It'd happened so fast. The Cube-Fighters, Octo-Fighters and Seed Ships had attacked the Nirvana. As usual, Ranma had joined the Dreads in combat but in the middle of the fight Meia had taken a hard hit from one of the Harvester's newest ships. When the battle was finished off by Decade using his Final Attack Ride, Meia was immediately taken back to the Nirvana.
Meia was rushed to the medical bay by Duelo and Paiway. She was badly injured and needed surgery, fast. As this was happening, Ranma was leaning against the wall in the hallway, clenching his fists and gritting his teeth.
"It should've been me…" he murmured. "Not her, nobody else. It should've been me…"
'Decade, you're a destroyer,' he remembered Narutaki's words. 'You exist to ruin, not to save.'
Ranma had thought that he had proven the dimension-hopping man wrong. He thought that by saving the nine Rider worlds, he had denied the destiny which Decade was supposedly a harbinger to. Now though it seemed that he was being a herald of death to those around him. First the ship he landed on was attacked by the women, then they were being assaulted by the enemy, now called Harvesters, and now Meia had taken a deadly hit from a new Harvester ship which was much faster than any of the others previously encountered.
"Why do I always end up hurting people around me?" Ranma asked himself sadly.
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"Surface wound on the head and a ruptured spleen," Duelo frowned as he examined Meia as she was brought into the emergency room. He looked up to the fearful nurse who was waiting to know what she could do to help. "Get me some anesthetics, now!"
"Right!" Paiway nodded as she dashed to where the medicines were kept. Moving at high speed, she returned with a syringe with the right medicine. The girl may have only been an apprentice, but she knew her medicines well enough. "Do you want me to administer them now?"
"It would be prudent," Duelo nodded as he removed Meia's top, ignorant of her breasts. He preferred to pay attention to the medical needs of his patient at the moment. Paiway obeyed the order and injected Meia with the painkillers
Meia, was barely conscious after the attack, but felt the painkillers quickly take effect. As she started slipping out of consciousness, she whispered one word, "Fahma."
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"We took a bad hit today," Buzam frowned as they reviewed the data from the battle. "That Harvester ship caught Meia completely off guard. We were lucky the Vanguards and Ranma were able to destroy the majority of the forces and force them to retreat."
"No, they didn't retreat," Magno frowned. "This was a test run for their new ship. Now that they know it works, they'll be back for more."
"But who will lead the Dreads?" asked Buzam. "I mean, Meia's been the one in charge for so long."
"True, but Jura always came second," Magno agreed. "I just hope that she has a good head on her shoulders for this sort of thing."
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Dita was looking for Ranma. After the battle he'd run off. As usual, Dita wanted to see what was wrong with Mr. Alien. Usually, he was working out in the gym or at the Register but he was in neither of those places. Then she remembered that he liked to go to the Bio-Park to think.
When she got there she could hear the sound of pounding and followed it. She went to see what the source was and gasped when she saw that it was Ranma punching a tree, repeatedly. If he'd hit it with his full strength it would've broken in half but he wasn't. The skin of his knuckles had scraped off and they were bleeding. He also looked to be in pain, but not from the injuries on his hands.
"Mr. Alien!" Dita cried as she ran over to him. Ranma looked towards her as she checked his hands. "You're hurt!"
"Leave me alone, Dita," said Ranma softly. Dita could see that he was troubled and if possible that he'd been crying. "I just want to be alone."
"Are you worried about Meia?" Dita asked. "Don't worry. Paiway and the doctor will be able to help her."
Ranma had faith in Duelo, but he was actually troubled about himself and his supposed destiny. Was he going to prove Narutaki right and end up causing ruin to this place? He just wasn't sure.
"I know the doc can handle things, but it's my fault Meia got hurt. I should've been watching her back," said Ranma regrettably. "I should have been keeping an eye on that new type of enemy ship. I should have expected a new enemy ship by now!"
"But you couldn't have known," Dita argued, gently of course so not to upset her friend. "We can never really know what the bad aliens are going to do next."
"But I'm supposed to try and keep you all safe," Ranma frowned. "I don't want anyone to die. I don't even want anyone to get hurt."
"No one does," Dita replied. She kept Ranma's hands gently clasped in her own so to prevent him from hurting himself some more. "Only bad people like to do that."
Ranma sighed, still feeling miserable. Dita didn't know things about his life that he did, "You know, back when I was traveling planets, there was this guy. He called himself Narutaki and he always showed up on the planets where I found other Kamen Riders. He always said that I was destined to destroy all worlds. And sometimes, after I saw people getting killed by monsters, or like now with Meia, I have to wonder, was he right?"
