Debris by Jo Anderton

questions? "Are you repeating yourselves for any particular reason?" The heat in my cheeks had turned to anger. Easier to deal with than embarrassment.
    Â Â Kichlan came to my aid again. "A sixnight–"
    Â Â "–and one, maybe more," Natasha added.
    Â Â Kichlan didn't miss a beat "–is a very short time to adapt so well to a new suit. Particularly at your age."
    Â Â I ignored that comment. "Is it?" I remembered what Devich had said to me, about being strong. Maybe this was what he meant. "What do you mean, adapt?"
    Â Â "Just look at them." Mizra dropped off the couch and approached me. He was tall, I realised, and very thin. He walked, slow and laconic, like someone strolling through water. "They're glowing steadily, and the spinning is synchronised. It usually takes moons to get to that stage, filled with hard work and a lot of practice."
    Â Â Had the bands ever been out of sync? I'd not noticed.
    Â Â Sofia began to undress. "Right, let's get you into your uniform. We have a lot to do today and don't need you to slow us down."
    Â Â My eyes widened. "What, exactly, does this involve?"
    Â Â She gave me a withering look, even as I realised she was wearing something else beneath her shapeless dress. The top was like a corset, boned around her chest, but not tight enough to inhibit her breathing. Dark material, lined with more stiff bones beneath the fabric, stretched over her shoulders and down her arms, ending a few inches short of her wrists. Of course, the strange outfit left a gap at her stomach, enough for the band of silver metal and an inch or so of skin. She wore pants in the same dark fabric, finishing above her ankles. The boning continued through the whole thing and softened with the contours of her body, with her own bending, the movement of her joints and muscles.
    Â Â I had never seen anything so form-fitting, so revealing, even though it covered her completely, and couldn't decide if it was ridiculous or hugely inappropriate.
    Â Â A horrible thought dawned on me. "What is that?" I choked over the words.
    Â Â Sofia gave me a cruel smile. "Your new uniform. Like it?"
    Â Â "Other's balls."
    Â Â Mizra chuckled as Lad pressed his hands to his lips, snorting giggles behind his palms.
    Â Â "Now, now." Kichlan fetched a packet wrapped in clear poly from the desk and passed it to me. "You'll get used to it."
    Â Â "The uniform is strong, it is warm, and it does not impede the use of your suit," Sofia said as she planted herself in front of me. "Swallow your pride, and just put it on."
    Â Â She was a rather ineffectual shield, but Natasha didn't offer to help and no one seemed inclined to ask her. So the smallest woman present was the only thing between the men and me as I pulled off my clothes, and tried to squeeze into the strange black top and pants. They smelled strongly of their poly wrap. The material was a lot like the dark strips Devich had given me, too stretchy to be normal, thin to the touch, but strong when pulled.
    Â Â I untied my shirt first, counting my blessings that I'd chosen a long one, and replaced my loose, comfortable woollen pants with the decidedly uncomfortable new pair.
    Â Â My new team were not modest about their staring. I told myself not to care, not to feel self-conscious, and focus more on easing the material around my ankles and over stitches.
    Â Â They kept quiet until I had pulled off my shirt and was trying to work out if I could keep my camisole on underneath the tight black uniform.
    Â Â "You're hurt," Lad murmured.
    Â Â I glanced up to see his expression shocked, eyes tearrimmed. And I swallowed hard.
    Â Â "Yes." I gave up the fight for a moment and straightened, so they could all see the bruises, the bandages, the scarring and the stitches. How strange that my new team had noticed the suit first, but maybe that was the kind of scarring they understood. And standing beneath the scrutiny