Characters of Ranma 1/2 belong to Rumiko Takahashi and those of Robotech belong to Harmony Gold. References from Tenchi Muyo belong to Masaki Kajishima and Hiroki Hayashi.
Chapter 25: Reveal
"Are you okay?" was the first thing Rick said when his wife appeared on the vid-phone. Minmei looked like she was deathbed sick with her frazzled hair, her red eyes, her skin lacking its usual color, and her chapped lips. It was a Minmei he had never seen before.
"I'm just fine," replied Minmei. A month had passed since the last time she had been home. In the meantime, she talked to Rick on a daily basis, sometimes when he had just finished a patrol. "Are you sure you'll be gone a few days?"
Rick was slow to realize that his wife had changed the subject. He was still fixated on her appearance "Um, yeah, it should be like a few days. No more than two weeks. And when I return, we'll spend some time in Japan."
Rick was still getting use to the fact that he was being reassigned to do some R&D. Most of the pilots would be happy to receive such an assignment. However for Rick, he saw it as just another form of punishment. So he made a simple mistake because he hadn't seen his wife in a couple of months. There no need to ship him away from the action.
Minmei replied with a weak smile, saying that it would be nice. Since returning for space, she hadn't spent much time in the Tokyo area. Part of the reason stemmed from how things were left unresolved with her parents, who disapproved of her dreams of superstardom and had only allowed her to return to the SDF-1 because of Ranma, and how she was never able to say goodbye.
Rick looked at the phone's clock and noticed that launch time was quickly approaching. Thus he sped up the conversation and ended their conversation with a "see you in a few days."
No sooner had Minmei hung up the phone that she heard, "You're going to have to tell him, dear." The voice came from Nodoka.
"I know, mom," said Minmei. "But I don't want to further jeopardize his situation at this moment with the knowledge that he's going to be a father." Minmei rationalized this by believing that this mission would get her husband back into good graces. "If I were to tell him, he would ask out of this mission to spend all his time with me."
"Your brother would understand," replied Nodoka. She smiled on the inside because of the devotion to her husband. She remembered when she had that for Genma. Maybe if he had the same for her, she would have had the family she'd always wanted. "I'm sure he would not hold it against Rick when it comes to your child."
Before Minmei could answer, she rushed off to the bathroom, and Nodoka soon heard the sound of retching. She shook her head in pity, as Minmei's morning sickness was doing a number on her. It was the reason she found herself in New Atlanta, having received a call last night from Kyle. According to him, Minmei had a stomach virus and couldn't handle the vomiting; Kyle was clueless as to what to do. It took her taking Minmei to the hospital to find out her daughter was pregnant. She wasn't quite sure she liked being informed this manner.
Nodoka had been with Minmei for a few hours, and during that time Minmei had not been able to keep anything down. This was the fourth time that Minmei found herself running to the bathroom. Since this was the fourth time, she was going to have to make decision that was sure to not be liked. Before she could enter the bathroom, there was a knock on the door, which revealed Lynn Kyle, already dressed for his meeting with the concert promoter.
"Is Minmei ready?" Kyle asked, not even bothering to offer Nodoka a greeting.
"Ready for what?" inquired Nodoka.
As it was, Kyle had scheduled Minmei to do phone interviews promoting the night's concert with the radio stations in town. He could not have his talent taking abrupt breaks because of an upset stomach. He couldn't understand why her stomach ailment persisted.
Nodoka didn't give an immediate answer. She waited until Minmei, who looked painfully emaciated, entered the room. Then she literally dropped a bomb with her announcement. "I'm sorry, Kyle, but Minmei won't be doing any interviews today and for probably quite some time. I'm canceling the tour. Minmei is coming home with immediate."
The younger individuals were shocked to hear this.
"You can't be serious!" Kyle said with outrage. "I thought the doctors said it was nothing serious. That's why you're out here, to nurse Minmei back to health, not to cancel things."
"You will not take that tone with me, young man," replied Nodoka with a glare that sent a shiver down the young adults' spines. The power that Kyle thought he had suddenly vanished. "What the doctor said may have been right, but apparently the baby is not agreeing."
Hearing the word "baby" stunned Kyle. It was the first time the thought of baby entered his mind. "M-Maybe I heard you incorrectly. H-Having a baby right now would prove to be disastrous to her career. We'd be forced to tell the public about Minmei's marriage. It would seriously damage the image I've cultivated."
"And do tell me what is wrong with the world knowing Minmei's married? Do you think it's best that my daughter continues to live her life as a lie? Or is it that you like having the public believing you're your cousin's lover?"
Minmei shook her head and left the room. This wasn't the first time that this topic was brought up between her mother and Kyle. However Rick was usually there to defuse the situation, as he understood the reasons for keeping their marriage a secret from the public.
