It is now exactly two months ago after the incident that had happened on Cambridge. Two long months for Nancy as the guilt feeling she felt every since didn't seem to be leaving her, no matter what she had tried. Maybe he was the lack of people that actually wanted to help her out that also added to this guilt, or maybe it was just her asking the wrong people.
She had asked a Bretonian 'friend' to give her the list of families that had fallen victim to this 'slip-up' she called it. The last she heard from him however was that he'd try his best, that being more than a month ago already and she never had the list from him.
The feeling of being unable to make up to those victims nibbled on her longer, and to try and get rid of this guilt feeling she went directly to the Bretonian Armed Forces, talking her way into eventually saying that she was the one responsible to for the attacks, this already revealing her identity to Bretonia as Nancy Sweetwater being Sangria.
Her name being linked to the Reavers and the colour Sangria was something she had been trying to evade for a long time. But she didn't care about that any more. However her coming out with the story made her bring her parents into safety. With the excuse of treating them a holiday she sent them to planet Curacao. And besides a few phone calls she tried to keep any contact to a minimum. Afraid her dad would find out about her life as a Reaver, something she always had concealed from them.
The Bretonian Armed Forces didn't give her the list of names either, which didn't come as a surprise. Why would Bretonia give out the names of the victims to the one that had caused the loss of them.
Still without a list she continued to look for ways to find the list, even though it was already published to the public, getting her hands on it without getting noticed it was her asking for it was something different. And finding a way to make up with the victims to erase the guilt feeling was something else as well.
* * *
She carried on working as a Reaver, being occupied with leading the Company into the directions she considered right. To try suppress the guilt she threw herself only harder into her work, not really caring for any dangers either. Taking bigger risks to give herself in a way some kind of punishment, may everything she was doing backfire on her.
While doing her work she had decided to try out something new in a area she had barely worked. Only really remembering it from a friend that had showed her around on one of her very first Mandalorian days. She also knew the place somewhat due to the Companies relation with the Hessians.
To go and investigate in the area she arranged a meeting with the Rheinland Military, it didn't really go as planned as she was too late and missed the person she had really wanted to talk to. Maybe it was her being lucky as a lower ranked member of the Military was willing to hear her out. Major Theodor von Sittlingen.
The talks with Rheinland soon leaded to a new contract for the Reavers and an additional source of income for hunting Libertonian assets. The Hessians however almost spoiled her game as some things had leaked out. She could only enjoy this however, liking the extra rush as she played with the Companies Relationships of certain factions.
All turned quiet again however and she managed to pull out a contract almost fully to her taste with the Rheinland Military, this mostly due to her Rheinland contact, which was still the Major. She also dared to discuss non-business related subjects, one of them being the act she had performed on Cambridge. In the end the Major offered his help and got her the list of names. Once she had studied the list a solution came to mind on how she perhaps could repay these people.
From her savings, which was way too much money for her own to spent either way, she planned to pay the victims of the incident. After talking to another friend about it, she arranged a way to get the money where she wanted in a indirect way. Not wanting her name on the money when it would reach these people as she thought it might not be appreciated that way.
She made a deposit of quiet a few millions of credits to her friends account so that he'd be able to give the money to a fund of the Grandchester attacks.
* * *
Even with the deposit made she still didn't feel like she made up properly, telling herself she would at least have to see or hear the reactions of these people, hoping the money would cheer them up and somewhat make it possible for them to get over what happened. She didn't have high hopes though as she was told that 'nothing would replace these lives, no matter what.'
Either way she had to move on, and she did. Pushing herself into her work even though it had it's personal tints to it. Hanging out with the Major from Rheinland every now and then to have a good time chatting. And once she heard he was reported MIA she was one of the first to head out and try to find him. Ignoring to even meet up with a close friend of her she'd often fly with as a wingmen.
She managed to locate the major in the radiation fields on Omega-11. Him being in a badly damaged wraith that had the ejection pod stuck, making it impossible for the Major to escape as the engines were also friend. A hasty rescue operation was put into place and with her Aurochs she managed to board the Wraith and pull the Major from the wreckage, which exploded moments later just when they were leaving.
The Major was lucky and only had to spent a few days on the battleship Karlsruhe to recover from the injuries, one of which was a metal piece that had pierced his side. After a visit at his bed she told him he deserved some days off, and talked him into coming with her to Gallia. Having planned a holiday, and once approved of the Admiral and the Major recovered properly they both, Nancy and Theo moved out to Gallia.
Dave McCurry was a friend of Richard Sweetwater, who was the father of Nancy Sweetwater. Richard and Dave know each other from the Bretonian Armed Forces even though Richard went with an early retirement due to his medical status that had been deteriorating quickly over the recent years. Forced out of the Armed forces he now sat at home with his wife Elizabeth who did a part-time job at an office back on Leeds. But right now the married couple was enjoying a holiday that they were given by Nancy, who had paid for a stay in a beach house on Curacao for several weeks. Even though Nancy’s father wasn’t too fond of Curacao he still took the offer after his Elizabeth had convinced him to accept it. Nancy however never told her parents the real intentions she had for giving them this holiday.
Dave, the friend of Richard was still active in the Armed Forces of Bretonia and was on active duty even though it wasn’t in space anymore. Dave was one of the ground personnel members now that arranged the logistical matters a army had to deal with. Here he picked up some rumours that went around in bars between pilots and other military personnel. These rumours were about the Granchester attack from a while ago. Many people wondered who could be responsible for this massacre of civilians, even though an anonymous message was received by the Media that an Gallic organisation had claimed these attacks, that didn’t mean everyone believed it. Some pointed fingers at other parties and many conspiracy theories were made up.
Dave began to dig some by himself to see what he could find out about this subject. He didn’t get find many facts about the Gallic organisation being involved in this attack. So he followed up on some other rumours. One of them sounded reasonable enough, as it said it was a act of terrorism but done indirectly via mercenaries or other people willing to commit this act in return for credits.
He looked into a report to see what vessel what used, the real ID number of the vessel remained unknown but at least some footage was available and another report confirmed this by saying it had been a Z-Series Border World Sabre, equipment with “IRON HAMMERS”. This was concluded by the initial damage that was done by the salvo of runs that had been fired into the flat complex. This made Dave wonder about possible owners of such vessel, the Sabre being too common however to make any conclusions, however the layout of the Sabre made it easier to pick out certain people.
One of these people he knew was flying a similar equipped vessel. That being Nancy, the daughter of his friend Richard, knowing she used the vessel for Freelance jobs mainly for the Bretonian government and some jobs for Liberty, at least that is what he knew. It wasn’t strange for him to assume this as she had been doing jobs for Bretonia and Liberty in the past, however ever since she stopped her Freelance activities almost two years ago she had only completed two jobs for Liberty, which were minor bounty claims on the Liberty Bounty Board. She had been flying a lot though, after her return into the pilot seat.
Richard felt proud about his daughter being back to flying and doing something good instead of working in a bar. However what Dave and Richard didn’t know was that Nancy had joined the Reavers after she had briefly flown for the Mandalorians. Up to this day Nancy had managed to keep things quiet about her being a Reaver. Her feeling afraid her parents would flip out to her, and probably also worry too much. She didn’t want them to start worrying too much, neither did she want their judgement on what she was doing. Knowing it was wrong and even though she was ‘forced’ into the Reavers, she didn’t consider that this was an excuse to shoot Bretonian people. Neither could she tell herself in any way possible the attack on Grantchester was justified. Knowing she had acted before thinking.
To evade any worries from her parent’s side or have her parents get involved with their daughter being a Reaver she had decided to keep it a secret and act like she was being a simple freelance pilot taking escort jobs around Sirius. Those that knew her as Sangria didn’t know Nancy and the same was for the other way around. Only a few people she trusted knew her identity as a Reaver. She became careless however, after the attacks she didn’t really bother to keep her two lives she was living separate.
Dave didn’t think Nancy would’ve been the one who committed the attack on Grantchester, however her owning a vessel with a layout that matched that of the attacks made him curious and still wanting to make sure she was seen as innocent. Dave called Richard, wanting to ask where Nancy was at the time of the attack, to make sure she had a good alibi, just in case the Bretonian authorities would look her up for the same match he had made. While calling Richard he wondered if Bretonia perhaps already had checked her.
