by Alex Powell
"Amazing," she said, and the enemy machine shuddered as its coils loosened.
Taking that as her cue, Mari took up her controls again to try to shake the other machine loose. It was working better than before, but the enemy pilot quickly caught on to what was happening and started entrapping them again. Unfortunately for them, it looked as if their power kept randomly failing, causing them troubles. Mari succeeded in getting Hakusan's legs free enough to move.
Suddenly, their shields jumped up to maximum without her doing anything, their level so high that she could actually see the field surrounding them, a startling crimson shell. At the same time, her weapons system beeped at her insistently, telling her she needed to discharge it or risk having the system overload.
She still couldn't hit the serpent machine, but there was a group of enemy Level 3 machines hiding behind a sand dune. She fired at them, not waiting to steady her aim. She only hit one, and it exploded in a spectacular show of orange globs of molten metal. The other enemy machines scattered.
Even after had she'd let off that round, the weapon system was beeping at her again. Kaede was pouring energy into everything, and the enemy machine was quickly losing the tactical advantage. Its shield failed first, and Mari saw bursts of energy as their own Level 3 machines started firing on it. The weapons beeped at her again, just as part of the serpent's coils slid off Hakusan and right into her line of sight.
Mari fired.
Hakusan shuddered again as the serpent machine flailed loose. The snake's head was still attached to their hull, but the force of the blast shook it free. In front of Mari's view screen was a perfect view of her strike, which had burned a hole through the serpent. Mari turned the weapon's system on it again and fired two more shots, severing the creature in half.
The serpent machine fell, sending a shock wave through the earth on its impact. A wave of sand flew up all around it and settled again as it lay there, unmoving.
They'd defeated it.
Mari sat in shock and watched as the majority of the enemy machines surrendered immediately, and those that didn't were quickly dispatched by their own Level 2 machines that had finally entered the battle. She didn't really have to do anything to help; their imposing presence was enough to keep the remainder of the enemy from reengaging.
Level 9 rescue crew showed up soon afterward, breaking through the doors of the serpent machine to extract its crew.
Mari was shocked as the Level 1 Source and Pilot emerged from the wreckage.
The pilot was old enough to be her grandfather, his shock of white hair showing his age. He was certainly past the age when their own pilots would have been long retired. She could tell he had a knee injury that was causing a noticeable limp.
Even worse was the source. She couldn't tell whether they were male or female from their face, and they were wrapped up in a bright yellow emergency blanket, unconscious. The old pilot was carrying them carefully in his arms. The source looked to be in their early teens, far too young to be fighting in a war.
Mari was suddenly overwhelmingly tired. What kind of enemy were they facing? They were using grandparents and children to fight in their war. It didn't make sense, when they could be using young and healthy men and women.
She grew tired of watching and decided that the situation was being handled well enough without her standing guard over them. Besides, even with all the excess energy, Kaede was probably just as tired as she was.
Mari shut down Hakusan, and Kaede began to come out of her source-trance.
*~*~*
"Welcome back."
Kaede blinked as the lights above her came into focus. Mari was standing over her with a crooked smile on her face, obviously waiting for her to wake up properly. Kaede hadn't been happier to see anybody in her life. They were both alive, and it looked as if Mari was relieved to see that she was okay.
"I take it that this means we won?"
"We did, yeah. Thanks to you."
"Thanks to me," Kaede echoed disbelievingly.
"Let's get you up then," Mari said, already leaning down to get the plugs behind her back.
"What's going on? How did we win?"
"Just look out the viewport and see."
Kaede couldn't see anything but black billows of smoke against the beginning of a dawn sky from this position, but as soon as she was all unhooked, she stood. Her legs felt like water, and Mari helped her to her feet. She didn't shrug off the arm around her waist, and let Mari guide her to the window.
There lay a colossal serpent's head half-buried in the sand at the feet of their machine, the end still smoking from where it had been shot.
"'Look upon my works, ye mighty, and despair,'" Kaede murmured as she watched a fire crew come in to put some of the fires out.
"What's that?" Mari asked, head tilting to the side to look down at her.
"A poem from times past, about a time even older. The message, however, was for all times. I was just reminded, because of the head in the sand."
"Dare I ask the message?"
"Never mind that. Just forget about the times past, and let's focus on the present."
"Kaede ... just before we forget about the past, can I just say I'm sorry? I said some things that I really regret right now, and while I meant them back then, I've seen that I made an error in speaking."
Mari said this to her while looking at the ground, as if the admission of her wrongs cost her something. However, her tone and words rang true, and Kaede was just glad to finally hear someone apologize for the way they'd treated her and the other sources.
"I've said some things that I've since reconsidered, too."
"Do you think we can work together successfully now?"
"I think we'll do even better. I think we'll make a difference."
Their conversation was interrupted as the rescue crew finally arrived to let them out of the machine.
Mari sighed inwardly and went with them, this time separately from Kaede. She'd wanted to continue with her topic and move it in a different direction altogether. It was hard enough to get it going that direction to begin with, and she wasn't sure she'd get another chance anytime soon. But she was a pilot, and it she knew anything, it was perseverance.
