“Drill Sergeant Black leaned against the hatch. Her cap hung low over her nose, muscular arms rippled with tattoos. “This isn’t the place for vendettas, Recruit,” she said in a flattened tone.
“Yes ma’am. Sergeant Blue’s orders were to knock my opponent out. Took me longer to get it done. Won’t happen again.” Crash kept his gaze fixed.
Her chin slightly lifted, revealing a hint at a smirk. “See that it doesn’t,” she ordered. “You showed leadership there,” Black added.
“I didn’t lead, ma’am. None of them are responsible for what happened, just me.”
The lip of Black’s cap rose, revealing sharp honey-brown eyes. “Leadership is keeping soldiers out of a fight they can’t win and shouldn’t be in.” ”
“Crash chuckled and instantly regretted it. He winced.
“Probably a rib fracture, concussion. Is it true Earthborn take months to heal from bone breaks?”
He nodded, the blurs became clearer. “Without medical attention, yeah. Meds drop it to a few days.”
“That’s barbaric.”
“How long do you take to heal?”
Starnes gauged his balance. “Nowhere near as long,” he grinned. “Catch you later, Crash.” ”
“Wendy adjusted her trajectory to where the Skyrunner would be with one second before the ship broke the light barrier. With two seconds left, she cut the engines. Her fighter again spun 180 degrees, sliding sideways into the open hangar bay. “NOW!” She kicked open the landing gear and full thrust, neutralizing momentum right as the carrier reached slip-stream entry. ”