Just as promised. A little something to remember me by. I love you like a daughter and I wish for your happiness. maybe someday I will find mine. But just remember, I will always be there for you. Whenever you may need. You know where to find me.
Love,
Buster
Pita sat on the floor in the shed and read the note over and over, at first it was difficult getting the words and letters in the right order. After the third or fourth time of reading it, it became easier. She thought for a moment, wondering why Lambert hadn't told her this was here.... Did he know himself? She shook her head and looked up at the life sized doll house, the detail around the windows, the plastic garden boxes, it looked like a miniature version of a real house.
She read the note again, her mind racing. What had she done? Was it the right thing? She was here with Lambert now, surely she should just forget him? He would have forgotten about her by now, after all she was nothing but trouble. She put her head in her hands, tears staining the paper. She continued to find excuses as to why she hadn't got in touch with him sooner. She shook her head, realising there was no excuse.
"I need to find Buster...."
Lambert was still sleeping, Chloe was still on the couch. Deciding not to wake them, Pita walked inside and found a jacket before writing a note leaving it on the table in the kitchen.
Quote:James,
I will be home soon...... I'm going to see Buster.
- Pita
She started up her Liberator and left the safety of her home.
She made her way to Alcatraz. She knew he would be there, at the bar. She hesitantly walked into room, paying little attention to the other patrons. She knew she would look out of place and hoped no one would recognize her, at least not until she had found Buster. She ignored the looks she was getting, the comments some of the younger Rogues were making. She knew she was too young to be there but she didn't care. A male asked her if she had lost someone. She jumped slightly expecting the worst. Avoiding eye contact she shook her head
"No.... He should be here...."
The man smiles "Hey, don't be shy I wont hurt you."
She rests her head on her arms against the counter top not responding to his last comment. She wasn't sure what had possessed her to come back to this hole but it made her uneasy. She was sure someone would recognize her, someone involved with Ruby and her crowd. The more Pita thought about it, the more she realized it was a stupid idea. She didn't notice the man move closer to her.
"You looking for someone Darlin?" A familiar voice, Pita was sure she knew this woman.... Amy perhaps?
"He'll be here soon." Pita replied shrugging slightly, not wanting to start conversation with anyone here
"You want some of my drink kiddo?" The man shows her the bottle of corsair wine, she just shakes her head.
"No, he will be here soon..." She glares at the man
Amy stands up and walks over to the man "Idiot" taking the bottle from him and sitting it back on the table. She turns back to the girl kneeling down and whispering to her "Looking for Buster?"
She looks at Amy with a bit of a frown, before nodding.
Amy giggles "It's alright come over here and we can talk where there are not...... annoyances." She said this staring at the man.
"Hey! I didn't do nothing." The man raises his hands in a half hearted attempt at defending his actions.
She bites her thumb nail, her other hand in her pocket. This was the last place she wanted to be. The note said she would know where to find him. Why wasn't he here now? Had something happened?
"If you wanna talk about the man your looking for come see me." Amy shrugs walking back over to her seat.
She shakes her head and rests it on her arms on the counter again staying quiet hoping no one would notice her.
The man looks at her, "You sad little one? what's wrong? who hurt you?"
Pita shakes her head and glances across at him before shrugging "I'm not hurt..... I'm just waiting for a friend...."
"Janson, Leave the girl alone."
Another woman, overhearing the conversations gets slightly agitated at whats happening and purposely knocks the now empty yet still heavy crate off the bar causing a LOUD BANG. Pita flinched at the noise. She hadn't noticed her walk into the bar before now. She was too far in thought.
"Its Jason first off......"
"I don't give two ***** if it was Jimmy. I said leave the little girl alone." Amy interrupted him.
Pita ignored the conversation around her, picking the nail polish off her fingernails. She pulls the note out of her pocket and reads it again. Looking across at Amy she thinks for a moment before standing up and walking across to her, sitting down at the table opposite her. "Hey"
Pita smiles slightly, "hey..."
"Looking for Buster right?"
She nods quietly
"Last I talked to him he was doing fine, I was told that he was going back to Cassini for a job that Moka. wan't him for. I can tell him you stopped by if you want?"
Pita nodded "Do you know when he's coming back?"
Amy shakes her head "Sorry Darlin, I don't."
Amy changed the subject quickly, "My it's been a while since I've seen you. Where have you been?"
Pita thinks for a moment. She realized it was Amy, and decided it would be best not to tell her she had been living with Lambert. "Somewhere safe......" She sighs "Can you tell Buster I came by.... I need to go again."
Amy nod's her head with a look of sorrow "Sure, remember though, If you ever need anyone to talk to me contact me."
Pita shrugs "Sure.... ok. Just tell Buster I came to visit." She stands up and puts the note back in her pocket
Pita walked out of the bar, sighing a breath of relief. She had made it out of there, she was going to be ok. She was doing the final checks over her ship preparing to leave when a pair of arms grabbed her tightly. She squealed and tried to get free to no avail. He was taking her back to the bar. Pita wasn't going to give up this easy and kept fighting him.
"Jason, wasn't she with that navy guy?"
Pita wasn't sure whether Amy had followed them in again, but she was standing behind the man with her gun drawn "Let her go. Or I let the bullet go."
Ignoring Amy, the man carried on speaking "Jason, wasn't he trying too shoot me too? Do you remember?"
"Well I remember a little..."
Pita swore under her breath and tried a little harder to get out of his grip. How did he know she was out with Lambert, he hadn't shot any Rogues..... or had he, and had she just missed it? A blood curling screaming noise could be heard from the hanger
Jason looks toward the door "Jackson, forget the girl, help me with this...."
Jackson swears and drops Pita, she sits on the floor, hugging her legs.
"You and I are going to talk latter, kid"
She watched him back away from Amy's gun and run out of the bar. Frowning she decided something was looking over her, a navy on a Rogue base shouldn't be let go that easily. Amy walked over to Pita, putting away her gun. She crouched next to her looking concerned.
"Are you ok?"
Pita nods, avoiding eye contact with everyone again, her secret was out "I'm ok....."
"You know a lib Navy guy??? mind comin up hear an sittin for a talk little one???"
She looks up at Siren "A talk about what......"
"The Navy..." The other woman looks at Pita with a mix of care worry and slight agitation.
Pita looks up at Amy before walking up to the bar hesitantly deciding that it wasn't a good idea to cause more trouble.