* * *
-“Richard” is how the call of Dave was replied with when he called the father of Nancy. -“Hey, it’s Dave, how’re you?” -“Hey! It’s been a while since she last spoke.. I’m on a vacation right now on Curacao, what I told you about.” -“Still there? How many weeks did Nancy book for the two of you?” Dave asked while the conversation sounded like two good friends talking to each other again. -“Ten weeks? Not sure but was for quite a while at least. But what’s up?” Richard asked, guessing his holiday wasn’t the reason for Dave’s call. -“Wanted to ask you a few things I heard at work. Do you mind? Since it might be a bit serious.” Dave asked slowly, not wanting to ruin Richards’ day by starting the Grantchester topic. Something Richard had also heard about and kept a close eye on any new developments concerning this. -“I got time.” Richard replied simply. -“It’s about Grantchester. There are quite a few rumours going around about who did it and so on... I digged a little into some reports and found out some information about the vessel that was used to fire at the complex with. Not going to say Nancy was involved but she is using the same layout on her Freelance Sabre. Just meaning to say you might want to check with her to keep the logs of the day of the attack, just in case Bretonia comes to check it out.” Dave explained. -“A Sabre with the same layout of equipment was used?” Richard asked to make sure he had heard Dave right. -“Yeh… Iron Hammers and such… vessel ID number remains unknown and the ship also left Bretonian space before they could trace it.” Dave replied into detail. -“Hm… so you want me to call Nancy to make sure she has everything in order, just in case they come to check her out?” Richard asked slowly. -“Yep, just wanted to inform you about it. Since you asked me to share whatever news I’d find about this topic.” -“Thanks for keeping me posted Dave, I’ll check with Nancy but she keeps saying she’s busy so we’ll see.” -“Happy birthday of you daughter by the way. She’s becoming 25 tomorrow isn’t it?” Dave asked, sounding a bit more cheerful. -“Yeh, however I won’t see her for another week at least, for what she said.” Richard replied slowly. -“It’s a good thing she’s busy, means she’s a good pilot. Anyway, best of luck and give her my regards when you talk to her again. I have to get back to work.” -“Okay Dave, talk to you later. Thanks for calling.” -“No problem, bye Rick.” Dave said and ended the call.
Richard, the father of Nancy, had been assuming Nancy had been keeping a lot of things hidden from him and her mother, Elizabeth. Some things just didn’t seem right. Like her saying she was doing simple escort services after her waitress job. He figured she was flying but not what she had been telling them. One of the clues he got was the way she seemed to be spending her money for all he could see. For example giving them a house on Curacao to get away from Leeds. Something Richard had protested against for a while as he didn’t want to leave Leeds, seeing it as a cowardice act to leave, concerning the war as he was a loyal person to Bretonia and ex armed forces.
Eventually he had given in and they had been staying on Curacao for a while now. Never having seen Nancy in that time, only having heard her voice a few times in brief phone calls. All the promises of her saying she was coming to seen them never were met, as she always called something else came up or she simply neglected to even notify them on why she wasn’t coming. It was something that had him worried as well as Elizabeth. He assumed something more was going on but didn’t have the proof for it, only hearing rumours and nothing more. For what he knew however or could assume, he never shared with his wife, thinking she’d get even more worried about Nancy since the things Richard could assume weren’t the prettiest.
All the doubts were taken away when Steve visited the house of Nancy’s parents on Curacao. Nancy having given a letter to Steve to hand it over to her parents to read. She confessed all the things that had happened, and tried to apologize in it but hadn’t gotten herself the courage to actually hand it in person to them. Richard only had to read the letter for everything to make sense now, and he wasn’t in the mood to even talk to Steve about it, fearing he might snap as he felt angry but also at himself, thinking he failed to keep his daughter away from bad influences. Elizabeth was in denial about the letter, thinking Nancy could never gotten herself into this kind of trouble.
Steve at Curacao
22 March 820 A.S.
The house Nancy’s parents were staying was rather simple as Nancy never really wanted to show she had the money for something more expensive, having wanted to hide her real job from her parents ever since she went back into the mercenary business. As far as her parents knew she was a simple escort pilot and nothing more, and even worked for Bretonian corporations only. The house stood near the coast in line with many more independent ones, but all were rather small and clearly not meant for families to stay in.
Richard and Liz, or Elizabeth in her full name were having lunch outside in the garden of the small beach house. Enjoying the environment and weather that Curacao had to offer from underneath an umbrella to protect them from the sun.
Having chosen a more neutral ship to move between Liberty and Bretonia, Steve's former IFF'd Reaver Sabre began flying down the coordinates he was given by the GPS as he entered the data shown in the card Nancy gave to him. His flying was lazy, almost missing the landing pad by a couple meters that made it a few minutes more until the gravity well caught the ship correctly. Jumping out of the ship in a rather casual clothing and carrying the letter in one of the pockets of his jacket, he set course down to the stream of houses facing the shore, checking the card for a last time before heading to the correct number. Taking a deep breath, something that he had done oftenly ever since he left New Tokyo, he rang the bell of the house, just on the opposite side of the garden.
It took a while before Elizabeth showed up, being a woman that just had entered her fifties in appearance and age matching that as well. She greeted the stranger with a calm smile.
..."Can I help you?" she said calmly when Steve stood there in front of her. ..."Greetings, Mrs... Sweetwater, right?" He drew a smile, still being it an effort as his mood wasn't precisely the best, yet aware this meeting wouldn't be easy, for he also ensured his appearance was still neat. ..."I'm Steve Holloway, a... friend of your daughter, Nancy." He continued, describing his relationship toward Nancy very easy for now, wondering if the girl ever told her parents about him, which could hopefully ease the conversation a little.
Elizabeth raised her eyebrow a little, as she felt somewhat curious but also worried about that a friend of Nancy showed up rather than herself, as it had been quite a while since her parents had last seen Nancy. She stepped to the side of the door to invite Steve in, guessing he was here for more and thus being so easy about it. ...“Come in...” she said slowly. ..."Thank you." He replied with a nod, stepped inside the house, already tapping the pocket of the jacket, feeling a bit unsure about how and when he should give the letter. He didn't read it yet, but it surely contained words that Nancy's parents surely wouldn't like to have read.
...“Richard?!” Elizabeth called to the back of the house to notify her husband to come here. He showed up a moment later, being a couple of years older than Elizabeth but he looked like he probably was quite a few more years older that what he actually was. For him Leeds has also taken its toll and the years in the Armed Forces hadn’t really added to a healthy lifestyle. He had hoped it was Nancy as well when he heard there was a visitor but that thought was soon put to the side as he saw Steve, him neither recognizing him. Richard simply made his way to the small living room and sat down on a seat. Elizabeth moved to the couch as she invited Steve to join, expecting him to tell them something as they otherwise wouldn’t expect a friend of Nancy just to show up. ...“Mr. Sweetwater.” He greeted with another nod, accepting the invitation to sit down, even if hesitatingly as he was still concerned about the wording he had to put before giving them the letter, which he was already pulling out of the pocket and holding in between his fingers. ...“Since Nancy was unable to come with me and tell you what she wanted to tell face to face, she instead typed it in this letter, I figure.” He explained, implying he hadn’t taken a look at it either. ...“A letter?” Elizabeth said a little surprised, thinking it really wasn’t Nancy’s way of contacting them. Richard simply observed in silence, somewhere having expected something like this but keeping his thoughts for himself. Steve finally extended his hand to Elizabeth, offering the letter. ..."If you'd need some privacy while reading it, I can stay outside." He suggested. Elizabeth accepted the letter in her hand and opened it carefully, wondering what would be written in it. Richard leaned over slowly to be able to read it with her as she unfolded the letter.
Mom & dad,
It’s been a long time I’ve let you hear my voice let alone show my own face to you two. I’m sorry for that but I’ve been going through some rough time. I never really knew on how to explain everything that has happened over the recent year. But a lot has happened and sadly I’m not very proud of anything I’ve achieved on purpose or by accident to date.