"NO!" Dita cried out, grabbing Ranma's hands tightly. "No he wasn't! You're a very good person Mr. Alien! You don't hurt anyone except bad people! You've saved lots of people by being there! Remember when you told me about the Grongi? If you weren't there then Mr. Kuuga wouldn't have won and his world would be gone! You don't destroy worlds! You save them! And you're going to help save us from these mean aliens too!"
Ranma smiled at Dita's innocence. Even after all that had happened she still remained upbeat and determined, never losing hope. He envied her, slightly, since she wasn't going to give up at all. Meia would probably be upset with him if he gave up too.
"Guess I gotta help out more around here since Meia will be AWOL," said Ranma. Dita grinned back.
"That's right! She'll come back and then we'll fight those bad aliens together!" said Dita in determination.
"Then we'd better get things ready for her," Ranma grinned.
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"Adjust the oxygen levels please," Duelo asked Paiway as the pair operated on Meia. Her internal injuries were great and needed care to fix. However, she lost some blood in the incident and needed every drop they could spare. That meant that speed was a key factor for the operation as well.
Paiway obeyed the doctor and let more oxygen out of the tanks for Meia to breathe. She had never been in a real operation like this before and it was a new experience. Still, it was scary to see and she just prayed to the Mejele deities that the bluenette Dread pilot would be able to pull through.
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"Something wrong with your hands D-boy?" Gascogne asked as she and Ranma sat down for their game of cards.
"Just working out some stress," Ranma sighed. "I felt guilty for Meia getting hurt since I knew I should have been watching her back. Especially with that new Harvester ship that was darting all over the place."
"Well, hindsight is 20/20," Gascogne shrugged as she shuffled the deck. "The point is that Meia is going to pull through and now we know about this new ship so we can prepare for it. Next time we see it, blow the damn thing out of space. That's all there is."
"That was my plan," Ranma nodded. "Hopefully Jura can handle keeping the Dreads in line until Meia's back on her feet."
"I…would hope so," Gascogne grimaced, remembering how some of Jura's formations fared in days when Meia was incapable of doing the job herself. Now that was a mess.
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The Dreads were outside the Nirvana on standby. Jura, Meia's second in command, was taking over. Of course, that was what quite worrisome. Jura's leadership skills weren't exactly what one would consider capable. Even Magno knew this. Jura was only good at supporting Meia. Giving orders was the tricky part.
"Jura! This formation is a mess!"
"Where is the rest of my squad?"
"It's too crowded on this end!"
"Where's B formation?"
Jura gritted her teeth in agitation. She was doing horribly at the job and she knew it. She was trying hard to do what Meia was doing, but the buxom blonde was so much more inexperienced at the job than Meia. She never really took the time to learn everything Meia did as leader and the bluenette never taught anyone in case she went down.
Ironically, the Vanguards were doing well. They were spaced on an outer ring of defense while the Dreads tried to get their act together. Even though Ranma was a man, they still listened to what he had to say on the subject of defending the Nirvana. Barnette and a few others gave him some lip, but they couldn't argue with the strategy. They just would have preferred to have Ranma as a woman, making dealing with her easier.
"Do you need some help there Jura?" Ranma asked with a sigh.
"No I don't!" the blonde snapped. "I'm just a little rusty! Meia's been doing this for so long I haven't had the need to fill in for her before!"
"Well, we're just lucky that no one's attacking us yet," Ranma sighed. "Now do you think it's not such a dumb idea to get in practice?"
Jura huffed again, knowing that Ranma was right. He had asked Jura if she remembered everything that needed doing as leader of the Dreads. When she was struggling for an answer, Ranma immediately got Magno to authorize a training exorcise to get Jura up to scratch. Of course, it was taking longer than anyone thought. Meia hadn't exactly been willing to train anyone to take her place if something happened to her.
"You don't have to rub it in," Jura huffed indignantly.
"I'm trying not to," Ranma sighed. He pulled up a screen pointing out the formations. "Look, the right side of the Nirvana is a little open so why don't you have the B squad move there and let the A and C squads protect it."
"But that would leave a bigger opening for the enemy!" cried Jura.
"Maybe, but the shields are thicker on where A and C are. B and D need to watch that empty side since the shields are a little thinner."
"And how would you know?" askd Jura.
"I asked Parfet when I was asking around for how well defended the ship is," Ranma shrugged. "I also asked Bart since he feels pain when the ship gets hit. He says it hurts less of he gets hit there than if he got hit where B and D would be."
