Meia was going over a recording of the battle and while she couldn't admit it to the others, she could confess to herself that the power of the Blade Blade was truly amazing. Still, the fact that Ranma had helped her irked her slightly. That guy/girl was just so arrogant and sure of himself that…
"You both are very similar, you know that," Meia heard and she spun around in her seat to see the captain.
"Captain!" Meia stood up and saluted.
"You and Ranma are very similar. You're both confident and know how to fight. You both also care about the crew," said Magno. "Even if he is male most of the time he does make a pretty good woman too. Maybe, if he'd been a she the whole time, you both could get along."
Meia thought about it. Maybe the captain was right, but Meia's pride was too great. "Well, Ranma maybe a good fighter, but he still needs to ask permission and follow orders."
"True, but he's new and still learning about how to work on a team with someone else in charge," said Magno.
"Is that why you agreed to put him on Register?" Meia asked.
"Well, he's working under Gascogne and isn't complaining," said Magno. "So, what do you think of him after the battle?"
"His abilities gave us the power we needed to defeat the Urchin Ship," Magno answered. "Maybe he could be useful if he could be a little less arrogant."
"Only time will tell, child. A person can't change overnight," said Magno. "Good night."
"Good night, captain."
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"So, have you thought up for a name yet?" Buzam asked the captain.
"I actually asked the crew to submit their own suggestions. Parfet, can you pull them up on the monitor?" requested Magno.
"Sure thing, captain!" said Parfet. Magno scrolled down and found one.
"Hm…the Nirvana. That sounds like a good name," said Magno.
"And I agree," said BC.
"From now on the ship is now known as the Nirvana."
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At the moment, Dita was trying to decide what to make for Ranma next. He loved her cooking, but Jura was trying her hand so she could partner with Ranma during the next battle and the energetic redhead wasn't going to lose. She was going to make a dish that would WOW Mr. Alien. As she was walking past a pair of gossiping officers though, she overheard them.
"You know what I heard?"
"What?"
"I heard that men have some kind of weird tube between their legs."
"Really? Gross! Do you think those three…?"
"Well, except that one. He might lose it when he changes into a girl."
Dita stopped as the gossiping pair walked past. Did Mr. Alien have what those two were talking about? Maybe he did. But…he was a girl sometimes so did he keep it or did he loose it when he became a she?
This needed investigation!
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Ranma was in the bathroom and about to take off his pants when he suddenly noted an unwelcome presence. Acting quickly, he pulled his pants up and looked around. He quickly found Dita perched in a spot ready for observing. Ranma frowned and yelled, "Dita! What are you doing here!?"
"Can you show it to me?" she asked innocently. She was holding up a camera.
"Show what to you?"
"I heard that men have a tube between their legs. Can you show it to me?"
"What tube…?" Ranma stopped in mid-sentence. Now he knew what she was getting at. "Dita, I'm not showing that to you!"
"Why not?"
"Because it ain't proper, so please get out!"
"But Mr. Alien…!!!"
"OUT!!!"
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"So, the women are going to be using the Vanguards, huh?" asked Ranma as he and Gascogne were in the Register playing cards. They were doing that a lot recently as Ranma spent his time there when he wasn't busy with something else. Gascogne enjoyed having someone to play against and the registry girls didn't mind him there either. However, they couldn't understand why they preferred to see him in the waiter uniform.
"Yup," Gascogne answered. "We have them in storage where the old section of the men's ship was. We might as well put them to good use."
"Better than just collecting dust," said Ranma. "So, what are they doing with the Vanguards now?"
"Paintjobs," answered Gascogne. "Dita wanted to repaint yours too."
ZOOM!!!
Gascogne saw the trail of dust and chuckled. "Fast guy." She picked up the cards he'd left behind. "Hm…he would've almost beaten me too. Oh well."
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Ranma raced into the hanger where the Vanguards, including his own, were being held up for maintenance and painting. Right before his eyes, Dita had a paint sprayer at the ready. Judging by the canister attached to it, it was full of pink paint ready to be used.
"Dita! No!" Ranma cried as he ran towards the redhead.
"Oh, hi Mr. Alien!" Dita waved. "Don't worry! This won't take long! I'll have your partner all nice and pretty in no time!" She squeezed the trigger and a spray of paint burst out the nozzle.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" Ranma moved quickly and jumped up to block the spray of pain which now coated him instead of his Vanguard.
"Wow, a pink alien, how cute!" Dita gushed.
Ranma thought bitterly, 'This girl is nuts…'
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Ranma got himself cleaned up and went to the bridge to ask the captain about the Vanguards being used.
"So, you want the girls to use the Vanguards," said Ranma.
"That's right," said Magno.
"Do they have training?" Ranma asked.
"Right now we're putting them through combat simulators," answered Buzam. "You can go over and check."
