Regrets [Imai]

[Kira Yamato]

Kira was busy in his room, but he wasn't preparing for the upcoming mission. He had something else on his mind. Something that required just as much attention. His computer screen displayed with so many smaller windows that the desktop was impossible to see. Even if you were to close 10 of them it would only appear that more were there, but they weren't disorganized. At least to them. And each one had equations. Varaiables. Flashing by so fast that anyone at the base would be hard pressed to make sense of them if they knew what all of it meant.

Kira did and it was why he was he was working so hard at it. That sample he had gotten a hold of the other day hadn't been easy to get. At least the data on it had been difficult to accquire. He still couldn't believe what those people had become. What they had been mutated to become. How many had been willing? How many had no knowledge of it? What of those that actually did the engeinerring? Had they really been aiming for a end result like that? He had been working on this for a few days. Another thing he hadn't told Imai about. And he had made only a little progress on finding a counter to it.

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Key: Person to post next
Song: Fields of Hope by Rie Tanaka
Key: Thoughts; Dialouge

[Ayen]

Things in Isafaro was quickly going to hell in a hand basket. There were reports of the vampire Alucard that she, Kragen and Garrus had encounter in the city taking Drake White head on and then another beast similar yet managed to cause even more destruction upon one of their outposts by one of the entrances of the city. They knew for certain Alucard was no friend but the new arrival remained to be seen and reports of a virus that turned dead Isafaro soldiers into monsters only enforced the already burning hatred she had for General Vulture. She could only hope making The Genius a General would start to change the course of the war in their favor.

Kira had called her to his room, said he had something to show her. It better be good. Imai hasn't made any attempt to talk to him since their argument in her office during the last meeting. She saw no reason to since he already made his feelings known and in the end they went with his suggestion anyway so why go there? Imai entered the room and walked up to Kira.

“You wanted to see me?”

[Kira Yamato]

Kira wasn't surprised as Imai walked up he knew she would be coming, but he didn't turn around right away. ”One moment.” he asked of her. ”Place all equations on hold.” he said as everything on screen seemed to freeze. A nice piece of equipment that he had picked up from Orb. Came in handy when he was doing as much as he was. After that he turned around and walked over to the side of his bed grabbing a file. He handed it to her. He had made better progress on the transporter then he had thought, but he was still far from done cracking it.

There were still variables that needed to be accounted for, but he thought he may have figured out how to go realm to realm. Of course which realm was still undetermined, but it was a start. And testing it would be nigh impossible. Once they went through they might not be coming back. That was Kira's main worry. He gave her time to look through it before speaking up asking his next question quietly. ”When do you think this war will end?” he asked her. It was something he needed to know. Something he needed to hear from her.

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Key: Person to post next
Song: Fields of Hope by Rie Tanaka
Key: Thoughts; Dialouge

[Ayen]

"One moment."

Imai folded her arms in front of her chest and waited.

"Place all equations on hold."

Imai's unfolded her arms and took the file when Kira gave it to her and she looked over the envelope.

“What's this?”

"When do you think this war will end?"

“Why? You want to quit?”

Imai opened up the file and took out the papers to look at its contents. It's been a while since Imai looked at any files that were actually written down on paper. Normally everything she studied was on a data pad, which was the norm for Isafaro.

“Hard to say. The war won't end until Vulture and his chain of command are removed from power. How long that will be is anyone's guess.”

[Kira Yamato]

Kira didn’t bother answering her first question. If she really wanted to know she should read the file. It wasn’t that difficult to do really. Kira wondered at her second question if she was just kidding or not. Either way he gave no response. It was a question he was wanting an answer to. Until their chain of command was gone. ”Then why is it you seem to want to see everyone associated with them dead?” he asked. He was assuming it was because of her past, but even that was a bad excuse for wanting to kill everyone.

How much did that chain of command stretch though? He knew it probably didn’t go down the whole army, but then where did it stop? Where did one draw the line between who was forced and who was doing this thing willingly. The conversation actually had some to do with what had happened a few days ago, but it wasn’t the first incident that had made him doubt, but it was all coming back now. And he had called her here mostly for the file, but these were things he needed to know from her. All of it was.

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Key: Person to post next
Song: Fields of Hope by Rie Tanaka
Key: Thoughts; Dialouge

[Ayen]

"Then why is it you seem to want to see everyone associated with them dead?"

“You actually have to ask me that after learning about everything these people are capable of? Anyone would want to see them dead. I also want to have sex with Hugh Jackman but that doesn't mean I'm going to go pounding down his door to jump his bones.”

[Kira Yamato]

Kira was expecting that answer to be honest. It was the answer he didn't want to hear from her, but the one he was expecting. It was true that he had seen what a few select people were capable of, but that really didn't give anyone the right to say they all deserved to die. She should know that better then anway since she was almost forced to serve. At least she would have been had she shown enough ability. How many people were part of them because of something like that?

