Disclaimer
Macross is owned by or licensed to lots of people - Tatsunoko Studios, Harmony Gold, Studio Nue, Streamline Video...note that none of them are me.
The same can be said of Ranma 1/2 - Rumiko Takahashi, Kitty, Shonen Sunday Comics, Viz Video. Not me.
I didn't create any of them, and I certainly do not own them. Any use of them in this story is meant as nothing more than tribute. Please don't sue me.
Wednesday's Child
Thirteen: Miss Macross
February 24th, 2010
Science and Technology Report
Prepared by Cmdr. Nabiki Tendo, Intelligence Division
The VF-1J Valkyrie
The VF-1J is a variant of the Valkyrie produced by Shinnakasu Industries of Japan, under license from Stonewell-Bellcom. As part of the license, Shinnakasu received the original Valkyrie YF-1A prototype specifications, as well as the Block Two upgrades applied to the production VF-1A and -1B. However, Shinnakasu felt that merely producing Valkyries according to specification was not good enough, especially in the aftermath of their losses in the Phoenix project.
Therefore, Shinnakasu's top engineers, including Kawamori and Tatsunoko, elected to upgrade the avionics of the Valkyrie. The most prominent change is the replacement of the AN/APG-35 fire control system with the more advanced AWG-33. While no superior in the ground attack role, the AWG-33's radar has a fifteen percent range increase over the AN/APG-35 radar set, as well as a thirty-five percent lower probability of intercept. In passive mode, the AWG-33's antenna can detect a broader range of frequencies, making fire-control possible on AWACS frequencies. This allows, for example, a Cat's Eye to paint a target with a steered radar beam, and the VF-1J can then launch missiles against it without the need to illuminate the target itself.
In addition, the AWG-33 has a more robust battle computer, using the IBM/Freescale e700-based PowerPC processor and having 1024 megabytes of RAM available. By comparison, the AN/APG-35 uses the Freescale ColdFire, and has only 16 megabytes of RAM. The AWG-33 can handle gross motor smoothing in all modes for the VF-1J, plus navigational processing, whereas the VF-1A uses two separate computers for that function in addition to the ColdFire-based battle computer.
This freed up considerable cubage inside the hull of the fighter. Aside from the Block Two hull changes and the prototype-style sensor head and laser turrets, the VF-1J is externally identical to the YF-1A. The spaces freed up in the primary fuselage were filled with more powerful generators for the jammers, permitting them to blanket an area seventeen percent greater. In addition, countermeasure stores were increased to twenty chaff and flare each, in a hexagonally-packed box launcher.
The AWG-33 is capable of handling the AIM-9 Sidewinder, AIM-120 AMRAAM, GA-23 Diamondback and GA-31 Jackhammer missiles, all of which are equally supported by the AN/APG. In addition, the AWG-33 can handle the GS-11 Coral Snake, normally carried by the Tomahawk and Spartan Destroids. These missiles can be carried in pairs, or in box-launchers of five.
Twenty-four of the VF-1J were shipped to Macross Island before Launch Day. Six of them were Block One, with the original FF-2000 fusion engines. The use of the VF-1J is reserved to Flight leaders or those with their Ace of Aces ribbons.
"Sweet!" Ranma dropped into the front office of the Valkyrie. This particular machine had been in storage since Launch Day, not having had a pilot to drive it. But as Ranma was now Skull Thirteen, leader of the Third Flight of the Jolly Rogers, he warranted an upgrade.
Externally, it was the same as Switchblade, but internally, it was a whole new ball of wax. The software came up in record time, and the helmet tracking gyros' calibration range was much higher. He twisted his head left and right, watched through the monocle as the turret camera tracked his head motion.
"Nice, huh?" The new airplane came with a new plane captain, a young and attractive woman named Jane Bell.
"You can say that again, Warrant."
"We've already got your name and kills on the side of her, but no plane name yet. Got anything in mind?"
