Bluehawk Captain Birdie

 

He was always like that.

He did things that were often to his detriment.

He smiled when others said harsh things to him.

He fought evil and served justice.

He forgave everything that had hurt him.

He sacrificed himself for others.

...

And he would soothe himself by sitting at the piano,

which didn't belong on a pirate ship, and playing.

The captain's ship was named Bluenaught. Ridiculous.

 

"You. Save yourself a little. How long are you going to keep making sacrifices for others?" 

"Sacrifice? How is it a sacrifice when I do it because I want to?"

 

He was still smiling on what would be his last day.

He spat out the regurgitated blood and looked me straight in the eye.

His mouth twitched, making a small sound.

I don't know... I don't know what you're trying to say.

 

"You're so righteous, and no one recognizes it."

 

He was a pirate, but he always sacrificed himself for others.

So, I wanted to be a part of him.

I didn't want him to try to take care of me as much as he didn't take care of himself.

I wanted to be someone he didn't have to sacrifice for.

I didn't want him to cherish me as I cherished him.

 

"What do you mean, Bird? You recognize me. That's why you're nagging me. Hah hah."

 

For the last time in his life, he looked up at the person he'd sacrificed himself to save.

Smiling.

He closed his eyes smiling, and I cried with my eyes open.

 

"..."

 

His mouth twitched one last time, making a small sound.

Yes... I know. I still can't hear you, but... I got it.

 

 

1st Battalion Commander: Wanderer Yujin

 

"Hey, buddy. What's on your mind?"

 

Yujin asked as he sat down next to his friend, whom he had met while traveling.

"Mm... I was thinking about what freedom is like. Yujin, you know what it's like because you've been everywhere, right?"

 

Yujin grinned and spoke softly.

"Going from place to place... Is that really freedom? What kind of freedom do you think freedom is?"

 

He didn't know what to say to that and just looked into Yujin's eyes.

Finding his friend's expression amusing, Yujin summoned a breeze.

 

He leaned into the breeze and looked at the friend and said.

 

"This is freedom, isn't it?"

 

His friend just looked at Yujin, not sure what he was talking about.

"I mean, letting yourself be carried by a light breeze and feeling harmony. Even if you are still, you can feel it."

 

"But Yujin, that's not freedom; it's just being lazy and doing nothing, isn't it?"

 

The breeze around the deck paused for a moment as he spoke, then picked up again.

"Hmph... It's not about being lazy; it's about being free."

 

And with that, Yujin held out his hand to his friend.

"Why don't you let the wind take you out for a spin? Let's see for ourselves what true 'freedom' is!"

 

But his friend's gaze was fixed somewhere else, and he was slowly moving away from Yujin.

"Uh... Yujin, I have some urgent business to attend to. See you later!"

 

Yujin felt dandelion seeds scattering around him, accompanied by a familiar voice.

"There you are, Yujin. You're working overtime today."

 

"Well, I'm not free."

 

 

2nd Battalion Commander: Green Thumb Dandel

 

"I don't think we should turn our course that way, we need to catch the wind..."

"But Yujin said..."

"Ugh... Yujin! YUJIN!"

"Where the hell is he? Can you find Yujin?"

"Oh, you can't move that thing there!"

I'm tired.

"Kuwehkk!"

"Penrud! I told you not to bother the other sailors!"

"What's with the mess on deck here?"

"Oh, that's from the War Bicorn..."

"Idin, please, take care of the Third Battalion guys. They've made a mess of the deck again."

 

I'm exhausted.

The Blue Behemoth is... I'm out. I need more.

I want to rest on Penrud's belly, surrounded by fragrant herbs.

 

"Don't hang your laundry on the bridge."

"From the Sky Garden? Okay, I'll check."

"Aruz, what about the ship that broke down last time?"

 

...

... ...

... ... ...

 

How long do I have to hold on?

I'm well aware that since then, many of us have been struggling to hang on.

I'm not the only one.

I must keep busy, keep moving.

To escape the memories, to forget the pain, even for a moment.

It's okay. None of the crew is gone.

They just went on a journey, like they always do.

Something like that can never make us, the Bluehawks, Solidaris, disappear.

Exactly. We scattered for a while.

Like dandelion seeds.

For the dandelion seed to blow away on the wind and make a new flower,

the roots must hold on.

Even if they wither ugly, they must hold on to the ground.

And one day, someone will come back as a flower.

So... I must hold on just a little longer...

I must heal this place.

 

 

Second Adjutant FDC Penrud

 

I'm a Sacred Beast. I have no name.

 

The humans here call me Penrud, but I don't actually have my own name; I just let them call me whatever they want.

I don't remember how long I've been on this ship.

Long ago, the humans brought me here on a whim. I've been here ever since, passing the time by picking up the occasional herb.

This place is full of things I don't understand.

First of all, this house.

I walk because I can't be bothered to fly, even though I have wings, and yet the humans fly everywhere in this house.

Stupid people.

I've spent a lot of time thinking about why, and it's clear that these people don't value their home.

Otherwise, why would they take their house to war, fight in it, and sleep in it after it's been destroyed?