As you both knew I was working at a bar under protest of dad. Sorry dad but I did have a good time there and really was able to just live a decent life for my own standards at least. But the situation changed and thus I left, I caused a fight between two men there by going out with the two of them one by one, on separate occasions. Once they found out about it, I simply felt like I had to leave before one of them would lay his hands someone else or perhaps even me.
I went back into flying; I said it was simple escort services and working for Bretonian like the old days. This was again only half the truth as I joined the Mandalorian mercenaries and did fly under their name for a few months. Again I had a good time and don’t regret much of these months but I had myself shot down when I was hunting down targets in Kusari space. The Naval forces of Kusari captured me, this was the first time I broke contact with you both for a long period of time. It wasn’t because I didn’t want to but the first week or two I had to wait in Fuchu until I was bailed, via a friend it was managed to get into contact with someone that had the cash at hand to bail me.
This person was Silver, I doubt you don’t know her dad, as there are enough stories about her around the Armed forces. I was surprised about her being kinder and maybe even closer to a mother than the animal she is described as, although she is crazy I can’t deny that. She has this strange way of thinking she has to balance Sirius between friends and foes.
Anyway, I was bailed and allowed to await my trail in Kusari for having attacked Naval personnel in Kusari. That day came soon enough and I was convicted to serve the Reaver Mercenary Company and indirectly Kusari with it This was instead of going to jail in the Fuchu prison for the rest of my life. They gave me a chip which would serve as a sort of safety to them to keep me from escaping and in check so that I would follow their rules instead of my own. I’ve been traveling to and from Kusari ever since I had the chip as I have to check in once a month with the Kusari authorities, they check certain actions I’ve done. If I make one slip against Kusari again I’ll either end up in jail again or they trigger the chip, which would ‘neutralize’ me within a few seconds to put it nicely.
I'll save the details for you and cut this short. I’ve flown as a Reaver ever since I was convicted, it was around a year ago when this happened and I've had my mood shifts. Sometimes I enjoyed flying, others I felt depressed and even had suicidal thoughts. Not only by the Reaver job but of how I tried to just vent my feelings. I simply tried to be with men I didn't even know, wanting them to share at least a little love but that rarely happened so I moved on to the next, and the next. To be honest I lost count of how many I’ve seen and been with.
In all this time I had a real friend, one of the Mandalorian pilots I met when I joined them. Steve is his name and he pulled me through most of my depressions. He’s a really nice guy and very good friend, nothing more than that but nothing less either, at least that’s what I keep telling myself.
My time in the Reavers went quite fast and I was only busy in trying to keep Kusari satisfied and when Silver went quiet I even offered to take over the Reavers in the hope not to have them die and have me send to prison due to the conviction I have laying on my shoulders. I’ve done terrible things as a Reaver and even when I’d like to blame the Reavers for pushing me there, none of that is true. I myself did every single of the bad things I’ve done, simply because I wasn’t thinking and ignoring anyone that told me to change.
Fine here is the time for me to change and finally pick up on being proper. I’m wrote this letter to confess about the events that have happened and that I lied pretty much about everything over the last time. To better my life and in some way repay for what I did I’ll be leaving the Reavers and with that comes my arrest by Kusari. I'll probably end up in the Fuchu prison and I probably am there as you read this. I don't know for how long I will be in here but it might even be for the rest of my life.
I love you two and I really am thankful that the two of you are my parents,
- Nancy
PS. Dad, the Cambridge massacre, as many now call it, wasn’t done by Gallic Loyalists, it was me.
Both their eyes went carefully over the wall of text Nancy had written to them. Elizabeth seeming to be more touched by Richard would sounded a sigh after reading certain parts. Only a heavier sigh coming once he had read the last line of the letter. Elizabeth laying the letter on the table, staying quiet while she held her hand in front of her mouth, seeming to be in a light shock.
Since he received no response, he stayed there, resting elbows on knees and clenching his jaw in silence as he noticed their expressions, figuring the content. ...“Is she really in the Fuchu prison right now?” Elizabeth finally asked while Richard sat back in his chair, seeming to be pondering to line up some events in his mind. ..."I'm afraid she is. Awaiting for a call if they really let her to know what’s really going to happen." He replied in a mumble, looking at some random spot between Elizabeth and Richard. ...“recently?” she asked, unsure on the date of the letter. ..."Since the last Friday." He replied again, having taken him two days to get down to Curaçao as he felt it very difficult to take any step forward ever since he spent the first night without her, waking up in bad dreams or suffering sleep deprivation that could be partially noticed in him already.
Richard stood up, grumbling something within his breath as he walked out of the back of the house. Thinking he go for a short walk to keep himself calm in a way. Elizabeth simply letting him walk out. Watching the letter and picking it up again to see if she had even read it right, but she had and it somewhere did fit in Nancy’s personality, at least the first part but not the part where she saw Nancy move into the mercenary business.
...“She mentioned you...” she said slowly, shoving the letter to him in case he wanted to read, guessing it was the same Steve as he had said he was her friend, just like it was described in the letter. ..."Did she...?" He asked, feeling glad yet at the same time reminding him that it still meant she was locked away from him, now that they were to each other more than friends. He accepted the letter gently and had a slow read to it. ..."We kept telling that to ourselves for long time." He mumbled, meaning his mention in the letter while wondering for how long Nancy had decided to hide her true feelings to protect him, as some of her actions claimed in the past. ...“That you were just friends?” she asked quietly, wondering if he meant there was more by the way he said it. ..."Aye." He simply said, reading through a few other lines again, especially the ones where Nancy figured she could be imprisoned forever. ..."I'm sure I could've buried her guilt feelings but... That goddamned chip on her heart. I finally understood there was no other way but... Can't wait an eternity either."
[color=transparent]...“So you love her?” she asked carefully. Herself being in a form of denial about Nancy being in prison and perhaps not coming out for the rest of her life. He only let a slight grumble out, covering his eyes with a hand and rubbing them softly, remembering their meeting in Ames. ...“She was always stubborn...” Elizabeth said slowly while she watched Steve, seeing that as a yes. ..."She was so happy after she finally stopped counting." He added, meaning the previous part of the letter where she said she had been trying to find love with other men while his mind flashed Nancy's peaceful expression in their encounter, and thus implying the love was reciprocal. ...“Can’t really be that she will be locked up forever, right?” she asked slowly, simply not wanting to believe it. ..."I don't want to think of that idea either. It simply won't happen, I'm sure of it." He said, pressing his teeth trying to convince himself about his own statement. ..."If they only allowed visits..." He added, also worried about receiving any call from Nancy as soon as possible. ...“That last thing isn’t really true either right? Just her trying to talk things right for why she’s in Kusari,... right?” Elizabeth asked carefully, sounding unsure. Thinking Nancy simply lied about certain things to make it look like she had done worse than she really had for some reason.
..."Her whole feelings appear in this paper, Mrs." He said before sighing deeply, thinking there were no made-up wording to hide or exaggerate anything. ...“But this she didn’t do, right?” she asked still, being in denial about her daughter having committed such a crime against their own house, and that it had been paid by so many innocents. ..."I guess you should believe what your mind tells you about it, I’m not... even sure either." He said, having always had mixed feelings about the incident, partly blaming himself for being crippled by that time after the Freeport 4 brawl and thus probably having stopped the carnage. ...“She has no reason to do something like that.” she said slowly, that being what she truly thought as she never really saw Nancy having any grudges against Bretonia, thinking she was loyal to it in a way, and always had been. ..."It wasn't her in her own will, I'm sure" He said, recalling how Nancy explained to him that she was rather out of her mind, annoyed. ..."A terrible accident is the way I think of it."
Elizabeth felt her stomach turn a little. Needing to take a careful breath as she felt hurt, only now beginning to realize Nancy was perhaps really pulled out of their life. Unsure on how to act on it she sat back on the couch in silence. Wondering what could've lead Nancy to doing this even when it was an accident, it still didn't answer how she got involved into it in the first place. Richard, in the meantime, was still outside, needing a walk while he already knew more than Elizabeth had about the accident, even when it were rumours. He had never shared it with Elizabeth however.
