After gym class, the girls change room . . .

"You think it's because of your strength that the mothers pushed for this?"

"Maybe," Shinobu said as she allowed the hot water to soothe her muscles. Since no class that had Negako as an instructor was involved in after-school clean-up in the school building, the members of Class 1-4 could take their time and relax; they would clean up the gymnasium. Regardless of what people thought of Moroboshi Negako as a person, she was the most knowledgeable martial arts instructor alive in Japan; when you got a lesson in self-defence from her, you learned things about your body and mind you would never learn from even the most experienced "normal" instructor. "I'll be okay."

Momoe gave her a sympathetic smile as she reached over to squeeze her friend's shoulder. "So what are you going to do with Tariko now?" Kumiko, who was in the stall to Shinobu's right (when she faced the shower head), then asked.

Shinobu perked, and then her cheeks reddened. "Kumiko!" she gasped before looking around, and then she relaxed as she remembered where Tariko was right now.

As she had been part of the combination of souls deep within Ataru's mind for ten years, Tariko had gained a nearly-automatic knowledge of all the combat manoeuvres in Saikō Jinseijutsu-ryū; she – along with Hiromi and Ataru – were taking an extra half-period after the end of class to practice more advanced movements while their classmates took extra long showers to recover from the workout they had just undergone. After that was done and everyone changed, the rest of Class 1-4 would go into the gymnasium to help with clean-up while the Moroboshi siblings took their showers; Ataru, Tariko and Hiromi agreed to do double-cleaning shifts in the school on Mondays and Wednesdays. After that was done, everyone would break for the day, Ataru would go and prepare for his date with Yui (now chatting with her friends about what they would do in a nearby stall) while Hiromi would go home and do her studies and Tariko . . .

Hey! What DOES Tariko do at nights?

Surprised to think that, Shinobu felt her cheeks redden before she sensed Momoe and Kumiko stare knowingly at her. A sigh later, she nodded. "Hai, there is that."

"Even if that body of hers is one I'd kill to have, that's a boy's brain inside it," Kumiko stated. "I know she can control herself pretty well, but I've caught her in the last couple of days staring at you when you're not looking, Shinobu. Almost as bad as Rumiko-chan was before she finally woke up to what she was. She loves you still, Shinobu. And with Mendō-san effectively out of the way now . . . "

"As a matter of fact, may I propose something to that end?"

All three turned as Tsuruya Rumiko came up to gaze at them. A woman with bobcut raven hair and deep brown eyes under reading glasses, she was the smartest student bar none in Metropolitan Tōkyō; the amount of scholastic awards she had won over the years would be enough to fill up their classroom. She was also as much of a loner in her own right as Inu Chigaiko had been forced to become over the previous four months since the Hallowe'en party when the Red Cloak had appeared and a long-dormant curse had reactivated itself to attack an unsuspecting target. Despite the fact that she was comfortable with her gender preference – and had loudly stated when the Avalonians (who were genetically bisexual!) first appeared that she now had discovered Heaven! – she was well-liked among her classmates due to her willingness to tutor those who were struggling with homework and class projects. She had also been part of the "secret peer guidance committee" founded by Mendō Shūtarō shortly after he had come to school for the first time, though she had joined out of needing to feel like she belonged somewhere and not out of some teenage lust for the class' richest student.

"What's that, Rumiko-chan?" Momoe then asked as she moved to shampoo her hair.

"A relationship between Shinobu-chan and Tariko-chan could work out in the long run," Rumiko said as she slipped off her glasses, which were steaming up from the hot water. "There's the friendship factor and the fact that as Ataru-kun, Tariko-chan did have a relationship with Shinobu-chan before Hensō ruined our lives." As her friends ruefully laughed, Rumiko stated, "The one thing blocking this now is the fact that Tariko-chan – despite still being pretty much a boy at heart – is a girl in body and has had to deal with girl issues like menstruation. Now, by the looks of it, Tariko-chan didn't get much of a chance to form any relationship with anyone when they were travelling on Okusei, so she'll be as inexperienced as this as Shinobu-chan will be in this matter. Therefore, I am willing to propose setting up a blind date for you."

Shinobu blinked. "With who?"

"Tazuna and Katsumi, the Nobushige twins."

Silence.

"TWO GIRLS?" all three of them screamed out.

Rumiko smirked. "Ladies, there is logic to my madness. Tazuna and Katsumi, like all the Avalonians who were assigned to this place to be there to assist our 'most faithful' with things like 'stress relief' . . . " – she rolled her eyes on mentioning that while the others grimly nodded – " . . . were expertly programmed replicas of their twin brothers. They're also quite different people in personality; Tazu-chan is very outgoing and willing to play around while Katsu-chan is very quiet and studious, your normal book-lover type. Atop that, their brothers were part of the teams that monitored Shinobu directly, so they're as familiar with her as any Avalonian in this town can be. And I'm sure they'll be more than happy to introduce you to what life as an Avalonian – which is something Tariko can't avoid either – is all about."

