SD Gundam Fan Fiction ❯ SD Gundam Force ❯ Chapter Two: Soul Drive, Activate! ( Chapter 3 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

“Soul Drive, activate!”
Captain Gundam swung his fist through the air, but nothing happened.
“Fist force! Punching power! FIGHT! COME ON!”
Nothing. No response. No fiery power coursing through his circuits, no golden sparks. Nothing.
He dropped his arms in defeat and shook his head.
The concerned voice of Chief Haro came through the darkness. “Any luck, Captain?” he asked sadly.
“Nothing,” Captain replied. “It’s just as I feared, sir. I can’t get it to activate…”

In the realm of the Dark Axis, a group of laser guns descended from the sky and floated on either side of the Magna Musai’s top compartment.
The Commander, leader of the Dark Axis, appeared only as faint silhouette against a red screen of glass, yet his voice echoed in a way that made him both close and far away. “Zapper Zaku,” he began harshly, “I am told a Gundam has appeared in Neotopia.”Shaking with fright, Zapper Zaku stood before the Commander.
“That- that’s right, sir,” he answered. Then, gaining some confidence, he stood up straighter. “And we have a full intelligence report ready for you.”
A Zako soldier clambered up beside him, trembling.
“Well, show some intelligence, stupid!” Zapper Zaku banged the soldier in the back of his head, an a hologram emitted from the Zako’s eye.
An image of Captain Gundam appeared. “His name is Captain Gundam, sir,” Zapper Zaku explained, “and he’s dangerous. Just ask the unit who brought us this report. …You’ll, uh, find him in the trash heap, sir.”
“Captain Gundam. Interesting,” the Commander whispered. “I never thought there would be a Gundam in that dimension…”
“Well, now there is, sir, and he’s causing a lot of trouble!” Zapper Zaku was so busy being angry at Captain that he’d failed to notice the red lasers closing in. “Why can’t he just mind his own business? I mean, here we are, trying to conquer Neotopia, not bothering a soul, and then here comes this Gundam with a chip on his armor-plated shoulder who-”
“Enough!” The lasers fired, and the Zakos below covered their eyes, shrinking away from the light and heat.
“Aaah! OW! H-Hot!”
Groaning, Zapper Zaku picked himself off up the ground, his armor smoldering as he coughed up mouthfuls of soot.
“A second failure will not be tolerated,” the Commander growled. “Is that understood, Zapper Zaku?”
Zapper Zaku was still coughing. “Y-Yes, sir, Commander- sir,” he managed to wheeze.
Then he turned to the Zakos, pulled out his guns, and shouted, “All right! Our new number-one priority is to crush Captain Gundam! Now get out there and FIND ME THAT GUNDAM!”
He fired. The Zakos scrambled out of the way.

Nahna gurgled happily as she watched her mother, her little fingers grasping playfully at a butterfly as it bobbed around her curls.
“You’re being such a good girl while Mommy grades these tests,” Keiko cooed as she worked on her laptop.
Then she turned and gazed, confused, at the small blue shed in the backyard. How Shute had managed to cause that hole in the roof, she’d never know…

“Nope. Not this one. Or that one…Or that one…”
Shute sat at his desk, which was now littered with sketches and drawings of Captain, glaring angrily at the computer. He was going over a list of every robotic model in Neotopia, yet no blueprints of Captain- or anything like him- popped to the surface.
“Not that one, either! Aw!”
With a defeated groan, Shute fell from the chair and lay on the cool floor of the workshop.
“It’s no use. I can’t find him...”
He picked a sketch up from the floor and gazed at it in despair.
“I wonder where Captain is…” he breathed. “…I’ll probably never see him again.” He put the drawing back on the floor, looked up at the sky through the hole in his workshop roof…and his mouth fell open.
Something blue and shimmering was coming down at an alarming rate, right over his head.
He screamed.

BANG!