..."For now, all I can do is making sure Nancy is released the earliest possible, without any other chain around her." He concluded, breathing deeply again before leaning his elbows back, sitting up properly. ...“How do you plan to get her out of such a prison?” she asked carefully. ..."I'm resourceful, for I've been wandering around Sirius seeking fortune." He replied in a slight proud tone, meaning that some freelancers and mercenaries could also develop their attitude beyond the mere purpose of collecting money. She looked at him a little surprised as she still couldn’t see on how he was going to get her daughter out of a Kusari prison. The fact that it was Kusari who had her only making her more concerned, as she had more faith in a Bretonian prison when it came to the treatment of their prisoners. ..."She has partly settled her debt with Kusari by being forced to work as Reaver, as the letter said. It's only hope that keeps me cheered somehow." He only added, standing up from the couch as he felt he couldn't contribute in anything more. ...“Think we can write a letter back and it’ll actually reach her there?” she asked carefully, willing to send it to Steve to have him bring it to her, one way or another. ..."There shouldn't be any problem about it." He said, pulling by his own intuition as if it was obvious no matter the House. ...“I’ll make sure it gets to her, if you let me.” ...“Can we have your number so we can call once we have something on paper?” she asked quietly, not really liking the fact that Richard stayed away this long.
Tempted by inertia for a second to pull his Reaver contact chip, he clenched his fist before pulling out his personal card from an inside pocket of the jacket, handing it to Elizabeth. ..."Take your time, I figure you and your husband have a lot to talk now." ...“He had a feeling she was lying.” she replied slowly, having had several discussions with the father of Nancy, her husband about Nancy and her being distant from them every so often. ..."Nancy felt too embarrassed to come here, I figure." He only replied, feeling the overall situation for her parents quite difficult to understand and believe everything in the letter, rather than Nancy being there telling the same. ...“Be it this or that way, the actions are still there and may hurt in one way or another. I’m sorry this couldn’t have gone better.” ...“Even with her having done these things she remains my child...” she mumbled quietly, having wished Nancy came forward to them on an earlier stage.
He casted a nod following by a smile, believing on his own that he would still love Nancy regardless of the situation, the only thing never made him give up on her. ...“Keep us informed please...” she said quietly. ..."I will." He concluded. Elizabeth remained silent, not wanting to send Steve away in case he simply wanted to here or had more to say. ..."Guess this is all, for now." He said, feeling he hadn't nothing more to add, ready to depart. ...“Be safe then... Steve.” she said with a sigh, getting up herself to show Steve the way to the front door, simply as a polite gesture. ..."Thanks, Mrs. Sweetwater. Take care." He waved off, stepping out of the house and walking away back to the landing pads, taking a bit of time before he took off in the Sabre.
Nancy had spent just over a week now in the prison, which hadn’t been very easy going as she was still new compared to most that sat here, even when she had sat here a few weeks before when she was awaiting her bail. But the treatment was different as she hadn’t been convicted back then. The days had been long for her as well as she had to adapt to different way of life within the prison where everything went via a strict schedule.
As she was new she also attracted more attention without wanting too with her background as rumours around her spread that she was in fact Sangria and ex mandalorian. Which didn’t do her well when it came to earning a good reputation with the female inmates. Some Rogue women upset about her having fought against them and other women from Kusari had the same with her from when she was working as a Reaver, forced or not. It would probably take quite some time for her to properly fit in with the others, but for now she seemed tobe on her own for most of the time. She tried to close her mind from any of her surroundings, and often thought back of that last night she had with Steve.
The news that she was allowed to have a visitor was welcomed a lot by her, at least able to be cheered up some by it as she had requested Steve Holloway to come as her visitor, having been allowed only one person to see her, even when it would only be behind glass. She couldn’t wait to hear his voice again and to see his face. Somewhere hoping they could be together in some room but not expecting visits to be like that.
Steve would receive a message from the prison itself that he was invited by Nancy to come for a visit. Being allowed thirty minutes on the upcoming Saturday morning. Steve's business -or whatever he had left to bother himself with- recently dragged him a little away from the Kusari borders, toward Bretonia, as the matter between Sophie, Aimee and the supposedly missed Austin Goodman could still be a loose tie that could make Nancy's situation a little harder if she was ever to leave Fuchu. The call he received from Fuchu officials however gave him a reason to finally sleep peacefully until Saturday would reach, feeling the little joy he needed once again to keep his hopes up, the hopes that made him believe ever since the day at Ames that Nancy would be once again with him, together, without any barrier. The day arrived, and Steve's Rheinland freighter entered Shikoku space, contacting the Fuchu docking control, clearing out any doubts about the invitation.
Nancy would be waiting for him in a room that had several seats and desks, separated by a glass wall. Barriers between each desk would give people at least some form of privacy to have a decent talk with one another even when it was behind glass. Nancy was wearing an orange overall just like all the other inmates of the station as well as having her hair in a ponytail again as she felt it would fit herself more in prison.
Steve would be guided to this area of the station but having needed some checks to see if he wasn’t wearing anything on him as well as having to sign something that he indeed had arrived for the meeting here with Nancy.
Ensuring he wouldn't screw up in any check that he already figured he had to go through, he simply wore a casual outfit; jacket and trousers, nothing else together with his PDA, wondering if it had to be taken away. Steve was asked to leave his PDA with the security at the entrance of the main room where a few other visitors were talking to some inmates. Nancy was simply waiting there for Steve to show up, for now watching an empty seat opposite for her.
Being pointed out the exact seat, Steve's breathing rised as he approached the seat, noticing Nancy after he passed the last barrier. ..."Nancy..." He mumbled, drawing a broad smile instead as he didn't want to raise the tone still. Sitting down, he moved the seat toward the desk as close as he could without feeling uncomfortable, leaning both arms on top of the metallic surface. ..."Nancy, I was so afraid these days that you couldn't even make a call..."
Nancy had smiled softly, and sat up a little more straight but also as close as she could herself when Steve came into view in front of her. ...“Sorry...” she said slowly. “Was arrested right after I admitted and confirmed I was leaving the Reavers.” she replied. He stayed silent and kept his smile, slowly morphing into a sadder expression as she scanned her closely. ..."Had any issues inside there yet?" He broke the silence, not bothering with the 'how are you?' as the answer would be obvious. ...“Some but nothing really big. They aren’t too fond of me as I pretty much worked against both the sides that are in here.” she said slowly, keeping a soft smile while she watched Steve closely. ..."Damn, promise me you won't let them get away with any bashing." He replied, looking into her eyes. His own look seemed to be a bit tired compared to their last meeting, signs of certain sleep deprivation. ..."What else were you told aside from visits in Saturdays?" ...“Won’t let them...” she replied quietly to his first question, not having much else to say about it as she considered it simply a part to fit it, and something that would need time. ...“And... it’ll probably ten years.” she said slowly, answering his second question. ..."I need you, Nancy. Cannot wait that long." He replied after he let a sigh out over the number he just heard. ... “have to.” she replied quietly giving a soft smile still and moving her hand forward on the desk, to lay it on the glass.
Shaking his head yet still raising a hand to press it against the glass, where her palm was. Wishing by any means his hand could overpass the glass to grab her hand. ..."I can't stop thinking in that night... and the morning afterwards. And I still dream on our past adventures out there together." ...“Can’t either.” she replied, being short again in her words, keeping a soft smile while she thought ten years wasn’t even that long as it would mean she’d come out being halfway in her thirties. Pulling his hand away to rest it on the desk again, he spoke. ..."I went to Curaçao and gave the letter to your parents. Reactions were... mixed." He began. ...“hm... mixed?” she asked carefully. ..."Well, they were both shocked indeed. Your father however went out the room right after reading it, while I still managed to talk with your mother. She doesn't know how to take the Cambridge matter exactly but stil..." He left the sentence unfinished, sighing again as he recalled one of Elizabeth's last sentences in their conversation.
...“Guess they’re disappointed.” she mumbled slowly, letting out a sigh herself. ..."Yet you're still their kid to them." He replied, quoting her mother with whatever hopeful implications it could have. ..."ye but I didn't treat them as my parents" she replied quietly. ..."And perhaps we kept treating each other as friends more than we should have done... You're still young, Nancy. There could be another... way to fix the damage." He mumbled. ..."just promise you can wait?" she asked, not wanting him to sound doubting about it. Steve clenched his jaw as he tilted his head, actually thinking he'd be unable to wait without having himself pulling any kind of stunt to get her out of prison, even if desperate and condemned to fail.