There would be another time, but it wasn't now.
*~*~*
In the aftermath of the battle, everyone was so busy that Mari and Kaede barely had time to talk to anyone, even each other. Quite unexpectedly, they had a Level 1 Source prisoner, and everyone was on constant alert. No one knew what Morwe would do now that their greatest asset was in their hands.
The source, as it turned out, was intersex and preferred male pronouns, making the claim that Morwe had found a male Level 1 Source not completely unfounded.
As for Mari and Kaede, they were on 8 hour split shifts guarding the coast against attack, just in case Morwe decided they needed to take back their source by force. Now that the two of them were confident in their abilities, they had a full bridge crew. Kaede was constantly being monitored by two source technicians, and Mari had a navigator, war machine technicians and bridge gunners manning the weapons with her. Commander Sano came with them, taking the command position.
Slowly, more and more crew were being introduced. The technicians were inspecting the machine, since they hadn't had a chance to review it while it was running in two decades. As different sections were either repaired or given a passing grade, those sections were given crewmembers to run them.
It was so different from being a team, just the two of them.
Things improved when one of the docking bays was cleared for use, and ten Level 3 machines were chosen to go out on patrol with them. Matsura was one of them, so occasionally, when she had time, she was able to talk with them. Mari managed to persuade Kaede and her fellow sources to come and spend her breaks with them.
"Our relations are improving every day," Matsura said cheerfully. "Now that we're making a concentrated effort, we have a better working environment."
>
"Yes, we've all come together and demanded to be given a permanent partner," Sae added, being one of the sources also assigned to patrol.
"They have to give in, because it's both of our sides making the demands," another pilot agreed. "I think they're surprised at our sudden change of heart."
"See?" Mari said with a grin. "Making a difference already."
"Nomura? Ishigaki?" Two comm units crackled as a message came through from Commander Sano. "You're needed immediately on the bridge."
Kaede checked her timepiece and frowned. "We still have two hours left on our break. I wonder what he wants with us."
"Better go and find out."
Kaede was tempted to take her time, but Mari marched on ahead quickly, so Kaede sighed and trotted after her. When they reached the bridge, Commander Sano was waiting for them, his mouth set in a tense line.
"The capital called," he said, shaking his head in frustration. "We've been summoned to leave right away. Apparently, tensions between our government and Morwe's are reaching a peak, and the Inner Kingdom has elected to intervene as promised."
"Why do we have to go too?" Mari asked. "We're really just soldiers, when it comes right down to it."
"The Inner Kingdom has demanded both you two and the source and pilot we have prisoner to be present during the conference. It's so that we don't try and hide either of you away and sway the decisions in our favour."
"Why shouldn't we?" demanded Kaede, eyebrows drawing in. "We won."
"Do you want to go to war with Morwe?" Commander Sano heaved a sigh. "They're threatening to start bombing us unless we return their source."
"They attacked us first," Kaede glared. "We were defending ourselves!"
"True, although according to the captive pilot, they were simply taking advantage of an opportunity presented to them. While our power was out, they realized that we couldn't keep watch on their shoreline. Given the chance that we might not notice, they released their Level 1 machine, not realizing the true reason behind our outage."
"So they were really counting on us not having a Level 1 Source to counter their attack. Their plan failed because they jumped to take advantage of our weakness, not taking time to wonder why we had that weakness to begin with. Their loss," Mari said, agreeing with Kaede.
"Orders are orders, as much as I don't like them," Commander Sano closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. "There are three Level 9 motorcycles waiting to take us back to the capital."
"I don't like this," Kaede said to Mari as they followed Commander Sano to where the motorcycles were waiting in the docking bay. "I don't want to be put in a situation like this in case the Inner Kingdom just decides to take us all prisoner."
"Not much we can do about it," Mari replied tersely.
They were both handed helmets and buckled in behind the Level 9 motorcycle riding sources. They had a split second to give a thumbs up, and then they were off, the tiny machines roaring to life. The motorcycles were extremely light and manoeuvrable, easily keeping to the rough trail through the dense forest on either side of them. They were quite close to the border, and far away from the civilization of the capital.
Kaede watched the world fly by, and settled in for a long ride.
*~*~*
Kaede sat next to both Mari and Commander Sano on a raised platform. They had protective glass raised up around them, and from her vantage point, Kaede could see the representatives from the Inner Kingdom and Morwe. Right next to them in a similar raised box were the source and pilot from Morwe. They were no longer considered prisoners of war, although the Inner Kingdom had yet to return them to their own country.
The debate between the three had been going on for hours, and Kaede had stopped listening to it somewhere around the one hour mark. It was clear what all three wanted; it was simply a matter of compromise. Morwe wanted their source back. Their government didn't want to give him back, at least not without some form of compensation. The Inner Kingdom wanted them all to cease fighting so close to their mutual borders. None of them wanted to give their enemy any leverage. Kaede and Mari had nothing to contribute; they were only there at the demand of the Inner Kingdom.
"How long do you think we're going to be here?" Mari asked her, nudging her with her elbow.
