The dog could only nod respectfully to his superior's response and concluded that no matter how he would formulate his words, the man still felt guilty; Aidan could only hope it was a constructive sentiment that wouldn't get in duty's way. But, knowing that he'd come so far in military life, the dog trusted Blade could handle the situation without his own moral support. Ken, though, was a different story and he knew he had to be there for him, after all, Aidan was the one who smothered the wolf's helo and conscience with blood, charred fur and burnt flesh. Ken's mention of a co-pilot drew his attention, seeming like a good idea he should consider too. Another pair of hands and a brain would be helpful with mending people.

He nodded again when Blade answered his question, muttering a low "alright", but when Blade doubled the number of hours, Aidan snorted in amusement and nodded harder.

"Yes, that sounds more realistic to me." he said to that and then chuckled after Mike voiced his own thoughts. 

But the short moment of joy passed away as quick as the two dead pilots when the boss announced a small ceremony for them; he dreaded pulling out his most formal uniform again, feeling like the whole ordeal would never end. The air was somber, what was left of the once numerous squad had become sour after the loss of good pilots and now he felt the guilt too. He replayed the events in his head, thinking of any possible mistake he made, something that would actually be the true reason of Arcade's death; he tried to recall and count every bump he hit while carrying the wounded pilot to the chopper, trying to determine purely from memory which was the culprit. From there, he jumped again at his own procedures, trying to remember if he did anything he shouldn't have, if he bumped into Arcade, if he slipped or fucked something up; it all came to the point that he started to believe that everything he's done was wrong, so he pulled himself out of the dangerous corner of his mind and stomp himself back to reality, only to realize that mostly everyone was gone. He took a look around and figured that everyone must have gone to prepare for the ceremony, while Blade had to prepare some exalting words for two individuals he barely knew. The dog picked up his papers and taking a look at them, he saw that the colonel did not sign them and, really, who could blame the man? Responsibility couldn't be considered a mere burden, it was actually a plague gnawing at one's sanity and emotions, leaving behind a sour husk of a man with little life and joy. The officer had two more casualties on his list, a few papers were really an annoyance to him.

And that was good. He wouldn't be in the proper mindset to question anything on those papers, which would help to cover Esailia's interesting condition with ignorance. He still needed those papers to be signed, so, he left the room last and navigated through the cruiser until he found Colonel Silverwind Blade's office using intuition and, of course, a few directions from the passing crew. Aidan made sure he knocked at the door and saluted him before he stepped inside.

"I really hate to be interruptive, sir, but-" he raised the papers to suggest what had to be done "-as easy it would be to forge these papers, save everyone's time and get over with bureaucracy, I do believe you and me both have this thing called 'decency'." [i]Aidan the Fucking Saint[/i] he heard a voice in his skull mocking him. "It's a stock report and four patient reports for Arcade, Captain Sprinsteam, Aihara and yours truly. I, uh, didn't even know Myrina was hit too, I wasn't announced."

He gingerly handled the papers to the colonel and waited for them to be signed, thinking of voicing out his concern about the whole task, but seeing how stressed the man was, the last thing he needed was mistrust and doubt from his own squad, so Aidan didn't spill one word about it. He instead thought of suggesting something else.

"Sir, if I may... I was thinking of Ken's idea, of having a co-pilot. I'm starting to consider that I might need another pair of helping hands; mine haven't fallen off yet, but as you can see, one's in the incipient process." He pointed at his wounded bicep. "There's only so much one well-trained dog can do. Two of them, on the other hand, could prevent disasters such as this. Worst case scenario, we'll have a fresh pair of hands ready to help. Or, get shot at, both work for me, I get to keep my job and my integrity."

"But now, seriously, I am considering to place a request, sir. I know a few good guys back at 137[sup]th[/sup] I trust enough to have them rummage through my own innards for bullets, and that says a lot."

He allowed Blade to speak and once he was finished, Aidan bowed slightly, saluted and took his leave. Before he exited the door, he glanced over his shoulder to chip in a last thought.

"If I may... I suggest replacing "heroic" or "brave" with paragon and valiant. It gives them this epic kind of feel."

With that done, Aidan knew he had to search for a certain Kensington Maxwell, so he headed the first place he suspected he would find him: the helipad. He didn't find him the first try, but he easily recognized the Sky Hawk once he hit the right helipad, only to find the pilot sunken deep in his own haunting thoughts. Aidan swallowed emptily and sighed slowly afterwards, knowing exactly how infuriated and helpless the pilot felt. He approached him slowly and took a spot on the helipad itself in front of Ken and looked up at him. He let the man have a few more moments to himself before he broke the silence. The tension was palpable and Aidan felt it was best for Ken to out the frustration, so he nudged at his leg.

"Spill it out. Everything. You'll feel better. Don't think no more, just talk it out."