HUMANITY'S CURSE
Volume One: Aftermath of Disaster
Chapter Three ~ Stumbling
The wheels on the bus go 'round and 'round...
Anon
Sirens blared through the streets as people scattered frantically. February was drawing to its end, however the fighting was not.
"Ok boys, keep alert; we're on our own 'till Ghost arrive." Rick sighed.
'Here we go again.'
**
Lisa watched the battle anxiously, wishing she were at her old post. The intense fighting on the screen was reflected in the eyes of those present in the room. The reality of Zentradi rebellion was wearing thin on everyone's nerves, fighting inside the defense forces would prove to be their downfall.
"We cannot allow our forces to divide internally." Lisa's determined tone cut through the tension and all eyes were upon her again. She switched off the monitor and glared back at the room.
"I agree Admiral, however we are living in a rather unique age." Caruthers sneered.
"Unique? We're living with aliens for crying out loud!" Maistroff yelled.
The room fell into disarray. Lisa growled softly and squared her shoulders.
"I wish to remind everyone here that humanity's survival hangs by a thread." Her eyes dared them all, but none had the courage to interrupt the daughter of the late Admiral Hayes. Even though those who knew Lisa would claim she had softened slightly, her reputation had far proceeded her. "If we remain on this destructive path, we shall meet our end by our own hands."
**
Dana charmed all that looked upon her as Miriya led her through the shopping centre. Miriya ignored the flurry of whispers that fell behind them and concentrated on the task at hand. Even though young Dana proved very uncooperative in the last store, Miriya was determined she would not fail.
Miriya couldn't help but marvel at Dana's development. Surprised as she was to discover that humans resulted from making love...pregnancy, children...it was amazing to witness the result of love. Ever vigilant, Miriya delighted in recording Dana's growth.
Dana squealed and Miriya snapped out of her daydream. Operation Dana's-spring-wardrobe had begun.
**
Leaderless, the Zentradi were even more unpredictable. Khyron had delighted in testing the waning might of the armed forces; rarely did he attack civilians unless he stood to gain something. Khyron was no more, Azonia too - who did their followers look to?
New Detroit was in shambles, again. The scattered remnants of Khyron's army attacked violently without rhyme or reason, indiscriminately; in their wake, bloodied remains of a frightened and war weary people.
Covering the other's back, Rick and Max fell into their old habits. For a second, Rick swore he saw Ben Dixon flying to his right...until another pilot's dying scream brought him to his senses.
"Where the hell are our reinforcements?"
**
She made a pretty picture; Minmei charmed the star-starved cameras without so much as lifting a finger. Reporters vied for her attention, but Minmei agreed to only to one...for now.
Petite but seductive, Xie Ling was a few months shy of Lynn Kyle. The two had gone to school together, Ling had hoped to ensnare the young man into marriage, but he however, had somehow fallen under his distant cousin's spell.
To force herself out of her doldrums, and, urged by Lena, Minmei began a reluctant friendship with the seemingly shy upcoming reporter...
And agreed to an interview...
A lamb to the slaughter, she thought woefully.
"Tragedy has now become part of our daily lives; Minmei, won't you take us back to a time when Zentradi were nothing more than a mere fairy tale?"
The Siren of the SDF-1 battered her eyelashes for a moment, shocked, then smiled softly. It had been a long time since she'd spoken in her native tongue.
Or remembered back to her childhood, a time where hope was still possible. It didn't take Minmei long to respond in Chinese; she and Ling were chatting away like long lost friends in no time.
**
"Daddy!"
Miriya's head whirled around fast enough to see Dana dash outside the store. Leaving the shocked salesgirl standing with an armful of clothes, Miriya raced after her raucous child.
**
Gentle Max was not one easily provoked, but when he spied a slain blond child, something inside him snapped. Tearing a path through the aggressors proved easy enough for the Ace of the known forces, he flew on like a madman, shooting down every last one.
Night had fallen and rain was pelting down bitterly when Ghost finally arrived.
"Alright Skull, return to base." Rick said wearily.