"Depends on when they get tired of hearing their own voices," Kaede said, rolling her eyes.
"Great, we'll be here forever at this rate," Mari grumbled.
"Shhh!" Commander Sano hissed at them out the side of his mouth.
As the two of them exchanged wry looks, Kaede wondered how they had possibly reached this point. All her remembered rage had faded out, and while she knew why she had been mad, the words no longer made her angry. Now here they were, and Mari was laughing at her sarcastic remarks and leaning their shoulders together, the touch casual and unthinking.
They were making progress. Not just her and Mari––everyone. It was making their officers confused, but they were presenting a united front for once, and it was working. Sure, there were still a few misunderstandings, but everyone was more willing to try to work out their problems rather than stomping off and making disparaging comments across the room at each other.
And Mari... was different. Kaede was viewing her through another lens, and found that things she had once found unbearably irritating now seemed endearing.
To be fair, Mari's habit of rebellion and rule-breaking looked much better to her when she was sharing it with Kaede. It was much more fun when Mari skived off work for an extra ten minutes when Kaede was with her, huddled in some hidden nook, rather than being the one waiting in exasperation.
In the rush of activity after the end of the conflict, Kaede found herself treasuring those stolen minutes when they stretched their time together to its limit. As she wondered what it all meant, she kept finding herself coming back to one answer.
Should she tell Mari? Somehow, she thought that no matter how things played out, nothing would be able to tear down their hard-won partnership. It surprised even Kaede just how much she'd come to rely on Mari for support, even more than the fact she was quickly coming to terms with the changes in her life. More and more, Kaede was actually happy with her work. It helped a lot that sources and pilots were on better terms, but most of it had to do with her and Mari's growing bond.
Lost in thought, she didn't notice when the meeting finally ended. Mari nudged her side with her elbow, and Kaede blinked back into focus, realizing that she'd absent-mindedly rested her head against Mari's shoulder.
"What's happening?" she asked in a low voice that went unheard by anyone but Mari as they all got to their feet, the shifting of hundreds of bodies ample cover for her words.
"The source from Morwe is going to stay in the Inner Kingdom until they reach majority. The pilot is returning alone. In order for us to be allowed to continue with a functioning military Level 1 crew, we have to keep Hakusan more than fifty kilometres from our border with Morwe." Mari explained as the glass panel slid open to let them leave.
The three of them made their way back towards the source terminal where Commander Sano had a ground vehicle waiting to take them back to Hakusan.
"If we don't adhere to that stipulation, the Inner Kingdom will intervene again and disable Hakusan one way or another," Mari continued once they were out of hearing range again. "They have three Level 1 crews, so I don't think our government wants to argue with them. Morwe had to agree not to display any aggressive manoeuvres against us, or a similar fate will befall them."
"We have a 24-hour period to get Hakusan out of that fifty kilometre range," Commander Sano added. "So I suggest we hurry."
Kaede did the calculations in her head and groaned. "Looks like we'll be pulling a triple shift tonight. Hakusan doesn't move that fast. They know that, right?"
"It was discussed at length, but Morwe pushed it. They hope that we won't make it and that the Inner Kingdom will take care of us for them."
"Let's not give them the satisfactio
n," Mari muttered, and picking up her pace.
The ground vehicle kicked into action as soon as they were strapped in. Kaede rested her head back on Mari's shoulder and tried to get some rest while she could. The moment they got back, they'd be pushing to get Hakusan moving faster than she'd ever gone.
Just before she fell asleep, she felt Mari's arm circle her shoulder, and a slight pressure where her chin rested against Kaede's temple. A calm breath stirred the hair on her forehead. Kaede snuggled in closer, and with Mari's presence all around her, drifted off in the back of the ground vehicle.
*~*~*
Mari powered down Hakusan for the second time that night and waited for Kaede to come out of her trance. They'd been moving at top speed, but Hakusan's was like a crawl. Kaede was pushing hard, and it was draining her. There was the beginning of dark circles under her eyes. Mari waited, worried. They still had one more shift to go before they were out of the fifty kilometre range of the border.
Kaede was stirring, and Mari unplugged the three main plugs on her back before going to pick up Kaede's robe for her. As she did, the glow of Kaede's energy faded, and the lights dimmed slightly. One of the ingenious designs built into Hakusan included a storage generator that collected energy to use while Kaede wasn't hooked up to it, meaning that they wouldn't be in the dark in between shifts. It wasn't enough to run the entire machine, but the basics were still fine.
"Hey there, moon-angel. How are you feeling?" Mari asked, sending a look at the source technicians to keep them back.
"Starving. Also thirsty."
"There's food waiting for us in the mess. I can grab it."
Mari returned balancing two plates of food in her hands and said, "Come on. I found something that I want to show you."
"What? Where are we going?" Kaede got up to follow her. "When did you even have time to find it?"
"It was an accident. I was trying to find something else," Mari grinned over her shoulder. "It's even better than what I was looking for."
She knew Kaede was behind her, following her, even though she had no idea where they were going. Mari was a bit sorry that she was getting Kaede to come all this way when she was probably tired, but, this was worth it.