Chapter 19 – Jet, thunder, and fries
Now now… I don't know if it was the new bed, the new base or whatever, but Yoshika was stellar last night! And I really must admit the bed is damn comfortable… Now, what to do… Hmmm…
Toshiro wiggled slightly, which didn't escape Yoshika's attention.
"Toshiroo… It's six… Sleep…"
"Okay, Yoshika. Wake me up when it's time to make breakfast."
"Oh no…" Yoshika yawned. "No breakfast making for you… I'll manage with Lynne…"
"Are you sure?"
"Positively sure…"
"But me, as the commander, waking up late? That isn't what a True Soldier of Karlsland does…"
"Oh can it… You can sleep until I wake up, and then do whatever you like, except for helping me in the kitchen, deal?"
"Kay, as you wish…" he sighed and moved his finger up Yoshika's leg.
"Wahahah! Toshiro, stop! Not so suddenly, damn you!"
"Sorry…" Toshiro puffed his cheeks.
"Your finger was cold, that's all… No need to pout at me since the morning…"
"Should have told me earlier that you don't like such… surprises."
"You know everything I know, stupid…"
"But I'm not using that knowledge all the time, as opposed to you."
"But I'm using it to pleasure you? And what do I get in return? A cold finger on my legs!"
"Geez, Yoshika… Your period is due a few days, and you're already PMS'ing on me…"
Yoshika scuttled closer to him and embraced him saying, "Sorry… But I just think that you're taking our relationship for granted… Sure, we MAY be destined for each other, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't TRY a bit harder, right?"
"Gods… It's almost scary to hear you talking in such a way now… Fine, I'll start using the knowledge about you a bit more often…"
"Heehee… Now sleep, Mister Commander…"
What the hell was that? Was that our first real argument? And from all people, I would expect that I would be the one to attack… Yoshika has grown remarkably, but the direction she's taken worries me a bit… Ah, whatever now, let's see what the future brings…
Toshiro closed his eyes and faded away slowly.
After he opened them, he heard the door to the room closing.
"Yoshika left me here? Maybe she looked at me and thought, "Daaaawww… My cute Toshiro is sleeping… I don't have the heart to wake him up…" I hope…"
"Or maybe she just left you here, because she didn't want to bother, you lazy bum?"
"Lazy bum?!"
"I'm stimulating your body the whole time, instead of you doing good ol' earnest physical exercise. You sir, are a bum so lazy, that the bums would feel offended by calling you a normal bum."
"It's just more efficient, Yuki."
"But lazy."
"Efficient."
"Lazy."
"Lazy."
"Efficient for fucks sake!"
"There, you said it yourself."
"Fucker…"
"And you're technically a virgin, heheheh…"
"Sex is overrated…"
"That's what a virgin would say."
"Can it or I'll zap you!"
"Bring it on. Just take a warm… sock I guess. I guess the void you'll get locked out afterwards is cold…"
"Motherfucking son of a bitch douchebag!"
"You started."
"Okay… Sorry…."
"I'm sorry too. What do you think got into Yoshika, huh?"
"Maybe she got bored of the usual lovey-dovey, puke-sweet, and boring relationship and wants a change?"
"How would I know… I was a woman only for a few hours or so…"
"And I was one for a millennium… There, I shrugged."
"Heh… Okaaaaay… Time to get my body off the bed… Trude would frown upon me if she saw me lying like that…"
"Oh, Master, won't we have some time in private?" Livy asked as she appeared au naturel, pressing her breasts against his naked chest.
"My… Livy, you're sure taking you're chances, aren't you?"
"The Mistress told us that we are all equal in this relationship, Master. Furthermore, the Mistress said herself what kind of interaction I can engage with you, Master…" she whispered with an alluring voice.
"Mmm… Yeaaah… I kinda recall something about letting go in a separate dimension or something… But I don't know…"
"Master…" she frowned. "Your body is reacting to me already… Let's use that reaction, why don't we?"
"Only if you stop the time, I don't want to be late for something."
"Consider it done, Master…" Livy smiled and the world around turned black and white.
"Your willingness to serve me baffles me…" Toshiro sighed. "Are you really sure the Allgod is okay with this?"