"Hunny, do you have a name... or do you not want people to know??"
Pita takes a seat on the bar stool and looks across at Amy "Its ok....." She pauses a moment "My names Pita."
She still looked uncomfortable in being on the base. Siren sees that The little one is uncomfortable then looks down at the sword she had drawn earlier when the navy was mentioned and makes an 'Oh whoops' face, then giggles slightly. She carefully picks the Sword up and slides it back into its sheath, securing it with the small latch on the end.
She shakes her head "Its ok.... Its just..." She trails off mid-sentence
"So whose the Navy guy those brainblowns say you were with?"
"The navy? They are good, He's good..... They saved me from Ruby."
Pita flinches slightly when Amy puts her hand on her shoulder.
"I know, 'Some' of them are good guys. Is the one who talking care of you now, is his name James?"
Pita nods. "Yeah... Ruby was, she, uh..." She shook her head "He shot her before she shot me..... And he let Buster go."
Amy smiles and rubs Pita's head "I see, he was my captor when he was trying to get you back. It was voluntary don't worry. He was looking for you and ask me if I could be a prisoner, Don't get me wrong he said that noting would happen and I loved it I better treat me from him than from any of the Rogues her, but I heard his story, He really missed you."
Pita nods and looks down at the counter "He doesn't know I'm here.... I found this.... And I wanted to see Buster...." She put the note on the table.
Amy eyes start to water up while she reads it. " That big hearted ***hole."
Siren sees the note and smiles. "He was always bossing me around.... ain't he with Thing now?"
Pita frowns. "Thing?"
"Yea it's a good friend that Buster has been dating, I'm sure that's where the at now, off on a date now." Amy looked at Siren hoping she wouldn't give it away.
"But he will be back soon...... right?" She asked sounding hopeful.
She didn't notice Amy changing the topic again, asking if she was hungry. Pita shook her head, still not quite sure what was happening. She was as good as navy, on a Rogue base, and yet she was still alive? That thought worried her, and after Ruby she didn't trust the food or drink she was offered here. She didn't notice Siren looking sad at the rejection of the offer of food. Amy shook her head, remembering Ruby.
"I am such an idiot... Wan't me to tell?" Amy had a look of concern on her face.
Pita looked down at the table "Ruby use to put stuff in my drink, and sometimes the food.... She said it would help with the monsters, but it just made me sick...."
"You scared of monsters hunny???" Siren starts to imagine monsters in her mind and smiles at how fake they are then one passes her thoughts and she shivers at it as for this monster was very real. She mumbles to herself. "Nomads..."
Pita looks up at Siren with a bit of a nod. "I'm not meant to talk about it....."
Siren continues to look at the floor slightly afraid to move as she tries to remember what to do in this situation, then she slowly looks up at the two as she hesitantly moves her right hand closer to her right sword
"So... umm... you.... have the dreams... then I take it???"
Siren looks at Amy at a loss as to what to do, she was never programmed for this type of confrontation*
"so... ummm... you've encountered..... nomads.... before and umm.... now you have nightmares.... about their ferociousness... I take it??"
Siren then remembers that the Nomads can't communicate to her given that she's an AI and there for its impossible for her to discern an infected from a normal human, then she starts to giggle and calms down. Pita just keeps looking at the table quietly, not wanting to talk about it.
"My god I'm an idiot, and hear I thought... no.... never mind.... anyway, hunny.. Just so you know, I'm a nice android and I wont be putting anything in anyone's food or drink, I can promise you that, and if you ever want to try, ill let you watch everything I do to the very end then if you want, you can eat something or have a drink.... But no alcohol."
Pita thinks for a moment "Actually.... Can I get something to eat..... please?"
Siren smiles. "Yes you can, what would you like?"
Pita thinks for a moment "Nothing too much, but I think I need to eat something..."
Amy looks down at Pita "Siren make the most bestest's Steak's."
Pita sits there quietly watching Siren cook, wondering if it was a wise idea to take the risk. Shaking her head slightly, she decided they seemed nice enough. Eventually Siren bought over two plates, a steak meal for both Pita and Amy. Pita smiles slightly looking at Siren,thanking her. Siren smiles back then looks up at the clock and frowns
"I'll be back in a bit, why don't you two take those to Amy's ship and bring the plates back when your done, ok?"
Pita nods slightly "That will be ok?"
She was asking for reassurance nothing would happen. Amy nods and picks up her plate, heading back to her ship. Pita hesitantly follows her, wondering why Buster was taking so long to get back.
"Why didn't you just tell me you don't know.... You're just like Ruby....."
Pita turned away from the table and stormed out of the bar. Amy had been lying to her about where Buster was. Pita couldn't understand why. Was Siren in on this? What about the others there? Did they all think it was funny to leave a girl waiting around in a base full of murderers and thieves? Pita couldn't answer the questions she had in her mind. Her only concern now was getting off Alcatraz, away from these people.
She was fighting back tears, Buster had left and she didn't know where he was. Freeport 6 was a start, but she didn't know how to get there. She had only recently discovered that what she knew of Liberty wasn't all there was to space. That there was more then what she knew as her world out there. She didn't notice Jackson walk up behind her until it was too late. He picked her up off the ground and threw her over his shoulder, holding her tightly.
"Listen kid im not finished with you yet."
Pita yelled at him to let her go, hitting and kicking him trying to get free. He tried to ignore the beating and walked back into the bar. He placed her at one end of a corner booth and sat at the other. The only way out was past him. She knew that wouldn't work. She fell silent, glaring at him and crossing her arms.
"Now, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way. In any case we are doing it." Jackson takes out his wallet and shows her a badge, he was a member of the Buffalo wing.
"Im a Buffalo agent. I wana know a few things just so we are on the same level."
Pita brushed her hair out of her face, ignoring what he was showing her, still giving him the same icy glare. She didn't know what he was intending to do, and she wasn't going to risk saying anything stupid.
"How about this. I'll ask you some things and you can ask me ANYthing your little heart desires and ill try my best to answer."
Pita stays silent, breaking eye contact for a moment as she thinks about this. Jackson leans back in his chair while he waits on her answer. Pita glances around the bar quickly, there wasn't any way she was getting out of this with him being so alert. She stays silent but nods slightly, looking at him wearily.
"Alright. I'll go first. Whose the navy you were with?" Jackson asks as he takes out a notepad.
"Adam."
