Chapter 11: My Dad Just Crashed the Hangar (Again)

The hangar shook with the rhythm of clashing metal. Sparks fell as Hana’s photon blades cut through two training drones quickly. Their synthetic armor hissed, liquefying into glowing shards that scattered across the deck. She landed lightly, eyes flicking to her HUD.

[Protocol Sync: 94% Resonance Stability: Acceptable]

“Not bad,” she muttered, wiping sweat from her jaw. “Could use faster regen though.”

A tech-officer monitoring the test from the sidelines swallowed nervously. “Uh, Princess Hana, we can, uh, recalibrate the next set.”

He didn’t finish. The hangar’s far door exploded inward with a thunderous crash.

A scorched shuttle skidded across the floor, smoke pouring from its engines. Inside, someone was yelling over the roar of metal.

“Who the hell builds landing bays this damn small?!”

The ramp slammed open, and out stepped a broad-shouldered man in half-worn armor, his cape trailing smoke. His hair was a mess, his grin cocky enough to make the technicians salute in panic.

“Did you miss me?” he asked.

Hana blinked. “Dad?”

King Hiroshi of Earth cracked his neck. “In the royal flesh, kiddo.”

A blue hologram flared beside him, coalescing into Queen Emica’s composed image. Her arms were crossed, eyes half-lidded. “You destroyed another shuttle.”

“I landed it!” Hiroshi protested. “Mostly. It's technically still in one piece.”

“You crashed it,” she said evenly.

“Semantics.” He turned toward Hana, eyebrows raised. “Look at you, already sparring before breakfast. Don’t tell me you forgot your old man’s rules.”

“Rule one,” Hana recited with a sigh. “Never stop training.”

“Rule two?”

“Never let your opponent monologue.”

“Atta girl.” He grinned. “You’ve grown taller.”

“Or maybe you just shrunk,” she shot back.

The nearby tech tried not to laugh and failed, quickly hiding his face behind a clipboard. Emica pinched the bridge of her nose. “Hiroshi, could you please act like a king for five minutes?”

He winked at her. “Five minutes without teasing you? Cruel and unusual punishment. I'm taking my lunch break now, emotionally speaking.”

Her hologram glitched slightly, likely from irritation. Hana coughed, trying to hide a smile.

“So,” Hana said, changing the subject. “Where’ve you been all this time? Mom said you were handling orbital command.”

“I was,” Hiroshi replied, pulling off his gauntlet. “Neptune’s outer colonies are a mess. The corruption’s spreading faster than expected. My fleet held them off for a week, but they’ve got something new, Rin’s pet monsters. She calls them the Abyssal Guard.”

“Figures she’d start a fan club,” Hana muttered.

“They’re not fans. They’re killers.” His tone dropped, serious now. “Each one’s using a fragment of the Black-Type core. If Rin’s their general, these freaks are her bodyguards. They hit like a meteor and regenerate like a cockroach.”

Itsuki, who had been creeping into the hangar for his own training session, immediately froze and backed away. “Regenerate? Like a cockroach? I’m going back to the lab. Those bugs carry everything.”

Emica’s projection flickered closer. “That explains the energy readings. We detected corrupted Core signatures in the Neptune belt. Hiroshi, did you engage them?”

“I took a few hits, sure.” He rolled his shoulder. “One of them punched through my barrier. Damn near dislocated this arm. Don’t worry, though, I dislocated his head in return.”

Hana winced. “Ew. Did you use a disinfectant spray on your gauntlet afterwards?”

He chuckled. “Come on, you’d have done worse. But speaking of disgusting things, I did see a creature down there that looked suspiciously like a mutated lobster claw holding a spatula. Very strange.”

Emica’s projection sighed. “Bravado aside, they’re dangerous. Hana, your squad departs in forty-eight hours.”

Hana saluted automatically. “Understood.”

“Wait,” Hiroshi said, grinning again. “Before you go saving the universe, how about a little warm-up? For old times’ sake. I need to work up an appetite.”

Hana eyed him. “You serious?”

“Always. Don’t hold back. I missed seeing those Aetherblades flash.”

“Mom?” Hana asked the hologram.

Emica gave a faint smile. “Try not to destroy the hangar again. That paperwork goes straight to my desk.”

The king and his adopted daughter took positions opposite each other. Hana summoned her photon blades, sleek twin swords glowing magenta. Hiroshi raised his gauntlets, kinetic barriers humming with golden light.

“Round one,” he said. “Royal versus royal.”

“Don’t cry when you lose,” Hana countered.

“Funny,” he replied. “Your mother said the same thing on our wedding night.”

“Dad!”

He laughed, then launched forward. The clash of light and pressure echoed through the hangar, sending remaining training drones scattering. Hana’s HUD spiked.

[Opponent Detected: King Hiroshi / Class: Paladin Lv. 61 Threat Level: High]

She pivoted aside, blades sparking against his kinetic wall. Each strike left trails of light across the air. Hiroshi swung his fist; Hana ducked, sliding under and kicking his legs out. He stumbled but caught himself with a barrier pulse that sent her flying back toward a stack of maintenance crates.

“Ow,” she groaned, flipping upright midair. “You fight dirty. You used the floor.”

“It’s a family tradition!” he called, already closing the distance. “I’m saving the clean moves for the final boss!”

Hana surged forward again, her twin blades locking with his shields in a burst of blue-white energy. The force shattered nearby crates and definitely ruined the tech-officer's attempt at organizing the tools. Another drone tried to intervene and promptly exploded.

From her hologram perch, Emica watched calmly, sipping a cup of virtual tea. “Boys, always making a mess.”

“They’re bonding, Your Majesty,” muttered a different tech, taking cover behind a fusion generator.

Hana finally managed to break through his guard with a clean uppercut. Hiroshi stumbled, clutching his chest, then started laughing.

“Not bad! You almost cracked my Sync with that one.”

“Almost?” she panted. Her chest armor felt hot.

He winked. “I said almost. But I’m definitely going to need a triple serving of protein now.”

Her blade hovered near his throat. “Wanna test that?”

Emica’s voice cut through the tension before Hiroshi could reply. “Enough. Save your energy for the real war. The paperwork is already stacking up.”

Both turned toward her projection. The humor drained away, replaced by the seriousness of command.

“The Neptune offensive begins at dawn,” she continued. “Rin is consolidating her forces near the southern rim. If her Abyssal Guard is deployed, Earth’s fleets will need you both in position. The Black-Type cores are our priority.”

Hiroshi lowered his fists. “Guess playtime’s over. Time to get my armor checked for lobster-spatula stains.”

Hana nodded. “I’ll assemble the Elite.”

He smirked. “And I’ll make sure the fleet’s ready. Maybe this time I’ll actually land the shuttle instead of using the emergency brake inside the building.”

Emica’s hologram narrowed her eyes. “You won’t be flying.”

“What? Why not?”

“Because I’d like the hangar to still exist when you return. Itsuki just finished sanitizing it.”

Hana snorted a laugh. Hiroshi threw up his hands in defeat. “You two gang up on me every time. It's an organized attack.”

“Because it’s easy,” Hana said.

“Because it’s deserved,” Emica added.

He sighed, shaking his head but smiling. “Fine, fine. Let’s go save the galaxy, ladies. And then I’m getting a hero’s meal, a huge one, delivered to my private quarters.”

As the hangar lights dimmed and the launch sirens began to wail, Hana glanced at her HUD one last time.

[Mission Objective Updated: Deploy to Neptune / Priority: S-Rank Protocol Sync: 96% – Stable]

She sheathed her blades and looked toward the stars. The real fight was about to begin.