Gazing outside at the starry scenery as the near empty shuttle I was aboard sailed through the void, I reflected back on the situation I found myself in.
My name was now Cross Wayline. And half a year ago I woke up on an asteroid base as a student for the Astral Lane Mobile Weapons Program.
Originally I was a college student in a world where Mobile Suits were just fictional machines in my favorite mecha franchise and humanity leaving its cradle to live in the stars was still a long distant dream.
This world I woke up in though had already achieved that dream though. Humanity had expanded its reach beyond Earth, setting up artificial habitats out in the void. And they had even begun populating Mars after terraforming it enough to be habitable.
Only for aliens known as the Sirens to begin an invasion that saw 1/4th of the human population eradicated while threatening humanity's existence among the stars 15 years ago. In response, humanity created the KANSEN, girls who were the physical manifestation of space warships and could control their vessels with their thoughts alone.
This world I'd woken up in looked to be an alternate universe of the gacha game I had played known as Azur Lane except set in space, with the international naval organization now being called Astral Lane, and was mixed with multiple elements of the Universal Century (UC) timeline from the Gundam franchise, with five story tall humanoid robots known as Mobile Suits along with UC space vessels being used by the military factions of this world.
However, Mobile Suits were a recent creation, showing up about two years ago in response to the Sirens deploying their own mobile weapons.
The Sirens themselves were deploying mobile suits from the Reconquista of G series, an alternate universe of the Gundam Franchise.
From what little personal experience I had gained against them during that 'incident' a month ago, I could say they were for the most part impressive units. They were AI controlled like the Mobile Dolls from Gundam Wing, but the Sirens mobile weapons were a bit more flexible in terms of combat maneuvers. I think I would have preferred if they were controlled by dumber AI units.
I grimaced as my mind wandered to that burnt through torso of a Jegan that had been my wingman only a moment prior, before I shook those thoughts away.
In any case, six months of courses and training led to my graduation from the Mobile Weapons Program a few days ago and an immediate assignment as a test pilot for an experimental unit at Astral Lane's Forward Base. A military structure that had been built from a large asteroid on the outskirts of the Earth Sphere.
I spent the majority of the flight just reading through the manual that was sent to me for the prototype mobile suit that I'd been assigned. I couldn't wait to get my hands on it.
That would help me take my mind off the memories of this body's previous owner that were starting to seep through and mixing with my own after my potential as a Newtype awakened during the defense of the Academy, unlocked with my wingman and friend's final thoughts. With how these sorts of things go, I'll probably be facing this guy's past soon… or I guess should I say my past soon.
Figures that out of everyone I had to bodyjack, I jacked the estranged younger brother of Astral Lane's current Commander-in-Chief. A kid who seems to have a lot of baggage and a chip on his shoulder. Before I just shrugged off whatever anyone else said about my 'past', intending to just enjoy my second life. But after getting a glance at this guy's past, no wonder people thought I was just good for nothing…
"Live life your own way, huh?" I parroted Donatello's last thoughts aloud as a structure made from metals and rock came into view through the window next to me. I don't know why, but looking out at space from anything but inside a mobile suit certainly made me feel a lot more exposed. Smaller. "But how do I do that when it feels like this life wasn't mine to start with, dude?"
Yorktown had her hands folded in front of her, her fingers digging softly into the fabric of her skirt, as she watched the shuttle dock outside the viewport before her.
"Are you alright?" Enterprise asked as she stepped up next to her older sister
"Nervous is all, Enty." Yorktown said softly, doing her best to keep the smile she gave her little sister steady.
"I'm sure it'll be fine." Enterprise said. "But you know that you shouldn't hold yourself responsible for what happened between him and the Commander, right?"
Yorktown turned to look at Enterprise, the smile of the Yorktown-class matriarch becoming strained. "I… know that. I just wish my condition would have at least stabilized a bit earlier, long enough for me to speak with him. You know how he is. As stubborn as the rest of the Waylines, just…"
"Less agreeable than his father and brother?"
Yorktown sighed. "I appreciate that you have at least learned to word it differently now. I still wish the two of you got along a bit better like he and Hornet had."
Enterprise gave a half-hearted hum, but she shifted in place at the topic. She wasn't good with people to begin with and unlike Hornet or Yorktown, Cross had always treated Enterprise coldly. It was the same attitude he had towards his father and brother, always provoking her in some way.