"Fine, I have nothing else better to do," said Ranma. He went to the door to leave the bridge but was suddenly showered by the sprinklers meant to put out fires. Obviously a malfunction of some kind had occurred. "Damn it…" Ranma-chan grimaced.
"That boy is an interesting one," said Magno.
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Grumbling about hunks of junk sprinklers, Ranma managed to find Bart and Duelo after getting some hot water. The two Tarak men were watching how Jura, Dita, and Meia were doing in the Vanguard simulators. For the three women who were used to the speed tactics of the Dreads, it wasn't going so well for them. They were tripping over each other constantly.
"Rrrrrgh!" Jura growled. "Why can't this thing move more elegantly?! That's it! I've had enough!" Following the short tantrum, the buxom blonde shut down her simulator and left in a huff. Ranma was just surprised that she hadn't left before.
However, not all the women proved to be immediate failures with the man-made machines. Barnette, despite her open revulsion to using man technology, proved to adapt very well to the mechanics and mastered it quickly. So far the other girls who were testing out the machines were learning, but it would be a while before they could master them to the degree that they had with their Dreads.
"Ha! Look at 'em squirm," Bart chuckled. This was more than enough payback for some of the treatment he had received since the women took over.
Duelo wasn't as amused. His eyes were trained on the monitors for the pilots' stats. He was looking at Meia's readouts in particular. After a few more moments, he sighed softly, "I suppose I'll be needed at the bridge."
Who would have guessed hat the best Dread pilot would be the worst at Vanguards?
"Hey, Doc, is something wrong?" asked Ranma as he noticed the critical look Duelo was giving Meia's readings.
"Well, these are Meia's readings," Duelo pointed. "It looks like she's under stress."
Ranma's eyes narrowed and then looked at the screen showing Meia inside the simulator. She was breathing hard, she looked to be lacking concentration, and was sweating. Those were signs Ranma connected to…fear.
"Doc, you better stop Meia's simulation," Ranma suggested.
"Huh?" Bart blinked. "Why?"
"Because she's about to have a panic attack," Ranma frowned.
"Agreed," Duelo nodded. He immediately hit the kill switch to the entire training program. Both Meia and Dita's simulators shut down as the program stopped. Both women looked around in confusion at what had happened.
"You're both done," Duelo spoke out to the pair. "You can take a break."
"Okay!" Dita smiled. Meia on the other hand grumbled, but Ranma could tell that she couldn't get out of the machine fast enough. Dita didn't seem any the wiser to Meia's stress. Ranma could see all the signs though. She was sweating and there was a faint shudder in her step. The health monitors just made it all the more obvious. Meia was in fear when she was in the cockpit of the Vanguard.
"I don't see why we had to stop," Meia frowned. "Things were going fine."
"I very much doubt that," Duelo replied. "Tell me, do they have medical overrides on Mejele?"
"What?" asked Meia with a deep frown. Bart was ready to make tracks while Dita was happily chatting with Ranma. The pigtailed boy was wary since the bathroom and paint incidents.
"On Tarak, doctors have the authority to ground pilots should they believe that there is psychological stress which can hamper their performance on the field," Duelo explained with a grim frown. "From what I saw, I am beginning to consider reporting this to the captain."
"You don't know anything!" Meia hissed, not wanting to make a scene.
"Then I would suggest you switch the monitor to all-fields," Duelo replied coolly. "It would make the cockpit more comfortable for you."
"I don't need advice from a man!" Meia snapped, storming off.
"Then take this as advice from a doctor, regardless of my gender," said Duelo calmly.
Meia grumbled and then heard from Ranma, "Listen to the Doc, Meia. Admit it, you were scared."
"I'm not afraid of anything!" she snapped before stomping off. She was still a little unsteady but managed to walk away without tipping over. Ranma frowned. That was denial, right there.
"You should tell the captain anyway," said Ranma to Duelo. "Right now she's going to be a danger to herself and others if she ever tries to pilot a Vanguard."
"Do you know what's wrong with her?" Bart asked.
"Oh yeah and it's something I've experienced myself," said Ranma.
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Meia was not pleased. Duelo did approach the captain about the results of the simulation. She just couldn't believe that the captain was even listening to this…this…man!
"But captain, there's nothing wrong with me!" Meia shouted.
"Not from the doctor's point of view," Magno retorted.
"I don't care what he says! It was only battle fatigue!" Meia remarked.
"Right…and I'm a third class Tarark citizen," Ranma spoke sarcastically as he leaned against the wall. He'd heard the whole thing. "Meia, you better listen."
"Nobody asked you for your opinion you-" the sprinklers systems sprayed Ranma. "Man…?"
Ranma-chan looked up at the sprinklers. Was Kami torturing her again? "OK, someone REALLY needs to get that fixed," she pointed.
"I'll have Parfet look at it," said Magno. "And, Meia, you won't be using the Vanguard."
"Then who will lead the Vanguard squad?" Meia asked
"Ranma, of course," said Magno.
