A/N I think the author note in the pilot chapter may have confused a few
people. Basically, everything on Blue Heaven did not actually happen.
Consider that part an alternate universe. However, Maki did wake up like
that and did find the robot and went to her ship. However, the ship did not
leave the planet. Instead, it is still on the planet, but in a big city.
Okay. Hopefully you understand now.
Disclaimer: I do not own Galactica. I do not own Strife, Jessica Hawking, or Kitty Clan Clan. They all belong to AlphaBlades. Nor do I own the Ka- Shinta or Ketsu. Plus, most of the fight scene and the dialogue belong to him. To see what I mean, read this first and then check out AlphaBlades' story, An Outlaw's Dream and read chapter 20.
I own Maki, the Venus Eclipse, Kashamie, and Tuno. And that's about it.
Hope you enjoy this chapter.
~*~*~*~*~*
The streets seemed normal, like the ones thirty years ago, but everything else had changed. The buildings were much nicer and more complex and the people were strangely nice. The people at the docks wouldn't repair her ship for free, but they did let her dock her ship for free.
It had been so long since anyone had been nice to her. Kashamie.. She really did not want to think about her. She had given her life to save her, but Kashamie did not deserve to be blown into oblivion. This whole predicament was her fault. If she hadn't been so weak, Kashamie would not have died. No one would have suffered.
Tears streamed gently down her smooth cheeks and rolled off her crimson lips. She must have looked like a mental institute patient that had escaped. She wore all black and only her head was exposed. Plus, she walked slowly and probably had a frightened look in her slate blue eyes.
Someone snickered near her and it was an ill-meant snicker. She turned to her left and saw two tall, muscular men walking toward her. She decided to not get involved and ran behind a large building. Someone else snickered.
"Where do ya think you're goin', Sweetheart?" This man was even larger than the other two, who were now on either side of her. She really did not want to deal with these asses right now.
"What do you want?"
The largest man smiled. "We want you. You see, our boss, Ketsu, knows you're a bio-android, and that you were somewhere here on Galactica, but he didn't know where. So, he dispatched quite a few members of the Ka-Shinta to go and find you. So, are you going to cooperate, or not?"
"Maki clenched her fists. "You're pirates, aren't you?"
"Yes, we are."
"Then I say: SCREW YOU! I am not going anywhere with you!" She launched herself towards the largest man. He tried to attack her, but was much too slow. She performed a strong uppercut to his abdomen and did a sweep kick and knocked his feet out from under him. She moved away from all three of them, but could not get away.
She heard more footsteps coming. Ah hell, she thought. I'll deal with that guy later. One of the smaller men approached her. She slid to the left of him and swung her leg at his head, performing a perfect roundhouse. Before he hit the ground, she heard another coming up behind her. She swung her leg backward and up vertically, smashing him between his legs. She whipped around and landed a full-force punch dead center between his eyes. He whined like a little girl.
The third man grabbed her from behind and held tight to her shirt. The largest man, now off the ground, began to ram his fists into her stomach. She brought her knee up to his stomach, stopping his punches, and then she straightened her leg and shoved him away. She took this opportunity to try and break the man's grasp on her. As she ran, the shirt gave way and ripped. Then things began to suck.
All three men were upon her, punching and kicking, even when she hit the ground. The blows only stung, but she had to let them wear themselves out.
Suddenly, the man that had been kicked in the most unflattering way was on the ground, unconscious. She heard someone speak.
"Now, how can you just gang up on such an innocent girl?" It was a male voice. She looked up.
"Hey! I'm far from innocent." She stood up to face him. He was well built and sported unruly black hair and blue eyes. He smiled at her.
"Yeah, whatever babe." He did not just say that, Maki thought. Oh, he is dead.
"What did you call me?" She began to walk towards him.
He backed up and waved his arms. "Hey! I'm on YOUR side!" He then noticed the two conscious men were still around. "Oh yeah, sorry I forgot about you guys. You want to run off before this gets serious?" He pulled out a gun and ran off.
Maki was now really pissed. "You let them get away! They were pirates!"
"Heh, sure they were. Listen, youngin'. Why don't you run back to school?"
Youngin'? "..I'm nineteen.."
He almost hit the floor. "Holy crap, you are one SHORT chick!"
It was true, Maki was only 5'6", but he didn't need to point that out. She crossed her arms and turned away from him.
"Hey look, I was just playing with y_" He stopped his sentence.
Maki turned back to him. "What is it?"
"There are pirates around here, but it wasn't any of those guys," he raised his 9mm to her head, "it's you."
"What? What are you talking about?"
"The tattoo on your back, a skull with a black snake going through the eyes, it's the pirate's insignia."
"Oh, dammit! It is? I didn't know. I got it like thir.." Her voice trailed off.