Why can't they just have it somewhere and sleep in it? Their wondering where they're going next, who they're going to fight, is as absurd as their taking the house that should be standing on the ground and riding it around.

 

"Penrud, what are you thinking?"

 

Dandel, this one is the busiest human ever.

Without replying, I found a recessed spot and lay down.

 

"Hah... You're always so carefree. I could use some rest."

 

Even as she spoke, she was gulping down something, tired and exhausted from doing something no one asked her to do.

She was torturing herself by looking for things that bothered her.

As I lay there, Dandel sneaked up on me.

Is she going to rest on my belly again?

She shamelessly lay down without asking for permission.

Mm, I was offended at first, but it wasn't so bad when my stomach suddenly became warm.

Just as I was about to doze off, I heard pesky footsteps on the deck.

Probably a sailor looking for Dandel.

It angered me to see him so nonchalantly coming to disturb our peace.

I knew that if Dandel woke up, there would be another ruckus.

Despite my mild warning, he continued to approach, and I couldn't help but give him a light slap on the cheek.

 

"Ack!"

 

Even the most carefree-looking people make funny noises when you slap them.

Despite the vigorous movement, Dandel was still sleeping.

It had been a long time since the house had been destroyed by the strange-looking Malefic Beast.

The cool breeze felt good.

Somehow, it smelled like Yujin, but I didn't care.

The mist brushed pleasantly against my fur.

Ah, this must be why the humans try so hard to keep their house in the sky.

As I sat there in the wind, I wondered if this house was so precious to them that they carried it on their backs.

Mm, I could think of a few more good reasons, but...

 

It was nap time for now.

 

 

3rd Battalion Commander: Idin Reis

 

"Idin, duck!"

The arrow flew past Idin's long red hair and struck the Malefic Beast, which was aiming for her back.

The Malefic Beast's scream echoed across the deck, signaling the end of the long battle.

 

"That was really dangerous, Idin. How long are you going to use that ineffective mist gun? It's no match for a battle of this magnitude."

 

Without making eye contact with Ludmilla, Idin replied as she loaded a cartridge into her mist gun.

 

"Well, it's the best we've got for taking out a bunch of them at once."

 

"But if you get caught from behind, like you just did..."

 

Idin replied with a grin.

"You'll be behind me, like always."

 

Ludmilla didn't answer.

"Right? Ludmilla?"

 

Ludmilla still didn't answer.

She just looked at Idin emotionlessly.

"Ludmilla?"

 

This was always the end of Idin's dreams about Ludmilla.

She had never heard her answer.

She couldn't remember what she had said back then, either.

Snapping out of her brief reverie, Idin was immediately confronted with the tragedy that had befallen her.

 

"Ugh..."

 

The cold touch of the prosthetic limb that replaced her severed left leg dug into her skin.

 

"Idin...!"

 

Aruz, who just had just come to Idin, dropped the packages she was carrying in both hands and looked at Idin's condition.

 

"Aruz... What is it?"

 

"...The Captain said to get ready. We'll be in White Ocean soon."

 

Aruz picked up the dropped packages, but hesitated before handing them to Idin.

"Oh... and the equipment you asked for. I've finished it, but... are you sure this is what you want? One moment of disorientation and you'll be defenseless at the rear in no time."

 

"It is, Aruz."

 

Idin picked up the equipment Aruz handed her.

"...There will be no one standing behind me now."

 

 

4th Battalion Commander: Aruz Reis

 

"Aruz, you know, right? It's a name writing game."

"Here we go."

 

As the gentle voice left her ears, the little girl closed her eyes and raised her right hand.

From one dot to the next, she slowly made a line, writing her name in the air.

 

A scream filled the space where the gentle voice had left off.

The sound of something tearing, of something breaking.

Wailing, urgent voices calling for their comrades.

 

The little girl didn't stir.

The voice always came back.

When I hear the gentle voice calling for me again, these terrifying hours will have passed.

 

So much time had passed that she didn't know how many dots she had connected or how many lines she had drawn.

The voice should have returned long ago, but it hadn't.

The pearly, delicate hand, the lips that had repeated her name, began to tremble.

 

The little girl slowly opened her closed eyes.

Before her lay the voice that should have spoken to her, and the enemies she had defeated.

"Idin...? Idin!"

 

Breathing heavily, Idin turned to find the small girl running toward her and smiled.

"Don't run. You'll get hurt, Aruz. I'm sorry, I should have gone to stop them, but I can't even walk."

"I lose today, Aruz."

 

The little girl, Aruz, replied, fighting back the tears that threatened to roll down her cheeks at any moment.

"I don't want to play anymore. I don't want to play this game where only you get hurt... I'm going to fight now... I'm going to protect you."

 

At the little girl's determination, Idin lifted her heavy body and hugged her tightly.

It had been years since the two sisters had chosen a life aboard ship.

 

Aruz Reis, the Bluehawks' Fourth Battalion Commander, closed her eyes and raised her right hand.

From one dot to the next, she slowly made a line, writing her name in the air.

Opening her eyes, she stood on the deck in the midst of the onrushing Malefic Humans and the chaos, and whispered.

 

"I can protect us now. I won't let you or anyone else get hurt anymore!"