..."What if I still... came across a way to ease up the verdict?" He said, avoiding her promise proposal. ..."you know why i am here." she mumbled quietly, but looked at him with a serious expression. He grumbled vaguely in return, eventually crossed their looks again. ..."And you know why I'm here too." He only replied, sighing afterwards as the situation presented to the couple was surely the hardest Steve could've thought of ever. ..."would be different if you were one of those people in that flat" she said quietly, sighing as she looked around briefly. ..."That wasn't the Nancy I knew who did it." He dropped the subject with another deep sigh, remaining silent before looking up at her again. ..."I love you, Nancy. Won't get tired of repeating it, and probably I'll be able to wait ten years as you've been the only one to bring me that feeling again after so much time." He replied, pressing his hand against the glass again, having not even thought about the time they had spent talking so far. ..."love you too" she said quietly placing her own hand against the glass, where he held his. Unable to get herself to say more, somewhere feeling he had a doubt in what he said, both about the waiting and the feeling he had felt, making her wonder if someone else could still make him feel loved and in love if it would take too long.
Flashing a smile eventually and clenching his hand on the glass as if he was trying to grab hers and simply having his fingertips sliding over the surface, he could only think to himself about figuring a way out to have her freed, or at least some sort of special permission for more than thirty minutes if not a day to spend together.
..."They'll write you soon. Suppose I'll be bringing the letters myself." He added. ..."I’m allowed to write myself here so... Will write them as well" she said quietly also wishing to hold him or be held by him, but still choosing to stay here over that, as she hoped to be a normal person again when she would be done here. ..."Stay strong, Nancy." He said, figuring the time would be over soon, having nothing else he could share with her for now. ..."you too, and don't do something stupid." she said but saying it in a soft caring voice.
He let a light chuckle out, reminding him of their past experiences when she used to tell him the same, slowly and eventually listening to her words. This time however, he would have to measure himself. ..."love you" she said again, still holding her hand on the glass and waiting for the time, wanting to at least see him for the maximum time. ..."Love you, Sweetness." He replied back in the same soft tone they exchanged back then, also holding his hand against the glass, staring into her eyes the time enough until somebody would break the trance.
Eventually two female guards showed up behind Nancy, her again quickly saying she loved Steve and hot up from her seat to move with them obediently. After he replied with another 'love you', he could only watch impotent how Nancy was being taken away, biting his lips in anger as he couldn't do anything else. A minute later, he was also dismissed, as another visit would take up in his seat soon. Still, he felt way more relieved, knowing that at least every week he could hear and watch Nancy for thirty minutes, something he'd have to cope with... over ten years
Nancy made slow progress to get herself to fit in, some of the reasons because she simply hated most of the women’s attitudes of those that were here. And her past didn’t help her much in earning a break from them in return, as the ones that were seen as criminals saw her as a traitor since she joined the Reavers and went to fight for the Kusari government. The Rogues didn’t trust her either due to the change she had made, even when it had been in the favour of the Rogues, they still considered her as someone that didn’t care of what she fought for, as long as it would get herself higher up.
Even when it was everyone for themselves in the prison, groups were easily recognized with a few people that didn’t seem to fit in any of them, Nancy being one of those. Luckily for her in the second week she finally seemed to get along with one other girl, who was a little younger as her. An independent pirate, she said she was called by the authorities as she didn’t have a group she was fighting for or with either. Acting on her own and only having had a few close friends she used to fly with. But their small group of fighters were routed after a Naval interception, and she was one of the two that were shot down. A close friend of her being in the section for men in the prison. Ralph, was his name, apparently the secret love of Faith, that being the name of the girl.
Faith was given two years, as she had surrendered after trying to escape and wasn’t found guilty of any actual piracy acts, her friend however would have to spent some more years into jail as he had tried to fight back, much like Nancy. He managed to critically hit a Naval fighter before his own ship was turned to dust. It having gotten him twenty years in jail, as opposing the Naval forces seemed to be quite something.
Faith and Nancy shared many stories both about their loved ones, for Nancy it was mostly about Steve, how she couldn’t explain on why she kept her true feeling for him a secret, or if they were even true and not just her emotional being just before having to say goodbye to him. The thoughts kept going around in Nancy’s mind, sometimes filled with paranoia about Steve’s true intentions or even about her own feelings. But that night on Ames was kept clearly in her memory.
Faith had never encountered a Reaver before but had heard some stories about the company and their pilots. The rumours however were more like fairy tales than them being anywhere near realism as the Reavers were said to be some kind of super-people, impossible to shoot down, even by the most skilled pilots of Sirius. But Faith soon learned that these Reavers, or at least Nancy was as much human as she was herself, having her own problems and sorrows, and neither being invincible.
Now with someone to talk to through the day, prison seemed a lot less hard for Nancy. Able to have the time move on a little quicker, even when Faith wasn’t there all the time as they didn’t share the same cell, neither did Nancy yet have to go to Junyo to either work in the mines or on the fishing platforms, as she was still awaiting her parole hearing, where she’d get to hear her true sentence to prison as well as all the other side-effects. Like what would be done to the chip or if she’d have to work or perhaps had to do something else.
The cellmate of Nancy had another story, her only being known as Rose under the other convicts. She hadn’t spoken a single word ever since Nancy arrived at the prison, But from stories that went around she was told that Rose was an Xenos. How she was arrested by the Naval forces and how long her jail time was remained unknown but everyone seemed to evade her for some reason. This glance in her eyes telling you enough to stay out of her way. Nancy sometimes tried to start a conversation and had the feeling she was being listened to attentively, even when she never had a reply to what she said. Sometimes Nancy simply talking about her time in the Omicrons, about how angry and mad the Corsairs must have been by this Templar and Serval steaming around their lands, ruining their patrols. Those two ships having been her and Steve. A Mandalorian and Reaver working together, if you could even call it work since they only seemed to care about spending time together and teasing anyone around them.
So far Nancy seemed to be doing alright. No one really bothered to get in her way, but neither did she receive any help to fit in or be explained on how things went besides Faith, who was turning out to be a close friend to Nancy, by how things were going. The thoughts about Steve however seemed to get mixed up over time, when doubts came into play, mostly caused due to her previous experiences with men, from back in the day she lived in Bretonia but also in the Reavers, having been unable to found any proper loyal ones. And those that seemed to be loyal eventually broke it as well. Once she felt her thoughts went too far to being paranoid she tried to shake them off. Trying to tell herself it couldn’t be that way.
It was another normal morning in the Fuchu prison which was going by the standard schedule of each morning. Early in the day a alarm sounded to wake up the female inmates and their cells opened, having them all slowly moving to the mess hall to get their breakfast. Which was nothing special and not even close to what someone would eat from Bretonia. Rice, Rice, Rice. It was something Nancy already had enough of after the first few days. She used to like Kusari-like food but not couldn’t see any of it. She wasn’t eating much anymore either as she felt depressed, even when prison was more or less like she had expected it to be.
Faith was keeping her awake though, as she continued to encourage to keep up. Since she knew all too well herself from a few years of experience that letting your guard down in prison wasn’t a good thing. Faith having been involved with several fights, even when she had acted in self-defense most of the time. The groups that were formed by the inmates, mostly based on origin often got into brawls with each other, the people that were the minority got targeted mostly by the violence, those were the people that didn’t fit into a proper group.
Nancy had seen a few fights now, and Faith knew to tell what happened with those caught as the aggressor, they were put away into isolation for disciplinary reasons. Although the aggressors weren’t always caught as bribery and blackmailing played a big part in the prison. Guards sometimes looking away on purpose, ignoring certain events until they really got out of hand, but that sometimes only lead to the finger people pointed at the victim, the one that was actually assaulted. Since Faith was here now for a few years she knew to tell of who to look out for and on how to act. It had helped but wasn’t a guarantee for your own safety in the prison.