Shinobu blinked, and then she breathed out, "Rumiko-chan . . . "

Rumiko smirked as she turned away. "Just make sure I get them back in one piece, okay?" she said with a wink before she sauntered off to get changed.

Shinobu fell flat on her face. "RUMIKO!"

Momoe and Kumiko both roared with laughter . . .

After final clean-up . . .

"Again, I cannot express how sad I am about this, Shinobu-san."

Shinobu smiled before she leaned up to kiss Mendō on the cheek. He had just about boarded his private command car for the drive back to his home estate when Shinobu had emerged from the gymnasium. "Don't apologise, Shūtarō-san," she said as she shrugged. "You have a duty to perform. And much that this hurts, you can't ignore your family's wishes like Ataru-kun can now. I just hope this works out."

A sigh. "It is truly hard to say. I am pleased at least that Negako-san is willing to look into it." He then nodded. "Have a good weekend, Shinobu-san."

"Hai, you too."

With that, he boarded the car, and then the driver guided it away from the front gates. Watching him go, Shinobu frowned as she noted the tears in his eyes that he wouldn't publicly shed; no doubt, he would do as many men did and would wait until he was alone before allowing his emotions to vent themselves at having his life warped around like this. She then took a deep breath before turning to head towards her own home. Before she could get far, a voice called out from nearby, "Hey, Shinobu!"

She turned around, and then grinned. "Hi, Tariko!"

Tariko came up to her and both then turned to head towards the Miyake home. "So how was he?" the former then asked as they headed down the street.

"Sad. I think he's going to go home and cry for a while," the latter stated as she shifted her bag over into her other hand so she could grasp Tariko's free hand. Tariko perked on feeling that contact, and then she relaxed herself, grateful that Negako and Kyech had taught her back on Okusei how to better shield her mind from the rampant emotions of others. While the body had come somewhat pre-programmed to handle that sort of thing, it sometimes wasn't enough. "I hope he'll be alright."

"Oh, he'll be fine. If this Asuka's like Tobimaro, she should be okay, She'll have her own set of problems, but if they don't clash too much with Shūtarō's, it should work out." Tariko then winced. "Sorry . . . I don't mean to . . . "

"No, it's okay," Shinobu said as she gave her a reassuring look and a squeeze of her hand. "You gave me the chance to cry when we were in the clock tower." A sigh. "Yeah, it hurts a lot still, but maybe because I went through the break-up with Ataru-kun beforehand, I can handle this a little better than before."

"Not that we were much of a boyfriend to you."

"You had a reason to be that way, remember?"

"True, but we both still feel guilty about it."

A shake of the head. "Don't. Do what Ataru-kun said in class when Hiromi-san called in Jinseiko-san that one time. Put the past where it belongs and think about the future," Shinobu said as she leaned over to kiss Tariko on the cheek, which made the latter yelp in shock before she stared wide-eyed at her. "He was right, you know."

Tariko blinked, and then she smirked. "Some of the girls seem to think my future lies with you," she said as she gave her friend a look.

Shinobu gasped, and then yelped as her foot caught onto a crack in the sidewalk the wrong way, nearly making her fall flat on her face. Tariko's arms were quick to snare her before she hurt herself, and then she boosted the other girl up. On feeling that – and feeling warm inside by how quick Tariko had reacted to her – Shinobu blushed before she reached over and bopped the other woman on the head. "Hey!" Tariko yelped.

"Moroboshi Tariko, you did that on purpose!" Ataru's former girlfriend snapped. "What are you doing? Probing people's minds without their permission?"

"No. I however can sense emotions without touching people . . . and that's as much of an open book to me as a mind-probe," Ataru's twin then said as she put Shinobu down. "I could see the other girls glancing at me, then to you, when I got dressed. It didn't take me long to put two and two together to get four, you know!"

Shinobu blinked, and then she giggled. "Yeah, that's true! Sorry about that!" She then sighed as they turned down a street, still holding hands. Given that the Avalonians were now in the open – and that Tariko was herself an Avalonian despite her being a Terran still in her heart and soul – Shinobu didn't fear people looking at her the wrong way as they headed to the Miyake house. "So what do you think?"

"Well, there is some history with us," Tariko admitted. "I know I shouldn't feel this way, but I am a little scared, too."

"Why?"

A sigh. "I don't want to break your heart."

Shinobu blinked. "Does Ataru feel that way, too?"

A nod. "Yeah. You know, even if there were times he hated you, when he really came to wake up to how much he hurt you . . . HEY!"

That was thanks to Shinobu nearly yanking Tariko off her feet by stopping, her eyes now wide with horror. "Ataru-kun HATES me?" she gasped.

Tariko moaned as she moved to make sure her shoulder joint was still intact. "I said, 'There were times he hated you!' Listen for once!" she snarled before cycling her arm to make sure a muscle or tendon hadn't been pulled. "You can guess when."

"The Rosebud thing, right?"