"Ms. Hasegawa, you've been told time after time why it can't be known that Minmei's married. Think about her fans. If they find out, there goes your daughter's career."
"So tell me how you're going to spin her pregnancy?"
Kyle didn't have a prepared answer to this. He hadn't had to worry about it. This would prove to be a dilemma in the near future. Man, I wish Rick were here, he thought. It was probably the first time that he'd wished that. He was still upset that his cousin chose someone besides him to marry, even if it felt inappropriate to marry one's cousin. If only he could figure out a way to separate those two. He had hoped the long world tour would have placed some type of strain on their marriage, but then she had to go and spend two weeks, while canceling some dates, with her husband.
"Okay, let's be rational. How about we cancel tonight, saying that she's not feeling well?" Kyle announced. "Her next concert's not for a couple of days. If she's feeling better, then we can continue. Then when she's gone fat, we'll explain it."
Kyle thought his plan to be manageable and was happy when Nodoka agreed to it. Though, it was a ruse. Nodoka had wanted to make him think she understood this was right thing to do in this situation. However her mind was made up to take Minmei home. Afterwards it would somehow leak that Minmei was married with child.
yyy
The RDF base was abuzz. For the first time in a long time, serious military action was set to take place, as the RDF geared up for another battle in space. Unfortunately it wasn't in assistance to the SDF-1, which would never be space-worthy in its current state. The impending space battle would involve two Veritech squadrons, the Skull Squadron of Commander Ranma Saotome and the Azure Squadron of Lieutenant Maximilian Sterling. Thirty-five Veritechs, retrofitted with the booster package, waited for launch, along with the two shuttles up on the launch platforms, carrying the equipment, Commanders Lisa Hayes and Claudia Grant and Minister Exedore, and support personnel.
Ranma sat in Skull One, feeling anxious about his return to space. Early on during the reconstruction of Earth, Ranma had realized a yearning for space, much in the same way he had yearned for the road the first few months of living with the Tendos. He had realized that space provided the optimal conditions for his art. With no concern about gravity, it provided for true mid-air combat. Then there was the fact it provided him the chance to view all the stars without hindrance.
Off to Ranma's right, Rick sat in his familiar white with red trim Veritech. He, too, was anxious to return to space. Though now he wasn't sure if he wanted to participate in this operation after seeing Minmei's appearance.
In her own right, Lisa could not wait for this mission to start. For two years, she regretted not being on the bridge of the SDF-1 in its time of need during the Battle of Dolza, as historians had come to call it. She hoped that this mission would eliminate that regret. This was also to be somewhat of a homecoming, as she, like many who lived on the SDF-1, thought of space as a second home.
Bodies scrambled to safe locations as two countdowns resumed.
Thirty-five Veritechs were lifted into launch position and thrust into space. Soon afterwards the engines of shuttles fired. The earth could be felt shaking for miles around, making the people in the area think that they were suffering an earthquake. Seven seconds after the launch of the Veritechs, the first of the two countdowns reached zero, and the shuttle carrying equipment left the pad. Five seconds later, the second shuttle launched.
It took about half a day for crafts from Earth to reach the orbit of the remainder of Breetai's fleet in high lunar orbit. It was another half hour for them to maneuver towards the biggest of the remaining Zentraedi ships. The shuttles made their way to the aft shuttle bay, the same bay where Ranma's Vermilion Squadron struggled with Breetai some years prior. The Veritechs landed in groups of five on a landing pad on the outer hull before descending into a separate hold.
The return of Exedore, though still micronized, was received with great military pageantry. It was something of a surprise for Claudia and Lisa since they stepped out of the shuttle behind him. Ranks of Zentraedi stood at attention, reminding Claudia of the California Redwoods she saw while on leave with Roy early in their relationship. At the end of the rank of soldiers stood Breetai. Lisa was grateful to meet him under different circumstances, as her body remembered the feel of his powerful grasp.
With a quick greeting, the "command" trio joined Breetai in a walk to the bridge. They were able to keep up with the giant of a man thanks to the moving walkways en installed prior to this mission.
The situation was different in the fighter bay. In an area that at one time held hundreds of Battlepods, thirty-five Veritechs sat with there support crews busily working on post flight checks. The two squadrons were grouped together.
Among the Azure Veritechs were the blue and red VF-1J's that belonged to the Sterlings. Max jumped from the cockpit of blue Veritech and made his way to the red Veritech, piloted by his wife. "All right, bring it down," he called up.
Miriya pushed a button, and a retro-fitted carriage dropped down from behind the laser turret. Once it stopped, Max opened it and brought out the sleeping, space-suited Dana.
"How is she?" asked Miriya. With it being the first time for their baby in space, Miriya showed a little concern. (Granted concern for a child was something Max was teaching her.)
Max presented to her a peacefully sleeping baby, bringing a smile to Miriya.