Nancy had seen the nastiest of looks that were directed at her ever since she came here, and she figured it was only a matter of time before someone would actually go after her. She wasn’t wrong about that, as what she had been waiting for, happened just after breakfast, when the inmates were making their way back to the main hall. Having just arrived there Nancy got surrounded by three women, all three were from Kusari origin. Being part of a group that was affiliated with the Blood Dragons however they weren’t dragons themselves, but arrested because they had been suspected to support them, most of them weren’t even pilots as they were part of an underground network on the planets.
They weren’t fond of Nancy to say the least. It not being a secret that Nancy had been leading the Reavers, a group that seemed to be an annoyance to the Dragons as they hunted them down in space. For these women prison didn’t mean the end of their cause in supporting the Dragons which now lead to them going after Nancy, an easy and good target for them to show that they didn’t tolerate any of the actions the Reaver Mercenaries had made against them. The three came down at Nancy with insults, calling her a traitor and a whore. Calling her out for sleeping with the authorities as she had been working for the Mandalorians before she got into the Reavers via the Government. Something they claimed was impossible, unless, according to them she was good with her lips and tongue.
Nancy tried to hold back when she was pushed around and insulted, trying to stay calm. Even when she felt enraged as she figured they didn’t know the true reason behind her change of sides. Nancy had regretted the change however, thinking it would’ve been better if she simply had chosen to stay in Fuchu from the start, instead of letting herself get bailed to get into the Reavers, to at least have a form for freedom. The way she saw it, that had only lead her to actions she regretted. With these thoughts in her mind she was easily upset and it didn’t take many more insults before she blew a fuse and hit one of the women on her cheek with a firm fist. The pushing quickly changed into a real fight after the first punch was given.
Faith could only watch on how the three women gave Nancy a beating having dragged her down to the floor on her hair while she struggled to fight back but she wasn’t a match for the three, only able to block some of the slaps, punches and even claws but she couldn’t get herself to keep them all from hurting her. The guards were on alert when other inmates raised their voice on seeing the brawl in the corner of the main hall. But no one seemed to take direct action, Faith knew exactly why no one helped or took action to stop them. She felt frozen up herself while she watched and heard some screams, from from Nancy and the other girls as Nancy managed to get at least a few good hits out even when she was taking most of it.
The guards only stepped in once Nancy’s resistance became less, them dragging the three off and taking them away to those isolation cells. Nancy was picked up as well and taken to the medical bay, but shouted at by the guards. As she had given out the first actual hit she was marked as the one that caused the escalation and thus was sent into isolation just like the other three. Them being allowed out the day after while Nancy’s punishment was a lot more severe.
Luckily her injuries weren't too bad even when they did really hurt. Having some cuts on temple and mostly neck as well as bruises that pretty much covered her whole body now. The days after she felt completely sore and stiff. Barely even coming from her bed. Even when in pain and neither being allowed to see nor call Steve, she still kind of liked the loneliness she had now. The days however were long as keeping yourself occupied in a cell was hard, as there was nothing besides clean walls and a bright white light that was on, no matter what time it was.
Nancy sometimes simply began to laugh quietly to herself, thinking she finally got what she deserved...
Nancy was left alone in the days that followed, which made her injuries slowly heal. However the assault had more impact on her than she had hoped it to have, as the visits of Steve had some tension to it now, her trying to hide the injuries even when Steve had become curious, him having been able to see some light blue marks of some bruising around her neck. However, Nancy had denied to tell him what had really happened. Something she wouldn’t be able to hide for very long as a second assault was committed on her in the same way as before, a guard having left the others in her cell in the middle of the night.
There was a reason for a second assault, which was mostly jealousy. The group that was committing these acts didn’t just do them to Nancy but also aimed to take down anyone else that seemed to be treated better than them. They saw these people as competition to their own position in the prison, as they were closer to the guards. However this was mostly caused by pressure from the outside which involved money and blackmailing of several guards, which opened the way for this small group in the prison to pretty much do whatever they wanted. There wasn’t much the Fuchu prison did against this as it all meant there was at least a form of control, if they let this group act the way they wished for, as long as it wasn’t aimed at the guards or any other prison personnel.
Nancy was send to Junyo after a little while to work with the others, this was after she had recovered from the first assault. The work was rather simple, conveyor work at one of the many fishing platforms on Junyo that were owned by Samura. Again this meant that those with money would have more power than others. Steve had used this to arrange a meeting to see Nancy personally rather than behind glass, which was the way they normally saw each other when he visited the prison.
The first meeting went smoothly and Nancy was clearly surprised by his visit when she was called away from the conveyor belts to see someone in the small office of the building. A smile had formed on her lips when she saw Steve there, and was given some privacy. Even when they had limited time she couldn’t really believe he was there to embrace. This is what they did, talking about some things like her family and other things while she kissed him, not letting go even when the person that had led her here was telling her to stop. Eventually Steve had to push her off a little to tell her to go, not wanting to lose his chance to visit her again in the same way and thus wanting to follow all the instructions he was given in a rather strict way.
Nancy felt content after having seen Steve, her mood clearly having changed and she seemed a lot more cheerful, something that hadn’t gone unnoticed by some other inmates. Some simply ignored it while others, like those that had been bothersome to Nancy before, felt annoyed by her sudden change to happiness. Nancy had only told Faith, who now was a close friend, about what had happened and why she seemed a lot more delighted than before. Although things didn’t go the way Nancy wanted them to happened as the second visit in her cell came the following night. The group that had been this annoyance wanting to know what was going on, which ultimately led to another struggle. This went on for awhile, eventually it got too much and Nancy was told she could go out freely if she did these three women a favour, which was where she had to take down Faith. If she did then everything would be fine, they promised.
In between some of the beating she tried to work but was barely able to, as she had a hard time to ignore the injuries while at work. Something that was observed by a concerned guard that would prove to be valuable for Nancy later. At one day Steve came again, however Nancy didn’t really know how to act, not wanting to show Steve any sign of the beating she had received. Denying to even be touched by Steve, that made him rather depressed however as he figured something was clearly off and the distance Nancy suddenly had made him feel like having wasted the money he had to spent for his visits which didn’t come cheap as they were illegal to start with. Nancy didn’t really tell him what happened, leaving Steve to only imagine about what could be wrong.
On another night they did bring Faith with them who was confused on what was actually going on. Ultimately it led to the worst ‘beat down’ for Nancy as she had denied to lay a hand on Faith who in return was forced to beat Nancy, doing so but unable to do this for very long. Saying she couldn’t do anymore when Nancy was left gasping after having received several punches in her stomach. The others took over from Faith while she was left to watch the whole scene. Nancy being taken down until she lost her consciousness, having received several blows to her head. Eventually when they were done with Nancy the three women left, Faith being left behind and having rushed to Nancy to concern herself about the injuries, being worried Nancy got damaged beyond repair. The blood Nancy was covered in made it however look worse than it actually was, at least the cuts that caused the blood, that were inflicted by an improvised knife one of the women had used. The cuts weren’t deep and wouldn’t leave permanent scars but it had only added to how bad Nancy looked.
Faith wasn’t lucky herself however, due to her being blamed for having the beating against Nancy. The guards having come in the cell just to see Faith hunching down with Nancy who was clearly beaten up by the way she was laying on the floor. Faith was taken away and would have to spent more time in prison, something the three women had aimed for to happen, as they pretty much had taken out both Nancy and Faith.
Nancy would wake up in a hospital on Junyo, where she was had guards running shifts to watch her, to evade her escaping. An ankle bracelet with a chip as well as the the other chip she still had in her chest made it near impossible for her to leave without being caught of ending up dead due to the chest chip triggering, it being the same chip she had received around a year ago when she had been convicted by Kusari. Nancy had been sleeping for more than a day, having remained unconscious through this time while her injuries were looked after by the hospital personnel. The guard that was running the night shift was the same one that had concerned herself about Nancy before when she had seen her working and having to deal with the injuries of previous beatings. The guard also knew about the visits with Steve and had managed to trace his number. She explained to him what had happened and that he could see Nancy, but only in the night shift of herself as other guards were probably not to be trusted.
Steve had rushed himself to the hospital, finding the room Nancy was kept by following the instructions of the guard. He found her still asleep and spent his time watching her with concern, holding her hand while the only sound that filled the room were the beeps of her heartbeat, generated by one of the many monitoring devices.
