Dual Fan Fiction ❯ Interstellar Dual! ❯ Checkmate ( Chapter 4 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Dual! Parallel Trouble Adventure and its characters are the property of Pioneer and whoever, not me. I claim the rest, because I created it.
And God saw that it was good.

Italics: thoughts.
Bold: emphasized
Underlined: info from the author, such as definitions, clarifications, and the Author’s Note. Underlined text is not spoken by the characters.
<>: a mecha is speaking


Over the next month after Tatsuma and Zinv were upgraded, a great many things happened. All four Core Robots went into the Enhancement Chamber, coming out with even better armor that now shone like gems. They were faster, stronger, and all around, better. Even their weapons had been further upgraded for greater power, accuracy, and range. The downside was that the use of the Chamber greatly drained the Skylight's power cells. The cells recharged over time, but it did delay the further studies that needed to be performed on the artifact ship.

The day after CR3 had been in the Chamber, Travis found Dee crying in her quarters aboard the Skylight. "What's wrong, Dee?" he sat next to her.

"Hi, Travis. It's nothing," she sniffed and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm not buying that. You can tell me," Travis urged.

"Well...I was hoping CR3 might start to talk after going in the Chamber. But...it didn't, and..." Dee returned to crying.

"Oh, Dee...it's okay. It's just that CR3 doesn't have a self-awareness like Tatsuma and Zinv. Tell you what. Maybe you could see if your father could give it a personality. I don't know if it's possible, but just maybe. But, uh...be sure he's not too busy, first," Travis suggested. Dee sniffed again, and nodded, now more her usual self.

Drs. Sanada and Rara managed to convince the world of the threat of the Marikesans in the second week. Finally, people were listening to the evidence. There was plenty of photographs and recorded images of the black army. The one that influenced everyone was caught by the Hubble Telescope, which barely saw the dark mothership. After all, the ship blends in with the black of space The Earth prepared a Planetary Defense Program, creating weapons to combat an invasion. However, the Skylight and its crew was the only thing that would fight off-planet.

"Dammit! So close, and yet so fucking far!" Travis pounded his fist on the wall when he found out.

"Well, at least it's something. If the Marikesans attack the Earth again, the planet will be able to defend itself. We can focus on the upcoming battle on Mars," Dr. Sanada had replied.

Kazuki and Mitsuki Sanada did go out on a date as planned. In fact, they went on several over the month, including a double date with Travis and Mitsuki Rara. Miss Sanada had become incredibly cheerful during this time period, and even seemed to forget about the alien enemy. Travis walked Miss Rara home each day, after school.

The girls at the Academy still daydreamed about him, but they all had given up on a relationship when they found out he was dating the beautiful twenty-one year old. Many guys at school were obviously jealous of Travis and Kazuki, but none of them wanted Travis angry at them. Some of the boys, including Naoya and Toshihiko, inquired often into the boys' private lives with the Mitsukis. Or, they did, until Travis threatened to brain anyone who asked again.

Yayoi returned to duty, at the Academy and at the base, in the second week. She was much like her old self, minus the attraction to Kazuki.

"She's just like before they met," Dee noticed. Yayoi now treated Kazuki like a kid brother, looking out for him as an older sister would.

She treated Travis more like an equal, and told him, "I'm very glad you're not in my class. I'm afraid I would have trouble treating you like a student, instead of a coworker."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Travis had grinned. Although Yayoi never spoke of her emotional breakdown to him, she obviously was thankful to Travis for forcing her out of it.

Reika had said, "My granddaughter would talk about that night every day during her vacation. We both acknowledged that, without your blunt talk, she would still be in it. I'll say this for both of us: Thank you."

During the third week, Dee asked Dr. Sanada about the possibility of giving CR3 a personality. "A...per-person...like Zinv...uh..." the doctor had stuttered. He then saw the look of hope on the fourteen-year-old's face. "Well, I could try. Goodness knows I could use something to work on. Rara will like me out of studying the Skylight, I'm sure, that sonofa- Uh, anyway...I'll try, Dee," Dr. Sanada told her.

"Thank you, Daddy!" she gave him a big hug, and ran off happily. "That girl...she could charm a miser out of all his money," Kaoru stated, having overheard.

"Yes, too true. She's just so innocent. You can't help but love her," he replied.

"Do you really think you can do it? I mean, give the Core Robots personalities. As far as I know, they're not capable of them. Do we even have close to the technology necessary?" Kaoru questioned.

