Return to base

[majestic_keiki]

[Returning to the Star Rose after the battle at the Saotome Labs, Kei was even more quiet than usual.

A few hours later, she can be found occupying a kitchen in the UG base at the side, mixing something in a bowl, with a cutting board covered in chopped chocolate standing next to it. Despite the apparent domestic happiness of the scene, she has a largely blank expression on her face and her movements are unfocused as if her mind is clearly on something else.

Approach her?]

Comments

[majestic_keiki]

Thanks. [Kei stopped mixing the cake batter, looking down at the mess she'd made by whisking it for way too long.]

...Why did you join the military?

[abugslife]

I wish I could tell a dramatic story here, but the truth is that it was a combination of wanting to do something for my homeland and its people, under attack by alien threats so often, and the glamour professional soldiers have in our culture. I was a bit naive back then.

All the dramatic stories in my life happened after that.

[majestic_keiki]

[There was a small twitch of a smile at Heph's comment.]

Perhaps, but it was something you chose anyway.

[It quickly faded though.]

I didn't get the choice. I was born to fight and don't know anything except for the academy and the Unity Group.

[abugslife]

If you were given the opportunity for a different life, would you take it?

[majestic_keiki]

I don't know. [She paused, frowning for a bit.] It's the only life I've known, so I don't know what I would get.

[abugslife]

That is the right answer. This is not a question that can be answered easily and instantly when asked right out of the blue. It requires thought.

It is true that forcing someone to fight, especially someone as young as you, is a travesty. It is not my job to intervene with Earth's inner politics like this, but I have no respect for whoever was responsible for this decision.

Yet at the same time, know this; if it was not for your decisions, more people would have died today. Your mistake almost killed a man, but your right choices saved more.

[majestic_keiki]

Only because others risked themselves to save them. I was just sitting there and all I could do was tell others where to find people and hope they were able to act in time...

[abugslife]

And yet without your presence, the situation would be even worse. And isn't hoping that everyone will follow their orders correctly a big part of being a commander?

[majestic_keiki]

Izuru is the leader of our team and none of us have any authority outside it. We're not even soldiers yet, officially, just cadets.

And it still feels helpless to just tell people what to do and hope they do it. Especially after two of them almost killed each other due to not cooperating before.

[abugslife]

Of course it does. But it is something you will have to get used to; how do you want to change it otherwise? On Geb, everyone commands from the front lines, influencing the turn of battle with their very actions; but I do not think your mech would be able to take that heat.

[majestic_keiki]

It can't. It can barely defend itself either. It takes too much focus to keep track of all the information it provides to engage in close maneuvers while fulfilling my role on the battlefield.

[abugslife]

Then either push yourself and work on your focus, so that doing both at once will not be outside of your ability anymore, or accept your job as support.

But do not abandon it. It is a thankless job, one that does not give you glory or place in the spotlight, or even satisfaction a lot of the time; but it is a necessary one that saves the lives of your comrades. Do not forget that.

[majestic_keiki]

I'm not planning on abandoning it. It was just what I felt sitting there. I know what my duty is and I will do it.

I just needed to talk and explain how I felt.

[abugslife]

And I want to reassure you that the feeling of helplessness will not last. You are doing a good job while thrown into in a bad situation.

[majestic_keiki]

Thanks...I wasn't sure what to think after I got back, but talking helped me at least sort out what I'm feeling...I really hope we won't see more of those things.

[abugslife]

I'm afraid that probably won't happen. The odds that this was a one-time invasion, something that will not repeat itself, are pretty low.

At least this time precautions were made to ensure a less chaotic scenario.

[majestic_keiki]

Right. And people can be instructed in what those things are so they can be prepared...As wrong as they are, they'd still be less scary if you know what to expect.

[abugslife]

In the worst case scenario, you can just bomb the area again after they come out.

[majestic_keiki]

No, the worst case scenario is that another dome shows up somewhere densely populated and they come out before an evacuation can be completed.

[abugslife]

It took them several days to emerge from this one, did it not? I hope the same will happen with the next dome as well.

If there will be a next dome. It is possible that this is a unique phenomenon.

[majestic_keiki]

Right, I was just thinking about what a worst case scenario would be.

[abugslife]

The worst thing about the worst case scenario is that we have no way of predicting when it will happen. Or where. Even a sneak attack by an ordinary enemy force gives you more time to react.

[majestic_keiki]

Yeah. And we don't know enough to really tell what the worst case scenario is...It's easy to make up horrors that can't happen like that.

[abugslife]

Do not waste your time thinking about what kind of horrors might appear next. It is not healthy for your mind. But do prepare for the possibility that what you have seen might have not been the worst thing yet.

A war, especially a war against strange opponents you know so little about, can be a terrible thing. I know from personal experience.

[majestic_keiki]

Yeah, that's probably the best idea. I'll leave the speculation to the military planners who don't have to face these things themselves.