World of Dreams was apparently the planet of cats, with humans only allowed to remain there as long as they delivered a sufficient tribute of pats and snacks.

As overlords go, could have been worst. At least these ones were fluffy.

Sat alone at a two-persons table, Kanna had yet to order. Instead she was browsing her densai, rereading the information she had about the pilot she was tasked with interviewing while waiting for her. Ace pilot, had fought against not the Mantis, shouldn't be difficult to find some story to write about that would please both the Lion and the Unicorn.

Supposedly.

Never in her life had Yesugen received media training. The camera didn't necessarily bother her. Rather, she didn't rank among the most sociable. Indeed, everyone in her wing knew that she was the "quiet yet reliable" type, the one who would share blood and not a drink.

Nonetheless, Yesugen didn't see the harm in accepting this invitation. She trusted herself to not compromise her clan in any way. And if the Lion were so foolish to look down upon her... then she'd see if that'd continue if war were to come.

When she stepped through the door, she blinked in shock at the arrangements. Her mind had been so focused on her densai that she hadn't thought of where they were. Due to the intended purpose, she wore her space-faring uniform sans much needed equipment and thus. In truth, she usually wore this one as a backup during off-hours (her primary one was the lucky one reserved for special occasions), but this would serve her well today.

Yesugen pursed her lips as she observed each and every feline. Fickle, unlike a horse. Unbeknownst to her, perhaps she had more in common with them than she thought. Then, her attention shifted to the Kitsu. She walked without hurry over then gave a bow once there. "Utaku Yesugen, as requested."

"Kitsu Kanna, Ikoma press."

Bow and all, then Kanna will ask Yesugen what she wants, order a perfectly mundane brand of tea for herself, and pay the bill for both.

Once they'll both be comfortably seated, the Kitsu will run through her saleswoman speech:

"Thank you for accepting this invitation. I don't know what you were told, so I'll explain from the beginning.

The empire has never been as gigantic as today. But with great distance comes great incomprehension. A lot of samurai never leave their home planet, and rarely meet their fellows from other worlds. With time, it's easy to forget that people even exist outside the planet, outside the clan, that on the other side of the galaxy, there are citizens of the Empire just as worthy, friends built in the same mold of duty and honor.

To fight that misconception in Lion worlds, Ikoma press is working on a new collection, Heroes from the distant stars, dedicated to the exploits of these honorable samurai from other worlds, far from our eyes but close to our hearts.

And someone routinely battling against pirates definitely fit in that category."

Yesugen took a seat, being mindful of the cat who circled her during the whole speech. Odd behavior, though she knew better than to think the cat would attack her.

Then again, they were capricious animals.

"Thank you for the tea," she said. The modesty of it reminded her of her earlier conversation with her fellow Unicorn. Nonetheless, she enjoyed the selection nonetheless, made evident by her faint smile.

At the end of the Kitsu's explanation, Yesugen gave a curt nod. "It is good for all of us to be aware of what the other clans have to offer." That was a sentiment often repeated by her family. She mostly took it to heart, though she did have much pride among her own people.

"We'll have to go through the classical questions eventually: Ancestry, place of birth, school, marital status, past and current assignments, etc.

But I like to start my interviews with a few character-defining stories then work out the context that allowed them to exist in the first place later on.

I think it helps set the mood better. I'm not a nakodo asking for your pedigree. I'm a bard searching for inspiring persons to write songs about. I'm not so much interest in knowing who you are in your everyday live than who you can be at your greatest.

So, my first two questions for you are the following:

Which action of yours, so far, has brought the most honor to your clan? Generally it's some sort of a military, academical or artistic success, and something you've received praises and awards from your clanmates for.

And what is the achievement of yours you're the most proud of? As in, at a personal level. Something you did or help with that might not have much of an impact in the grand scheme of things but that's quite important to you. No good or bad answer there, can be anything, an amateur art piece, graduating first of your class, having took care of a sick family member upon a long period of time, etc."

Yesugen sipped her tea as she considered the aforementioned prompts. "The greatest honor to my clan? Well, I cannot reveal much of the details due to operational security." She smiled faintly. "While hounded by enemy crafts, I annihilated a key target as commanded. I could not have done it without my comrades, though ultimately, it was my hands which completed the task." Vague but she felt it conveyed enough of the comradery among their unit, even if she was... not the most social.

