DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN EUREKA 7 AND EUREKA 7 AO, THAT WOULD BE BONES AND THE TEAM THAT MADE THE EUREKA 7 AND AO POSSIBLE.
(EXCEPT I OWN WHAT I WILL ADD HERE SOON [OR NOT])
REVIEWS AND SUGGESTIONS ARE MOST WELCOME!
Memories Through The Compact
Chapter 3 – In Between Days
June, 2025 A.D. Iwo Jima, Okinawa
Naru pondered upon the knowledge that the Scub had bestowed upon her as she rolled in her bed in her bedclothes. The darkness of her room had wrapped her in its embrace; its stillness comforted her as she immersed herself upon the thoughts of the Scub's memories.
Through strange and feverish dreams it had told her of their original arrival from another time, another world:
The Scub being half dead at a time from impacting the satellite named Eureka on their way down into the surface of Earth; of how it devoured everything for their own survival and the exodus of Man, leaving them as the sole sentient organism. Year after year they multiplied and assimilated until they had sensed it almost breached the Limit of Life. In desperation, they formed a collective mind; the Command Cluster so that in order to prevent total destruction, they would numb themselves and to put the majority of them to sleep, leaving the rest to the Command Cluster.
Thus it was that Naru learned that this particular Scub had no other memory other than an overwhelming drive to flee upon this world as soon as it awoke from its deep dormancy in that other Earth. By using the quartz it had traveled, bringing it here into her world.
Despite the reports of people dying because of the Scub Infestation, from the Scub's knowledge she had found out that the Scub Coral had no intentions of harming people. In fact, the fragments within people only grow to a substantial limit before they gain conscience enough to consciously induce themselves into dormancy or the person dies before that, or someone could "order" it's dormancy before anything harmful happens.
That someone Naru believed, could be her! It would bolster the peace lacking in this war torn world!
As the days passed with her commune with the Scub, it had dawned to her the young girl knew that she had a greater purpose. If Ao had one in the form of piloting the Sea Giant that had protected their home, their world even, then maybe hers is the peace that would come from the enlightenment coming from the Scub.
But before any of that, she had to show the village the Truth! It was not some mindless plant to be dug up and be mined for power. Naru had to see to that before anything else less the people will blow up the rest of her plans of a better tomorrow.
Opening her eyes, Naru could see the faint glow of the approaching dawn that heralded the new day and coincidently, the new month.
July, 2025 A.D. Generation Bleu HQ, Switzerland
Christophe Blanc sipped his personal brew of coffee in his hand.
Breathing out a sigh of contentment, the president of Generation Bleu stepped out of the main doorway that led out of the sunlit interior of the large underground complex that served as Generation Bleu's headquarters.
Panels of reinforced glass and steel held up the massive superstructure that housed Communications and the Catapult above him while at the same time giving ambience and electrical power throughout the sprawling city below.
The whole compound was actually the result of what ended up after excavating and constructing on the remains of a huge Scub Coral that landed here back in the 90's. The mass of excavated structures and technology found on the depths of that Scub held firm to create the structure that housed Generation Bleu as it is today.
As he strolled around the result of the years of his hard work, Blanc reflected upon the month conferences that he had with not only with the Japanese, but his Company's sponsors and the media.
The Japanese had argued that the Nirvash TypeZero and the ship Gekko had belonged with them, that they had no right in occupying it as Generation Bleu had been assigned with handling the G-Monsters and the extraction of the Scub's Quartz. Worse, when the Japanese government had come to claim what was under their domain; Generation Bleu had forcefully denied them their due- and then killing off not only the respected war veteran Endo, but also 15 of their best soldiers with IFO's as Team Pied Piper escaped the fray.
Blanc sighed, of course they want the ship and the IFO.
Every nation worth its salt would like to have the impressive firepower an IFO could give. Imagine the leverage it would give in terms of military might!
But not everyone has the level of technical advantage such as theirs because even America's latest prototype IFO, the Eisenhower, was crap compared to the IFO Kyrie.
And that is why Generation Bleu handles most IFOs and problems only IFO's of their making could take.
However ironical as it seems, it is the emergence of the Eisenhower's and other more ingenious future IFO models that heralds the end of this international de facto compromise.
Blanc sighed as he turned his thoughts back towards one of the many conferences he'd presided in.
One of the international conferences with Japan stood out as this Colonel Nakamura was especially theatrical on that tragic lost on their soldiers, the "ruthlessness" these so called guardians of theirs had done to their fellow men and demanded that Generation Bleu be held responsible.
The guy also made a show of the hidden tech found within the Scub and the advanced technology Generation Bleu had, making accusations on what else Generation Bleu might be hiding.
