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Akihiro heard a loud sound chime over his radio followed by an automated voice.

“Your shift is complete. Please return to the surface,” it said with a moderately feminine, but mostly computerized tone.

“Well that went quick,” Aki said mumbling to himself. He could barely hear a thing over the loud whirring of the drill. After flicking a few switches on the dashboard, the droning sound slowed to a dull whine as the mechanism shut down.

With a quaking series of footsteps, he turned the giant mecha around and began to exit the massive cavern. It was a mining series Pitman equipped with a drill and a fully hydraulic arm that levered out for various uses. Aki dragged along a bright yellow hauler filled with ore that he had dug up during his shift.

In the past mining would have been considered a very dangerous job, but using mecha completely eliminated many of the most dangerous aspects. There was no long a need to be concerned for any toxic gases seeping from the rock since the cockpit was a sealed environment. Even if a mine shaft happened to collapse, the interior of a highly reinforced cabin would protect the operator while rescuers dug in.

It wasn't the most glorious job, but he had to secure work before they ran through the funds from selling the Iron Badger's mechas. They had made a lot of money off the sale, but Aki knew it wasn't wise to blow through it all and Misaki agreed.

The first year had been difficult. Bernard had found him the medical attention he needed and also helped to broker the sale of the mechas while Aki was on the mend. Bernard had refueled and flown them to the outskirts of Matsudan space. Far enough away from the Legion's influence that they might never be caught. That didn't stop him and Misaki from always looking over their shoulder though, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

For a time, they lived with the paranoia that somehow, somebody would recognize them. They had taken measures to help conceal their identities though. Misaki had cut her long hair to shoulder length and bleached it, leaving her hair an almost orange hue that somehow suited her. Aki on the other hand had let his hair grow out and was now usually wearing it in a folded over ponytail. They both looked entirely different.

After a year of laying low, he sought work in the nearby city of Lansing. With mecha experience, it was a no-brainer that he'd find work with a mining company. It was great money and most of the time Akihiro was able to zone out making the shifts pass rather quickly.

Now that it had been three years without a threat, he couldn't imagine that anyone in the Legion even thought about them anymore. Even if they did for whatever reason, there would be no obvious correlation to how they used to look. Even their names had been changed which had taken some getting used to. Thankfully, they'd been able to choose their new names and Misaki suggested picking something that would fit in with the new Elizabethan territory they had decided to settle in. Misaki was now known as Rose, while he had chosen a name that sounded closer to the one he had known his whole life, Akira.

Besides their initial anxiety about getting caught, life had been good for them here on this new planet, Arcadia. It didn't have a massive population like some of the other colonies he'd visited in the past, but it was beautiful. They had been able to buy a sprawling property for pennies on the dollar of what they would have spent elsewhere and the peace and quiet really seemed to help Misaki cope.

He smiled stupidly thinking about her as he parked the Pitman into place and shut down the core. Climbing down the service ladder, Aki saw several others were finishing up their shifts as well. He joined some five other men who were congregated at the elevator door. It was a long wait for it to arrive, so it made for a good opportunity to catch up with his coworkers.

“Hey Akira. Good haul today?” a man with a bright orange hardhat and a gray complexion asked in a friendly manner.

“Eh, not bad, Sam. Could have been better,” he replied honestly.

“I feel you, man,” Sam replied knowingly. “I've been trying to hit a new load down my shaft. I know it's close because I keep finding trace minerals, but no luck yet.”

“Keep at it,” Aki encouraged him. “You'll find it eventually.”

Sam nodded with a gracious smile as a young man stepped up beside them.

“You headed back to that beautiful wife of yours?” The guy was younger than everyone else there with blond hair and a baby face. Aki seemed to recall that the guy had family in the mining business.

“You better watch it, Matthews, or I might get jealous,” Aki said with a sharp laugh as he smacked the kid on the shoulders.

“How did you ever find someone like that? She's not only gorgeous, but so down to earth,” he asked seeming to mope as if he might never find his own significant other.

“Let's just say we grew up in a really bad situation and used to lean on each other through the hard times,” Akira answered slowly as he made the fib up on the fly. “You'll find your special someone soon,” he reassured the young man.

“Stop being such a cry baby, Matthews,” Sam quipped with a stern voice. “Nobody wants to hear your whining after a hard day's work.”

Two other men that had been standing nearby and listening to the conversation laughed coarsely at the jab and eventually they were all smiling as the elevator doors finally opened.

Aki couldn't help but appreciate the camaraderie he felt with these men. It was a comfortable bond that he could never have hoped to experience in the Legion where someone would stab him in the back for the smallest advantage. The doors closed as they all entered the massive elevator that was big enough to fit several mechas inside.

