-operating satellite dishes, or relay satellites in orbit, in order to watch such a channel via a form of media player. It was also possible that the computer had a build-in television, but the hacking of a broadcast signal seemed to be more likely.
"Let's see.. What's going on with the weather?" she asks, to nobody in particular. Her voice kept that higher-pitched, energetic tone as it always had, not having changed one bit. She glances at Ein out of the corner of her eye, sporting a bit of that wide, Snoopy grin. "Ed and Ein want to know, right?"
Ein, the receiver of Ed's questioning, lets out a single bark in response. Though he could properly express it to none but Ed, the Pembroke Welsh Corgi was starting to miss the crew of the Bebop himself. Whom he missed the most was Jet, naturally, as they had grown to be 'friends' in a way since his joining after being saved from Abdul Hakim (though, admittedly, he had played a large role in his own saving). He missed Spike as well, but mostly he was surprised at missing Faye, despite the clear animosity he knew she felt towards him. After all, who could like a lady that dislikes you so much as to eat your own food? Regardless, he did miss the crew, and sensed Edward felt the same way.
His feelings are interrupted, however, as the classic Weather Channel music plays. Despite it being about fifty years since the gate incident, and the Weather Channel really only now being needed to predict meteor showers, it hadn't changed its format very much. There would be the five-day forecast, satellite imaging of weather patterns, and every so often a televised broadcast about various modern-day Earth places and events. Really, the only difference was information about the phases of the moons and information about the tides being replaced by a screen dedicated to the probability of meteor showers, and an estimated count of how many fragments of the moon were left in orbit. One could only guess that the fragment count served as some form of sign of hope that Earth would soon be able to return to the state in which it once was. Without a moon, however, it would be unlikely that the once-green planet could ever be as it was many years ago.
The classic instrumental music is accompanied by a computerized, female voice. Advances in technology had made this voice come from a simple voice with odd tones to it, to one with a near-humanlike quality. It was soft-spoken and, in a strange way, reassuring to the remaining inhabitants.
"The weather in your general area.." it speaks in its soft, yet matter-of-fact tone, "..calls for clear skies, with a one percent chance for meteor showers. Temperatures for this evening will be in the low seventies, to mid-eighties." The screen changes suddenly, showing the five-day forecast. "Your five-day forecast calls for anywhere between a.."
"Bo-ring!" Ed exclaims, cutting of the voice, as she removes her goggles. She rolls backwards onto her bottom, and crosses her legs, "Ed thinks that there should be rain! Ed thinks that would be fun for a change, doesn't Ein agree?" she asks, as she glances over at her companion. He, however, appears to be preoccupied with barking at something in the sky.
Almost immediately noticing the actions of the canine, her ears perk up with interest, as a look of curiosity spreads across her face. "Ein? What is it?" she asks, though her only response is the continued barking. Eventually, she follows his gaze upwards, where there is a single dot, slowly growing in the sky. Suddenly, a look of panic replaces the one of interest, as she lets out a loud yelp. "Eeee! It's a meteor!" she exclaims, as she jumps to her feet. She begins running around in circles, flailing her arms. "What does Ed do, what does Ed do?! Ed is too young to die!"
12:45 P.M.; Earth's Atmosphere: Aboard the Swordfish II
Inside the Swordfish II, the instrument panel beeps radically, as it continues in its descent towards the planet. Due to the actions of the Syndicate, they had inadvertently activated the ship whilst placing Spike's body inside. It was only through some miracle, or act of a greater power, that the ship itself managed to maintain a certain angle in its fall towards the planet, in such a way that it continues to avoid burning up in the atmosphere. However, such luck was wearing thin. The degree of entry was gradually changing, causing the ship to shake violently. Panels from the wings had begun to peel away, and the undercarriage of the ship began to tear apart. If something wasn't done to correct the degree of entry, it was more than likely the Swordfish II would burn up in the atmosphere.
All of the noise and shaking, however, brought upon one thing of much surprise to anyone who knew what happened to him. Inside, despite being pressed against his seat by the incredible g-forces at work, the apparently dead Spike Spiegel's fingers twitch. Though one could pass it off as some form of a simple post-mortem reaction, anyone who would see it, would likely know better.
1:50 P.M.; Earth: Ed's House
Despite the danger, seeing debris and the lack of a giant fireball piqued Ed's curiosity. She knew she would have to get a closer look at the object. Given she had no telescope or similar view distance-enhancing device, she would have to resort to a more technical means of viewing. Rolling over to her laptop again, she places her goggles back on, and again begins to type with her feet. As a result of this, a weather satellite in local orbit begins to change directions using the built-in thrusters used to adjust camera angle and rotation. It aims its high-powered lens towards coordinates programmed by Ed, and zooms in. The image of the Swordfish comes into view.
Not realizing the danger of the situation, however, Ed rolls back, jumping to her feet. "Spike-person, Spike-person! It's Spike-person! Not a meteor!" she exclaims, and quickly drops back down, uses her hacking skills to fix the satellite, then open up a live AV feed to the Swordfish II. At the exclamation, Ein stops barking, instead running over to Ed's side.
Upon opening the feed to the ship, Ed moves as close to the screen as possible. "Spike-person, Spike person! It's Edward! Come in, Spike-person! Ed thinks Spike-person is coming in fast, is he ok?" she exclaims, both excited and worried at the same time.
Despite Ed's broadcasts, however, Spike remains completely out of it. The acceleration of the ship goes through the roof, as more pieces begin to tear away. The underlying electronics begin to be compromised, causing most of the instrument panel's output, including the live fee from Ed, to blink, before dissipating.
This causes the panic in Ed to rise. "Spike-person? …. Uh-oh! Ed thinks Spike-person is in trouble!" she says, quite loudly, as she picks up the controller, with which she had used to control many a ship in the past, and uses it to tune into the control panel of the Swordfish II, effectively hacking it. "Ed will save you, Spike!"
The Swordfish II responds to the remote hacking, through it does take a little bit to do so. Ed, showing near-expert piloting skills which would surprise even the ones who know her best, manages to maintain the crucial angle to a certain point. She slows the ship down to a safe landing speed, and angles it correctly, managing to bring it within feet of the ground. However, just as all is looking as though it would go according to plan, the rather high amount of engine damage manifests in a single spark. This single spark, though small, is a physical representation of the engine giving way. All power to the ship, and with that the ability for Ed to remote control it, disappears in an instant. Naturally, Ed loses control, as the ship plummets that few feet to the ground with a rather cringe-inducing noise.
Of course, Ed cringes quite a bit, before getting the classic nervous, 'oops' look on her face. She scratches the back of her head, as she looks over to the wreckage of Spike's ship. "Heh heh.." she laughs, nervously. "Oops! Pilot error!" she says in the light voice, as she had said when she crashed the police officers' ship months prior. This induces a whimper and whine from Ein.
"Oh Ein, Ed is sure the ship is ok!" she says, rather confidently, as she stands with her hands on her hips. The look on her face is quickly changed back into that 'oops' look, as the Swordfish II, having taken an incredible amount of damage from the bare-entry and crash landing, groans loudly as it begins to break apart. Metal starts falling everywhere, as it collapses on its side. This turn of events causes Ein to run behind Ed, and bark a bit.
"Um.. well.. at least Spike-person will be okay now! Eheh.." she states, with all the confidence she could muster after such a failure to pull off a successful landing. Her shoulders slump, though, as she lets out a small sigh. "…Ed will get the broom.. Ein, get the first-aid kit for Ed…"
Ein's only response is a whine, followed by a bark, as he runs off into Ed's home away from home.