"My Master has values different from those perceived by humans, Master Toshiro. There is one more reason why we can have this particular relationship but…" she looked away. "This is something I can't discuss even with you, Master…"
"Something between you and the Allgod, huh?"
"Yes…"
"I feel like I lost it…"
"Lost what, Master?" Livy tilted her head, and suddenly she started searching for something with her right hand. "Oh… I'm sorry, Master… I must have bummed you down…"
"Sad sex isn't kinda my thing…" he sighed.
"But… Yuki, please, why don't you help Master?"
"Help him get wood? Sheesh, how low do I have to stoop down around him?" Yuki said.
"I'm not forcing you," Toshiro replied.
"Eh… I have a feeling in the back of my head that I shouldn't piss off Livy… Okay then, up you go!"
"Mmmmm…" Livy almost purred. "Much better…"
"Thanks, Yuki," Toshiro snickered.
"Just do it already…"
After doing it, Livy disappeared, and Toshiro put on his uniform. He went went out of the room, and saw that Trude, much to his bitter surprise, was looking at him with furled eyebrows, leaning over the guest room door herself.
"Toshiro, do you by chance need an alarm clock?"
"And good morning to you. Why would I need an alarm clock when I have both Yoshika and Yuki to wake me up?"
"It seems both didn't work today. Being who you are, you should be awake long before anyone, and be the last to go to sleep, sans the night patrol."
"And being who I am, I have the privilege of not giving a quarter-fuck about it, Major Barkhorn. Anywho, let's go and get some grub like normal people."
"I want you to wake up earlier, Toshiro, or Hartmann will take upon you with your sleepiness, and she will get up at noon."
"Oh come on… As the commander, the guy who keeps this whole bordello running, I'm entitled to rest whenever I need to, if I need so to fulfil my duties with optimal efficiency."
"Well, nobody can bend a nail on you if it comes to military law…" Trude sighed. "But seriously, maybe at least a few minutes earlier?"
"Now you're being reasonable. I actually woke up at six, but Yoshika wanted me to sleep, so I heeded to her wish. And then I overslept a bit, since the bed is so damn good, heheh…"
"My bed is good too, and I somehow slept my normal time… Hartmann on the other hand…"
"Okay, okay…" he interrupted. "I get it. Breakfast, now."
What the fuck is happening today? It ain't even noon, and I've been already bitched at by THREE women!
Toshiro went first and leaned over the wooden balustrade, looking over the common room. He saw Yoshika and Lynne cooking, and Mio, Minna, Heidi and Shizuka sitting at the table already.
"Hey, sleepyhead! Come on down!" Mio shouted with a grin on her face.
"I'm enjoying the view, stuff it!" he shouted back. "Yoshika! Breakfast, when?"
"In a few minutes!"
"Kay!"
Toshiro ran down the stairs and sat on his place.
"Good morning, sir," Shizuka stood up and bowed.
"Yeah, at ease. You are the only one that's greeting me so formally. Even Heidi, although she's new to the 501st, isn't bothering so much. Right, Heidi?"
"You wanted us to get informal, so I did," she answered.
"And Shizuka still sirs me all the time… Even more stubborn than Mio…"
"Then order her to do so, simple," Mio said.
"And what would that accomplish, pardon me? If she has some deeply hidden motive, I'll let it be. Or maybe you want to tell everyone what's it all about, Shizuka?"
"N…No sir… Not yet maybe…"
Toshiro sighed and said, "As you wish, Shizuka," Toshiro looked around. "Mio, you called me a sleepyhead, but if you look around, you'll see that the attendance is rather… lacking… But they still have a bit, maybe it's just the first night… You know, emotions, new bed, new everything…"
"If this repeats itself, I expect some measures to be undertaken," Mio said.
"Yeah, yeah… But don't scare the girls unnecessarily. Ah, look, they are piling in."
The people present at the table saw the rest of the unit, with the natural exception of Sanya, crawling down the stairs.
"And how did my girls sleep this fine night?" Toshiro asked inconspicuously.
"I couldn't…" Shirley mumbled.
"Me too…" Francesca shot daggers at Shirley.
"The bed was a bit too hard, but I guess it will submit to me one day or another…" Perrine said with her usual superiority.
