Chapter Three

Several hours later, everyone on board the Arcadia was brought to full attention, when the alarms started blaring.

"What's goin' on?! What's happening?!" Young Harlock yelped, as he rushed out of his father's quarters with Tochiro Jr. and Keikai right behind him.

"Dunno, kid. All we know is that the central computer's picked up on somethin'!" one pirate replied, having somehow heard the youthful voice despite the din.

"Then which way is the bridge from here?" Tochiro Jr. asked, yet got no answers from the crew, as they rushed to their positions for battle.

"This way! I know the way! C'mon!" Keikai yipped, as he started running in the direction the two boys wanted to go. Not having any other choice but to follow the wolf pup, the two boys raced through the halls to where an elevator waited; stopping when they almost ran into one crewmember in particular. She appeared to be about fifteen or sixteen years old, had blond hair and piercing blue eyes; eyes that widened when she saw them skid to a halt in front of her.

"What do you think you're doing?! You two can't go on the bridge right now!" the young woman said, her tone a mix of shock and surprise, when she saw who the boys looked like.

"Somethin's goin' on and we don't want to miss out. Right, Harlock?" Tochiro Jr. asked, with a grin; getting a nod from his friend for an answer.

"Got that right." Young Harlock agreed, not in the least bit deterred by the woman's subsequent glare at their audacity, as they quickly got on the elevator before the doors closed. When they arrived on the bridge, even the two boys could tell that something was definitely wrong. Harlock was standing at the wheel, gripping it in an iron grip, and gazing stonily at the viewscreen in front of him. Tochiro, in the meantime, was about three feet away from the captain; and was pacing anxiously back and forth across the deck.

"What's goin' on? Why do our dads look so upset?" Young Harlock wondered; watching as Lightningtooth also took up a position beside the captain; blue eyes narrowed and ears slightly folded back in concentration. Both boys jumped when Keikai suddenly spoke; his voice filled with worry and some fear.

"I can't hear Mom's mind, Dad! Is she okay?!" Keikai questioned, anxiously.

"She's alive….that's about all I can say, at this point, son." Lightningtooth replied, with some very evident concern in his voice as he spoke.

"We've picked up a signal…..It seems Angel has remembered the tracker on her collar, and activated it….But we're still a good distance away from where they are." Tochiro worriedly said, not pausing even once as he spoke; his worry and anger readily apparent. Harlock's eye narrowed, before he spoke again.

"Put us on course, Kei." Harlock ordered, getting an immediate compliance from the teenaged girl before adding, "Put the engines to maximum. It's time to put the Arcadia's speed to the test."

"But who's Angel and what's goin' on?" Tochiro Jr. asked, becoming even more uneasy as time went on. At this, he got a grim look from his father.

"Angel's my mom…..and she's the guardian of your mom." Keikai whimpered, as concern for the both of them emerged.

"My……Mom's in trouble, Dad?!" Tochiro Jr. suddenly yelped, when the pieces had finally fallen into place.

"Yeah…..You two, I've got somethin' to give you." Tochiro murmured, as he rushed over to what seemed to be a munitions closet, opened it, and pulled two pistols and their holsters out.

"What…..?" Young Harlock finally said, his young eyes widening when he saw what the guns looked like.

"These are yours'. I started 'em on a whim, not knowing why I was making extras….Guess it was a sign that you two would eventually come aboard. You know what they are, right?" Tochiro asked, smiling slightly when he saw the awed looks on their young faces.

"Cosmo Dragoons…..And these are ours?" Young Harlock asked, as he carefully handled the pistol he'd been given. Tochiro nodded.

"Just use them wisely. They are not toys, as you should know, by now." Tochiro stated; allowing himself a tiny grin when he sensed a hint of concern emerge within Harlock's spirit, and knew that he had not anticipated either of the boys heading out into battle with them.

"Yeah. Much better than the pieces of crap we've been using till now, ne, Harlock?" Tochiro Jr. asked, rhetorically; giving his friend a grin when the other boy nodded vigorously in agreement.

"Got that right!" Young Harlock said, wholeheartedly, as he fastened the gunbelt around his waist and looked back at the viewscreen. They were approaching what appeared to be a lush, green forest planet.

"The signal is getting stronger, sir." One of the men on deck said, as he turned to look at the Arcadia's captain.

"Man the battle stations, we're breaching the atmosphere in a few minutes." Harlock growled, getting an immediate compliance from all on board.

"This is where things get interesting."

………………………….

Just as Harlock had said, the Arcadia entered the planet's atmosphere within seconds of the order being carried out. Almost immediately, they could see what appeared to be a ground battle going on…..yet it proved to be something else, the closer they got.

"Damn! They're takin' 'em apart down there!" Tochiro Jr. shouted, furiously, as he watched the sickening sight of the unarmed men getting gunned down as they ran.

"Go find Emeraldas, Tochiro. I'll handle this front." Harlock snarled, as he let go of the helm wheel, and checked his belts for his gun and gravity saber.

"On it. Be careful out there, my friend. The guns those bastards have don't look normal." Tochiro said, concernedly.

"Don't worry. We'll walk away from this, count on it." Harlock replied, as he gave the engineer a thumbs up before Tochiro swiftly disappeared down the hall.

"I'm goin' too!" Tochiro Jr. said, as he made a move to follow his father down the hall, yet was stopped by a word from Harlock.

"No. This is something only he can handle, at this point…..Though I don't think I will have as much luck convincing either of you to remain on board when we make landfall." Harlock muttered, as he glanced at them with a resigned look in his eye; noticing right away the stubborn light in their young eyes.

"So like their fathers, in that respect." Lightningtooth sighed, when he'd seen the same light appear in Keikai's blue eyes, as well.

"We're members of your crew, Dad, so we're gonna fight too." Young Harlock stated, determinedly.

"I thought as much." Harlock in turn sighed, shaking his head as he did so.

Author's Note!

Granted, not a very long chapter, but this is connected to Ligthingtooth's fic 'Unbreakable Will of Love', so the next few chapter might seem a little short, by comparison. Hope this was all right, otherwise!

Gemini14