MACROSS 7: THE POWER OF WORD FORCE
Chapter 2: The WF project
In a severe room with even more severe senior military officers, Utis Otonashi could feel the palms of his hands transformed into two open water faucets.
“Don't get nervous, the commanders have already read your record, all you have to do is answer a few questions," said Major Rubio Aristizabal in a whisper. “Don't extend yourself, let your answers get to the point. The commanders know you're a civilian but you have to behave yourself anyway.”
Utis nodded as he cursed himself, not because of how nervous he was but because his perfect "poker face" turned out to be a sh...
The five commanders gave a final review and commentary on the interviewee's file and then accommodated the papers from the folders that were then placed on the long table covered by a long, light green tablecloth.
“Mr. Otonashi," began the commander who appeared to be younger than the others, although this aspect was somewhat difficult to say due to the group of five older men with tanned skin and severe eyes. “Do you currently have a relationship with anyone in the Macross 7 fleet?”
“No sir. I don't have it.”
“Do you have any animosity towards the zentrans or meltrans?”
“No sir. I have no animosity whatsoever.”
“Do you prefer rock or classical music?”
“I think that depends on my mood.... Sorry, it would be classical music, sorry.”
The men soured the expression and commented on something in such a low whisper that although there was total silence in the room, Utis, standing at the long table, could not hear anything they were saying.
“Mr. Otonashi, can you sing a song for those present?”
The moment of truth had arrived, or rather, the moment to crash match 5 against the hard wall of reality.
“Of course," he rasped, "although I must warn you, I never did sing. Even at school I wasn't known for having a voice...”
“Just get started," said another somewhat impatient commander.
“Yes sir... This is a theme from a film. The Hunger Games, parody version.”
No one can handle the baker boy.
Gale will make a nice little churro, daddy.
But he doesn't have a very warm baguette.
The only one who came back from the frienzone. And lived to tell the tale! Oh yeah!
The baker boy with the eyes of a puppy!
You want to shoot him but he looks at you pretty!
No one can handle the baker boy.
The only one who came back from the frienzone. And lived to tell the tale! Mua!
Don't underestimate the baker boy.
It has the best homemade cute cute baguette
The only one who came back from the frienzone and lived to tell the tale!
Team Peta! ®
"Gosh, gosh, gosh! I did it, I'm dying of shame," Utis thought, as he breathed agitated and felt his whole face all red and warm, he was sure to melt away any minute.
The improvised singer expected gestures of disapproval or mockery, but the five commanders only wrote something in their notebooks while whispering something between them. Nor could he hear any concealed laughter from the other attendees, including female officers. A quick glance at the sides confirmed that everyone behaved professionally, showing not only faces, but hieratic poses.
The only emotion was reflected in the five high commanders, who exuded from all pores the boredom of being present at the interview.
“General, what do you think of the civilian?”
“Welcome son, I think you can be of use to the project. Does anyone have anything to add?”
That was the laconic conclusion of the General, who, together with the other commanders and some of the assistants, got up from their seats and left the room that smelled of disinfectant and cheap tobacco mixture.
“Very well done Otonashi," congratulated Major Aristizabal, who approached with quiet applause. “Welcome to the Word Force project.”
“Thank you, I don't know how I got it, I thought I had sung badly.”
“And you did it. In fact, it was something (extremely) pathetic.”
“What!”
“Don't tell me you thought that the Word Force project had something to do with the ability to sing like a Singer idol. I told you, that's a concept that the military wants to get away from, or rather, we want to get away from. You're in the military now.... even though you have a civilian salary, and very well paid, I might add.”
“What, I didn't know that, Rubio! And what is the Word Force! And if it has nothing to do with singing, why did they ask me to sing!”
“I'll show you in ten minutes... Corporal Utis Otonashi.”
The guy whose short hair matched his name took Utis to one of the scientific-technical facilities of the huge military base. Huge machines like the one developed by Dr. Chiba were being calibrated by various personnel.
“The concept that Dr. Chiba "created" is based on sound energy, however, the energy that is obtained from it is by no means exclusive to music and singing. Everyone has the ability to develop an energy that can either emulate sound energy or even surpass it. We call this energy: anima spiritia.”
"You were asked to sing to see if you could at least do it. Even if you are not a professional singer, the machines will measure your anima spiritia in your two states: in musical inaction and singing, and compare it to the innate power you possess.”
“What innate power do I have? Excuse me, Rubio, but I don't think I have any power.”
“Of course you do!” said Major Aristizabal jovially. “I didn't pick you at random, remember when I told you that the protodeviln enemy was attacking his victims according to a pattern? At first we didn't realize it, but when a protodevil named Sivil started attacking the inhabitants of Macross 7, we only realized it.... It preferred to "feed" on people with greater brain activity in the right hemisphere of the brain.”
“No... You're telling me it's not just the singing...?”
“What is singing after all? Just another brain activity that focuses on the right hemisphere of the brain along with the activity of painting, drawing... writing.”
“But it is the left hemisphere that is in charge of language and writing," Utis said strangely.
“Only as "automatic" processes, but the creativity associated with language such as singing, or writing fiction as a writing process, is developed in the right hemisphere.”
"That's the concept behind the Word Force project, that's the power that you have, Utis.”
The little man opened his eyes in an inordinate manner as he watched the tall military man with tanned skin, who smiled at him and confirmed that everything he had said to him was true.
“My power... the Word Force...”
CONTINUARÁ…
Author's final notes: Nyajajajaja, I had a lot of fun writing Peta's song. Warning, it is not a translation of the video: "The Hunger Games Musical: Mockingjay Parody - Peeta's Song", but a lyric invented by me that is sung with the same melody, so it has the trademark "R" (®).
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