The two hadn't even talked once since they last met in the hospital two years ago. Cross had a meltdown on her and his brother after being denied a chance to see Yorktown, who's ship had been sunk during the eldest Wayline brother's first operation as Commander, but thankfully was recovered. However her Cube had been damaged critically that put her in a coma for several months.
"Cross has always been a good boy, he just needs someone to temper that hothead of his every now and then." Yorktown placed a hand to her cheek, watching as a connection tube began to extend towards the shuttle. "But it's been two years. I can't say I'm pleased to hear some of the things he's been up to since I'd been bedridden. I suppose I'm really just struggling on whether I should be catching up with him or scolding him for not at least sending me a message for the past year."
Enterprise folded her arms under her chest. "Well, either way, I think he'll just be… happy that you're back on your feet again, sister."
Yorktown hesitated. "I-I hope so, Enty."
"By the way, where's Hornet?" Enterprise said, looking back towards the entrance leading towards the innards of the base. "I thought we said we'd all be here to greet him with you?"
Yorktown turned to her sister, mouth open with an hypothesis that died on her tongue as her crystal blue eyes met obsidian black, belonging to a young man who wore khaki pants and a dark blue bomber jacket over a tucked in white shirt. The young man had a tan complexion that was darker than last she saw him, with short dark brown hair that managed to stay unkempt despite its lessened length.
"Yorktown?" The young man asked, his grip on the duffle bag he had slung over his shoulder tightening.
"It's me, Cross." Yorktown managed to get out after a moment. "It's… been a while, hasn't it?"
Cross's face was filled with conflicting emotions and his eyes gave the carrier a once over before he spoke once more, "Did your boobs get bigger?"
Yorktown felt her heart stop for a beat before she felt blood rush up to her face, her pale white complexion reddening severely at the unexpected question, unable to do anything other than produce broken noises from her mouth.
Cross's question finally dawned on him as his eyes widened and his face began to pale. As he opened his mouth to offer an apology, Enterprise, who had reddened more so from anger than embarrassment, marched towards the mobile suit pilot. "You damn punk, you really haven't changed!"
"Wha- no, wait, I'm sor- Ack!" Cross let out a cry of pain as he found his ear in the vice grip of Enterprise, dropping his duffle bag that hit the floor with a lame thud.
"Who the hell greets someone like that after not seeing them for two years! And here I thought you shaped up a bit after becoming an officer and a pilot, but it looks like I still have to knock some sense into you!"
"Wait, I'm sorry! I just didn't know what to say so I said the first thing that came to mind!"
"I'm not sure if that's worse, but that sure as hell doesn't make it any better!"
"W-wait, Enty, i-it's fine! I have this handled so please let him go before you rip it off!" Yorktown snapped out of her broken trance the moment she saw Cross grabbing Enty's arm to try to pry her off him. Why did she feel relieved at this familiar sight?
Enterprise was about to spit a remark, but held it in upon seeing the pleading look on Yorktown's face. With a heavy sigh, Enterprise released Cross from her grasp.
"Fuck, I thought you were gonna rip my head off." Cross muttered as he pulled his head away, rubbing his reddening ear. He glowered at Enterprise. "It was just a slip of the tongue, honest! Besides, it's a fact! Sue me!"
"I'm about make you space debris, you little-"
"Enough, both of you." Yorktown said, having regained her composure, and leaving no room to let the two begin a scuffle. She sighed as the two looked away, arms crossed with indignant looks on their faces. This really was a familiar sight. Turning her attention to Cross, Yorktown watched as he suddenly found his feet a lot more interesting under her gaze.
A sigh left her lips again. "Really, what am I going to do with you?"
"Preferably? Forget I ever said anything."
"I don't think I'll be able to for a bit." Yorktown giggled, watching his cheeks flush a bit. Who knew it? This boy did know some shame after all. Or it seemed that he finally learned it. "You… seem different."
Cross went tense for a moment. Yorktown thought she saw traces of fear, but he soon relaxed. Bending down to pick up his duffle bag, Cross said, "People change. It's only natural."
"I suppose it is." Yorktown said. "Still, it seems to have been a good change for you. You seem to be in much better shape. Have you been eating well enough though? "
Cross froze half way in a bent over position at the question. Yorktown was about to ask if he was alright, but only let out a surprised yelp as he dropped his dufflebag once more and embraced her.
"Cross?"
"It's… good to see you again, Yorktown." said Cross, burying his head into the crook of her neck. "And I'm really sorry for all the trouble I've caused you."