"WHAT!!!???"
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Ranma-chan was made the Vanguard squad leader. Since most of the crew still distrusted men, it would be easier if she remained in female form for the extent of the mission. She didn't like using her special condition to her advantage, at least like this, but if she needed cooperation from the women then she would have to compromise.
"So, Ms. Alien is gonna lead?" said Dita happily.
"Sure," said Ranma-chan. "Captain's orders."
"Well, at least the others will be more willing to listen when you're like this," said Barnette.
Ranma-chan frowned. Barnette hated men and barely tolerated her presence when he was male. She was only being nice whenever Ranma-chan was in girl form since it was easier for her to deal with. Ranma-chan thought it was a little ignorant to only accept one side of her, but if it kept things civil between herself and Barnette, she wouldn't complain.
"Well, this will be our big chance to partner up!" Jura smiled brightly. "I wonder what elegant form my Dread will take."
"Probably whatever Rider I use the Final Form Ride with," Ranma-chan answered. "I mean, I used Kuuga Gouram and Dita's Dread became Kuuga while Meia's became Blade when I used the Blade Blade. The same thing will probably happen with you."
"Oh, well then, you'd better pick something elegant!" Jura insisted. Ranma-chan sighed and shook her head. This woman had a one-track mind.
"We'll see if something comes up," Ranma-chan replied, which seemed to pacify Jura to a certain degree.
"So, Vanguard Leader," Barnette spoke up. "What's your first order as the new squad leader?"
"Well," Ranma-chan sighed. She did have experience in leading people like when she was a cook in Blade's World or rallied the students when he was undercover in the Smart Brain-sponsored high school in Faiz' World. He even had to lead a squad of police in the Kuuga's World on a raid against a Grongi stronghold. "Duelo's given me the readouts on each of you girls. I need to see how you all did in recordings though. That way I can figure out where each of you stand. I usually don't get to plan ahead on things like this so I don't want to screw this up."
Barnette nodded. That was a smart thing to do. All things considered, Ranma-chan might not be too bad of a leader. Now if only she would stay in girl form all the time…
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Ranma rubbed his eyes as he watched the seventh straight exercise of the girls who were good enough to pilot Vanguards. None of them were too shabby, but the problem was that they reacted too quickly for the Vanguard's to react. They had eyes on everything and their reflexes weren't attuned to the mechanics of the Vanguards. That could be fixed with training though. What got Ranma annoyed was the fact that some of the girls tended to panic when things got hairy. It was an odd trait since they were hardened Dread pilots, but Ranma could chalk that up to being surrounded with unfamiliar technology and still being unused to it.
Still, what stood out most was Meia's performance. She was without a doubt the worst, but Ranma could only still see the fear in her eyes. He understood it very well and no matter how much bravado Meia put out, the fear was still in her voice for those who knew how to listen for it. The bluenette Dread leader was claustrophobic and the confined space of the Vanguard cockpits were probably a nightmare for her.
Of course, Ranma would definitely get Meia's denial if confronted with it. He would need to keep Meia out of any Vanguard required missions for her sake.
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Ranma-chan had collected the girls into the training room. Now it was time for her to put the Anything Goes School into effect. If these girls were going to get used to using the Vanguards, then they'd need some training out of the machines as much as inside. This was why today she was going to hold a martial arts class for them. All she said to them was to wear something comfortable and come down to the training room.
"OK, listen up, today instead of the simulators we'll be doing some martial arts exercises," announced Ranma-chan.
One girl spoke up, "But what does martial arts have to do with piloting Vanguards?"
Ranma-chan noted the girl who was named Sally. She answered, "Martial arts can be really useful. In the Vanguard it can also help you in your movements. The Vanguard, because it has a humanoid shape, acts as an extension of your own body. Therefore, before you can train with the Vanguards, you need to train your own bodies too." That met some murmurs. "Also, it can help you keep fit and stay in shape," Ranma-chan added. She knew how these women always seemed to prioritize their looks and to hear that they could keep fit got their attention. "Martial arts can also be versatile, just in case you're in a combat situation and without your weapons. With martial arts YOU can become a weapon." Ryoga was an example. The guy was a living tank at times.
"But how good are you?" asked Meia. "All we've seen is you using that suit. Can you fight without it?"
"Is that a challenge, Meia?" Ranma-chan questioned.
"So what if it was?" Meia retorted.
"Why don't you come over to the mat since you volunteered," said Ranma-chan.
Meia cracked her knuckles. This was going to be good and maybe help her relieve some stress. She was one of the best hand-to-hand fighters on the ship and she was confident with her skills. In her mind, an unpowered Ranma-chan wouldn't make this fight last long.
She was right.
"Wagh!" Meia cried as she hit the mat with a loud slam. "Ow."
"Okay, you have the basics down," Ranma-chan nodded. "You've got experience and knowledge. But you're in such a hurry to get it done you keep overstepping and leaving big holes in your defense."