'Such an annoying guy', Blanc had thought as he again took a sip of coffee. It is the first time in recorded history that Scub actually materialized right above the Earth's atmosphere.
A dangerous situation as anything that was deep within the Scub would be discovered before their intervention- and relative safe keeping. Things better kept secret from the people, ought to remain secret from the public.
'Well, that's done with.'
The President sighed, despite Scub research being within their realm of jurisdiction, people tend to suspect and doubt them now that there's been blood on their hands.
That wouldn't do good as countries envious of their technological status tend to take these kinds of situations to their advantage.
Speaking of dangerous machines... Blanc turned his attention to the reports he received from the Triton regarding their latest foray.
What the hell were those jets?!
Despite being thirty of them in the official count in their video feeds of the Triton. Those guys weren't your ordinary fighter pilots considering they were able to push the RA272 Nirvash to its limits.
On that thought, The President decided he might look back into the video feeds on the aerial battle for a while with one of their Aeronautics Expert for any clues.
Suddenly changing his sights towards their Engineering Sector, Blanc's shabby blue suit flapped unceremoniously as he took a sharp turn towards his new destination.
As the man passed by the buildings leading towards the large tube-like structures that served as their tram systems, He could not help but think back on the recent developments regarding the Gekko's data; the A.I. Georg's cohesive broad data organizing module; Storywriter, has made a more palatable experience to review and study the hours of video footage and data files.
But because of the sensitive nature of the events surrounding the Gekko's data two months earlier (for all they knew it may affect the entirety of time-space itself), only the highest top level chairs dedicated to the Generation Bleu were allowed to view the entirety of the Gekko's files and with the suggestion of Ivica Tanovic of Pied Piper- Ao.
Despite protocol, he had to give a point to Ivica; the boy had a right in this.
A streak of light brought back Blanc's attention from his thoughts as he saw a ship racing up towards the upper atmosphere. The reflected sunlight glinted off of the hull of the ship as it passed through the clear sky.
Pretty soon it will reach space and utilizing the Earth's gravity and slingshot its way across space.
Eureka held her hands above her, reaching towards the sky
"Its here!"
The boy blinked back in surprise!
Just as a slap in the cheeks woke up a certain turquoise haired youth from his reverie,
July, 2025 A.D. The Alps, Swiss-side, Switzerland
"I said we're here!" Fleur Blanc shouted at the boy's pathetically groggy face.
"Hrhhm?! Ah Right! I'm coming!" Ao blundered about as he stepped out of the lift
..and floundered pathetically on the powdered snow.
The boy cursed himself as he looked down on his feet:
A snowboard was strapped onto his right foot. Its sides cut into the snow just as his face did on the powdered ice before him.
Elena sighed irately. Her woolen bunny designed-cap hid her dyed pink hair as she picked up the boy's arm and with a blur of movement, dragged him off the lift area. The boy's green snowboard scratching on the snow in contrast to the timed crunch of Elena's board and foot as she lead him some ways up the steepening slope.
"I swear the pilot of a skiing gundam would get something out of his machine!" she grunted.
"It's not hmpf... A gundam!" Ao argued belatedly. His mouth shoveled up snow while his cheeks chaffed the ice every now and then as his face came in contact with the frozen ground.
Despite the visors blocking off the glare of the sun and the occasional snow blast, Ao could see the minute Trapar that swirled around the mountainside. The slanting ice before him gave way to the mounds of snow that dotted the steep landscape. Beyond their side of the mountain, trees reached for the skies with their claw-like frozen branches.
The view was gorgeous to behold. Totally, different from the tropics where he was used to in Iwo Jima. Despite living now in the Switzerland, he could still not get used to this type of scenery.
If only Elena could stop dragging him across the snow...
And with that, the bunny capped girl suddenly just left him there. Ao could hear her crunches fading off as she left him raw in the snow.
Ao's face burned in the frost as he picked himself up from the ice. His cobalt hued gloves crunched the snow as he stood up. As he came shakily up too his feet despite the slight inline and his frostbitten face, Fleur came into his vision, the flaxen haired pilot held her arms up to keep him still before he could collapse in the slope.
"Okay Ao, just keep that board side up and center yourself, come on." Fleur smiled a bit as Ao slowly regained his composure amidst the slope. Her hands slowly letting him go...
"See ya love birds!" Elena voice echoed up to them even as she disappeared around a snow drift.
With that Ao unceremoniously flopped back on his blue jacket.
The girl in front of him shook her head as she again helped the boy up.
"Hey it's not like that!" Fleur shrieked back to the soon fading figure of the other IFO pilot.
"...and you promised him you'll teach him too you know!" Fleur muttered darkly as the girl crouched to help the boy.