Yorktown took his words in before she wrapped her arms around his torso, returning the hug. "It's alright. After all, what are big sisters for?" She tittered lightly, a warm feeling rising from her core that spread her lips into a smile.
The two stayed like that in silence, just enjoying the other's presence.
That is until they heard someone cursing up a storm from the other side of the entrance door which slid open to reveal a woman with blonde hair done up in pigtails, a black cowboy hat sitting atop her head to match the cape draped over her shoulders that did little to cover her well endowed bust that sported a matching black bikini top.
"Fuck, hey, y'all, sorry I'm late I-!" The woman stopped in her tracks as she saw the trio looking her way with only Cross wearing anything resembling an amused expression. "Uh… did I just interrupt a moment?"
"What do you think, Hornet?" Enterprise asked dryly.
"Uh…" Hornet shrunk a bit under the Grey Ghost's gaze. "Oopsie daisy?"
I'm not even a good two hours on this base and I'm already starting to fucking lose it. I wasn't expecting to run straight into the Yorktown sisters so soon with Yorktown and Hornet themselves having already been given their type II upgrades based on their appearances.
Talking to ladies who were once simply characters on your phone screen that you liked was nerve wracking enough as is, and mix that with the memories of this guy's body that shouldn't have felt so personal to me but were, and my grip on just about everything was starting to slip. Which I paid for with a now stinging earlobe.
Before I took over this body, this guy used to be brash and self-important with just about everyone but Yorktown and Hornet. The Yorktown class had been close to the Waylines and had taken up the role of guardian for Cross after his mother died in a Siren attack, with his father too busy serving as the original Commander of Astral Lane and his older brother was off at military boarding school.
He didn't really like Enterprise though. Something about her reminded him too much about his father and brother. Maybe it was her attitude as a soldier that put him off, but all I could pull from the memories of the two together is them bickering over some of the most petty things.
Yorktown on the other hand acted as an older sister for Cross while Hornet always tried to be his friend. They were really the only ones to get through to him whenever he got into fights or spoke out of line. He… raised a lot of hell for them.
I can't tell if that apology to Yorktown came from me out of sympathy or because of this guy's own regrets. I couldn't even say if my annoyance at Enterprise's manhandling was my own at this point.
In any case, the Yorktown sisters led me into the base to give me a tour. I had to say that it certainly felt warmer in the base than it did at the Academy base. People also seemed to be a bit livelier here too, though that thought may have been due to the various shipgirls walking around in colorful outfits and 'quirky' attitudes.
Though it felt strange to have the gazes of a few shipgirls linger on me as we passed through the different facilities like the cafeteria and recreational areas. We even took a look at the few shops that were on the base. The entire time I felt like I had eyes watching me and it wasn't hard to guess what some of the girls were saying in hushed whispers.
Their Commander's younger brother had arrived.
I didn't know the Commander, 'my' older brother, that much. He and this guy never really interacted much save for bickering or terse exchanges. He seemed to be always busy trying to live up to our father's legacy. If I was going by the gacha game's portrayal of the Commander, then the Commander of this world was more than likely a decent guy who had all these girls pining after him.
Lucky bastard. I suddenly felt more like a side character for these girls to use now to get closer to him rather than a colleague, though that was entirely an unfair assumption on my part.
I needed to get in a cockpit soon and just clear my head of all these shitty thoughts…
But Yorktown seemed to just be dragging me along to spend some time together, so I didn't bother asking her when I'd get to meet my CO. Or get to my quarters so I could drop off my stuff… along with the model kits I bought from a certain green haired repair ship.
"That damn cat, as goddamn money grubbing as she was in the game…" I grumbled under my breath, shouldering my duffle bag in one hand while balancing three boxes of 1/100 kits in the other.
"I think it's more of, ya got an issue managing your money," Hornet chuckled. I pursed my lips, thankful that either she didn't hear the comment on the other part of my complaint or chose to ignore it. Hornet had taken up a position by my side while Yorktown led the way and Enterprise trailed a bit behind. "Seriously, how'd you fall for her so-called 'special newcomer discount'?"
"It was 70 credits off for buying three." I groused. "Besides, I've been meaning to start a collection for a while. If I ordered it online, it'd take months before it got through all the processes to get here. Along with the extra shipping."
"I didn't even know you were into these little action figures."
"They're called model kits, thank you very much."
"...Nerd."
