CHAPTER 9

Review Corner

The Colonel: I'd rather have a mediocre soldier with great attitude than a highly-skilled maverick who thinks he's the big honcho. But that's just me. Others have different perspective.

Ulquiorra9000: If the decision comes from the top it'll be hard for regular soldiers to overturn it.


Buckminster, Buckminster Prefecture,
Benjamin Military District,
Draconis Combine,
January 6, 3073

It was 1430 hours, the last half hour of Kayoko's last day as a 2nd Sword of Light mechwarrior trainee.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Noloty said with trembling voice. She could accept Kayoko being transferred to a different unit. Unit transfer happened all the time. It was the fact that Kayoko was transferred after Noloty beat her that made her feel guilty. She hated to be the bane of her own best friend. "Why didn't you tell me that your battlemech career depended upon the result of our fight?"

"And do what, exactly?" Kayoko slowly stuffing her clothes into her duffle bag. She avoided eye contact with Noloty. "To fix the result? To create an illusion that I was better than I actually was?"

"We could've thought of something," Noloty growled hoarsely. "I could've fought in a different way…"

"Like holding back? So I didn't appear as dumb?" Kayoko was in the brink of bawling. "Do you realize how disrespectful that sound to me? You, of all people…"

"I could've been more reckless on the trigger! Nobody could fault me for overheating!" Noloty erupted. "The Chameleon is notorious for overheating! We could've used that to set a different course, so the instructor gets to keep us both! If only you told me!"

"The fact is, people expect you to walk all over me," Kayoko sat on her bed, throwing blank stare at the door. "People have seen you fight. People have seen me fight. Any less than what is already done would raise red flags. You are already under their microscope, Noloty. If they find out you were trying to deceive them, they would crucify you."

"I don't want to lose you," Noloty sobbed. "You are the only thing that makes sense in this hellhole. I don't want to be the one that ends your career."

"What's the alternative? Me staying here and you going to Buckminster Militia?" Kayoko faked a small smile. "If somebody has to leave this place, it's gotta be me. There's no way they pick me over you."

"The Black Dragon Society already tried to make me quit the 2nd Sword of Light…"

"That's just Enrique being smartass, and he has no basis for his hypothesis. Look at this from the top brass' perspective. Would you like to have somebody like you as a front-line mechwarrior, or somebody like me?"

"You and me both, and none of those avatar assholes," Noloty sat next to Kayoko. "You can build skill. Your battlemech piloting and shooting accuracy improve overtime. All you need is more time in a battlemech. But you cannot build heart. You have the heart of a legend, Kayoko. You are determined, have strong sense of duty, and an excellent team player. You may not have the skill they are looking for, but you are a great mechwarrior. I'd rather have you in my team than those bullies."

"Well, let's just say time is not on my side," Kayoko wiped her eyes with her sleeve. "But hey, I'm still around. It's not like I'm transferring to Wolcott or something. When your weekend labor is over, hit me up. We can meet in town for a few laughs. Maybe bring Enrique along for a double date."

"There's a regulation against fraternization, you know."

"Then bring him for me. I'll date him, and I'll find a militia stud for you."

Noloty snickered. "I wish everything didn't have to be this way."

Kayoko slung her arm around Noloty's shoulder. "This is not the end of the world. Armor units and mechanized infantry don't sound so bad. Nobody knows what the future will bring but I bet it will be fun. Who knows we are assigned to the same unit in the future."

"I would love that," Noloty forced herself to smile. "I'm gonna miss you."

"I'm gonna miss you," Kayoko rested her head on Noloty's shoulder. Her tears dripped down on Noloty's shoulder. Noloty mustered all energy to look composed, but she couldn't hold a few teardrops streaming down her face. They stayed like that for almost half an hour, until somebody called Kayoko's name from the door.


Buckminster, Buckminster Prefecture,
Benjamin Military District,
Draconis Combine,
January 11, 3073

With her partner gone, conversation became paucity for Noloty. Nobody pointed out that a cadet or an officer had a 'bulge', something that Kayoko seemed to be obsessed with. It was not a subject Noloty was interested in, but at least there was a subject. Now everything moved as if Noloty did not exist. Most cadets were not interested in talking to her. The bullies ignored her. And the officers tended to avoid her, as if her presence would bring bad luck. Except for Enrique.

Now Enrique was the anomaly. Ever since Kayoko left, the frequency of him striking conversation with Noloty had increased exponentially, to the point of becoming ubiquitous. Noloty had a pretty good idea why he acted the way he did, but she could use a company, especially during weekends where most of her peers were out having good times.

Noloty was in the mess hall cleaning up dinner when Enrique gave her a visit. "Need a hand?"

She shrugged. "No, Sir. I got this."

"Are you always prim and proper?" Enrique started gathering leftovers from the long table adjacent to Noloty. "You can drop the 'Sir' whenever we are not in an official military affair."