"Not off-hand. But I got a week before I gotta fly her, and I'll come up with somethin' before then."
It had been a rocky ride, getting the Flight, but Ranma had gritted his teeth and carried through. The first obstacle was that the Jolly Rogers were already over-establishment. Roy had thoughtfully arranged to get five pilots transferred to other Squadrons. All five were among his most senior pilots; only Kramer and Roy had more hours in type than Ranma now.
A sixth transfer had been more difficult to arrange, but Ranma had pulled that one off. Since he and Misa had officially started dating, they'd had to be a little more cautious about conflicts of interest. But this conflict had had them at opposite sides of the field.
February 17th, 2010
Misa shook her head. "Out of the question."
"Come on, Misa. He's ready! He was all over the enemy at Mars, coverin' the Destroids, and he cleaned up in the Rings of Saturn."
"He's a dangerous lunatic, and shows no proper respect for authority. And I'm still not convinced he isn't a peeping tom."
Ranma sighed. "Look, I ain't Ichigyo's biggest fan, either. He got off on the wrong foot with me, and basically stayed there. But the fact is, he's a good pilot, and seems to have good command instincts."
Misa rubbed her temples. "I don't understand why you're arguing that he should have his own Squadron. If anybody deserves that, it's you."
"Roy wants him to have the command. He wants me in the Rogers. I don't know why, I don't think it matters." Ranma sat down opposite his girlfriend, and put one foot up on the coffee table. "But he wants Ichigyo's board, and he'll get that, whether or not you're on it. He wants you on that board, specifically because you don't like the kid."
"Wait--" Misa held up a hand. "You're telling me that he's trying to sabotage his oldest friend's career?"
Ranma shook his head. "No. He just wants Ichigyo to get his promotion honestly, and get his command honestly. He thinks - and I agree - that you're the best shot at that."
"But I don't--"
"Don't like him. I know." Ranma nodded. "That's why he wants you there. Because you'll dig to find somethin' ta prove that Ichigyo ain't ready." She darkened, and Ranma held up his hand. "I don't mean you'll sabotage him. I mean that if there's somethin' there, you'll find it. If there's not...what would you tell the board?"
"That...he deserves the command," admitted Misa.
"You see? You're honest and professional, and that's why he wants you there."
"Why don't you sit the board?"
"Because I'm his Flight Leader," said Ranma. "I gotta appear as a witness."
"You're not his Flight Leader yet," she objected.
"I will be by the time he faces the board."
"I still don't like this." Misa jumped to her feet. "But I'll do it. You owe me."
"Anything ya want."
She paused, and turned to look at him evilly. "Anything?"
February 24th, 2010
"Well, if it isn't Squadron Lieutenant Saotome."
"Hey, Nabs." Ranma grinned. "Nice brief on the Jaybird."
"Thanks. And don't call me that." Nabiki sat down opposite Ranma. The White Dragon was moderately busy, with Minmay and Saochin rushing from table to table. Ranma had a good-sized teapot of nothing but hot water in front of him, which explained why he was male and in the same room as Minmay. He also had the remains of what looked like enough Chinese food in front of him to feed the whole Tendo family, including the in-laws.
Mind you, genuine Tendos were getting hard to come by; as far as she knew, she was the last one of the name from their branch of the family. Kasumi had taken her husband's name, and was now a Tanaka. And her father had been an only child.
"Listen, I never had an opportunity to properly thank you for saving me."
He waved it off. "It wasn't nothin'. Any other member of the UN Spacy woulda done the same."
"Actually, from what I hear, they wouldn't. And you got in hack for saving me."
"It hurt my promotion schedule, but the Captain waited until after my last board before calling me up," said Ranma. "So it'll be a long, long time before I screen for Commander, but Squadron Lieutenant ain't a bad billet."
"And you just got your own Flight."
"It ain't assembled yet, but yeah." Ranma indicated the file in front of him. "Five new recruits, freshly posted to the Rogers from training. They'll all suck, but hey...that's why they're assignin' them to me."
