OK, maybe not quite so deep space, but he will be getting pretty high up there in the atmosphere! For the first time in this story, Daniel will be taking on something relatively risky on his own. Enjoy!

It was another typical day for the 501st Joint Fighter Wing in Romagna – taking care of small-time Neuroi that had dared to come this far south from Venezia, and doing it with relative ease, when Mio saw one more in the distance. As she flew towards it, Daniel followed her, ready to finally test whether he had been able to successfully program the energy signature of a Neuroi core into his sensor system.

This Neuroi was different, as it looked like a narrow tower that seemed to go straight up endlessly into the sky. They couldn't initially detect anything, and Mio flew straight up in order to confirm the core's location. A short time later, the fighter's sensors indicated that it had been able to detect the core – something that should have been cause for celebration from Daniel. However, when the computer calculated the core's location, all he could think was, 'Oh, crap!'

Once Mio had been able to determine the same thing as Daniel, she called for everyone else to return to base. This even included Sanya, who met up with them as she was heading out on her usual night patrol. After Mio discussed the matter with Minna, they knew that taking care of this particular Neuroi would be no easy task as they gathered everyone in the main lounge to discuss the situation.

Minna started by showing them a photo slide with what appeared to be a scratch going through the middle of it. However, it was not a scratch, but the Neuroi in question. While it was moving towards Rome at a very slow pace, the problem was where the core was located – right at the top of the Neuroi at more than 32,000 meters high. Both Mio and Daniel were able to confirm this thanks to her special sight and his sensors, respectively.

This was a major problem, as the witches' striker units could only go up to a maximum of 10,000 to 12,000 meters at most. As Daniel considered this particular problem, Minna told the rest that their plan for this would involve the whole unit, with two witches ultimately flying up to the Neuroi core to take it out with the help of the others to boost them up to the required height along with the use of rocket boosters, which would give them the power to carry them that high.

Sanya was selected to take the actual shot at the Neuroi, as she specialized in long range attacks thanks to her Fliegerhammer. Yoshika was selected to accompany Sanya, as she had the ability to put up the biggest shield, and Sanya would need someone to protect her while she concentrated on taking out the core. The high altitude would cause problems in terms of them being able to get enough air and therefore use their powers to the greatest extent possible. This meant that while Sanya could use her powers to either attack or defend, she couldn't do both.

Eila did not react well to this plan at all, as it meant that Sanya was in danger and she wouldn't be the one to protect her. She tried to volunteer to go, but Minna pointed out that she had never used her shields in combat, and therefore wasn't suitable for this mission. As Eila continued to try to make her case (and glare daggers at Yoshika), Daniel came up with an idea to solve this problem and reduce the potential overall risk at the same time.

Daniel stood up and declared, "Commander, please allow me to take on this mission. I can do this while only risking one person – me." Minna turned to him and asked, "And how do you propose to do that?" Daniel then explained, "I can take my fighter up there, use my torpedoes to take out the core, and use my shields to protect myself at the same time." Mio then asked, "Can your fighter even go that high?" Daniel answered that indeed it could. "It's been tested at that altitude, and while it's at the upper limits of its capacity, it should be able to hold up." Trude then asked, "But how are you going to breathe up there?" Daniel had a solution for this, too. "When I reach an altitude where there isn't enough air to take from my surroundings and recycle it through the ventilation system, my fighter comes equipped with a separate air supply that will last for about 30 minutes – one that I haven't had to tap into yet. The computer will automatically switch to this system at the correct altitude."

Even with all of Daniel's explanations, Minna was still a bit skeptical. "I don't know – this seems too risky." Daniel then argued, "It's no riskier than what you proposed. In fact, I think my plan comes with less risk. Not only are you only putting one person at risk instead of two, but I will be using equipment that I know will work. Plus, I'll have air to breathe." As Minna and Mio considered what he was saying, he added, "Look, you want a plan that has the best chance of success with the least amount of risk taken by the people involved, right? You have to admit, this is it. So please, let me take on this mission."

