The argument between Edwin and Angela had been cut short when Jared, Jon, and a yet another, a Nekan, presumably the captain of the ship that aided in their escape entered the room. It was a good thing that they had gotten down to business when they did. He had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from making a remark, his nostrils flaring. Things would have gotten ugly.<br/><br/>When the captain began to speak, his eyes were glued to the screens, particularly the battle footage. He wished that they hadn’t been reminded they had escaped by the skin of their teeth. Now that he was watching it from a different view, it was unsettling.<br/><br/>“No… nothing to add…” Edwin muttered. He was just done at this point. He was both physically and mentally exhausted at the rest of them, wanting nothing more than to crawl into bed. He just wanted to sleep for a few hours, maybe get a decent meal in, before heading off into battle again. But no, that was not how things worked during times of war. He knew this perfectly well but he still could not help his wishful thinking. It would be nice if they could catch a break and rest a little for once.<br/><br/>As he listened to what everyone had to say, it would be a lie if he said he wasn’t thinking the same thing. Was this worth it? They had just come back from battle, and narrowly escaped at that, he was a little frustrated that they were being sent out again. As determined as he was to fight to the bitter end, there comes a point where one really begins to stop and thing. What were they fighting for? Was this all just pointless fighting, a battle that will never cease, or would they actually be rewarded in the end?<br/><br/>He hoped it was the latter; he didn’t want to believe that he was doing this all in vain.<br/><br/>“She does have a point. Let’s take the fight to them for a change. That is all…” Edwin murmured, paused, and then added, “’Suppose I’ll head down and prepare as well. Phoenix suffered some pretty heavy damage in the last two battles…” He glanced at Canaan as he was leaving the room. The guy had a good idea, heading down to tune his mech. As stated, Phoenix needed it badly; he’d better get on it. He had a lot more he wanted to say, but he just didn’t have the energy to back any argument he might have. What right did a soldier have arguing back anyway? He was just there to throw his life away for the good of humanity, to get even. That was all.<br/><br/>“Underdog, status report on Phoenix,” He said once he was out of the bridge. “Is it able to be launched into combat again?”<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Negative, Edwin, Phoenix’s state is still critical. It’s hardly been touched by the mechanics. I had warned you about going out before. If you were to go out in Phoenix again, chances of survival would be twenty percent.</span><br/><br/>Edwin clenched his jaw, “Are the weapon systems, shields, and wings functional at least?”<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Nagative. The wings were heavily damaged, and shield output is only ten percent at this time. Left arm is still out of commission as well. As for the weapon systems, you might be in luck…</span><br/><br/>“Great… Alright, I guess I’ll see what I can do before we launch. If not, oh well, I tried.”<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">I don’t support that decision.</span><br/><br/>“I know you don’t. Unfortunately, I don’t have a choice. Besides, the way I see it, I either come back alive or I don’t know matter what the percentages are.”<br/><br/>What Underdog said next could not have been more true,<span style="font-style: italic">But… either way, you don’t want to go out, do you?</span><br/><br/>Edwin thought about it for a long time. He really didn’t want to go out again, but on the other hand… maybe this was a chance to end it once and for all. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, that thought was enough to keep him motivated. He would gladly go back and search for the Children just for the chance to slaughter a few more. Maybe it was because of his skepticism. Yeah, maybe that was it. He really wasn’t sure, but it was something, so he decided to just go with that.<br/><br/>“No,” he said, sighing heavily, “I don’t. But I have to. I signed myself up for this.” When he heard nothing back from Underdog, he actually felt somewhat relieved. He was already practically dragging himself back out onto the field. The last thing he needed was for Underdog to give him shit, especially after the briefing.<br/><br/>When he got down to the bay, he immediately grabbed a few tools, ignoring the mechanics’ protests, as well as Underdog’s, and set to work.