Hugh Jackman? That name didn't ring a bell to Kira, but he supposed the point of the statement would still stand. Well it would stand if she hadn't already proven otherwise. She had shown she wasn't above taking every chance she could to do it. Would that mean going out of the way? No, but at the same time it meant she wouldn't be doing anything to avoid it. ”Imai, do you know the difference between a good commander and a good leader?” he asked her.here She might think they were one in the same, but there wasn't. There was a defining line between them, but did she know that?

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Key: Person to post next
Song: Fields of Hope by Rie Tanaka
Key: Thoughts; Dialouge

[Ayen]

"Imai, do you know the difference between a good commander and a good leader?"

“He who commands may not be he who leads,” replied Imai. “That fellow who spits commands out at everyone, no matter how good they are and yet no one follows their commands. Now think of the fellow who leads their people and all they do is follow. A leader leads. A Commander commands. That's about it.”

[Kira Yamato]

At the first part of Imai's reply it seemed she might know the difference, but that would be even worse. That would mean she just didn't care enough to do anything about that difference. However as she went on it became clear she really didn't know what it the real difference was. His eyes softened. It explained a lot about her, but no matter what he said here it wasn't something that could be taught. Knowing the difference and learning the difference were two different things entirely. He slowly shook his head after she finished.

”It's more then that.” he told her. It was a difference he had had to learn on his own, but maybe she might be able to work at it knowing the difference. ”On the battlefield it's a soldiers job to follow orders and do their best to survive. They don't need to think about skirmish to skirmish. Merely battle to battle. The higher up in the chain of command a person goes the further that person has to think ahead. People will follow a commander if they believe in them enough. In their cause enough. However it's there job to think about how the war will go. How to end it with as little casualities to there forces as possible while at the same time taking out as many of the enemy as possible.” he said stopping only to take a breath.

She would get no chance to reply to it. Not yet. So far he had been describing the way she had been acting. As a commander. Not as a leader. ”A leader must see beyond the war however. They have to see after it. See the effect it will cause those not invovled. If not everything could fall. They must see beyond the past and even the present. A commander only needs to see the now.” he said giving her the chance to respond now. The difference wasn't as clear cut as Imai made it out to be.

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Song: Fields of Hope by Rie Tanaka
Key: Thoughts; Dialouge

[Ayen]

"It's more then that. On the battlefield it's a soldiers job to follow orders and do their best to survive. They don't need to think about skirmish to skirmish. Merely battle to battle. The higher up in the chain of command a person goes the further that person has to think ahead. People will follow a commander if they believe in them enough. In their cause enough. However it's there job to think about how the war will go. How to end it with as little causalities to there forces as possible while at the same time taking out as many of the enemy as possible."

Imai opened her mouth to reply but Kira wasn't done.

"A leader must see beyond the war however. They have to see after it. See the effect it will cause those not involved. If not everything could fall. They must see beyond the past and even the present. A commander only needs to see the now."

“I'm not a leader, Kira. I never claimed to be. I'm a commander; I command. I was bred for war and I use the skills I have to give Isafaro the opportunity to know a life without Vulture. What they do after that is up to them.”

[Kira Yamato]

An honest flash of annoyance hit Kira's face at her excuse. To her it may not have been one, but to him it was. So that was her reason? Her reason to kill as many of them as possible? ”Is that really your excuse? Because you were bred for war?” he asked her. His voice betraying that annoyance. That was honestly one of the worst reasons he had heard for justifying killing another. And Imai should already know his stance on it at this point. Sometimes it was nessecary, but that didn't mean you should capitalize on every chance.

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Song: Fields of Hope by Rie Tanaka
Key: Thoughts; Dialouge

[Ayen]

“Is that really your excuse? Because you were bred for war?”

Imai shook her head.

“That's my reason for not being a leader. I kill when I have to not because it gives me kicks. Now if you're done wasting my time, I have better things to do than stand here listening to pointless lectures about the differences between a leader and a commander. I have a war to win.”

Imai turned around and began heading out the door.

[Kira Yamato]

Pointless? Is that what she thought of this? Kira's annoyance quickly turned to angry at those words. They were talking about living beings here not just what ice cream flavor she might like. And she had the nerve to stand there and say it was pointless? For Kira that put things over the edge for him. He took a moment to calm himself before speaking again. Even as he spoke his voice told it was something big he was going to say next. ”There is one final thing.” he said taking a moment to gather his thoughts.


He stood up and looked at her. His voice and eyes held a will in them that couldn't be refuted. His words were meant as they were said. ”After we get that kid home, I quit.” he told her. The idea that had been on his mind for months now was finally said. He just couldn't stay here anymore. He couldn't be a part of this anymore. He wouldn't go around killing people just because it might be more convinent and he didn't want in part of those that did. What he would do he didn't know, but his decision was solid. And it wasn't made in anger as she might want to think.

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Key: Person to post next
Song: Fields of Hope by Rie Tanaka
Key: Thoughts; Dialouge

[Ayen]

"There is one final thing."

“What?”

"After we get that kid home, I quit."

“Fine by me.”

Imai turned back around and left the room without another word.