Meia growled as she got up. Her back and posterior were both sore from the sudden flight. She wanted to try for a second round, but Ranma-chan was just continuing to explain to the wide-eyed pilots.
"Now, by learning what the limits of the human body are, you can learn the limits of the Vanguards," Ranma-chan explained. "Now, I want you to pair up for basic sparring. I want to see where you all stand."
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"Are you sure the readings are accurate?" Magno asked as they viewed the desert planet. "It looks like a dead world to me."
"True," Buzam nodded. "However, we're getting readings from own there that indicate manufactured structures."
"And with our supplies going down, we have no choice," Magno sighed. "Well, I guess we'll have to make like pirates after all."
BC smiled.
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"So, what's the mission?" Dita asked.
"The captain wants us to go down to a dead planet and raid for some supplies," answered Barnette. "Maybe we'll find something we can use."
"Well, since no one else is using them anymore, we might as well take them," said Ranma-chan.
"Where's Meia, Ms. Alien?" Dita asked.
"I told her she couldn't come," said Ranma-chan. She recalled the conversation/argument she had with Meia over it and had used the results of the simulators.
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"What do you mean I can't come!?" Meia shouted.
Ranma-chan remarked, "Meia, I've looked at the simulations and from what I can see you're not fit to pilot a Vanguard!"
"I'm squad leader!"
"Correction, you're the Dread squad leader while I'm the Vanguard squad leader!"
"I'm not taking orders from you! I'm going to the captain!"
"She knows and she agrees!"
"What!?"
"Meia, you don't have battle fatigue. Short of breath, trembling, cold sweat, and lack of concentration. Those are symptoms to someone who's suffering from claustrophobia."
Meia froze and her eyes narrowed, "You don't know what you're saying."
"I do know what it's like to be so scared to death that you can't control it! Listen to me, Meia! YOU'RE NOT GOING!"
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It was a tough call to make but Meia was a liability in her current state with the Vanguards. She'd just be a danger to herself and others and Ranma-chan was responsible for the safety of the Vanguard squad.
"OK, girls, let's move," said Ranma-chan.
"Yes, ma'am!"
There was only enough room on one of the special drop ships for four Vanguards and that was pushing it. Ranma-chan, Dita, Jura, and Barnette were crammed inside of the drop ship with their Vanguards. It wasn't too long before they were launched down to the planet's surface.
The four Vanguards exited and took in the sight of the endless desert around them. It wasn't much to look at.
"Don't forget Ranma!" Jura called from her Vanguard. "You're supposed to partner up with me today!"
"No!" Dita objected, "Ms. Alien should partner up with only me!!!"
"Girls, can we please focus?" Ranma-chan questioned as she turned on the scanners. "We got a job to do."
"The planet's quiet," said Barnette. "I don't like it. It's so…unnerving."
"Well, that just means we won't have any trouble," said Jura.
"Well, that's good news then," said Ranma-chan. "Now, come on. Let's get down to business."
Still, she had an odd feeling that something was wrong.
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Meia was in her room, sulking. It was humiliating. She was being undermined by a mere rookie and a male of all things. Well, the male had spoken to her as a fellow female so that took out some of the embarrassment, but she was supposed to be in charge of the combat squads. This just wasn't fair. And, to add insult to injury, the captain agreed with Ranma.
"Screw it," she frowned as she stood up. "I'm responsible for them. I'm the leader and I have to look out for my team! Even if one of them is a man half the time."
Heading out to the hanger, she looked around for the drop ship that they were supposed to use. She was going to be on it come hell or high water. However, there was no drop ship in sight.
"You just missed them," Pyoro commented as he came floating by. "They left just a moment ago. Pyoro!"
"No," Meia growled. "Well, when's the next one leaving? I have a responsibility to those girls!"
"The ships only go one way and there is only one," Pyoro answered.
"What?!"
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"So, which alien form are you going to use this time, Ms. Alien?" Dita asked curiously, referring to the other Riders.
"I don't think I'll have to," answered Ranma-chan. 'At least I hope not.' Those were only meant for combat situations. He just hoped nothing came and suddenly attacked them.
"This is a waste of time," complained Barnette. "How are we supposed to find anything? All I can see is sand, sand and more sand. Ugh, it's so frustrating!"
"Wow, and so much sand!" said Dita.
"And zero life signs," added Ranma-chan. "It's as dead as dust here." She did notice some buildings, or remains of them protruding out of the sand. "Hey, maybe we can try and look in one of those things."
"Well, just remember, Ranma, that if there's trouble you can partner up with me," said Jura.
"Hey, Ms. Alien is only supposed to join with me!" snapped Dita.
Ranma-chan sighed. 'Is this just universal?' Her girl trouble seemed to have followed her here. "Stop arguing and let's go! I'm going to look from the air!" She ha her Vanguard fly up but all of a sudden a laser field formed. "Huh!?"