"Oh," Jura blinked. Pulling up the girls of the B squad, she began to give orders. "Okay, B squad, I want you to head over to the northwest side. There will be more space for you all there and the ship will be better protected."
"Finally a good decision!"
"Guess she picked up from Meia after all."
"I hate being crowded."
Ranma smiled. Since Jura always relied on Meia, Ranma had to help Jura with combat formations. He would give her helpful advice and suggestions and she would give the orders based on them. Still, he couldn't help but feel worried about Meia. What was she going through right now while unconscious.
"Don't worry, Meia," Ranma said to himself. "I'm not going to let you or the Nirvana down."
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"This isn't good," Duelo frowned as he looked over scans of the post-op surgery.
"What is it?" asked Paiway nervously.
"A piece of Paksis crystal is lodged in Meia's head," Duelo frowned. "It must have come from that headpiece that she wears."
"Can you get it out?" Paiway asked with a fearful squeak.
"Most likely I can," Duelo nodded. He had been trained in all forms of surgery during his years on Tarak. "However, I can only guess how it's affecting her at this moment. If we have to get it out, it has to be now!"
"I'll sterilize the instruments!" Paiway nodded as she dashed to the bloody implements. After all, something in the blood that the rest of the body could fight off might wreak havoc on more sensitive places like the brain.
"Get another kit of instruments as well," Duelo ordered the young nurse. "The sterilization process can take time we can't afford to use up. We start fresh."
"Right!" Paiway nodded.
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Inside her own mind, Meia was reliving her life. She recalled the happy times with her Ohma and Fahma, living as the child of a pair of famous scientists. She loved her parents very much and couldn't imagine a life without them.
Then the accident.
Meia was never sure how it happened, but she knew the results. She was crammed into an escape pod with all the other children in the complex which was how her fear of small places started. It was her own Fahma which shoved her in there, saying it was better this way.
She died in the accident.
People blamed Meia's parents for it all and the stigma of it never left. Meia grew distant from her Ohma and took to fighting on the streets. It never made her feel better though. All it did was remind her of what a mess her life turned out to be. She was on the brink of just ending it all herself.
Then she met Magno and found family on her ship.
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"We have incoming!" one of the Dreads cried from the west end of the ship.
"Damn!" Ranma hissed as he drew his Decade card and twisted his Decadriver open. "Henshin!"
Kamen Ride: Decade
Ranma become covered by the Decade armor while his Vanguard became the Vanguard Decade. Pulling his weapon out, Decade saw the approaching Harvester fighters. Among them all were the same ships that had managed to hurt Meia so badly. Narrowing his eyes in anger, Decade took aim and opened fire.
Shots blasted through space as the two sides opened fire. Cube-Fighters went down and Dreads took hits. The Speed-Fighters darted through it all with the intent of taking down the largest threats to their attack force. In this case, it was Decade, Jura, and Dita with their modified machines.
"Woah!" Dita cried as she avoided a blast. "The bad aliens don't like me!"
"Back off!" Jura snapped as she managed to shoot down one of the Speed-Fighters by pure chance.
"Jeez. These guys don't quit!" Decade growled. He reached to his Ridebooker and drew a Kamen Rider card. "But then again, neither do I! Henshin!"
Kamen Ride: Faiz
Red lines spread over the Vanguard Decade before it flashed bright red. When the light died down it had changed. It was now black save for the torso and shoulders which were silver. The same red lines were still on the armor and the head became round with large yellow eyes and red antennae.
"Now, let's show these guys what we're made of," Decade-Faiz frowned as he prepared for the fight. "Here we go!!!"
Vanguard Faiz soared through space, blasting the enemy fighters with his gun. This was for Meia's sake. The Nirvana would not fall while he and the rest out there were fighting for the sake of this family.
"HYAH!!!" Decade-Faiz roared as he smashed his Vanguard's fist through a Cube-Fighter and then tossed it at the rest of its kin, blowing them all out. "GO TO HELL!!!"
Obviously, he was pissed.
"Wow, Mr. Alien must be angry," stated Dita.
"Hm, wonder what that wonderful machine will turn into," Jura admired. Black, silver and red really looked good on Ranma's Vanguard.
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The Nirvana was also under heavy fire. Bart flinched whenever he got hit but still made sure to keep the ship steady. He learnt how to fire some of the weapons. The bridge crew were also hard at work, determining the enemy's position. Still, the Speed-Fighters were not making it easy for them. They almost moved too fast for the ship's scanners to track.
"We're getting bombarded!" Buzam growled as she tried to keep steady.