"What's the matter?" He actually cared?
"Nothing, you wouldn't understand.."
"Oh yeah? Try me."
She took a deep breath. "I've been frozen for thirty years.."
"You're lying."
"...I wish I was.. But I lost everyone I cared for! Everyone.. Kashamie.. Tuno.. Hell, I even think I'm going to miss Gene."
"Gene Starwind?"
"Yeah! You know him?"
"Know him? He gave me his caster and his ship."
"No FRIGGEN way! You have to take me to him!"
"I can't right now, he's on Sentinel III but Melfina and Aisha are here. Do you know them?"
"Yes, I do! Can you take me to them?"
"Sure, follow me.. By the way, what's your name?"
"Maki Zouw."
"Nice name. I'm Strife."
"Hmm, original to say the least."
"Heh, let's just go. Oh and take my jacket. I doubt these people want to see a woman all indecent and such." He took off his trench coat and handed it to her.
"Thanks.." She said, grinning and putting it on. It was a little long on her.
Maki filled Strife in on her past, even telling him about the bounty on her head. She told him all about Kashamie and Tuno, and how she missed them. She talked about the space race and how she winded up going to the Leyline.
"You went to the Leyline? Why?"
"It's a long story, but I'm basically a better version of Melfina."
"Hmm? What's Melfina?"
"A bio-android, duh."
He smacked his forehead. "Oh yeah, guess I forgot. I've only heard about that once. So, you're a bio-android too?"
"Yep, but with upgrades, so to speak."
He shrugged. "Eh. Whatever."
"So what's up with you? You got a story?"
"Me? Na, I'm just going to change the whole universe for the better, that's all."
"Why? What's wrong with it?"
"Wow, you really have been out for a long time." He told Maki about the war and how it all started. She was stunned.
"So much happened.. That's unbelievable."
"Yeah, the universe has really changed."
"Not that. The thought that you can actually make it all better."
"Hey! I can and I will."
"To each his own."
He smiled. "Insightful, are ya?"
Maki laughed. "I know some things."
"Yeah, well I've stated all I could about things that happened in the past."
"Pfft, I've LIVED it first hand."
"Ah, touché.."
"Heh, that was lame."
"What do you mean?"
"Touché. It means to agree or good point. That was the best you could think of?"
He rubbed the back of his head. "Heh, well I was half expecting you not to know what it means. No one really does nowadays."
She smiled and shook her head. "Guess being old has its perks. So, um, about the Ka-Shinta, more specifically about this Ketsu. What's he like?"
"Eh, I don't really know. All I know is that he's really getting on my bad side as of late. Some refer to him as a Hazanko Jr."
She clenched her fists. She never wanted to here that name.
"Something the matter?"
"No, it's just that name has some bad memories."
"Oh, I'm sorry. But I know what you mean. He caused pain to a lot of people."
".. Nothing like what I went through.." She mumbled. They were at the bay now and two women came out to greet Strife.
"About time, Strife! We were going to take off without you!" said the C'tarl woman as she slapped Strife on the back. "Who's this?"
"This is Maki." He turned to her. "Oh and so you know, this is Jessica Hawking and Kitty Clan Clan."
She laughed. "Daughters, eh? Damn, I would have never guessed."
Melfina and Aisha came out and were ecstatic. "Maki, you're still alive!" They yelled, running over and hugging her. "And you haven't aged a day."
"I could say the same about you, Mel."
"Hehe, well I was programmed not to age."
Maki turned to Aisha. "You, on the other hand.. Look like my grandmother."
She laughed but Aisha crossed her arms and pouted. "We all can't stay young, Maki."
"Yeah, I know."
Aisha smiled. "So, where's Kashamie?"
Maki looked at the ground. Strife spoke up. "She's walking around town!"
Maki shook her head. "No, it's ok Strife. I can talk about it.. She's dead, Aisha. She died protecting me as I went into cryostasis. She was a great person; I just wish I could thank her.."
Everyone fell silent. Mel soon spoke up. "Hey, Maki. We're about to leave, how about you join us?"
She smiled and shook her head. "No, that's alright. My ship's on this planet and I can't leave it behind. I'm just trying to find some jobs around here to fix her up to top shape. Thanks for the offer though." She waved and started to walk away. They all waved back.
"Hey, Maki. It was nice to get to know you. Hope we run into each other again," Strife said.
"Yeah and maybe next time I'll be the one saving YOUR ass." She laughed and walked away, still wearing Strife's trench coat. He'll never get it back now, she thought.
~*~*~*~*~
A/N So, how was it? And AlphaBlades did let Maki keep Strife's trench coat. Like I said before, AlphaBlades did most of the fight scene and most of the dialogue, about 90% of each part. However, the next chapter will be independent from AlphaBlades' writing. I will, however, still be using his universe and mentions to some of his characters.