A nod. "Yeah. Much that I understand you were then protecting your claim on your guy, you jumped the gun before you realised what he wanted to do," Tariko said, and then she smirked. "Then again, 'Toshi did the same thing. Look what happened to him. False intelligence can get people killed if they're not careful."

Shinobu laughed, and then she sighed. "What does he feel for me?"

Tariko blinked, and then she took a deep breath. "He still loves you, but he's more afraid of hurting you again than I am," she admitted. "And if you ever want to go on a date with him while he's still dealing with the problem being with Kyech forced on him, he'll probably have a platoon's worth of Avalonians with you as chaperones!" She then perked on sensing a couple of her sister bioroids approach, and then she turned before gaping. "Well, I'll be damned! Guess we got to update all the books!"

Shinobu giggled as the women dressed as freshmen attending the Shakkyo Private Vocational Institute – in Tariko's still-male eyes, of all the schools in Tomobiki, they had the sharpest school uniforms: Scarlet red tunics, white ascots, pink blouses, dark plaid skirts to just above their knees and white berets on their heads – approach them. Both were raven-haired with dark brown eyes, though one – Nobushige Katsumi, Tariko remembered thanks to Ataru's encyclopaedia-like knowledge of all the high school girls throughout Tomobiki – had glasses over her eyes and styled her hair in a partial ponytail behind the back of her head around the rest of the mass while her twin sister – she was Nobushige Tazuna – wore her hair loose and didn't need glasses. "Well, if you wish, Tariko-sama, we could compile all the updated information for those of us who go to Shakkyo and deliver it to yourself or Ataru-sama when you need it," Katsumi said.

A sigh. "Girls, cool it with the '-sama' bit, okay?" Tariko stated. "I know you feel it's being proper to us, but you acted normal before we found out about your masters and what they were doing here, so try to do it now, okay?"

The Nobushige twins blinked, and then exchanged a look before giggling. "Well, if you insist, Tariko-chan!" Tazuna then said as her eyes sparkled with delight. Watching her, Shinobu remembered what she learned about this girl from her best friend from that school. One of the most popular freshmen currently attending Shakkyo, Tazuna could easily bend a lot of her male peers to her will with just a look and a finger; there had actually been near-riots at that school by men who wanted to become her version of Lum's Stormtroopers. And even if she was the meeker and more quiet of the pair, Katsumi was also quite popular, especially with the more cerebral of her male peers. And being revealed to be alien-built bioroids hadn't seen their popularity drop at all; the staff at Shakkyo – which actually included two Avalonian teachers! – were having a "Coming Out" celebration before the end of the current school term this month. "You busy tonight? Rumiko-chan asked us to go on a double-date with Shinobu-chan, but by the looks of it, you can use some companionship as well."

"Oh, I agree, Tazuna," Katsumi stated. "You're not busy tonight, are you?"

Tariko hummed, and then she gazed on Shinobu, who smiled in return. "Well, I can go for some nice karaoke after a good meal," she mused, and then she nodded. "The Dobu Salada, around six o'clock, okay. I need to get something set up."

The three other girls blinked. "What?" Shinobu asked.

A grin. "My secret."

And with that, she was off. The others watched her go, blinking, and then Shinobu giggled. "Well, that seems somewhat normal for Tariko."

Tazuna and Katsumi stared at her, and then they laughed . . .

The Moroboshi home, a half-hour later . . .

"EH? A DATE?"

"Hai, a date," Ataru said as he moved to finish his rice. "The girls in the class are getting upset at the guys not paying any attention to them. They're still pretty much in mourning over what happened to Hensō. So people like Momoe-chan are asking me to help make them jealous enough to make them pay attention. You ask me, it's the right thing to do, especially with the way the guys went ga-ga over Hensō like they did." He was already dressed in Noukiite traveller's clothing, one of several pairs that Kyech had got for him in the town of Nuup't'uch, which is where they had made landfall on Okusei after they had teleported in from Uru. Despite the pain he still felt in his heart by the Dragonspeaker's decision to not pursue any sort of permanent relationship with him – though it was for quite logical reasons; despite the skills he had inherited from Negako, Ataru wasn't anywhere near as durable as Kyech when it came to dealing with the more exotic things she often confronted – the clothes were in excellent shape, he felt more at home in them these days than in Terran styles of clothing and they were comfortable to him. And Yui had already been warned ahead of time; she was actually quite curious as to what had happened while he was on Okusei.

Then again, so was almost everyone else in Class 1-4.

"NO!" Kinshō snapped. "YOU WILL NOT . . .!"

WHANG!

"Oh, do be silent, Okā-san!" Hiromi snapped after she bashed the older woman with a skillet, which knocked her face first into the coffee table. "You were never there for Onii-san when he needed you the most, so don't expect him to respect a word you say about what he does with himself in the future!" She smiled at Ataru as Kinshō slowly staggered up. "Do have a wonderful time with Yui-san and Mari-san, Onii-san."

"Actually . . . "

The reborn emperor stared at him, and then she blinked. "Yamato?"

"Why not?"