"Ever modest, aren't you?"
Ranma shrugged. "There's no room for bein' modest when it comes to flyin' combat."
"And I also hear that you and Lieutenant Hayase have finally stopped lying to yourselves."
This elicited a knee-jerk reaction from Ranma: He threw up his hands and squawked, "It ain't like that!"
Nabiki smirked. "So you and Lieutenant Hayase aren't dating?"
"I didn't say that, either." He calmed down enough for his brain to start working. "We were never lying to ourselves, or each other, or anyone else on this boat. But she wasn't ready to move forward with a relationship, and I'm not certain I was either."
"Riber and Akane?"
"More Riber than Akane," admitted Ranma. "I found closure the day the Macross crashed on Earth. She had to go to Mars to find it."
"The day the..." Nabiki frowned. "What was it about the Macross that helped you?"
"It wasn't the ship itself. It was the mission I was on."
"What about it?"
"I ain't rehashin' it again," growled Ranma. "Just pull my damn file. You got the clearance."
"All right, fine. So you both got over your problems, and decided to start dating. That's all I really wanted to know." She paused. "But I still need to thank you properly for saving me. How about dinner?"
He indicated the remains of his meal. "Already ate."
She snorted. "Looks like five combo plates, and a side order of Moo Goo Guy Pan. You're still hungry."
"Well...I was thinkin' about orderin' a bit more..."
"Thought so." She waved at Minmay, who nodded, but had her hands full. "Heard about this talent contest the Mayor is trying to organize?"
"Yeah," muttered Ranma sourly. "It's all Minmay's been talkin' about, half the Skull has requested extra time off to go to it, and it's all my fault. Shot myself in the foot real good with that one."
"Huh?"
"Me an' Misa went to the Mayor an' told him we were worried about civilian morale," explained Ranma. "He cooked up this beauty contest thing. Told us to let him handle all the details."
"Sounds like a good idea, in my opinion," said Nabiki. "Keep people's minds off the bad spot we're in."
"Yeah...except for one little detail."
"What would that be?"
Ranma reached into the folder and passed a form over to her. She picked it up, and examined it briefly.
"Oh, you have got to be joking," she laughed. "Why the hell would you--"
"I owed Misa a favour," he growled. "She forced me to sign up."
"Really." Nabiki chuckled. "I'll be there with a camera."
"Joy."
She wished that she'd had a camera two hours later, while talking with Claudia. The spit-take was definitely a Kodak moment.
Claudia set down her coffee cup and carefully wiped her chin. "Can you say that one more time, please? Just so I'm certain I heard you right?"
Nabiki picked up a napkin and dabbed at her uniform. "Miss Macross. Ranma. Misa signed him up."
"Oh. I did hear you right. Pity; the day seemed to have very little loopiness in it so far." Claudia sighed. "Why the hell would he--"
"He owed her a favour." Nabiki leaned back and sipped her own coffee.
"That's a pretty large claim. It must have been a hell of a favour."
"He didn't say. But he saved my life, and I repaid him with dinner, which he thought was acceptable. For Misa to put him through this--"
"I'm not sure that she really understands what she's putting him through," mused Claudia. "She knew him for almost ten years as a woman. Didn't have a clue that he was really a man."
"So she might still be thinking of him, subconsciously, as female."
"Yes." Claudia frowned, and added, "We should do something about that."
Nabiki held up a form. "Something like this?"
Claudia blinked, and then grinned wolfishly. "Oh, yes. Something like that indeed."
Global rubbed his forehead where he'd smacked it against the top of the hatch frame. "Dammit, I will get Engineering to raise that hatch...Lieutenant Hayase. Front and center!"
Misa blinked, and turned to face the Captain. "Sir?"
"I'd like to commend you for your efforts on behalf of the citizens of Macross City. You've certainly gone above and beyond where it comes to that beauty pageant."