"I hope so. I would hate to disappoint her. She's even more precious when sad," he answered.

At this time, the entire Sanada household was living onboard the Skylight. Everyone had their own room, although Akane and Dr. Sanada shared one twice the normal size. Dee's dog, Kumu, was kept locked in her room most of the time. Mitsuki Rara and Yayoi were also living aboard the huge ship. Alice, Ryla, and Mina, Miss Rara's friends, stayed as backup pilots and other jobs. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough funding for more Core Robots; all the money was going to the Planetary Defense Program.

The three girls helped with maintenance of the artifact ship more than anything else. Although Yayoi tried to get Reika to join them on the Skylight, she refused.

"I'm too old for traveling to another planet. You young ones will be fine without me," Reika had said.

Dr. Rara wouldn't be going to Mars. His excuse was that he had too much work to do on Earth, but everyone knew that it was because Ayuko made him stay. She's probably just worried about her losing what little she can control left, Travis thought.

Unexpectedly, Kazuki's grades had gone up over the month. Even with all his time with Mitsuki S. and Zinv, he managed to learn better.

"What have you been doing, Kazuki? Do you just feel smarter or something?" Travis queried at lunch.

"Not really. I've...just gotten more motivated recently. I don't think I'm any smarter," Kazuki responded.

"I guess all that time with Mitsuki S. has made her rub off on you," Travis laughed.

"What about you? Do you feel any different?" Kazuki asked.

"Nah. Well, I am happier lately, if you can count that. But I think we both know the reason behind it," Travis glanced at Miss Rara on the other side of the room.

"I know the feeling," Kazuki stared at Miss Sanada.

Toshihiko and Naoya looked rather jealous as they sat quietly and ate. "Sorry, guys. Maybe we shouldn't discuss this, Kazuki," Travis stated.

It was thirty-seven days since the Marikesans left, and the black-obsessed aliens sent a message from Mars: "We have returned. Our army is much stronger than before, and we have plenty of them. On the planet you call Mars, we have established a defense compound; this will be the location of our next battle. We will be expecting your forces to arrive there within the next three days. Otherwise, it will be our right to attack your planet as we wish to. Pleasant journeys, humans." The alien then began a series of maniacal laughter that sounded like a cross between a jackal and a jackass.

"Is the Skylight fast enough, Doctor?" Travis checked.

"Yes, the Skylight can reach Mars in a matter of moments. That is, after the atmosphere is left. That will take a minute or two for the Skylight to do it safely," Dr. Sanada verified.

"Well, if there are no preparations that still need done, why don't you set off?" Dr. Rara suggested.

"Well, I know I need to get my homework first..." Travis declared.

"Okay, we'll leave tomorrow," Dr. Sanada reasoned, "after everyone has everything."

* * *

The Skylight was, indeed, incredibly fast. Getting out of the atmosphere, and Earth's gravity, took a couple of minutes. The actual trip to Mars was only a few seconds from preparation sequence to full stop.

"You see, the Skylight travels faster than light. Einstein's theory of time stopping at light speed simply isn't true. Otherwise, how could we be going faster than light? We are traveling so fast that our bodies cannot move while in flight. Although time doesn't stop, it does slow down for us a bit. That's why the computers must be kept in perfect working order, or else they cannot shut off the engines at the right time. As for traveling at the speed of time, my theory is that we would be unable to stop the ship. Unless, of course, we hit something, or could separate the inside of the ship from time so that time inside seemingly still ran. The how's and why's are unknown," Dr. Sanada told everyone.

"So, you're saying that traveling at light speed doesn't cause the rest of the universe to age faster than us?" Alice checked.

"Well, that is a part of what I'm talking about, but not the whole," Dr. Sanada continued on boringly.

The Skylight entered Martian orbit. A thin membrane was covering the entire planet. A hole opened in the membrane as the artifact ship approached, barely big enough for the craft to get through. The Skylight landed on the planet, and the membrane closed.

"Doctor, I'm reading signs of breathable air outside the ship," Ryla declared from her terminal.

"Hmm...that coating over the planet must be an artificial atmosphere," Dr. Sanada reasoned.

"It could be a trap. I would recommend that no one leave the ship without proper gear for normal Martian circumstances," Kaoru replied.