Hiromi then smirked as she slipped her hand into her skirt pocket and pulled out a device similar to a ballpoint pen before tossing it over. "Thank you!" Ataru said in English before he headed to the entranceway to slip on his sandals and head out.

Tariko watched him go, and then she held out her hand. "Need it for my date, too, Hiromi. I'll go over to Haida instead so Shinobu doesn't get it into her head to try to 'chaperone' what's going on with Ataru, Yui-chan and Mari-chan."

Another pen-like device flew into her hand. "Have fun."

"Thank you!"

"WAIT!" Kinshō gasped. "You're going on a date? With SHINOBU-CHAN?"

"Of course," Tariko said. "She is my friend and she just found out that Mendō Shūtarō is getting engaged to Mizunokōji Tobimaro's kid sister. She's feeling a little heartbreak, so I'm going to be the shoulder for her to cry on. What's it to you?"

"But . . . y-y-you're both g-g-GIRLS . . .!"

"Yeah, what about it?" Tariko asked. "I'm also bisexual and despite me having a girl's body, I still feel I'm a guy deep down! It's natural for a guy to date a girl unless he was born gay!" She then gave her mother a pouting look. "Ah, what's the matter, Kā-san?" she said in a mocking voice. "You couldn't get rid of me through Shinobu, so you tried to get rid of me through Hensō. Pity it never worked out!"

Kinshō recoiled as Tariko moved to head to her bedroom to get changed and head out on her date, and then she spun on Muchi, who was reading the evening edition of the Yomiuri. "Dear, say something! Did you hear what YOUR daughter just said to me?"

"She's right, you know."

Silence.

"What . . .?"

Muchi sighed. "We HAVE been trying to get rid of Ataru – and by extension, Tariko – ever since Kaeru-chan died," he said. As Kinshō turned pale – both Hiromi and Negako were still at the table and hearing this – her husband shook his head. "Enough! Negako told them the truth about Kaeru-chan when they were on Okusei and wanted to know why we acted like we did to them over the years." He shook his head. "They've got a right to be angry. We DID want to see Ataru – our only surviving child! – out of the house, especially after Hensō came into our lives! And you wonder why they're threatening to move out AND make public every time you've said awful things to him?" Shaking his head, he turned to his paper, leaving his wife staring at him.

Negako remained calm, and then she sipped the rest of her tea. "I'll be off to the Mizunokōji estate, Hiromi. Do not expect me to return until late tomorrow morning."

"Be careful, Onē-sama," Hiromi bade.

The ninjutsu grandmaster smiled at her. "Hiromi, remember who you are speaking to," she advised before she got to her feet and moved to head out.

"Why are you going there?" Muchi asked.

"To observe and analyse Mizunokōji Asuka, Shūtarō's just-revealed fiancée," Negako stated. "Both Tariko and Hiromi expressed concern about the suddenness of his being engaged to someone he has never met, much less never knew of, so I will seek that information out and ensure that if this engagement can happen, it will happen with as little difficulty as possible." She then gazed at him. "Muchi, do think of this: Even to her death, Nagaiwakai respected your desire to have a 'normal' life." She ignored the hissed intake of breath from Kinshō on mentioning her late mother-in-law. "But she had her obligations as well; that is the reason she wished to take control over Ataru's upbringing even after Kaeru died. And regardless of her personal opinions towards Kinshō, she did respect that you loved and still love her."

With that, she headed to the genkan and slipped on her shoes to head out. Muchi lowered his paper as he watched her go, and then lowered his eyes. He and his wife both then perked on hearing Hiromi say, "Otō-san, you and Okā-san are not the only ones who have been forced to experience the death of their children at such a young age."

Both of them gazed on Hiromi, who was rising from her table. "Hiromi-chan . . .!" Kinshō breathed out as the reborn emperor walked towards her bedroom.

Hiromi stopped to look back at them. "History records the names of only three of my thirteen children that I was the father to," she said. "Of my thirteen children, ten never got to see their fifth birthday. Of the remaining three, one never got to see his twentieth birthday. Only two made it to adulthood. So do not think you are alone in understanding such pain. You will never equal what I experienced."

And with that, she headed off, leaving two wide-eyed parents behind . . .

The Dobu Salada Inn, a half-hour later . . .

"Tariko-chan! Over here!"

Tariko blinked as she passed through the doors of the two-floor café – why on Earth someone would call this place "Sewer Salad" was something totally beyond her – and then she smirked on seeing the three women waving to her. "Yo!" she called out as she walked over, only to find her path blocked by a very large mass. She then blinked before looking up, and then she sighed. "What the hell do you want, Unbaba?"

The large, dark-skinned and very muscular man now looming over her jerked as he felt her stare rake over him, and then – much to the surprise of the other people in the room, who all knew of Unbaba Tetsu's reputation as one of Tomobiki's toughest fighters – he moved to wave his hands in a peaceful gesture. "Hey, hey! It's cool, Tariko-san! It's cool!" he said, and then chuckled. "I . . . well, I . . .!"

"We just want to apologise for what happened when everyone heard your bro' was quittin' being class rep at school, Tariko-chan," a voice called out from behind her.