**
"Stop this second class treatment - free the Zentradi from their enslavement!" A shaggy-haired man, no older than twenty-five preached. Waving pamphlets in the air and approaching shoppers, he spoke of the truth behind the malcontent in the Southlands. "For their bravery, we let them starve? Have we learned nothing from our own history? People please, listen!"
The man's voice grew louder, even as his hands were chained.
**
Dusk had settled over the town, yet the streets were far from sleepy. On every corner, so called prophets chanted the need for all to heed their sins and ready themselves for (yet another) apocalypse. It was the lightest Minmei had felt in weeks, yet there was still that strange feeling that never truly left her.
"You alright kid?" Ling enquired.
"One too many spring rolls..." Minmei wailed.
Many onlookers couldn't believe that Minmei (Miss Macross!) was walking before them. Minmei hadn't been seen publicly since her ill-fated Christmas Eve concert, rumors swept though Macross and Monument alike...where had the star disappeared to? Who was she with? What happened?
Ling intended to find out the answer to those questions.
**
Holding Dana fast at her side, Miriya found herself staring at the screen. Easily recognizing the markings of Skull's first and second in command, she felt a strange ache for the cockpit...to be by their side. How long had it been?
"Home, Momma..." Dana's small voice brought Miriya back to her senses. Giving the child a small smile, Miriya held Dana on her hip and made her way through the whispers of the crowd.
A brave young man watched in disbelief as mother and daughter disappeared.
"Miriya! Miriya Sterling; show them the way! Show them..."
With a thud, his voice was silenced.
**
"Hey Max, wait up!" Rick called out.
"I just want to go home, to my wife and child." Max said softly, not bothering to turn around.
"I couldn't agree more, at least let me drive you."
"No, thanks." Max replied, walking on slowly.
"Come on Max, we live right next door!"
"Leave me be, please Rick."
"Let me drive you home, you'll have the rest of the week off." Rick grinned; Max froze and turned slowly.
"With an offer like that, how can I refuse?" Max replied with a grin.
Rick chuckled as the two continued towards the lockers.
**
First to arrive, Lisa was also the last to leave. The meeting was adjourned and Lisa sighed with relief. Tired from the constant bickering, all she desired was to snuggle up against Rick and sleep this nightmare away.
She blushed at the thought.
It still scared her at times, how intimate they could be. After years of knowing him, lusting and yearning after him, Lisa found this revelation a shock. She deserved happiness, didn't she?
If the nightmare of Khyron's kamikaze assault wasn't a big enough wake up call...
All you have is now, Lisa, make the most of it...
Lisa blushed again, stopped by the door and looked back. Somewhere in the darkened room, Admiral Gloval was there, gently shoving her forward.
Get your ass out that door!
Claudia, too.
**
Minmei's blissful shopping spree was not to be.
"This is not the first time New Detroit has come under attack..." The reporter droned on. "New Detroit last faced Zentradi fire when Khyron acquired the Resizing Chamber..."
Minmei stared in abject horror as the seven o'clock news blared through the speakers in the coffee shop.
"Captain Rick Hunter lead the assault team, he had this to say..."
The world stopped when the camera turned to Rick. Minmei held her breath, his handsome face taking her to a warm, safe, desolate place, all at once. Her reaction was not lost on Ling.
"All that he has to put up with, all the sadness and pain...he still looks the same to me..."
"He's alright I suppose," Ling said, watching Minmei from the corner of her eye. "Not as good as Kyle, though."
Minmei's lip tightened as she grappled with her handbag.
"I'm tired, I have to go." Minmei whispered as she made her hasty retreat.
**
A two year old child could be difficult, at best, to be firm with. A two year old half Zentradi child was impossible.
"I want Uncie Rick to staaaaaaaay!" She wailed, refusing to let go of the tired, bemused Captain.
After pouncing, squeezing and kissing her father, once Dana had spotted Rick, all thoughts of sleep had flown out the window. Her shrill scream echoed down the street and Max hung his head in defeat.
"Alright Dana, if you'd rather spend tonight with Rick and Lisa than with your mother and me..."
"Noooooooooooooo!"
Miriya shook her head and pushed Max out of the way.
