Because he mentioned "dedication plaque" in his Belisarius writeup, and that put the bug in my ear. Three fevered hours in Illustrator later, and this is what appeared:



(Play Spot-The-In-Joke in the various credits if you're bored!)

Since I've got these things on my mind, I'm making an offer: If you have an idea for a dedication plaque, post or PM me the relevant data (ship name/data, list of names, motto, etc.) and I will build you a plaque. Limit of two per customer, line forms to the left.
Mr. Fnord interdimensional man of mystery

FenWiki - Your One-Stop Shop for Fenspace Information

"I. Drink. Your. NERDRAGE!"

If you've seen fansubs (or prosubs sometime "soon", fingers crossed) of the anime Rental Magica, you'll recognize this one as the opening theme that had the English lyrics...

Believe in yourself
Be who you want to be...

I will shed no tear, I will face my fear all alone
All the doubts in mind, I will leave behind
Lost in the dark, seek for the light
I hold out my hand into the endless night
To get through the time in strife in my life
I tell myself over to never give in

Feel your heart beat inside you
Don't be afraid
Keep the faith
That's the key to all the doors ahead
Open up your way with the brighter hopes for today
The sun will rise upon your way

Believe in yourself
You're not alone
Believe in your strength
You'll find your way

My weakness inside is something I can't hide from your eyes
So fragile and fair, so much I can bear
Breaking the chain that binds you from pain
Through gentle rain, you're free once again
Searching for truth and love in my life
'Til I find my own I will never give up

[bridge, including something spoken that I can't quite make out and isn't on the lyric sheet]

Listen to the voice of your heart
Deep in your soul
Keep the faith
Let it work a miracle in your life
Never look back on sorrow and let go of your pain
The light of love shines upon your way

Feel your heart beat insode you
Don't be afraid
Keep the faith
That's the key to all the doors ahead
Open up your way with the brighter hopes for today
The sun will rise upon your way

Believe in yourself
You're not alone
Believe in your strength
You'll find your way

Faith, sung by Lisa Komine, written by Mika Arisaka and Takahito Eguchi, © 2007 JVC Entertainment Company
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

No posts since I checked in this morning? Nothing at all in four hours? I don't think I've ever seen that except when Yuku or ezBoard died
for a while... I hope it's not a sign of something.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

Well, Fox's arc has a sequel. Three missions long, guest starring Purrfect Archer as the contact, and Knight of the Peace as fates chewtoy.

