Cortana's was a fair enough demand. Mercury was on this ship where she didn't belong, and Cortana had every right to question that. However, Mercury rarely felt like being fair these days, and she didn't like it. If she didn't feel compelled to answer to the shitennou, she was certainly not required to answer to an AI.

The thought of the man in the cryo pod made her reconsider. "First of all," she said, and a part of her realized how unusual the words were for her, "I'm not your enemy."

She let that sink in, whether believed or not. Technically, perhaps it was true, though she had little reason to be pleased at Cortana's appearance. It was at least true that she had no hostile intent here, especially towards the Master Chief.

It occurred to her that if Cortana had no idea of her existence, this somehow must not be the same one who knew the same Master Chief that Mercury knew. That one would at least have had access to some of what he knew about the sailor senshi. So even saying they'd been comrades could seem a lie. Explaining this would also seem far-fetched; she held it back for the time being.

"It was you who brought us here," she did point out as she crossed her arms. They'd started somewhere entirely different, and she certainly hadn't teleported them.