Tariko looked over her shoulder, and then she sighed. "It's okay, guys," she mused, inwardly smirking at the fact that Tetsu and the Nyōke twins, Hitori and Futari – the pair were nicknamed the "Franken Twins" due to their pale skin and near-similarity to the creature (in essence, a bioroid in his own right) created by a man named Frankenstein in the novel of the same name by Mary Shelley written in 1818 – were coming to apologise to her in lieu of Ataru. Then again, given the way street toughs like these guys normally thought, they no doubt feared that given that he was just as skilled as Negako was, Ataru would gladly seek vengeance for the attempt by them – at the behest of the Rosebud leadership – to pound him into silly putty that one time. And if they approached Hiromi . . .? Well, even if she still really didn't have a clue about what tōshi were like, from what Mifune Hideyuki's magazines hinted at, those people weren't pushovers. "Just don't butt into our lives anymore, alright? We got enough issues now without dealing with anyone else's problems."

"That's cool," Futari – you could tell the twins apart by the position of the warts on their necks, which resembled the charging heads on Frankenstein's creation – said as the three street fighters all nodded in understanding. "See ya around."

They went off. Tariko watched them, and then shook her head before walking over to join Shinobu and the Nobushige twins. "Are all the Rosebuds feeling the same way as those three?" she asked as they stepped into the queue to get their order.

"Hai," Tazuna said. "Then again, do you blame them? Negako-sama really gave an incredible demonstration of all her skills on Monday after our former 'masters' were taken away. When she said Ataru-kun has them, too, that gave them nightmares."

"You're not angry at them, are you?" Shinobu wondered.

A shake of the head. "No, not really. The Rosebuds are just typical fan-girls deep down. Even if they're the toughest of the lot from their schools, they wouldn't really stand up to some of the garbage we went through on Okusei."

Shinobu frowned. "We should have been there for you . . . "

Tariko squeezed her friend's shoulder. "Kyech didn't feel it was safe for you, especially with the bandit problem in the Outmarches," she said. "Atop that, you couldn't stay on Uru. You and the others were kidnapped from your homes when Kamen talked Hensō into trying to pull a fast one on Elle. The sooner you were sent home, the better; you could've been made hostages by Hensō's old man to force Ataru back to face whatever 'justice' they might have demanded for our 'hurting his precious baby' like that. Remember how fast they were willing to start a war over who'd marry us?"

Shinobu nodded. "Yes, that would bother you." She then giggled. "I wonder what's happening with them right now. They can still try to reach us through the Warp Chamber on Triton, you know. They have the coordinates to Ataru-kun's closet, not to mention the equipment closet in our classroom at school, remember?"

"Well, if they try that, Onē-san will be the first to sense it," Tariko assured her. "She laid ki traps in those places, not to mention where Damasu parked her scoutship, to warn her ahead of time if Mienai decides to pull something. Besides, the Empress of Noukiios has promised she'll push forward some trade deals with Oyuki's father Fuyu to dissuade them from listening to anything from Onishuto, even Fat Boy Invader or any of the Imperials that are in the government like Rei's uncle Yethis." A shrug. "And if worse comes to worst, we send anyone that comes out way back to Triton a head shorter." As Shinobu stared wide-eyed at her, Ataru's twin sighed. "I don't like it, but the Niphentaxians kinda proved how fanatic people out there can be."

A nod, and then they stepped up to make their order with the counter staff. As Tariko waited for Shinobu, Tazuna and Katsumi to call out for what they wanted, her eyes narrowed as a sense of unease flowed through her from the direction of the doorway leading to the basement, which in this place was where the food storage rooms were located. Frowning, she then blinked as a jolt of surprise – followed by the throbbing steady feeling of someone who was planning something ugly – flooded her from somewhere to her left. A glance out of the corner of her eye – Negako taught them all how to watch things without being obvious – revealed a man with black hair and dark brown hair staring at her, surprise on his face. It was clearly false; he was acting as if he was genuinely stunned to see one of the Moroboshi siblings at his establishment.

Pity my empathy tells me something different, boyo! Tariko thought as she moved to make her order, drawing out her wallet – she now had access to a general allowance fund that had been set up by her grandmother and uncle to tide Ataru (and now Tariko and Hiromi) over until they moved to university; Yumoa Reigi had full control over the funds, which ensured neither of Ataru's parents could get their hands on the money, which had been allowed to grow nicely over the years collecting interest – to pay for hers and the others' orders. Atop that, you're not Japanese. I can tell you're Korean from here. So where are you from? she asked herself as the payment was made.

Everyone headed to the second floor; Shinobu had been given a marker to alert the waitresses as to which order went where. As they took a window seat – ironically, the very seat Shinobu sat in when she had her meeting with the heads of the Rosebuds the day she moved to "stop" her ex-boyfriend from quitting being the representative for Class 1-4 on the Tomobiki High student council – Katsumi asked, "What's wrong?"

Tariko blinked. "Something weird's going on here."

