A dinner invitation?
But why?
Count Hyde Baronial Residence
Count Hyde Baronial Residence I'm inviting you and Captain Abriel.
I'm inviting you and Captain Abriel.
The tiniest noble's mansion in all of the empire. Don't you get it?
The tiniest noble's mansion in all of the empire. Does this have anything to do with the death of your brother?
Yes.
Tomorrow would've been my brother's birthday if he were alive.
Obviously he can't be there to celebrate with us.
I want to have a party with people who had a connection with him.
Well...
...we might have had a connection, but maybe not the right kind.
I mean...
I understand your concerns...
...but what's past is past.
The only people who knew my brother in this star system...
...are you two and me.
You're not suggesting I celebrate his birthday all by myself?
I wasn't saying that, but...
All right.
Now, I've got a favor to ask you.
I want you to extend this invitation...
...to Captain Abriel...
...or rather, to Viscountess Paryunu, on my behalf.
I realize that it's my duty to personally invite her...
...but, you know...
...this is a rather personal issue... - Which means that...
...if Lafiel refuses this invitation...
...I can avoid going as well.
I'm sure you can...
I understand. I will go and...
Oh, right.
Even if the Princess refuses, you'll still come, right?
What?
I'd hate to have to cancel my reservation.
That would be embarrassing.
Of course!
Make sure you tell her that this is a personal invitation.
Okay! Ý'll be counting on you!
When I thought about it...
...I had never met her brother Klowal, the Baron Febdash.
But by the time I realized that...
...the transmission was over.
Remembrance Dinner
Banner of the Stars
Commander Atosuryua said that?
I was thinking of turning it down.
Why turn it down?
What?
I'm going.
You will be coming, too, won't you?
But it's to celebrate the baron's birthday!
You mean the late baron.
Uh, right...
In any case...
...why would you want to celebrate the birthday...
...of someone you killed?
To alleviate your guilt?
What is it then?
Celebrating the birthday of someone who has died...
...can have a special significance.
Like a funeral?
Not quite.
What happens if no one remembers you after you die?
Wouldn't it be sad if no one was upset that...
...you'd passed away?
It's depressing.
I guess so.
So, while we're still alive...
...I think it's good to take time...
...to remember those who died.
That way, maybe when it's our turn to go...
...someone might return the favor and remember us.
I guess so.
Well...
...in my case...
...even years after I die...
...I don't think there's anyone who's going to miss me.
Look after the ship while I'm gone.
I'll be back as soon as possible.
Yes.
If anything comes up, I'll contact you.
Are you there?
Diaho?
He doesn't seem to want to leave my side.
Even if I were gone...
...I doubt he'd even miss me.
So, I'll leave him with you.
If anything should happen to him...
I'll get a hold of you?
You may handle the situation.
I'll leave it to you.
We'll take care of Diaho, so you go enjoy yourselves!
I can't say I'm looking forward to this.
Let's get going...
...Supply Officer Lin.
Right.
Everything's ready over here.
Releasing the Calike.
I didn't know there were fancy restaurants in Dakul.
Of course there are.
Didn't you have places like that on your home planet?
Well, I was little, so I don't remember much...
...but I doubt we had anything like the ones you have here in space.
In any case...
...whatever we might have had in space...
...for Landers like us...
...we would've always gotten homesick.
Is that right?
What about you?
I mean, remember the time we landed in Sufugnoff?
You felt homesick for space, right?
Yes, I did.
But that was...
...because everything was so ridiculous.
You can't compare the two.
What's so funny?
By ridiculous, do you mean your disguise?
Everything was ridiculous.
The destruction of the Gosroth...
...being stopped by Baron Febdash...
...and the fact that our arrival at Sufugnoff was delayed...
...and our allies were attacked as a result.
And the emergency landing on the surface of the planet.
Yeah.
I guess it was ridiculous.
Out of the whole thing...
...you forcing me to dye my hair black...
...is something I'll never forget.
We didn't have a choice.
Otherwise, we would've been caught.
I'm not criticizing you.
Or was it actually meant as an insult?
Of course not.
You're right.
I wanted to get back to space.
Lafiel, is everything okay?
Don't make me out to be a fool.
Of course I'm okay!
But you know...
...I was pretty scared myself back then.
I don't know if I'd have made it on my own.
What about you?
Jinto...
Huh?
I think we've almost arrived.
Welcome to Mitsugoiwa.
Please identify yourselves.
This is First Princess Abriel Nei Dubrusk Paryunu Lafiel.
This is Count Jinto Lin Syune Rock Hyde.
We were invited by Unit Commander Atosuryua.
That has been confirmed.
Please proceed to number 16.
This is impressive!
There's even a separate dock for Calikes!
When needed...