"Heheh, not-sleeping pleb… Bow before the snoozing master race!" Erica shouted and received a smack on the head from Trude. "Ow! Why?!"
"You were snoring so hard, that I had to stuff my ears full of cotton!" Trude yelled.
"Whoopsie… Sorry… Heh…"
So that's why she was so damn moody…
"I couldn't sleep because… uh… uhrm…" Eila squirmed around on her chair while burning up on her whole face.
"Because of Sanya?" Yoshika asked as she approached her from behind with a plate.
"Wah! Don't scare me like that!"
"Oh, you didn't see me coming?" Yoshika asked totally surprised.
"My magic is not foolproof…" Eila mumbled. "And yes… I was worried about Sanya…"
"You've declared your relationship to us so long ago, and yet, at the mention of Sanya you almost melt away in an instant…" Toshiro sighed. "Okay, let us eat."
Before Yoshika sat on her chair, Toshiro zipped beside her, took the chair, and said, "Please, sit."
"Ohoho, thank you, dear gentleman," Yoshika giggled and shot a sly look at him.
Toshiro slid the chair under her bottom with class as Yoshika sat down.
"And what's with this display of gallantry?" Shirley asked. "Yoshika cockblocked you?"
"Even if, I'm still ahead of you by a mile," Toshiro rebuked with a devilish grin.
Judging by Yoshika's expression, she knows that I know… This should be fun, heheh…
After breakfast, Erica stood up and said, "Toshiro, I want to train with you today."
"No can do, at least not until dinner."
"Why?"
"Because I need to wash the dishes, and Mio doesn't want to wait. And anyway, if you want to train what I think you want, you'd drop dead anyway, and piss off Mio that you can't train. So, go train with Mio like a good girl, regain your strength and after dinner, we train together."
"Oh okay… At least you sound a bit reasonable. Lead the way, Sakamoto."
"What do you want to train with Toshiro anyway?" Mio asked.
"Oh, that's a secret, heehee…"
"Whatever now… Come on, Erica. Miyafuji, Perrine, Lynne, and Hattori - double time, on me!"
As Yoshika passed Toshiro, he could hear a faint "Thanks," from her.
"So, what happened?" Eila asked all of a sudden.
"And what make you think something happened?"
"I pulled out the Lovers card reversed yesterday, and I see that I found who to apply it to."
"Still didn't hear a proper explanation."
"You're sucking up to Yoshika," Shirley said. "Normally, she does the dishes. Normally, you don't move the chair for her. Did you by chance have an argument?"
Toshiro looked at everyone and sighed deeply.
"Yes. Our first ever proper argument."
"Scheiße…" Trude said silently. "What happened?"
"Trude asking me about my relationship with Yoshika? Now this is something rare… Well, we had a bit of a quarrel as how the future of our relationship should look. I don't have to sleep on the proverbial couch yet, but I need to think of a way to soothe Yoshika. Or rather, how to introduce some fresh air between the two of us."
"You probably have gone through the Kamasutra twice already, huh?" Shirley asked.
"We could write an addendum to it…" he smirked. "But don't worry about me, I have a plan. But if shit does hit the fan, I'll ask all of you for help, okay?"
"Sure!" the girls said in sync.
"Now, everyone to your duties, and I'll go do those damn dishes."
"Visit me in the office later, okay?" Minna asked.
"I was going to do it anyway."
Toshiro washed the dishes thoroughly and went to the office. He took a seat in his chair and asked, "So, what did you want, Minna?"
"What are you trying to teach Erica?"
"She wants to develop a new technique from the Sturm, that's all. I'm not teaching her nothing per se, I'm just there so she doesn't blow herself up into smithereens."
"So back then when you had Erica on your back…"
"She was tired after she tried it for the first time."
"So that's how that crater came into existence…" Minna pondered.
"You saw it?"
"Yes. I was on a walk, when I saw that thing. It looked like a bomb explosion site…"
"It basically was, just the bomb wasn't made out of metal and TNT, or whatever explosive material for that matter, only pure magic energy."
"I hope you both know what you're doing…"
"I promise that Erica will come unscathed from her training with me. Well, I don't guarantee she won't return in a state that would make a wet rag look livelier, heheh."