Shinobu tensed. "What?"

A shake of the head, and then Tariko reached over with her hand to gently grasp Shinobu's. The latter then blinked as she "heard" her companion's voice in her head, «Don't know. But I sensed someone I think is a Korean in the kitchen downstairs.»

Shinobu blinked. "But . . . "

«Relax, Shinobu. Think your answers out; I can 'hear' you.»

The other woman stared at Tariko, and then she nodded as she felt Tazuna reach over to take her other hand, her other hand grasping Katsumi's. Tariko, there are thousands of Koreans living in Japan. Many of them here in Tomobiki; we have Korean schoolmates, remember? What's wrong with one working here? she mentally "asked."

«Not when they look at you and start planning something ugly.»

All three of the other woman tensed. «Like what?» Katsumi asked.

«Don't know. But it doesn't feel good to me. I know the difference between someone wanting to get to know me as a friend or something more . . . and someone wanting to do me harm. Learned it the hard way on Okusei, both before and after I got out of Ataru's head.» Tariko then relaxed herself as a waitress came up with a tray holding their food, the others also sitting back as it was served. "Dōmo."

"Hai," the waitress said with a smile.

Up close, Tariko was quick to sense something way off about this girl's ki field. Relaxing herself – though she kept a mask of gratitude for the other woman's attention – she felt herself mentally reach into the other's body . . .

The feeling that came out of her made her blink. She's a . . .?

"Please enjoy your meal," the waitress then said, bowing to them.

She then headed off. "What was it?" Katsumi then hissed.

Tariko smirked as she took up her sundae and sipped it. "Later."

The others all nodded . . .

Later . . .

"EH? AN ANDROID?"

Tariko nodded as she and her companions all relaxed in one of the town parks, sipping coffee they got from a vending machine. Despite it being early March, the weather wasn't cold; they were wearing warm jackets, but nothing else such as tuques, mittens or leg-warmers. "Yeah," Tariko said. "She looked perfectly human, but her ki signature wasn't ANYWHERE near human." A sip of her coffee, and then she gazed at Tazuna and Katsumi. "Girls, did the Niphentaxians ever import androids from Zeiwan?"

The twins shook their heads. "No, Tariko-chan. After all, they had us, remember?" the latter then said as she adjusted her glasses, and then she sipped her coffee. "And I know current Earth technology wouldn't allow something so life-like to be built. I have read the stories of the Steel Angels from the Taishō era, but they were partially constructed by magical means. Your magical societies are pretty much separated from normal societies, so they wouldn't be magical androids or gynoids."

"Unless it was some secret society behind it," Tazuna noted. "After all, our brothers and the others did detect the presence of various local groups that were observing events in Tomobiki, possibly even knowing of our presence in town." She then sipped her on coffee. "So if it's that, who are they and what do they want?"

"Good question," Tariko mused.

"Could it be something innocent?" Shinobu asked.

Ataru's twin hummed. "That's a strong possibility. After all, despite what a lot of Western writers and television producers like to make, we're not so shy on the idea of having artificial sentient beings living amongst us. Look how people reacted when Onē-san's existence was finally confirmed." As Shinobu nodded, Tariko took a deep breath. "So there is that possibility. But there was something else I sensed in the restaurant, coming from the doorway leading to the basement there when we were waiting to make our orders. Something that didn't feel right. It was very uncomfortable, almost in pain . . . " A shake of her head. "Damn! I could go check it out, but I don't have Onē-san's patience, training or willingness to totally submerge my mind into the ley lines of Earth to help augment all my senses. And Onē-san's going to be busy checking out this Asuka girl this weekend." She then perked before gazing at the twins. "How many people from Shakkyo go to that place?" she then asked.

"Almost all of us; it's considered the main hang-out for Shakkyo, Sanrinbō and Taian," Katsumi provided. The Sanrinbō Institute and the Taian Commercial Institute were two of the other high schools in Tomobiki beyond Tomobiki High, Shakkyo, Butsumetsu High School and the all-girls Butsumetsu Girl's Academy where Seiryōkuteki Tanoshii and her friends went to school. "There are sixty-six Avalonians attending all three schools as students with seven more as teachers. We could have them pass through the Dobu Salada to scan the waitresses and staff there to see what's going on."

Tariko nodded. "Ask only those who are willing to help out, Katsumi-chan. People who feel comfortable doing that sort of silent scan. This isn't time for amateur night, okay?" she asked. "Until then, try to keep news of this . . . "

She then blinked as her eyes turned up to the heavens. "What?" Shinobu asked.

A moan. "I am such a moron!" Ataru's twin spat out.

"Hey, guys! What's going on?"

Everyone turned as four familiar people came up to them, all either holding cans of coffee or soft drinks. "Ah, just the man I'm looking for, 'Toshi!" Tariko said as she got up and walked over to join the Stormtroopers. "How'd you boys like to help out in a little bit of brainstorming over something we just discovered at the Dobu Salada?"

The four boys tensed, quickly sensing that whatever Ataru's twin was talking about, she considered it a potential threat. "What did you discover?" Megane asked.