DS Crashed this Easter and Wanted a Chatlog. Here's the LEgendary Channel that I had at the time
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: .... man it's quiet today
The Legendary]Foxboy: I've been dealing with mi padre con loco parentis.
The Legendary]Ran-san: I'm technically in a teleconference right now.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: ah
The Legendary]Hexane: I've been editing in MA
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: oh and fox, your mish ar fun
The Legendary]Foxboy: All simple explanations! And thanks! Which one in Particular?
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: rad kittys had Gir runing and Generic 00 009 001 would of droped me if i didn't have the GW coaplayer, but man i wants more insaity
The Legendary]Foxboy: See!
The Legendary]Foxboy: Try Nogi's arc >:3
The Legendary]Foxboy: That gets gcrazy later.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: um... i wan on the end of that one..... i had to use so many yellow at the en it wasn't funny
The Legendary]Foxboy: Yessss the ninja RULE. Between the insane Def sets and the -tohit from Nogi herself
The Legendary]Foxboy: lHow hard was Shima? I was wondering.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: i'm not sure if we even got her in the end
The Legendary]Foxboy: She looked like Naruto's Sakura
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: don't know i was half asleep and got draged into it
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: got screwd over when i left a mish, then got told the kidnap chick went hostile
The Legendary]Foxboy: Weird, I thought I fixt that
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: well i was half asleep at the time
The Legendary]Foxboy: So how a bout everyone else? How y'all on?
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: killing time redside
The Legendary]Foxboy: I'm running my "Architect only" Dom
The Legendary]Foxboy: I lucked into a Lowbie Arc.
The Legendary]Foxboy: Though I'm gonna look at Ascendant's "Budget Task Force*
The Legendary]Ran-san: Saul's TF?
The Legendary]Foxboy: Yeah.
The Legendary]Ran-san: Hysterical.
The Legendary]Hexane: Am I just blind and unable to read the interface or is there no way to test a single mission in an arc without running the entire thing?
The Legendary]Acyl: Hex: drag and drop the mission you want to test to the front of the arc.
The Legendary]Foxboy: Nope
The Legendary]Foxboy: That works too
The Legendary]Acyl: 's what I've been doing.
The Legendary]Hexane: Ah, that helps, thanks Acyl
The Legendary]Acyl: No worries!
The Legendary]Ran-san: Drag mission X to mission 1 at top of editor. Test mission. Quit Test. Move Mission back.
The Legendary]Foxboy: I'd team with someone, but my Dad is being demanding/having fits so.....
The Legendary]Foxboy: And Happy Zombie Jew Day, all!
The Legendary]Hexane: Ok, one other question, is anyone else having problems with the placement of allies in a mission?
The Legendary]Foxboy: Some
The Legendary]Ran-san: Yes.
The Legendary]Hexane: And thanks FB, I've got a shotgun and rocksalt ready.
The Legendary]Sofaspud: [I did, but I re-published it and the problem went away
The Legendary]Hexane: It's not just me, that makes me feel better.
The Legendary]Ran-san: Technically, you are supposed to be able to specify "Front, Middle, and Back", but MA just seems to do "Random".
The Legendary]Sofaspud: [Yeah, Mine I'd set her to 'Front' and she was in the same room as the boss
The Legendary]Sofaspud: [After I've republished it, every time she's been visible from the front door
The Legendary]Hexane: My middle works, but the guy set to front is always in the same room as the glowie which is back.
The Legendary]Ran-san: Try reversing, Hex.
The Legendary]Ran-san: Some mission consider the front the back.
The Legendary]Ran-san: missions=maps
The Legendary]Acyl: Yeah.
The Legendary]Acyl: And outdoor maps have no discernable placement scheme.
The Legendary]Hexane: I'll try it, but if that was the case, why is the glowie and the ally in the same place?
The Legendary]Acyl: Well...
The Legendary]Hexane: As they have the opposite setting
The Legendary]Acyl: Do you have anything else occupying forward spawn points?
The Legendary]Hexane: I know you don't know, but it's driving me insane.  And no
The Legendary]Foxboy: 0.o Just found "Play Spider" archives. "Wow. Just wo- wait, is that Ghost Widow?"
The Legendary]Acyl: Or other objectives before the one that's turning out borked?
The Legendary]Hexane: 3 spawns, 1 front, 1 middle, 1 back.  middle always works, back works 50% of the time, front is always back
The Legendary]Acyl: 'cause the MA does assign spawn locations down the list of objectives... it places the first, then the second, then the third, and so on?
The Legendary]Acyl: Therefore put the stuff you ABSOLUTELY NEED to spawn correctly in front.
The Legendary]Hexane: Huh, I'll check that.
The Legendary]Acyl: Eh, bad phrasing.
The Legendary]Acyl: Put the objectives that are more important higher up in the order.
The Legendary]Foxboy: First in list then?
The Legendary]Acyl: No way to drag and drop stuff in the basic MA; you may need to edit the base text file.
The Legendary]Foxboy: CAN you drag the objectives?
The Legendary]Acyl: No.
The Legendary]Acyl: (tho the third-party MA offline editor by Leandro has that functionality)
The Legendary]Foxboy: ACyl? Can you post a link to the 3rd party editor in hte Forums?
The Legendary]Ran-san: @_@
The Legendary]Foxboy: Or a link to the link?
The Legendary]OpMegs: *dies* Accept text for a mission from Dr. Aeon advertising the wonders of Architect: "Take a known madman up on his offer."
The Legendary]Acyl: Hahah.
The Legendary]Acyl: Personally I was rather disappointed when I learnt that Crey canonically is an investor in Architect Entertainment already.
The Legendary]Acyl: I had a thought very early in beta about a competing Crey product.
The Legendary]Acyl: Call the arc...
The Legendary]Acyl: 'Hi, I'm a Crey.' 'And I'm an AE.'
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: PUPPIES!
The Legendary]Foxboy: Heh!
The Legendary]Foxboy: Pull a "steve Jobs" vis-a-vis Windows vs Apple
The Legendary]Foxboy: That is, one of the techs working for Aeon sets up an alternate "OS" for a similar setup
The Legendary]Foxboy: And sells it to Crey directly
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: dagnabbit, my muse has gone on hiatius
The Legendary]Acyl: ...*cracks up*
The Legendary]Acyl: Here I was trying to remember the offline editor program's website
The Legendary]Foxboy: Along with your grammar and spell check
The Legendary]Acyl: and one of my global friends starts talking about it.
The Legendary]Acyl: (http://www.missionplanner.com.ar/ by the way)
The Legendary]Acyl: (will make forum post
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: DAMMIT FOX
The Legendary]Foxboy: Blees ye kind sahr
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: i never knew how grammer and spelling worked
The Legendary]Foxboy: Hm?
The Legendary]Foxboy: What me do, MD?
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: "The following story is true . Only the names and ATs have been changed to protect the innocent."
The Legendary]Foxboy:
The Legendary]OpMegs: Oh, that's cute. "5fh Collmn Minyon" "This 5th Column Minion file has been corrupted and is not working properly."
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: hehe
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: Hey Fox, you missed a bio on the Catgirl Yowler
The Legendary]Foxboy: le sigh
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: And the Dasher
The Legendary]Foxboy: lWell, I was thinking of expanding the arc anyway...
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: Moar kittys
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: You don't mind if I use Yarnball in an arc of my own?
The Legendary]Acyl: Acyl only has one arc slot left.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: hmmm, yarnball
The Legendary]OpMegs: Same here.
The Legendary]Acyl: Acyl is debating whether to leave that to the project I wanted to collaborate with Atlantea with, or to cram all my remaining ideas into one big pile of steaming insanity.
The Legendary]Foxboy: Wow, Scratching post is beloved, it has 33 ratings
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: speaking of it, time to try it out with my stalker
The Legendary]Foxboy: olBye bye boys! Have fun Stormin' the CASTLE
The Legendary]OpMegs: Dr. Aeon's tutorial picked up a virus, it seems
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: Hey Fox, when you get down to one last sample, the nav box merely says Sample. You might want to make an objective for that
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: I am a bit concerned at the catgirls you encountered. By and large the Catgirls of Paragon are pleasant, law abiding folks. If they're not registered heroes, then they're mostly harmless denizens of Pocket D. This is a strange new wrinkle.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: also, it just says Purrfect catgirl, arn't we supost to rescue her or something?
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: GAH! Pocket D!
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: maybe yanball turns them into catgirls.... thats a brililiant plan, the drug makes you into something that has a greater chance of becoing addicted
The Legendary]Hexane: Grrr dragging missions in the arc list is painful to use.
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: Don't tempt me DS, that option leads to comedy
The Legendary]MatrixDragon:
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: Oh hey! Hex! Did you get my review?
The Legendary]Hexane: Yes, and thanks
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: DS is the first victim of this new drug
The Legendary]Hexane: I'm working on fixes at the moment
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: Sorry if I seemed critical. I qiute liked it, it just needs some work
The Legendary]Hexane: No, I understand.  Sadly I've been doing proof reading for people in my lab so I know where you're coming from.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: wait.... if fox agrees to turn Yarnball into a mutagenic drug like dyne.....
The Legendary]Ran-san: So that would turn DS into a catgirl....
The Legendary]OpMegs: DS turns into Purrfect Catgirl Zwei?
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: i do it just to make him suffer
The Legendary]Hexane: Gir would have so much fun with that too
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: Gir: daddys a kitty lady... so that makes her a mummy i think
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: Cat DS: oh shit
