Hakusan Angel by Alex Powell

the last time they'd spoken they'd argued. Did pity negate anger in the world of pilots?
    Of course, because she didn't know what was going on with Mariko, she chose that very moment to appear. At least, she thought it was Mariko, because the figure in front of her was wearing a pilot's combat pants along with a non-regulation belt and bomber jacket. She didn't feel like twisting her neck up in order to see whose face was above her. She'd settle with the view of the midriff and hips. With those hips, it was definitely a female pilot.
    "You're awake."
    "Yes," Kaede said, sighing as she was proven correct.
    "Are you all right?"
    " No ," she grumbled pointedly. "My spine is bleeding ."
    "Right. Uh, so, you um, you going to be here awhile?"
    "No idea."
    "Okay. So ... did they tell you what happened?"
    "No."
    "Right. Okay. We ... kind of ran into the wall of the cavern."
    "I hadn't noticed," Kaede replied scathingly.
    "Yeah, well, that sort of caused part of the cavern to ... collapse. A bit." Mari sounded sheepish.
    "A bit."
    The hips in front of her face shifted guiltily. "Yes. Okay, fine, it collapsed a lot. Also, it caused a slight sink-hole on the surface of the base. People kind of noticed."
    "Why do I have the feeling that the sink-hole was more of a big deal than you're letting on?"
    The hips squirmed uncomfortably, and Mari's hands were twisted together. "Okay, so I know what you're going to say. It was a pretty big sink-hole, yes, I admit. And yes, a few buildings might have been slightly damaged in the aftermath ..."
    "Mariko ..."
    "Don't be mad!" Mariko visibly cringed. "We ... sort of destroyed the bar. And I mean that it sunk into the middle of the sink-hole and is completely non-salvageable."
    Only a pilot would think that the bar was more important than the fact that all of the Level 3 Sources and pilots had solid evidence that there was something secret going on right under their feet.
    "I knew you'd be angry."
    Kaede sighed and closed her eyes. "So what you really mean by all that is that we are in even more trouble and that Commander Sano is going to yell at us when I'm better?"
    "More or less. Yes."
    "Great."
    "Look on the bright side–"
    "There is no bright side."
    "–it's sort of their fault too, for trying to make us do everything right away and not considering the possibility that your new ports could be a problem."
    That was true, but it wasn't as if High Command would see it that way. "Mariko, they don't care if their orders might injure me or that I might need time to adjust. They'll just keep poking at my limits, and it doesn't matter to them if they accidentally break me along the way. You said it yourself–I'm just a walking battery. I'm just an object, a part of their war machines that can be bought with money. I'm not a person."
    "That's not true!"
    "Disbelieve me all you want. I'm the one lying here bleeding."
    Mariko didn't seem to have an answer for that one. Kaede could see her hands trembling, clenching slowly into fists. Mariko didn't say another word, turning on her heel and noisily marching out of the med bay.
    Kaede waited for something to happen, but Mariko didn't come back. What did return was the throbbing pain in her back, although it had only been about fifteen minutes.
    She summoned the tech and asked, "Can you just put me out again?"
    Her countdown from one hundred trailed off into welcome, fuzzy darkness.
    *~*~*
    Mari was back to waiting around in their enormous, cushy suite alone and bored. She'd briefly considered tying the gauzy white curtains together to make an escape rope, but decided it would probably tear under her weight. She'd been training on the driving sim for hours and her eyes were starting to get dry from staring at the screen for so long.
    Nothing ever happened in this place.
    A knock on the door interrupted her gloomy train of thought, and she got up to answer it, lazily taking her time. The door had a stupid, ornate handle, and Mari was constantly afraid that