As part of the retrofit to Breetai's flagship, several human size consoles were added to Breetai's bridge. Situated just inside of Breetai's command bubble (the glass having finally been properly replaced), they were manned by Exedore, Claudia, and Lisa. For Claudia and Lisa, their consoles permitted them to perform many of the same jobs they had done on the SDF-1. Exedore's console permitted him to resume his job as Breetai's aide without the need of reverse micronization.
In the cavern below Breetai's command bubble, preparations were under way for the hyperspace jump that would begin this operation. Claudia studied the star maps while waiting for the coordinates. There were more systems and galaxies than she believed existed. She noticed that there were regions of the star maps marked off and color-coded, with glyphs in Zentraedi. Before she asked Exedore the meanings of the glyphs, the coordinates arrived from navigation.
As she plotted the coordinates for the hyperspace jumps, she noticed the course avoided a red color-coded region that bisected their position and that of the target.
"Course has been laid for hyperspace jump," announced Claudia.
"Prepare ship for spacefold," ordered Breetai.
During the downtime in the final preparations, Claudia asked, "What's this region we've avoiding?"
"That is the Juraian Empire," stated Breetai. "We are to avoid the Juraian Empire at all cost."
"How come?" asked Lisa without thinking.
There was a silence between the two English speaking Zentraedi. The Juraian Empire was not a topic that elder Zentraedi liked to talk about. Fortunately they received a brief reprieve when countdown for the first spacefold jump started.
"Jump in 10…" Claudia announced when the countdown appeared on her monitor. At the count of zero, the telltale signs of a fold operation became noticeable, as the visual spectrum gave the appearance of double vision to the humans.
Once comfortable into hyperspace, Exedore answered the question, since he had the historical knowledge of the Zentraedi.
"One of our prime directives is to never come into contact with Micronians. The reason for the directive stems from an entanglement with the Juraian Empire. There is a planet within their empire that was deemed essential to the production of Protoculture. Our masters sent us to conquer it. In the middle of our conquest, two Juraian ships arrived, looking as if they were made out of wood. For this reason, those in command didn't take them serious until we fired upon them. Their ships had a defensive shield that we had never seen before. Our laser fire seemingly bounced off it. Then they fired, and with just two ships, they destroyed our hundred ship fleet."
Lisa and Claudia were amazed to hear that. Of what they knew of the Zentraedi war record, they believed them to be unbeatable. Exedore went on to explain that forces on the ground called in for reinforcement after seeing the destruction. However by the time it arrived, the ground force was gone. The only thing left behind was the description of their vanquishers. They were micronized humans with the ability to wield light.
"We were fortunate to even receive that knowledge, as the reinforcement force came under attack."
"I thought that with the Grand Fleet, the Zentraedi could destroy a planet," stated Lisa.
"Well, it could, but we never got to that point. The Juraians sent a fleet after us and destroyed a third of our forces," explained Exedore.
The room was silent as Lisa and Claudia took in that knowledge. Finally Claudia said, "So that was the only other time the Zentraedi encountered 'Micronians'."
"No. Another time we were nearly destroyed after being seduced by music," answered Exedore.
Meanwhile, Ranma, Rick, and Max used the motorized walkway as they made their way from the Veritech hanger. They were the last to leave, as they supervised the installation of the training simulators. They were escorted by a Zentraedi soldier, placed at Ranma's disposal by Breetai, to show them their living quarters. To Ranma and Max, walking through the ship's corridors brought back memories of the last time they were there. For Rick, it was annoying to listen to them drone on and on about it, due to the fact that he was sidelined at the time.
"This kinda looks like the area where they were keeping us captive after the interrogation," commented Ranma.
"Yeah, it does," agreed Max. "Boy was I surprised to find you and the commander kissing when I opened that door."
"Not as surprised as I was when Lisa and Ben suggested it."
They all could remember how volatile the relationship between Ranma and Lisa had been at that time. For Max and Rick, it amazed them how different their relationship was now. However it was grating for the two married men that Ranma seemingly did not pick up the signals when it came to Lisa's feelings for him. But on the other hand, how could they complain when Ranma also had other women at his beck and call?
"You know, I'm glad that we're here now under different circumstance," said Ranma.
"Yeah, I never want to fight Breetai again," remarked Max.
"I could've taken Breetai if Lisa hadn't there," commented Ranma. That brought an unnoticeable glare from their escort. His two companions had nothing to say. They had witnessed Ranma do things in the Veritech that didn't seem possible.
Soon, they were in the corridor containing their living quarters. As they left their escort behind, Max said, "Say, Miriya and I are cooking a dinner tonight. You guys are welcome to come."
"Sure, I'll be there," stated Rick.
"Sorry, I have other things I have to do. So I'm going to have to pass," replied Ranma. "How about everyone stopped by my room tomorrow?"
