Machine Learning - Recovered Data 9 - Influence III
This mission was a horrible waste. That's all you can think about right now. Nothing of value was accomplished, time was wasted, and lives have been lost. The majority of the colony may not have been in their homes, but Commander Syn and the others will have found them by the day's end. There will be no loose ends left over.
…"Loose ends". What a disgusting way to think about people. But that's how it is. If you left survivors, you'd only be sent after them later.
The trek to the rendezvous point with the other half of your team is going slowly. Aside from the forest being thick enough to make traversal harder, nobody is in any hurry to get there. It strikes you as strange, how suddenly they're dragging their feet when before Curly had been eager to get this over with and Quote had been fully behind her. If anything, now is the best time to hurry up. There's nothing left to do but leave.
"…We…" you begin. Nothing you could say feels adequate. Your voice trails off.
You should prepare to summarize your findings to report to Syn. There isn't much to say.
Rather, you're not sure what to say. What was Command expecting sending you here? What do they care about, and what's just irrelevant noise? There were no military objectives there. Just outdated equipment and roughly-constructed housing. You can't help but wonder what it must have been like for the Mimiga to live there. Was it different to life back at the base? Their tents have more things in them than your room does. Of course, their things aren't all salvaged. They could have just… or maybe they are? You're not sure where else these Mimiga would have found the items they were keeping. There isn't anywhere nearby to buy them from. They had some handmade toys, but you still don't have a clean explanation for the more developed items you found.
A part of you recalls that Chevron might have liked it if you took some of those toys with you for him. Another part is disgusted at the thought. And the disgust grows deeper when you still can't stop considering the idea.
Curly interrupts that chain of thought before it can degrade any further. "We should lodge a complaint!"
Her sudden exclamation startles you and you ram your foot directly into a large root, nearly sending you sprawling. "A complaint? To who?"
"Command, of course!" Curly says, indignant. "They gave us bad information! This whole mission was a mistake!"
"We shouldn't have been here." Quote agrees. His voice is quiet but steady and confident.
"We don't have the authority to make such a judgement." you remind them. Command doesn't listen to input from mere soldiers when deciding where to send you.
Curly doesn't understand it. "I know we don't, that's why we need to think of what to say! We've gotta get Syn to understand what happened, and they'll sort things out with Command!"
She sounds so sure of herself. But of course she does. Nobody but you bothers to sit in on Syn's talks with Command. You know full well that there is no space for complaints or protests regarding your assignments. Syn never speaks of it otherwise. Internal politics have never been interesting to anyone but you and them. Quote just nods along, Curly and Chevron try but never understand, and Paren always makes her utter boredom at the idea clear.
"We can make a statement to the Commander which they can convey to Command during the mission report." you accept. That should be enough for Curly and Quote to be satisfied.
"Good!" Curly says. Quote nods from behind her. "This better not happen again! We're soldiers, we're supposed to be fighting battles, not… this!"
"We're supposed to do what we are ordered to." you recall. You follow instructions like anyone else, and in exchange you exist. It's not a terrible existence, all things considered. You and your team are rarely at genuine risk in combat, and you are allowed to bring things back to base for entertainment. The Chief Engineer even brings you books when you ask her. All you have to do is follow orders, no matter how horrible they are.
"Not when our orders are bad! You and I both know this wasn't worth our time!"
"Is that your only objection?" you ask harshly. You're not sure why. This discussion isn't going to go anywhere, driving it further won't help get it over with.
"It-!" Curly cuts herself off, looking away from you and grumbling. "I guess it is. I just think we could be doing other things right now."
It's not. It's not the only reason.
"Then we'll need to compose a proper report to reflect that. It's still possible that Syn's team found more resistance." you recite. Somehow, you find yourself hoping for it. "We found one noncombatant within the location-"
"Girl. They were a girl." Quote interrupts. Command won't care about that, you want to say, but the look in his eyes tells you it's not a fight you'll be winning.
"-who was eliminated without incident. A full search of the location found no traces of the Red Flowers in intact or remnant form. Furthermore, the location was underdeveloped compared to usual targets; mounting an effective defense would have been impossible even if enemy presence had been heavier. They were in possession of only extremely rudimentary weapons and posed no threat whatsoever." you summarize. It's not as informational as you prefer with your reports, but there's not a lot to actually say. Your only goal is to make a point. "How is that?"
"I guess that works?" Curly says. She doesn't sound as enthusiastic as she did just a moment ago.
"Isn't this what you wanted? An official complaint?" you ask.
"That's not really a complaint." Curly points out. "It's just report with some backhanded implications."
"It's the closest thing to a complaint we are allowed to file." you answer. For some reason, Curly laughs. There's no joy in it.
"Hah! That's true, isn't it? We'd better hurry up and meet with the other team. With how easy our objective was, it'd be embarrassing if we got to the meeting point second!"
And with that, she picks up her pace and walks ahead of you. You don't understand at all.
Quote smiles at you, and you feel a little better. The mission will be over soon, and then you won't have to think about this anymore.
But you will.
You can't just forget.