Pita doesn't break eye contact or hesitate in her answer. She knew Lambert would be at risk if she told this man his name. Jackson squints at Pita. She wasn't worried about him finding out she was lying, she use to 'experiment' when she called this place home. Talking to Ruby, she had no other choice but to master the art of half truths and misleading.
"Adam who...."
"Adam Lowden." She says. "Why do you want to know." She still has her arms crossed looking angry.
"Why? Cause he shot me that's why! Wipe that frown off your face girl, whatever happened is done...... Now, whats your name?"
"You're a Rogue. Even I know navy shoots Rogues...." She rolls her eyes wondering how someone like him got into buffalo wing, she didn't take him to be the brightest "I'm Pita."
"Nice name... how are you associated with the rogues?"
Pita smirked when she realized how little he knew about her. It gave her some confidence "I am.... Well, I was a Rogue.... Until he saved me and took me somewhere safer."
Jackson raises an eyebrow "Who saved you?"
"That navy guy." She looked at Jackson with the same cold look as before, trying not to let her confidence show.
"So he saved you from what? why did you/he feel you needed to get saved? And no short answers like "because you are rogues'."
Pita tipped her head to the side slightly "He saved me from Ruby......" She paused a moment looking like the conversation humored her "Let me guess, you're next question will be 'whose Ruby'?"
"Na, we had a deal. Now you shoot me some questions."
Pita shrugs, keeping her arms crossed wondering how far she could push him. "Whats -you're- name... Mr. 'I'm so tough I beat on kids'"
"Jackson Stone. Formal Vangard raiders spec ops."
"Right... Like I needed to know that. How is it you haven't already been killed?" She asked with a look of amusement still on her face.
"I have my ways Pita. If you wana know then I could show you a few tricks.... that is if I can trust you..... It's mostly being smart in space knowing your target and knowing when to get out."
Pita rolled her eyes again, looking irritated. Uncrossing her arms she started picking at the nail polish on her fingernails. "I'm a kid who flew a light fighter as a Rogue, survived nomads, got out of being killed by Ruby, and the navy leave me alone.... I don't think I need any 'advise'." She pauses a moment "Your turn then, is it?"
He nods "So it is... Who are you looking for here?"
"Buster." She says still focusing on her fingernails.
Pita looks up at him to see what his reaction would be. She sees his eyes dim, he was deep in thought. She decides to take advantage of his lapse in attention and ducks under the table. She stands up once she crawls out the other side and runs to the door of the bar, glancing behind her quickly to see if he was following. Jackson just sits watching her leave crossing his own arms.
"Cant run forever kid"
Pita grins as she realizes she's free. "Watch me....." she mutters as she runs out of the bar.
This time she wasn't going to get caught, she knew the next time that happened would increase her chances of being killed massively. She stops running and looks behind her, once she was happy Jackson wasn't following she took a short detour to the medical wing. Racing through the doors she yelled out that someone was hurt near the mess. The medics stood up and ran toward the other side of the base. Pita watched them go and had a look around the room she was in. This place made her more uncomfortable then the bar. Memories flooded back, and she put her hands over her eyes trying to stop the images running through her mind. She took a few deep breaths and nodded slightly.
"It's going to be ok." She whispered to herself.
Pita walked through another door and started searching around what was meant to the be triage room, it didn't take her long to find a small gun and some ammunition. She clicked the safety off and smiled slightly before opening the doors out to the main corridors again, she checked to make sure no one was around before walking quickly back to the hanger. She made the decision to pass on the pre-flight checks, the quicker she got out of this hole the better. Starting up the ships engines, she sighed a breath of relief. She swore to never return to this place again as she left the station for what she hoped would be the last time.
Pita flew further and further away from Alcatraz, she wasn't sure where exactly she was heading but as long as it wasn't there she didn't care.
"Thing...... He left to go with her..... What if he forgot about me and doesn't care anymore......"
She blinked back tears before pulling cutting her engines. Looking out the window at a view she didn't recognize she realized for the first time she was truly alone. Buster had left and forgotten, Lambert was far away from where she was, the thought crossed her mind and she realized he might not have even noticed her being gone. After all, he had a strange lady there too, he would replace her just like Buster did.
"Freeport..... Freeport.... Damnit!"
She put her head in her hands and covered her eyes, tears streaming down her cheeks. She curled up in her seat, resting her head against the glass staring out into space. She sat there in silence loosing track of time. She eventually closed her eyes and fell into a restless sleep full of monsters and abandonment.
An hour, maybe two passed and she woke suddenly. Feeling by her side she couldn't find a gun, it took her a moment to realise she was still in the ship alone. The realization of what she had done finally sunk in as she recalled the events that got her to this point, deciding not to think too far into anything she swore at herself and made a decision for her next stop. After all, she couldn't go home again. She had no home.
"Freeport.... something this way..... It is...."
She knew Buster, if she did find him, would not likely be interested in seeing her. He would reject her for the other lady anyway, she couldn't come up with a reason to convince herself otherwise. Her subconscious began to play out scenarios, all of them bad. She started up the engines on her ship again in an attempt to drown out a voice that had been slowly getting louder in her head.
Nobody wants you.... Why not kill yourself now and be done with it.
She sighed and looked blankly down at the control panel for a moment.
It wont be hard.... Your a pathetic excuse of a fighter anyway, just find anyone and they will want you dead.....
She knew that the voice was right, there was enough people around who hated both the navy and the Rogues. More to the point she could be seen as a friend and a traitor to both. As the realisation of how hated she must be hit her she tried to hold back tears.
"No one would even care...."
She imagined the voice was smiling at this thought.
Pita made her way aimlessly through the trade lanes, ending up in New York she shook her head and stopped. A thought crossed her mind, maybe her ship would run out of fuel and oxygen before she was shot down, she had heard stories of this happening. Many people on Alcatraz had told her it would be just like falling asleep. Pita tried to be happy. Putting on a pretend smile she hoped no one would notice it wasn't real she sat outside Manhattan waiting for something to happen.
A voice rang out over her comm unit, bringing her back into reality
"Hello!!"
"Hi..... Who are you?"
"Just another girl, lost in space"
Pita thought for a moment before deciding to continue on the conversation. After all, she wasn't dead yet, something in the back of her mind told her that was a good thing. She had trouble believing it. The girls name was Trish, she had stolen the ship from Manhattan, and was new to the space scene. Pita could tell almost at once this was the case. Pita imagined the people she met in space thinking the same of her a few months ago.... At least Trish knew you could live on planets. The two found themselves talking to a man from the navy. Pita recognized his voice, but couldn't place where she had met him before.