"Yes, yes. It wouldn't do for us to all have the air sucked out of our bodies, would it? Our eyes would stretch out of their sockets as we gasped to breathe, and-" Dr. Sanada stopped as Mina threw up her last meal. Luckily, it was on the floor, and not on her console. "Sorry about that. Well, shall we let the Marikesans know we are here?" Dr. Sanada rubbed his hands together, looking around.

Travis shrugged, "We might as well."

It turned out to be unnecessary, as the black mecha were already exiting the nearby alien base. "Let's see what they got. On screen," Travis commanded, thinking I've always wanted to say that.

The Marikesan troops consisted of 100 Pawns, 100 Knights, 100 Rooks, 100 Bishops, 100 Bogeys, 100 Black Zinvs, and 100 Black Tatsumas.

"Holy shit! They've even got a new one!" Travis pointed at a robot in the back. This robot was the size of a Bishop, but reminded Travis of a black version of Himiko.

"I guess we would call that the 'Queen', eh Travis?" Dr. Sanada noted.

"We should be very appreciative of the upgrades for the Enhancement Chamber. I just hope that they are enough," Alice sounded doubtful.

* * *

Before Kazuki entered the Zinv, Travis looked into his eyes. That determination had returned, stronger than ever. "Kazuki! Let's kick some black metal ass!" Travis cheered.

"You got it!" Kazuki gave a thumbs up.

Tatsuma replied.

"Yeah! Damn posers!" Travis cried out.

"Men," Mitsuki S. glanced at her counterpart.
Mitsuki R. gave a knowing look, "But you can't help but love them. And their heart's in the right place."

"I'm more worried about their brains being in the right place, if you know what I mean," Yayoi commented.

"What do you mean, Yayoi?" Dee queried.

"Uh...that their brains are in their head, not their..." Yayoi replied cautiously.

"Their butt, Dee," Miss Sanada winked at Ms. Schwael, who mouthed, "Thank you."

"Ohhhh," Dee had no idea what they had truly meant.

Travis had received the entire conversation via Tatsuma. "Ladies, could we get our minds off men's butts and onto the alien forces we need to eradicate?" he requested over the loudspeaker, trying not to laugh. Kazuki was unsuccessful in holding back his laughter, but the girls couldn't hear him inside Zinv. Both Mitsukis and Yayoi blushed, embarrassed. Dee practically skipped to CR3's cockpit. That girl has the optimism of...I don't know what to compare it to, Travis thought.

Soon, all six robots walked out of the hangar, their pilots wearing oxygen suits. "Okay, Tatsuma and I'll take out our duplicates first. Kazuki and Zinv, you get yours. They'll be some of the biggest threats. Ladies, if you would be so kind as to destroy the Rooks, we should do alright. That's what we know to be their most powerful weapons. After that, hit what you can. Skylight, if you would focus your weapons onto those annoying Bogeys, I'm sure we'll have a much easier time. Any questions, comments, suggestions?" Travis again acted as tactician. Everyone responded with affirmation of his plan. "Then, let's go!" Travis shouted.

Tatsuma flew at his black clones, charging up a ball of electricity between his hands. The Dark Tatsuma's, all 100 of them, did the same thing.

Tatsuma warned his pilot, and launched the Chain Lightning. 100 Chain Lightnings fired upon the shiny green robot.

"Travis!!" Mitsuki R. exclaimed at his plight. Tatsuma evaded the assault, but the combined electric energy of the 100 orbs shot out at everything in the area.

"Aaaaaaaaggggghhhhh!!!" Travis and Tatsuma cried out as one as they were struck. The bolts of lightning turned on the Dark Tatsumas as well, shorting out the systems of 26 of them, obliterating 42, and confusing the rest. The hitch was that Tatsuma was also shorted out, and Travis was unconscious.

"Dr. Sanada, you've got to help him!" Mitsuki R. shouted, strafing while firing at the Rooks.

"There's nothing I can do at the moment. Besides, nothing's attacking him right now," Dr. Sanada replied.

Meanwhile, the silvery Zinv raised his right arm and braced it with his left arm. The Dark Zinvs did the same. All the Zinvs created a bright blue gravity shell, although the original had five times the size of energy built up.

Zinv trailed off.

"I know. Can we make it out of the blast in time, if we use the new jets?" Kazuki asked.

the robot answered.