"Too bad Ranma couldn't join us," said Lisa. She and Claudia had accepted Miriya offer for dinner. Now it was after dinner, everyone was sitting having drinks while Max washed the dishes.
"Well he said he had some things to do," commented Rick.
"I can't believe that I have make contact with the fleet out here," grumbled Ranma, dressed in his royal, Juraian robes in front of transmitting device. "This should be a job for Grandpa. Or at least something I could have done before leaving Earth."
"So how are things going between you and Commander Saotome?" asked Miriya, a sleeping Dana in her arms.
Being that she had only a Micronian for a little over three years, Miriya was still getting use to making conversation. However Lisa and Ranma's relationship was an easy topic of conversation. Where it had once been a thing known by Claudia, it was well known to most of the senior officers that Lisa was truly, madly in love with Ranma. And except for Claudia, it was a home-made soap opera.
"Same as always," Lisa replied with a sigh. "I think all I am is a convenient babysitter when something comes up. I'm not complaining about those two adorable kids, but I'm starting to feel left out."
"Maybe being on this ship might spark things. I hear it changed things between you two once before," commented Max, taking Dana from her mother's arms. No one bothered to notice Lisa blushing. "We are going to his room tomorrow to party. Maybe you should drop some hints."
That last statement brought some snickers from Claudia and Rick. They knew dropping hints would be useless as Ranma wasn't the brightest when it came to things like that. He may be a genius, but not in the area of love.
For much of the human crew, their initial thoughts of traveling through hyperspace were of it being an instantaneous thing. However they found out that was not the case. Twenty-four hours had passed, and they were just half way to their target. For the pilots, the day was spent in the simulators, while their support crews kept the Veritechs in tip-top condition. Outside of that, for the rest of the time, some of the junior members of the task force socialized with the Zentraedi.
As for the senior member…
"All together now...
All together now...
All together now...
All together now."
Ranma's room was slightly smaller than the Sterlings, but their room was specially constructed to take in account their daughter. However it was similar to the other senior members' rooms, with a couple of couches, a table, and a kitchenette. It also had something that made the room different from all the others, a karaoke machine. They wondered why Ranma had a karaoke machine out here. Yet no one risked to ask as a fun time was being had by all.
Currently, Max was having a turn.
"…The world has turned and left me here
Just where I was before you appeared
And in your place, an empty space
Has filled the void behind my face…
"…Do you believe what I sing now?
Do you believe what I sing now?
Do you believe?"
Max placed the microphone down to applauses from his friends. They were all pleasantly surprised at how well he could sing. The one who loved the most was little Dana, who showed as much enthusiasm as a toddler could for her father.
"And now we go to monitor for the total," said Rick in his best announcer voice. Rick gestured to the monitor, and everyone turned their head and followed. They watched as numbers scrolled and flashed until it stopped on the score of 87. It was a pretty good score, but it was short of Ranma's score of 95. Nonetheless everyone applauded.
"Now last up Commander, surely soon-to-be Captain, Lisa Hayes."
Lisa walked up to the microphone very hesitantly. She was a competent commander, but she had one of the failings of most humans. She was afraid to sing in front of people. If it wasn't for the fact this entire thing was started by Ranma, Lisa would have found an excuse to get out of it. Now all she needed to do was find something appropriate to sing.
While Lisa was searched the karaoke catalog, Claudia finally asked the question everyone's been wanting to ask. "Whatever gave you the idea to do something like this?"
"A friend of my cousin told me karaoke is the best way to pass time while traveling in space," Ranma answered honestly. Fortunately no one questioned why said friend would know this.
"Well you have a smart cousin, Commander Saotome," replied Miriya. Ranma reminded her to call him Ranma when off duty, considering she had more years of combat experience, even though she had the rank of lieutenant.
During this Lisa called Claudia over to the karaoke machine for some help. "What do you need?" Claudia asked when joined Lisa.
"I don't know what to sing."
With her vast musical knowledge, a song instantly popped into Claudia's head. She just hoped that it was included in the catalog. Her hopes were rewarded.
"Try this one," Claudia said. "Ranma might even appreciate it since he loves classic rock from England."
"How do you know that?"
"Just sing the song, girl. You might be surprised!"
Lisa looked over the lyrics as Claudia returned to her place. Trusting Claudia's judgment, she typed in the code for the song and faced the crowd with the microphone in hand. That was the cue to everyone that Lisa was ready.
Then she started:
"Can…
(Anybody…
Find me…
Somebody to…
Love?)…
"…(Find me somebody to love)
Ooh
(Find me somebody to love)
Find me somebody, somebody (find me somebody to love) somebody, somebody to love
(Find me somebody to love)
Find me, find me, find me, find me, find me
Ooh - somebody to love
(Find me somebody to love)
Ooh
(Find me somebody to love)
Find me, find me, find me somebody to love
(Find me somebody to love)
Anybody, anywhere, anybody find me somebody to love love love!