Beside her, Claudia snickered. Misa ignored it, and nodded. "Thank you, Sir. Though I think that Lieutenant Saotome's contribution is considerably greater than my own."
"Nonsense! No false modesty here, Lieutenant." Global sat down in the center chair. "You've certainly invested no small amount of time and energy to the project. Though I note that there is a scheduling conflict; you're on the bridge during the contest."
Claudia was now suppressing giggles. What the hell is she so amused about? mused Misa. To the Captain, she said, "It's unfortunate that I'll miss it, but duty comes first."
"Personally, I think your duty is to attend. So I'm giving you an eight-hour leave to attend."
Misa blinked. "Thank you, Sir."
"And I fully expect you to bring home the grand prize."
Misa blinked again. "Sir?"
Claudia was now having trouble standing upright.
"It was a stroke of public-relations genius to enter the contest yourself," continued Global. "Think of all the positive press this will generate."
"Uhhh...yes, Sir." Misa turned back to her station, scowling angrily. "I'm going to kill her," she muttered.
Claudia glanced over. "Who?"
"Ranma," Misa snarled. "This has to be her idea of revenge."
"Actually," said Claudia, "it was me who entered you."
Misa stared at her in shock. "What? Why?"
"Because I thought that Macross needed a representative, and you're better looking than me."
"Forget it," Misa scowled. "I'll withdraw."
"You owe me a favour."
Misa stared at Claudia in horror. "You wouldn't--"
"Oh, yes, I would." Claudia's expression darkened. "If you can use that schtick on Ranma, I can use it on you."
"Is that what this is?" Misa turned back to her console angrily. "You knew Ranma wouldn't do anything to weasel out, so you're inflicting this on me?"
"And why not?" Claudia turned back to her own console. "If you're willing to inflict it on him, then the least you can do is take the same medicine." She paused, and added, "At least you're female. You're dating the guy, and you still think he's a girl."
Misa deflated. "I guess you've got a point. I'll apologize to him after the contest."
"Not before?"
She shook her head. "Not until we've both taken our lumps."
March 3rd, 2010
"Number sixteen, Lieutenant Misa Hayase." The announcer was an American, and put her family name last, as was their tradition. Misa felt as though she were standing before the crowd naked, in her red bikini. She managed to keep a smile pasted to her face as she crossed the catwalk. The cheers from the military sector were particularly loud, as they were getting to see a side of their commanding officer that didn't normally make an appearance.
Not to mention two legs, a belly, and several other parts of her body normally kept concealed by her uniform.
"Number seventeen, Lieutenant Ranma Saotome."
He has to be in his own personal hell, she mused as the energetic girl bounced onto the stage. But he's taking it with a lot more grace than I am. Ranma waved to the crowd, flashed a stink-eye at the jeering soldiers - her curse was public knowledge by now, throughout the population of the ship - and ran up beside Misa.
For her part, Misa felt rather plain and awkward next to Ranma. In girl form, she was appallingly cute, very buxom, and the teal-and-gold-chain bikini was cut to flatter her figure. Whereas Misa's appeared to have been tailored to reveal; there was less material in her entire suit than in either part of Ranma's.
"What the hell is that Minmay girl wearing?" Ranma snickered. "She might as well be in a fur coat."
"She's only sixteen, Ranma." Misa chuckled. "She probably isn't brave enough - or stupid enough - to wear something like this."
"Well, don't tell her, or anyone else, but I think that Mayor Luan rigged the vote." Ranma snickered again. "Minmay's the ship's darling, and I think she'd win based on nothing more than her personality, but I heard from a guy in programming that Tommy specified that she get twenty percent more votes than she actually receives."
"Really?" Misa looked shocked. "That would be unethical." She glanced down to where the announcer was now handing Minmay the microphone. "Does anyone else know about this?"
"No," said Ranma. "But if she doesn't win, it'll be a bit of a disappointment to Tommy." She paused as the announcer reached her. "Oh no."
