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Flame's commander graduates. The next guy, promoted in from Salamander, doesn't get along with Brighteyes and trades him away for a girl, making Flame the only army with more than one girl in it. Everyone seems to expect Aegis to have some particular interest in befriending this girl, but she's not even in the same toon or particularly interesting. Aegis's new toon leader (a promoted second from another toon, not her) doesn't know what to do with her, but he's bright enough to know that he doesn't know what to do with her. She retains her nominal toon second position, which means that she takes over if he gets frozen - not often; he prefers defensive maneuvers - and otherwise she dances around alone, achieving higher level Flame goals as a one-girl formation-wrecker. She's good enough at this to sometimes lead opposing armies to decline to use formations at all when they're battling Flame, and then she's a sharpshooter, hiding herself behind human shields and holding her beam on everyone who gets in her sights.
Eventually command changes again. The new guy makes a lot of trades, but keeps Aegis, and makes her a toon leader at last when she's nine and a half. It takes this long for Brighteyes to make good on his promise to try to trade for Aegis, but the new commander knows what she's worth and won't part with her for any price he offers.
Aegis watches Sue in the rosters. He gets an army when he's just barely eleven: Phoenix. He makes a lot of trades too, but not for her. That's okay. She's got a toon, and she teaches them to throw her where she needs to go, to make formations that will stand up to all kinds of busting moves like the ones she knows, to freeze their elbows if they can't hold their arms steady like she can to shoot straight.
Everyone's rapidly terrified at Phoenix's hivemindy mutie kuso.
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autokinetic
"You said the reviews'll find that, just 'cause it's true?" He affects an innocent look. "You mean you weren't joking?"
autokinetic
"At any rate, walk with me." Gupta gets up and leads Sue to the brig.
He goes along, still laughing.
autokinetic
Gupta locks him up and leaves him be.
It's about twenty minutes later when Sue feels Aegis's mind groping in his direction again, all birdbirdbird.
It's about twenty minutes later when Sue feels Aegis's mind groping in his direction again, all birdbirdbird.
It's like she brightens, going from dim and faded to the shiniest light he can see.
He nudges her again.
He nudges her again.
autokinetic
hi. they won't give me my exo back it's not broken but they say they don't want me to move too much and I move around in my sleep when I have it. do they know?!
I didn't tell them, he says. I didn't tell anybody.
He shows her what he did tell them, in the same kind of rapid-fire but readable summaries he uses to talk to his soldiers.
Conclusion: as far as he can tell, they don't know.
He shows her what he did tell them, in the same kind of rapid-fire but readable summaries he uses to talk to his soldiers.
Conclusion: as far as he can tell, they don't know.
autokinetic
maybe naoko's wise to you, maybe she told - they won't let me have it - my chest hurts and I can't move she sends back. but thank you
He pushes an image of his bird hugging her bird-person, and the feeling behind it: he likes her, he cares about her, he wants her to get better and fly again.
autokinetic
I wanna fly again too. why was she so mad? I didn't have anything against her personally, you're supposed to shoot at the other army. oh and the disarming thing was my idea but they weren't supposed to close with you, they were just supposed to shoot you, they must not know what you look like or something.
I dunno, he says. She talked like you were cheating, but you don't cheat half as bad as we do.
autokinetic
I guess she's a hypocrite? suggests Aegis with a weak laugh. what's going to happen to her?
Didn't ask.
autokinetic
I mean, if the teachers don't do anything. sometimes they don't. she's your soldier.
I told her I'd freeze her every battle and use her as a shield, he says cheerfully. Probably won't, though. I'll trade her unless she convinces me she won't pull that shit again.
autokinetic
I used to try to go without washing for weeks when I first got the exo. now I want to try going without again 'cause I'm scared. maybe I can get Naoko to take a personal combat class but that would only help while I'm in Flame and she is too. maybe I should ask if I can just use the guys' showers. it'd be weird but at least then there'd be more witnesses.
If you want somebody with personal combat training to guard you while you shower, I can do it, he says loyally.
autokinetic
only if you're free then. besides, then I'd still need permission to use the boys' showers or you'd need permission to be in the girls' ones.
He pushes a shorthand shrug.
autokinetic
I'll ask somebody about shower permissions either way, I guess. and ask Naoko. unfortunately, I tried years ago to figure out a way to have only bits of it off at one time and I ruined a little piece of it in the attempt and now I have to hope I don't grow to be six and a half feet tall and need the extra insert. I probably won't be six and a half feet tall though.
What, there's not more than one of it?
autokinetic
it was only in prototype stages when the project got canned because of that one guy. mine is actually put together out of pieces of a few different ones because they tried not to leave any usable complete sets of pieces in case someone tried them on and got possessed, but they were able to collect enough stuff to make mine. they might be able to get me a handful more inserts if they had to, but my family can't afford to commission more to be made and I'm not sure if the IF would pay for it or not.
I'll get Mom to pay, he offers. If you need it. She's a sap, she will.
autokinetic
oh - that's nice of you - and of her, but I still shouldn't get soap on it. or any of the other things that will mess it up, but I'm less likely to put peroxide or alcohol on myself and I'm listed as 'allergic' to those for the infirmary.