Call me Lucky Luck.
There were many things that happened, and just yesterday,
I was hired to be an apprentice whale hunter.
This way!
Whale hunters and whales...
Yes, yes, yes, let me explain about that!
It all began over five hundred years ago in an era called the Space Bubble.
This was a time when the human race was at its peak
in terms of both scientific technology and economic strength
and they opened up the era of outer space colonization.
In this era, so many space ships were built that it was said that
space was crowded with ships to the ends of the universe.
But just like other bubbles, this one eventually burst.
And then many ships began to drift about the universe.
Ships of bankrupt businesses,
ships thrown out into space because of cancellations in development plans, and so on...
Since that era, discarding ships in space, or littering,
so as to reduce the cost of garbage collection became a habit that continues to this day.
Now, that's where the workers come in.
These people make a living selling any usable parts or cargo that they can collect.
At first, they were called scrap parts traders or space recyclers,
but at some point they started calling themselves whale hunters
and they came to call the drifting space ships whales.
Episode Two Whale Hunters
Doko e nagaretsuku no ka
Dare ga shitte iru no ka
Kurayami no naka mo akiramenakereba
Hikari wa kitto kurun da
Kodoku to ai ga tatakatte iru
Kaze to yuku tatoe tookute mo
Yume ga aru kagiri
lkite yuku nani ga atte mo
Kimi ga iru kagiri
By the way, Lucky, how old are ya?
I'm fourteen.
You're still a kid.
How old are you, Atre?
Anyway, I've been assigned by the Captain to be the apprentice's instructor!
Whether or not you'll become an actual employee is my responsibility!
So Atre, how old are you?
Just keep your mouth shut and follow me!
How old?
I'm eleven! Got a problem with that?!
Nope!
Here she is!
The Lady Whisker!
The Lady Whisker?
Exactly! King Kuron's number one whale hunter, Captain Ahab's ship!
Her name is the Lady Whisker!
This is our new apprentice, Lucky Luck.
Pleased to meet you.
The Ahab Group's super advisor in the mechanical field, Academias!
The crew calls him Aca.
He's also a programming genius.
You hear me, Atre, the next time you surprise me during work,
don't expect to live!
He might look like that, but he did graduate from a public science academy on Earth.
His grades were outstanding,
and they say it would have been possible for him to become
a high-level bureaucrat in the Federation's Department of Science.
Wow...
But now, he's just a whale hunter in the drifting place.
That's too bad.
It just means anything can happen in life. You can't live the way you plan it to be.
Oh, man! Doubles plus a Chankan?!
Damn, Barba! You're lucky today!
You've already met Speed King, right?
Right, yesterday.
Like his name says, he's a former road racer, born to race!
Even his parents were hard-core hot-rodders.
His mom was riding in a car like a dog when she gave birth to him.
What do you mean by riding like a dog?
Well, I mean...
She wasn't minding her manners and had her head stuck out the window.
As for Barba, no one actually knows much about him.
But rumors say that he might be royalty from a minority race
called the Tattoo Clan that migrated to the planet Daimama.
The Tattoo Clan?
Long ago, it was said that they ate humans.
Hey, Atre!
Doc, this is the apprentice we picked up yesterday, Lucky Luck.
Pleased to meet you!
Nice to meet you too. I am...
Quack doctor, Doc Christiansen.
Well, he's our chief doctor.
Chief? I'm the only doctor around! Don't go putting up a front!
You know our head chef, Cook, already, right?
Yeah!
There's not quite enough spice to his cooking,
but when push comes to shove, he does a really great job.
Last but not least...
This one's a little strange too.
There he is.
Atre, what day are we leaving for hunting?
Oh, no, I'm not here about work.
This is our new apprentice, the fourteen-year-old Lucky Luck.
Pleased to meet you.
This is Mutz Gunryu.
I'm meditating. Get out.
Yes, Sir! Yes! Yes, yes, yes, yes! Excuse us!
King Kuron's number one wielder of the super ceramic sword.
Hey, hey, Atre!
How did you get in such a great group?
Because you're, well, age-wise...
You'll see my greatness just as soon as we get out to the site.
You're doubting me, aren't you?!
No!
My father was Captain Ahab's partner for over ten years!
He was a great head engineer!
If he were alive now,
he would've been known to the ends of the universe as Captain Ahab's right-hand man!
He passed away? When?
Shut up!
Hey...
A newly-recruited apprentice has to start with cleaning first!
Ahab! Ahab! Ahab!
Hey, Lucey, a wonderful voice as usual.
Ahab! Ahab!
How is it, Aca?
Yes, Sir, just a little more.
I'm depending on you.
You can count on me, Sir!
I got it!
Where's the crew?
They should all be within the ship, Sir.
Okay! Let's assemble the crew.
Aye aye, Sir!
Right, right, right, just like that.
Assemble! Assemble! Assemble in the Captain's room!
The client has requested Lockmaster Rifles, 600 units.
Whether you're fearless or fear for your life,
your pay is dependent on your skill and what you catch!
So, where's the hunting site?
What kind of whale are we dealing with?
Whoa, Doctor, don't be so hasty.
Aca knows everything.
This is newly-obtained information.
The whale we were looking for is the DEE601 type,
otherwise known as Crawfish.
It was a capital ship of the Federal Defense Army in the Fifties.
