My dedication to this sacred duty
is total and whole-hearted.
In the responsibility bestowed on me
never will I falter.
And with dignity and perseverance
my standard will remain perfection.
Through the years of diligence and praise
and the discomfort of the elements,
I will walk my tour in humble reverence
to the best of my ability.
It is they who command the respect I protect,
their bravery that made us so proud.
Surrounded by well meaning crowds by day,
alone in the thoughtful peace of night,
this soul will in honored glory rest
under my eternal vigilance.
- Hymn of the Sentinel, UMC Honor Guard
POSTHUMOUS
CHAPTER I - RETURNAL
Normally, the bustling terminals of Sao Jorge would be abound in foot traffic, but at this particular gate, there was an unnerving silence. The displays of starlines and shuttles to the surface were turned off, the gate a generic overflow one used during peak seasons, found itself with a certain purpose.
In dark Teal officers' uniforms - pleated skirts of women, and slacks of men, caps atop their heads,14 men of Utsunomiya's 1st Honor Guard Section stood diligently as the Kusari ship bound for the gate finally moored, attaching to the station. The two rows of seven stood at the order of their commander, MSgt. Mitena Mizushiro, a woman with a dark-haired bob-cut, of Kusari origin. Her, and her adjutant to her right, Sergeant Dale Winboro, a Libertonian who served under the Ouroboros, carry briefcases at their right side. Each of the infantry, either on their back, or in their hands, carry a unloaded 7C1/C Ceremonial Battle Rifle - similar to that of the AK-pattern rifles of yesteryear, but with miniscule 5-round magazines, affixed with bayonets, and in a pure Canarian Black Walnut furniture - the typically suppressed rifle replaced with a elongated, visually similar barrel - that lacked its' sound suppression abilities.
As the crew of the ship depart into the Terminal, they are adorned in standard issue, Miyasu Zaibatsu logistical uniforms. One by one, they line aside the entrance to the tunnel to the mooring point, as had been requested of them - standing at attention. Finally, as the 9th member, and captain's adjutant reports to Mizushiro, who steps out of formation to greet the older Kusari man who would be speaking on behalf of their captain, Ria Hirayama.
"Mizushiro-san. As Hanamura-san instructed, Hirayama-taichou has declared the bridge has been sealed for your personnel to come aboard and collect the remains. Our auxiliary staff will stay outside until you depart from the gate boarding area." He answers.
Even with the deep tension between the UMC and Kusari, a semblance of gratitude can be found from the former, to the latter, for their humility and now, respect for the deceased. Mizushiro reciprocates this with a bow.
"Thank you, adjutant. We will take it from here." She responds, before calling out.
The two groups of seven work their way into the ship, through the tunnel. As she leads them, Mizushiro, who once was a fighter pilot who saw fights against Kishiro PMCs, Kusari Naval Forces, and the forces of Liberty. She is reminded of the role the Honor Guard holds - to respect, preserve, stand vigilant for, and honor the lives of those who gave their lives, not just for Utsunomiya, not just for the most valiant and honorable of greater Zoner Society, but all souls who preserved, protected humanity and the light of freedom throughout its' millenia of existence. The stringent training under Hanamura's observance, at the direction of former KNF commander Tetsuo Ikeda, who defected to the Ouroboros a decade ago - to become a member of the Honor Guard - only on par with House Militaries' dedication to such service.
The group makes their way inside, moving to the main cabin. Inside, lay two caskets, ready for transport. The bodies inside have long since decomposed to bone, but nonetheless, they are treated with greater dignity than the fates had afforded them. The two groups of seven split, one to each casket - to Ayane's on the left, and Keitarou's on the right. The two caskets had been cleaned diligently and were in near mint condition from their internment at the Columbarium. Six of each, take position at the handles of each casket, flanking them.
Mizushiro and Winboro both open their briefcases upon the caskets gently, retrieving a pair of flags from each, before withdrawing them and firmly relieving the briefcases to a spare team member to their immediate right of the head of the casket, who relieves them as they depart the ship in prompt fashion.
In her mind, Mizushiro hears the age old hymn of the sentinel, carried down through the centuries, born originally in Liberty's predecessor, but revised to the role of their corps. She stares down Ayane's casket, fully aware of the gravity of this woman who rests before her.