Nahna burst into frightened wails as a puff of smoke rose from the shed.
Keiko gasped, knocking over her coffee cup and sending papers fluttering to the floor.
“Oh, that Shute…” she panted, one hand over her wildly-beating heart. “He better be working on his homework…”

“Good afternoon, Shute.”
Shute, backed up against the wall, gasped as the stranger came closer.
“To make a long story short, I need your help-”
Shute held up his hands. “Hold it there, freakazoid!” he cried. “Who do you think you are?! You- you just barge in here without knocking and-”
The stranger looked at Shute in a mixture of bewilderment and heartache. “But…Shute, have you deleted me from your memory already?”
“What are you talking about? Who are you?”
There was something familiar about the robot’s golden headpiece and his mouth, but it couldn’t be…
The stranger lifted his head and stared at a framed sketch on the wall.
His headpiece flipped itself over and a slatted visor slid over his mouth.
Shute gave a strangled gasp. “Ca-”
He could suddenly image the rest: the rifle, the shield, the helmet. It was Captain!
It was him!“Now do you recognize me?” he asked.
Shute threw his arms around Captain’s body. “Yay, Captain’s back, Captain’s back!” he cheered.
“I will remember to knock next time,” Captain promised.
“Sorry!” Shute was still kicking his legs out in a dance of joy. “It’s just that, looking like that, I didn’t recognize you!”Captain’s headpiece and mouth returned to normal. “The existence of combat-mobile citizens like myself is considered top-secret,” he explained.
“Oh!” Shute leapt around Captain, getting a closer look. “So you disguise yourself because nobody is supposed to know you’re here, right?”
Instead of answering, Captain picked Shute up and put him by the wall. Then he turned and began punching at something Shute couldn’t see.
Shute watched in confusion for a few minutes. When nothing happened, Captain stared at his fist and muttered, “I knew it. It’s not working.”
“Well, at least you look cool doing it,” Shute supplied, not completely sure what ‘it’ was.
Captain turned to face him, head first, then the rest of his body. “I thought if I saw you, it would react,” he explained.
“What would react? What are you talking about?”
A compartment swung open from Captain’s chest, and once more Shute saw the flickering, fiery orb, with its gleaming rings and bright blue light.
“The most vital unit inside of me: the Soul Drive.”
The boy vividly remembered the night it had happened: the fire, the explosions, and the mysterious golden lights resonating from Captain’s body.
“Oh, yeah,” he breathed, mystified.
“During that fight,” Captain continued as the Soul Drive withdrew into its compartment again, “the unit activated all of a sudden, and I was able to gain such incredible powers…”
“Yeah!” Shute jumped up and punched the air. “You really unloaded!”
“But, Shute,” Captain pointed out, “I don’t understand why the Soul Drive activated as it did.”
“Oh.”
“I’ve tried all sorts of things since then, but nothing’s working...”
“…Hey,” Shute asked, intrigued, “can I touch it?”
“…I…suppose…”
Shute moved one hand towards the Soul Drive. “Will it burn me?” he wondered, biting his lip.
“We’ll soon find out.”
“Oh, that’s reassuring…” Shute closed his eyes.
He placed one, then both hands on the orb. A few seconds passed, and he smiled.
“It feels warm…But not too hot…We have to get it to work, Captain.”
He pulled his hands away from the Soul Drive and thought.
“Hmm...Oh, I know! We’ll practice that move together!” Shute jumped up and punched the air again.
Captain looked confused. “Practice?”
Shute turned to the robot and explained, “Until we get the Soul Drive activated.”
He smiled. “Ah, like training. I see…Thank you, Shute.”

Keiko was so focused on her computer that she didn’t see Captain rocket out of the shed, with Shute hanging onto his back. She only heard her son’s faint, happy shouts.
“Looks like somebody finally enjoys doing his homework,” she chuckled, smiling at Nahna.
Nahna gurgled and gazed up at the sky, watching her brother fly away.

Deep in the woods, a small Zakarello Gate opened.
Out came four little Zako soldiers. At first they landed (rather ungracefully) in a pile, but as the gate vanished, they jumped to their feet.
As they snuck alongside the streets of Neotopia, they tried to find Captain Gundam. They hid in the bushes as a police patrol walked by.
“You know, Shorty,” one said, addressing his partner, “sometimes I get the uneasy feeling that I’m being watched.”
One Zako watched them intently through his view screen, which was imprinted with the figure of Captain Gundam. The patrol members didn’t match the silhouette, and the Zako’s eye formed a little red X.
“No match, Zako,” he said. They left.
Then they tried again, at the construction site. They looked at the workers. They looked at the attendants. They looked at the one in the middle.
Again came the red X. “No match, Zako.”
They sighed.
This was going to take awhile…

