Harlock woke lethargically to the dull murmur of the crisp river and the gentle cooing of birds; the earth was alive and jovial. Rays of sunlight flickered like glitter upon the river, and warmed the fresh grass. Yet, Harlock thought, there were those who wished to disrupt the Earth's natural beauty.
Feeling his pistol protruding into his side, Harlock adjusted his already uncomfortable position leaning against his messerschmitt plane. Tilting his head back towards the sky, he watched the downy clouds roll by. "Stupid war," he remarked as he watched a robin glide gently towards the water.
The past days previous events were like moving pictures running through Harlock's mind, and thoughts continued to plague him. What had become of Tochiro? Had he made it to safety? And what was to become of himself? Would he continue to fight, or would he too seek refuge? But wouldn't that be cowardly? He thought of what the ridicule of his fellow men would be: he'd managed to crash another plane!
If he crossed the river into freedom, he would be abandoning his duties, and in Harlock's mind, giving up. He'd become a wanted man by the Nazi's, and probably be despised by others who didn't understand his situation and choice. Oh but how he longed to leave this fighting and to join his mother in health in happiness!
His father had disappeared at the end of WWI: all he and his mother had been left of him were manuscripts for a novel he had written. Harlock had the novel published, a novel which was revered by many men, and treasured it as if it were a gift of the gods. He devoured each page each time he read it, a number which continued to grow. That novel had become the guidelines to which he led his life. Each word seemed a life lesson, and since he had no living father to guide him, he used the novel as a role model.
Some time after the end of WWI, Harlock's mother had fallen ill, and paying rent and medicine (not to mention food) became increasingly difficult. Harlock had been attending school, but a new leader promised young men benefits for becoming a soldier, promises Harlock had to believe in to save his mother's life.
With much reluctance and a tear in the eye, Harlock's mother bid him farewell on a morning much like the one Harlock was absorbing now. He left with hopes for the future, and a novel tucked amongst his belongings. He enlisted, and from that moment forward, his life was to never be the same. The text of his father's novel not only once more guided him, but he now realized and understood all of what his father had written and endured as a German pilot during WWI.
In honor of his father, Harlock insisted on becoming a pilot, and refused to anything but. He quickly become recognized as a magnificent flyer, one with impeccable control, and a very poor lander, always managing to crash his plane somehow...
As Harlock snapped back into the here and now, he struggled to come up with a decision as to what to do next. At least, he was until he heard a noise only a human could make...