...it allows the heads of planetary nations to eat together here.
People are opening doors...
This must be a pretty high-class restaurant.
The commander shares the same tastes as her late brother.
Yeah.
Actually, the commander has much better taste than the baron.
Uh, yeah. I think so.
Her Highness the First Princess...
...and His Excellency Count Hyde have arrived.
It was good of you to come here in honor of my late brother.
I would like to thank you on his behalf.
Your Highness. Your Excellency.
The pleasure is ours, Baroness.
Yes, thank you.
Well...
...I want us all to feel relaxed and comfortable.
Let's set aside our ranks in the Star Forces.
And I'll try my best to set aside your place in royalty.
I've taken the liberty of ordering.
I hope you don't mind.
Well, then...
...to my brother!
My brother's body is still heading toward the center of the galaxy.
Even if we had retrieved it...
...we'd have sent it into space anyway...
...so there's really no difference.
However...
...when we read my brother's will...
...it said that he wanted his body sent outward from the galaxy.
Oh, well.
I guess he won't mind, since he is dead, after all.
I'm very sorry to hear that.
It's all right, Your Highness.
My brother chose the path he wanted to take.
Besides...
...that ship of his was quite nice. Called'The Lady of Febdash'.
I don't think we could have found a more expensive coffin!
Although I never did like the name of that ship.
At first I thought he'd named it after me...
...but he told me he didn't.
Who else could he have named it after?
Who knows?
Maybe it was a secret lover.
But I don't think he was the type to name his ship after a lover.
Maybe he was convinced that...
...the only thing a true Abh can love...
...was the love of flying itself.
My poor brother.
The pressure to conform as an Abh was getting to him.
I see.
When you think about it, it's an odd combination.
It's a bit like...
Please don't mind me.
I'm a Lander by birth...
...and was only given the status of an Abh later.
Your father was from the same noble family as me.
As his genetically altered offspring, you are a first generation Abh.
And the captain...
...and her clan have been part of the Abh nobility from the beginning.
It's like the three of us are a model of the evolutionary process.
That's not true, Jinto.
We did not evolve.
We were merely adapted...
...as the Kin of the Stars.
That's right.
We can't evolve using artificial methods.
People can't create anything more than what they are.
Compared to our ancestors...
...we simply have an extra sensory organ...
...and we live longer.
Even so...
...that's quite an achievement.
This is...
What's the matter?
I'm sorry if I chose something you don't like.
No, it's not that.
It's just that this is...
...what the baron served when I dined with him at Febdash.
Oh, is that right?
Actually, I tried to reproduce the same menu my brother served you.
We found a record of it, so...
Is there something else?
No. Nothing at all.
I was just a little taken aback.
I had to leave your brother's dinner before we'd finished.
I didn't know about that part.
Well then...
...I hope you'll keep me company until the end of the meal tonight.
The circumstances aren't the same...
...but at least the menu is!
I thought it might be fun to...
...get a sense of how he entertained the Princess and the Count.
Actually, I wasn't there.
I was with the previous baron then.
In other words...
...I was having dinner with your father, Commander.
I didn't know that either.
In other words, the invitation was extended...
...only to the Princess?
That's exactly the sort of thing he'd do.
Baroness...
...I want you to be honest.
Are you sure you don't hate me?
Your Highness...
Despite our short history...
...we are a proud family.
How can our descendants preserve such pride...
...knowing I've invited you to dinner only to insult you?
You're right.
Forgive me.
It was a silly question to ask.
My brother and I...
I do have some wonderful memories about him.
But most of them date back to our childhood.
Once we grew up, we drifted apart.
And we didn't see each other very much.
This was one of my brother's favorites.
But your brother didn't seem to have much of an appetite.
Really?
He was probably just nervous.
He'd lose his appetite when he was nervous.
Thanks to that...
...you could tell something was up.
He just wouldn't touch his food!
I see.
So...
...what sort of food did your brother like?
Let's see...
As a child I remember he really liked pears boiled in syrup.
I was amazed at how he could eat something so sickly sweet.
I'm sure his tastes changed when he grew up.
The food here is a bit sweet, so he'd probably love it.
One thing my brother liked was dogs.
What?
As pets.
For one with such a complicated past...
...you still seem to have your cultural biases.
But he had a cat.
He firmly believed that cats were more suitable pets for an Abh.
Ever owned a cat?
Count?
Yes, I have. It is the Princess's nephew.
You sure are persistent.
Well, well...
Seems like some kind of inside joke.
From that moment...
...the commander took over.
She spent the evening sharing memories of her brother.
Lafiel became more comfortable as she listened carefully.
I then realized that this was...
...a sort of memorial to help her close a chapter.
All ships have now passed through the Aptic Gate!
All ships report their condition!