"That's all I needed to hear," Minna smiled. "Okay, yesterday we have made due with all the paperwork from SInt-Truiden, now we have to process that envelope you've received."
"Ah, yes. It has a list of all the supplies, and whatever is important, from a bureaucratic standpoint. Well, time to do work…"
Toshiro and Minna did their thing, and afterwards, he went out to the runway for a walk. Suddenly, he saw a plane approaching from the west from a high altitude.
What the fuck? Nobody said a damn thing about anything today!
Suddenly, a crate started falling from the plane.
What the fuck squared?!
After a few seconds of free fall, three enormous parachutes sprouted from atop of the crate.
What the fuck cubed…
Toshiro watched as the parachute-laden crate slowly fell to the ground. It landed just before the hangar, before which Toshiro stood preemptively, in anticipation of the crates landing. After he cleared through the flaccid parachutes, he saw that the crate had the markings of the Romagna Regia Aeronautica.
Let's take this inside…
Toshiro took the crate on his shoulder and moved it inside the hangar, dragging the parachutes along.
"Oooooh, Toshiro!" somebody shouted.
"Identify yourself, foul spirit!"
"I'm up here, heehee…"
Toshiro looked up and saw Francesca under the roof.
"Ah, there you are."
"Whatcha got there?"
"Dunno. But it seems your amici sent it here."
"Stuff from Romagna?! Gimme!" Francesca shouted cheerfully and jumped straight down on the crate, and down on the ground.
"Nice acrobatic skills… Okay, I'll open the crate for ya."
"Hurry!"
Toshiro put the crate down on the ground and ripped the lid off. Inside he saw a multitude of parts resting in hay and a packet of documents. He took the packet and opened it.
"Hmmmmm…"
"What is all of this, Toshiro? Doesn't look like salami or gorgonzola to me…" she said disgruntled.
"It seems that my national pride will be hurt again… This, my dear Romagnan friend, is a DIY kit for the Reggiane Re.2007, a jet Striker."
"Oh, just a Striker… WAITWHAT?! SHIRLEY!" she yelled in panic.
"Who, what, where, why, how?!" Shirley looked out of the garage with an enormous monkey wrench.
"I've got a jet!"
"Holy shit tits!" she shouted and time-sliced to the two. "And it's a kit! Toshiro, we build it now! Pleaaaaase!"
"Woah, woah! Hold on, girl! I have training with Erica after dinner."
"You'll manage somehow! Now we have to complete this Striker!"
Toshiro sighed and said, "Okaaaaaay… But I'll go with Erica anyway. However, I promise it will be quick, heheh…"
"Yeah, yeah! Let's go!"
"Who made you a Major-General…"
The two worked hard, being cheered on by Francesca, who also translated the documentation, which of course was in Romagnan.
"Dinner everyone!" Yoshika cheered through the intercom.
"Ah crap… We only got one leg completed and the other just started…" Shirley mumbled. "Toshiro, fetch me a take-out, I'll work and eat at the same time."
"Sure, Shirley. But you know what…"
Toshiro approached the PA panel in the hangar and said, "Yoshika, can you please bring us two meals to the garage? We're assembling something, and we want to test it before darkness falls."
After a few seconds, she answered, "Well okay, but only if you show me what's going on."
"Okay."
"Dinner is coming on two legs," Toshiro said.
"Yeah, I've heard ya. Francesca, go eat like a normal girl, you've helped enough. We can manage on our own from now."
"Okay! But don't you dare to mount the Striker without me! I want to go first!"
"Sure, sure. Now scram."
Francesca ran out of the garage and subsequently out of the hangar as if she was jet propelled on her own. A few minutes later, Yoshika came in with a silver platter, on which two plates chock full of fries were to be found. Beside each plate, there was a small bowl of ketchup and a saltshaker.
Toshiro zipped to Yoshika and took the platter from her.
"Oh, thanks, heehee… What are you building, Toshiro?"
"Come and have a look yourself, Sweetie."
Yoshika followed him to the garage she saw the whole creative mess of a Striker being assembled.
"Hmmm… Yes… I saw this scene in Romagna already…"
"But now we're not building a turboprop, only a jet," Shirley said and looked up from the Striker Leg she assembled. "Woah! Fries! And ketchup! To that I can allot a bit of time!"