"Keep your wits about you," Magno ordered. "Its going to get worse before it gets better."
Outside, the Vanguard Faiz had slipped past another volley of Cube-Fighters which it managed to smash. Grunting, Decade-Faiz looked over to see more of the Speed-Fighters aiming at the Nirvana, seeing it as a greater threat than even himself and the Dreads.
"Oh no you don't!" Decade-Faiz hissed as he prepared tolaunch himself at the enemies. However, before he could, his ride booker popped open and a card popped out. This one was an Attack Ride card. The Autovajin.
"But I can't use my Machine Decader here," Decade-Faiz pondered. "Well, the gear hasn't turned me wrong yet. Here goes."
Attack Ride: Autovajin
Suddenly, the symbol for Faiz appeared in front of the Nirvana. It then moved backwards and engulfed the ship in a red flash. Emerging from the opposite side, the ship no longer looked the same. Instead, it appeared to have taken on the appearance of a giant metal robot with a wheel on its arm and one on its back. Handlebars stretched from its neck and its visor flashed green.
"Huh?" Bart blinked inside the navigation well. "What happened?"
Looking around, he saw a bunch of Cube Fighters flying at him again. Crying gout in shock and swatting at them, he was shocked to find a metal limb reach out and crush the fighters as if he were using his own hands. Blinking in surprise, he began to grin. "Oh yeah! It's payback time!"
"What the hell happened?!" Buzam cried out as she saw an outside view of the ship. "What did Ranma do?"
"That boy is just full of surprises," Magno chuckled. She hit a button and called up Gascogne. "Are you girls in the Registry still able to work?"
"Yeah," the muscular woman nodded. "D-boy's stunt just caught up by surprise. We can still get out through the torso of this machine he turned our ship into. He kind of stunned us for a moment before we got our senses back.''
"Then keep our girls armed and flying," Magno ordered.
"Will do," Gascogne saluted.
Dita was looking at the Autovajin Nirvana with a look of surprise and wonderment. "Wow, Mr. Alien's Power is awesome!"
"Now if that isn't elegant, I don't know what is," said Jura.
"Admire it later, you two. I just gave the Nirvana some new weapons but it'll only last as long as I'm in this form," informed Decade-Faiz.
The Autovajin Nirvana was shooting down the enemy fighters with ease, the wheel on its arm proving to be a weapon itself by shooting a barrage of blasts.
"Bart, make the Nirvana reach behind itself," Decade-Faiz said to the helmsman.
"Huh? Why?" Bart questioned.
"Just get ready for a surprise," was all the Rider said.
Shrugging, Bart did as told and when the Nirvana Autovajin reached behind itself, it grabbed hold of one of the handlebars and pulled, revealing a long red blade. The Faiz Edge was now in its hands.
"Hope you know how to use a sword," said Decade-Faiz. He saw the fighters surrounding him and his machine, "Now, you bastards, you better remember that I'm no normal pilot. I'M A KAMEN RIDER AND YOU'RE GOING DOWN!"
Vanguard Faiz dove into the fray, shooting and punching at the Cube and Speed-Fighters. The Dreads and other Vanguards seemed to take new heart in his battle cry, taking the fight to the next level. Even the speed of the newest Harvester ships seemed to be inadequate for the battles as the Dreads and Vanguards began to find ways to compensate. Bart was having an awesome time as he swatted Cube-Fighters with his weapon. He never really got to take full part beyond firing a few guns before. Now he could pay them back for all the pain they caused him when they shot at the Nirvana.
"Fear my power!" the blonde man laughed maniacally as he shot down a few Cube-Fighters. "Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!"
"At least someone is having fun," Buzam grumbled as she held onto Magno's chair for support.
Vanguard Faiz circled past a group of Harvester fighters. They were starting to collect together to try and use combined firepower on the Dreads and Vanguards. Well, that was going to change soon enough.
"Dita!" Decade-Faiz spoke to the redhead while drawing a card. "It's time to partner up!"
"Okay Mr. Alien!" Dita smiled, gunning the acceleration towards her friend.
"Hey! It's my turn!" Jura tried to argue, but Dita was already on her way. Decade-Faiz just dropped his card into the Decadriver and activated it.
Final Form Ride: Fa-Fa-Fa-Faiz
A trigger mechanism rose from the Vanguard Faiz's chest while its head vanished into a metal shell. Flipping over, its arms folded onto its back and were covered with white metal. The same happened traveling down the machine's legs before finally two barrels emerged inside a metal casing at the feet. Like the Blade Blade, the Faiz Blaster also grew in size. At the same time, Dita's Dread transformed again, red lines appearing down its hull and a head with yellow eyes and short antennae making an appearance on the humanoid form. It had changed into the Dread Faiz.