The Legendary]Ran-san: Patti: 0_o..right, so things COULD always get worse.....right stay away from that stuff.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: wiat *gets handed a note* my muse says while funny, she will not tolarate that sort of thing, it's hard enought to keep track of the Seraph household
The Legendary]OpMegs: It is? You'd have a Paragon Villiage People
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: why?
The Legendary]OpMegs: Catgirl, Demon mage, Robot girl, zombie. All you need is a cop!
The Legendary]Hexane: Al:  Now see, when I got changed I at least angered a god to cause it to happen
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: I approve of this wacky plan, as it means I can have Knight of the Peace tormented by his sister even more
The Legendary]Ran-san: Especially with Zim as a potential add in, and Patti soon to be hanging around a lot....especially at night.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: wait, Purffect peace?
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: nah, Ran. i'm keeping Zim for a inguinesous plan
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: "So.... a female duplicate of yourself wasn't enough. You need to randomly transform into a catgirl at times?"
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: "I swear to God, I will claw your car!"
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: do et
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: OM! FETCH ME A COIN!
The Legendary]OpMegs: /em cointoss
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: i swear at times you as impresionbel as a slab of wet clay
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: He's safe
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: ... Best of three
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: yep, safe
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: for now *Dun Dun Da!*
The Legendary]Ran-san: Heh.....DS as a part time catgirl.....
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: please no, but i do like the idea of yarnball being like dyne
The Legendary]Ran-san: Yes, but the rest of us like the idea! *Goes to fetch some Jusenkyo water....*
The Legendary]OpMegs: ...ahgahd. Out, wrong thought, out.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: ??
The Legendary]OpMegs: Purrfect PI
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: Not it!
The Legendary]Foxboy: *attempts to catch up*
The Legendary]Foxboy: In re: Mutagenic Yarnball... AWWWW You GUESSED!
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: WOOT!
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: so it is like dyne
The Legendary]Ran-san: I kinda figured it out, too. it seemed obvious.
The Legendary]OpMegs: ...explains the radioactive catgirls
The Legendary]Foxboy: I'm thinking of it being the Mooks trying t omuscle into PAragon
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: now my muse has an idea for how Mess became a catgirl
The Legendary]Foxboy: The Mooks want ADDICTIVE product, stet?
The Legendary]OpMegs: Gah!
The Legendary]OpMegs: Elec Blast/Energy Aura minions
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: more bad ideas OM?
The Legendary]Foxboy: What better way to get the product addictive than to add a mutagen to MAKE the dosed person better able to receive the Sensation
The Legendary]OpMegs: 1These guys make the LTs in Errand look like PANZIES
The Legendary]OpMegs: In terms of end drain
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: O.O
The Legendary]Foxboy: Hmmm. I think Custom mobs have teh Blaster powers, as I'm getting shot at by held and slept foes.
The Legendary]OpMegs: We discovered last night that giving EBs Build Up is....um...memorable
The Legendary]OpMegs: BU + Energy Transfer = floor
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: all i remeber of last night was laggins so badly i got asked to leave
The Legendary]Foxboy: Also: "The one with all the fish" is a RIOT
The Legendary]Foxboy: Lowbie Redside arc, but man it's fun
The Legendary]Ran-san: Suddenly so quiet...
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: Beep boop
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: *crash* tell me some one logged the chat?
The Legendary]Sweno: Hello everyone
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: Pleasse!
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: Hi sweno
The Legendary]OpMegs: Heya Sweno
The Legendary]Hexane: Hi Sweno
The Legendary]Sweno: so what's going on?
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: crashing!
The Legendary]Sweno: asside from the standard AE stuff?
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: also we discovered the truth of yarnball
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: it taste nice :3
The Legendary]Sweno: huh? yarnball?
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: the drug from foxs mish
The Legendary]Ran-san: Not much, hanging around soloing until enough people get off their keisters, get out of AE, see the sun, and actually, I dunno, do a TF?
The Legendary]Foxboy:
The Legendary]OpMegs: I'll get back to you when I get tired of doing content I haven't done twelve times per alt.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: meow
The Legendary]Sweno: I'd be up for a LGTF
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: i might have time for that, how long?
The Legendary]OpMegs: LGTF sounds good to me as well, if you can get the numbers together
The Legendary]Ran-san: ...And you name one of the ones I can't do on a blueside toon, Sweno.
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: No, you won't DS. You have work in... what, three hours?
The Legendary]OpMegs: Got a couple alts that can do that now.
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: And I'll pass. I've got a catgirl on Liberty to level
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: i start as 5:15 and its 11:36 now
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: Ah. I thought it was 3:15. never mind
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: failing a TF, i can aslawy bounc random story ideas around, thats allways fun
The Legendary]Ran-san: I just want something I can do on Pat, Patti or Cy. VL needs Prestige.
The Legendary]Ran-san: ...pretty badly, actually.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: why?
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: you late on the rent?
The Legendary]Ran-san: Base spent all our prestige adding a second floor to the workroom.
The Legendary]Foxboy: Ahhh. The Captain from that Ship got rescued
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: Ah good
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: what ship?
The Legendary]Foxboy: SEALs went in and did the French one better
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: The ship taken by pirates last week
The Legendary]Foxboy: The Container Ship (American Flagged) that was attacked by Somali Pirates.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: some times my dislike of new comes back to bite me
The Legendary]Foxboy: Yup. OBama finally approved lethal force.
The Legendary]Ran-san: He had it approved for days, Fox.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: i like your persadent, he's nice
The Legendary]Ran-san: But only in the event the Captain life was in imenant danger.
The Legendary]Ran-san: *saw the press conference earlier*
The Legendary]Foxboy: Hopefully Obama can STAY nice and not get forced into something he'll regret because he's perceived as "soft"
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: that would suck
The Legendary]Ran-san: So, we all going to do something?
The Legendary]Foxboy: Though my favorite quote/anecdote has him saying effectively that he didn
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: pirats?
The Legendary]Ran-san: *Is bored*
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: we need a mish with pirates in it
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: go red Ran
The Legendary]Foxboy: ... didn't want to say anything until he knew what he was talking about, when reporters started asking him questions about the sitch there.
The Legendary]Ran-san: I can't earn prestige for VL Redside, DS.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: so.. he waited till he had all the facts before saying a word.... are you sure he's a polatician?
The Legendary]Foxboy: It means that he takes hos Lincoln Worship SERIOUSLY.
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: That's a refreshing attitude
The Legendary]OpMegs: Ummm...anyone got some 30-ish backup I could call on for a little virus repair? :lol
The Legendary]Foxboy: lWhat side, or are you running this in RWZ?
The Legendary]Ran-san: ???
The Legendary]OpMegs: When this arc says "You might want to bring a team", I believe it
The Legendary]OpMegs: Blueside
The Legendary]OpMegs: Brickstown
The Legendary]Foxboy: e
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: Sorry, I'm on Liberty
The Legendary]Foxboy: I'ma gonna Finish this arc on this lowbie Vill first...
The Legendary]Ran-san: No one in 30s, unless you want to exemp Patti. She's in her 40s now.
The Legendary]OpMegs: *dies*
The Legendary]OpMegs: I just ran into "KnightStorm"
The Legendary]Foxboy: Hrm?
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: i'll fetch Laz, she need some inf
The Legendary]Foxboy: I hear someone used the MirrorKnight family
The Legendary]OpMegs: 1'Knight Storm, a member of the enigmatic and mysterious Knight Blades, also referred to as "The Green One"."
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: ....
The Legendary]Foxboy: LOL
The Legendary]Ran-san: ...
The Legendary]MatrixDragon: !
The Legendary]Ran-san: Someone else with a Saber fetish?
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: . /e facepalm
The Legendary]OpMegs: It's 2040 Linna's storyline pretty much lifted directly
The Legendary]OpMegs: Just with clockwork replacing Buma and "Lisa" replacing Linna.
The Legendary]Ran-san: Bah.
The Legendary]Ran-san: But invite me, if you want, I'm bored.
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: see thats boring, at least OM and MD made a idea that worked and then mutated out of control
The Legendary]OpMegs: Anywho, yeah, I can exemp Patti down, Ran
The Legendary]Ran-san: Which zone?
The Legendary]OpMegs: Brickstown
The Legendary]Foxboy: Gimme a moment, as I said. I'll Chatlog the global, etc and get one of my other toons
The Legendary]Ran-san: So, why are you in Steel Canyon?
The Legendary]DarkSeraphim: invite please OM
The Legendary]OpMegs: ...*blinks* Oh. Right. I moved to help Spud test his arc. Sorry
The Legendary]OpMegs: It was late last night. I spaced it
The Legendary]Sofaspud: [Haha!  Oh, wait
The Legendary]OpMegs: Anyway, yeah, Steel
''We don't just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat
them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary.''