“That’s it!”
Shute assumed a fighting pose.
“Like this?” Captain asked, imitating him. They began to punch at the air.
Shute coached him in energetic shouts. “Put your hips into it! Extend further! Come on, Captain! You can do it! Hang in there!”Nothing happened.
“It’s just not activating,” Captain sighed. “We are accurately repeating our motions from that night, right, Shute?”
“Hmm,” Shute mumbled. “We must have missed something…Hey, I know. Maybe you’re trying too hard.”
“You mean…relax?”
It was just then that the Zakos walked down the streets, their heads hung in a picture of loss.
A little puppy scampered by. The Zakos lifted their heads and looked at it.
There was a pause. Then…
“No match,” said one, and they all groaned.
A voice drifted to them down the road.
“Let’s loosen up. Give it a try, Captain.”
The Zakos smiled.

“Roll your eyes back and forth…Good. Now try turning your head…”
As Shute swung his head back and forth, Captain’s turned in circles.
“Good!” Shute laughed. “Spin your arms…Great! You’re a natural.”
“And how is this related to the Soul Drive?”
“I- Trust me. Can you do it any faster?” he challenged.
“You mean like this?” Captain’s head and arms spun so fast that his body became a blur.
“Wow!” Shute marveled. “Talk about a spin cycle!”
The first Zako poked his had through the trees and watched. But Captain was going too fast to scan. Confused, the Zako’s head began spinning, too. The others looked at him, worried.
“Now…stop!”
Captain stopped spinning just long enough for the Zako to get a look at him. But the citizen-adapted form of Captain included no weapons, so to the Zakos, it was…
“…No…match…Zako…”
&# 8220;It hasn’t worked, Shute,” Captain said. “I guess I’m just wired too tightly.”
“Well, maybe some more exercise can tire you out,” Shute considered, “and then you’ll finally relax.”
Unnoticed by the both of them, the Zakos carried their still-spinning partner away through the shadows with defeated sighs.

After much more exercising, Shute gave a heavy sigh and flung himself down on the grass. Captain did the same.
“Do you think this posture will help activate the Soul Drive?” he asked.
Shute shook his head and chuckled.
“I fail to see the humor. Please explain.”
“It’s nothing…Hey, Captain, don’t you think that cloud looks like a turkey?”
“A turkey? Shute, clouds are accumulations of condensed atmospheric water vapor. They aren’t life forms, much less birds.”
Shute resisted the urge to laugh again. “That’s not what I meant. I mean it’s shaped like a turkey. See?”
“…Oh.”
Captain nodded, and Shute started pointing out dozens of shapes.
“And there’s an elephant. And a butterfly. And then…that one’s you, Captain!” Shute laughed and pointed at the bulging cloud-Captain.
“Am I really that fat?” Captain asked self-consciously.
“Nah, the sky always adds about ten pounds…” Shute laughed. “Let’s see…And that’s apple…An umbrella…Oh, a rabbit…Um…”
“An octopus,” Captain finished with a dreamy tone in his voice.
Shute beamed. “See? You can do it, too, Captain.”
“And the one next to the octopus is a fish, perhaps?”
“Huh…Oh yeah! It also looks like an airplane.”
“An airplane…Yes! I see it now.”
Shute smiled at him.
Somewhere within Captain came the deep feeling again. The Soul Drive spun faster, the flame grew brighter, and he began to glow.
“Ah-” Shute gasped.
Captain gazed in awe down at the light and slowly got to his feet. A fire started dancing in his eyes as his fists lit up.
Captain gasped, lifting his gleaming hands. “It’s…”
“Captain? Captain!”
Shute had no idea what was going on, but Captain looked absolutely enchanted. The blue of his eyes dimmed as the fire became brighter…
“Wait…” Shute whispered, a slight smile tugging at his lips. “That isn’t the…Soul Drive, is it?”
Something dark fell over him. Shute looked up.
The same square ships that had arrived the day he met Captain were landing all around them. Captain watched, too, and the light from the Soul Drive faded.
Once again, the light-blue soldiers emerged, and they saluted crisply.
“Captain,” one said, “Chief Haro wishes to see you back at the base. It is imperative that you return immediately.”
“Oh. Don’t tell me it’s time for you to go, Captain. You just got here,” Shute sighed.
He held onto Captain’s arm, pleading. “And we almost had the Soul Drive working that last time. If we just-”
Captain didn’t look at him. He took Shute’s hand and gently pushed it away.
“Orders are orders, Shute,” he said softly. Then he climbed the ramp to one of the ships, and the door began to close.
“Captain…You’ll come back, right?”
Captain didn’t reply.
The other soldiers were disappearing onto their ships, too.
Shute bolted for Captain’s fading shadow. “Wait, please! Don’t leave! Captain! Captain!”
The cries became muffled, then quiet as the door shut.
Captain hung his head.
The ships took off, releasing such powerful bursts of air that Shute was slightly pushed back. But when he thought of his friend leaving, he grabbed his rollerblades and started after them.
“Captain!”