"I better get you somewhere where you can better understand it, first," Tariko said as she pulled out the device Hiromi had given her. Tapping the top of it, she called out, "Moroboshi to Haida. Naoko-chan, you up there?"

"Naoko is currently in her rest cycle period, Tariko-sama," a female voice with a lilting Hokkaidō accent called back. "Is there something the matter?"

Tariko chuckled. "Tomomi, how the hell can you tell the difference between Hiromi and me?" she asked as Shinobu and the Nobushige twins walked over to join them.

"Your speech patterns are quite similar to your brother's, Tariko-sama. Hiromi-sama speaks as a normal woman does, though she is very polite when she does speak," the woman then called back. "How may I be of assistance this evening?" she asked.

"Lock a materialiser on myself and everyone within two metres of me, then beam us up to the captain's cabin," Tariko ordered as she winked at the Stormtroopers, all of whom were suddenly gaping at her. "I think it's high time I showed my friends what Tsukihana-kun and Ayami-chan were so nice to construct for us."

"Hai. System will be energized in ten seconds."

"Holy shit!" Perm gasped. "What the hell did you guys do?"

"Well, 'Suke, we can't claim any credit for this . . . "

A ringing noise echoed as a swirling shower of energy whisked them away . . .

Five hundred kilometres in orbit over Tōkyō . . .

. . . and then allowed them to appear in a glass dome structure with a black sky full of stars – and well away from the aura of city lights – overhead.

" . . . so we won't," Tariko calmly finished as footsteps echoed from a nearby stairwell, which made everyone turn as someone in a plain white jumpsuit came up from a lower deck. "Ah, Tomomi-chan!" she then called out as Tazuna and Katsumi looked over, both gazing with curious stares at the blue-eyed woman with caramel brown hair tied in a high ponytail that stretched to her waist, radiating such innocence and purity that the Stormtroopers – who had long fallen into the habit of comparing ANY girl they met to Hensō – found themselves not able to recall anything about the Avalonian-born Oni.

"Konban wa, Tariko-sama," the girl said with a polite bow, and then her eyes focused on Tariko's classmates. "Shinobu-sama, Satoshi-sama, Kōsuke-sama, Akira-sama, Hiroyuki-sama." She then smiled on seeing the Nobushige twins. "Greetings, sisters. Welcome aboard the United Nations Earth Defence Force starship Haida. I am Yoshino Tomomi, one of the volunteer crewmembers currently manning this ship."

Silence.

More silence.

Still more silence.

And then . . .

"This is a STARSHIP?" Megane gasped.

Tariko smirked. "Not the only one, 'Toshi. Look to your left."

The Stormtroopers, Shinobu, Tazuna and Katsumi looked in that direction . . .

"Holy shit!" Kakugari breathed out.

"Am I seeing this?" Chibi demanded.

"That is so fuckin' AWESOME!" Perm declared.

Floating a distance away was a spaceship shaped like a long cigar, though flattened from the top and bottom, with a two-pronged fork-shaped bow similar to the business ends of the Earth Defence Directorate star fighters from the television series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, ending in twin black jet exhausts put together side-by-side. A large bulge with obvious launch and landing pads similar to the flight pods capital ships of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol in the recently reimaged Battlestar Galactica television series carried – not deployed on pylons, the four men in the group (who, like most Japanese males of their age, saw themselves as experts on things of a military nature) were quick to note – was centred on the side of the hull, their overall length about half that of the main hull. Sticking up from the main hull were two massive block-like superstructures, somewhat streamlined, set in a fore-and-aft formation like what would be seen on most surface warships these days. A longer single structure was fitted to the ship's keel amidships, ending in smaller engine clusters aft. A large hangar-like structure was fitted to the top rear superstructure, an open deck sticking out towards the main engine exhausts. Sensor vanes stuck out from every free surface space on the hull, though they were concentrated on a "foremast" sticking up from the forward upper superstructure, a "mainmast" from the aft upper superstructure close to the upper hangar deck, a "jack staff" near the bow, an "ensign staff" near the stern, plus a "keel mast" amidships below the lower superstructure.

Even more – much to the delight of the Stormtroopers, the gaping disbelief of Shinobu and the nodding approval of the Nobushige twins – this ship was visibly armed for a brawl. Bristling from positions forward, on the wings both forward and aft alongside of the superstructures, and aft around the fantail in virtually the same pattern as a dreadnought battleship from before World War One – though covering BOTH the ship's underside as well as the topside – were spheroid turrets, each armed with three long-barrelled guns, now being held at a forty-degree angle from the long axis of the ship. They were in clusters of three turrets, either two turrets above and one below the main hull, or one turret above and two below, alternating in such a way that any angle of attack could be realistically covered with a minimum of nine long guns. Even more, them were quadruple the amount of smaller triple-gun mounts, no doubt for anti-fighter or anti-small ship defence. And there were the signs that there were missile launchers, both large ones for anti-ship/anti-surface use and smaller ones to augment the anti-aircraft artillery this starship could use on any potential attacker.