"Are you the girl he took in?" The man asked
Pita nods slowly.
"Well, uh, Pita, there's something you should know. Lieutenant Lambert has gone MIA."
"What? ...... What do you mean, MIA? Where is he?"
"It stands for Missing In Action. He was last reported to be near Denver, from what I've heard."
"Denver? Why can't you find him?"
"We don't know where to look...... There are a few interesting rumors that I've heard, if you have the time."
"Why did James go away? " She sounded worried
"Well, I've looked into where he was before he left, and one rumor that I heard was that he took a Gallic girl home with him the day before he left."
"Chloe or whatever her name was.....?"
The Zoners' on Bethlehem took pity on Pita, they had provided her with a warm meal, and a bed for the night. She had given them the last of her credits, the 24 credits didn't nearly cover the costs but they were happy enough to help. She sat on the bed in the small room and stared blankly at the wall thinking about the days events. Nothing made sense to her any more, and the rest of the day's conversation was a blur. Everything was on fast forward and she wasn't able to keep up.
Lambert is missing, they blame it on Chloe and its all your fault. She will go to jail for this and you will have to live with it...... Buster doesn't want you either...... Trish, she's as Naive as you were - not as smart, I'll give you that. She will be dead before too long, and you will abandon her like you did everyone else too.
Pita closed her eyes and tried to ignore the voice she didn't know what it was, but she knew it was right. Lambert was gone, no one had seen him since she had left. She was the reason he had gone. The navy man she had talked to about it seemed to have blamed Chloe for the disappearance, or at the very least assumed she was involved. After all, she was from Gallia.
Trish was nice, a little daft, but she was doing her best to help find Buster. Pita was thankful for the company, even more thankful this company wasn't trying to kill her. Trish's limited knowledge made Pita wonder how long she would survive in space on her own. Pita wasn't going to babysit her, she would have to leave eventually..... She would abandon her. She briefly wondered where Trish would be before realising she was probably on the smokers deck smoking the synthetic marijuana she had traded for artefacts.
A druggy just like Ruby
Pita stood up and pulled her PDA from her pocket, it had gone flat and she hadn't been near a power supply for almost a month. She plugged it in to a port in the wall and a charging light flicked on, after turning it on she walked back over to the bed, falling on it she burred her face into the pillow, emotions had failed her. She should be upset, the two people she cared most about were gone. Instead she just felt empty, she quickly likened it to being trapped in a dark hole, there was no way out without help, and she knew no one was going to help her.
Pita's PDA was buzzing, she ignored it as she lay on the bed deep in thought. Her thoughts wandered across to a sharp object lying on the draws by the bed. it was a knife of some sort, a smaller knife. Someone who stayed there before her must have left it behind. She wondered if the numbness she had in her mind numbed the physical pain as well. She picked up the knife and played with it for a moment before shaking her head and putting it on the bed beside her. She jumped as the PDA vibrated off the table and fell onto the floor.
"Alright.... Alright....."
She stood up and pushed a few buttons, most of the messages were from Rogues, threatening to find her. She went into the inbox and was about to delete all messages when one caught her eye. It was a reply to a transmission she sent out a long time ago.... two or three months.... she wasn't sure.
Quote:My dear, I have a small business matter to attend too in Liberty soon.
I wish to see you. I will be where the beginning of the end took place. Where the blue one met his demise. i'm sure you remember.
Love ya kiddo
Buster
Pita read the message and put the PDA back down on the table. She lay down on the bed, knowing she should be happy. The voice in her head was un-usually quiet, stunned into silence. She slowly drifted off into an uneasy sleep, waking early the next morning to an alarm she slowly crawled out from under the covers on the bed wondering when she woke to get under them. She didn't think she was tired enough to have not remembered, but shrugged it off. She checked her messages on her PDA. She smiled slightly, Busters was still there. The haunting voice in her head had been silent all morning and she felt a sense of relief but couldn't quite place why. She sent a reply to Buster and picked up the small knife before quickly making her way to the ship.
You're abandoning them, just like you do to everyone else.
Pita left the station quietly and made her way toward the New York jump hole. She was trying to talk herself up to going through the badlands again, the thought terrified her every time. She didn't see a Rogue disrupt the lane in front of her, and she swore as her ship came to a sudden stop.
"hmmm"
"Hmm?" She frowned, not knowing what he wanted
"I know that voice... But that's a liberator.."
Pita fell silent, hoping he wouldn't recognize it as being her. She had only ran into him once or twice. Surely his memory wasn't that good.
"Er.... Pita? .... Its Jason."
"Oh...... Really?" She swore under her breath.
"Last time I saw you you were are the 'Traz bar! The heck happened kiddo!? And why in the blue blazes you flying that ... thing??"
She sighed as she realized she was facing a Rogue while she was flying her Liberator. She didn't have the energy to think of a story to cover it up. She just wanted everything to go back to normal.
"They were going to kill me....... I had to run away......"
"Who was gonna kill you?"
Jason laughs as Pita quietly tells him about Jackson.
"Him??? Oh god.... I don't believe that for a second! He'd never hurt a kid!"
"He wasn't going to let me go...."
"Well I don't know the details but... He ain't gonna hurt you.." He laughs
"Um... Do you know where Buster is.... I need to find him?"
"Buster? No I haven't seen him. heard he was hiding. You know something about him?"
"He was supposed to be here.... But I don't know where he is. "
"Supposed to be here eh? You don't say.... So he left his hiding hole..."
"I think he forgot about me. " She says quietly.
"Well I didn't forget! And here I am!"
"But you're not Buster."
"Well I ain't buster... but hey, its better than nothing. maybe I could keep you company till he comes back?"
Pita hesitated a moment, he was a Rogue, and she knew there would be a motive. She couldn't figure out what it would be. Why would he want to make sure she found Buster?
You stupid child, he want's to take you to Jackson so he can kill you.
She flinched slightly at the voice and tried to shake it away, asking him if he would hurt her for reassurance. She nodded slightly at his response, realizing he was right. If he had wanted to hurt her, he could have done it already.