"Miss Saotome. Can you tell us a bit about yourself?" The announcer held the microphone out to her.
The General Quarters siren chose that moment to blare.
"Thank God," muttered Misa.
Ranma grabbed the microphone. "I'd love to answer the question, but I'm afraid that the ship is under attack. I have to go blow up the bad guys now."
She tossed the microphone back to him, and she and Misa bolted from the stage.
Misa ran through the hatch and onto the bridge. "Status report?"
Dead silence answered her, broken by the sound of Global's pipe clattering off the decksole. He cleared his throat.
"Lieutenant Hayase...you're out of uniform."
Misa glanced down, and blushed hot enough to ignite paper. She adjusted her bikini top. "Damn thing wasn't made to run in. What's going on?"
"Lieutenant Ichigyo reported contact with an enemy recon vessel," said Shammy. "He engaged it with missiles, but it took the hits and returned fire. His Valkyrie was damaged, and he broke off to recover aboard Prometheus."
"Who's on the Ready Line?"
"Lieutenant Ichigyo was the Ready Line," reported Kim. "Everyone else is on leave."
"They couldn't have picked a better time to attack," muttered Misa. "Lieutenant Saotome was headed down to the Valkyrie Bay."
"Saotome's good," said Global. "But not so good that he can face off with that enemy recon ship. Shammy, put me in contact with the Valkyrie Bay."
"Channel three, Sir."
"Lieutenant Saotome?"
"Yes, Sir."
Global's eyebrows rose at the obviously female soprano. "No hot water down there, Lieutenant?"
"I got two flight suits, Sir."
"The enemy vehicle is considerably larger and more powerful than their battlepods. We've got a single YF-1A prototype fighter, equipped with the Heavy Armoured Augmentation Pack. Think that would even the odds?"
"I think so, Sir."
"Good. Take it." He closed the channel. "Position of the enemy vessel?"
"Ninety-five by fifteen, range one thousand kilometers," reported Kim. "It's just sitting there, Sir."
"Vector Lieutenant Saotome to intercept."
"Aye, Sir."
"His delta-V will be low due to the added mass of the armour," reported Vanessa. "It wasn't really made with space combat in mind."
"Any word on damage to the recon vessel?"
"Ichigyo got six good missile hits on it," said Kim. "It's bleeding air, but still operational."
"Saotome has launched, Sir."
"Claudia. Bring the starboard-side rail guns to bear on the enemy vessel."
"Aye, Sir. Helm, roll port fifteen degrees."
"Helm rolling port." Misa adjusted her controls. "Precession gyros are spinning, rate of change one degree per three seconds."
"The enemy vessel is maneuvering. Sir, they're staying outside of the rail gun's firing arc." Claudia looked back at the Captain. "They've got a lot more maneuverability than we do."
"So it's up to Saotome," mused Global. He raised his voice and ordered, "Bring up the pinpoint barrier system, and keep a shield between Saotome and the hostile until he gets inside missile range."
It proved a good plan; the recon vessel had four large energy weapons, that immediately started hammering away at the oncoming Valkyrie. Bolts bounced off the energy shield, but each hit destabilized the shield for a brief period. One or two bolts got through, but the Valkyrie jinked, dodging the shots with inhuman reflexes.
The enemy turned and started burning away from Macross, but Saotome's armoured Valkyrie reached a firing solution. Across the heavy armour, missile bays opened, and fifty Coral Snake missiles snarled outwards. At least half hit the recon pod, and it started to tumble, shedding flakes of armour.
Ranma smacked a fist down on the Jettison button, and the armour plates blasted away from her Valkyrie. She unstrapped her GU-11 and triggered it rapidly. The 55mm shells tore a hole through the outer skin of the pod, a gap that she widened as the boot of the Soldier-mode impacted the hull. She reached down, tearing at the armour, widening the hole further, and slipped through.
She brought the gun up, flipping on the floodlights on the Valkyrie's shoulders.