"I guess we don't have much choice. Everyone, stay back from Zinv!" Kazuki said over the radio. Zinv used the jets to leap through the air. The Black Zinvs fired their gravity shells where he had stood as he jumped. Zinv launched his own gravity shell at the rear of the 100 duplicates as he soared through the air above them. The explosions resulting spread, decimating the clones down to 34. As Zinv flew, a group of 13 Bogeys targeted him. The gravity shell struck them and Zinv, blowing up the aircraft and disintegrating the silver robot's legs and waist.

The girls were doing much better against the Rooks. The powerful weapons of the large black mechs seemed unable to be moved while charging, not even on Mars. Their thick armor was proving to be a pain, until Mitsuki S. started tricking them into shooting each other. She used her jetpack to land amongst them, waited to be targeted, then would dash away. The cannons proved to be quite effective against the robots that used them. The other girls soon used the same approach, and the Rooks numbers dwindled.

"These guys make for excellent cover, too," Yayoi noticed as the Knights shot at the CRs. There were Rooks in the way, so the enemy shot its own troops.

"The Skylight's gun turrets were designed more for accuracy, power, and a high rate of fire. They were not designed for targeting small, fast Bogeys!" Dr. Sanada complained. The artifact ship wasn't hitting the enemy aircraft much; they were too nimble. The only ones that had been hit were shot out of pure luck.

"At least we are keeping the enemy well distracted, Doctor," Kaoru replied, "They can't attack our forces with us making them dodge constantly."

"Is it just me, or do the Bogeys seem to be smarter than the other units?" Mina wondered.

"I think you have something there, Mina. The Marikesan troops do seem rather unintelligent. Why else would they risk themselves with these foolhardy actions against Tatsuma and Zinv? But, they Bogey pilots do indeed seem capable of actual strategy and planning. Perhaps the pilots have to be smarter to fly them," Kaoru responded.

"Well, I doubt we will ever know for certain. We'll just have to keep firing!" Dr. Sanada made a ridiculous dramatic pose of pointing at the viewscreen.

Akane came in just then, "Ken, have you been drinking too much coffee again?! Sit down!"

"Only five cups..." he did as he was told.

* * *

Travis awoke, twitching with muscle spasms. Tatsuma was still lying on the ground. "Travis! The Black Tatsumas are headed your way!" Dee warned.

"Thanks, Dee. C'mon, Tatsuma. Get up," Travis ordered. The green robot made no reply. On the screen, Travis could see the black clones coming closer. He used all his mental willpower to force the artifact onto its feet, still not responding.

"Okay, looks like I'm on my own for the moment," Travis proclaimed. The Dark Tatsumas used their chest beams on the original, which had no effect on the armor. Travis couldn't make the machine move much, so he stood there and let the copies get closer. They started converging their firepower, which was beginning to do damage. Travis winced against the pain, but held his ground. As they got close enough together, Travis moved Tatsuma's hands initiate a Chain Lightning. The black replicas ignored it, and continued firing. Travis let off the electric sphere at the 32 remaining duplications. All of them collapsed, overloaded.

Suddenly, all the Dark Tatsumas began to shine with a bright light from the inside of their bodies. The light shot out in blinding beams, and Travis cussed, "Oh, shit!" The Dark Tatsumas exploded, their self-destruct mechanisms having been remote activated. Travis was again overwhelmed with pain as vicious detonations wrecked Tatsuma's body. All that remained of the great green mecha was most of the torso.

"Light Hawk Wings!" Travis screamed through his pain. The wings did not activate. Damn! He must have to be awake! he thought. "Boost on!" he demanded, having no other option.

Tatsuma's mental voice stuttered, and full of pain.

"Light Hawk Wings, Tatsuma! Now!!" Travis commanded. The wings sprouted from what remained of Tatsuma's shoulders. The pain subsided as the robot's body was regenerated. Travis sighed, as if a heavy burden had been taken from him.

Tatsuma repeated.

"You were shut off by the enemy Chain Lightning. I could barely move you by myself. I had to use another Chain Lightning on your duplicates, but then they all blew up. I had to use the Boost in order to wake you, so the Light Hawk Wings could be used. Now, let's get back to work," Travis said.

the green robot queried.

"Miss Sanada! You need to get Kazuki to wake up!" Travis told her over the radio, and headed to defend Zinv.

CR2 flew towards Zinv as well, leaving the other CRs to handle the Knights. The armor upgrade from the Enhancement Chamber would protect them from a few direct hits. The Knights didn't have much of a concept of leading one's fire, either. They were smart enough to shoot down the red robot has it soared away. Mitsuki S. cried out as she fell to the planet, her jetpack damaged beyond use. Tatsuma had gotten to Zinv using the boost, and carried him over to CR2.