"Hmm... we should get to somewhere safe. I gotta get some more rockets. Plus who knows what that idiot hunter wanted..... Maybe he wanted to kill you!" Jason thought out loud
She stopped and thought about this for a moment, after all she had made enough enemies. She still couldn't place why he was looking out for her, a rogue would have let the Hunter kill her already, she was in a Liberator at the end of the day, a ship that screamed Navy.
"I mean.. I heard there is one after buster as well!"
"Wait.... What? Why Buster? " She frowns, not sure whether to believe him or not
"I don't know the details. something about a hunter and a girl named Thing... The girl told me he is dangerous and that's why they were hiding! Maybe he knows you!"
"Maybe that's why Buster doesn't want to see me...... If the Hunters.... " She stopped mid sentence. She didn't want to think about what might happen, or what might have already happened.
The Bounty Hunter has already killed him. And Lambert.
The voice in her mind said what she was too afraid to. She tried to find something to convince her otherwise. She told herself Buster had just forgotten to meet here there, maybe she went to the wrong place. She shook her head, a feeling of dread replaced the numbness in her mind. The rest of the conversation was a blur, something about finding Buster and Moka having gone to lead a group of elite Rogues. She shook her head as she made her way back to Bethlehem, making the decision to leave Liberty that night.
She stayed in her ship until she was sure the Rogue who escorted her to the station would be gone. Undocking, she made her way down towards Bering, She remembered what Lambert said about there being more to space past the Freeport they stayed at. Pita couldn't remember the name of the house, but it had to be better then Liberty.
I am here at the scene of what appears to have been an independent Marinenachrichtendienst vessel taking a Libertonian child by force for questioning.
Onlookers describe the situation as being loud, and rather disturbing. Freelancer Jerry Kyle told our reporters: "She didn't sound very old... thirteen or fourteen maybe? She was yelling and screaming, but her comm unit was all broken up so most of it was static. One thing I do know is that she didn't want to go with the MND ship.... It almost looked as if he used some kind of forced docking sequence to get her on board."
Another onlooker added, "He knew she didn't want to go, she was making a lot of noise. She put up a good fight. I don't see what a kid has that they need that badly to take her like that. I had to turn my comm unit down because she was making such a noise......"
Commander Hamish Campbell, the head of the Navy’s War Crime Task Force, has stated that the Rheinland government has in fact resorted to bringing children in for questioning, and an investigation is under way as to why.
No one has come forward as the caregiver of this child which has sparked rumours that she is some sort of spy. Onlookers quickly denied this rumour, saying, "She wouldn't be fighting like that if she wanted to go with him, the poor girl was terrified." No further information on the girl’s whereabouts has been found, but she is thought to still be in Rheinland. Rheinland authorities have yet to comment on this.
Keep watching for regular updates on this, and all other stories.
Surely you're not going to stand for this Rob? Wasting our time on this wild goose chase of his? A female voice rang out over Pita's comms.
"He's a member of the crew... at least for now. Besides, it's not too out of our way." A man argued, trying to convince the lady
"This is ridiculous. There's no way it could possibly be the same girl he's looking for." The lady sounds annoyed
"It is. I know it's her. She's here in Rheinland, or was..." A familiar mans voice
"Look, Tanya. We're doing this. If it goes on too long we'll... reconsider. Understood?"
She sighs. "Fine. We'll go on his goose chase." She resigned to the fact that it would be happening regardless.
Lambert sounds relieved "Thank you. Let's head into the system."
"Fair enough. Sparrow, take us out. Head for Bautzen."
"Is that thing on...? It is! We were broadcasting the whole..." The man talking cut out halfway through the sentence, and the system fell silent again.
"Do you really think she'd just be out wandering around in space?"
"Someone gets abducted like that article said... the MND wouldn't just let them go."
"Just... do the scan."
"You said she flew a Liberator last you knew?"
"Yeah... she did."
"Well... we've got one right here. Over by the station."
"What?! Show me...... Not too many Liberators out this far... try hailing it....."
"Unidentified Liberator-class vessel. This is Wayfarer. Please respond."
The only response they received was static as Pita put her hand on the control panel knocking the comms button. She shook her head and covered her face with her hands again, tears rolling down her cheeks. She couldn't remember what had happened after she was taken aboard the MND ship. She knew they weren't friendly, taking her prisoner. She remembered a few of the questions, and was sure she didn't answer them truthfully. Realizing this was probably the only reason she had been released she sighed slightly.
"That's odd. No response, but the ship isn't docked, and we're getting a power reading."
"Here, let me..." Shuffling could be heard on the ship "Pita... Pita are you there? It's Lambert."
Pita didn't say anything, and continued crying. She hoped they would just leave her alone, she didn't want to talk to anyone.
"I... did you guys hear that?" Lambert sounded hopeful.
"Well... could have been a child. Hard to say."
"I'll be damned, Lambert. I'm actually starting to believe you here." The woman spoke, the tone in her voice had changed.
"Easy guys. If this is her..... Pita? Is that you, Pita? Please, say something."
Pita talks quietly. "please.... just go away..... "
" It is... that's definitely her." James speaks quietly, inaudible to the rest of the crew on his ship. "Pita, dear... it's Lambert. I want to help you."
"No..... Lambert's..... Hes not..... The hunter got him.... Pita sounded tired, like she had given up.
"Hunter? What hunter? What do you mean got?" Lambert's voice was full of confusion.
Pita shakes her head. This person was lying to her like Buster, and the MND. He just wanted to hurt her some more. Lambert was dead, the Hunter had got him.
"The one that wants to find Buster...... It.... Its my fault...." She falls silent, her comms turning to a quiet static again. She wiped her eyes as she realized she didn't want to finish the sentence.
"Pita... Pita... it wasn't your fault." Lambert's voice shook as he was getting emotional. "It was... my fault. I messed up, Pita... I'm so sorry."
"I shouldn't have gone to find Buster.... James wouldn't have left then..... He.... Why did you go?" Pita shook her head. The voice in her mind told her to humor him. Maybe he would kill her and then she wouldn't have to do it herself.
He sighs deeply. "Pita... I don't know how to explain. After a few days, I thought you were gone for good. I...couldn't take it."
"The Rogues..... They wouldn't let me go. I had to run away."
Lambert looks up. "They tried to take you again? I knew it had to be... I mean... what happened to Buster?"