The compartment was empty.
She stepped forward, scanning the inside of the pod. It appeared that the compartment was a bridge or cockpit; three seats stood empty, their computer screens flashing alien characters.
The ship rumbled, and she turned, to see a small pod of some sort tearing away from the intruder.
"Gunsight One, Switchblade. Looks like the crew bugged out."
"Roger, Switchblade. The science weenies will get to play with their technology, at least."
Her eyes crossed the computer screens again, and froze. The patterns displaying...it sure looked a lot like a countdown...
Her danger sense started screaming, and she turned and dove for the hull breach. Her Valkyrie reconfigured as soon as it was clear, and she rammed the throttle right past the firewall.
The pod exploded. The shock wave crept towards her, silent in the vacuum of space, and she realized that she didn't have the acceleration to outrun it...
It enveloped the Valkyrie, and now it could be heard, an ultrabass rumbling that shook every fitting aboard Switchblade. The engines protested, and then promptly shut down, the computer popped every breaker it had, and the gyros packed it in completely. Switchblade spun like a leaf in a tornado.
It took long seconds for the fighter to exit the blast shell, for the shock wave to pass her and leave Switchblade tumbling aimlessly through space. She fired the reaction jets, bringing the spin down to a less stomach-churning level.
"Gunsight One, Switchblade. Still here."
"Oh, thank God!" Misa's relief was thoroughly audible. "Can you maneuver?"
She eyed the computers. "Negative. My delta-V doesn't allow me to recover, even if my computers weren't toast."
"Okay, we're dispatching SAR. Hold tight."
She looked up. "No need, Misa. The Cavalry just arrived."
A single Skull fighter drifted above him, final jet burns allowing it to match velocity perfectly. The Tac Net crackled with a new voice.
"Need a lift, Saotome?"
She grinned, and said, "What took ya so long, Ichigyo? Thought you were the best pilot on board?"
He had already started detaching Switchblade's nose section. "I must be, since I'm pulling your ass out of the sling."
Ichigyo's Valkyrie reconfigured to Gerwalk mode and slid onto the deck, gently depositing the nose of Ranma's destroyed fighter in a cradle. Ranma waited until the pressure light turned green, then popped her hatch. She vaulted from the cockpit, and turned to look up at Ichigyo.
"Thanks, kid. Looks like I owe you one now."
"We're far from even, Sir." Ichigyo had his helmet off, and grinned at her - a familiar grin. Had she seen it on Roy? Or possibly in the mirror.
Misa tore into the landing bay and swept her off her feet. "Oh, thank God you're all right!"
Ranma chuckled. "Can ya put me down, huh?"
"Sorry." Misa released the tiny woman and took a step back. "I was so worried!"
"No need ta be." She eyed the taller woman. "You wore that to the bridge?"
"Well...it was a bit of an emergency, if you recall."
Ichigyo cleared his throat. "Sorry to break up the party, but don't you two have a contest to go win?"
Ranma glanced over her shoulder. "Wouldn't you rather see Minmay win?"
He chuckled. "Hey, if one of you two wins, it might help my promotion board. You'll be in a better mood."
"Well, since I'm the senior officer for your board," said Misa, "it's a good thing I'm gonna win."
Ranma snorted. "Pretty confident, ain'tcha?"
"It's like you always say, flyboy. No room for modesty, right?" Misa looked sideways at the smaller woman. "Besides, with the sort of competition I'm up against, I think I have it in the bag."
"Oh, is that so?" returned Ranma as the two headed for the hatch. "I'm gonna show you up once and for all. Ain't nothin' that anyone on that stage has that I don't have more of." She paused. "What the hell am I sayin'?"
Misa giggled.
Ranma shook her head. "Man, if my Mom heard me sayin' such stuff, she'd kill me. Heck, she'd kill me just for bein' in this thing!"
Misa thought back to the stories she'd heard about Saotome Nodoka. "You know, you might be right about that..."