"The first achievement that comes to mind for your second question is an engagement between myself and a makeshift rival of sorts. Again, operational security, but what I can say is that I destroyed her craft." Her smile grew more, which would soon reveal itself to be not one of her finer moments. "I confirmed it myself afterwards. Managed to take her head as proof." She shrugged. "Wouldn't want a pirate to flee and strike again, yes?"

Kanna was taking notes swiftly as the Unicorn talked:

"Interesting. Clearly, space battles are an important part of your life, both at a professional and emotional level. Let's focus on that for now.

You're an Utaku by birth. I guess you also went to the Skyriders school? Are you from a line of prominent pilots? Were there a lot of pilots in your inner circle as you grew up? Are there right now, even outside of work?"

"You've been correct on all assumptions," Yesugen said with only slight enthusiasm. She was, after all, not likely to ever show much emotion. "As for my inner circle, I would say that I gravitated towards only pilots and still do." She shrugged. "That is not to say I do not socialize with others, like I am now. Perhaps I only relate to people who have the shared experience of riding in the cockpit."

After a sip of tea, she shrugged again. "I imagine my ancestors may have felt the same about the saddle."

Kanna nodded:

"I can understand, at least intellectually, that there are a lot of experiences in a pilot's life that can only truly understood by another pilot, and that this favors bonding between pilots above all other relationships.

Most of our readers won't be pilots though, so I'll need to transcribe these experiences as truthfully as possible into words someone who has never flied can understand. No worry however, such translations are exactly what my job is about."

She looked at her notes, then back at the Unicorn:

"Let's focus on this rivalry for now. How did it come to be? And how did it end? I know you can't tell me all the practical details, but some personal ones would be nice. Was it a kind of planned duel? Did they suddenly appear before you during a battle you didn't expect they would be and you seized the moment? That style of extra."

Yesugen nodded along with the Kitsu's understanding of the pilot lifestyle. While it didn't entirely explain her lack of friendships, it was a major factor in opportunities; statistics required many more data points, after all.

"Pirates decorate their ships with ostentatious insignias and blast comms to anyone who will listen." At the very least, that had been the case for her prey. "I can't say our duel was in any way planned. However, that doesn't mean I couldn't have anticipated her being there. But when we could take the opportunity to split off from our wings to engage? Well, even our foe knew not to interfere."

She shrugged. "It wasn't about honor, I imagine, but rather the thrill, the glory. Even the foulest of hearts would feel robbed if their quarry was killed by an ally."

"There were many precedents of impromptu duels on the battlefields during the age of steel. A disputed practice that could bring anything from great honor to terrible shame on challenger and challenged.

To risk your life to swiftly remove from the battlefield an enemy commander or elite that could have inflicted great damages on your side had they live longer? That, that was very honorable.

To break formation and put your comrades in great danger to pursue a senseless personal vendetta? Quite the opposite.

And between these extreme cases, all sort of complex mixes and nuances whose honorability can only be determined after a careful examination.

In your case, I think we can get a first idea of which side of the honor balance that action stands with another question, though not necessarily a simpler one: Did that final face-off help the Unicorn win the day or did it put extra pressure on your clanmates?"

The thought that she could have endangered her wingmates vexed her. It had been true then, though as the reporter put it, there were benefits to her maneuver. "Somebody needed to engage her, be it me or someone else," she said with a soft sigh. "Though we may have stayed with the others, I believe both sides knew to leave us to our own devices." Her eyes drifted to the ceiling. "If somebody else were to have chased her... I couldn't say if we would have achieved our mission faster. I do know that it cost none of my wingmates their lives, though."

She closed her eyes. "I suppose I should ask my leader for a more thorough assessment. I pray that one wasn't kept from me for appearances' sake."

"No need to overthink it. If your leader truly believed your actions had the potential to put the team in danger in the long run, do you think you would still be part of the squad today? There are a ton of paperwork promotions available for people that need to be removed from active duty diplomatically.

If you were successful and you didn't get an earful, explicit or subtle, I would say your action was justified. Similarly, knowing if someone else would have done better is irrelevant. I'm sure most of my books would have been better if Doji Shintaro would have written them. But he's quite busy writing his own books, so I have to step up and do my thing.