Shirley dropped the spanner she had, jumped towards Toshiro and took her portion. After grabbing a fry, she dipped it in ketchup, gently sprinkled it with salt, and threw it whole into her mouth.
"Deeeeewishush!" she squealed in joy.
Toshiro followed suit, and after he chewed it down, he said, "Indeed, delicious. Another dinner well done, Yoshika."
"Heh… Thanks… So, whose Striker is it?"
"Francesca's I suppose, since it's got Romagnan insignia painted all over. And the name sounds Romagnan too."
"Oh, Francesca? How nice! She'll be able to keep up with Shirley on missions!"
"A supersonic boob grabber…" Toshiro pondered aloud.
Yoshika and Shirley both shuddered slightly after hearing that.
"So, Yoshika, are you waiting for us to finish eating so you can take the plates, or should we deliver them personally?"
"Hmmm… If you could go for the second option…"
"Okay, go eat yourself. You have to regenerate properly after Mio's training."
"True that…" Yoshika mumbled and went away.
The two eager builders ate their fries, and Shirley rushed out to return the plates.
I wonder if something is in a normal language amongst all these papers…
Toshiro scoured through the documentation and he finally found something in Britannian. It was a letter addressed to him, which he quickly skimmed through.
I see now… Smart move, Wehrmacht… But this part is weird… I have to commandeer the letter.
Shirley returned quickly and they resumed the building, only to be interrupted by Erica after a few minutes.
"Broooo! Lay down your toys and help me train!"
"Kay, coming!"
"Just don't take too long…" Shirley murmured.
"Half an hour tops, I promise," he said with a smile.
"Ah, kay…" Shirley answered with a smirk of hers.
Toshiro approached Erica and she asked, "Is that Lucchini's jet?"
"So she already spilled the beans, huh?"
"Pretty much. Come on, I think I found a good spot."
"Lead the way," Toshiro answered and they went on.
They arrived in a thick part of the forest to the south of the base. Erica found a small clearing and she pulled out something from under her uniform.
"What's that, Erica?"
"These are my calculations regarding my new technique. I tried the scientific approach and I wonder if I nailed it. Want to look through them?"
"Sure, why not."
Toshiro took the ledger and he started reading pages and pages of mathematics so advanced that even a college student would break a sweat.
"Wow… Just wow… So many equations and not a single damn error… I'm very impressed, Erica," he said as he patted her on the head.
"Heheh, thanks… It seems my brain hasn't fermented from all the sugar I ingest… So, what do you think about it?"
"From what I've found out from all these scribbles, you want to use the two orbs of magic, temperature neutral this time, rotating in different directions, to build up electricity like in a dynamo, and then discharge it upon contact or even through a lightning arc like in a Tesla coil?"
"Yup, pretty much it."
"Genius… No wonder the first time you failed. The orbs probably spun in the same direction, and thus mixed themselves together, forming an explosive charge."
"Now it will be different… So, Toshiro… Care to oversee me trying to pull it off one more time?"
"Sure, why not. Maybe you'll succeed this time…"
If, and only if you've reached your Lambda Factor…
"Stand back then, I don't know what could happen beside the usual explosion."
Toshiro left some distance between Erica and him, and Erica started. She formed two nearly transparent Sturm balls in her hands, one slightly smaller than the other one, and joined them together, so one was now in the other. Toshiro started hearing a low-pitched buzz, as if he was standing near an enormous capacitor.
"Erica, do you hear this?"
"Yes, it's working!"
Suddenly, small strings of lightning started dancing in the space between the bigger balls interior and the surface of the smaller one, with some discharges leaving the surface of the bigger one.
"Wooooah! It's even better than I thought!"
"Yuki, are you monitoring that ball of magic?"
"Yes, and I think your intervention will be needed soon."
"Already?"
"Yes. You both don't even feel it, but I see that it's starting to get unstable. You'll know when to jump in."
Toshiro looked at Erica who was mesmerized by the lightning ball in her hands. However, things started getting uncomfortable as a lightning arc shot at a nearby tree, splitting it in half.
"Erica…"
Another arc hit Toshiro dead between his feet. Erica was still looking at the lighting ball with an absent look.
Oh shit!