She shakes her head, exhaustion washed over her. "He wasn't there.... He said to meet him where the nom... blue thing died.... But he never came...." She put her head in her hands again, trying to steady her breathing "He doesn't want to see me because of the Hunter that's my fault.... Jason said so....."
"And you didn't see him after that? You shouldn't have ever trusted him... he's just another Rogue."
"He tried to help me when the big ship took me away..... He told me not to go, and I didn't.... But he took me away anyway.... He was trying to help....."
Lambert sounds confused. "Who took you away? You mean the Rheinlander?"
Pita nods. "I.... They all think you're called Adam...." She smiles slightly "I didn't want them to find you."
He frowns slightly "That's... interesting. Pita, are you okay? Did any of them try to hurt you?"
She looks down at her hands which were now knotted in her lap. "The Rogues.... I ran away.... They didn't. I cant remember.... I don't remember the Rheinlander.... The voic...." She stopped mid sentence and tried to change topic, not wanting to talk about it. "Where have you been?"
"After you left, I went looking for you. I... broke some rules. Some people were mad at me because of that. So I left Liberty. I was... not myself. Not thinking right. I thought you were gone forever, and I just..." He stops abruptly.
She shakes her head "I didn't mean to..... The Rogues.... They tried to make me stay..... Why am I so tired...?"
"Pita... oh I hope they didn't... we need to get you somewhere safe."
"I... I want to sleep and...."
She shakes her head trying to get the last part of the thought out of her head. The voice was stating to become vocal now. Lambert frowned slightly and gently asked her
"And what...?"
She sighs and talks quietly. "I don't want to wake up..."
"Wake up? What do you mean?"
"If I stay asleep and not wake up it wont hurt anymore..."
Several gasps were heard from the bridge of the Wayfarer, Lambert's ship, Pita ignored them. She didn't care any more.
"No... no Pita. Don't even think about that. Everything's going to be okay now. I'm here."
Pita stays quiet hoping he would leave that comment alone. She didn't want to talk about the thoughts she had been having with him. The voice in her mind didn't want her talking to him about them either.
"No matter what happened these last few weeks... I'm here now. We're gonna get through this..... Do you want to go home? Back to Denver?"
She shook her head and sighed "I want to sleep...."
"You can sleep Pita... maybe you'll feel better after. You just have to promise me you'll wake up, okay?"
"Ok.... Um, James..... Can I ask something...?"
"Of course, Pita."
"Why doesn't Buster want to see me.... I.... I didn't do anything wrong, did I?"
"No... I don't think so. I think it was Buster who did the wrong thing. But it's over now, okay?"
She nods slightly "Can we go home....?"
"To... Denver?"
"I.... I don't know.... Is that still home?" She tries to smile slightly before giving up on that.
He frowns slightly "I'm not sure, Pita. But I think anywhere nice can be a home with you around. Don't you think?"
"I don't know..."
"Well... the Navy is who is mad at me. Liberty might not be the best place for me right now. And if the Rogues keep doing this, it's probably not the best place for you either."
"No.... I don't want to stay here..... The people here are mean.... Why did they take me?"
"In short, because they hate people from Liberty. And you're flying a Liberty ship, so they don't like you."
She nods falling quiet again "I... I didn't know...."
"It's not your fault, Pita. There's lots of places that aren't Rheinland and aren't Liberty either."
"Can we please go.... I don't like it here... Almost as much as the badlands...."
"Rob, let's go." His voice sounded muffled, like he was looking away.
Lambert was quietly conversing with the crew on the Wayfarer. She couldn't quite make out what they were saying, but she didn't want to know.
"Pita, dear. Please follow us." The woman's voice rang through clearly, she didn't sound annoyed anymore, Pita briefly wondered why.
"Can.... Can I sleep on the way...?"
"Of course. Just lock on to our signal."
She hits a few buttons on the control panel, it had been a while since she had to activate this control and she wasn't sure she had done it right.
"Like that?"
"That's perfect."
She curls up in the seat in her ship and closes her eyes. "Don't go away again....."
"I won't. I promise."
Pita smiles slightly as she falls asleep. The crew on board the Wayfarer set course to Hudson, whether anyone knew where they were heading was anyone's guess. Pita slept restlessly waking with a fright every so often. She was exhausted after the month of running from people, each time she woke she managed to fall asleep again almost instantly.
"She's still back there, right Tanya?"
"She is. And I think we're entitled to the explanation of who she is and how you know her... at some point at least."
Lambert sounds tired " Of course... all in due time though. First things first...... Let's dock here."
"A Rogue... this could be trouble. Gage can you get her ship docked remotely?"
"Pita...." Another familiar voice came across her comms, she stirred slightly in her sleep.
"Wait a second... I recognize that voice. Rob, hail the ship."
"This is the Wayfarer. We would like to know your intentions. Please respond."
"Well ill be a bunters uncle. You know what I'm doing here Mr. Lambert. no need for unpleasantries"
Lambert curses under his breath. "It is you. Finally decided to turn up?"
"As did you apparently."
"Why now? Just to make my life more difficult?"
Pita moves in her sleep, trying to ignore the voices of the other people around her. She didn't want to wake up yet, she was still so tired.
"You can blame your old mates Baker and Polstari for my upheaval...... Bring the girl here, you know I mean her no harm."
"The admirals? We're not on such good terms any longer." Lambert tried to keep his voice emotionless
"Nor am I."
"She had some interesting things to say about you in particular." He was sounding annoyed. Pita didn't want to wake up yet, but the voices were making it hard not to.
"Needless to say someone put a hit out on myself and my fiancee and ruined my legit business....... I'm sure she did."
"Rogues make enemies. Tends to come with such a life."
"A Rogue I was no more. still am not really. just doing a job for a friend and after that I'm done again."
"Doesn't matter. She's still safer with me. Nothing's changed."
"I never once said I was taking her from you either." Buster snapped at Lambert.
The two men sounded Angry, and Pita stirred in her sleep again, waking to the hostilities around her. She was disorientated and groggy, for a moment she didn't recognize the voices around her. She opened her eyes eventually and stayed curled up in her seat.
"Then what the hell do you want?"
"But I still want to see her. So wake her up and bring her here."
"How do I know you aren't going to try and take her... again?"
"Because You would be dead already if that were the case."
She heard this and shook her head before rubbing her eyes. She spoke quietly "What's.... What's going on......?"
"I think not. I have the advantage here." Lambert smirked
"Such is the way of Rogues. for things to never be as they seem."