CR2 smashed a fist on the silver robot's head, "Wake up!"

Zinv stirred, and Kazuki came to, "Mitsuki? Was I dreaming?"

"Sorry, Kazuki. No dream. We're in battle," Travis explained.

Kazuki activated the light hawk wings, and Zinv's legs were restored. "I'm going to crush those cheap black knock-offs!" Kazuki rushed Zinv at the Dark Zinvs.

"Thanks, Mitsuki. Don't worry; I'm sure he'll thank you later. I better go help him," Tatsuma followed.

The gleaming red mech stood up. He better, the pilot thought.

As Tatsuma headed to cut off the 100 Bishops, he heard Dee yelp over the radio. She had tried to use the same tactic on the Knights as she had on the Rooks. They had shot CR3 as it took off to escape. CR1 and CR4 tried to help her, but neglected the units firing at themselves. CR1's head and left leg were shot off, and CR4 lost her gun and right arm.

"Keep going, Travis! We'll handle it!" Alice told him from the Skylight. The artifact ship focused its firepower at the remaining Knights, the shots burning holes right through the ebony machines. Mitsuki S. was firing at the Knights, too. What looked to be all the remaining Bogeys, about 17, swooped down to fire upon the crimson Core Robot. Tatsuma launched his last Chain Lightning at the aircraft, blowing them all up. In the meantime, Zinv was pounding his fists through his replicas. The Dark Zinvs were no match for him, but the Bishops split up into two groups. 50 attacked Zinv, and the rest attacked Tatsuma. Zinv was overwhelmed.

* * *

His boost still activated, Tatsuma's glowing hands burst right through the armor of the club-wielding automatons. During his spree of destruction, he was blasted about 500 yards by the 'Queen'. The attack was so powerful, all the Bishops around him were transformed into ashes. Another shot had the same effect on Zinv's attackers. Zinv had more around him, so he only rocketed away about 350 yards. Both artifact robots looked a little beat up.

"Uh, I feel like I was hit by a truck!" Travis groaned.

Tatsuma told him.

Travis rolled his eyes, "Well, I'd say it just made things easier for us. There's only one thing left to fight." Moments after he said this, two more Queens rose from the alien base. "I shoulda kept my fuckin' mouth shut," Travis scolded himself. CR2 was carrying the other Core Robots back to the Skylight, which was firing upon the Queens as it drew closer to the girls.

The weapon bursts from the Skylight were being stopped by some kind of force field the Himiko-resembling machines had around them.

"Travis, I don't like the looks of this," Kazuki stated over the radio. The Queens each assaulted a different foe: one at Zinv, one at Tatsuma, and one at the Skylight. The huge black robots didn't even move, just fired their main weapon. Tatsuma and Zinv could dodge, but the Skylight was only going to be able to withstand the high-energy attack for long.

"Kazuki! You and Zinv attack the Marikesan base! Tatsuma and I'll go after the mothership in orbit! If we destroy those, perhaps the Queens will cease to function!" Travis suggested.

"It's our only chance! We'll focus our power to the Skylight's own shields, so we'll survive for a while!" Dr. Sanada declared to them.

Zinv and Tatsuma soared through the air toward their respective targets. Zinv's evasive maneuvers, from above, reminded Travis of 2-D spaceship games. The Queens focused on the incoming silver robot, ignoring the other two targets. As Tatsuma reached the artificial atmosphere, a gap opened for him to fly through. The Skylight landed the ship to conserve energy, activating its own force field and continuing to fire at the outrageously powerful opponents. Tatsuma headed straight for the Marikesan mothership.

"Green robot, what are you doing?" the alien ship's commander questioned by the communication systems.

"I'm going to attack your ship, what do you think?" Travis retorted.

"That is against interstellar law!" it threatened.

"Really? Then why did you attack our mothership, hmm?" Travis continued after the large alien craft.

"Your mothership was in the combat zone, and fired first. Therefore, we had every right to attack it," the commander replied.

"Well, since I cannot verify that you aren't lying to me about 'interstellar law', as my planet does not have a copy of it, I am not going to trust you. After all, we can't follow the rules if we don't know them, now can we?" Travis got closer.

"Why didn't you tell me you didn't have a copy of interstellar law?!" the commander was obviously stalling.

