<Okay, Seki-kun, this the Haneda Airport, in the Ōta ward>, Hijū said over the titan’s communications link. Beside her, Seki’s titan stood, its head turning side to side as Seki surveyed the battlefield. <Pretty much the same place I was stationed during the battle last month. You see the terminal complex in the center?>
With a thought, Hijū highlighted the terminal complex, tagging it as a non-target. <Hai>, Seki replied, then after a moment’s pause, he added, <I know not to shoot it.>
Hijū smiled. When she had first met Seki in the Academy’s admissions office, she thought he would be unassertive and meek—two traits she believed were of no value to a pilot. Fortunately, he was not. <In the heat of a battle, it’s easy to forget about stuff like that>, Hijū told him. <Now, in the basic training, you focused on how well you operated solo. At the Academy, it’s all about teamwork. You’ll be assigned to a team with three other cadets, and by and large your performance will be graded on how well you work together. Five other pilots from my company were here, too: Sakai, Kokawa, Katō, Inoue, and Sakamoto.>