"What's that?" Barnette yelled out.
The Ranma-chan Vanguard hit the laser field and was instantly electrocuted. "Argh!!!" Ranma-chan screamed. Her mecha suddenly dropped.
"Ms. Alien!" Dita screamed.
Suddenly, there was a sand storm.
"What's going on now?" Jura questioned.
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Back on the bridge, Duelo was monitoring the pilots' status. "Their pulses are rising. Something is happening down there."
"Status report!" BC ordered.
"They've triggered a defense mechanism," reported Amarone.
One of the bridge girls, a blonde named Belvedere reported, "The landing party seems to be trapped by some sort of shield."
BC called, "Landing party, do you copy!" Three screens popped up displaying Jura, Dita and Barnette, "What's your status?"
"Damn it, what's going on?" Jura asked.
"The barrier has us trapped!" added Barnette.
"We need to hurry! Ms. Alien's in trouble!" said Dita worriedly.
"Calm down!" Buzam advised. "What kind of trap is it?"
"We don't know! The sand is attacking us!" Dita exclaimed.
"The sand…?"
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"What's with this sand!?" Ranma-chan exclaimed as her Vanguard was being covered. "Damn it! Got no choice now! Henshin!"
Kamen Ride: Decade
The Decade armor engulfed Ranma-chan, allowing her to change into Decade. Outside, the Vanguard Decade changed colors as panels merged with its face to give it its completed look. Drawing its weapon, it slashed at tentacles of sand that reached out for it. Jura, Dita, and Barnette were using what weapons they had to keep out of the reach of the sand tentacles.
"A trap!" Barnette growled. "This whole thing was a stinking trap!"
"But who set it?" asked Jura as she dodged a swipe.
"Mean aliens!" Dita cried out.
"Well, I'm going to end it!" Decade growled as she drew a card. "Henshin!"
Kamen Ride: Ryuki
The images of a large machine overlapped the Vanguard Decade and changed it. It was now red save for the chest, head, and arms. The face was covered with a grille and had red glowing eyes. The left arm was bigger than the right because of a gauntlet shaped like a dragon motif.
"Ooooh! I want to partner with that!" Jura gasped at the dragonic Rider.
"I only do that with Dreads!" Decade-Ryuki snapped. "We're all in Vanguards right now!"
"What?!" Jura cried in disappointment. "That's not fair! I sign on for this and I can't even partner with an elegant machine like yours? No fair!"
"Would you quit about the partnership and just fight?!" Decade-Ryuki growled. She drew another card. "I'm going to make some glass sculptures!"
Attack Ride: Strike Vent
Over the right arm a gauntlet shaped like a dragon's head appeared. Decade-Ryuki said, "How would you like your sand? Rare, medium rare, or well done?" She took careful aim. She didn't want to harm her comrades. "OK, here we go! DRAGON BREAK!"
A stream of intense flames burned though the air. The streams did miss the other Vanguards, but the sand got hit. It was crystallized on impact. However, smoke rose up from the attacks as well, like something else besides the sand was attacking them. Of course, that was most likely true.
"Thank you Ms. Alien!" Dita smiled.
"Yeah, thanks," Barnette grumbled as she broke free from some of the crystallized tendrils that had latched onto her Vanguard.
"Ohhhh, why can't these stupid Vanguards partner with that machine?" Jura whined. "I bet it would have been beautiful!"
"Will you just stop?!" cried Decade-Ryuki. "We have more important things to worry about right now!"
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Meia growled as she heard what was going on down on the planet. She needed to be down there with her squad now! To hell with Ranma's lead, she was inexperienced! Meia knew what she had to do as she raced to the nearest Vanguard and leaped inside of the cockpit. Her breathing was already starting to increase as she felt the walls closing in on her. Trying to ignore the feeling, she activated the Vanguard and began the launch sequence. The engineering crew started panicking as the large machine came to life.
"Here I come weither you like it or not!" Meia growled as she hit the acceleration. With a roar of the propulsion, the Vanguard roared out of the Nirvana and out into open space. Its destination the battle against the very sand of the planet itself.
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"That sand was NOT normal," stated Decade-Ryuki.
"Well, of course it wasn't," said Barnette. "It was alive! Whoever was here before must've left a surprise for us."
"I hate booby traps," Jura muttered.
"I'm not too crazy about them either, but we can't get off this rock until we shut down whatever is making that laser grid," answered Decade-Ryuki. "I'm gonna check it out again." She drew a card and slipped it into her buckle before activating it.
Final Form Ride: Ryu-Ryu-Ryu-Ryuki
Vanguard Ryuki leaped into the air, doing the splits as it went. Its legs became covered in red metal armor while silver armor and metal claws extended from the shoulders. A bladed tail extended from one end while a metallic dragon head emerged from the opposite end. Vanguard Ryuki had become Vanguard Ryuki Dragredder.
"Oooooh! And me without my Dread!" Jura whined.