"You never asked. Besides, you seemed to know that fact well enough, explaining it to us. Let me guess, it was your responsibility to make sure we knew the laws, wasn't it, moron?" Travis insulted.

"Yes, it was. I withheld the laws from you, to give me an advantage. So, your attack does not count as a breach of the law," the commander proceeded in a string of what Travis assumed to be along the lines of, "Shit! Fuck! Damn! Sonofabitch! Etc."

Tatsuma arrived at the mothership, and stopped. "Tatsuma, what are you doing?!" Travis asked in astonishment. In the meantime, Zinv had made it to the base, after being shot back a few times by the Queens. A well-placed gravity shell annihilated the alien compound. The Queens began moving slower than before, but still managed to hit Zinv with a triple blast of their weapons. Zinv crashed into the ground about 900 meters away.

Tatsuma's Light Hawk Wings began to shine, and they tripled in size. Their color changed from a translucent gray/white to a solid pure white that glowed with energy. Tatsuma's hands set vertically on each side of his chest. The chest beam hummed, and electricity flowed between Tatsuma's fingers. The chest beam fired, but this was no normal shot.

The laser was as big around as Tatsuma was tall, spreading out once past his hands. You could see wisps of lightning flowing along the brilliantly white blast. It struck the hull of the Marikesan mothership, piercing right through to the other side. The gigantic transport vessel exploded with a fierce shockwave. Tatsuma was forced back to the Martian surface, his light hawk wings now gone.

* * *

The Queens blew up right after the mothership, with the force of a small nuclear bomb. Zinv and Tatsuma were in the discharge of energy, and could not be seen after it hit them. The Skylight was also struck, but the only damage was that the equipment was jammed.

"Kazuki!", "Travis!" the Mitsukis exclaimed. The energy cleared, but the ship's systems were still inoperable.

"I'm going out there!" Mitsuki S. proclaimed, getting back in the CR2. The door was opened, and CR2 stepped to the exit. Zinv stood right there, carrying Tatsuma over his back. He set the formerly green automaton down inside. Both of the artifact robots had lost all traces of armor.

"Oh, no! Travis must be in so much pain!" Mitsuki R. cried.

The exit door was closed, and the pilots removed from their machines. Travis was in a coma, his brain waves and heartbeat weak. He was placed in sick bay, where Miss Rara sat next to him and waited. Although the others stopped in to check on him, Mitsuki R. would not leave. The Skylight returned to Earth, the membrane around Mars was gone, and Travis was moved to a hospital ward. Mitsuki R. went with him, and would not leave for any reason. The others had to bring her food so she could eat.

After three days of worrying, Kazuki had an epiphany, "Doctor! What if we repaired Tatsuma?! I could pilot him and activate the Light Hawk Wings!" This had already been done with Zinv, to repair his armor.

"Kazuki, my boy, that just might work!" Dr. Sanada patted him on the back.

So, they tried it. Tatsuma seemed barely more conscious than Travis, and Kazuki had to force the naked robot to walk outside. Once a safe distance away, Tatsuma activated the Light Hawk Wings by himself. The gem-like green armor reappeared on his body, and Tatsuma let out a roar of relief.

At the same time, Travis jerked up in his hospital bed and roared. Reika was there with Mitsuki R. The young woman wept joyfully and hugged Travis. Doctors and nurses came in at the loud sound he made.

Travis put his arm around Mitsuki, and gazed into her eyes, "You were here the whole time, weren't you?"

"Yes, she was. She wouldn't leave the room. She's barely gotten any sleep," Reika told him.

"I couldn't sleep! I had to be there when you woke up!" Mitsuki cried. Travis held her until she stopped, running his hand along her back to calm her.

"I'll go call the lab and tell everyone you've awoken," Reika slipped out. Mitsuki continued crying for a few minutes, until she fell asleep.

Travis carefully switched places with her, laying her on the bed. "As you stayed with me, I will stay with you," he whispered gently.

He went over to one of the nurses, "Could I get my clothes back, please? This hospital gown is drafty."

* * *

Everyone came to see Travis at the hospital. They told him of what Kazuki had done. Travis shook his hand, "Thanks a lot, man. I knew you were smarter than you seemed."

"You're welcome," Kazuki was embarrassed.

"So, did ya ever thank Mitsuki S. for wakin' you up?" Travis queried.

"Yeah. Took me a while to realize what she was mad about. Tatsuma was actually the one who reminded me. Well, he told Zinv, and Zinv told me," Kazuki explained.