-- James Nicoll

Fan project, from Leandro - the guy who did CoH Splasher.
http://www.missionplanner.com.ar/]Mission Planner
In the creator's words:-

Quote:Mission Planner is not intended to be a full replacement for the in-game Mission Architect UI. Its design is minimalistic for a reason: I wanted a small program that I could sneak into a thumb drive to use at work in order to sketch and edit missions, without having to install anything on the computer. With time, it will grow to have all the options that the Mission Architect has, with two exceptions: no costume editor, and no graphics for the maps. Other than that, a year from now, it should be able to do everything the Mission Architect can do, and some more.

With This Station-Ring...

(By Rob Kelk with scenes by Cobalt Greywalker and kibitzing from the Fenspace Collective, originally posted 10 January - 12 April 2009)

Infirmary office
Stellvia
11:52 GMT 20 February 2014

"You're WHAT???"

Leda smiled. "We have been having sex every night for the last five weeks, Noah."

"Every night since Boskone Prime fell, yes. But you're on the Pill."

A.C. put her datapadd onto the nurse's desk. "It seems Leda's biomod interfered with the artificial hormones. She was taking the Pill, but she wasn't protected."

Noah took a deep breath, then released it five seconds later. "Well. Outside of the three of us, who knows?"

"Nobody." A.C. looked slightly cross. "I treat doctor/patient confidentiality very seriously. You know that, Noah."

"I also know that everybody in your crew knew my medical history right after the Crystal Paris incident."

A.C. blushed. "Well, we are all pretty close to being an extended family."

"And that's the only reason I didn't yell at you when I found out." Noah grinned for a moment. Then he continued, completely seriously. "Please don't tell anybody else. Anybody. If Andy or Greenpeace or Kohran or anyone else were to tell Sora that Leda and I have been sharing a bed, she might not take it well."

"You think our oldest daughter has a 'father complex'?"

"No, I think she's still loyal to Yoriko."

Nobody said anything for a moment.

Finally, Noah turned to Leda. "The two of us have a decision to make. Well, you have a decision to make, but I'm involved ..."

Leda kissed Noah to shut him up. "We may not have planned for this yet, but that doesn't matter. I'm not getting an abortion. Unless A.C. tells me carrying the baby to term would put my or its life at risk."

"It won't," A.C. offered, "unless something goes drastically wrong in the next eight months. And the baby's a 'she', not an 'it'."

"A girl?" Noah sighed happily. "Story of my life. Well, I'm not going to let my daughter grow up without a father, if I can help it."

A.C. grinned. "As far as I can see, you've got one option left. When's the ceremony?"

Engineering laboratory
Stellvia
19:33 GMT 23 February 2014

"Noah, exactly what are you doing?"

"Planning for our daughter's future. What does it look like I'm doing?"

"Getting ready to build another android. Couldn't you just hire a nanny?"

Noah shook his head. "We'll have no problem finding a nanny. I'd bet Greenpeace would love the job, and if she wouldn't, there's hundreds of people Up who know just how precious children are, now. No, this is our daughter's tutor."

"And why does she need a tutor?"

"Do you see any schools around here, not counting the ones on Earth? Tell you what: if a school opens up before she's ready to attend it, I'll suggest to ... whoever this is going to be ... that she apply to the teaching staff. Otherwise, she'll have a job here."

Leda thought for a moment. "I guess that'll work. But why start building her now?"

"It takes a while for one of my androids to wake up for the first time. I want to make sure she's ready before she's needed."

"Oh. Okay. Now for the important question: who is she?"

Noah frowned. "That's the tricky part. Most of the fictional meganekko teachers I know of are nymphomaniacs; having somebody like Mitsuka Yoshimine or Saori Shikijo on staff would be a distraction for whoever they were sleeping with and bad for the morale of whoever they weren't. Mizuho Kazami might be good, but she's a high-school teacher; I'd rather somebody who has experience with all grades and subjects."

"Somebody who's a substitute teacher, then?"

"Yes, exactly. But who ... Oh, of course! And I hear The Jason and some of the Supers are playing with simulating some metahuman powers with Trekkie holotech. I think we can make this work ... but our budget for paper is going to go through the roof."

Habitat Module #1
Old Ring, Stellvia
7:26 GMT 1 March 2014

"You asked WHO???"

"And why shouldn't I ask her? She's our friend."

"It's her other friends that I don't want to see ever again. And you know they'll come with her; the five of them are inseperable."

"Noah, it's long past time you made peace with them."

"But ..."

"She's already accepted, and Judy's already tailored her bridesmaid dress."

"But ..."

"You're rich enough that you can buy me almost anything I want, so the material things you give me don't matter as much as the favours. Give me this as a wedding present, please."

"But ..."

Leda scowled. "No more 'buts'! Noah Scott Anderson, you will let Mikuru Asahina be one of my bridesmaids."

"This is so important to you that you'd use my old 'daneside name?" She nodded, and he sighed. "All right, Leda Sosipatra Swansen. Mikuru can be in the wedding party. But in return, please never use my full name in public. Let everyone keep thinking 'Scott' is my family name."

"As long as you don't call me 'Sosipatra' in public, either."

"Deal." They kissed, quickly.

Leda frowned for a moment. "Since you mentioned 'daneside ..."

"I've already made the arrangements. Your parents, your sisters, my father, my brother and his family should be on their way to Sydney even as I speak. They've got non-bumpable tickets on the next flight of the Ad Astra, so they should be here two days before the wedding."

Leda grinned, and they kissed again. Not quickly ...

Judy's Tailoring Shop
Main Concourse, Stellvia
10:17 GMT 3 March 2014

Noah blinked. Twice. Then let out an impressed whistle.

"Now I see why you asked me along," Leda said. "Couldn't you..." She trailed off at A.C.'s look, and her brain pulled up A.C.'s biomod quirks. "Right."

"All in all," A.C. said as she twisted to check the fit, "this didn't turn out too badly."

"You look like the dealer for a high stakes poker game at a six-star casino." Noah told her. "How do you pull off the distractingly-sexy-but-formal look in the tux?"