Anyway, hope you liked this chapter.
Disclaimer: I do not own Galactica. I do not own Strife, Jessica Hawking, or Kitty Clan Clan. They all belong to AlphaBlades. Nor do I own the Ka- Shinta or Ketsu. Plus, most of the fight scene and the dialogue belong to him. To see what I mean, read this first and then check out AlphaBlades' story, An Outlaw's Dream and read chapter 20.
I own Maki, the Venus Eclipse, Kashamie, and Tuno. And that's about it.
Hope you enjoy this chapter.
~*~*~*~*~*
The streets seemed normal, like the ones thirty years ago, but everything else had changed. The buildings were much nicer and more complex and the people were strangely nice. The people at the docks wouldn't repair her ship for free, but they did let her dock her ship for free.
It had been so long since anyone had been nice to her. Kashamie.. She really did not want to think about her. She had given her life to save her, but Kashamie did not deserve to be blown into oblivion. This whole predicament was her fault. If she hadn't been so weak, Kashamie would not have died. No one would have suffered.
Tears streamed gently down her smooth cheeks and rolled off her crimson lips. She must have looked like a mental institute patient that had escaped. She wore all black and only her head was exposed. Plus, she walked slowly and probably had a frightened look in her slate blue eyes.
Someone snickered near her and it was an ill-meant snicker. She turned to her left and saw two tall, muscular men walking toward her. She decided to not get involved and ran behind a large building. Someone else snickered.
"Where do ya think you're goin', Sweetheart?" This man was even larger than the other two, who were now on either side of her. She really did not want to deal with these asses right now.
"What do you want?"
The largest man smiled. "We want you. You see, our boss, Ketsu, knows you're a bio-android, and that you were somewhere here on Galactica, but he didn't know where. So, he dispatched quite a few members of the Ka-Shinta to go and find you. So, are you going to cooperate, or not?"
"Maki clenched her fists. "You're pirates, aren't you?"
"Yes, we are."
"Then I say: SCREW YOU! I am not going anywhere with you!" She launched herself towards the largest man. He tried to attack her, but was much too slow. She performed a strong uppercut to his abdomen and did a sweep kick and knocked his feet out from under him. She moved away from all three of them, but could not get away.
She heard more footsteps coming. Ah hell, she thought. I'll deal with that guy later. One of the smaller men approached her. She slid to the left of him and swung her leg at his head, performing a perfect roundhouse. Before he hit the ground, she heard another coming up behind her. She swung her leg backward and up vertically, smashing him between his legs. She whipped around and landed a full-force punch dead center between his eyes. He whined like a little girl.
The third man grabbed her from behind and held tight to her shirt. The largest man, now off the ground, began to ram his fists into her stomach. She brought her knee up to his stomach, stopping his punches, and then she straightened her leg and shoved him away. She took this opportunity to try and break the man's grasp on her. As she ran, the shirt gave way and ripped. Then things began to suck.
All three men were upon her, punching and kicking, even when she hit the ground. The blows only stung, but she had to let them wear themselves out.
Suddenly, the man that had been kicked in the most unflattering way was on the ground, unconscious. She heard someone speak.
"Now, how can you just gang up on such an innocent girl?" It was a male voice. She looked up.
"Hey! I'm far from innocent." She stood up to face him. He was well built and sported unruly black hair and blue eyes. He smiled at her.
"Yeah, whatever babe." He did not just say that, Maki thought. Oh, he is dead.
"What did you call me?" She began to walk towards him.
He backed up and waved his arms. "Hey! I'm on YOUR side!" He then noticed the two conscious men were still around. "Oh yeah, sorry I forgot about you guys. You want to run off before this gets serious?" He pulled out a gun and ran off.
Maki was now really pissed. "You let them get away! They were pirates!"
"Heh, sure they were. Listen, youngin'. Why don't you run back to school?"
Youngin'? "..I'm nineteen.."
He almost hit the floor. "Holy crap, you are one SHORT chick!"
It was true, Maki was only 5'6", but he didn't need to point that out. She crossed her arms and turned away from him.
"Hey look, I was just playing with y_" He stopped his sentence.
Maki turned back to him. "What is it?"
"There are pirates around here, but it wasn't any of those guys," he raised his 9mm to her head, "it's you."
"What? What are you talking about?"
"The tattoo on your back, a skull with a black snake going through the eyes, it's the pirate's insignia."
"Oh, dammit! It is? I didn't know. I got it like thir.." Her voice trailed off.
"What's the matter?" He actually cared?
"Nothing, you wouldn't understand.."
"Oh yeah? Try me."