Wooo somebody find me, find me love."
Except for Dana, a silence persisted throughout the room. For Lisa, it proved that she was not meant for singing. In actuality, the crowd was shocked that she had such a singing voice. Ranma broke the silence as he stood and applauded, noticing Lisa's score was higher than his. But he wasn't applauding that, but applauded the song and the performance. He never thought Lisa would know the song. Frankly, it was probably a performance that would make Freddie Mercury proud.
The other soon joined in. Rick, Max, and Miriya also looked at Claudia. They realized the hint Claudia had helped Lisa drop a hint on Ranma.
Lisa took the applause as she returned to her seat. Her face was red with embarrassment.
"I guess that makes Lisa the winner," announced Rick. "So Mister Saotome, what does she get as a prize?"
Ranma had to think about it. Setting up the karaoke machine to provide a score was his idea. After a brief thought, Ranma figured there was a prize he could give her. He walked over and kissed her on the cheek. If Lisa could have turned any more red, she would have tried. It was the first time he'd initiated such action.
"That was the prize?" questioned Rick. "You mean any of us would have beaten you, you would have given us a kiss."
"Not really. Besides it's not like I was worried about you. I already now you can't sing. Minmei told me so."
Everybody could not help but to laugh at that.
"Speaking Minmei, are you ever going to record with her again?" asked Claudia.
"No, I don't think I could do that again," Ranma replied. "Besides that was a one time thing to help her start off."
Rick and Max looked at Claudia, wondering what she was talking about and completely missing Ranma's reply. At no time could they remember a song that Ranma and Minmei could have recorded together. They've heard every song that Minmei's released, and there has not been a duet with a male voice. Now Rick has seen occasions when Ranma and Minmei would sing together, when Ranma thought no one was pay attention. He just could not imagine Ranma in a recording studio.
"I think that would be great," commented Lisa. "You know that's main thing I remember about our escape from Zentraedi captivity. Linger was playing when we first received a transmission from the SDF-1."
A gasp of surprise escaped Rick and Max mouth. "That's was you!" they said simultaneously.
"Haven't you ever noticed how that song is never on Minmei's set list even though it is the most requested, most played song in her catalog?" asked Claudia as if she was stating the obvious.
"Like I said, it was a one time thing," continued Ranma. "It's not like Minmei has the time to record to begin with. She has yet to record since return, especially with Kyle constantly having her on tour. When does she have time to record?"
"Aw, that's a piss poor excuse!" remarked Rick. "If you say the word, I'm sure she would end her touring immediately for the chance to sing with her brother. You have more influence over her than anyone on Earth. I should know. I'm her husband."
Any further discussions were ended by the announcement, "Commanders Grant, Hayes, and Saotome, please report to the bridge. Commanders Grant, Hayes, and Saotome, please report to the bridge."
"I guess we best call it a night," said Max, "especially since it's also time to put Dana in bed."
With the party now over, the room was quickly vacated. Claudia, Lisa, and Ranma rode the walkway in silence. A silence broken by Ranma. "I wonder what this is about?"
"Clearly it's something urgent, or they wouldn't have requested our presence," remarked Lisa.
When they entered the bridge minutes later, it became obvious why they were called.
"What is that?" asked Lisa with astonishment. They were looking at the debris field of a destroyed Zentraedi ship.
"That is what happens when someone crosses the wrong side of a Juraian fleet," answered Breetai.
How could they tell? thought Ranma, hiding his surprise at the mention of Jurai.
"But I thought we were attempting to avoid their borders," said Claudia.
"We are," replied Exedore. "However we discovered this wreckage and thought it best to inform you that we are changing course and taking more caution."
"I don't know why you're worried. We've already been give safe passage to travel through the edges of the Juraian Empire." Ranma made these comments without really thinking it through. Everyone looked at him as if he was crazy.
"Are you saying it's safe to go through Juraian territory?" asked Exedore.
Ranma gave an affirmative reply and indicated that it was set up some eighteen hours ago. At this point he realized what he'd just said. He figured he would have to answer questions he couldn't answer. To his surprise, the Zentraedi took this as good news, not concerned about the messenger, while the information seemed to not register with Claudia and Lisa. Things were set in motion to change course. When it was all said and done, they would arrive at the target eight Earth hours earlier.
No questions were asked of Ranma as they made their way back to the sleeping quarters. As they drew closer to their quarters, Lisa felt a jab into her right side. She quickly gave Claudia an offending look, not appreciating the body shot. But with an eye gesture from Claudia, Lisa understood what was going on. Thinking along the same lines as Claudia, Lisa realized this was an opportunity for some "alone time" with Ranma.
