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[indeliblepast]

Sumeragi glared at the console, and instructed the computer to bring up the simulation once more. It was a fairly simple one - just dodging an oncoming asteroid field - but she'd run it three times now, and each had ended with her ship as an asteroid bug-splatter not too far in. She could drive a car just fine, but the finer controls of the ship eluded her. She had imported the Ptolemy's basic design and control scheme into the program, so at least it was a ship she was vaguely familiar with.

Nonetheless, ten minutes into this fourth run, a fairly loud stream of curses - in more than one language - could be heard outside the door to the sensorium she was using.

Comments

[indeliblepast]

She nodded. "Putting a little practice in." Unsuccessful practice, but still practice.

[jesushasagundam]

The young man stepped into the Sensorium, looking all around him - and even though he'd never been inside, the shape of this bridge looked entirely too similar to the outside of the CB ship. "This is the Celestial Being ship, isn't it?"

"I didn't know you were their pilot."

[indeliblepast]

Sumeragi raised an eyebrow. Someone Setsuna had tangled with, maybe? He seemed to have the biggest reputation of all the Meisters onboard the ship.

"I'm not. None of our pilots have decided to join us so far, though."

[jesushasagundam]

And the only one whose confrontations had turned physical, at that. He could even pull up the Sensorium battle log if you wanted, Sumeragi. But Kira was hardly the type to hold a grudge. "Do you mean more than just the mobile suit pilots?" He glanced past her at the controls. "I've never flown a battleship before but I can only imagine they're a bit different..."

[indeliblepast]

She nodded. "The control set-up is different - only one of the mobile suit pilots is trained on this, and as I have no MS training - well, it seemed better for me to brush up on my skills."

[jesushasagundam]

Kira paused for a moment. "Can I ask why? There's plenty of room for your MS over on the Quarter."

[indeliblepast]

"If you've met any of the Meisters, you probably know they handle authority... badly." Understatement of the century. "And this ship has decent weaponry on it's own."

[jesushasagundam]

Kira frowned. "Yes, I know that," he said quietly. "But we're all supposed to be working together. Splitting up our forces doesn't help anybody."

[indeliblepast]

"Not giving us all the information necessary doesn't help anybody either," she pointed out.

[jesushasagundam]

"I agree," Kira answered quietly. "So why make the problem worse?"

He paused, considering the other meaning in her words. "I'm Kira Yamato. I'm in charge of Blade Squadron."

[indeliblepast]

"Sumeragi Lee Noriega. Commander of, well, this." She gestured at the bridge around her.

[jesushasagundam]

"Then you're their leader," he said softly in a way that made it sound less like a question.

He looked at her directly with a firm expression in otherwise gentle violet eyes. "I want to work together. We all share a common goal, don't we? Bickering doesn't solve anything or get us closer to bringing our homes back."

[indeliblepast]

She nodded a response to his first statement - she couldn't really keep that under wraps, here.

"I'm not sure our goals are really the same, though. An end to war can be achieved in many ways - but I wouldn't support all of them."

[jesushasagundam]

Kira's violet eyes lowered. "Do you think I would?" He asked quietly.

"Have you been here long enough to encounter the Ohm in person yet?" There was that recent event but... well, maybe she was new, new.

[indeliblepast]

"I have," she replied. "And if you disagree with Setsuna... I think you might."

[jesushasagundam]

His expression was still quiet and reserved when he looked up at her, but there was something hard in his eyes. "You're wrong," he said plainly. "In every battle we've had against the Ohm, I try to defeat them without killing them. But it's not as simple as just cutting the weapons off of a mobile suit, here."

"And if I don't fight then millions of innocent people could and will die."

[indeliblepast]

"No, it's not. But I don't see command trying to make contact, or trying to make plans other than 'us or them'." Her voice was quiet, but there was a firmness behind it.

[jesushasagundam]

Kira was silent for a moment. "The first time we ever met them in person," he said after his pause, "They attacked a planet we were visiting over shore leave. It was a peaceful world with hardly any weapons, and I'd hardly ever seen some place more beautiful before; they destroyed everything. They killed innocent people fleeing for their lives, they shattered the world and almost collapsed that reality itself if we hadn't interfered."

"If I can disable a mobile suit on the battlefield, I will. I don't ever want to take a life; it doesn't solve anything. But I can't stand by and let innocent people suffer because they don't have a sword and shield to defend themselves with."

"Are you really saying that using your strength to protect others is wrong? Maybe you'd understand if you'd been there with us the first time."

[indeliblepast]

Sumeragi felt a small surge of anger that someone as young as Kira was was lecturing her about the horrors of war - but she knew snapping at things would only make things worse. So she reined in her temper before she spoke.

"It's not wrong to protect others - I wouldn't stop you, and in the last battle, we fought too. But I know we're only fighting mindless soldiers - killing them won't solve anything in the longk-term, and nobody seems to be planning for that."