"It's a knack." A.C. shrugged (distractingly, of course). She turned to the bride. "So. How much do I have to change? Don't want to overshadow the bride after all."

"Um..." Leda looked her up and down, considering. "Let me get back to you."

One quick change later, the three of them returned to the Old Ring.

"Guest list?" A.C. asked.

"Sorted. Finally." Leda sighed. "Although I'd prefer something better than A.C. Peters to put on there."

A.C. rolled her eyes in amusement. "What is it with you Senshi and trying to find out what the initials mean?"

"Before or after the accident?" Noah asked.

"Uh..." Leda trailed off.

"Great, you broke her, Noah." A.C. mock-huffed. "She wasn't paid for yet."

"Hey, you're the genius." Noah playfully whined. "You fix her."

"Well, I'd need an old telephone, a desktop calculator, a roll of duct tape, and some blueberry chewing gum."

Noah reached into his jacket pocket. "Here's the gum..."

"Hey!" Leda complained, to matching sniggers.

"Oh, by the way, I've brought a little something to help with your latest girl," A.C. told Noah.

"Really?" Noah looked guarded.

"People talk." A.C. ignored the look. "Anyway, you mentioned once that you wondered what it was like to be an android. It stuck in my head." Here both Noah and Leda snorted. "As an idle hobby I designed a tele-presence model that you could use, and great minds think alike for the appearance. I never built it, but I did have a go at replicating her abilities. And I figured, why carry around all that paper if you could make it? So I put together a bucky-paper synthesiser and some specialised spinnerets. Figure they might come in handy. If nothing else it'll keep your paper costs down."

The Roadhouse
Deimos
11:03 GMT 7 March 2014

"They haven't called yet."

"They just announced the wedding yesterday, Blackstone. Give them time."

"All right, Buckaroo. But if they don't call, we'll still show up before the ceremony with our gear, ready for soundcheck."

Just then, Nezumi poked her head into Blackstone's office. "Noah's on the phone - he wants to hire the Hong Kong Cavaliers for the 15th. He also wants to know if we know And I Love Her."

Blackstone grinned. "It's about time he called," he commented playfully. Then he added seriously, "And it's nice of him to tell us which song we have to rehearse until we've got it perfect."

Grover's Corners, Lagrange Point 3
13:00 GMT 7 March 2014

"Noah, it's Bob. Congratulations! Got a hall yet?"

somewhere in the shadows
01:28 GMT 8 March 2014

"They dare think they can be happy? After what they did to me? Well, I know what buttons to push in his psyche, at least!" A button was pushed. "Get me Clay. Now."

Yggdrasil
14:36 GMT 8 March 2014

"Yes, of course we can supply whatever flowers you want."

Normally, the Jason didn't like being disturbed while he was preparing a new experiment. But he was happy to take this call.

"All five of the Heart roses? That'll be a beautiful bouquet, Leda."

He motioned to Iris, then stopped when he saw she was already taking notes.

"And Noah wants something edible for the centerpieces, that are safe for 'danes to eat? I can supply nasturtiums, violets, plum and apple blossoms, and un-'waved roses. ... All of them? Certainly."

He waited for the next question, then smiled as he replied. "No charge. This is my wedding gift to the two of you."

Office of the Consul to Fenspace
Canberra, Australia
23:58 GMT (08:58 local time) 8 March 2014

"Certainly, I'll expedite the paperwork for you, Mr. Scott. I like you; you've never called me 'Sheila'." Constance Walker smiled at the image of Noah Scott on her videophone. "Let's see... enough steak and shrimp to feed fifty people, plus the finest vintages that Penfolds Grange has available at the moment. Are you sure you'll be all right with Australian table wines?"

Noah grinned back. "Good point. You'd better send up a case of sparkling grape juice for the children."

"I was thinking of the Monty Python fans."

"Like I said, 'for the children'. There's a lot of grown-up children Up here."

They both grinned at that.

Interwave public noticeboard
00:00 GMT 10 March 2014

"Anyone, and I mean anyone who wants to send gifts to the happy couple, yet isn't able to make it for some reason or another, and is verifiably NOT a Boskonian: Jupiter Mining Corporation is going to do a special run, pro bono, of anything to be delivered. Just make sure the package gets to our nominal headquarters at Serenity Valley before Starbug 1 has to depart Saturday morning, and it will be handled.

"- Jeph Antilles"

somewhere in the shadows
19:55 GMT 12 March 2014

"It's ready."

"Good. Get it to Stellvia for the day after tomorrow."

Private Reception Lounge
Dock 2, Stellvia
13:00 GMT 13 March 2014

"Glad you could make it, dad." Noah shook his father's hand, then turned to his brother. "And Gerald - you're looking better than you did when I left."

"Getting out of the rat-race helped a lot there, Noah. You should try it sometime."

Noah grinned. "Wish I had the time. This is my wife-to-be, Leda."

"Charmed to make the acquaintance of such a beautiful young lady," the elder Anderson said while reaching to take her hand.

Leda quickly moved her hands behind her back. "I appreciate the gesture, Mr. Anderson, but my biomod makes holding hands dangerous."

Gerald raised an eyebrow. "Biomod?"

"A long story... and it's not illegal up here."

"Ah." The eyebrow came back down after Noah nodded in confirmation.

Leda didn't notice. "Gerald, does anybody call you -"

He cut her off quickly. "No, Ms. Swansen. Nobody gets to call me 'Gerry Anderson'. Not even Noah. And don't use my initials, either."

"Oh. Why shouldn't I use your initials?"

Noah pulled her aside and whispered in her ear. "Gerald's middle name is Thaddeus. And he's about as 'dane as they come."

Leda grimaced, then composed herself and went back to the Anderson family. "So, how was the trip?"

"Long," replied Gerald. "And I'd like to check in and relax. You did find us a room, didn't you, Noah?"

"Considering I own a hotel, it wasn't difficult. You, Stacey, and the kids are in a suite; Ms. Fujisawa will help you find the front desk." At this, Yayoi stepped forward and guided most of Noah's relatives toward the hotel. "And you've got your own room, dad."

"Thanks, son. Sorry about Gerald, Ms. Swansen. He's not usually like this."

"Please, call me Leda. And I understand completely."

He smiled at that. "Now, if you'll excuse us, I need to talk with my son about something he's been avoiding for the last five years."

"I knew this was coming... Leda, please apologize to your family and tell them I'll meet them at dinner this evening. I'm going to take dad to the hotel." She nodded, and the two men left the reception lounge.

"Yes, you should know this was coming. Every time I've asked, you've had to take another call or deal with an emergency."

"We were practically at war last year, dad. I couldn't ignore that."

"How many lives did you save by being too busy to talk to me?"

