| Episodes |
| 1 |
First move
"First move" is the opening move in chess.
The lone battleship Silvana locates a Disith fleet crossing the Grand Stream and destroys several ships in a surprise attack. After the remaining Disith ships escape, the Silvana withdraws from the Grand Stream. In the frontier town of Norkia, 15-year-old pilot Claus Valca and navigator Lavie Head prepare their vanship for the Norkia Cup race. On their next job call as sky couriers, Claus and Lavie accept a mission to deliver two letters to Duke David Mad-thane from his family. Mad-thane, an officer in the Anatoray navy, is leading a battle against a Disith fleet at Minagith under the supervision of the Guild. After a victory in the opening engagement using musketeers, Mad-thane's fleet continues to battle the Disith in artillery combat. However, the Anatoray fleet meets a surprise attack from a new Disith fleet as Claus and Lavie arrive on the flagship Claimh Solais to deliver the letters.
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| 2 |
Luft Vanship
"Luft" is the German word for "air". In chess, a luft allows the king to escape from a back rank mate, a move usually made by a pawn. The episode title carries a dual meaning of a vanship acting as a decoy or a vanship in the sky.
In the surprise attack by Disith, several Anatoray ships are destroyed in the opening engagement. As Guild members continue to watch the engagement from above the battlefield, they note that Minagith will fall to Disith forces. Word arrives at the Anatoray capital that Duke Mad-thane's fleet is losing the battle, prompting the Emperor to order an unknown asset sent to a safe place away from the Guild. As the Disith attack continues, Claus and Lavie are forced to leave the bridge, unable to deliver the message tube to Mad-thane directly. They realize that the second message tube from Mad-thane's daughter, Holly, was not delivered. While Mad-thane gives the order to fight to the last ship, Claus interrupts over the speaker system to read the message written by Holly expressing her wishes that her father returns home. Anatoray soldiers attempt to stop Claus and Lavie but are held back by musketeer Mullin Shetland. After hearing the message and ridding himself of feeling ashamed, Mad-thane orders his fleet to withdraw. Claus and Lavie create a smoke screen for the retreat with their vanship but are told by a red vanship that they are in the line of fire. At the same time, the Silvana appears and fires at the pursuing Disith. Given this chance, the Anatoray fleet escapes, and the Silvana and the red vanship disappear under the clouds. Claus and Lavie return to the Mad-thane residence to bring news of the Duke's safety. They also find out that they will be starting at last position in the Norkia Cup race after missing the time attack.
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| 3 |
Transpose
Transposition in chess employs a switch in tactics. In the episode, Claus switches from the race to his work as a courier, and Alvis is handed over from Ralph to Claus.
On the day of the 75th Norkia Cup race, vanship courier Ralph Wednesday is being pursued by several star-shaped fighters and is wounded. Meanwhile, Claus and Lavie pull ahead to challenge defending champion Hurricane Hawk towards the final stage of the race. However, as Claus takes over the lead from Hawk, Ralph's vanship crosses their path. Hawk's and Ralph's vanships crash into the trees, and Claus decides to pull away from the race despite being in the lead. Claus and Lavie find the dying Ralph, who is on a mission to deliver a girl named Al. The two decide to take over Ralph's job, but are discovered by one of the fighters. To allow Claus and Lavie to escape, Ralph acts as a decoy and sacrifices himself by detonating a bomb near the fighter. Claus and Lavie escape by the river and discover that the girl must be transported to the Silvana into the custody of Alex Row.
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| 4 |
Zugzwang
A chess player is said to be in zugzwang when he or she is forced to make a bad move.
Claus and Lavie take the unconscious Al back to their residence. While Claus plans an escape route through underground water canals to avoid detection by the star-shaped fighter, Lavie attempts to talk him out of the mission and reports rumors about the mysterious Silvana. When Al wakes up, they hide the fact that her caretaker Guita had died with Ralph Wednesday. Later that night, the fighter discovers their location and wrecks the house. The three escape through the canals in the vanship, and Al finally realizes that Guita has already died. The fighter discovers them near the end of the canal and damages the vanship, forcing an emergency landing in the temple ruins outside Norkia. It captures Al and is about to kill Claus when a gunshot causes the fighter to collapse.
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| Special Features |
Artwork
Interview(s)
Textless Opening / Closing
Theatrical Trailer(s)
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ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Stereo