“What?! You searched high and low for Captain but you still can’t find him?!” The four Zakos shuffled miserably on the spot. Zapper Zaku shook with rage.
“Oh, you fools!”
In an instant, the guns were out. The Zakos fell off of the platform and scattered, screaming.
“He has to be somewhere! Curse that Captain Gundam!” growled Zapper Zaku. “We’ll just have to go and smoke him out! Let’s go, Komusai! Zakarello Gate, open!”
The red ship, carrying the soldiers and Zapper Zaku, turned towards the dimensional gate and charged it at full speed, then disappeared.

Chief Haro sighed.
“Captain, I thought you understood that your existence is meant to remain top-secret.”
“…Yes, sir,” Captain replied. He didn’t look up.
“We really can’t have you running off like this,” the chief continued. “Now please explain, what made you go to see that boy again?”
“…Well, I…just did, sir.”
“Was it by any chance the Soul Drive?”
“…Yes, Chief, sir.”
“I see. Even though you’re aware that we’re sparing no expense to study the Soul Drive here, at the base?”
“I just-”
“This isn’t like you, Captain,” Chief Haro exclaimed. “From now on, all such activities are prohibited. Are we clear?”
Before Captain could even think, the words had burst from him.
“But Shute is important to me!”
“Oh? And how so?”
“I’m fond of him, Chief Haro… Shute is…my friend,” he murmured, whispering the last part. He touched one hand to his Soul Drive compartment.
“Captain, please gain control of your emotions,” said Chief Haro softly, but Captain didn’t listen.
“I sense that the time I’ve spent with Shute has…changed something deep within me,” Captain continued, “and that change, sir, is somehow related to the Soul Drive.”
A strange hotness suddenly welled up behind his eyes, even though he knew he was incapable of tears. He swallowed a heavy pressure in his throat.
“…Request permission…to spend more time with Shute.”
“You need to understand. You are a warrior, created to fight the Dark Axis. By being friends with the boy, you will only be putting him in danger. Is that clear?”
“But-”
“If you truly care about the boy, that’s all the more reason not to be with him: if you care about his safety.”
Captain froze.
Chief Haro was right. The first time he’d even met Shute, he had been in danger- but only as an innocent bystander. If the Dark Axis discovered their friendship, Shute would undoubtedly become a target.
He could get hurt.
Even…killed.
Because of Captain.
“…Yes, Chief Haro, sir.”

Suddenly, the interior of the ship turned red as an alarm blared.
“The Dark Axis is appearing at the harbor district! They’re causing damage.”
“There’s no time to return to base,” Chief Haro murmured. “Captain, we’ll need to use the Re-Equip Ring. This is the first time it’s been used in the field- are you ready?”Captain saluted crisply.
“Ready, sir.”

Shute glided along underneath the ships. He turned his head to the right and saw a giant, silver ring coming at the ship, mostly hidden by a thick white cloud.
“What is that?”
A strange face sat atop the ring. It had no nose or mouth, just two black dots for eyes, and an aviator’s cap. It looked rather like a big green tennis ball.
Glistening on the ring were three words: SUPER DIMENSIONAL GUARD.

A door swung outward from one of the ships as they circled the ring, and Captain marched out on deck.
“Okay, Captain,” Chief Haro ordered, “launch!”
“Roger that.”
Captain knelt down, preparing to jump, when something caught his eye- and he saw Shute racing at top speed beneath them.
Shute? What is he doing?! He could get hurt!
The ring was drawing nearer...
Captain clenched his fist, then straightened up.
“Captain Gundam, ready.”
With that, he plunged.
“Gundam Force!”