"Wow! Cool!" Dita gasped.
"You all keep searching," Decade-Ryuki ordered the Vanguards which followed him. "I'm going to try and find the source. If you need help then call in!"
"Roger!" the three Vanguard pilots agreed.
The robotic dragon roared and flew off into the air to get a better view of everything. The field was a strong one and the Vanguard leader doubted that the sand was the only thing there to take down whatever had come. There might be more on the way, which meant that they needed to get off of the planet NOW!
"Where are you?" Decade-Ryuki asked as she had her machine scan for the source of the field and the controller of the sand. It had to be somewhere.
As she was flying through the air, she noticed something entering the atmosphere of the planet. Frowning, Decade-Ryuki realized that it was another Vanguard that was coming down. Pulling up a communication with the machine, Decade-Ryuki hissed when she saw that it was Meia in the pilot seat.
"Kuso," Decade-Ryuki frowned. "Meia! I told you that you were off this mission! What part of that didn't you get!"
"Shut up!" Meia hissed. She was trembling and struggling to keep her machine from crashing. "Don't tell me what to do! I can take it!"
"Maybe in a Dread but not in a Vanguard!" Decade-Ryuki argued. "Now you're just a big target since you're panicking inside the Vanguard!"
"They're my squad!" Meia shouted. "I have to look out for them!"
"I'm just as capable as you are!" Decade-Ryuki growled. "Why is it you can't seem to trust me?"
"It's because…because you're new!"
"What?" That was ridiculous. Still, it was a better reason than just because Decade-Ryuki was a man. Well, sometimes a man anyway.
"That's right! I've worked with them for years and then you show up and takeover!"
"Oh…come on! Is that all? You're afraid I might mess up?"
"Exactly!"
"Geez, women," snorted Decade-Ryuki.
"What was that?" Meia snarled.
The conversation was interrupted as the Vanguard hit the planet. The sand was kicked up as the impact shook the ground. Meia was still shivering, but not from the impact. Her claustrophobia was still getting at her and it was affecting her performance. Still, as she was about to open her mouth to argue, the sandstorms started up again.
"Not again!" Decade-Ryuki groaned.
Over with Dita, Jura, and Barnette, the three Vanguards were being assaulted by the same sandstorm. This time however, things were beginning to rise from it. Rather than tentacles, it was sand copies of the Vanguards.
"Not more traps!" Jura growled.
"More mean alien tricks!" Dita cried.
"Gah!" Barnette hissed as she avoided a lunge from one of the Sandguards.
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Back in the Nirvana, the tech crew was using what links they could to try and hack the computer from the outside. They weren't about to just stand by and let their friends get killed by a mass of sand.
"It seems the sand actually contain small nanobots," Parfet reported. "A security measure, obviously."
"That explains it," said Magno. She heard a gasp.
"I've got something!" Parfet cried as she tapped at her console.
"What is it?" Gascone asked, trying to help wit her own tech knowledge.
"I have…a timer?" Parfet frowned. True enough, on her screen was a countdown of numerous seconds. Over 200 seconds. "Oh no. It's a bomb! The surface of the planet is littered with bombs!"
"What?!" Magno cried as she overhead her crew talking. "That's it! Get that shield shut down right now! I will not lose anyone to this! Do you understand?!"
"Right!" the women nodded as they redoubled their efforts.
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"Meia! Meia, do you copy! Meia!" Decade-Ryuki shouted. "Meia, do you hear me!"
Meia was in her Vanguard and trembling uncontrollably. She was panicking. "I'm…I'm scared. Someone…help me!" The Vanguard was covered completely in sand and all her monitors were dark. She couldn't see out and in the cramped space of the Vanguard's cockpit, she was starting to suffocate.
"Crap, I knew something was up!" Decade-Ryuki grimaced. "Meia, just listen to the sound of my voice!"
All she got was a terrified whimper in response. That was just perfect. It had hit so hard Meia had no time to adjust and was now frozen in fear. Unless something was done soon, Meia might go beyond a panic attack and go into shock. From there it was anyone's guess as to what would happen.
"Meia!" Decade-Ryuki cried, steering the Vanguard Dragredder through the blowing sand. "Meia! Keep calm!"
"Helpmehelpmehelpmehelpme," Meia whimpered, clutching her head in fear, hoping to shield herself from the compressing walls.
"Oh she's going off the deep end," Decade-Ryuki frowned.
Suddenly, the sand blasted as several Sandguards rose up. However, Decade-Ryuki did notice that one of them was Meia's Vanguard which had been covered by the sand. The machine was being used against the Vanguard Dragredder by the sand itself.
"Damn this stuff is smart," Decade-Ryuki growled. "But no one's better than me in a fight!"