"Why can you not let her be? All this is your fault... you should've just left us alone."
"My fault? how do you possibly fathom that this is MY fault?" Buster was trying hard to keep calm, getting any more angry could put Pita at risk again. "You're the one who abandoned her with no one"
Pita flinched as Lambert became furious, "She left to find YOU. Because YOU contacted her and told her to come after you. And then YOU abandoned out there alone."
"At least when I abandoned her, it was not my choice and I left her WITH you." Buster failed at staying calm, becoming equally as furious as Lambert. Pita rubbed her eyes and frowned, still not completely aware of what they were arguing about.
"You left her ALONE. Where do you think she's been all this time?"
She covered her face with her hands and yelled at the two of them "Stop!" Everything fell silent for a moment.
"Hi Pita..."
"Pita... don't worry. Buster's not coming any closer."
She wasn't alone when I let her take you by the hand on that freighter after you put one in Ruby's skull." Buster spoke quietly, sounding calmer then before.
"Buster? You mean.... What's going on....?"
Lambert's voice was full of exasperation "That's not what I'm talking about. More recently, when she went searching for you. You contacted her, and she went looking for you!
"I didn't abandon her."
"Well where the hell were you, then? Why did I just find her alone in Rheinland of all places? Captured by the MND!"
"Someone sent the hunters after me. I wasn't going to Risk putting her in that kind of danger."
"So you figured she was in less danger out here on her own? You Rogues are so damn smart, you know that?"
"I was never in Rheinland. she was to meet me at Pittsburgh."
"The Hunters......" Pita bites her lip, interrupting their argument "J....Jason said that happened. I went to Rheinland because he said you didn't..."
"But she didn't show up. instead, I was fired upon and almost killed by assassins...... I also didn't know she was alone. I expected you would be there too"
"You didn't want to see me..." Pita sounded hurt when she said this.
Lambert was confused with the conflicting stories. She shakes his head and tries to make sense of the situation. "Pita... where were you going to meet Buster?"
"At Pittsburgh.... Where the N.... blue thing died."
"Pita, If I didn't want too see you, would I be here now?" He sighed.
"Pita, he might be trying to take you back to the Rogues."
"Like hell I would" Buster growled at Lambert
"But... Jason.... I don't know.... " She shrugs and curls back up in her seat again.
"Moka still wants you but I'm not going to let that happen."
"Who is this Jason person?" Lambert asks
"yeah, who is Jason?" Buster echoed Lambert's question, Pita found it strangely amusing.
"Jackson's friend... "
"Pita, I don't know who Jackson is, either." Buster shakes his head with a slight shrug of his shoulders.
"A Rogue?" Lambert frowns, trying to put the story together.
"A Rogue.... He tried to help me when the MND took me away... "
"You shouldn't talk to Rogues honey" Buster sounded tired when he said this, Pita felt guilty for making him worry.
She tried to explain some more, to make the guilty feeling go away. "He was going to help me find you...." She bites her nail. "But he said you didn't want to see me any more. "
"He lied. I'm not in a good place with a lot of Rogues." Buster spoke quietly again, Pita frowned, he use to be liked by all of the Rogues.
"James.... Please... I want to see Buster....
"Fine... but we'll be right here in case." Lambert almost sounded defeated as he gave in to her request.
"alright" She nods and smiles slightly. "Thanks..."
"I wish to speak with the girl in private. If that's alright with you" Buster nods and starts his engines, Pita follows closely behind.
Months passed and Pita grew accustomed to life on a station. With Busters credits she had been living comfortably on Cold Bay Depot. She had given up on trying to figure out why neither James nor Buster wanted her with them, and instead spent her time staring out into space. Occasionally she would take her ship out into space, each time setting a different way point to explore. She grew to be lonely, not talking to anyone unless she had to. They didn't care, they were only there to do a job and she wasn't a part of it.
She sighed as she checked her ship over one last time and ran her hands over the bullet holes down one side of the ship. They slightly concerned her, she knew ships could only take so much damage before they break. She climbed into the cockpit and checked over all of the controls. Once deciding everything was in order she initiated take off and carefully left the station. She programmed in a random way point, half hoping there was something there that didn't like her.
“Is that who I…?” A voice gave her a fright, she looked up at the incoming ship.
She hesitated for a moment, realizing who it was. "Hi...."
She held her breath for a moment, trying to decide what to tell him about where she had been staying. She didn't want him mad at Buster, but she didn't want to stay here on her own. They began talking, and Pita frowned. He seemed to be genuinely happy to see her again. The longer the conversation went on, the more she realized she missed living with him. James mentioned sad memories at the house and Pita shook her head frowning.
"It wasn't sad there....."
"It wasn't at the time. But for me, now.... Thinking back to happy times.... All the stuff I threw away when I left..."
"Can't you get that stuff back?"
Lambert looks perplexed for a moment before smiling. "It was never about the stuff, It was about the people, Pita. Like you."
Pita bites her nail, looking slightly confused "Oh."
She still had difficulty understanding why James would come down here to see her. She knew Liberty ships weren't always liked in Rheinland. She had found that first hand with the MND. She shook her head, nothing since meeting James had made sense. Her life was turned upside down and it scared her. She looked across at James' ship, not realizing she was speaking her thoughts out loud.
"Hey,,, James. Why did you come down here?"
"Well... That's an interesting question. I guess I wander down this way every so often when I get the chance." He smiles wryly "Guess it was really just for the small chance of seeing you or Buster. And, well... Guess it worked."
Pits frowned, in her mind it didn't make sense. "It's a long way to come down because you might see me..."
James shrugs "Texas is only one system away. But even if you were in Omicron Alpha, I'd still want to find a way to check up."
"You're still strange" Pita speaks quietly, barely audible to James.
"I am. But I still care about you, even if I was silly and ran away from it when you went to look for Buster. And I'm sorry for that. I don't think you'll ever be able to understand just how sorry I am."
***
Pita smiled as the conversation continued on, eventually she was following him back to their home in Denver. She frowned slightly, the thought of her going back scared her. What if he did decide to leave again, or that he didn't want her there. As the planet got near she tried to steady her hands, it had been a while since she was this nervous about something, and she didn't like the feeling. Staying close to James' ship they made their way down to their old home. Pita lands her ship in the the houses grounds, but doesn't get out, she starts to bite her nail again. James set his Guardian down on the pad opposite Pita's, and did not hesitate to pop the hatch and climb out. When he saw Pita was hesitating, he smiled up to her and gestured for her to come and see the house.