As the hymn clears her mind, she barks the order curtly and brisk, flags folded in each hand. "Unfurl!" She passes one of the flags, entirely white when folded, to the soldier adjacent to her left, as does he. The flag are then taken by the center and foot-side soldiers, and unfurled. It reveals a flag not seen since terran ages, the flag of the Japanese Republic, one of the founding nations of the Western Alliance. It is draped upon the lower half of their caskets, from their feet to their waist. Another in short order on the other side, is unfurled - bearing the sigil of the Utsunomiya Commonwealth - the Snake, Roses and Star - carried forth from their days as the Ouroboros, now carrying a light pink, rather than the dark teal it once had - the Snake symbolizing the Commonwealth's acknowledgement of its' past, the past of humanity, and to continue forth into the future, with the memories, mistakes and triumphs of it and the nation it declares its' predecessor - The Roses, symbolizing a yearning for prosperity and peace, and the Star, the freedom of the heavens above Gran Canaria that it holds so dear.
As the two flags are draped over, Mizushiro barks once more. "Ready... Lift!" she says, the first half of the order being met with a lowering of the staff to assume the pallbearers' position, before lifting on her call. "Forward!" she continues, as she leads with the group through the ship, and out to the Terminal. As they exit the mooring bridge, they are met with the guardsmen from before at attention alongside the Miyasu personnel. As the caskets pass, the two UMC Guardsmen stand and salute, showing reverence and respect to the woman who gave birth to and nurtured their leader, and to the brother who she had loved so dearly. Rarely if ever were civilians anywhere afforded full military honors. But as secondary victims of the tragedy of the Shirayuki project, family of the head of state, and the chance to be reunited, repatriated and laid to rest in Gran Canaria, an exception was made.
Shortly after they pass, the guardsmen at attention follow behind, briefcases in hand. The exchange complete, they move to a nearby gate, where a shuttle awaits to take them home, and to their final resting place.
“But when ye come, and all the flowers are dying,
If I am dead, as dead I well may be,
You'll come and find the place where I am lying,
And kneel and say Ave there for me,
And I shall hear, though soft you tread above me,
And all my grave will warmer, sweeter be,
For you will bend and tell me that you love me,
And I shall sleep in peace until you come to me”
- Frederic Weatherly
POSTHUMOUS
CHAPTER II - PREPARATIONS
Kensington and Struikas, both stand next to each other, looking off to the west as the sun rises behind them. The day of the funeral had come, and preparations for burial were underway. The former had been asked by Hanamura to oversee the funeral alongside Alexei, whilst Andrew came at Mieko's behest. In this tangled mess of tied together people, they have come together to help someone they all cared about, close a long painful chapter in her life.
The two Libertonians observe the trees below the cliff face observing the burial grounds - which have grown from a simple memorial site to the lost of the Seraphine, to a national cemetery in the span of three years. Struikas lifts a cigarette to his lips and inhales, letting the nicotine hit him before he exhales. He looks on at the blue haze of the sky above as morning comes to the Commonwealth.
"You know, that shit's no good for you." Kensington says.
"Eh, you wouldn't know the crap I'm going through, Spook. I need this." Struikas rebukes, having only hours before turned on the Prometheans and struck colors from the Memento Mori -- now sitting in a drydock at Sao Jorge.
"No, I fucking do - for one. How do you think I ended up here? You think I got some fancy job offer from Hanamura like Kobayashi over there?" Brett chides, before looking over to Setsuna, working with Shinta and Mercury, alongside other personnel, to prepare chairs and decor for the ceremony, and then back to Struikas. "I gave up everything, just like you did."
There is a silence.
"What even happened.. anyway..? I've not had the time to look over the interview transcript with you and Song."
"Elsmere got engaged, I wanted to try and negotiate with my old XO who was at the helm, acting officer on station told me no. Ward and them fucked off from the engagement area and left her and her crew for dead, knowing full fucking well in the Badlands she was as good as dead with no propulsion. I fucking decked him, told my men they had two choices - they could stay with these shitdicks, or they could come with us and strike colors to the UMC. Was half tempted to come hat in hand to Moretti, but I doubt anyone but Mieko would tolerate that. There was a brief mutiny attempt but.. well, between the Nibwakaawin shit and that fucking mess... we had to turn and fucking run."
"Nibwakaawin..?"
"I told Bride about it. I don't want to talk about the fuckers anymore. I'm here for Hanamura, that's the only reason I'm not in a brig right now, is her."
"Fuck.. I'm sorry. I guess it was the last straw?"
"It was the last in a long fucking line of them. So many good fucking people still in that fucking outfit. West, With, Freud, Scerri, even that nutjob Ivy. I feel bad that I had to leave them without a goodbye. They probably think I turned coat to Moretti, bet you a fucking credit Ward has used that as a cover story. Were I still on station, I.." Struikas says, his anger growing, before Kensington puts a hand on his shoulder.