--

The shuttle dropped him off at the end of the long dirt road and Aki walked the rest of the way on his own. The land was the complete opposite of the cold, dark mines he spent his mornings in. Expansive green fields spread out for as far as the eye could see with rolling hills on the horizon.

He peered off in the distance and could just barely make out the home he shared with Misaki. The house was mostly made out of wood and plastic siding which was a rare thing in this day and age where everything was prefabricated. They'd purchased the property from an elderly couple that couldn't keep up with the maintenance anymore. If Aki recalled right, the husband had actually built the house himself given he was a carpenter by trade.

It was insane to think that they were practically frontiersman, living off the grid with a thirty minute drive to anything that resembled civilization. Looking back to the conversation by the elevator with Matthews. Aki still couldn't believe that he had the honor of calling Misaki his wife. Let alone that they now lived together on this amazing plot of land. He was truly blessed despite everything else that had happened in his life.

Closer now, he walked alongside the slat rail fence that enclosed their pastures. When they first arrived on Arcadia, living a solitary life meant keeping livestock for most of their dietary needs. Misaki had taken to the animals unlike anything he could have hoped for; it was almost like it had been her calling all along.

They'd purchased a pregnant dairy cow so that they could have milk and all of the byproducts that came along with it. Having chickens was a necessity as well considering the easy protein from eggs. Aki had brought some piglets home once, but the purchase had backfired when Misaki couldn't stand the idea of butchering them.

His train of thought wandered back to the present when he saw a figure out in the field. It was most definitely Misaki and she was surrounded by big fluffy creatures.

Ah yes, the much loved vicuna. She'd originally asked to purchase them for the sake of having a wool-like material to spin yarn out of, but eventually she just fell in love with the quirky six-legged animals. They could be so skittish, but earning their trust proved a worthy and rewarding goal for Misaki.

It was a bonus when they found out that the fiber shorn from the vicuna once a year was a highly coveted commodity in the nearby Elizabethen territories. There was a high demand for high quality fibers and a lack of product in circulation which that meant they were able to reap a premium from the fleece. In fact, they had kept in touch with Bernard who picked up shipments for them every year in the spring. He'd left the contractor life and started his own trade business with the settlement he got from the lawsuit against his agency.

Bernard had kept his promise to expose the Iron Badgers, but given how resourceful they were the Badgers had escaped any kind of real prosecution. As Corin had said, trafficking was extremely lucrative and enough money could buy anything, even a reprieve from justice. Still, they had been forced to go out of business at least and would surely rise again under another moniker. It was enough for Aki to know that there operations had been disrupted, even if for a short time.

Aki reached the gate and let himself in. The sight of Misaki made the bad memories fade away, replaced by much happier ones. Smiling mischievously, he crept towards her.

Enamored with her animals, she still hadn't noticed him yet and he loved the idea of surprising her. As he snuck closer, one of the vicuna's ears flipped upward and looked in his direction. It made a whining sound and darted away from the herd and soon they all followed.

She turned his way and made an exasperated look. “You scared them away!” she complained in a joking fashion as though she didn't really care that much, but had to make a show of it.

“They'll come back,” he said smoothly as he wrapped his hands around her waist from behind. She smiled as he cleared her hair out of the way and kissed her on the neck. “How was your day?” he asked noting the healthy glow in her cheeks.

“She was kicking a lot today,” Misaki replied turning to face him as she brought a hand to her rather large belly and rubbed it lovingly.

“Good! That means she's healthy. And going to have your fiery spirit to boot,” Aki exclaimed happily.

Misaki simply rolled her eyes and tried to hug him even though her round belly got in the way. “Easy for you say, mister. She's not kicking the crap out of your insides all day,” she complained. “And my feet are killing me.”

“How about a foot rub then? And I'll make dinner so you can take a load off,” he put his arm around her shoulder and led her towards the house.

“That would be nice,” she said sounding worn out. Misaki then let out a loud, dramatic sigh. “We're going to be parents soon.” She sounded nervous as she continued, “Are you ready for it? Because I'm not sure if I am.”

“Oh c'mon, Misaki. You're going to be a great mom!” he reassured her with a slight rub on her shoulder.

“It's Rose, remember!? You're usually better about not letting it slip,” she corrected him with a nervous look.

“I'm just a little distracted. It won't happen again,” he replied with a wistful smile.

“Distracted by what?” she asked with a curious expression.

“By you. By this,” he answered as he spread his arms out to gesture to the land. “By her,” he added with a gentle caress to Misaki's stomach. Aki leaned in and kissed Misaki passionately on the lips, taking her in his arms as he did.

Her cheeks were a bright shade of pink as he pulled back and simply smiled in reply to her shocked expression. As they continued onto the stone path that led up to the house, Misaki finally replied.

“I love you too,” she said sounding content as she looked up at him with bright eyes.

If this was what his time in the Legion had bought him in life, than it had all been worth it.