And the best part of it all . . .

The ship was painted the light blue of the United Nations, with the wreathed globe insignia of the world organisation on the flanks aft of amidships.

Even better, there was a white 24 – a hull classification symbol/pendant number like what was used on surface warships the world over – under what appeared to be the main bridge of this ship . . . and to the total surprise and joy of the Stormtroopers and the disbelief of Shinobu, a very familiar set of three hiragana symbols close to the main engine exhausts, that under a six-character word in Roman script.

"Yamato . . .!" Megane breathed out.

"Damn . . .!" Chibi exhaled.

"This beats the television series – hell, this beats even what the Urusians had! – fifty ways from Sunday!" Perm exclaimed. "Tariko, how the hell did you . . .?"

Tariko chuckled. "It wasn't any of us, guys!" She then turned to Tomomi. "So where are those two little geniuses, Tomomi-chan?" she asked.

"Tsukihana-sama is currently in the operations room doing modifications to the targeting sensor systems," Tomomi helpfully explained with a friendly smile. "Ayumi-sama is down in the main computer core ensuring the automated fire-control systems are fully operational in case a potential enemy force probes into the system. Per Hiromi-sama's orders, a full sensor watch is standing on all ships in the Force."

Tariko nodded. "Okay, then we'll . . .!"

"HOLY SHIT! There's another one beyond Yamato!"

Everyone turned on hearing Kakugari's cry, and then they looked to see another starship – a sistership of Yamato's, though this one had 72 written on her flanks and she was too far away to read the name on her fantail – appear from behind the namesake to Imperial Japan's penultimate battleship. "Which one is that?" Megane demanded.

"That is the Arizona, Satoshi-sama," Tomomi helpfully answered. "If you will look to starboard, you will see the Paekbŏm and the Zhèng Hé beyond her. Along with Haida, those ships constitute the North Pacific Division of the Earth Defence Force, specifically representing the Dominion of Canada, the State of Japan, both the Republic and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the United States of America and both the People's Republic and the Republic of China." She then gave them a kind smile.

Everyone looked to their right to see two more starships – again sisters of Yamato and Arizona – looming in the near distance. The one closest to them had number 45 on the hull and Paekbŏm over two han'gŭl blocks at the aft end. The ship beyond that had 29 on her hull, though she was too far away to see the name written at the aft end, though there were obviously two hànzì under the Roman letters. Finally, on noticing that the Earth herself was behind them – not to mention the thick shark fin-like mast of the upper forward sensory array – they walked to the edge of the dome to gaze down, finding themselves right over the main bridge of Haida, who had number 215 written on the forward slope of the main hull ahead of what naval personnel would designate "A" turret, with "B" turret superfiring over it closer to the bridge.

"Damn . . .!" Perm gasped, shaking his head in awe. "Where the hell were these ships built? Did the Noukiites build them for us?"

"No, 'Suke, the Noukiites didn't build these ships for us," Tariko said as she waved the others with her to the stairwell. "Let's go down to the ops room and I'll introduce you guys to the two bright geniuses who did all this work for us."

"How many have you got?" Megane asked.

"Fifty," Tariko answered.

"AWESOME!" the Stormtroopers all whooped as one.

Shinobu and the Nobushige twins all laughed on hearing that . . .

To be continued . . .

WRITER'S NOTES:

1) Okusei (in Noukiite, Ok'u-ch'ehek) is the capital planet of the Imperial Outmarches (a total of twenty habitable worlds scattered across sixty light-years of space). It is Noukiios' oldest colony world, having been settled over five hundred years ago. In The Senior Year, the world (along with two others) was disputed between Noukiios and Uru; the Ip'ihu (outcastes) were based on this planet.

2) The other high schools located in Tomobiki were effectively introduced in the anime episode "Goodbye Season." Shinobu's best friend from that school was given the name "Yumi" (according to a former pen-friend of mine); she is the raven-haired girl who was seated across from Shinobu herself at the Dobu Salada restaurant. This is also the same episode where Unbaba Tetsu and the Franken Twins first appeared.

3) The total number of children the Emperor Líng of Hàn had in his first life is not known. Three of them who did make it to the history books include two sons (Liú Biàn, the Prince of Hóngnóng; and Liú Xíe, the Xiàoxiàn Emperor of Hàn) and a daughter (the Princess Wànnián, real name unknown). However, it is documented that there were many other children who were born from Emperor Líng through his many concubines.

4) Zeiwan is a planet that was introduced in The Senior Year; characters from this world appeared in "Darling's Other Girlfriend" and "Great Father Ataru Stage Five: Rescue." The natives are golden-skinned humanoids who suffered through the Atomic Wars over two hundred years ago. They created sentient androids as a way of helping their planet rebuild from that near-holocaust. They are also a very capitalistic society.

5) In recent works, I had Kurumi of Kōtetsu Tenshi Kurumi be the one who gave the Saikō Jinseijutsu the name "Negako" (which means "child of wishes").