Shute watched, mesmerized, as crackles of green lightning emerged from the ring, pulling Captain closer.
Once he was inside the ring, the sparks coursed around him, and he began to change…

Captain’s eyes grew dark as a dozen mechanical arms spread out from the ring. They grabbed his helmet, arms, and legs, replacing them with battle armor. He was handed his shield and rifle.
His metamorphosis finished, the jets on Captain’s back kicked in. He rocketed from the ring, becoming naught but a faint star in the distance.
“Captain has completed transformation to combat mode. He is currently on route to the scene.”
“Good luck, Captain,” Chief Haro breathed.

Shute watched with wide eyes.
…So that’s how it is…
Captain may have been trying to avoid him- but Shute certainly wasn’t going to let himself be avoided.
He wouldn’t lose his friend.
He set off after Captain as fast as his skates could carry him.

The Zakos were everywhere. They chased and shot at the workers. They blew up everything in sight. A few of them even tried chasing the cranes.
Zapper Zaku watched from the Komusai and laughed.
“Run wild! Go crazy! With all of this havoc, Captain’s sure to show up-”
A star glimmered in the distance; there was a flash, and then Captain appeared in the heart of the chaos.
“Ah, right on time!”
“I have been granted special dispensation to use firearms in the defense of Neotopia,” Captain called out, readying his rifle.
The Zakos, hearing Captain’s voice, left the poor workers alone and started firing on him.
Captain ducked beneath the bullets and fired his rifle. In their hurry to avoid he blasts, some of the soldiers went somersaulting over, and others were knocked to the sides.
“We’ve been waiting for you, Captain!” Zapper Zaku taunted. “It’s not polite to be late for your own party. Have some punch!”
He fired.

Shute almost ran into some trouble down the street. A crowd of people were amassed at the corner, watching the fiery explosions issuing from the harbor in fascination. The police were trying to herd them away.
“This road is closed to civilian transport for the moment. We are sorry, but please find a detour to the other parts of the city-”
As they busied themselves with the curious onlookers, Shute crept underneath the bushes and rushed past.

“Slippery little devil, aren’t you?” Zapper Zaku snarled, still firing.
Captain ran towards a pile of metal crates for cover, holding the shield over his head. But as he flattened himself against the sides of the box, he saw one of the bullets head for an explosive nearby-
He sprang up the sides of the crates to avoid the ensuing blast, and then Captain realized that he was now at the perfect elevation to fire. He jumped.
Watching Zapper Zaku closely through his rifle-adapter lens, Captain saw the villain drop from his ship, laughing, and land on the head of…
“A crane?”
Captain landed slowly, confused.
“That’s right, Captain!” The crane looked rather frightened as Zapper Zaku raised his guns above his head. “Not so bold against an evil crane robot, are you?”
The crane didn’t look the least bit evil, so Captain raised his weapon and challenged, “Take your best shot.”
“I don’t need my best shot to destroy you!”
With a wild laugh, Zapper Zaku lifted something into the air. It was a small, red, stubby metallic cone. He brought the cone down through the air and clapped it to the forehead of the crane.
Part of the cone slid open, revealing a shiny red eye.
The eye flashed.
The crane gave a pained cry and thrashed back in forth in such a display of distress that Captain felt his joints stiffen. Then its eyes flickered, turned red, and narrowed.
It roared.
“Surprised at our new technology, Captain? Anything we attach this Control Horn to, like a crane, for instance, instantly becomes a puppet of the Dark Axis, and no strings attached, either!”
Ignoring the bad pun, Captain raised his rifle- but then a shadow fell over him.
The crane was swinging a crate at him!“Going down!” Zaku snarled.
Captain jumped back, but the sudden movement caused his rifle to slip from his hand, skidding away.
“Oh, you wost your itty-bitty wifle!” Zapper Zaku cried. “Too bad, ’cause now I have three cranes!”
As he spoke, two other cranes rolled over, wearing the same Control Horns.
“Oh, no…” Captain whispered, his confidence faltering. “O-Okay…”
He stiffened his resolve and clenched his fists.
“Bring it on!”
Three containers came swinging down. Captain jumped to avoid one and spun around the other, but the third crane, coming from his left, caught him off guard and relieved him of his shield.
Zapper Zaku took the opportunity and ordered his crane to strike again. Captain was flattened against the side as the crane spun him around. And the soldiers of the Dark Axis took great joy from this.
“Yee-hah!” Zapper Zaku sang over the Zakos’ jeers, watching with a wide grin. “Swing your partner round and round, then crush his head on the ground!”The crane released him and the container pushed Captain to the ground. He began to lift it up, but then Zaku’s called, “Look out below!” and three more crates fell to crush him.
Captain couldn’t budge.
“Feeling kind of boxed in, Captain?” Zapper Zaku and a group of his Zakos landed on the top container, aiming their guns right at his face.
“I have you right where I want you, Captain, and this time there’s no escape. I’m now going to avenge myself and get rid of you once and for all.”
The heavy Gatling gun on his back swung down.
“I wish I could say it was nice knowing you! Buh-bye!”
“CAPTAIN!”The Zakos looked around, startled, and Captain saw the wiry figure of Shute coming at them from the sides.
“Hey, Captain!” he called.
“Shute?” Captain gasped, his circuits rippling in shock. “N-No, go back!”“No way, dude!”
Zapper Zaku made an enraged noise and started to turn to the boy.
“Leave!” Captain choked, shaking his head wildly. “It’s too dangerous!”
“I’m not gonna abandon you!” Shute was leaning over a railing now, and Captain could see his face. His eyes were wide with a mixture of pain and confidence. “I’m gonna stay right at your side, and we’ll beat these guys together!”
“S-Shute…”“Come on!” Shute screamed, cheering for Captain once again. “You can do it!”A warmth spread through Captain. He felt the crates becoming lighter…
Shute was his friend.
And as long as he was by his side, he could do anything.
“…Yes, I can!”
Zapper Zaku leaned back in shock as the Gundam below suddenly turned a deep gold.
“What?!”
“Soul Drive…” Captain cried, his eyes lighting up, “ACTIVATED!”
The crates, the Zakos, and one frantic Zapper Zaku all rose to the clouds as Captain threw the weight from his body. They rose into the air, mere pinpricks against the sun.
Now they were falling back down, and Captain was coming up at them-
“Oh, here comes the bad part!” Zapper Zaku whimpered.
CRACK!
Captain’s radiant hands crashed into Zapper Zaku’s chin.
“…Ooh, that’s gonna leave a mark-” Zapper Zaku grunted.
Then he went flying through the Zakarello Gate on the horizon, his soldiers not too far behind.
The containers went flying in all directions and knocked the Control Horns from the cranes. They grabbed the Komusai and threw it into the Gate after the Zakos, seconds before the portal faded away.
Captain looked back down at himself.
“Soul Drive, deactivate,” he murmured, and the light faded away.
Shute was at his side in an instant.
“That was amazing! You totally knocked those goons back to the next dimension! Yeah!”
He did a happy little dance on his rollerblades and jumped up, cheering.