"You're damn right I am" Flashing her a grin, I was rewarded with a giggle from the blonde cowgirl followed by a dramatic gasp.
"The Cross I knew never would have admitted to being a nerd like that. Or get a hobby like building little toys." Hornet said. She then jogged around to cut me off, pressing an accusatory finger onto my chest as she jokingly stated. "Who are you and what've you done with the real Cross?"
For a moment I felt my breath catch in my throat. I… didn't know how to exactly answer that question. I should just try acting nonchalant and brush it off. Should I just say something witty? Yet I couldn't. Maybe it was the fact that Hornet was always one of my favorite Eagle Union carriers in the game even before she got her Type 2 version. Or the guilt that I basically killed the original owner of this body.
"H-hey, I uh, was just kidding around." Hornet let out a shaky chuckle, most likely sensing my discomfort. Rubbing the back of her head, she apologized, "Sorry. I… I didn't mean any offense by it."
"It's fine, Hornet." I breathed. "I just didn't realize I'd changed that much. Been so busy lately, I guess I just never gave it much thought."
"Change is only natural, right?" Yorktown said, moving to place a hand comfortingly on my shoulder. "And it doesn't matter how much you change. You'll always be Cross to us."
"That's right!" Hornet affirmed as she slugged my shoulder. "No matter what, we'll have your back!"
"Right." Was my weak response, shrugging my shoulder at the stinging sensation that Hornet had afflicted it with. Clearing my throat, I asked, "Anyways, where are we headed to next?"
"Ah, we're actually going to head to your quarters to help you settle in before going to your CO's office to wait for him." Fucking finally. Yorktown looked over to Enterprise. "Enty, it's fine if you want to head off now. We'll catch up with you later."
"You sure, sis?" Enterprise asked.
"Yes. I believe you needed to go discuss some things with Baltimore?"
"It was just about the upcoming exercises." Enterprise said. "Besides, she won't be free until tonight. I can help you guys out."
"Thanks, Enty." I said. Enterprise's violet eye widened at that with her mouth slightly agape. "What?"
"N-nothing." Enterprise shook her head, striding forward and pushing me towards the elevator. "Move it. And you better make sure to keep your quarters clean. Just because Belfast and the Royal Maids are working around here doesn't mean you get to just slack off."
"Alright, alright! Don't need to be so damn rough." I groused as I stepped out of her reach just as we got to the elevator door. With a huff I pressed the upper call button. "Hysterics are usually a big turn off for guys, y'know?"
"And girls find numbskulls like you insufferable."
"And I'm perfectly content with that." I said. "But are you fine with being outdone by the others here in front of Jacob?"
I cast a side-eyed glance at Enterprise and her expression told me I hit both a nerve and the nail on its head. Lucky bastard. "I- you- what's happening with the Commander and others is his own business."
"Just trying to give you some helpful-" The elevator door chimed and when it opened I dryly stated the last word of my sentence. "...advice."
Occupying the elevator were three faces I certainly was not expecting to run into. One was the first face to greet me in this world, an elderly man of Japanese descent with a square jaw and a gnarly scar that went from his chin up to the upper right corner of his lip.
Standing on the opposite side of the elevator from him was a lady that had kept me invested in the gacha game Azur Lane after I found my interest in it waning. I'd never grinded for any other unit as fast or as hard to get her level and affinity to max before, pulling a few all nighters to do so.
The sound of her clearing her voice brought me out of my trance and I soon realized where my eyes had wandered.
My eyes shot up to meet her salmond pink irises, only to find a sudden pressure pressing against my head when they met. It felt warm, but was stinging every nerve in my body and… it was coming from Clemenceau?
She seemed to be experiencing it as well if her momentary wince was anything to go by,
The feeling dissipated as soon as it came.
"Are you alright?" the last person in the elevator asked, placing a hand on my shoulder. Looking over at him, I found myself reflexively grimacing. God damn it, he really did take all the good genes, didn't he? I was only a few inches taller than him, but the man in front of me definitely took the cake for being one of the most good looking men I've met.
"I'm fine." I shrugged his hand off, I set down my duffle bag as I gave my older brother, Jacob Wayline, a salute "Lieutenant Cross Agbayani, reporting for duty, Commander.".
There was a look of uncertainty in my brother's eyes before he returned the gesture. With that done, I turned and saluted the man with a scar, a grin forming on my face.
"Instructor Nagi, I'm surprised to see you here, sir."