"Say, um, Ranma, would you like to have a drink before turning in?" she asked, as they approached her door.
Without thinking Ranma agreed, as long as it was tea. Lisa was grateful; however she wasn't a big tea drinker. She gave Claudia a pleading look, but Claudia quickly shook her head. She didn't want to become the middle person in this situation. Then she realized that might not be the case.
As they stood in front of Lisa's door, Claudia said, "Ranma, could you be a dear and wait in Lisa's room while we talk?"
Ranma didn't know how to respond. What was so important that "Aunt" Claudia needed to talk to Lisa in private? Nevertheless he went into Lisa's quarters.
"I got just the thing for you," stated Claudia, as she made her way to her room.
"You're a life saver," Lisa replied, joining Claudia.
"Though you should have never suggested drinks. Everyone knows that Ranma avoids alcohol."
"I thought that's what you were thinking."
"No, I was thinking you should invite him in for a snack," Claudia said, giving Lisa a playful bop on the head. She continued as they walked into her quarters. "Don't you know the quickest way to Ranma's heart is his stomach? Why do you think Kasumi Tendo is now carrying his child? Sure she beautiful, but she knows that Ranma will do anything if properly fed."
"Can we not talk about his other women?"
Claudia paid no attention to the comment. She was busy rummaging through her bags. From one of them, she pulled out a tin box. It looked rather old and slightly beaten. "Here you go," she said, passing the tin to Lisa. "It's a special blend of tea that Roy gave to me on our second month anniversary. Now I only drink it when I want to spend time with him"
"I-I can't use this. This…"
"Don't worry. I'm sure Roy won't mind since it's Ranma."
"I just…"
"Girl, are you gonna keep him waiting?"
And with that, Lisa was pushed out the door.
Meanwhile in her quarters, Ranma felt a bit on edge. The situation seemed a little déjà vu, for the request to have drinks came out of the blue. However Lisa was a friend; nothing would happen.
Beginning to wonder what was taking so long, Ranma scanned the room to see what type of keepsakes Lisa brought with her. Besides it wasn't like there was anything special about the room. They were all alike, although something did catch his eye. There was a picture frame on Lisa's desk. He walked over and looked at a picture of him, Lisa and the twins. He remembered when it was taken. It was a warm spring day right after Sakura had walked for the very first time but right before he had to return to Japan. Nabiki had been out of town for a photo shoot, and his mother thought it would be a good day for a family picnic in the newly finished Macross Park and had invited Lisa.
"We sure look like a family," he said just as the door opened.
"Sorry for taking so long," apologized Lisa upon entering. Then she noticed Ranma holding the picture that had replaced Karl Riber in importance.
"No problem," replied Ranma.
The room fell into an awkward silence. Lisa went about making the tea while Ranma returned the picture to the deck and took a seat.
"Sakura is a really cute girl," Lisa finally commented.
"Well, she does take after her father," boasted Ranma. "And don't forget about Akito."
"No, we mustn't do that. Though I have to say that I envy you. You have two nice kids. All I have is my career."
"Aw, there ain't no reason to be envious of me. Sure, I have two kids with a third on the way, but unfortunately none of them are with my fiancée. You, on the hand, will find that guy to have that family. I'm positive."
I've found that guy. Unfortunately he only sees me as a friend, thought Lisa.
"What was that?" asked Ranma.
Apparently Lisa's thoughts weren't kept to herself. Luckily it was said low enough that Ranma, even with great hearing, couldn't hear it.
"Tea's ready," Lisa played it off.
"All personnel, prepare for final defold. Repeat, all, personnel, prepare for final defold."
"All pilots to their crafts. All pilots to their crafts. Prepare for immediate launch. Prepare for immediate launch."
"Commander Saotome to the bridge. Commander Saotome to the bridge."
Ranma stopped where he was. He was slightly confused, unsure if he heard the announcement right. It took hearing his name a third time before he was convinced. But why was he needed on the bridge at this moment?
As he made his way to the bridge, the ship came out of hyperspace in front of them was the mission's objection, the Robotech Factory. Lisa would later describe the factory in her mission report as shaped like a primate brain with several smaller replicas attached to it with transportation tubes.
In truth the factory held no importance to the RDF. It was Breetai and Exedore who placed a value on it, by explaining that the factory was a means for remaining the Zentraedi loyal to Dolza to rebuild their numbers. Thus, to prevent a second war between the Zentraedi, this small force was sent to capture it.
"Say, why do you think he asked for Ranma to come to the bridge?" Lisa whispered to Claudia.
"Launch the surprise."
"How should I know," replied Claudia after the announcement.