* * *
Nancy was awake on the next visit of Steve and he would visit as much as he could, but only at the night times due to having to follow the schedule of the guard. Steve and Nancy talked some and he told her it couldn’t continue like this. Having a hard time to even accept seeing her like this. Nancy eventually broke and even when she many times had said it was what she deserved she now begged to Steve to take her away from here, look after her on a quiet place in Sirius. Something they had talked about before, although it was all planned for after the ten years she’d have to spent in Fuchu prison.
Due to her request to Steve to find a way to get her out, he had began to plan things. Needing quite some time while Nancy was slowly recovering in the hospital. The guard trying to convince the doctors to keep Nancy in the hospital for as long as possible, but only because she didn’t want Nancy to return to the prison while she would still be sore and unable to really defend herself if one of those scenes would happen again. The guard however remained unaware of the plans Steve and Nancy were making. Some of those plans were not just about getting her out, however they were all about settling things down. This included her family who would return home soon after their holiday on Curacao, which had been funded by Nancy.
Steve made it impossible for Nancy’s parents to return to Leeds, forcing them to move away from the war and the nasty surroundings Leeds held. That was the main goal to have them somewhere safe where they would be able to enjoy the rest of their life. However her dads loyalty to Bretonia was causing tension when it came to the relationship with him and Nancy who seemed to have turned all against Bretonia, going by her actions. He was aware of her being responsible for the Grantchester attack as well as her having been part of the Reavers which forced Nancy and Steve to take rather drastic actions to keep him and her mother away from Leeds.
After some more time planning and having settled the return of her parents to Leeds, or rather having made it impossible for them to return, they were now at the time where their plan to actually settle down themselves would become reality.
* * *
About three days after their last meeting at the hospital's room, Steve reached the guard's spot forty minutes past the beginning of her shift, giving his usual polite greeting in utter silence before he was cleared to enter the room. Nancy was asleep at the time, having wondered when Steve would return to the hospital to visit her. In the meantime she slowly was recovering, and was now able to move a little more free, even when an abrupt or sudden move would still move her. Laying peacefully on the bed with the sheets pulled closely over her she remained to lay straight on the bed, unable still to sleep in any other way due to her soreness.
Once he had closed the door, this time tapping it a couple of times to ensure that it was neatly closed, he turned around to approach Nancy, not pulling the chair with him this time.
..."Nancy..." He whispered as he bent forward, caressing her hand as usual to see if she'd react. She was easily woken up by Steve’s voice, a lazy and tired smile forming on her face while she slowly opened her eyes to look at him. ...“Hey...” she said slowly, sounding as sleepy as he looked. ..."I've got the chip issue sorted." He mumbled after casting a smirk at her, squeezing her hand. Her eyes grew bigger as if she was made clear awake by the words of Steve. ...“You have?” she asked in disbelief. ..."I've been granted a device that... Well, long explanation, but it should save you from returning here anymore." He added brief about it."So... Think it's time?" ...“You got one of those scanners?” she asked surprised, wondering how he managed to get his hands on it but that thought being only brief as she was more happy to hear there was now a way opening to get out of here. ..."Wallet has taken the biggest blow I've ever seen, but that doesn't matter, only you do." He explained a bit rushed, willing to get over with the issue. "As soon as we get out of here and leave the orbit, you'll use it and will remove eh... Police's reign over it, supposedly." He concluded. ...“Do I have to use it each time I normally would have a check?” she asked, slowly moving as she wanted to sit up, giving a bit of a pained expression as she did.
..."Apparently, it doesn't remove the timer, just replaces the scanner ownership somehow." He said, trying to put the exact words he was told by the Samura engineer that Sophie helped Steve to find. "Again, I'm not exactly sure if they could suddenly figure a way out to take control back or not, so if we ever find a way to remove it, you should consider it." ...“Is it possible to check it with that thing? I mean, who last changed something to the timer?” she asked, thinking it sounded rather dangerous but still worth a try as there weren’t really any other options for her. ..."If the scanner changes, of course you should be able to." He clarified, looking back at the door. "So...?" ...“We can trust this?” she asked slowly, meaning the person who gave the scanner and the scanner itself. ..."We can trust nobody else if Samura employees are the only people in the House who feels disgruntled at this change of government led by the opposing corporation." He said followed by a light shrug, now looking for her bracelet. "Where's it?” ...“Left ankle.” she replied quietly. Moving the sheets aside some to reveal her leg.
He moved the sheets away a bit further to check the bracelet, feeling her leg as skinny as her arms as his hand laid around it to inspect the device closely. "She does remove it, I take? By the simplicity, I mean.” ...“She’s the one that also fixed it around my ankle.” she replied, only having been told by the guard herself as she had been unconscious when it was placed. ..."Would she enter in here if you needed something from her?" He asked, already having something rolling in his mind. ...“She does often enough, or any of the other guards.” she said with a small nod. ..."Pretend something nasty enough to make her approach you, and then follow my lead? How good could you move?" He asked. ...“They have these magnetic key like things, have to hold it against the bracelet to make it unlock itself.” Nancy explained while she looked at Steve a bit curiously. ..."A neat hit on the back of the head and I'll register everything she has, basically." He said. ...“And then,... you just carry me out of here?” she asked, wondering if that would even work. ..."You wear my jacket and we bail out quickly through one of the side doors." He explained. ...“Again, if you can’t walk, then... I’ll have to hurry up myself” ...“There is a collapsible wheelchair in the corner.” Nancy said with a small smirk. ..."Alright, alright. I knock her out, I cuff her and then we get the hell out of here, right?" He said, already feeling his heartbeats raising. ...“Yeah... guess you should go and stand by the door while I call her?” she said slowly, being nervous herself, some thoughts spooking through her mind of what could go wrong as well as preparing herself to bite through some pain as moving her in a rush would probably cause quite some of it to her.
Following a nod and then walking swiftly right on the side of the door where his only chance would be curling an arm swiftly around the guard's neck and drag her aside. He let a breath out to calm himself down, getting ready.
...“Agumi?!” Nancy said out loud to call the guard, having waited for Steve to get into place. While she had thought of something a little silly as a reason but something that should probably work. Having taken off his jacket to show his naked arms, he pressed himself against the wall as he assumed an assault stance, ready to strike at the very second the guard entered the room, reminding himself about the experiences he went through among Corsairs that also helped him to learn a few things.
...“Yes?” it sounded a moment later as Agumi, the guard, entered the room, but staying somewhat in the door opening as she was surprised to not see Steve yet, wondering if she missed him walking out. ...“Could you wheel me to the bathrooms, since I don’t really want questions asked to Steve?” Nancy asked with a slight smile, moving slowly to hang her legs on the side of the bed. ...“Sure...” The guard replied with a small nod, and stepped further into the room, heading to the wheelchair, it not being the first time Nancy had asked, even though a nurse would do it normally.
Stepping behind her almost as if he jumped over his feet and encircled an arm behind the guard's neck, clasping both of his hands against each other as his biceps pressed the carotid artery in her neck, at the same time he dragged her to the side where he was, not releasing her until she'd stop shaking or groaning. With one hand she reached for his arms while the other tried to reach for her less-lethal side-arm, but unable to do much as she was caught by surprise and the tight grip didn’t allow enough time for her to fight back. Steve wouldn’t need much time to actually make her pass out.
Nancy observed it quietly, clenching her jaw as she saw the guard struggle. Her actually feeling bad for the guard as she had been looking after her very well compared to the others. But there wasn’t time to have any regrets and they both soon rushed out of the hospital. Steve having placed Nancy in a wheelchair before he could properly move her and soon had her settled in his Sabre.
Steve and Nancy disappeared out of Kusari as the Sabre set course for the Taus...
Three years after Nancy and Steve had disappeared from Fuchu station she woke up. The room was dark and a increasing headache hit her. She groaned as she sat up and felt that she was laying on a soft bed in a dark room, she could make up a mirror and a closet but nothing seemed familiar. A quiet curse was mumbled by her as she felt her headache worsen, helplessly she rubbed her forehead but it wouldn't gain her anything. What happened? Where was she? Quietly she shifted from the bed and reached for her PDA on the nightstand, an old habit as it was always by her side. She flicked on the light and started to light up the room with it. A red soft carpet, closet with some drawers which revealed some clothes that she would probably wear if they were actually hers. It still didn't make much sense as she didn't recognize any of it.