"Dozens. Maybe hundreds."

"That's all right, then. But now you can't hang up on me. Did you ever find the Harrison's daughter, the one who disappeared on Luna back in 2009?"

Noah sighed. "Yeah, dad, I found Kelly. She doesn't want to go back home or call her family, and I agree with her reasons why."

"She's still alive?"

"Alive and enjoying her work, the last time I saw her. And here we are at the Hotel Stellvia. Let's get you checked in..." Noah glanced at the crowd at the reception desk, then continued. "Better yet, I'll check you in myself."

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea. I don't want to wait in line for too long."

"Your leg's bothering you again?"

"Hey, I'm alive. But I would've liked to meet that cute bunny-girl behind the counter. Or at least read her name tag."

"The bunny-girl?" asked Noah, secretly happy his father couldn't read her nametag from where they were. "You don't mind she's got a biomod?"

"Your bride has a biomod, Noah. I'm going to have to get used to it. Besides..."

After a moment of typing on his PDA, Noah asked, "'Besides'?"

"Well, it might just be a vacation romance, but my grandson seems quite taken by Leda's sister Minerva. And vice-versa. Gerald might have to learn to like Fen, not just tolerate you."

"Charles and Minerva? One of them would have to move, considering the families live on opposite sides of the States."

"Charles withdrew his application to Yale and applied to UCSD while we were in Kandor City."

"Wow. I really hope this works out for both of them." Noah walked over to the front desk, grabbed a plastic card, and walked back to his father. "Here's your room key, dad. See you at six for dinner?"

"I wouldn't miss it, son."

Storeroom #23
Wonderland
17:11 GMT 13 March 2014

The happy couple and two of their closest friends were looking at the Roughriders' wedding gift - a new matched pair of 'waved ion engines - which has just arrived.

"Great. What are we going to do with these?"

Leda looked puzzled. "Is there some reason we can't install them in the Epsilon Blade?"

"Yes," replied Yayoi, Kohran, and Noah simultaneously.

After a moment, Leda asked, "And the reason is...?"

All three sighed. "Leda, can you keep a secret?"

"Of course I can, Noah."

"So can we," Kohran replied.

"You're not going to tell me?"

"We can't tell you. I'm sorry." Yayoi actually bowed to Leda.

"All right. I won't pry. For now."

Noah sighed with relief. "Thank you, darling. So, what are we going to do with these?"

After a moment, Leda said, "Our little girl's going to need a ship of her own, eventually."

"There's a thought. And we can use the ship here until she's old enough to pilot it herself. It'll need a name, of course. Let's see... delta, epsilon, zeta..."

"Delta, epsilon, digamma, zeta. Just because almost nobody uses the sixth letter of the Greek alphabet doesn't mean it doesn't exist."

Kohran grinned. "And of course you know the Greek alphabet better than we do, Leda. What's the second word in the ship's name? There's no pattern there: Delta Flyer, Epsilon Blade, Digamma... Function?"

"That's a bit odd, even for Fen," Yayoi complained. "Digamma Harmonic?"

"There's no guarantee our daughter's going to be a math geek, ladies. Hmmmmm... Digamma Village?" Everyone looked at Noah. "Well, it is number six..."

"Shut up, darling," Leda interrupted sweetly. "Digamma Darter?"

"You'd give our daughter something with the initials DD?" Noah asked. "Especially if she takes after you, physically?"

Leda grimaced. "Right. Bad idea."

Yayoi smiled. "Digamma Thunderbolt, perhaps? That recalls the speed of the flyer and the force of the blade, and it invokes nature like the Magnificent Midnight does."

The others looked at each other and smiled. "We have a winner," Noah agreed. "So, what else are we building into the Digamma Thunderbolt?"

Office of the Commander
Old Ring, Stellvia
12:45 GMT 13 March 2014

"What do you mean, you're in deep kimchee?" Noah was not happy about the call he'd just received from Mal.

"Fine, fine. I know you can't argue with a Congressional supoena.

"Now wait just a minute. Sora isn't a US citizen. She never was. You'd better check with Consul Walker about the legality of Congress summoning an Australian citizen.

"She already has the extradition request? Damn. Maybe I can get her to stall...

"Oh. Yeah, Sora's a good girl that way. Do I need to find somebody to take your places in the wedding party?

"Thank Belldandy for small favours. You need a lawyer?

"I know Cal's a lawyer. I'll bet Cal's been summoned too, and he's good enough to know he shouldn't represent himself.

"No, he's a friend of mine from our days back at Yale; he's based in Washington and on retainer for Stellvia Corp. I'll send you his number; make up your own mind whether you want him.

"Yeah, I'll keep that in mind. I'll see you tomorrow for the rehersal."

Noah buried his head in his hands. "Not now. Please, by all that's holy, not now. I'm too busy getting married..."

"What's wrong, sir?" asked Safety.

He looked straight at her and sighed deeply. "It looks like the US government is making a move against the VVS, and by extension against the rest of us Up here. I need Kohran, Yayoi, Leda, Jake, Patty, Miyuri, Takami, Kagome, Kelly, Micheline, Sergy, and Rhiannon in the boardroom at 10:00 tomorrow morning. Oliver and Shizuka too, if they're anywhere nearby. No excuses, and no telepresence - attendance in person is mandatory. Tell Kohran to bring the bug-stomper Skuld left behind. And figure out some way to keep A.C. and Greenpeace away from the meeting."

"Yes, sir," replied Safety worriedly. As far as she knew, Noah had never called the entire senior staff of Stellvia Corporation and the Nikaido Foundation together at once, and excluding their friends from the Prometheus Forge was unheard-of.

As she flew out of Noah's office, Safety noticed him taking a laptop computer she'd never seen before out of his farady-cage safe.

Briefing Room
Stellvia
10:37 GMT 14 March 2014

"... and that's everything that Rashid's been able to find for us." Noah put the last of the papers his lawyer had forwarded on the table, beside the bug-stomper.

"Just who did he have to bribe to get those, boss?"

"Probably nobody, Jake. If there's one thing I'm sure of about Rashid Abdallah, it's that he's scrupulously honest. That's why I have him on retainer, not his firm. Is everybody up to speed on these documents?"

There was a chorus of affirmative answers around the table.

"Good," Noah continued. "The next question is what do we do about this?"

The newest member of Stellvia Corporation's senior staff cleared her throat. "With all due respect, M. Scott, you 'ave something more important to do right now."

"I assume you're talking about the wedding tomorrow, Mme. Rouleau."

"But of course. Please, let us deal with this matter."

"She's right, dad," added Kohran. "You've got to delegate more. And this is the perfect time to start."

