“It’d have to add it as an amendment to the special mission related to the meeting,” Rei said. “There are times when pilots on a mission have to request changes to their mission details. It’s never happened before a sortie, but the tactical computer must have judged that Yukikaze was facing that sort of situation. It was able to initiate the sortie sequence by following that protocol. This all happened because you were treating this mission as special and didn’t behave the way you would normally. In other words, your secrecy is to blame for this, Jack. If you’d just told the computer about the meeting, Yukikaze would have accepted it. So what do we do, Major? Try to forcibly abort this takeoff? That won’t be easy, since Yukikaze’s set on doing this. Even if we explained things to her now, she’d still want to check it out herself. In other words, she is going to take off and follow Llanfabon.”
“Roger,” Major Booker replied.
“Roger? Are you saying I can get ready for takeoff?”
“In regards to Yukikaze’s sortie, headquarters recognizes that it accepted a request from you, Captain Fukai. I just need you to confirm that the request came from you. That way, there’ll be no problem. You’ll be at that lunch meeting, as scheduled, and that you are Captain Rei Fukai. Do you get what I’m saying? Now, reconfirm that for me, Captain Fukai.”
“This is Captain Fukai,” Rei replied. “I will be attending the meeting. I made the request for Yukikaze to sortie. Reconfirmation, over.”
“Very good.”
“I’m going to send Yukikaze out in automaneuver mode. Is that okay, Major?”
“There’s nothing else we can do. We can’t predict what she’ll do out there, but we can analyze this and figure out how to deal with you after the mission’s over. Stand by in there and then deplane once you’re on the surface. I’m sending Captain Edith Foss up to meet you. Follow her instructions. She’ll show you where you need to go.”
“Captain Foss? Do I really need a doctor to chaperone me to this meeting? Or is she invited to it too?”
“I have no comment about who’s invited, what it’s about, or any other details. Just follow the tactical computer’s plan for Yukikaze’s weapons and fuel loadout. I’ve checked it out and it’s basically the same as Llanfabon’s. Don’t interfere.”
“This is B-1, roger. Captain Fukai, over and out.”
“Okay. Over and out.”
B-1 was Yukikaze’s sortie code number. The B was for Boomerang, the SAF’s nickname, while the number one indicated that it was Unit 1 in the squadron. Captain Fukai referred to Rei himself, of course. It was the first time he’d ever used this particular classification response.
This will be the first time Yukikaze and I will be taking separate actions, Rei thought, then corrected himself. Yukikaze has always acted on her own. I just never noticed before.
Exiting the elevator into the weapons loadout bay, Rei watched from the cockpit as she was armed and fueled. It was the same as the usual procedure to prepare a plane for sortie, except this was the first time he realized that it was fully automated. It gave him a feeling of excitement mixed with a little fear.
An automatic crane hanging from the ceiling lowered a huge drum full of autocannon ammunition into the upper side of Yukikaze’s fuselage while four short-range missiles were loaded onto her underside, two on each side. Fuel was pumped into her tanks, though Rei couldn’t be sure if the tanks were being filled completely since he didn’t know how much fuel she was cleared to carry. That was a new experience for him as well. The most he could figure out was that the fuel tanks in the wings weren’t being filled, so she wasn’t expected to fly very far.
The entire loadout procedure was completed automatically. It wasn’t just Yukikaze who was acting without any care for his thoughts on the matter. The combat intelligence in SAF headquarters didn’t seem to care either.
But he was heartened to see she wasn’t just ignoring him when a message appeared on Yukikaze’s display. The warning said that his oxygen hose and ejection seat weren’t properly set. In short, she couldn’t take off until he’d taken care of that. Rei reminded himself not to be too happy when he realized that was the point of concern.
Maybe she was telling him that he, unprepared for flight as he was, was now an obstacle. Once they reached the surface, she might decide he wasn’t needed anymore and just activate the ejection sequence. He definitely didn’t want to get thrown out in his seat. Without his parachute or even being properly strapped into it, a stunt like that would be hazardous to his health. Normally, the crew safeguards wouldn’t allow the ejection sequence to initiate if the ejection seats weren’t properly set; however…
The dolly began towing Yukikaze back to the elevator so that she could exit to the surface. Rei seriously began to think he should deplane right here. He was considering what would be safest for him. Before he’d made a decision, another message appeared on Yukikaze’s warning display:
Action…Captain FUKAI.
The message was blinking, as though Yukikaze was irritated and asking him why he was still dicking around inside of her. And he, even as he was thinking there was no way that she’d understand, told her that he wasn’t coming with her.
“I, Captain Rei Fukai, will be participating in the lunch meeting that Llanfabon has been assigned to escort. Yukikaze, you will protect me. When I reach the surface, I’ll deplane. Do you understand?”
Yukikaze did not answer. He knew she wouldn’t, but Rei didn’t feel discouraged. He’d said what he’d wanted to say. All that was left to do was pray that he’d be able to get out safely. Giving full control to Yukikaze was dangerous. He hoped his fears would prove baseless.
The sunlight from Faery’s skies streaming into the exit of the elevator building was dazzling. It was nice weather today. A little ahead of him, he could see Llanfabon. She was stopped.
Outside, Captain Edith Foss approached the newly emerged Yukikaze.
Rei tensely flipped the automaneuver switch on, declaring “You have control, Yukikaze.” She was now free to fly as she pleased.
And then Yukikaze replied. All of the warnings vanished from her display, a new message taking their place:
I have control/I wish you luck…Captain FUKAI.
Rei was scrambling up out of his seat to deplane when the second half of the message caught his eye. He stared at it, unable to look away.
“I wish you luck” was nothing more than a clichéd phrase, carrying no more meaning than “roger.” But was that the case here? Rei had never seen Yukikaze display a message like that before. There was really no need for it, was there? He considered the possibility that her specific choice to display that message meant that she understood human speech and was going out of her way to convey that to him. He should be happy about that, shouldn’t he? No, if that was the case, he was going to have to rethink his entire method of interacting with Yukikaze. This wasn’t something he could simply be happy about.
Still, he didn’t have time to consider any of that.
“Don’t close the canopy till I’m out,” he said. “You got that, Yukikaze?”
No message was displayed as a reply. The fact that the canopy isn’t automatically closing was Yukikaze’s answer, Rei thought as he yanked his headset cord and climbed down from her. He folded up the collapsible ladder into her fuselage and locked it down.
He looked up at the canopy but saw no sign that it was closing. Rei was surprised, and just as he was wondering if he was going to have to close it manually, he heard a warning chime from the cockpit. As if Yukikaze had read his mind. The tone indicated that the missiles could not be fired. Of course, Rei realized. The safety pins. Yukikaze was asking him to pull them out of the missiles.