"Untangle yourself from Rick this very instance, Dana Parino Sterling!" Miriya commanded. "Zentradi do not cry, nor do they wail...now get inside!" She snapped, hands on hips.
Rick for his part, did his best to stand there and pretend...he wasn't there. He was a tree, yeah, a tree and Dana was a...um...er...
Dana pouted, appealing to her father's soft and vulnerable side. However she charitably let Rick go and made her way toward her father, touched in some way her young mouth was unable to express.
"Daddy put Dana to bed?"
**
Humming happily to herself, Lisa shook her wet hair out of her face and continued stirring the pasta. It was her first opportunity to cook in what felt like an eternity, and it struck Lisa how much she missed it.
"Something sure smells good..." She heard a deep voice purr. She caught her stunned reflection in the window and grinned slowly, moaning softly as Rick's soft lips lit a fire down her neck. Warm, strong arms wrapped around her waist, and Lisa was lost to the moment.
Whirling around in the embrace, Lisa brought her hands up to Rick's dark and unruly hair, nudging his nose softly.
"If you think it smells good, wait 'till you taste it."
"What if I can't wait?" Rick replied as he tightened his grip.
"Patience is a virtue, Captain."
Pressed up against the bench and unable to control her breathing, Lisa's eyes grew wide. Heart beating like a madman, her knees grew weak as Rick laughed softly.
"Come on wench, cook me dinner." Slapping Lisa playfully on the rear, Rick grinned and turned her loose.
Lisa's eyes narrowed venomously at Rick's retreating back. Unable to summon the strength for a coherent retort, Lisa turned back to her pasta.
**
Her sobs grew harder as she fought another bout of nausea. Clutching her stomach and grimacing painfully, Minmei used the last of her strength to moan her Aunt's name.
I'm dying...I'm dying...
Lena burst threw the door, key in hand.
"Minmei, what's...oh darling!" The older woman chuckled softly. "I warned you about alcohol."
"You don't need to warn me about alcohol Auntie...I saw it firsthand with Kyle..." Minmei wailed.
"So, you haven't been drinking tonight?" Lena frowned.
"I haven't had a drop since Christmas! I bet it was the spring rolls...ooh!" Minmei moaned as she readied herself for another encounter with the toilet bowl.
**
In the background, the radio played a romantic jazzy tune. However dinner was less than romantic; locked in a staring contest. Rick's eyes twinkled with mischief for the duration, which naturally, infuriated Lisa. Yet even her fury could not withstand the lure of Rick Hunter's bare chest.
The silence broken, comically, by the enthusiastic...
"Oh Maaaaaaax!"
...and the frenzied slamming of a window seconds after.
Rick and Lisa burst out laughing and finished their meals quickly. When Lisa moved to take the dishes when Rick shook his head.
"I've got the morning off, I'll worry about them later."
Lisa smiled appreciatively and wrapped her arms around Rick's shoulders, the two drifting through the small kitchen slowly. As they drifted through the lounge room, Lisa grinned, glancing around furtively.
As the tune came to an end, so too did their slow dance through their quarters. Words were useless as clothes flew through the air. Suddenly, Lisa pushed Rick from her.
"What's wrong?" He said hoarsely, panic rising quickly as Lisa disappeared from sight.
THUD
THUD
THUD
Suddenly, Rick found himself slamming against the mattress, Lisa's lips crushing his.
"Not that I'm complaining, but..."
"Do you want us to wake the whole neighborhood?" Lisa replied innocently.
"At least let me open up that window," Rick said, pointing to the bedroom window. "And let me show Max how it's done."
[OWARI]
Humanity's Curse is to love, and suffer its wrath...
DISCLAIMER
Robotech is the property of Harmony Gold. I do not own any characters and references to the series (book, comic or cartoon) are done so without the expressed permission of Harmony Gold. Humanity's Curse is not used for the exchange of or quest for money. Humanity's Curse is a fan-based work, I am merely conveying my love for this brilliant series. Needless to say, anyone stealing ideas belonging to the author - punished in your next life; living as the belly-button scum you are.