The target audience for these summmaries are those people who haven't seen it all, but are so hooked they have-to-have-it-all-NOW. You know who you are. Don't mind my dry sarcasm, and I'll try to keep my personal comments separate.
Please note that more often than not, all 'quotes' are paraphrases- not exact quotes.
A door, with a women only-
Behind it Melissa, Tessa, and Kaname enjoy a steaming bath together, japanese style. Melissa's chugging beer, and Kaname is concerned.
It's no alchol, like the earlier party, due to the upcoming operation, Tessa explains.
Melissa's cheerful exurberance makes Kaname wonder anyway.
*Engage 6 7*
Kaname's relaxed, and asks about there being such a tub on a submarine. Tessa tells her that it's really a chemical bath for AS parts, but that sometimes it gets used as a bathing tub. Tessa feels that there is nothing that compares with a japanese style bath, after having gotten used to them when she stayed in okinawa as a child.
Kaname pauses, and then wonders out loud what Sousuke was like as a child.
Tessa wonders too, and both girls look to Melissa (who's downing another one...)
Melissa's a little apologetic- she has no idea. She met both Sousuke and Surtz only about a year before. She seems ready to tell the story, but asks Tessa if it's really alright for a civilian to hear about such a thing...
Tessa tells her it's alright, since Kaname is sort of a special person.
So Melissa starts that story...
The Daanan was nearly finished and preparing to be launched, when an accident left Melissa without her team members, and Mithril sent her to a training camp to select two new ones.
This was around the time the M9s were just being rolled out...
Kaname can't imagine Sousuke ever having been a newbie at a training camp, but Tessa, with cheerful confidence, says she can, sort of. The girls amusingly share a competitive look...
Melissa goes on to say that the first person she met was a decently mannered young man who wasn't very good at shooting. (the exact opposite of a guy like Kurtz, Kaname remarks, then realizes that is who Melissa is talking about...)
Kurtz had approached Melissa, and asked to speak with her.
Kurtz nervously explains to Melissa that he's not a very good soldier, that he can't even point a rifle at a person. He frets that this camp isn't the sort of place for him, and then says what he needs isn't training....what he needs is love!
He approaches melissa, asking to feel her chest, and grabs for them while trying to kiss her! Melissa gives him a punch that sends him through the door....
She was pretty angry at him.
Melissa's pile of cans has grown...Kaname mutters about how awful Kurtz is.
Melissa explains that he was definatly off of her list of possibilities after that! Tessa asks about Sousuke...
Mliessa says she wasn't even really aware of him.
She had already made some pre-selections based on records and test results. There are three she's considering based on those- but something else gets her attention...
In an round of AS battles, the current M6 champion had been defeated by someone piloting an old RK92.
The pilot was a trainee named Sousuke Isegar...
(the girls, drinking canned tea in unison, and comment on his wierd name)
Melissa says that other than his name, there asn't anything standout about him.
Average on everything, and didn't have a good personality either. Melissa decided to go meet him, to determine if his unusual win was just a lucky fluke, or if he was underplaying his ability.
She finds him alone in the barracks-
He seems unfriendly and untalkative, but answers her questions in as few words as possible. She asks if he was the one who defeated the M6 with the RK-
He admits he was, but claims it was just luck.
She says it couldn't have been luck, but he counters that then it was a bad performance by the opponent.
(Kaname remarks 'such a terrible conversation')
Melissa had given up, but was met leaving the barracks by Kurtz.
Kurtz made some lewd comments and showed blantant disrespect, which really pissed Melissa off. Melissa ends up drawing her handgun on him...
They share a few more challenging insults...Sousuke still sits, back turned, at the other end of the barracks...
But, then he's not- he's there with them, bringing the butt of his rifle between them, and says 'let's quit'-
Melissa is surprised, no shocked actually- she stares at the length of the barracks and wonders at how quickly and silently Sousuke had approached them. Melissa, with her trained 'approach sense', didn't even notice he had moved.
Sousuke firmly tells Kurtz to quit annoying the superiors because it just causes trouble. Off balance, Kurtz agrees...
Melissa's stomping through the pouring rain and mud, angry at both guys, and knowing that neither were going to be considered!
Kaname says it was terrible for them all to meet that way, Melissa agrees.
Tessa says that it acutally sounds pretty normal for them....Melissa agrees, but says that that meeting doesn't compare to what happens...
A young woman on a VHS tape-
Mithril officers (Melissa included) watch as she explains the identity, intent, actions, and demands of the rebels who have kidnapped her (the daughter of the president of a small country). They want $5121760.52 ransom. If the demands aren't met, they imply the daughter may be in danger- for today she's dressed as a bunny girl, but they may make her wear a more ridiclous outfit tomorrow! They cut the girl off as she starts to make a passionate plea for her daddy...
The officers discuss the situation.
It's seems wierd, as if it is just a prank, but one passioned officer expalins that nothing is predicitable when it comes to a group of fanatic rebels.
('Rerua' is the country in question, and the government has asked for Mithril assistance. The officer is naming this 'Guerilla Hostage Rescue Operation!')