Toshiro rushed at Erica and slapped away the ball of electricity away with his Celestial Aura shielded arm. At the top of the balls flight trajectory, the ball exploded into a single electricity column, striking the ground below it.
"Damn… You've made it just in time, Toshiro… That lightning was even more intense than the real thing."
"Really now?"
"Yup."
"Whew…"
Erica wilted away in his arms. With a weak voice, she said, "I… I'm still not ready it seems… Take me to my bed, Bro…"
She closed her eyes and drifted away.
Stupid Erica… I hope nobody will want to rip my head off while I'm carrying you back…
"Toshiro, what the hell was that?" Minna asked through the transponder.
"Erica."
"Ah… Carry on then."
Well, that was easy.
Toshiro took Erica in a bridal manner and went to the main building of the base. The door was opened for him, with Minna standing there with a concerned face.
"She's only pooped, Minna, don't worry like that."
"Okay, I see… Another backfire?"
"Yeah… She changed the concept of her technique a bit, but it seems that the magic consumption was just too much for her."
"I understand… Take her to her room and return to building that Striker. The more jets the better."
"I have something to tell you about the Striker, but that will be after I build it."
"I'll be waiting."
Toshiro went with Erica to her and Trude's room.
Let's see… The top bunk looks like a bit untidy; therefore, it should be the one that Erica occupies…
As he placed her in place, she turned around on the bed and curled up in a fetal position.
"Sleep tight…" Toshiro said quietly and exited her room.
As he was going down the corridor, he bumped into Trude.
"Oh, Toshiro. Know where Hartmann could be?"
"She's sleeping."
"What?!"
"Shut up. Don't bother her until she wakes up on her own."
"Why's that?"
"Because that's an order."
"Jawohl…"
"And because she's legitimately tired, heheh…"
"Then why the order?!"
"Oh well, I have to use my rank on someone, right? And since you're the most disciplined…"
"I feel like a guinea pig…" she mumbled.
"More like a benchmark… Promise you won't bug Erica now?"
"You gave me an order, nothing I can do against that."
"Heh, good. Back to work for me."
"Speaking of which… Is it really true?"
"Yeah… It pains me too that Karlsland is slower than even damn Romagna with the jets… But hey, we had the first prototype, hahaha!"
"At least that. But if we get anymore jets from other countries, I'll bite my hand off out of frustration…"
"No need to be so drastic… Well, time for me, or Shirley will yell at me."
Toshiro returned to the redhead and saw that the work was progressing smoothly.
"Took you a bit longer than half an hour…"
"Unforeseen consequences…" Toshiro shrugged. "Okay, time to do some building…"
The two tinkered with the Striker, and after a while, Shirley shouted triumphantly, "Finished!"
It looked similar to a Me 262, albeit with the engines moved from the wings and slightly embedded into the fuselage.
"Already?!" Francesca shouted from nowhere and appeared beside them. "Lemme fly! Lemme! Lemme!"
"Easy, easy! Safety first," Shirley said and gave Francesca the PDC-01 control unit.
"Oh, is this the control panel whatchamacallit that Toshiro and all you jet users use?"
"Yup. Strap it on and I'll brief you through the controls."
Incredible… Shirley has totally taken initiative… And hearing the word safetyfrom her mouth was the last thing I would have expected…
After a quick rundown, Francesca's old reciprocating Striker was thrown out of her Launch Unit, and replaced with the new jet. Francesca jumped inside and started warming up the engine.
"There it goes with the hhhhhhh… I don't like it…" Francesca said with a sour face.
"Don't worry, everything should be okay," Shirley said with a soft voice. "Both Toshiro and I can attest to the assembly quality."
"Heehee, I know. Hey, Shirley! Why don't you join me?"
"Does the Pope shit in the woods? Of course I want to! Gimme a few seconds!" Shirley cheered and ran off to her Striker.
"And you, Toshiro? Wanna go with me too?"
"Nah… I'll let the two of you go."
"Heehee… I knew you'd say that!"
"Then why ask, hahaha!"
The engines of Francesca's Striker were already going at optimal power, according to the control panel. A few seconds later, Shirley shouted, "Okay, I'm ready!"
"Let's go!" Francesca cheered and rushed forward, with Shirley following her immediately.