"We do apologize for that brief interruption," said the announcer. "But we're back for the final questions. Miss Saotome."
A pause was required for the catcalls and snickers to die down.
"Can you tell us about your interests?"
"Sure." Ranma grinned wickedly. "Martial arts, good food, martial arts, flying, martial arts, helpin' other people out, and martial arts."
"Seems to me," said the announcer, "that you've got a bit of interest in martial arts."
"You can say that."
"Any pet peeves?"
"Yeah. Bein' hit on by guys in bars. And since this is goin' all over the ship, I'd like to tell those guys that I am a martial artist."
Another round of snickers went through the crowd.
"I'm surprised that you need to worry about it. After all, your...issues...are well known among most of the crew and the civilian population."
Ranma shrugged. "Some people just don't learn."
"Well. I hope they're listening this time." He moved over to Misa. "And Miss Hayase. Everyone knows that you are the second-in-command of the ship. But surely there's a woman behind the officer. What sort of interests do you have?"
Misa frowned slightly. "Odd that you mention it...not a lot, really. I've been interested in spaceflight and the military since I was a little girl. However, I do enjoy swimming--" There was another pause as a cheer went up, no doubt inspired by the tiny red bikini. "--though my usual choice of swimsuit is somewhat more conservative. And I also enjoy reading."
"Word has it that you are dating a pilot on the ship. One with an...interesting problem. How do you and he cope with this?"
Misa stared down at him coolly. "Primarily by not letting it matter. We've been good friends for a long time, a lot longer than we've been dating. And it doesn't matter to me."
The announcer nodded. "Great." He stepped back - possibly to put himself outside her reach - and said, "We've talked to all the contestants now, and we'll now hear from our sponsors. For those watching from home, stay tuned."
"Down to the last five, aren't we?"
"Yeah," said Ranma. She looked up and down the remaining candidates. "Minmay made it this far...probably as far as Mayor Luan could get her solely on influence. Then there's that American girl, Grace. Jamis Merlin - not surprised she made it here."
"You know," commented Misa, "if there's a fix in the works, it's more likely that Jamis will be winning this."
Ranma frowned; her one run-in with Jamis Merlin had been unpleasant. "How so?"
"Big movie star, finds herself stranded on this ship, and suddenly, she's a nobody." Misa paused. "Did you notice that although the first introductions were alphabetical by given name, she was introduced last?"
"Yeah," mused Ranma. "Not sure if it gave her any advantage, though."
"Just strikes me as odd."
They were interrupted as a director quickly moved down the line, checking positions. "Two minutes, ladies. And you too, Saotome." The director winked at her.
Ranma growled, and stood. "You know, one good thing at least. With private areas to change, no-one can accuse me of bein' a pervert."
"Who would do that?" asked Misa. "All you need to see a female body is a mirror and some cold water."
"If one of the girls in the contest was an avowed lesbian, would you feel comfortable bein' nude in front of her?" countered Ranma.
"I'm not really sure," she admitted.
"Because that's essentially the situation with me, ain't it? I'm female - at the moment - but still interested in women."
"Well," said Misa, "it sure doesn't bother me that you're here. If anything, it's keeping me sane during--"
"Quiet on set! Thirty seconds!"
Ranma stepped to the side, taking her position, and waited for the lights to come back up.
The announcer was ready. "Before you, you see the five finalists, as chosen by our panel of judges. But the final choice is yours. Those in the audience will be able to vote from the controls on their seats; those at home, you can phone in your votes using your five-digit identity code. Voting shall begin now."
It took two minutes for the voting to reach threshold, and another minute for the computer to tally the results and print them. The announcer was handed an envelope with the results. Ranma leaned forward slightly, realized that the results mattered to her.
Can't help wantin' to win, can I? Even somethin' like this.
The announcer carefully tore open the envelope, extracted the card. "The audience has spoken. Our new Miss Macross is..."