Taking hold of the Faiz Blaster, Dita took aim at the cluster of Harvester ships, "Ready Mr. Alien!"
"Hit the secondary trigger!" Decade-Faiz spoke to his partner.
Dita did so and the Faiz Blaster unleashed a stream of red energy. It collided with the front of the mass of ships before turning into a red cone. An electric surge flowed through the Harvester ships, killing their engines. They were all dead in space.
"Now we finish them!" Decade-Faiz nodded, bringing out the last card.
Final Attack Ride: Fa-Fa-Fa-Faiz
"Ready," Decade-Faiz spoke to Dita as energy pooled in the barrel of the gun. "Aim…" Dita licked her lips as she took the best aim that she could. She wanted to get them all in one shot. "Fire!"
Dita did so and her Dread Faiz pulled the trigger. A column of red power shot through the empty space and right into the cone. The results were amazing as every Harvester ship exploded in a haze of heat and light. As the light died down, the red image of a Phi symbol could be seen remaining. Of course, that symbol quickly faded too.
"We did it!" Dita cheered. Her Dread returned to normal as the Faiz Blaster shrunk and reverted back into the Vanguard Faiz. Pixels covered its body as it returned to Vanguard Decade. Inside, Decade was holding the Faiz card after it was ejected. The Nirvana also turned back to normal.
"Another chance foiled!" Jura grumbled.
"Sorry, Jura, but Dita was the closest," Decade apologized.
"In the next battle we partner up!" insisted Jura.
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In the medical bay, Meia seemed to smile as tears fell from her closed eyes. Shuffling in her bed, she opened her eyes, feeling peaceful after seeing her Fahma again. Her vision was blurry, but she quickly noticed the faces of a smiling Paiway and Duelo.
"We brought you back!" Paiway smiled in relief. "I'm so glad to see you're okay Meia!"
"It was a little uncertain for a while," Duelo nodded. "Still, the surgery was a success and we managed to get you fixed up."
"Oh," Meia nodded groggily. She reached up to her face and found a certain piece fo tech she always wore missing. "Where's my-?"
"Right here," Paiway replied, holding up a tray with the headpiece on it. Meia quickly took it and placed it back where it belonged. "It must be a pretty important memento."
"It's more than that," Meia replied. "It's a lesson."
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"Yo, Meia," Ranma greeted his recovering friend. She was still in the medical bay. "How are you feeling?"
"Better than ever," said Meia, smiling slightly. "Just a few headaches and I'll be sore for a few days."
"That's good." Ranma sighed. "I'm sorry."
"Huh?" Meia blinked.
"I'm sorry you got hurt. I…I was supposed to be watching your back like everyone else's. Because I wasn't quick enough, you got hurt."
"Ranma…" Meia said softly, surprised to see the regretful tone in her fellow crewman's voice. Ranma was always confident and a little arrogant. It was odd to see him this way. Then again, he wasn't like how she was made to view most men and since he could turn into a girl he knew what it was like to be both genders. Guess he got the best of both worlds. "It wasn't your fault."
"Doesn't make me feel any less lousy. I'm a Rider. I'm supposed to protect people," said Ranma.
"Ranma, I've been taking care of myself for years," Meia sighed. "While I do appreciate the sentiment, I am a big girl. I am able to take care of myself. I've been doing it for year."
"I understand that here," Ranma nodded as he pointed to his head. His hand then trailed down to where his heart was. "But it's a lot harder to convince myself of that here."
Really, Meia had to admire that kind of conviction. It was sort of how she felt about her girls in the Dread squads. She knew they could take care of themselves, but her heart always feared that if something happened then it would be her fault. Seeing Ranma here, showing something other than his brash side, made Meia see him as just more than a simple man. She was beginning to see why Dita liked him so much.
"It takes some doing," the Dread leader nodded. "Now come on. I'm hungry and I'm feeling like something big to eat. Want to come?"
"Sure," Ranma smiled. "I'm hungry enough to even eat those Tarak food pills."
"Ew, don't talk about those," Meia gagged. "As nutritious as they are, they taste horrible!"
"Yeah, and I've tasted some really bad stuff," Ranma nodded, recalling Akane's cooking.
Walking side by side, Meia and Ranma headed for the ship's cafeteria. They chatted only a little, but a new understanding had been forged between them. It was something that Ranma seemed to be doing with a number of the women onboard.