Nobody said anything while Noah thought for a moment. "All right. Mme. Rouleau, you and your staff on Wonderland are in charge of this matter until Leda and I get back from our honeymoon. Jake, back her up if she needs anything from us."

"What about us?" Kelly asked.

"I'd appreciate it if you prepared to put contingeny plan #3 into effect." Half the people around the table reacted to that, none positively.

Jake was the first to speak. "Are you crazy, boss?"

"Dad, isn't that going too far?" Kohran followed quickly.

Yayoi stood up. "Noah... I understand why you want to do that, but is now the right time, and is this the right reason?"

"Just prepare for it, okay? Now, unless there's anything else..." Nobody said anything. "... this meeting's adjourned. Yayoi, Kohran, I think you can still make your appointment at Judy's if you hurry." Noah picked up the laptop that he hadn't let anyone else touch, and headed out the door and toward his office.

As the others left, Leda motioned to Yayoi to stay behind. "What's contingency plan #3? For that matter, what are plans 1 and 2?"

"There is no contingency plan #1. Plan #2 is a reaction to a hostile DQS, and involves massive use of Kohran's toys. Plan #3..." She leaned close and whispered in Leda's ear.

Leda grinned. "Oh, boy. I'll bet Chris Marsden hates plan #3."

"We've never told him about it. Or anyone else, including A.C. And we'd better not say anything about it to anyone for now. Let's not piss people off the day before the biggest social event since Kandor-con."

"Right. Is there a plan #4?"

"I'd rather not say. And Kohran's waiting for me."

"Sorry. Here's hoping nothing else unexpected happens."

Main Concourse
Stellvia
11:17 GMT 14 March 2014

"I just thought of something."

Yayoi turned to Kohran. "Oh?"

"I'm the Maid of Honour, and you're the Best Person. We're going to have to dance with each other. It's traditional."

Yayoi thought for a moment. "You're right. Do you have a problem with dancing with another woman?"

Kohran shook her head. "I have preprogrammed memories of dancing with Sakura and Sumire during some of the Flower Troupe's productions. I'm worried about how your girlfriend will react. She's fully human, after all, and that includes all the negative emotions that we can supress if we have to."

"As you said, it's traditional. Ginny's okay with 'traditional'." Then Yayoi smiled impishly. "Besides, with the U.S. Navy's 'don't ask, don't tell' policy, she can't complain."

"Do they still have that policy?" Kohran asked with a straight face.

"I think so..." Yayoi began, only to be interrupted by what sounded like a small explosion a few meters away. She pulled out her PDA. "Emergency desk, this is Fujisawa. There's been an incident on the Main Concourse. Engineer Li and I are investigating."

She got to the scene just as Kohran cradled a young woman in her arms. "What happened?"

The woman looked up. "Help-p-p-p-p m-m-me, A-a-a-aunt Kohr-r-r-ran..." Then she closed her eyes and gave off a few sparks.

Maintenance Bay
Old Ring, Stellvia
12:41 GMT 14 March 2014

"I got here as soon as I heard," A.C. said to Noah. "Who is she?"

Noah frowned. "She's an android. One of our androids, going by the circuit designs - she could have come from the same production run as Kohran and Yayoi, if we had built them that way. I take it you didn't build her, and I know I didn't."

"Neither did I," added Kohran.

"That much I figured out as soon as I saw her," replied A.C. "Who is she?"

"Oh. She hasn't regained consciousness since she passed out... or broke down... in the Main Concourse, and she wasn't carrying any ID. So I'm going by her appearance here. She's a meganekko, of course. Shorter than average. Twin ponytails, loosely held with bows. A honking-big harisen hidded behind her back, and Yayoi found an empty artist's case where she collapsed. And Kohran said she has a Kansai accent. I think she's Yuu Inagawa."

"That-t-t-t's ri-i-ight, Gra-a-andf-f-f-f-father."

Everybody rushed to her side. "Save your strength, Ms. Inagawa," Noah insisted. "We're going to help you."

"We are?" asked Safety from her perch on Noah's shoulder.

"Of course we are," A.C. and Noah answered together. A.C. continued, "We have to."

"She obviously has some serious physical problems," Noah added. "Not helping her would be the same as letting her die in agony. And I'm not going to let that happen to somebody who believes she's family."

"B-b-b-belie-e-eves?"

Yayoi glared at Noah, then sighed. "None of us have seen you before today, Ms. Inagawa."

"But we will help you. I promise." Noah took Yuu's hand in his own. He kept his surprise at how cold it was to himself. "I have to ask: how did you get aboard Stellvia without any identification?"

"I-I-I don't kno-o-o-o-ow. I wo-o-oke up on the Ma-a-a-ain Concour-r-r-r-rse, just-t-t befor-r-r-r-re I col-l-l-l-lapsed."

"Thank you, Yuu." A.C. turned to Noah. "Let's get out of Kohran's way."

Noah raised an eyebrow, but walked to the other end of the room with A.C. "I would have thought you'd want to help Kohran repair Yuu."

"I do, but this comes first. Why did she show up now?"

Noah nodded. "Yeah. We were ready for anything from a persistent paparazzo to a Boskonian battle fleet trying to disrupt the ceremony tomorrow. Yuu is something we couldn't expect."

"But we're still going to repair her."

"Of course we are. I made her a promise."

"Then Kohran and I had better get to work now, or we'll miss the wedding tomorrow."

"Thanks. And I'll get Takami and Kagome working on finding out who really built her."

Maintenance Bay
Old Ring, Stellvia
14:26 GMT 14 March 2014

"Me and my big mouth," Leda muttered. Then she continued out loud, "The rehersal's in an hour and a half, and the three of us are nowhere near Grover's Corners. Can you leave Inagawa-san yet?"

A.C. and Kohran looked up. "Is it that late already?" the former asked. "Sorry, give us... three and a half minutes."

"Who-o-o-o-o's she?" asked Yuu.

"That's Leda Swansen," Kohran replied. "Although tomorrow she'll be Leda Scott."

Yuu's eyebrows went up. "She's mar-r-r-r-r-rying grand-d-d-dfather?"

"Is there some reason she shouldn't?"

"I don't-t-t-t-t think so, n-n-no. I j-j-j-j-j-just never thought h-h-he'd ever g-g-get married-d."

A.C. smiled disarmingly. "It surprised us, too. Would you open access hatch 34-A, please?" There was the sound of a spring latch uncoupling. "Thank you, Yuu. Now I'm going to swap out one of your components. This might feel strange."

Nobody said anything for two minutes.

"There, you can close the access hatch now."

"You're finished? I don't feel any different."

Kohran and A.C. grinned. Leda smiled and said, "But you sound different now, Yuu."

"Do I? Hey, I'm not stuttering any more! Thank you, aunt Kohran, aunt A.C!"

