Sunbase control, affirm decel in ten.
Operations control took Kashiwagi’s needle first, and then the two remaining Kama-four needles, with Ghenji last.
Before he powered down and left the cradle, he linked to ops. Interrogative status, kay-four delta.
Recovery successful, pilot in suspension.
Thank you, Sunbase ops.
He finished the shutdown checklist and then eased himself out of the restrainers and then out of the needle through the flexible umbilical tube.
Later, there would be a complete debrief, after operations correlated all the information, but, once he finished the post-flight and mech report, he checked the mission status. Out of sixty needles launched, seven had been lost, and four had returned with various stages of damage to the needles and their pilots. He nodded—the stats were close to operational norms.
He still had time before the flight leader debrief, and he needed to check on Lieutenant Kashiwagi. The lieutenant was one of his pilots. Tired as Ghenji was, he headed up to the medical section. As he neared the two technicians stationed at the master suspension consoles, he couldn’t help but overhear the quiet words between them.
“Snow-woman got him… but he should make it… bring ’em back from a block of ice… not medically possible… she can…”
Snow-woman? Ghenji stepped forward. “Can you tell me about Lieutenant Kashiwagi?”
“Ser!” Both stiffened. Neither spoke for a moment.
Then one finally said, “Dr. Yukionna could best tell you, and it will be a while.”
“I’ll wait.”
He stood there, pacing back and forth, for close to a stan before he saw a flash of short brilliant white hair.
“You’re here because of one of your pilots?” Rokujo’s words were barely a question.
“Kashiwagi… Kama-four-delta. Will he make it?”
She offered a faint smile. “It’s likely. He did suffer explosive decompression before life-suspension fully kicked in. That’s in addition to major organ failures. We don’t have the facilities to rebuild him here, but there’s a good chance that we can keep him alive in suspension until we return to Kunitsu…”
“Likely?” That didn’t sound good.
“Most of those who are likely to survive do, and if they survive, the med-systems at Kunitsu orbit station can return almost all to full function.”
That was the best Ghenji could hope for. He nodded.
“Later?” he asked.
“It might be much later, but… yes.” The quick smile that burst through the formal frosty exterior was gone almost as soon as it had appeared… but Ghenji had seen it.
V
Immediately after the needle recovery, the Amaterasu withdrew and began the maneuvers to move into position for the second attack.
Ghenji had appreciated Rokujo’s company the evening after the first attack… but he did not see her again until the evening meal the following ship-day. She was looking for him, though, as she entered the wardroom.
“How is Kashiwagi?” he asked.
“He’s under suspension. There’s no way to tell now, not until they bring him out when we return. How are you?”
“Concerned. Now that I’ve thought about it, there should have been more defenders at the last installation.”
They settled near the end of the second table.
“You think there’ll be more at the next?”
“Maybe they thought we’d attack it first.” He shook his head. “Enough of that. Do you prefer the art of calligraphy, representation, or actuality?” That should spark some discussion, since it had been more than a little controversial on Kunitsu just before they had left, in part because one of the “art-monks” had used a molecular shredder to destroy an entire actuality exhibit at the national museum at Oharano, claiming that the actuality school did not practice art, but merely plagiarized reality.
“I tend toward representation.” She smiled. “Especially when embellished by calligraphy…”
As she talked, occasionally gesturing, turning her hand, in the indirect light of the mess, Ghenji thought he saw the faintest pattern of white on her white skin. White on white, almost diamond-like, or… he wasn’t quite certain. He thought there might be the same pattern on her neck as well, but then again…
Much, much later, as they lay there together in Ghenji’s cubicle, he did not wish to think about the next day. He’d never really worried about missions and duty, not before he’d met Rokujo. So he tried to think of something, anything, that would divert her… and him.
“You said you were the snow-woman… and so did one of the techs…” Ghenji didn’t want to turn his statement into a question.
“That’s because of my billet, and my name. The name is the same as one from an old legend, and… you know what I do… I’m responsible for bringing people out of suspension, out of the cold… or putting them into it, if necessary.” She absently licked her lips, red, but thin, and, as he had discovered, more than mobile.
Ghenji couldn’t help watching closely. They were very close, and when she’d done that, it had looked to him almost as though she’d flicked her tongue—a rather pointed tongue. He wanted to shake his head. That wasn’t possible. “And the white hair?”
She just shrugged in that incredibly sinuous and sensual fashion that fascinated him. “The hair goes a long ways back, to Old Earth at least. It’s always run in my family. I’ve been told the women are an odd mixture.”
“What else runs in your family?” Ghenji tried to keep his tone light. “Besides passion?” He grinned.
“Jealousy.” She bent forward and nibbled his ear. “We don’t share. Ever.”
That was fine with Ghenji. Then he thought. “What about duty? You do have to share me with duty.”
“You’re fortunate. One of my ancestors didn’t understand that. I do… mostly.” She wrapped her arms around him, coiling herself about him.
At that moment, Ghenji had no more interest in biographical questions.
When he woke, she was gone.
VII
Once more, Flight Captain Ghenji Yamato waited in his needle, monitoring the net. Within his armor, he felt hot and clammy, yet cold and chill. Why? What had happened to the warrior-monk?
Kay-four, stand by for release.
Standing by, Sunbase control, he pulsed back.
Launch four!
The sudden acceleration slammed Ghenji and his armor into the needle’s couch as the Amaterasu’s mass drivers hurled his needle out and away. He and the remaining two needles of his flight slashed “upward” at an angle toward the second component of the Mogulate solar engineering facility. Ghenji checked vectors and relative speeds. Sunbase control, affirm, kay-four on-line.
He forced himself to concentrate on the mental display, while he kept checking the EDI and detectors for the first signs of the Parthindian defenders. Less than twelve minutes later, he had both visual and full EDI on the Mogulate defenses—and he didn’t like what he saw. There were close to forty hot-scouts comprising a defense net with four energy-screen hexagons, and all were lined up almost perfectly to block the Amaterasu’s needles.
He mentally checked the options, scanned the offshoots, and pulsed to his flight, Kay-four, course change follows… Execute… NOW!
The two quick heading changes would do nothing to the flight’s projected target release point, but they would change the angle of penetration of the defense screen—enough, Ghenji hoped, to allow a successful torp release. He wasn’t so sure about whether they could correct enough afterwards, assuming they did penetrate, to regain a departure vector that would allow successful recovery.