SRWOG Secret Hangar Ricarla Borgnine

TURN.22
"Don't Let Go of Your Dreams" ~Step for Future.~

Featured Character(s):
Ricarla Borgnine, AKA Carla: A strong-willed and passionate girl. Used to be part of the DC remnants until she joined up with the Kurogane alongside Yuuki. Age 18.
Yuuki Jegnan: Formerly of the DC remnants. Calm and collected, despises underhanded actions. Is very particular about how one brews tea and drinks it. Age 18.

Ricarla Borgnine lost her family to an alien attack. She turned away from her dream of making it in the entertainment biz, and instead threw herself into a battle with no end. What do her eyes see, as she remains in the midst of an ever-changing destiny?

There's no such thing as an impossible dream when you try hard enough.

I dunno about the rest of the world, but that's the motto I followed for all of my 18 years on this green Earth.

Obviously I don't expect the world to owe me something just because I put in some work. No, it's the feeling of my own hard work bringing me slowly closer to my dream. That's what kept me going.

As long as I never give up on my dream, my dream will never let me down. The sweat on my brow's got to be good for something. One day, it'll get me up on that bright, sparkling stage where I've yearned to be. I believed all of that.

But.

That dream of mine went up in flames, together with everyone I ever cared for. My family, all the people who nurtured me, supported me, lived with me... They were all off to heaven faster than the blink of an eye.

San Diego was destroyed in a single night when the Aerogators attacked it during the L5 Campaign. Lots of people lost their futures and their dreams. God didn't save them. No heroes of justice magically appeared to rescue them. All they got was a storm of senseless destruction.

I thought I'd lost everything. My dreams. My past. My future, even. Everything in the world looked grim to me, until...

I had an encounter with hope.

"...Can you stand?" A young pilot held a hand out to me as I huddled among the rubble. The strength and warmth of that hand saved me.

"I'm Yuuki Jegnan, of the Divine Crusaders 16th mixed mobile battallion. What's your name?"

"Mine's Ricarla Borgnine... But you can call me Carla."

Out there on that battlefield where the smell of smoke never really went away, I was saved. He didn't just save my life. He saved my future, too.

After my close brush with death, what did I pick? I chose to live as a soldier of the DC.

They put me through some special exam or other and told me I had some kind of aptitude. I held a control stick for the first time. I flew through the air for the first time. And... I shot a gun for the first time. Sure, I was kind of iffy and unsure of myself. I was afraid that I was heading down the road to a completely different tomorrow. But I hate quitting. That's not who I am. Once I decide to do something, I see it all the way through. That's just how Ricarla Borgnine rolls.

I trained my ass off, all while watching my savior Yu from behind. I did that not because I wanted to be a soldier, but because I wanted to be able to guard his back.

The battlefield is a way more harsh and relentless place than movies and comics give it credit for. After I signed on, the DC underwent a huge change in position and command structure. Then we got our second name, "remnants", a name that nobody wanted. Yu and I got assigned to Major Archibald Grims's squadron, where we started carrying out assignments pretty much every day. Sometimes, the assignments were pretty goddamn cringeworthy.

"Why didn't you leave the ship? This was your last chance."

"Well, I already told you how it is. You saved my life, and I owe you for that... but more than that, I just plain like you."

"Don't lie. It's revenge you're after, and you know it."

"Oh, please. Revenge is so out of style these days."

"Are you telling me you have another reason for fighting with us?"

"..."

Do I hate aliens? Maybe so. But I never had the slightest intention of devoting my future to revenge. If I'm gonna live, I might as well make something positive and meaningful out of my life. As for the meaning part? I'm pretty sure I'll find it if I stick with Yu long enough.

	I've lost my dream.
	But I haven't given up.
	Because the goalposts aren't gone.

Right now, I'm dreaming even bigger. As in, a dream encompassing everyone on the planet. I don't know how far I'll get, but hey. At least I'm not alone now. I've got Yu, and lots of other companions I've met along the way. I might just be a background singer, but I'm gonna do my job and do it in style, yes sirree.

"That's it for our training today, Carla. You can head back now."

"So, Yu. How was I? I thought I was doing pretty great back there, myself."

"You made full use of the Raven's mobility. You also adjusted properly to the fact that the additional pods altered its center of gravity."

"Right?! I think I'm getting a serious handle on all this piloting stuff."

"You still need work, though. When you're transitioning from an air-to-air encounter to a ground one, your landing has too much in the way of wasted movements. That adds to your mech's workload and reduces your responsiveness to ground-based opponents. Also..."

"Okay, okay, I get the point. I'll listen to all the nitpicking when we get back!"

"You're still training until we get back to the ship. I don't want you losing focus in the meantime."

"...'Kay."

"Something wrong, Carla?"

"...We've got to do better. We owe it to the people whose future we're defending."

"..."

"After all, defending someone's future also means defending their dreams."

"It does, yeah..."

"But you'll defend 'our' future, won't you, Yu?"

"What's this 'our' future you're talking about? Stop making up your own conclusions."

"Aww, why the oolong face?"

"...Nice try. I'll give you a D for effort."

"You're no fun."

I'll never be able to fulfill my current dream alone. I'm joining my strength and heart together with others as I move on to tomorrow.

Because you should never let go of your dreams.

<<Terada Memories>>
Carla's original name is Lilcarla, and I have no idea what we were thinking when we put Lil- on there. What's Lil? Shouldn't her nickname be Lily instead of Carla? Also, I wouldn't say she's modeled after someone exactly? But rather, she ended up modeled after someone. Whoever could it be? (Terada)