Akira's POV
The call came through the guild board at seven in the morning, flagged urgent in the way that meant someone's plans had changed and the gap needed filling before the gate's upgrade window closed. B-rank team, residential zone, one member pulled for a medical hold. They needed a fourth.
The posting specified D-rank support, which was the guild's way of saying: we need a body to complete the authorization requirement, not a contributor. I read it and thought about the upgrade window. It was forty minutes from posting, which meant the gate had been active since before dawn, then I put my name on the request.
Sena was already on the team.
I found this out at the gate when she looked at me across the place with the expression of someone who had not requested this pairing and had opinions about it and had decided to keep those opinions internal for the duration of the mission.