Cutting through the sandstorm, the Vanguard Dragredder smashed against the Sandguards. The constructs were blown apart by the impacts, but they quickly began regenerating. Still, for every one that she destroyed, Decade-Ryuki used a stream of fire to turn the regenerating Sandguard into a crystal statue. Still, with so much sand around, there were still more
Meanwhile Meia was still gasping for breath. She couldn't breathe! Everything was crushing her! It was going to crush her just like when she was little! She couldn't get out! She was trapped!
"pleasedon'tcrushmepleasedon'tcrushmepleasedon'tcrushme—I WANT MY FAHMA! OHMA! FAHMA! HELP ME!!" she screamed, actually shedding tears.
"Gotta get her out of there!" Decade-Ryuki told herself. "Can't lose her!" She had faced her fears many times but this was the first time she was going to help someone confront their own fears. "Meia, don't let your fear control you! Listen to the sound of my voice! Meai, please, don't let your fear take possession of you! You're stronger than this!" She didn't get response except more whimpering. "Crap, gotta get her out!"
Decade-Ryuki opened up her cockpit and then leapt put of it. In her hand was a card and with a single flick of her wrist she tossed it into her belt and reset the buckle.
Final Attack Ride: Ryu-Ryu-Ryu-Ryuki
The Vanguard Dragredder responded as its eyes flashed and it got behind its master. It opened its mouth wide as Decade-Ryuki got into a flying kick stance before it launched her like a missile via fireball. The female Rider went sailing through the air, trailing flames, as she executed the Dragon Rider Kick towards Meia's sand-covered Vanguard.
The flaming Kamen Rider smashed into the machine, tearing through steel and sand. However, she aborted the attack as she entered the core of the machine. Tearing through glass and metal, Decade-Ryuki smashed open a hollow chamber and found Meia. She was curled in a ball and whimpering with tears in her eyes.
"Aw Meia," Decade-Ryuki sighed. This was no way for anyone to be. Unlike the Kamen Rider who could fight back with the Neko-Ken if she was deep enough, Meia had no such defense and the fear was eating away at her.
Kicking the damaged hole wider, Decade-Ryuki entered the cockpit. She gently grasped Meia and picked her up before hitting the release switch to the Vanguard. The entry hatch opened wide and Decade-Ryuki didn't hesitate in getting out.
"I hate to do this to you Meia, but take a deep breath and calm your heart," Decade-Ryuki warned the bluenette. "It's going to get a little cramped again."
"Please no," Meia shuddered. "Please don't."
"Meia, I promise I won't let anything happen to you," Decade-Ryuuki assured the terrified Dread pilot. "I have seen too many good and innocent people die. I'm not going to let it happen to you."
Meia whimpered and clutched Decade-Ryuuki tightly. As she did so, the sand leaped at the pair as it was crushing the ruined Vanguard. Before it could reach the pair, the Vanguard Dragredder soared down and caught the pair before pulling them into its cockpit.
Decade-Ryuki took her place in the pilot seat and made sure that Meia was secure in her lap before taking full control again. It was time to take down these sand constructs…and that meant hitting the computer which was controlling them.
"Where are you?" Decade-Ryuki growled. The scanners in her machine came to life and examined the energies in the air to try and find the source of the enemies. The eyes of the Vanguard Dragredder locked onto the source of the signal and Decade-Ryuki grinned savagely. "Gotcha." The Vanguard transformed back into its humanoid shape before Decade-Ryuki activated her card.
Attack Ride: Strike Vent
"Bye bye!" Decade-Ryuki announced as she executed the attack, "DRAGON BREAK!!!"
Vanguard Ryuki unleashed another stream of fire from the dragon-head attachment. The flames cut into one of the old buildings, the most unassuming one too. However, it wasn't so unassuming when the building exploded like it was holding something flammable. As soon as the building went up, the Sandguards collapsed into piles of sand. The same happened for the Sandguards that were attempting to bring down Barnette, Dita, and Jura.
"Yay Ms. Alien!" Dita cheered.
"About time," Barnette panted.
"You're not so bad at this," Jura grinned. "But we'd be better as a team in my opinion."
"That's all well and good, but you guys have to get your butts off that planet now!" Parfet barked at the four pilots. "We just discovered several high-powered explosives that are planted on that world! Since Ranma took out the computer the field is gone, so get your asses back here!"
"Don't have to tell me twice!"
"Here we go!"
"Outta my way!"
"Get Meia's room ready. She's going to need it."
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"How is she doc?" Ranma asked Duelo.
"I've put her under sedation," said Duelo. "But it's a good thing you got her out of there when you did. She was about ready to go into shock."
"Yeah. Her fear was killing her," noted Ranma. "She'll be alright, right doc?"
"With some rest she'll be as good as new, but I don't recommend her going on any missions for awhile," said Duelo.
"She's gonna hate that," Ranma commented.
"It's for her own good. I'm a doctor and my responsibility is to my patients."
Paiway was pulling a blanket over Meia. The young nurse looked worriedly at her friend.
