In the vastness of space, the central module of the Kusanagi, which had just broken out from Earth, began docking with the other four sections already positioned in orbit. This is a fitting moment to describe this battleship of the Orb Union.
An Izumo-class battleship of Orb, this new type of vessel served as the very foundation for the Archangel-class battleships. Internally, one could say it was strikingly similar to the Archangel, almost identical. To be more precise, the Archangel was actually designed with the Kusanagi as its reference; after all, their manufacturer was one and the same: Morgenroete, Inc.
The Kusanagi's design was unique, allowing the entire battleship to separate into five smaller modules. Aside from the central module that Cagalli and the others used to ascend from Earthwhich was primarily for personnel transitthe other four modules had long served as relay stations for communications between Orb and the Space Colonies.
As a side note, Orb possessed more than one Izumo-class battleship. However, this specific ship, the Kusanagi, was under the personal command of Uzumi Nara Athha and managed by the Athha Family.
Accompanying the Kusanagi 09, the Archangel, and the Kshatriya were a host of M1 Astrays allocated to Cagalli. Essentially, the hangars of all three battleships were packed to capacity with M1s.
The captain of the Kusanagi was also a familiar face: Ledonir Kisaka. After all, Cagalli was still too young and lacked the battleship command training that someone like Murrue Ramius possessed. Thus, Uzumi had appointed Kisaka to serve as the Kusanagi's captain.
Of course, being the captain did not mean he was the overall commander; the supreme authority over the Kusanagi still rested with Cagalli. This arrangement mirrored the Le Creuset Team, where Rau Le Creuset was the supreme commander of the unit, and the captain of the Vesalius took orders from him.
Mikazuki and the others continued their escort duties until all five modules of the Kusanagi had finished docking. Once the assembly was complete, Mikazuki flew his machine directly into the Kusanagi's hangar. Murrue was scheduled to come aboard shortly for a brief tour and to discuss their upcoming flight path.
Although he was disembarking on the Kusanagi, as previously mentioned, the Archangel's hangar held the fewest M1 Astrays. This was because five slots had been reserved for the Barbatos, Justice, Freedom, Strike, and Buster. The remaining three slots were all filled by M1 Astrays. Since every other space was occupied by M1s, the Barbatos had to be parked right in the center of the hangar.
Just as Mikazuki stepped out into the hangar corridor, Asagi Caldwell, a test pilot for the M1 Astray, called his name from behind. "Mr. Mikazuki."
"Hmm?" Mikazuki grabbed a nearby railing to halt his momentum and turned around. Asagi was momentarily startled; she felt an inexplicable sense of dread toward this boy who was a bit younger than her, and she spoke with visible caution.
"Um... a communication came from the Archangel. Captain Murrue has already departed on a small transport ship and will arrive shortly. The captain asked me to inform you."
"I understand. Thank you for coming to tell me."
With that, Mikazuki turned and walked away. Asagi let out a long sigh of relief, then muttered to herself in confusion, "That kid doesn't seem all that terrifying... why was I so scared?"
"Asagi, get over here and help with the maintenance!"
"Coming!"
Guided by the internal schematics of the Kusanagi recorded on his watch, Mikazuki went to the changing room. There, he swapped his gear for a Normal Suit custom-made for him by Lacus Clyne, prominently featuring the Tekkadan emblem.
He then made his way to the bridge. Upon entering, he saw Murrue, Cagalli, and several others gathered in front of a screen.
"Mika, what took you so long?" Cagalli asked, her voice tinged with dissatisfaction.
Mikazuki shook his head and gave a very honest reply. "I got lost."
"Lost..." Cagalli's face was marked by lines of exasperation, but the gloom that had been weighing on her heart seemed to dissipate significantly the moment Mikazuki appeared.
Uncle Mu stepped in to play the peacemaker. "Alright, alright, let's leave it at that. By the way, Mika, I've been meaning to askis that black skin-tight suit you're wearing a pressure suit?"
Mikazuki looked down at his black suit. "Oh, this? I guess you could call it that. It's a suit specially made for the Alaya-Vijnana System. It makes it easier for those of us who have had the Alaya-Vijnana surgery to work while in space."
"Alaya-Vijnana?"
Aside from Murrue and the other crew members of the Archangel who had heard Mikazuki mention it beforewith Murrue having the deepest understanding of the detailsthe others from Orb were hearing the term for the first time.
"What exactly is this Alaya-Vijnana?"
Just as the question was asked, Cagalli, standing behind Mikazuki, noticed the apparatus on the back of his suit. "Eh? Why is there a device-like thing on the back of your clothes? Is it for adjustment? And why are there holes in it?"
"No, this design is to facilitate the connection to the Barbatos's Alaya-Vijnana System. It's nothing special." As he spoke, Mikazuki reached behind his head to the location of the interface. He removed the cover of the Normal Suit that concealed the true form of the Alaya-Vijnana, revealing the three protrusions beneath.
"This... this is the Alaya-Vijnana?"
The group crowded around, staring at the Alaya-Vijnana on Mikazuki's back. Being stared at like an animal in a zoo made Mikazuki feel a bit uncomfortable. "Yeah."
"Wait, you just said it connects to the Barbatos. Does that mean this Alaya-Vijnana is the reason you can pilot an MS with such incredible movement and reaction speed?" Erica Simmons, who had accompanied Ledonir Kisaka into space, made the connection and asked urgently.
"I guess you could say that."
Mikazuki intended to put the cover back on, but because he couldn't see his own back, he struggled to align it. Seeing this, Murrue reached out and took the device from Mikazuki's hand.
"Let me put it back on for you."
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