Pita nods when she sees him and relaxes a little before climbing out of her ship. She walks across to where he is standing and without thinking about it, she wraps her arms around him in a hug. He smiles, hugging her back and feeling as if a weight has been lifted from his shoulders.When she steps back, he gestures over to the house.
"So, here we are, kiddo. Just like we left it... aside from the weeds. Don't worry, I'll get rid of those soon."
She nods and looks around "It looks a little forgotten about" She says quietly before starting to walk towards the house.
"Yeah..." He says as they walk up to the front door. "Tends to happen when you live in the woods and leave for a while. But like I said, we'll get it fixed up again."
As they step up to the front door, Lambert reaches out and keys in the master code, and the door unlocks. Pita nods before stepping inside. She has a look around the room, brushing some of the dust off things with her hand before she eventually curls up on her usual chair. She grins, now having trouble containing her excitement.
"I really, really can stay again? And you don't mind if I do?"
He beams, for it warms his heart seeing her back in her favorite chair. "You belong here, Pita. I wouldn't want it any other way."
He glances around for a long moment, surprised how the presence of another particular person could so completely change the way he viewed a place. Then he takes a seat across from her. She closes her eyes for a moment before opening them again and looking across at James. She nods, almost convinced she wasn't dreaming.
"Happy to be back?" he pauses for a moment, then adds, "Want to see your room? Promise I didn't touch anything while you were gone."
She nods "I think I am more then happy. Because happy isn't enough of a word to explain it" She grins "My room? Can I.... please?"
He smiles back, realizing this was more smiling than he'd been doing in months. Gesturing back towards the kitchen and slowly standing up. They walk back through the kitchen, and James steps in front of her to open the door to her room. "Here it is... just like you left it."
Lambert looks around. He had always been partial to the light green color scheme Pita had chosen. It was cheery and encouraging, he thought. Pita jumps on her bed, landing on her back. She giggles and pulls one of the pillows across her chest, hugging it.
"I missed my room."
She looks around noticing it was exactly how she had left it. The light that had been missing from her eyes had returned. she rolls over onto her tummy and hangs off the bed trying to reach something under it, poking out her tongue as she did so. Pita awkwardly sits up again and looks at the picture she had drawn of them and the house before she had left. She shrugs and holds it out for James.
"It hasn't changed really, its still a happy place."
James smiles and takes the picture from her. He remembered that she had been working on it, but hadn't seen the finished product before she'd left.
"Wow, Pita. This is great!"
He holds it up to the light, admiring her careful albeit unpractised lines, use of bright colors, and even the details like his Navy uniform and the tree in front of the house. He lowered it again. "It -is- a happy place, isn't it? Let's never run away from here again, deal?"
She nods "Deal" She looked around the room again, she didn't think she would have a room here any more. It took her a moment to decide it was a silly thought because James wasn't like the others, he cared about her.
He spends a moment with her in shared silence, then takes a step backwards. "You spend some time getting reacquainted with everything in here, I'm gonna start getting the yard back to something resembling presentable."
He checks the local time on his neural net. "And then... I'll make us a yummy dinner in an hour or so. Sound good?"
"You'll just be outside?"
He nods. "Just outside. Come grab me if you need anything, okay?"
"Ok" she grins and jumps off the bed and gives him another quick hug before starting to look around her room, trying to find where everything was again.
Lambert smiles at her again and steps out of the room, in search of some appropriate tools. Pita had a look around before yawning. She climbed back onto her bed, looking at the book she had started reading before she left. She opened it onto the page she was on and before she had finished the first sentence she had fallen asleep.
Pita scowled, she put on a brave face when Lambert told her he would be going away for a little while but he would come home soon. She didn't like the idea of him leaving her alone again, not after the last time.
A few days passed and she grew restless, deciding against her better judgement she checked her ship briefly and fired up the engines. As she pulled up towards the docking rings, she frowned. Her ship wasn't handling the change in temperature or air pressure as it should be, something was making a noise like she hadn't heard before. She swore as there was a loud crack, and the sound of something bouncing off the tail of her Liberator. The noises didn't stop there, and instead of turning around as it was further to go home then where she was headed, Pita decided to risk space.
A few moments later, she exited the docking ring and silence surrounded her. She briefly checked over her ship, lights were flashing. She sighed as she realized her oxygen and hull were fine. It was more of an inconvenience, her guns were showing as damaged or offline completely, looking around it was easy to see why.
Her guns had become loose, or completely removed from the ship. Looking around to assess the damage she shakes her head. The tail of her ship was cracked and damaged, a dent further up. She tried to smile, thinking that the bullet holes would be less obvious now.
She took a breath and sat back in her seat, debating what to do now. She couldn't go back home yet, chances are her ship wouldn't hold together. Pita frowned as something caught her eye. Her pants were stained a dark red, it looked like blood. As she noticed this, her arm started throbbing. She frowns and refrains from looking at it yet, checking to see what supplies she had in her ship. Deciding food rations and water wouldn't be helpful she turned her arm over to see a small, but deep gash in her forearm.
"Hello" A voice distracted her from her panic for a moment.
"Hey.... Can... Can you help me?"
She explained what happened to the pilot, asking again if they could help her.
"What do you need, some medbands or something?"
"I think so. That should help it, right?"
"I will try to find some on Denver, hold on."
The pilot undocked after a few moments on the planet and broke the news to her. She nods slightly, before smiling as they offer some Liberty Ale. She takes it, deciding that she could save it for Lambert or someone as she didn't drink it herself. The two continue talking for a while before the Bounty Hunter directs her to the Navy Battleship, the Rio Grande.
"They have good med facilities"
"It is this way.... right?"
"Ye, come"
The pilot realizes Pita didn't know where to go and decides to show her the way. Pita follows the Bounty Hunter to the Battleship, becoming nervous as she realizes it is a Navy vessel.
"The navy.... They wont hurt me here, right? Only to help?"
"They like me, I don't know about you"
She thinks for a moment, wondering if they forgot who she was. Part of her was hoping they hadn't, and there was a friendly face to help her. After a few moment she nods.
"Ok... Well.... They should be ok.. Thank you."
She requests to dock and takes a breath as she brings her ship closer, crossing her fingers, she asked out loud for everything to be ok.