She took a deep breath. "I've been frozen for thirty years.."
"You're lying."
"...I wish I was.. But I lost everyone I cared for! Everyone.. Kashamie.. Tuno.. Hell, I even think I'm going to miss Gene."
"Gene Starwind?"
"Yeah! You know him?"
"Know him? He gave me his caster and his ship."
"No FRIGGEN way! You have to take me to him!"
"I can't right now, he's on Sentinel III but Melfina and Aisha are here. Do you know them?"
"Yes, I do! Can you take me to them?"
"Sure, follow me.. By the way, what's your name?"
"Maki Zouw."
"Nice name. I'm Strife."
"Hmm, original to say the least."
"Heh, let's just go. Oh and take my jacket. I doubt these people want to see a woman all indecent and such." He took off his trench coat and handed it to her.
"Thanks.." She said, grinning and putting it on. It was a little long on her.
Maki filled Strife in on her past, even telling him about the bounty on her head. She told him all about Kashamie and Tuno, and how she missed them. She talked about the space race and how she winded up going to the Leyline.
"You went to the Leyline? Why?"
"It's a long story, but I'm basically a better version of Melfina."
"Hmm? What's Melfina?"
"A bio-android, duh."
He smacked his forehead. "Oh yeah, guess I forgot. I've only heard about that once. So, you're a bio-android too?"
"Yep, but with upgrades, so to speak."
He shrugged. "Eh. Whatever."
"So what's up with you? You got a story?"
"Me? Na, I'm just going to change the whole universe for the better, that's all."
"Why? What's wrong with it?"
"Wow, you really have been out for a long time." He told Maki about the war and how it all started. She was stunned.
"So much happened.. That's unbelievable."
"Yeah, the universe has really changed."
"Not that. The thought that you can actually make it all better."
"Hey! I can and I will."
"To each his own."
He smiled. "Insightful, are ya?"
Maki laughed. "I know some things."
"Yeah, well I've stated all I could about things that happened in the past."
"Pfft, I've LIVED it first hand."
"Ah, touché.."
"Heh, that was lame."
"What do you mean?"
"Touché. It means to agree or good point. That was the best you could think of?"
He rubbed the back of his head. "Heh, well I was half expecting you not to know what it means. No one really does nowadays."
She smiled and shook her head. "Guess being old has its perks. So, um, about the Ka-Shinta, more specifically about this Ketsu. What's he like?"
"Eh, I don't really know. All I know is that he's really getting on my bad side as of late. Some refer to him as a Hazanko Jr."
She clenched her fists. She never wanted to here that name.
"Something the matter?"
"No, it's just that name has some bad memories."
"Oh, I'm sorry. But I know what you mean. He caused pain to a lot of people."
".. Nothing like what I went through.." She mumbled. They were at the bay now and two women came out to greet Strife.
"About time, Strife! We were going to take off without you!" said the C'tarl woman as she slapped Strife on the back. "Who's this?"
"This is Maki." He turned to her. "Oh and so you know, this is Jessica Hawking and Kitty Clan Clan."
She laughed. "Daughters, eh? Damn, I would have never guessed."
Melfina and Aisha came out and were ecstatic. "Maki, you're still alive!" They yelled, running over and hugging her. "And you haven't aged a day."
"I could say the same about you, Mel."
"Hehe, well I was programmed not to age."
Maki turned to Aisha. "You, on the other hand.. Look like my grandmother."
She laughed but Aisha crossed her arms and pouted. "We all can't stay young, Maki."
"Yeah, I know."
Aisha smiled. "So, where's Kashamie?"
Maki looked at the ground. Strife spoke up. "She's walking around town!"
Maki shook her head. "No, it's ok Strife. I can talk about it.. She's dead, Aisha. She died protecting me as I went into cryostasis. She was a great person; I just wish I could thank her.."
Everyone fell silent. Mel soon spoke up. "Hey, Maki. We're about to leave, how about you join us?"
She smiled and shook her head. "No, that's alright. My ship's on this planet and I can't leave it behind. I'm just trying to find some jobs around here to fix her up to top shape. Thanks for the offer though." She waved and started to walk away. They all waved back.
"Hey, Maki. It was nice to get to know you. Hope we run into each other again," Strife said.
"Yeah and maybe next time I'll be the one saving YOUR ass." She laughed and walked away, still wearing Strife's trench coat. He'll never get it back now, she thought.
~*~*~*~*~
A/N So, how was it? And AlphaBlades did let Maki keep Strife's trench coat. Like I said before, AlphaBlades did most of the fight scene and most of the dialogue, about 90% of each part. However, the next chapter will be independent from AlphaBlades' writing. I will, however, still be using his universe and mentions to some of his characters.
Anyway, hope you liked this chapter.