Toshiro went out of the hangar in a distinguished manner, not hurrying a bit.
You've seen one, you've seen them all… Besides, even my XF-1 can't hold a candle to those fucking Air Bands… Not to mention those damn SFS…
He watch as the two were flying around in the air as some of the girls joined him watching.
"Damn Romagnans…" Trude mumbled. "How the hell did they manage to bring up a functional jet Striker so fast!?"
"Technology transfer and such," Mio said. "I guess the world is slowly entering the Jet Striker age… And I'm on the train in first class, hahaha!"
I doubt its technology transfer per se… How should I handle this…? Damn it…
After a few minutes, Francesca landed.
"Yaaay! So cool!" she cheered after touchdown.
"I wonder how your Sunlight Strike will work at Mach 2…" Minna pondered.
"Ooooh! I didn't think of that! I hope there will be a Neuroi soon so I can try it!"
The girls gave her an earnest laugh and soon everyone dispersed, except for Yoshika and Toshiro.
"Want a walk, Yoshika?" he asked.
"Sure!"
Toshiro turned around and kneeled.
"Hop on then!" he said
"Oh! A piggyback ride!" Yoshika cheered and hopped on his shoulders.
Toshiro slowly stood up and went on for a walk under the crimson orange sky.
"You're trying hard it seems…" Yoshika said after a while.
"With what?"
"With me, Toshiro. You're using every ounce of knowledge about me, so I feel better. You really don't have to try THAT hard… Only the fact that you're trying to bring a bit of diversity into our relationship is enough for me. But don't rest easy now! One blunder, and you'll have some talking from me!"
"Yes ma'am!"
"Heehee… Okay, let's get back already."
"Say… See that ditch over there?"
"Yes, and what of it?"
"You know… We're away from the base… It's rather dark…"
"You horny perv… But I've never done it in a ditch… Come on!"
"Woohoo!"
A bit tired, they returned to the base. Toshiro let Yoshika down and said, "I'll go have a talk with Minna. If you need me helping you with supper, just holler."
"Nah, I'll manage. I guess talking to Minna is more important?"
"Well, I think it could be… But you know that you have an "is greater than" sign behind you all the time, right?"
"Heehee, nice one. Okay, I'm going."
Toshiro entered the office, and saw Minna scribbling something.
"Whatcha writing, Minna?"
"I started the paperwork for today, since you were… more occupied with mending your relationship…"
"Crisis averted. Let's get to that paperwork…"
"First tell me what you wanted to tell me."
"Ah… Well, the jet Striker actually has a Jumo 004 engine like the Me 262, just modified for proper operating and better throughput. I believe they appended an H to the model designation…"
"What? When did the Wehrmacht license that?"
"They didn't. A private aircraft manufacturer bought off a pair from the Wehrmacht for a hefty sum of money. And from what I know, some scientist from Fuso managed to modify them, so they wouldn't be a deathtrap."
"Impressive… Where did they get such a scientist?"
"Dunno. They didn't mention his name or anything."
"This is fishy… But why should we bother to be honest… The most important part is that another member of our unit is now capable of flying over Mach One."
"Yep, that would be the bottom line…"
If you only knew…
Toshiro approached the aquarium and turned on the light built into it.
"Sure is fancy, huh?" Minna asked.
"Yeah, sure is. And an aerator, a light, an automatic food dispenser, water filters… It's basically only for watching and replenishing the fish food once in a while."
"It's really calming to look at them…" Minna smiled. "They sure thought about this…"
"Yeah…"
Paperwork was made, and supper was eaten. All of the 501st went to the bath, the first one with everyone present.
"Aaaaah… A good bath after a hard day's work…" Yoshika said. "And I can see you from a mile, Francesca. My tits are off-limits."
"Aaaaaw… But they are calling me! I can hear them!"
"Take half or change your meds… Say… Didn't you grow yourself?" Toshiro asked.
"Huh?"
"I see that your breasts have gotten a tiny bit bigger… Maybe it's the lighting here, but…"
"Dunno, I didn't feel anything…"
"Oh you'll feel something…" Yoshika said with malicious intent oozing from her words.
"Uh… What are you trying to do?"
"Feel you, of course!" Yoshika shouted and rushed forward towards Francesca while making grabby motions with her hands.