She continued scouting the place and left the room via a door, walking through a small hallway which had a few doors on the left. "Hello?" She said with a hoarse voice, having to clear her throat which felt dry. There was no reply and thus she continued on, opening the first door in the hallway which revealed a small office like room. There didn't seem to be anything interesting for her at least nothing that could help her get rid of this headache. She continued on, walking towards the next door in the hallway which would reveal a bathroom, quickly she stepped in and filled a cup at the sink with water before gulping it down. She closed her eyes to try and collect herself for a moment and then looked up, seeing herself in the mirror. She looked like a mess and... different? Different, not really. Older perhaps? Confused she touched her her cheeks, believing she was dreaming. Thinking it was her headache messing with her she opening the medicine cabinet behind the mirror and found herself some pills. She downed a few with the help of more water.
Feeling a bit more relieved she continued her search to find out where she actually was. Drowsy still from the headache she had a hard time keeping her balance when walking out of the bathroom and took a left to a small set of stairs. There she found out a cockpit, two seats next to each other, it was one she had never seen before, clean, mostly white and... Gallic? The consoles had Gallic references on them but also some stickers that translated them. She shook her head and began to feel nervous. What the hell was she doing on a Gallic vessel. She quickly turned around and went up another small staircase where she walked into a living room setting, on her left a small kitchen and ahead a table with two chairs and a couch that faced a large screen hanging on the wall. She shook her head as the scene made her even more confused. Trying to get more answers she walked to one of the windows which allowed for a view into a calm hangar. Some civilian ships were undergoing maintenance but nothing was really giving her any clues on where she could be, besides that one Serval that stood on the pad next to the ship she was in.
As she looked outside she noticed a note laying on the table, she picked it up and started to read:
"Nancy,
By the time you read this, you might be cursing the huge headache you felt right after waking up, but I hope you managed to find painkillers in the bathroom. Not only that, you might feel confused as well, wondering how the hell you ended up inside a Gallic freighter. First of all, it belongs to you, and so does the Gallic fighter parked next to you. No kidding.
I know, that's unlikely to be the only question you have, but I'm afraid I won't be there to answer them. If you decide to search for answers, please, don't dare to venture into Bretonia and Kusari unless you have enough protection: The law-enforcers may still be looking to arrest you for crimes that you will be unable to remember right now. If I was you, I would forget about figuring out what kind of crime I committed, but I can't blame you if you feel pushed to know what happened. It's the first warning I can give you.
The second and last warning, you probably noticed the device next to you on the bed. It's a scanner that only works for the bar-code on your arm. There's a 'post-it' paper glued to the side containing the proper instructions about its usage and how often must be used. Don't ever think on skipping a scan, otherwise you will die.
Wish I could finish this note with an advice for you, but think I'm poisoned enough with double standards to even take my own advices serious anymore. Wait, I can give you an honest advice: Don't waste your time searching for me.
Nancy sat on the couch staring ahead of her. An empty liquor glass stood on the coffee table near her and a bottle of scotch was half empty. All of this appeared to be real and couldn’t be a dream, but how. What happened in these last five years? She couldn’t remember anything and yet it really was the year 823. She had checked the news and neutral net several times as she initially thought it had all been one elaborate prank but this wasn’t the case, she was really here in her own freighter that she never recalled buying. Why was if a Gallic one to begin with? Yet in a strange way it felt like home, everything was where she expected it to be and the furniture fit her taste.
Hours went by while she tried to make up her mind and process what had happened. What happened to her, did someone did this or was it an accident? The note made it appear that all of this was done on purpose and it appeared to be serious as the note mentioned that she had a criminal record in Kusari and Bretonia. Probably something worth looking into. She decided to check the ship logs but that didn’t turn up anything as they were completely wiped aside from the transponder information which showed ‘Freelancer’ and her own name as the owner of the vessel.
While she was looking into it she noticed the hangar deck becoming more populated. She left the vessel for the first time and asked around about what was going on. People were in a hurry, apparently another convoy was inbound. Two IMG fighters set down on the deck and the pilots that got out seemed to have had quite the ride as they appeared exhausted. Nancy soon learned about the chaos in the edge worlds a place she had only heard about or seen from the news. Apparently there was a scuffle between the Zoners and local forces and the IMG was preparing another convoy to aid them.
Wanting to find out more about herself and the current world she was living in she would soon get the ‘Serval’ that apparently also belonged her according to the note as well as the papers that came with it although they did seem to be outdated as the renewal date wasn’t met. The idea made her uncomfortable as a revoked license for a vessel like this could cause quite some issues. This didn’t keep her from flying however and she soon found a transport to escort that would get her to Omicron Delta, a place far away from the houses, a place where she should be able to settle for the time being and figure out who she was and what had happened to her.
***
Omicron Delta proved to be the chaos that the news had been spreading. She had never seen such hostilities towards the Zoners but so far she had managed to keep herself out of trouble, besides the few nomads that caused issues. Luckily she was still able to steer her craft like she was used to and the Serval even with its weak offensive power proved itself with its mobility. She however couldn’t rid herself of the distaste of flying a vessel of the house that was at war with Bretonia.
Soon enough her old life that she forgot about caught up on her as someone she had met showed up, an SCRA pilot going by the name Red Witch. The woman flying the Coalition fighter was baffled to find Nancy here and began to ask questions. When Nancy couldn’t reply much to them as she simply didn’t know the woman. They decided to find a bar on Sparta station and talk things through. The woman appeared to be Silver, the one and only, the one who has been leading a group called the Reavers for quite some time. Nancy learned a lot that evening but none of it seemed to make sense. She learned that she was a terrorist against Bretonia and that she had been leading the Reaver Mercenaries herself. The news was strange and almost impossible to grasp onto but in a way she felt that Silver was honest with her.
Nancy tried to sleep it off but she couldn’t find any. Her mind was too occupied with what Silver had told her about this guy Steve and that he helped her but was probably also the one responsible for this. The idea of having spent her time as a Reaver just to stay out of a Kusari prison was also nagging on her. Kusari, another enemy of Bretonia in her point of view.
The omicrons proved to be chaos although she did meet some decent people there, mainly a Core captain called Ezrael Vertiga and some welcoming Zoners. However the constant threat of the Nomads and the conflict made it far from peaceful. She had decided to reside on Freeport 8, it was far away from any of the houses that she shouldn't visit and thus was perfect to take her time and collect her mind on the events that had happened so far. This Freeport however seems to be in a contested area and it's fairly new as well which results in tensions building here as well.
Nancy sighed as she sat in her Freighter, trying to dig up more information about herself and whatever she had done in the past. Silver didn't mention Rheinland and Liberty should be relatively safe as well if she were to take Silver for her word. Silver did seem honest in everything she had said and didn't mind sharing her own personal affairs either. Apparently that woman was a mother and yet here she was throwing her life in the balance, it was something Nancy couldn't quite understand.
After some digging through her terminal on her freighter she eventually she found some old files tucked away as most of it had been wiped clear. The message showed someone called Theodor Wilhelm Falk von und zu Sittlingen, an impressive name to say the least. He mentioned a gift and it was supposedly to be found on Freeport 1. A place worth checking out although the message was dated and Nancy didn't get her hopes about finding anything. But at least there was a goal again aside from getting into contact with this 'Titanium Reaver' who Silver had mentioned. She apparently would be able to help Nancy find her parents but she was putting that off, feeling uncertain about how to approach her parents as she first wanted to know more about who she really was.
Approaching Freeport 1 would prove to be difficult if she wanted to stay out of trouble as it was right at the Bretonian border. A place she really wanted to evade as she was now aware that she was truly a wanted person there as she was being held responsible for a terrorist attack as well as participating in armed combat against the house. But at least there was a goal to chase, aside from finding this Steve. Even when he had warned her not to search for him, there was this nagging feeling that she had to see him, as he was the one responsible for this amnesia she was suffering from.
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