This one should have at least five hundred, if not a thousand, Lockmasters hidden aboard.
The reason why it was a little bit of a hassle
was because the target ship is hiding inside a group of asteriods.
It's drifting at 120 space knots.
That's quite fast.
Tomorrow at 20:00 hours,
the target ship will arrive at the 32nd degree mark, to the southeast of Nantucket.
So we'll be departing around 18:00 hours then?
Bingo!
There you have it, men.
Whether you're fearless or fear for your life, let's get to work!
Aye aye, Sir!
Together with you, chocolate...
Lapapapa, oh, I'm lapapa, but I want to eat it... Together with you, chocolate...
Lapapapa, oh, I'm lapapa, but I want to eat it...
Here at King Kuron, it's said that there are over two hundred whale hunter groups gathered.
That's because the immense magnetic force of Nantucket's gaseous nebula
draws in whales from many tens of thousands of light years away.
Moreover, since they are derelicts with no owners,
the law can't say anything as to how the goods are dealt with.
So if you can make lots of money off of that, it's a sweet deal.
However, in reality, it's not all sweet. It was also known to be a very dangerous job.
Even though these whales are supposedly just drifting, they're moving at a very high speed.
I've heard that every year, there are over two hundred casualties and injuries.
So that's why normally, a whale hunting group consists of at least thirty people.
It's been said that there are a few groups with over a hundred members.
Do you understand what I'm trying to get at now?
Yes, the Ahab Group consists of only eight people.
Yet, out of the two hundred or so groups out here, it is said that they do the best work.
Lapapapa, oh, I'm lapapa...
This shows just how awesome Ahab and his crew are indeed. Lapapapa, oh, I'm lapapa...
Together with you, chocolate...
Chocolate that really stings! It's a new release! Buy it, okay? Together with you, chocolate...
Act now and you could win an amazing prize!
Remember this, on the day before we hunt,
it's the whale hunters' rule to party as hard as you can!
My, my, Sir Ahab, welcome!
We have special seats reserved for you.
Bring everyone the best food and drinks!
Everything is number one, Captain.
You're number one; our shop is number one!
Listen, men! The first person who catches something tomorrow
gets an added fifty bonus points!
Go, go, team!
What do they think they're doing? They think they're all that...
Leave them alone! That's the Ahab Group.
Not only are they really skilled as whale hunters,
but they're also really, REALLY skilled fighters!
Impressive, ain't it?
We have it shipped specially from Earth... Just kidding.
It's actually all synthetic food.
But it's good!
Looks like you weren't exactly living the good life either.
Eat some meat too, Mutz!
I'm on a diet.
Well then, let's dance!
Yeah!
Hey, let's dance too!
No, I'm okay.
Dance! Dance!
How about it, Mutz, why don't you dance with me once in a while?
I decline.
Ouch!
Hey, that hurt!
Sorry.
Hey, you're from Ahab's group, aren't you?!
So what if I am?
The finale of the pre-hunt party had begun.
Even if they say it's traditional, somehow it was...
So many groups of whale hunters looked as if they were just continuing their dancing.
They seemed to be bright and having fun.
Whoa, whoa...
To a whale hunter, the harpoon is holy.
It's not good to point them at people.
Fight me, Ahab! Because of you, I lost my prey three times!
A fight between men of the sea should be held where the meteor showers are
at the edge of the galaxy.
Wash your face and come back next time!
Too scared to fight?
Don't mess with me.
It's a billion light years too early for you to pick a fight with me!
All right! Captain Ahab!
You're so cool!
Open the gate!
Opening the gate!
Clear port!
Take a good look.
It's not guaranteed that we'll be able to return to King Kuron again.
Once a whale hunter goes out to hunt,
you have to be prepared for the worst.
Arrival at the target location is twenty-seven minutes from now.
Drift speed is 120 space knots, exactly as the data found yesterday.
All right, everyone, prepare for attack!
Aye aye, Sir!
Here we go! We're finally about to get started!
Hey, Atre, wait!
Move it, move it, move it!
You're in the way!
Hey, you're pretty fast, Mutz.
Hey! Let me in! Me too!
Ready? Go!
Hey, what happened? What were you doing?
This is so you'll be okay even in the vacuum of outer space.
We're coating our skin.
Well, even though the effect only lasts around two hours. Oh, excuse me.
Move it, move it!
Those who ride by themselves, those that go in pairs,
each person, with their individual style, boarded their different boats.
That day, for the first time, I was able to watch the whale hunters in action.
Front right, target Crawfish spotted!
Now! Seize it!
I'm going to get the first catch!
Be careful.
An army ship's automatic defense mechanism is tough to beat!
Not a problem! It's a piece of junk from fifty years ago!
An outdated device like that isn't...
Nice catch!
Captain! They're here!
They're brand-new Lockmasters.
Let's see... Even if I estimate on the low side, there are about fifteen hundred units.
Hold on! Captain, Mutz seems to have found something weird.
If it's valuable, bring it back!
No, doesn't look to be anything like that.
It seems to be frozen and stuck to the bottom of the ship.
Report it!
All right, I will!
What?! What is this?
It's a corpse!
Corpse! Corpse!
I didn't quite get it yet at that point in time.
I didn't know that this was my first meeting with Dew, who when the time came,
would influence not only Captain Ahab's destiny, but the destinies of us all.