"Well, Ecks Travis, now that you've basically saved the planet, what are you going to do now?" Yayoi held a pen in his face like a microphone.

"I'm gonna stay here until Mitsuki R. wakes up. Then I'll see about taking her to a theme park," Travis grinned.

"Can I go too?" Dee asked excitedly.

"Maybe we'll all go on a different day, Dee," Akane suggested, "I think Travis was hoping to spend some time alone with her."

"Hey, I'm starving! Could someone go get me some breakfast?" Travis requested.

"Here, Travis. We already made you something," Mitsuki S. handed him a lunchbox of food.

"Thanks, everyone! I haven't eaten in days," Travis dove right in with the appetite of a hungry lion. Dr. Sanada laughed.

"You might want to slow down, before you get sick," Reika advised. Travis went from vacuum cleaner speed to his normal eating speed which was fairly fast.

"Well, I should get back to the lab. Who knows what that obese imbecile is doing now. Oh, and I think I've almost figured out how to give the Core Robots a personality! It'll be grand!" Dr. Sanada told him.

"Can I get mine first, Daddy?" Dee begged. "Of course you can, Dee. You're the one that asked for it in the first place. But I've still got some work to do yet, so be patient," Dr. Sanada smiled.

Dee nodded, "Okay!"

With that, all but Travis and the resting Mitsuki Rara left.

* * *

Miss Rara awoke a few hours later. "Good evening, Sleeping Beauty," Travis smiled kindly.

"You stayed with me?" she questioned. "I wasn't about to leave such a pretty young woman alone. Besides, you stayed with me," Travis responded.

"Thank you," she blushed.

"Shall I walk you home?" Travis offered. She nodded happily. So, they checked in with the doctor and left the hospital.

"I was so scared when I saw you lying like that. I thought you were dead," Mitsuki said as they walked.

Shit! What do I say to that? Travis thought.

"Then, I was afraid you might never wake up. But, if you were going to, I wanted to be the first thing you saw," she went on.

"I was afraid I was dead for a moment, when I stopped shouting. I saw you, and I thought you were an angel. But, then I realized you were crying, and I recognized you. And I was blissful when that happened. I found that yours was the face I had most wanted to see," Travis told her. A long silence followed. "So...would you like to go to a theme park with me?"

Mitsuki looked up at him, her face full of joy, "Yes! Yes I would!"

* * *

Around 1:00 a.m. that night, Travis awoke from a dream he couldn't remember. He noticed a bright light outside the base, in the field where he had received Tatsuma. They were still living on the Skylight He walked outside quietly, to the field. Dee woke up too, and got her family and Miss Rara out of bed after seeing Travis leave. Travis stood out in the middle of the light in the field.

"Travis...Ecks...you have...done...well. As ...promised...we shall...send you...back...to your...world," the alien voice said.

Everyone ran out to the edge of the edge of the light. "Travis! Are you leaving?!" Dee sobbed.

"Well, I..." Travis began.

Mitsuki R. ran out to him, clutching him, "No! I don't want you to go! I love you, Travis!"

Travis wiped a tear from her eye, "I love you too, Mitsuki. But I can't ask you to come with me. So..." He then raised his head to face the sky, "As much as I would like to see my family again, I would miss my new family more! And, if I go home now, what will happen if Earth is attacked again?! I'm needed here, far more than I ever could be in my world!"

"You...wish...to...stay here...in this...universe?" the voice asked.

"More than just about anything!" Travis verified.

A slight hint of satisfaction and amusement entered the strange voice, "Very well. We...had expect...ed that...you would. You...are right. Other...forces will...come. To...take over...this world. We...give you...our blessings. If...it is...necessary, we...shall return. Farewell, good...humans." The bright light shrunk down to nothing, leaving everyone standing outside for apparently no good reason.

"You...you really stayed!" Mitsuki R. shed more tears.

"I'm not about to leave you. I would miss you more than I would miss my heart. Which you've stolen, I might add," Travis smiled.

"Alright, you two! Back inside before you catch a cold!" Akane ordered. "Yes, ma'am," they replied as one.

Author's note: In case you were wondering, the Marikesan mothership had only one living being on board: the one known as the commander. The robots were all piloted by artificial intelligence programs. Yes, the Bogeys were indeed smarter, due to the fact that the commander used a special device to pilot them himself. This was not revealed earlier, because there was no way that anyone could have known (except the disembodied voice, perhaps).