In my opinion, the fact you've taken the time to analyze the situation collectedly instead of going for a boast, false modesty, or any other instinctive reaction, speaks of your honor at length. And the result is quite satisfying I would say.

Which brings me to my next question. The path to honor. What would you say were the events that made you into the samurai you are today?"

"Yes," Yesugen said, relaxing a bit. "I hadn't thought on it much, admittedly. All of my wingmates, including our flight leader, did praise me for my performance. Nobody has ever asked me about the... morality of hunting down a thorn in my side. But yes, duty and all." She raised her hands... it would have been more dramatic if they'd been surrounded by evil Scorpion stuff instead of cats.

"I thank you, though, for your praise of my honor. In case any of your audience isn't aware, the Utaku pride ourselves on that." She smiled faintly. "It's something our clans can agree on, so I've been told.

"Though I will address your latest question. I cannot attribute my current self to any one event. My family, my education, my deployments... All have accumulated to be who I am." Her eyes shifted to her tea. "If I may be so bold, I would hope that my heart had always been full of honor and that life has shaped me to be a useful tool for my clan."

"Understandable. Honor is not genetic, but samurai born and raised in an honorable household have no reason to have been anything but honorable for as long as they can remember. And indeed, a Lion lives and dies by their honor.

A good introduction to the question of your parents and ancestors however. You already told me you're from a line of mostly pilots. Any, from the recent or distant past, that influenced you in particular?"

"There has been one Utaku Yesugen before me. Well, in my bloodline; there have been many more from others outside of my immediate family." With so many people, she had thought it better to start branching out with many more vassal families. She hadn't written the rules of etiquette though. "I imagine she wouldn't be too shocked by where we are today. Her life hasn't been so far back to when we rode horses everywhere."

Damn. That still sounded appealing to her.

"But yes, she flew. Performed well enough to have returned home to be a good mother to her progeny." Yesugen's lips curled in thought. Perhaps her own marriage mattered more than she'd previously considered. A woman to bear their children.

But could I force another to bear the burden I do not wish? Ah, there must be some women who want to be pregnant.

Yesugen readjusted her glasses. "My mother too performed admirably, though admittedly not for long. She opted for family life rather early."

Mother was that sort. It didn't sit well with her, though, to seek out a woman to marry like her mother. All the courting and arrangements... She missed the skies and stars dearly.

"We keep getting back to horses and motherhood it would appear."

She smiled.

"I know a bit about the later, being a mother myself. But close to nothing about the former. Do you ride horses yourself? Are they still present in your life in some capacity? Horses use to have such a practical but also symbolical role in the Unicorn, it's hard to imagine they're not part at all of your lives nowadays. Maybe they've subsisted in some enduring traditions if nothing else?"

Those two topics had come up a suspicious number of times. Yesugen resolved to reflect on that later.

"You would be correct. Horses are as important to us as tea and our swords are. However, to dedicate an entire doctrine on charging in with katana is not reasonable, yes?" She shrugged. "But like how many still train in kenjutsu, so too do many of us still ride."

"The Kakita did manage to build their entire philosophy of life around the way they unsheathe their swords. Though, from how their clan is doing nowadays, might not have been their brightest idea."

Any day was a good day to dig on the Crane.

"The horse thing reminds me of an old story. It's about a scoundrel that had made one mistake too much, that is of angering a Battle Maiden. The twist is that the story is told from the point of view of the villain and we never get to see the shiotome through all its length. Instead we only hear the sound of hooves behind them, getting louder and louder as the rider closes in, until it turns into the sound of thunder, the very last sound the rascal will ever hear.

It's not reusable as is in our modern time, but I think the general idea can be used as your framework for your own story. That when a Skyrider has marked you as her prey, there's no force in this world that can save you anymore. There's an easy parallel to be made with the unstoppable might of our own Lion's Pride, so the Lion reader will be more likely to relate.

I would like to focus the article on that dogfight of yours. Classic structure. We begin inside your cockpit when you realize she's there, then we move into the fight itself, using parallels between what is happening and what happened before to insert a few explanatory flashbacks, and we conclude with the mort. Maybe a twist ending, where we shift to the point of the view of your nemesis as if she had won and then the sound of thunder.

If that plan works for you, we'll discuss the details now, and I'll write down a draft before our next encounter."