Chief Haro gazed at Shute from a camera in the base.
“…Interesting,” he breathed. “Maybe…”
He ran his gloved fingertips across the glass of a photograph on his desk, and smiled behind his mask.
“…Yes…”

Shute drew a picture of Captain’s everyday disguise and hung it next to the battle sketch.
He gazed upon the picture for a moment, but then his smile faded, and he slumped into his chair.
…I miss him already…
There was a gentle knock at the door. Shute lifted his head.
“Mom? You’re home already?”
No reply.
But then there was a rush of air, and something landed behind him…
“Good afternoon, Shute.”
Shute jumped up, beaming.“Captain! You came back!”“This time, with my Chief’s official approval,” Captain informed him excitedly.“Huh?”“Chief Haro has realized that your assistance is necessary in activating the Soul Drive.”
“Which means…?”
“It means,” Captain said, and his eyes danced, “I will be able to see you whenever I want from now on!”
“That’s awesome!”
Shute threw his arms around his friend, but their reunion was interrupted by a voice.
“Shute?”
“Oh, no, my parents,” Shute breathed, pulling away from Captain.
“I suppose I should hide here in your room?” Captain asked. But Shute laughed and shook his head.
“No way, dude.” He grabbed Captain’s hand.
“What are you doing?”“Teaching you how to shake hands, for when I introduce you.”
“…To your mom and dad?”
“And to Nahna! I want to tell them that I made a new friend today!”
“But-”
“Don’t worry. I won’t tell them anything about your super-secret identity. Now, come on!”He lead Captain outside.
“Mom, Dad, Naha! I want to introduce you to someone special! His name’s Captain, and he’s a lot of fun!”
Shute leaned slightly to the side. “Come on. Say something,” he urged.
“Hello,” Captain said. “My name is Captain. And…”
He felt the Soul Drive warming as the words left his lips.
“…I am Shute’s…friend.”