"A pleasant surprise to you, I'm sure." Nagi said. "At ease, Lieutenant. And we aren't at the academy anymore. I'm your commanding officer now, so you best get used to referring to me as Rear Admiral or sir."
"You're my CO now?"
"Your class was my last class before I returned to active duty again." Nagi explained, folding his hands behind his back. "I am the commanding officer for Astral Lane's Mobile Suit Branch, BLADE. And I believe I assigned you, Cross, to the 4th Independent Squadron."
"Ah, so this is the Eagle Union's up and coming ace?" Clemenceau said, her soothing, french accented voice inciting something in me more than it probably should have. She gripped her dress's skirt with one hand to do a curtsy. "It is an honor to meet you. Your actions during the Siren's siege on the Academy last month saved some of the brightest pilots that the Iris could offer."
"What, you mean Lafayette?" I asked. I didn't know my other classmates that well, so the only person I could think of who was from the Iris Orthodoxy was him. The guy had a good sense of the battlefield and was one of the sharpest shots, but he sucked when it came to close quarters combat.
"Among others." Clemenceau flashed a smile. And oh fuck. I'm probably gonna be wrapped around her finger if she kept looking at me like that. "They all spoke highly of you. Though Lafayette in particular was certainly singing your praises. 'He was like lightning itself in that ReZel. A storm of righteous fury tearing through the Sirens to avenge Donatello.'."
At that moment any elation I may have had at meeting Clem died. As my lips thinned Clemenceau blinked twice, glanced at me with a strange look in her eyes, before bowing her head again. "My apologies. I didn't mean to dredge up anything discomforting."
"It's… fine." I said, adjusting my grip on the model kit boxes. "Donnie went down swinging. In this line of work, there's no better way to go out."
"That's quite a grim way to look at it." Clemenceau straightened up, giving me a once over. That look in her eyes didn't go away. She definitely felt that pressure too. Is she trying to discern what it was? She continued a bit slowly, like she was probing me. "Don't you think you could have saved him back then if you had been quicker?"
"It won't do anyone any good to think about those sorts of things." I said, biting back the heat rising up from my chest. Snapping at the head of what was essentially an inquisition and in front of two superior officers probably would be more trouble than it would be worth. "I won't disparage Donnie's effort by thinking like that. He gave his all. And I need to keep moving forward. That's all there is to it, Clem."
Clemenceau remained silent for several moments before she reached out a hand. I froze at the action, feeling the cloth of her gloved thumb swipe at something wet at the corner of my eye.
Ah.
So much for keeping my emotions in control. Guess I'm still a bit too sensitive. Trying to turn my head away, Clemenceau's palm squeezed against my cheek. As if asking me not to shut her out.
"There is nothing wrong with letting your emotions out." Clemenceau said softly. "However, please remember that letting yourself drown in them is just as destructive as bottling them up for too long."
"Just gotta find the balance, right?"
"Qui."
Blinking back the tears, I leant into her hand. It felt… warm. A sigh left my lips which elicited a giggle from Clemenceau. It was pretty cute.
"Why thank you." Clem said. "I think you're pretty adorable as well."
…what?
Those words were like cold water being splashed onto my face, causing me to snap back out of her reach.
Clem tilted her head at the action, her brows furrowed, before Enterprise stepped in.
"Miss Clemenceau… what are you talking about?"
Clemenceau blinked owlishly, glancing around. "Did you not hear him?"
"I'm afraid not, Miss Clemenceau." Nagi answered for her. His eyes drifted over to me though I avoided his gaze.
Could Kansen hear the thoughts of Newtypes? It didn't seem that way given Enterprise's reaction. Was it because I dropped my guard for a second there and Clem was touching me? I wanted to scream into the void at the thought of these girls being able to hear my thoughts if I just relaxed close to them.
Never mind what I thought before about these empathic powers being a double edged sword, it was really starting to feel like it was something that was gonna shoot me in the foot more often than not.
Clemenceau giggled once more. "Hehe, you're certainly far more interesting than I first thought, Lieutenant. I'll be sure to keep my eye on you, mon propre petit mystère."
It was my turn to let out a nervous noise that one could akin to a giggle. Please. Just leave me be. When you were just a gacha character, the idea of being picked apart by you would have sounded amusing.
But now? You're the leader of a nation's intelligence organization who's standing in front of me. Probably one of the last people I want to pick at me like I was a puzzle.
