The Mobius Loop - Part Fifteen

Posted on Mon Jun 30th, 2025 @ 1:19am by Lieutenant JG Rachael "Ripcord" Yamaguchi-Cullen & Fleet Captain Torilla Yamaguchi

Mission: Mission 121: The Mobius Loop
Location: Various Locations - USS Grey Wolf
Timeline: 1805Hrs - February 4th, 2394

Yamaguchi nodded at her daughter. "I'm in the same boat as you but for different reasons," she admitted. "I ran into my parents in addition to running into Gabe's grandson and his spouse." she paused a moment. "My folks were followers of the old ways. They were outlawed and blamed for the ruin of the Unification wars that nearly destroyed us as a species." she paused. "Halla was desecrated. Regardless of intentions or actions. That cannot be covered up or ignored." she regarded her daughter with a soft smile on her face. "Rachael. I tried to teach you and your siblings about the Unification wars." she then let out a soft sigh.

Rachael nodded at her mother in silence. "What were the old ways?" she asked softly.

"The Tales of the five flights." Torilla paused. Each one had specific tenants at its core. Some preached wisdom. Some preached strength, physical and mental. Others preached patience and others respect for knowledge and other sentients." Torilla paused. "Each flight was defined by a colour. Red, Green, Blue, Bronze and Black," she explained in quiet tones.

Rachael reported her mother while she processed what she was being told. "Which flight did you follow?" she inquired directly. She had an idea but she wished to be sure of what her mother was saying to her.

"The blue flight," Torilla answered softly. "Torilla is my core name. My full name is Torillacosa," she added.

"What about us?" Yamaguchi-Cullen inquired. "Do I or my siblings have any of these ideals or names?" she added.

"No," Torilla answered. "I raised you with the tenants of the Blue flight in mind. Wisdom and knowledge. Reason and justice. It's why you guys have the mindsets that you do. Oh I know I didn't succeed with any of you, but I did the best I could with what I had. You guys all turned out rather well. Gabe would make any woman happy. Look at Savv... Elizabeth is a little unsure of herself at times. I wish she would apply herself more. But all that said, she will figure it out soon enough when her three drive her up a bulkhead." That was when Torilla suddenly grinned at her middle child, who grinned back. "Oh yes, babies will be themselves," Yamaguchi-Cullen answered, with a knowing smile.

"Sleep will become precious. Elizabeth will learn much from Bethany and Galiaan, as much as those two will learn from their mother." Yamaguchi-Cullen commented. "It was like that with me and Saki. Except we were in the wild and we were the prey. Keeping the noise down had to be a priority so she and I lived in the runabout. Even after the last of the power reserves went out, we started having issues with the exterior hatches."

Torilla smiled. "But you asked me about the old ways. There were five flights. The Red Flight was all about life and love. Respect for one's fellow sentients." she paused. "The Bronze Flight was all about faith and justice." she paused a third time. "The green flight was all about caring for each other and helping others, the blue flight was about respect, justice and wisdom but the Black flight was the most outspoken. They were all about the martial strength and the will to act."

"Sounds like the black flight had their issues," Yamaguchi-Cullen commented.

"Oh yes, but in truth, honey. All the flights did... But there was a time when the word of the Aspects was law. The leader of the various flights was chosen in various ways. Each flight was different. For The Red Flight, it was the fairest and most reasonable. For the Blue flight, it was an election where all had their say. For the Green flight. It was by appointment. For the Bronze Flight, it was via voting but it was for a political party rather than individual people." Torillla then paused a moment. "But for the Black flight, it was gladiatorial combat. None-lethal in its later days but at times, their combat was a spectacle of gore and violence. The strongest won out." she then shrugged.

Yamaguchi-Cullen frowned. "Lovely." her tone indicated it was anything but.

"The Blacks often caused many of our greatest problems but they also dealt with our first off-world first contact." she paused. "We were attacked by another species who tried to conquer us. I had thought it was the Klingons. I later found out that it was a spacefaring species that was passing through as nobody else had encountered them. We've not seen them since." she paused as she regarded her daughter. "We had been attacked by a bunch of intergalactic nobodies. But it would have dire consequences within a generation."

Yamaguchi-Cullen regarded her mother. She had a feeling she knew where this was heading. "The Unification wars," she commented softly, almost as a whisper.