The operation to defend the Aptic System has now begun!
Ships seeking to re-supply...
...must follow the orders of local supply officers.
So, we have twelve fleets.
This is perfect, Nereis.
Take a look.
If we had more than twelve fleets...
...we would run out of supplies...
...and our range would be limited.
Besides...
...we don't have room to deploy a bigger fleet here anyway.
That's only if we hole up in the Sord, right?
Isn't that what you intended?
That's exactly what I intended.
But one should never presume such things, Nefee.
Then why don't we confront the enemy in Plane Space?
We're going to have to go up against at least 150 enemy fleets.
We can't expect much reinforcement to help us hold them at bay.
I know that.
If that's the case...
I said I know that, Nefee.
I know you well, so it doesn't bother me much...
...but you should change your attitude.
I'm not like this with anyone but you, brother.
I suppose I should feel honored.
Probably.
Look.
That's our battlefield.
So, it's going to be a regular space battle.
It's not very edifying...
...considering we have the power to roam around in Plane Space.
What are you hinting at?
This is a battle in regular space.
We can show them what we learned in Star Forces training.
A battle in regular space at such a scale...
Don't you think it's artistic?
It's most important that we win, right?
That's what you said.
What can you say if it turns into a form of art?
But...
...I won't make it my sole objective, dear brother!
As you know, I am the one with common sense.
If you're the one with such common sense...
...then I don't want to have anything to do with it...
...Nefee.
It looks like Admiral Bebaus has arrived.
You think this is going to be the main battleground?
Sounds like you don't want to fight.
I think I was more nervous about going to that dinner.
I'm only now feeling relieved.
And you seemed to be having an awkward time of it, too.
It's not my forte.
Mourning the dead.
The only time I ever talked to the Baron...
...was when I talked to him over the radio.
Not even a conversation.
It's not like I had a friendly conversation with him either.
Still, we did our duty.
To mourn his death.
"Our duty," huh?
I think I'd rather be forgotten...
...than have someone mourn me out of duty.
It's not a duty for the dead.
It's a duty for those left behind.
I see.
How was your dinner party, Captain?
Don't leer at me like that!
Anything happen while we were away?
No.
Nothing in particular.
The food was pretty average.
Um...
Which do you prefer, Samson, cat or dog?
Well, I like them both...
...but if I had to choose...
...I'd go for cats.
Is that...
...a hint of your strange eating customs?
Just a tiny one.
Don't worry.
I'm not so starved that I'd eat a friend's pet for dinner.
However...
...don't bring him to the bridge so much.
There's a lot of sensitive equipment there.
If the hairs from your kitty cat...
...cause some kind of malfunction...
...I might get a sudden urge to eat some rutimond...
Rutimond?
It's a delicacy made by boiling the meat of a certain animal.
I haven't tasted it in twenty years.
What popped in my mind then...
...was not the pathetic sight of Diaho being boiled up by Samson...
A friend's pet... Friend's...
A friend...
It's not like I had a friendly conversation with him either.
Still, we did our duty.
To mourn his death.
"Our duty," huh?
I think I'd rather be forgotten...
...than have someone mourn me out of duty.
It's not a duty for the dead.
It's a duty for those left behind.
Regardless...
...I'll already be dead when people are mourning for me.
I don't care how I'm remembered.
Besides, I have no family or friends left to mourn for me.
I don't even have a place I can truly call home.
That's what I thought.
Kizukanaikoto ga The things I did not notice
konnani takusan aru I didn't know there were so many
kyoumade no jibun ga I think of myself until today
nasakenaku omoete To be so pathetic
kuyashii kurai It's almost frustrating
haritsumeta kimochiga This tense feeling
massugu ni muite ireba As long as I keeping facing forward
setsunasa no nukumori This momentary warmth
hajimete shitta I understood it for the first time
kimi ga iruto When you are there
itsumo pink no namida ga nagareteru The pink tears are always flowing
kono mune no naka wo afureteru My heart is brimming with it
kimi ga dokoni itemo dareto hanashitemo Wherever you are and whoever you talk to
issho ni itaiyo soba ni ite I want to be with you, to be near you
tsunaida te kara yubisaki kara From our joined hands and our finger tips
karadajuu no omoi binetsu tsutawatte My body heat transmits the feelings inside
tomerarenai And I cannot stop it
In a place like this?
Shooting!
Enemy attack?
Is it a direct hit?
Space-time fusion!
Enemy assault ship...
...targeting on us!
Focus magnetic shield on the right hull!
Use the anti-proton cannon to shoot them down!
The ship will respond in ten seconds!
Eight... seven...
- We're not going to make it! ...six...
...five... four... three...
We've become stranded in Plane Space!
Next Episode... Escape in the Dark