"Well, I believe we must be going now, Admiral, Commander?" Clem turned to Nagi and my brother. "I don't wish to keep Richielieu waiting any longer."
"Right. It'll be rude to take up any more of the Cardinal's time than necessary." Jacob said. He turned to me, a look of hesitation flashing across his face, before he simply continued. "Lieutenant, I'm looking forward to seeing your work. I expect great things."
A tinge of annoyance spiked up. I really shouldn't be feeling this way. Was this body's original owner actually dead or was he just fucking with me?
"I'll do my best to rise up to them, sir." I said with as straight a face as I could muster.
Right as my brother nodded and turned to address Enterprise, an alarm went off from the terminal he'd be holding in his hand. Bringing it up, the projection of a young pale white girl appeared on top of the tablet's surface.
"Commander." The girl addressed Jacob. "Report. The 4th Patrol Fleet has encountered a Siren force. Friedrich der Grosse is requesting we scramble MS to support them."
"How far out are they from the base?" Jacob asked.
"Approximately 90 kilometers in J Sector. They had engaged in order to press the Sirens out, however the combat fleet they had encountered has been reinforced with additional forces. Friedrich reports that the reinforcements consist mostly of Siren MS carriers."
"What about the 2nd Patrol Fleet? I know their patrol paths were close to one another."
"2nd Patrol Fleet has responded, but they only have a single Alexandria cruiser amongst their composition. "
"This is the 3rd time this month they've tried pressing into our airspace. They're really trying to probe our defenses, huh? Alright then." Jacob looked to Nagi. "Nagi? How soon can you get some of your suits in the air?"
"I can have a company en route in less than ten and have another trail behind them soon after." Nagi said. His eyes then turned towards me. They had a glint in them. "Have you gone through the manual for the Iota Gundam?" I nodded vigorously before I could even properly process his question. "Then get into your pilot suit and report to the 7th MS hanger. You'll be taking it out for its first combat test."
"I'll get it done, sir." There was far more excitement in my voice than I should have let out. But who could blame me? Farther I was from the scary French lady, the better for my health.
"Wait, are you sure about this?" Yorktown stepped up to my side, tugging at my uniform's sleeve. "You've just arrived. And that new model isn't something you've flown before, right?"
"It'll be fine, Yorktown. I practically burned that manual into my brain on the way here. Besides that, the cockpit controls aren't too different from a ReZel's."
"We've also uploaded the combat data from the ReZel the Lieutenant used during the defense of the Academy to the prototype's operating system, Miss Yorktown. This is a good opportunity to not only get test data, but also for Cross to get accustomed to the machine." Nagi assured.
Yorktown opened her mouth, looking intent to argue, but stopped herself short. Her lips thinned, glancing at me and then to the second sister of her class. "Enty, can you and Hornet take his things to his barracks? I'll guide him to the ready room and then to the MS hangar before catching up with you."
"You got it, sis." Enterprise nodded, swiping my model kits from my hand. "Keep your head on a swivel out there, Cross."
"Give'em hell!" Hornet encouraged, slugging my shoulder once more and handed me my duffle bag while Yorktown pulled me to the elevator.
"I'll have one of the ReZel's carry you to the sector." Nagi said. "Be ready for a firefight."
"I won't let you down, sir." I said. Once we were in the elevator, Yorktown pressed the desired level.
As the doors closed, the last thing I saw was Nagi giving me a small smile, saying, "I know you won't."
A/N: So... thanks for giving this fic a peek. I honestly don't know how long it's been since I've had this weird story idea/concept in the works. A year or two now maybe? I've been bouncing around with so many ideas, stuck in a sort of writing slump, but recent events in my life finally have just pressed me to just pull the trigger and push this out. I still need to hammer out a lot of lore for the world of this weird fusion fic I've made, but I hope what I have so far is at least satisfactory.
And with that, the stage is set. Next chapter is gonna have combat scenes in space which I'm probably gonna fuck up in a thousand different ways since I'm still rather new to writing out mobile suit piloting scenes.
Other than that, I don't entirely know when I'll be able to update this since my real life obligations are gonna be ramping up again, but hopefully I can pump it out by the next month. I want to keep chapters relatively medium length so I don't get into overthinking about how I should make a chapter longer, only to then get stuck trying to figure out how like I've done in the past.
Anyways, thanks again for dropping in to give this a read! May you have a pleasant day or night wherever you are in the world!