"Stop dude. Look, it's.. It's fucked. Doing that would have made things even more fucked. I'm sorry you had to deal with that. I know it's probably hard on Yoruha too. Just because I'm a spook, doesn't mean I don't have a heart. Let's just hope they see things are FUBAR over there and either come here, to the Xenos, or one of the big Zoner cells that are trying their damndest to fight for Erie. And if it comes to blows.. well, that's what it's gotta come to. I know you're a bit older and all, but.. In my line of work, sometimes friendships turn to rivalries and as much as you love the person on the other end of the barrel, you gotta pull the trigger. But there's a reason there's a difference between a CE-Kill and a Hard Kill.. you know? In the end, unlike me.. you have that luxury." Brett says, trying to console him.
Struikas runs through the inevitability, one day the people he was comrades in arms with, who he held so much pride in, would face the barrels of his Falchion fighter. Roland. Scerri. Ivy. West. With. A bitter pain runs through his veins. But knowing knocking them out of the fight, instead of ending their lives was always an option - until that hopeful day to see them under the same banner once again, He nodded, and took a deep breath, the catharsis sating him.
"Yeah.. It's just.. we've been through so much. I guess I'm just thankful Yoru saw I was right in all this."
"Girl's a saint, man. AI she may be, she's got a heart of gold. That or maybe she just trusts you a lot. Used to be she was like a little duckling to Hanamura for years."
"And now she's talking about going off and joining the Hackers. I dunno, man.. I.. fuck, I wanted to have that moment with her, unmooring with the Elsmere with her at the Conn, all of us, against the world. And now I'm signed up for a Navy I know fuck all about, possibly bound to go god knows where." Struikas says, exhausted and sick with himself. He burned his bridges, and now he had to live with it.
Kensington looks to a nearby mountain peak. "I think she might want you to go back to Erie, but she knows right now that's not a good idea. Probably will be retasked to Freeport 9, that or Home Defense."
The only thing Struikas can bring to say is a deflated punch to his own face in verbal form. "Fuck me..."
Kensington can sympathize with the burnt bridge's consequences on Struikas' part. He digs a little, to be sure. "I guess you got into that Prometheus mess to liberate Liberty?"
The man can't even give him a straight answer, after everything. "I.. I don't even know anymore. Between the fighting with the Xenos, the ties to the Nomads, the Auxesians being off their fucking meds and the Zoners falling the fuck apart... I don't know why I joined, anymore. I guess I joined to free Erie, but now..?"
"We want that too, y'know. Zoners are probably the last group of people to have something resembling real freedom, but that comes at a cost. We're in the business of retaining that freedom whilst putting a net under the people who want it to catch them if they fall. And we can't have that if there isn't some big brothers and sisters looking out for the little guys, even if they don't exactly agree with us." Kensington says to him, trying to reassure Struikas of his mission.
"I didn't come into Ouroboros to end up following Hanamura back to being a Zoner. I came into it because I had no other choice and I wanted to make a difference in this shithole of a world. She and the others didn't ask why a Spook wanted in..." He says, before comedically correcting himself. Well, they did - but when I proved my worthiness, I was just another cog in the machine, and unlike in Liberty, the cogs take care of each other here."
Struikas rebukes the warm words. He's heard them before. "Yeah, they said that in Prometheus too, but fuck forbid they.."
Brett puts his psychology skills to use, assuring him. "Let it go. Prometheus, if they keep close to Auxesia, are going to only end up dead. And if this Nibwaakaawin shit is as bad as you make it out to be, then It's only going to seal their grave in deeper shit than it already was going to be. Like I said, pray your friends get out, pray that Ward lady and the Robot she kisses the ass of go the way of the Kavash and pray that Erie isn't worse off because of it." Kensington answers, as Struikas throws the cigarette to the forest floor below the cliff they stand upon.
"We do care for our own here. And if you want to change your mind, I'm sure Hanamura will understand. You've done her a service by keeping Yoruha safe up until now. Even more so now that we know a *lot* about Auxesia and the Prometheans that they'd rather the world not know. And unlike Kusari, they can't do a fucking thing to us."
Struikas looks to him, his mood more calm. He puts his hand on Brett's shoulder.
"Yeah. That bucket of brains will get what's coming to it. I should have defected there and then when we found that.. thing.., but after everything I doubt Moretti would have taken me and my men in without taking the intel and throwing us either in the brig to rot or out an airlock."