Ao flushed in embarrassment as he pulled himself together, hoping that the frost earlier had already rendered his face red enough to cover it up.
'Hey! It wasn't my fault that I'm in here in the first place.' The boy retorted.
Looking back, Ao hadn't realized he fell asleep after the first six segments that Georg had showed him, the last thing he remembered was the part where the boy Renton had pulled off a major prank on a military installation somewhere and the next thing Ao knew was waking up with the T.V. off and his phone ringing (apparently Georg immediately shuts everything off when it sensed Ao losing consciousness).
Bringing the phone up to his ears, the boy received a call from an animated Elena saying that the Team had a day off and as she and Fleur knew how to snowboard, had invited him to a skiing trip in the Alps, promising to teach him along the way.
And here they were, with at least one of them keeping the promise.
For a good half of that frigid afternoon, it was Fleur who taught him some of the essential things to know about snowboarding. Shoulders being parallel to the board, balance, how to turn, to break, to stop, a bit of gliding down the slope and back.
But that was nothing to what happens in the next few heartbeats,
The sound of rapid crunches was Ao's only warning before it happened.
"Ao Fukai! Ready..." And with a good solid kick to the ribs, Elena sent the boy down the slope with an initial burst of speed.
"...to Launch!"
Either from the excitement or the fear to stop himself properly, the boy proceeded skid haphazardly straight down the slope, yelling out his surprise as his board leapt forward across the expanse of powdery ice. His legs too stiff with adrenaline to steady himself as Ao scratched his way down.
"Elena!" Fleur vehemently voiced even as she proceeded to accelerate down the slope after the boy. Her board carving up the snow before her.
"Keep your balance Ao!" the flaxen haired girl called to the boy.
"Hey, it's called by the way, a dynamic entry. The bird has to start flying sometime." Elena mused. The board on her side suddenly found its way on her feet as she kicked down the snow before her.
"Finally! This is SO going to be fun!" she hollered to the cold mountain air, a mad glint in her eyes.
Ao didn't know what possessed him to press on with this mad slide. Either being out of his wits or the adrenaline aside, there was something as he skid down the slope, the slightest tilt of his shoulders sending him either left or right, to either his death off a cliff or crashing into a tree. Shakily but surely, the boy slowly gained confidence in himself.
'I can do this! I can do this!' The mantra worked when he piloted the Nirvash the first time, and hopefully it'll help him now. He kept his shoulders as steady as he could. It would only take a slight change of posture the boy knew, and he'd be tumbling into a new brand of frozen pain.
Ao took a steady breath; he destroyed a handful of Secrets, compared to this... this should be a piece of cake, the boy shakily rationalized.
The snow bellow him was but a white blur as his board cut the ice. Traces of where pervious boards and skis dotted the slope with a scratch or so, but those ruts were tame enough for the boy to pass it by with his board.
And then it came.
He was actually quite lucky that he didn't have to encounter these things in his generally straight drift down the mountain side:
Mounds of accumulated snow dotted the mountainside. It was where both snowboarders and skiers used as a natural platform for their tricks- and for a beginner, a quick catalyst for disaster.
"Ao look out!" Fleur called.
But the boy did not heed that warning. Deaf as the boy was amidst the adrenaline pumping in his system.
The blonde pilot expertly maneuvered herself towards the boy. But even she knew at this rate, he was on his own; her own speed wasn't enough to catch up to him.
Fleur knew it fell upon him: to stop, to turn, or to fly.
Ao saw and knew. Yet the thrill and that yearning- to feel how his IFO, his parents had felt to fly- no,
'...what had they called it?'
' Lifting' The boy's mind registered even as his board met the incline of snow.
"I'm doing this!"
And fly he did.
*In Between Days by The Cure
To: E, Juubi no Ryuu, E7 fandude, Renn-Thanks guys! Glad you guys like the story!
To: XKinhoshiX- XD Thanks for the like! And to answer your first post, you might want to check out the prologue again.
To: DarkLightSerafimon- Thanks and as for your question; we'll see about that soon, ;)
To: SilentRaider52- Thanks! I usually shift writing between this and my other fanfic (which you guys might want to check out on my page). I constantly edit parts on my fanfics to clarify and correct stuff I unintentionally leave behind. Besides that, I don't see myself quitting this fanfic anytime soon despite the headaches surrounding time travel and research on the story settings, backgrounds etc. It's quite the challenge juggling two fanfics and my life! :))
To: P- Thanks for the review and like! I do like it when emotions and images are being reflected as much as I am able through my writings in order to give readers the perspective Ao and Eureka felt as they traverse the downed Gekko and afterwards, the battle for not only the ship per se, but the reality of the trauma one goes through when something dear is being taken away from them.