Tessa, in uniform, leaves the bath. She's been called to duty...but asks Melissa to tell her the rest later.
Kaname and melissa prepare to get out, but Kaname realizes this may be the only chance she may have to hear the rest of the story. So Melissa continues-
The camp was running short of full officers, so they had to have the trainees help. They were split into a few organized groups, with Melissa heading the 4-man rear guard. Unexpectedly the rebels had 3 Arm-Slaves, and the entire Mithril team, minus the rear guard, were immeditately subdued and captured.
Luckily, Melissa's team consisted of herself, Kurtz, Sousuke, and one other guy, Zimar. They wait, hidden, at the jungle's edge bordering the rebel's base, and listen to the reports of the other teams being taken.
Zimar urges Melissa to retreat- there's no way a team of only 4 people can win where an entire force had just been easily defeated. He wants to reorganize with rienforcements and return-
but melissa rejects that- they don't have the time. If they leave and return, they'll end up defending themselves just to go foward. She explains there is a 'flow' in a fight- that you have to go with it when you have the hope of doing something, or you'll definately lose.
Kurtz asks Sousuke what he's going to do....he's hiding something isn't he?
Sousuke's reply is 'not as much as you are'
Melissa can't hide her annoyance when she says 'so you guys really are worth something, aren't you?'
More cans- Kaname asks her what happened next. Melissa says they showed their real skills- the iffy pervert and the strictly average one-
Kurtz is laying in the grass with a sniper rifle, reporting in position. Sousuke is also in position, having been able to sneak up close to the partying rebel group unnoticed. Zimar reports ready....
The daughter is unhappily serving the rebel leader...
and Melissa interrupts his victory speech. She's standing atop their central building, aiming a launcher at them. She tells them that they will release the hostages, if they want to live. She tells them they are surrounded by 6 modern AS, and they they'll be spared if they give up.
The rebel leader calls her bluff, and delcares he has no intent to give up so soon after victory. Via the personal communications system Kurts tells Melissa he's chosen his target..but it's off by a meter, and he needs her to do something to make it move into his crosshairs. She turns and points at the selected AS, and promptly begins to insult it. She tells it that she can tell it's going to fall apart at any moment, that it's rusty, and surely its pilot is rusty as well. The rebels all aim at her, but the AS doesn't move- but then it does- it's pilot expresses how offended he is...so she lays it on some more- and her insults get so silly the rest of her team collectively 'huh?'s- but it works...
The AS steps foward and it's pilot yells- and it's just what Kurtz needs- he fires and his shot gets the AS right in the ass..I mean, right between the grates in the rear cooling vent.....a leg tembles and it goes down.
Now the shooting starts- the rebels can't see the enemy and doesn't know where they are, but shoots blindly, anyway. Sousuke dashes his way to the fallen AS and lets his gun do the talking when he confronts the pilot. Melissa's shooting, then ducking fire...
Sousuke's in the AS but runs into a problem- Melissa wasn't very far off about how rusty the AS is and it's leg falls away when Sousuke tries to make the thing stand up.
An explosion, and Melissa is thrown, thinking that this plan isn't going all that well. An AS aims at her- but she gets the chance to run away when the enemy's leg is attacked by the Sousuke's AS- although he's on the ground (totally legless), he manages to pull down the second AS and disable it.
The third (and final) AS turns and shoots- but the legless AS quickly pushes itself close enough to it to launch a disabling missile that takes it down. Everyone stares at the silly-looking legless AS that ended up victor...
The rebels raise their hands in the air, giving up.
Later-
Mithril has control of the rebels and their base.
Kurtz and Sousuke are offering their farewells to Melissa-
Sousuke tells her she's a good officer- she thanks him and he takes his leave with an offer of luck (very formal style)
Kurtz cheerfully and casually takes his leave, telling her it was fun and waving over his shoulder...
Melissa and Kaname are out of the bath dressed, and Melissa's still chugging-
Kaname asks her what happened about Melissa's recruitment mission, and Melissa says 'well, that was the beginning of course' (she ended up choosing Kurtz and Sousuke after all)
Melissa slides oopen the door to discover....Kurtz kneeling outside the door, embrassed about having been caught listening.
He nervously explains he's there for the runner-up prize to the bingo game... Melissa challenges him on his pick for prizes... but Sousuke walks up, and innocently confirms Tessa had agreed to help out any way she could...
Melissa crushes her beer can and angrily approaches Kurtz, who whimpers...
Sousuke and Kaname walk togther- he asks her if 'its really such a big deal to get upset about'- Kaname smiles, amused- but asks 'what?' when she realizes he's watching her. Nothing, he says...
He's giving her a tour of the Saanan- and there are a number of visual shots of Kaname getting to see the various areas of the sub. They meet up with the officer from the beginning who gives Kaname the snapshot of her with Tessa...
They are in the hanger. Kaname tells Sousuke it looks really different from before, he tells her that it's because it's prepped for the upcoming operation. He says 'the action's about to begin'
End
