The Nirvana flew gracefully throughout the sky along with a squadron of green KLFs. They were on thier usual flight routines, however now they had to assimilate a new member. Though Yew was a talented pilot, he wasn't so talented when it came to being part of a team. He almost always broke formation, which came with a loud verbal assult from KLF Squadron Captain Serga at every such mistake. The flight routine was taking longer than usual due to Serga attempting to have Yew get used to thier flight formations, combat patterns and strategy.

"Alright, we'll end here. Go get lunch. But until the new recruit gets used to our formations we'll be practicing nonstop after you guys clean up the hanger every morning. You all understand?!" Serga yelled throughout everyone's communication channels.

"Yes Captain," Everyone responded.

The squadron returned to the Gekko. After everyone had exited thier machines, they mingled about, meeting with thier fellows. Yew however stayed inside his machine. He felt like an anchor to the squadron. They had been working perfectly together before he'd shown up. He was being detrimental.

Someone knocked on his LFOs cockpit. Yew opened up, revealing Captain Serga and his assigned mentor Morgans.

"Yew, was it?" Serga asked.

"Yes Captain."

"I've asked Pilot Morgans and Pilot Brayer to give you extra practice with our formations. You will not be attending physical training later today, instead you will meet with Morgans and Brayer in front of your machine, right after lunch. They will give you extra instructions. That is all. Understood?"

"Yes Captain."

"Good. Now go get something to eat. You look anemic. Can't have you pass out on mission," he said as he left.

Morgans stood outside the Nirvana, waiting for him. Yew hopped out of the vehicle mode machine, and stood in next to Morgans.

"After your board was destroyed a week ago in that battle, I talked with Holland to get you a replacement. It'll be arriving soon on the layline. Perhaps with it you'll be able to keep to the formations better, but for now you'll have to make do."

"Thank you."

"It's fine. And don't worry about how I feel on the extra training and what not. It's only natural, seeing as you're not a regular soldier, then again nothing in this ship is normal when it comes to its military status. Brayer on the other hand, may be a little irked.

"Oh. Well, I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it, as I said I don't have a problem with it. Though I am curious. Where did you get such a system for your LFO?" Morgans asked as they walked off to the Mess hall.

"Well, I wasn't that good enough of a mechanic to install it myself at the time. I found the material itself at an old abandoned military base, but I couldn't install it, so I had to pay someone to do it. Another problem was I that I didn't have the money to pay someone to do it. So I worked odd jobs at a nearby town to pay for a mechanic to fit it in her. Took me a long time."

"Her? The LFO?"

"Yeah, Nirvana. Anyway, it turned out that the mechanic hadn't installed it too well, and by the time I found out I was way too far from the place that did it. So in the end, I had to work on it myself. From what I could see, it wasn't too much of a problem but then again I'm not really a mechanic. So far I'm lucky enough that it hasn't broke down on me again," Yew said as they arrived at the mess.

"That's pretty dangerous. You should have it checked," Morgans said as he grabbed one of the prepared box lunches.

"Yeah. Well at the time I didn't have much of a choice," Yew said sheepishly as he got his.

"I'll go ask one of the engineers to check it, meet me back at the hangar after lunch," he said as he left.

"I just hope it isn't her. She'll probably freak over it," Yew thought to himself.

Morgans stepped outside Eva's and Angela, knocking on their door. Eva opened the door.

"Hey," Eva said casually, "I thought the Newbie's session was later?"

"No it is. I just need to borrow Angela for a bit."

"Oh ok," she said somewhat puzzled, "Angela it's for you."

Angela stood next by her roommate, in casual clothes, and peered out the door.

"Hey what's up?"

"Hey. I need you to check up on one of the units for me."

"Why what's wrong? Weren't they checked up on last week after the battle?"

"Well, one wasn't due to conflicting custody of the pilot at the time."

"Oh, you mean... Alright, let me get ready then," she said as she closed the door.

A few seconds later she was in uniform, ready to go.