Kobayashi approaches the two men, "You'd be surprised." The Kusari brunette in an all black miniskirt and blazer, her legs obfuscated by a high-denier pantyhose, framed by matching black heels, managing to walk in the grass somewhat well.
Kensington looks to her, as does Struikas.
"I don't think we've met, Mr. Struikas. Setsuna Kobayashi, Ambassador-at-large." She says, greeting him with a bow.
"Thank you. I guess my name gets around." he says as he gently scratches the back of his head.
Setsuna looks to him with a smile, showing an appreciation for his presence. "Hanamura-taichou sings praises of your work with Mieko-kun. We're happy to see you safe here in Utsunomiya."
Struikas tries his best to give his affirmation of Setsuna's appreciation, but given the guilt and anxiety on his mind, he can't muster it. "Yeah. Wish i could share the sentiment. The.. happiness, I mean."
Unlike Kensington, Setsuna can only imagine the hardship he is going through. Glimpses to her past in the GC and the sorority they had their hand in from her time in university come to mind though. She ponders whether the people who lured her into the GC felt guilt for their betrayal of her at any point in their lives. "I'm sorry. I can only imagine how such a defection is probably taking a toll on you and your men."
Struikas can only muster a simple answer. "..Yeah."
Setsuna changes the tune, trying to bring things gradually back to focus. "That being said, If you are intending to partake in the Grand Sirius Cultural Festival that is in a few days, I ask you to be mindful that we will have an official envoy from the Liberty Free Republic in attendance."
"You're getting friendly with them..?" Struikas says, somewhat surprised by this whiplash development.
"They approached us, and when we confronted them about a few things.. well, you'd be surprised. We plan to discuss things further with them. Classified matters not withstanding, I am at liberty to brief you if you'd like." Setsuna explains.
"I suppose. This should be good - Is Moretti coming down here himself?" Struikas says with a chuckle.
Setsuna clearly corrects him. "No, an adjutant of his, Oscar Bancroft."
"Never heard of the guy. Must be your boyfriend then." Struikas rebukes with a verbal jab to Setsuna's ego.
Setsuna blushes a bit. "What..? He's not my--" Struikas shuts her down quickly.
"Relax. It's a joke. You're both diplomats. You've got a date at the Festival. Sitting in a tree, maybe k-i-s-s-i-n-g?" He says with Kensington giving a chuckle. Setsuna rolls her eyes.
"But.. onto present matters. Hanamura-taichou I am certain, invited you to attend the funeral today?"
"I came on Mieko's behalf. I was half tempted to wallow in pity in my hotel room all day, but that does no one any good." Struikas responds, before looking out to the sunrise.
Setsuna looks over a tablet she had brought along. "I see. Also, yesterday, there was a change of plans to the funeral arrangements. Hanamura-taichou's father, Kyle, will be buried sans remains alongside his family members." she says, before catching her breath.
"Now.. I need volunteers for pallbearers at the last moment. Sadly our Honor Guard has very few personnel, only enough for this ceremony and other primary duties. Nagasaki-san has volunteered, as has Alexei-san.."
"I'll do it." Struikas chimes in.
"I briefly did research when I was younger on the Liberty Honor Guard. Pretty sure Utsunomiya's takes from their doctrine. I do wish to provide an eulogy, if I may be permitted to."
Setsuna is surprised by his forward attitude towards her request. "Well.. I don't think Hanamura-taichou would oppose.. but I will pursue her approval regardless. That being said, I assume you will as well, Kensington-san?"
He nods in affirmation. "Yeah. Of course." he says, before looking over to Shinta in the distance.
The pink-haired girl places down placards, bearing the images of the long late Ayane, Keitarou and Kyle Hanamura - standing upon a cloud in a heavenly scene, in each of the seats, As does Alexei, Mercury and other staffers of the funeral service.
CELEBRATING THE LIVES OF
AYANE, KEITAROU AND KYLE HANAMURA (nee Andrews)
b. ~2100 AD, EARTH, SOL SYSTEM -
REPATRIATED 836 AS, UTSUNOMIYA COMMONWEALTH,
GRAN CANARIA, OMEGA-49 SYSTEM, SIRIUS SECTOR
Nature’s first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf’s a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf,
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day
Nothing gold can stay.
- Nothing Gold Can Stay, Robert Frost
Special Thanks to all Pallbearers from the UMC Navy, 1st Honor Guard, and other volunteers -
as well as those who have rendered condolences and attended our service today.