"WAAAAAAH!" Francesca screamed and climbed atop the trident of the statue faster than one could say Fisher Fritz Fisht Frishe Fishe. "Stay away!"
"Oh would you look at that… When you're on the receiving end it's not that fun, huh?"
"No way!"
"Okay, come down… This is silly…" Yoshika sighed.
"Promise you won't grope me?"
"I promise, get down already."
Francesca carefully slipped down the statue and entered the water near Shirley. Without a word, Shirley hugged the Romagnan, making her smile in glee, as she cuddled into her bosom.
"Sheeesh… Good old Lucchini…" Trude sighed.
"Is that… normal?" Shizuka asked.
"Pretty much," Minna answered. "Francesca runs on food and boobs, and her only past time is sleeping in weird places."
"That's me!" Francesca cheered and returned to Shirley's breasts.
"She didn't behave like that in SInt-Truiden…"
"Maybe because we were guests," Shirley said. "Even Francesca has a bit of decency in that lewd body of hers."
"Calling Francesca's body lewd? Please…" Toshiro said. "Franny is as lewd as a roasted fish. Even Sanya has more sex appeal…"
"Hey, don't you hit on my girlfriend, damn you!" Eila shouted.
"Girlfriend?" Shizuka asked a bit confused.
"Oh right… Nobody told ya…" Toshiro said. "Eila and Sanya are… hmmm… lovers."
"But… two girls... and… they…" Shizuka started reddening up faster than a lobster in oil.
"As long as they are decent in public, we can't interfere with what they do in their rooms," Minna said while eyeing Toshiro and Yoshika.
"I… I see…" Shizuka said while calming down a bit. "Well, they really ARE decent in public… If you wouldn't tell me, I wouldn't know, sir."
"No problem, Shizuka-chan."
"Ohhh…" Shizuka swooned over and submerged herself almost entirely.
"What's with her?" Trude asked.
"It seems schoolgirls these days are totally vulnerable to compliments from men…" Mio sighed.
"Taking an honorific as a compliment? How weird for someone from Fuso…" Perrine said.
"And how would you know?" Erica asked. "Your knowledge of Fusojin culture was atrocious up to recently."
"What an insult! I have brushed up on my knowledge properly! Hontou-desu!"
"Hahaha!" Mio laughed in her trademark fashion.
"Wh-what is it, Maj… Lieutenant Colonel?"
"That sounded so… girlish, hahaha!"
"Well, I am a girl…"
"But you're Gallian. It sounds stupid coming from you. Don't try to emulate my culture, yours is nice enough to begin with."
"Y-yes! Of course!"
After the bathing finished. Toshiro and Yoshika retreated to their room.
"Wow… Bathing with the whole unit is always fun…" Yoshika said.
"Heheh… You've provoked the whole fun, you little provocateur."
"We have the right to be happy. What will you be doing tomorrow, Toshiro?"
"The same as every day, Yoshika. I'll be doing my job."
"Whatever works, Toshiro. Good night."
"Oh? No snuggling today?"
"We did it today already, you lecher."
"Well… And I did it today with Livy…"
"Wait, what?" Yoshika sat on the bed. "Toshiro, you should tell me about such things."
"I believe you said something about equality and stuff…"
"Well… Yes but… It still feels weird, even if it's Livy…"
The person in question appeared on the bed, prostrating on her knees.
"I'm sorry, Mistress. I have overstepped my bounds."
"Ah, come on…" Yoshika said softly. "I won't go back on my word but… don't do it more often that I do it with Toshiro, okay?"
"Yes, Mistress."
"Eh…" Yoshika sighed and brought Livy up to an upwards position, kissing her on the forehead. "Good night, Livy."
"My… Uhm, good night, Mistress… And Master…"
Just as Livy went away, Toshiro mused, "Eeeenvyyyy…"
"I might be open-minded, but you have to give me a bit of time to adapt," she said with a pouty face.
"All the time you want…"
Toshiro embraced Yoshika and let herself tuck into him
My gods… I can't stop thinking about that letter… How should I get out of this predicament… The name of that constructor and his nationality can't be a coincidence… Roichi Jiyafumi is an anagram for…
Ichiro Miyafuji.
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