Minna then sighed in resignation, knowing that Daniel was probably right about this. She then replied, "Very well, Daniel. You will be the one to go up there and take out the core. However, we'll continue to hold the original plan in reserve, just in case something goes wrong." Daniel then saluted Minna and Mio, saying, "Thank you very much. I won't let you down – and you won't be needing the backup plan."

As the unit was dismissed and everyone filed out of the room, Sanya, Eila, and Yoshika came up to him and asked why he had volunteered to do this alone. He just smiled and said, "Trust me – it's not because I don't think highly of your abilities, because I do. Still, you're all my friends and family in this world, and if I can do something that will help protect all of you from danger, then I see no reason why I shouldn't." While they appreciated the sentiment, they were still worried. Daniel then added, "Don't worry. I'm not trying to get myself killed. I'll be just fine – you'll see."

However, before Daniel could go up, the Romagnan navy insisted that it get an opportunity to take out this Neuroi itself. It went about as well as could be expected – meaning the naval vessels had no success destroying the Neuroi and took a lot of casualties in the process. Now Daniel was up. As he prepared to leave, there were the expected "good luck" wishes, but also a briefing from Minna as to what kind of resistance he should expect. Since he was going to be alone, he would have to take the full brunt of it.

As he departed and cleared the base, he pointed his fighter to the sky and began to accelerate upward. At about 20,000 meters, the supplementary air supply kicked in as expected. Soon, he reached 32,500 meters, at which point he leveled off, activated his shields and weapons, and began to search for the Neuroi. He found it soon enough, and within a few moments, his sensors were able to target the core. He also met resistance, as Minna had warned, in the form of about a half dozen laser beams shooting at him at once.

Thanks to his Jedi reflexes, he was able to dodge them for the most part, and those that he wasn't able to dodge bounced harmlessly off his shields. When he was in range, he fired two torpedoes at the indicated coordinates. A few moments later, he could see a bright light as the core was shattered, and soon the rest of the Neuroi followed suit. He then radioed back to the base, "Target destroyed – the mission was a success. I told you I had this!" He then got a reply from Mio stating, "Good work, Daniel! Return to base."

He was about to do so when he was able to take in the view he had from 30,000+ meters in the air – he was almost into outer space, and the view was spectacular. He then replied, "Give me a couple of minutes, major. You wouldn't believe the view from up here – there's no way that I'm not taking a little time to just take this all in!" Minna then chimed in, "But what about your air supply?!" Daniel then replied, "Don't worry, I still have more than 20 minutes of air left – plenty of time to take a look." As he looked around at the cosmic beauty before him, he knew that he had to somehow share this with everyone else. He then used his onboard digital camera to take some photographs to share when he got back.

Not long after his space adventure, Daniel was greeted one morning by a telegram from allied headquarters to expect a transport to pick him up shortly in order to take him to London. There he would be negotiating with industry and military leaders regarding his royalties and licensing fees for his technology, as per his written agreement with Allied Command. When it arrived, Ursula was there to accompany him.

In addition, Ursula brought with her the first full complement of newly-produced photon torpedoes for Daniel's use. Amazed, but still cautious, Daniel insisted on inspecting them himself. Not that he doubted Ursula's capabilities as a scientist and engineer, but this was an attempt to reverse engineer technology from 75 years in the future, and he had to make sure it would be suitable for his use. After taking some time going over the torpedoes with Ursula looking over his shoulder, he seemed to be satisfied with them, and proceeded to join Ursula on the transport, heading to London.

Over the next couple of days, he argued and negotiated with the various representatives, trying to reach an agreement that would be fair to both sides. In the end, the amounts they agreed to were something that the manufacturers felt they could live with, and Daniel felt would provide him with enough to financially support him after the war was over.

When he returned to base, he noticed that many of the lights were not working and that the bath that had been under construction was finally completed. It was outdoors, complete with a spectacular view of the Adriatic Sea! When he asked the others what had happened while he was gone, he got a lot of awkward looks, and while a couple of them mentioned something about dealing with a Neuroi that had affected the electrical systems, he could feel that there was more they weren't telling him.

There's a major twist for you – Daniel goes up instead of Eila and Sanya, thus avoiding their big fight. This was also an opportunity for Daniel to take some initiative in his fighting duties – something that will be important later on.