"Alright… Enrique," Noloty gave him a cold but courteous nod. She would love a casual company, but Enrique outranked her by several grades. She didn't want to take a chance. "I will be finished with my labor in 30 minutes. Why are you here? Are you not supposed to have fun in town?"

"I come from a long line of Kuritan mechwarriors, and as Kuritan mechwarriors we don't leave anybody behind. As far as I'm concern, somebody is left behind in the mess hall."

Noloty flashed a small smile. She knew what he was doing, but she didn't want to get into unnecessary entanglement with a senior officer. "I appreciate you forfeited your weekend pass to give me company, but you are not in 'detention'. I am, and this is my responsibility."

"I don't indulge in booze and chasing girls anyway," Enrique scoffed. He grabbed a piece of cloth and started wiping a long table. "I'd rather lend you a hand. Make me feel I am useful. How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine," Noloty wiped the other table. "Things seem to quiet down."

"They're not the same without Kayoko, are they?"

"No," she replied shortly. Her face turned sour. "I wish she didn't have to leave."

"I know what it looks like, but you have nothing to do with Kayoko's transfer," Enrique correctly predicted that Noloty was harboring guilt. "It was inevitable. Her records were not particularly impressive. Top brass had been considering transferring her out of the 2nd Sword of Light for some time. Your fight with her was merely an impetus, if at all."

"She knew she was gonna be booted out of the 2nd if she flunked the training," Noloty sat on a bench, throwing a blank stare at the training field in the distance. "She knew her battlemech career depended on the result of that fight. But she knew that my battlemech career also depended on the result of that fight, and she chose my career over her own. And you know why?" She paused to release the knot in her throat. "The 2nd Sword of Light would benefit more with me. I wish the top brass realized how utterly selfless Kayoko is, and didn't judge her solely by piloting and gunnery skills."

"Unfortunately the 2nd does not judge cadets based on sentiment," Enrique sat next to Noloty. "Kayoko was right. You are the better mechwarrior, and any CO with working logic would pick you over her. The unorthodox ones might still consider her, like Natasha Kerensky, or Kristoffer Hasek-Davion, but we are not blessed with those kind. We only have traditional leaders. Those who value skill, guts, and loyalty above all else."

"I feel like I killed her career," Noloty sighed.

"If anything, you may have saved her life," Enrique replied halfheartedly.

Noloty snorted. "How so?"

"Fifty-five percent new recruits with average skill never made it back home. Kayoko is below average. Do the math."

"Yeah but… at least she is protected by ferro-fibrous. As a mechanized infantryman or armor personnel, she is not protected that well. Might as well go to the front line naked."

"True, but Buckminster Militia is a planetary garrison unit. Her job would be guarding supplies. The chance she will fight a front-line unit is very slim. Let alone Word of Blake's Manei Domini, Ghost Bears Assault Clusters, or the putrid Davion Guards."

"Huh," Noloty grinned awkwardly. A huge burden was lifted from her heart. "I never thought of it that way." She didn't know the life expectancy of a front-line soldier, and she never cared. But if Enrique was correct, if only 45-percent of new recruits survived, then Kayoko might be better off with the planetary defense force. Of course, it also depended upon what kind of life sparked Kayoko's interest, and Noloty made a mental note of asking her next time they met.

"Give yourself a break. She might even outlive you," Enrique put his arm around Noloty's shoulder. "Then she's the one who feels bad about the whole situation."

Noloty let out a soft guffaw. "Now I feel bad about myself."

"That's easy to fix," Enrique caught Noloty's chin and turned her head to face his. He stared deep into her bright blue eyes, then leaned forward to kiss her.

It happened so fast and so abrupt, Noloty didn't react. She stiffened up like a statue, staring at Enrique for the longest time, until his facial expression changed from blissful to awkward to freaked out. She couldn't recall how long their lips met, but when they did, she felt like her bones turned to mush.

"What was that?" she gathered everything she had to stay composed.

"An invitation," Enrique offered a smile. "You know, you and me…"

"I uh…" Noloty's heart skipped a beat. Kayoko told her once that Enrique had a crush on her, and his omnipresence supported that statement. Him protecting her against the bullies, twice. Him forfeiting his weekend pass to help her out. Him being there when Kayoko was not available anymore. It felt like he was that knight in shining armor straight out of a fairy tale, madly in love with a poor peasant. But she knew he had sex with Kayoko, and who knew how many other women. She did not want to be just another woman in his bed. And generally, she did not want to be attached to anybody as of now.

"Don't take this the wrong way, you are a great guy, Enrique," she said solemnly. "I'm just… I'm not emotionally available right now. But I'm really, really flattered that you think highly of me."

"Alright," Enrique shifted a few inches away from her. "I hope my uncouthness does not change anything between us."

"Not at all," Noloty found a way to smile, although a bit awkwardly. "I will finish up my labor, then I'm thinking of going to the shooting range. It's been a while since I last worked on my marksmanship. You are welcome to join me."

"It's better than spending time solo," Enrique replied. "See you in the shooting range."

Noloty watched him walking away from the mess hall. If only Kayoko were there.