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in my hands, my mind. She

is my responsibility, and I get

to choose what that means.

I have to choose what that

means. Letting some dead

stranger decide that for me is

chickenshit. That’s washing my

hands. That’s cowardice. I want

better for her. I can’t give her

the freedom she deserves, but

I can give her better. I didn’t

know, when I joined the corps,

I didn’t know what rorquals

really are inside. I wanted to

fly, I wanted to do something

with purpose, I wanted to see

the planet from up top. I didn’t

know. In our training, we’re

told to build trust but maintain

distance from them. Isn’t that

stupid? Isn’t that the stupidest

thing you’ve ever heard? How

could you possibly build trust

and maintain distance? No.

You chose trust.

Yes.

How was your hot chocolate, by

the way?

Nice, thank you.

Is she like a lover to you?