"It was all A.C.'s doing, Yuu-san. Now we really have to leave; Kagome-san is on the way here to keep you company."

The door opened to admit the station's security chief. "I'm here! You two... sorry, you three had better get going."

"We're leaving!"

Shuttle Glennorth
en route between Stellvia and Grover's Corners
14:39 GMT 14 March 2014

"What did Takami find out?"

Leda turned to A.C. "Yuu's memory had been completely erased. For all intents and purposes, she was born three minutes before Kohran and Yayoi met her."

"I hope she backed up her memories somewhere," Kohran whispered.

"Even if she did, how would she know where to find them?" asked A.C. "But take a look at this." She held up an electronics module.

"That's the signal processor we took out of Yuu. What about it?" asked Kohran.

A.C. tapped a maker's mark on the circuit board. "It's British. Specifically, it's from Beagle 2." The others looked at her blankly. "Kids these days; no sense of history. Beagle 2 was the UK's first attempt at a Mars lander. It was lost on landing."

"Obviously, somebody found it," Kohran said.

"And looted it for parts," continued Leda. "You think Yuu's from Mars?"

"It's worth a look, after the wedding."

Wedding site
Grover's Corners, Lagrange Point 3
8:03AM, Saturday 15 March 2014

The various kids living on Grover's Corners thought the coming wedding was going to be boring. Well, at least until the food came out. So the sight of A.C. Peters stalking around the site was unusual enough to get their attention.

A.C., on the other hand, was busy keeping herself occupied while she thought things through. The unexpected arrival of Yuu with evidence pointing to Mars as her source had her wringing her head for memories, and considering what contacts she had in that area. Maybe have the Stallion go past and sweep with her sensors? Unfortunately she couldn't pin Noah down right now for the talk she'd need to get things straight. Then there was the news through the grapevine that the U.S. Congress had subpoenaed Mal, with what that meant to Noah's mental state. And that was not something Noah needed today. Which was why she was resisting the urge to wave up Matt Murdock. Or Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law.

So, here she was making sure everything was okay. Seating plans were sorted, wedding programs were ready to be given out, spare glasses for the wedding party (including the enhanced ones with a display and a link to a tricorder with the guest list loaded for the ushers), the camera drones were working and connected to Officer Friendly, the Tachikomas were deployed and Eddie had linked in Officer Friendly when he'd scanned Grover's Corners for unexpected surprises. She'd better ask the inhabitants if they'd checked the environmental controls to make sure it wasn't going to get too cold. Krikkit Flight was on standby on Luna, and Eddie was armed.

What else? The caterers weren't due 'til 11. The Jason wasn't due until noon to deliver the flowers. The bridal party was due 12:15 to finish getting ready, the Reverend was due 12:20 along with herself, Mal, and Sora. Jake and Yayoi would be ariving with Noah 12:30 with the first lot of guests from Stellvia. Scheduled start at 1PM.

"You're here very early."

"Well, someone's got to do it," A.C. replied, turning. "And unfortunately, Mrs. Avins, everyone else has suddenly gotten even more busy."

"Quite." Kat Avins frowned slightly, as they'd got the news yesterday via the Blue Blazers. The resultant town council had been lively.

A.C. briefly considered the fact that, of the Big Name Fen (and she was one in reality however much she hated it, even if technically she wasn't) that had business in the U.S., she was the one least likely to be called if Congress was on a witch-hunt. Mainly because most of the limb replacements available in the country were her designs, and the various victims and veterans associations would scream bloody murder. Maybe the military as well, seeing the effectiveness of cybernetics in the field.

"Well, we shouldn't worry too much. Mal's got enough backup on this one."

And I shouldn't need to pull out some of my nastier surprises, she added silently. Politics. Feh.

Wedding site
Grover's Corners, Lagrange Point 3
1:20 PM, Saturday 15 March 2014

The members of the wedding party had been roused from where they collapsed at the end of the combined bachelor and hen party, been separated into the bride's group and the groom's group according to the customs of their homeland, and had managed to reach their appointed places at their appointed times.

The presents had been delivered to one of the caverns in Wonderland that had not yet been converted to agricultural use, nearly filling the chamber.

The cameras had started rolling, and Maico Tange had given her commentary before the ceremony began. She had been sure to complement each of the bridesmaids on their appearance, and very carefully had not asked why the bride was not wearing white, or green.

The guests had arrived and been seated by some of the most formidable people in Fenspace.

The few who attempted to attend uninvited had been ejected, if they had been unfortunate enough to get as far as the airlock.

The minstrels, Dandelions all, had played the traditional music in the traditional style, at which point all conversation in Grover's Corners (and in many rooms throughout much of Fenspace, Australia, and New Zealand) had ceased.

The bride, looking radiant as all brides do, had walked down the virgin road on the arm of her father, and met her groom at the altar.

The preacher had asked whether anyone present knew of any reason why the ceremony should not proceed.

The incognito members of Section Six who were present had ensured none of the Humourists in attendance answered that question.

And the union had been blessed.

There were two things left to exchange. The first was the vows.

"I, Noah, take you, Leda, to be my wife, loving what I know of you, and trusting what I do not yet know. In the presence of our families, our friends and comrades, and whatever gods may be watching, I vow to be your faithful and loving partner in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow. I promise to love you, and cherish you, and always hold you in the highest regard, today and all the days of our life."

"I, Leda, take you, Noah, to be my husband. I owe you my life; today I give my life to you in marriage. With our families, our friends and comrades, and the gods as witness, I promise to encourage and inspire you, to laugh with you, to comfort you in times of pain or heartbreak, and to be your faithful and loving partner, in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow, today and all the days of our life."

And the second was the kiss.

Hotel Bradbury
Olympus Mons, Mars
22:47 GMT 15 March 2014

Of course the desk clerk recognized the new arrivals; they had been on television earlier that day. But the Hotel Bradbury was noted for its discretion.

"Welcome to Mars, Mr. and Mrs. ..." He double-checked the name on the credit card he'd been given. "... Sangnoir. The Rod Serling suite is ready for you, as you requested. Will there be anything else at the moment?"

"Just some privacy," the happy couple answered in unison.
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

I still have the stomach bug, although it's fading away finally. Got a couple hundred pics, which I'll eventually throw up onto Flickr. Right now
I'm grumpy and headachy and trying to catch up on th electronic half of my life.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

Removed for being too plausible.

Mentioned by our group's newest member, over on Usenet... (and it's okay to talk about new manga here too, Arnold!)

Rumiko Takahashi's new manga is titled Kyokai no Rinne - there's a http://www.furinkan.com/images/kyokainorinne.jpg]two-page spread for it in Shonen Sunday.

As I mentioned over on Usenet, I think the design of the female character might actually be new...
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012