Mikage Kiryu is a warrant officer serving in the science division of the UNCN battleship Yamato in 2199.
History[]
Early Life[]
Kiryu is the daughter of United Nations Cosmo Marine officer Goro Kiryu and a mother who conducted field work in cultural anthropology.[1] In her childhood, she accompanied her mother on an expedition to the Amazon rain forest. Her father's friend and UNCM subordinate, Hajime Saito, bonded with her in a way that she likened to a big brother (Space Battleship Yamato 2199: Odyssey of the Celestial Ark).
2199: Voyage to Iscandar[]
Kiryu is personally recruited for Yamato's mission to Iscandar by Lieutenant Kaoru Niimi. Among her skills, Kiryu brings an expertise in linguistics, which she uses to translate the Gatlantean and Zirellan languages from Garmillan data and to write Gatlantean translation software for the ship's communication system[1] (Space Battleship Yamato 2199: Odyssey of the Celestial Ark). During the Battle of the Rainbow Star Cluster, Kiryu is assigned to the Yamato chief science officer's station on the first bridge in the absence of her immediate superiors ("Under a Rainbow Sun"). As Yamato nears home months later, Kiryu works with her fellow science officers to maintain and operate the Cosmo Reverse System being transported from Iscandar ("Memories of the Blue Planet").
The Celestial Ark[]
Accessing Shambleau.
Yamato finds itself stranded in a mysterious region of space a month after leaving Iscandar, and Kiryu joins the landing party sent to investigate the planet at the heart of the region. Unknown to her, a Zirel presence on the planet telepathically accesses Kiryu's memories in order to build illusions that confuse and trap the landing party. Pushing through what appears to be the Amazon rain forest to the wreckage of the ancient battleship Yamato, Kiryu and the others find themselves inside a copy of the Hotel Yamato, where they find a Garmillas military team.
As the two groups cooperate on surviving and finding a way out, Kiryu's telepathic connection gradually brings her closer to discovering the secret behind their captivity. She is approached by a Zirel shaman disguised as a Garmillan colonel, who relates to her a metaphorical storybook version of Zirel history. She also hears voices speaking in the Zirellan language that hint at their plans. Eventually, Kiryu discovers Zirellan writing that leads her outside the hotel. She is assaulted by a member of the Garmillan team, but before the situation escalates out of control, the remaining humans and Garmillas follow her out, free Kiryu from her attacker, and are able to uncover the truth.
The shaman breaks the illusions and brings them to a control center for the planet, known as Shambleau. Kiryu reads a Zirellan inscription on the wall and touches one of the controls. Her body is temporarily taken over by Shambleau, and she tells her comrades about its original function as a "celestial ark" built to spread life across the cosmos. Kiryu is released and she collapses, but she quickly recovers and returns to Yamato (Space Battleship Yamato 2199: Odyssey of the Celestial Ark).
Terezart and the War with Gatlantis[]
Kiryu and Susumu Yamazaki were among several Yamato crew members serving aboard Ginga.
Late in the year, Kiryu monitors ship operations alongside Lieutenant Yuki Mori in UNCF headquarters during the 8th Floating Continent Recapture Operation ("AD 2202 - Revive, Space Battleship Yamato"). She joins her Yamato shipmates on December 8 at a statue honoring their deceased commanding officer, Admiral Juzo Okita. While there, she discovers that a vision she had telling her to take Yamato to the planet Telezart was shared by virtually everyone else ("Tension – Reach the Embassy on the Moon").
As preparations are made to steal Yamato for the journey, Kiryu, Yuria Misaki, and Miki Saijo guide the rest of the crew to shore and into trucks that carry them below ground to the waiting space battleship. Yamato's progress out of its underwater dock is stopped when a control room is destroyed. Kiryu leaves Yamato with Toru Hoshina, Susumu Yamazaki, and Misaki to help open the dock gates. She and Hoshina succeed in transferring control, but armed security forces impede their progress and they are unable to reach Yamato before water flooding the dock becomes too deep. Kiryu and her stranded comrades salute the ship as it launches without them ("Departure to the Unknown!"). She is quickly caught and imprisoned along with the others, but is released after the Earth Federation president authorizes the new Yamato mission ("Clash! Yamato vs. Andromeda"). All of them join the crew of the experimental space battleship Ginga in the weeks that follow as the new vessel is completed and prepared for service in the Gatlantis Campaign ("Heir to the Yamato, Her Name is Ginga"). More than six months after the war ends, Kiryu is among the Yamato crew who rejoin their old ship on a rescue mission ("Earth, Yamato Is...").
Personality[]
Kiryu and Berger open up to one another.
Kiryu displays a personal interest in Earth history and past cultures that includes the art of Henri Rousseau, Norse mythology, and ancient seagoing vessels.[1] She also enjoys outdoor summer activities ("The Distant Promised Land"). Despite her wide interests and her intelligence, she is inexperienced and somewhat naive in day-to-day life.
Kiryu connects with Garmillan lieutenant commander Fomt Berger during her time in the hotel on Shambleau, and offers him emotional support in his struggle with a personal tragedy. Her ability to speak openly with him is influenced by her near-perfect resemblance to the major's deceased lover, Meria Ricke. She is able to use this relationship to learn more about the Zirel species. After initially clashing with a Yamato fighter pilot, Sho Sawamura, she eventually builds a friendship with him while the two are trapped in the hotel (Space Battleship Yamato 2199: Odyssey of the Celestial Ark).