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"So you found something in the mess of data you and Parfet were rooting through while trying to get our pilots out?" Magno asked Gascone, who was reporting in on the command deck. The bombs on the planet had gone off not a second after the Vanguards returned. All trace of the enemy was wiped off the planet, leaving next to nothing for the Nirvana.
"Yes," Gascogne nodded as she brought up the data on the screens. "But you're not going to like it."
Pressing a few more buttons, the message read across the screen, "Attention. This year's harvest includes red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets, lymph products, etc. All blood products are in good condition."
"Oh goodness," Ezra gasped, placing her hands on her growing abdomen protectively.
"They didn't…" another techie gasped.
"They…harvested the people here for their blood?" another gagged.
Magno frowned. It seemed that the people of the desert planet had been harvested like vegetables. Considering the trap was left by the current enemy, it was no guess that they were the ones who took the people. Were these monsters so inhuman that they considered humans just stock for body parts?
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Meia groaned softly and opened her eyes. Everything was fuzzy at first, but she quickly gained focus. Looking around, she found that she was in the infirmary. Next to her, Ranma was in male form and looking at her with a relieved smile.
"Hey," Ranma smiled. "How are you feeling?"
"Lousy," Meia sighed."Here to gloat?"
"No," Ranma denied. "I wanted to make sure that you were okay. You were pretty far gone when we were locked inside the Vanguards."
"…" Meia frowned. "I hate being afraid. I shouldn't have been so uncontrolled."
"It happens," Ranma sighed. "It's happened to me loads of times."
"What could you possibly be afraid of?" asked Meia with a frown. "Do you have any idea what its like to be so afraid you can't move? To be crying out for someone to help you but it never comes?"
"Yes," Ranma nodded, making Meia blink. "I know exactly how to feels to be that scared."
"Then what are you afraid of?" Meia asked simply.
"C-c-cats," Ranma stuttered with a shiver.
"Huh?" Meia blinked. "Cats? But they're the friendliest animals I've ever known. They're the most popular pets on Mejele."
"It's because of a martial arts technique that's supposedly unbeatable," Ranma frowned. "My father…uh, who you'd call an ohma, I think, found a manual about it. It was called Neko-Ken. Basically you dig a deep pit and dump a bunch of cats inside and let them starve for a few days."
"What?!" Meia gaped.
"Then you take the trainee and wrap him in fish products," Ranma continued. "The trainee is then thrown into the pit. Repeat until the technique is learned." He continued, "I sometimes have nightmares about that time too. Those…things would claw at me and I would scream but nobody would come to help me."
Meia just stared. Ranma had been put through such cruel treatment all in the name of training. She didn't sense any deception in his voice. He'd stuttered at the mention of the word 'cats'. Still, she was curious. "Why are you telling me this?" asked Meia.
"Because we both have that in common. We're both scared of something that not many people would bat an eye at. It's humiliating, but we're only human. We get scared," said Ranma.
Meia paused before she spoke again, "So, you've seen people die. You told me that."
"Yes, I have. They were the victims of Grongi, Orphenochs, Fangires, and dozens of other monsters" said Ranma sadly. "I was either to weak or too late to save them. I swore to myself that I would not let anyone die if I could help it. That's why I saved you. I didn't want to lose anyone else."
Meie frowned sadly. She knew exactly how that felt. Being a Dread pilot was risky and they sometimes lost pilots to accidents or enemy fire. Meia felt responsible for every one of them and it broke her heart when she lost a pilot. Dreads could be repaired and rebuilt, but pilots, fellow crewmembers, fiends, those couldn't be replaced. Meia remembered each and every one of them too.
"I know that we never got along because of Mejele's dislike of men," Ranma sighed. "But…I was honest before, we do make a pretty good team. Well that and even though you do put up a bravado, you're still a very kind person."
Meia rubbed the back of her neck as she felt heat come to her face. Why it was happening, she didn't know. Still, it just felt nice to be able to talk to Ranma like this. She didn't have to put on a brave face and he apparently saw through the front she always put up so to keep from hurting herself too badly. Ranma was also just talking. He didn't have his swagger in his voice or the confidence. He was just being himself at the moment.
As they were considering what to say next, Paiway entered the room. She had a bright smile on her face and a glass of water in her hands, "Ah, Meia! I'm so glad you're awake! I thought you might be thirsty when you woke up so I got you a g-wagh!"
Somehow, Paiway tripped over the threshold of the room and her glass of water went flying. Ranma reacted quickly and caught it, but the glass was upside down. As a result, the water came out and splashed him, turning him into Ranma-chan. The soggy redhead grumbled, hoping to stay a guy for longer than a few minutes.
Meia blinked at the event that just happened and promptly burst into laughter. She just couldn't help herself. After all the serious things that happened, she just had to let the laughs out. Ranma-chan looked to the laughing bluenette before she broke out in a smile and giggles herself. At least Meia was finally beginning to feel better now that it was all said and done.
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