On the spur of the moment, Breetai made an addition to the plan. Unfortunately he couldn't relay it to one of the parties, as the projecbeam changed from the view Robotech Factory to that of another Zentraedi. He was a man with large eye and a squared jaw. His hair was a curly blue and nose very prominent. He wore a blue uniform with red piping and a green command tunic. This was Commander Reno. He had once been one of Breetai's field commanders before receiving a command of his own to protect the Robotech Factory.
"Greeting, Commander Reno," said Breetai. "It is good to see you in good health."
"The same can be said to you, Lord Breetai. It is good to see that you survived the battle that unfortunately claimed Lord Dolza."
"Yes. It was quite unfortunate what happen." Breetai tried to play off his involvement in the matter. Though there was a surprise headed for Reno's fleet, there was hope that this operation could go without any casualties.
"So what brings you out here?" asked Reno. "I know it could not be for casual conversation considering your betrayal to your people. And do not act surprise. How else could someone infected by the Micronians be able to survive their rightful fate?"
"If you must know, I am here to ask you to surrender the factory and join us."
"And why would I do that?"
"Because we have Protoculture," explained Breetai. He was trying to sound vague in hopes that Plan B would succeed.
"I would never surrender to a traitor. But I might take up your offer if I could see the matrix."
With the sound of the opening of the door, Breetai set his plan into motion. Ranma walked onto the bridge and was greeted by Exedore. "Minister Exedore, by chance you could tell me what's going on? We're about to start the operation, and I get called to the bridge."
"It will all be explained shortly," replied Exedore. "Commander Hayes, could you join us?" Lisa was startled by Exedore asking her to step away from her station. When Lisa joined them, Exedore explained Breetai's intentions.
"You've got to be kidding me!" Ranma said in outrage.
"What is all that noise?" asked Reno. He and the others on his bridge were rather surprised when Breetai announced it as his proof of Protoculture and had the projecbeam display a Micronian male and female standing together. They all gasped because males and females being in the same room was a foreign concept to them.
"And now you shall see the power of Protoculture," announced Breetai over the view of Ranma and Lisa.
"Come on, do it," whispered Lisa, realizing that was their cue.
"I refuse," replied Ranma. "I have more important things to worry about, and now people want me to pucker up for an audience."
"I'm ordering you to kiss me. I won't allow you to make us look like fools."
Ranma felt stuck. Even though they were of the same rank, Lisa was technically his superior. Okay, I'll do it but not enjoy it, he thought as he moved to kiss her. For Lisa, it was perplexing because he freely kissed her just last night (though on the cheek) but now protested.
It wasn't just Commander Reno and his bridge that witnessed the kiss between the Micronian male and female. It broadcasted to all the ships under Commander Reno's command. They were all horrified by what they saw. This was calculated by Breetai, though that's not to say that Breetai and Exedore weren't unaffected themselves.
And it wasn't just any ordinary kiss. The first kiss between Lisa and Ranma was for demonstration. The next was for escape. This current kiss was nothing of the sort. This kiss was full of feelings and passion that they had for the other but kept to themselves. There was no telling how long they would have kissed, if it was for the laughter of Commander Reno. They broke their kiss (with Claudia quick to prevent Lisa from falling) and watched the Zentraedi continuing to laugh. It proved to be a real buzz kill.
"Did you think that would work against me, Lord Breetai," stated Reno. "I am not of weak constitution like the others."
Then explain why you looked like you're going to die, thought Claudia.
"Actually, that was just a distraction," announced Breetai.
On Reno's ship, one of the radar operators reported that there were two unidentified objects headed towards them. Reno was appalled that something like this could be missed until that moment. No sooner had that announcement been made, explosion rocked the ship, forming a gapping hole in the hold just below the command bubble. Through that hole entered two Veritechs, one red and one blue. The two transformed into Guardian mode to land, leaving Reno and the others in his command bubble confused as to what was happening. Weapons were drawn, though no one knew how to respond.
While waiting for something to happen, the canopy of the red Veritech opened, and out from it, stood its red-clad pilot. The Zentraedi could see the tell-tale signs that the Micronian was a female. Already panic was starting to set in, as contact with even female Zentraedi were few and far between. When the pilot took off her helmet and displayed the long emerald green locks, recognition started to take place.
"I am Miriya Parino-Sterling, former Quadrono commander, second in command under Azonia, and now an officer of the Earth forces," Miriya announced. It was said in Zentraedi but was understood by Max, thanks to the universal translator. As Miriya spoke, the canopy to the blue Veritech opened. It was almost as if on cue, when Miriya pointed and said, "And this is Lieutenant Maximilian Sterling." At that Max stood and took his helmet off. "He, too, is an officer of the Earth force," Miriya continued, "and… my mate."
There were some grumblings over the wording. The word "mate" didn't exist in Zentraedi. So Miriya said something that was relatively close, "life compatriot."