"Alright, let's go. I wonder if it's still in the same terrible condition he has it when he first met me?"

About an hour later, Yew found that the meal he thought was pretty okay, but his feelings of being an anchor didn't want to leave him alone. It weighed him down like a stone in his stomach. He felt very sluggish, and he felt as it took every ounce of energy to take a step towards the hangar. Either it was the food, or an aura of anger that was targeting him that eminated from the hangar. If it was the food, it would take a while to get used to it.

Entering the hangar, he realized that it wasn't the food, or at least soley the food. He could hear Angela ranting to Morgans and Brayer about Nirvana as she ran some kind of check up. He instantly froze at where he stood, but realized the typhoon would still hit. He calmed himself down a bit in order to put up a small shield against the wrath that would come.

"You're an idiot," Angela said as she he got close.

"Heard that one before," he said with false bravado. Though he had learned more about humans over the years, he was still uncomfortable with dealing with angry mechanics, or at least a certain angry mechanic. His front would most likely crash soon.

It certainly did surprise Angela. The last time she got mad at him for keeping his LFO in poor condition he was more nervous, or at least that's how she remembered it.

"You did a shit job installing the boardless system. You're lucky that it hasn't failed on you during a battle."

"So what's the damage. It's nothing serious is it?"

"Well, the parts that substitute the Lift board, the "skirt" so to speak, they're loosly fitted. Meaning, that all the connections were done horribly, that or rushed. If you over worked it the fanned thing could've failed on you, meaning you'd go from flying to falling."

"Well, I did get a deal on the installation."

"You got a deal for a shortened life expectancy," she said while restraining her anger, "then again it is you. It's in better condition than I thought. I'll do maintenance on it today. Use someone else's KLF today.

"Practice the formations in mine," Morgans offered," she's a better pilot. Maybe some of her greatness can rub off on you."

"Well aren't you kind," Eva jested.

"I live to serve."

"Thank you," Yew said.

"Come on Newbie. Let's drill these formations into you."

Eva and Yew launched and began.

"Sorry to ask, but, just how do you two know each other? Is this really similar to how you two met?" Morgans asked as he brought along another toolbox to help her out.

"Well, sort of. Its more like, it's reminiscent."

Out in the ocean of sky, Yew practiced the Squadron's formations, badly following Eva's lead.

"So you were the one trying to save the enemy?" she asked through their private communication channel.

"Yes, and I suppose you were the one who chastised me for it?"

"I was."

"I see. I suppose you're still cross with me over that. I am a soldier now. I understand that now I really won't have a choice, but I still want to avoid unnecessary deaths."

"I'm not cross over it. It's fine you have your own set of morals. I have my own for example. I pray for the lives of my comrades and enemies before every battle. I pray that thier souls may pass from the third plane of existence, and hopefully into the seventh, under the guide of Vodarac. I only warn you, that if you don't prepare yourself you'll only end up broken."

"I understand. In the seven years that I spent in my journey, I may have grown up, so to speak, but I'm still immature in some areas I guess. I just, I just don't know anymore. I have feelings that I didn't have before, and now, I don't know how to handle them anymore. I thought I had accepted the fact that Angela wouldn't want anything to do with me anymore."

"You mean, you feel rejected?"

"Yes, I suppose that's what it's called. I feel so terrible, even when I expected it."

"Well, it will pass over. Did she tell you who she was seeing?"

"No. I didn't ask. I didn't want to."

"I'm sorry to say, but the person she's dating now is-"

"You?"

"Yes."

"Its alright. I heard rumours. I'm happy, and I hope that you two are happy together."

"I'm really sorry."

"No it's fine. I can't blame you. If I had to blame anyone, I'd blame myself for not taking my chance seven years ago. I just need to get over it."

"You know, you said you were maturing. I think so too."

Yew smiled weakly, as he continued to practice the formations.

"Hey, seeing as you're dating Angela now, could you pass on a message to her?"

"Yeah sure, What of?"

His smile died down.

"It's about her grandfather."