As the Zentraedi struggled with the meaning of the wording, Miriya reached behind her and brought Dana into view. The Zentraedi were stunned to miniaturized Micronian. They weren't sure if their eyes were playing tricks on them. How was it possible for Miriya to be holding a miniaturized Micronian, and how did she go about getting one?
"And this is our daughter, Dana Komilia Sterling," Miriya added. "She came out of my body. Made from me and my mate. This is the true power of Protoculture."
This truly freaked them out. How was it possible for a male and a female to make another being? That simply wasn't possible. Was there more to Protoculture than they were led to believe?
Though Breetai couldn't see what Miriya and Max were doing, he could witness the reactions. Now was the time to strike, thus he ordered the immediate scramble of all fighters. Ranma took that as his cue to leave the bridge. As he ran for the door, he hesitated momentarily to look back at Lisa, wanting to say something. Unfortunately he didn't know what to say, or at least he couldn't state it in a way that wouldn't get him into trouble.
Next Breetai ordered the playing of a recording, and soon the sound of Minmei singing was heard. That seemed to break them spirit, as normally discipline officers started running out of the command bubble of Commander Reno.
Hearing the music and seeing the commotion, Max and Miriya knew it was time for them to leave. Max would escort Miriya back to ship before leading his squadron. Since her Veritech had been modified for carrying Dana, she had little armament to get involve in combat.
The fighting was over pretty much before it started. Under Ranma's command, the Veritechs and Battlepods made quick work of Reno's disorganized fighters. Once their lines were broken, Breetai opened fire onto Reno's fleet. Within seconds all but one ship were destroyed. That quickly led to its commander surrendering and offering his allegiance to Breetai.
"Boy, that seemed a little anticlimactic," Ranma said to Rick over the tac-net.
"I don't know why you would say that," replied Rick. "We just did what you drilled them to do."
"Yeah, I guess we did."
With that they laughed.
After the battle ended, Breetai collected all the remaining fighters. Causalities were low. Ranma lose two from his squadron, three from Max's squadron, and ten Battlepods. Since the Battlepod made up the bulk of the fighting force, ten was a low number. Once the fighters were recovered, Breetai's ship boarded the Robotech Factory.
Once onboard the ship, an inspection was done for possible hostiles. Though Breetai was assured by the surrendering commander, he fell for a booby trap once and was not about to fall into another. When the factory was secured, Breetai prepped it for hyperspace. And when all that was done, they made their way back to Earth.
The travel home was shorter due to being allowed to travel through Juraian space. When the Robotech Factory folded into Earth, it was quite noticeable. Earth has had many manmade satellites orbit her, but this was the first manmade object that was visible to the naked human eye. Its size made it a mini-moon. The scientific community had to quickly meet in order to determine if something that size could affect Earth's fragile ecosystem.
A shuttle left Earth carrying Admiral Gloval and Doctor Lang to exam the factory, while two shuttles and a flight of Veritechs returned to Earth. For Rick it was a little hard to believe that a little over two weeks had passed. For him it seemed that they were only gone for five days. Ranma explained that was how he felt when he returned after being held hostage.
However that wasn't a talking point after being debriefed.
"I'm serious, Ranma. I think Minmei would love for you to do another song with her."
"I tell ya I don't think I have the time for that," responded Ranma.
"I don't know why you're concern about time. It's not like there is a set schedule for recording."
"Say, were you expecting Minmei when we returned?" asked Ranma as they exited the hanger.
"Huh?" Rick stopped and looked at Ranma, clueless as to what he was getting at. He wondered why Ranma would ask such a question. Minmei was supposed to be touring the east coast.
Since he had been talking to Ranma with his head facing him, he looked forward and saw Minmei along with Nodoka, standing next to Nodoka's car. How she knew when they were coming back was beyond him, but he was grateful to see her. He ran out to her, brought her into his arms, and gave him a big kiss.
"What are you doing here?" he asked.
"She's here to give you some good news," Nodoka replied.
"Huh?"
He returned his gaze back to his wife. Minmei stood there, tongue tied. For the length of time he was gone, she had wondered how she was going to tell him. Having Ranma there just added pressure.
Ranma walked over to his mother and asked, "What's up, mom?" Nodoka whispered that Minmei had some news for Rick.
"Is somethin' wrong, dear?" asked Rick.
Minmei began sensing how strange was that she was nervous about relaying this life altering news when she could perform in front of thousands of fans regularly. It would be easy if mom would just tell them, she thought. But she realized that it was her responsibility to her family.
Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she said, "Rick, we're gonna have a baby."
She waited to hear Rick's response. None came. What she did realize was Rick was no longer holding her. It gave a sense of disappointment. There was no response, and he had let her go. Opening her eye revealed why that was the case, as Rick was on asphalt having fainted from the shock of becoming a father.
Author's notes:
Credit: songs used are by The Beatles, Weezer and Queen.