Remembering could be so boring at times. From where she lay on one of the bio-beds in the ship's medical bay, Ruby let out a groan.

Nothing. Aside from her name she couldn't remember a single thing. Even the clothing she had worn offered nothing in other forms of identification. The only thing she had to go on was the emblem. The carved, silver rose was beautiful to look at, obliviously someone had put a lot of work into it. But aside from her name, it refused to yield anymore secrets.

She groaned again. There was nothing to do. The good doctor on board, the name of whom she failed to catch, had given her a full medical examination after Anderson had managed to pull her away from one of the gunships docked in the hanger...

A goofy smile came to her face as she remembered the A-57(P) Mantis gunships. Or more accurately, the twin barrel AR77 heavy machine gun mounted below the cockpit.

Almost a full minute of sustained fire power, Anderson had told her, but its impressive ammo capacity came at the cost of damage per shot. He'd also given her a basic run down of the heat sync system and Element Zero. There was also a brief history lesson about the colony on Mindoir and the Alliance. For some reason, the fact that they were currently in space, on an actual spaceship surprised her more then she thought. But the science elements of it all had gone through one ear and out the other. But somewhere along that line her brain stepped in and snatched up anything related to those beautiful, beautiful cannons.

She shut her eyes, mind long gone as she tried to figure out some way to up the fire time even more. Ice maybe? Nonono, ice would melt in seconds. Liquid nitrogen? Where would the gunship hold it all? Well, Weiss had always said that white Dust could reach temperatures below...

Her eyes snapped open and she sat up in flash.

She had something! It was right there, right on the tip of her tongue... and then it was gone.

She flopped back into the bio-bed, groaning. Why couldn't she remember?

-Linebreak-

"... Aside from a few minor burns and a bad case of amnesia she's completely healthy," Doctor Chakwas said, tapping her data pad.

Beside her, Admiral Steven Hackett scowled. "Nothing else?"

"No," she shook her head. "In fact, from the scans I've taken she is healthier and far more fit then someone her age should be."

"Any signs of gene modifications?" Anderson worriedly asked on her other side.

She shook her head. "No, its all natural, and it troubles me to think that someone this young looks ready to run a marathon at a moments notice."

Hackett hummed again as they turned a corner. To the inexperienced crewmen, the corridors of the Everest class dreadnought Harvest were a twisting maze of endless frustration. Not to him. The layout of the ship identical to his own flagship, suck at Arcturus for retrofits, so the brief journey down to the medical bay from the bridge was no issue. The girl on the other hand, was.

"What I want to know is how the hell she survived," he said, clasping his hands behind his back. "There's to much coincidence in this."

"You think it's a trap?" Chakwas looked at him, aghast. "You think that she's a trap?"

"Doctor, we watched that place burn from orbit for three hours. No one could have survived that for long. And if what the girl says is true, she ran out of that blaze minutes before the search parties arrived. She should be little more then ash at this point."

"Maybe she was hiding in a cellar or something," Anderson theorized.

"But she can't remember, can she? What a coincidence."

Anderson scowled. "Admiral, she can barely..."

"Lieutenant," Hackett interrupted with a growl. "The Alliance has just suffered one of the most devastating pirate attacks in it's history. Until we're certain it's not leading up to something bigger everything is suspect. Is that clear?"

Anderson's jaw clenched, but gave a sharp nod and a stiff; "yes sir."

"Good," Hackett grunted as the door to the medbay drew near. It opened automatically as they approached, admitting them into the cavernous medical center. Dozens of bio-beds lined the walls, all of them empty save for one in the middle of the room near Chakwas' desk.

As this was the first time he had ever laid eyes on her, Hackett couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the girl's appearance. The red and black skirt she wore didn't seem all that strange but the corset wrapped around her waist looked... unusual for someone so young. The combat boots and leggings only added to the strange vibe she gave off.

But the thing seemed to draw his eyes more then anything else, even from this distance, were her eyes. Light seemed to reflect off the silver orbs, captivating him. They were, at the same time, eyes that were bright, young and innocent, but at the same time hiding the sharp, eagle gaze that took in every detail and left nothing out.

He had seen them many times before, in the eyes of hundreds of N7 special operatives, Alliance intelligence agents and starship captains. They were the eyes of a hunter. Always hunting, yet always wary of the hunter. Then she blinked and the silver orbs vanished for a second before reappearing, staring at a roundish object clutched tight in her hands. She was so engrossed in it that she never noticed the three stop right beside the bed. A full thirty seconds past and still there was no acknowledgment.

"Ruby," Chakwas finally said, laying a hand gently on the girl's knee.

The girl squeaked, dropping the object in surprise. It bounced off the bio-bed, hit the deck with a metallic clink and rolled between Hackett's polished shoes. Slowly, he reached down and plucked it from the ground, examining the silver rose engraved on its surface. After a while, he returned his gaze to 'Ruby' who was staring at him nervously. He nodded appreciatively.

"Its beautiful," he said, holding out the emblem.

Her hand lashed out, snatching it back faster then the eye could follow. As she clutched it close to her chest, Hackett could have sworn he picked up the faint hint of roses in the air before the ship's life support systems carried the sent away.

"T-thanks," she stammered, twisting around so she was sitting on the edge of the bed with her feet dangling off the edge. "I-I don't know who made it but... if feels important to me... somehow. I just... can't remember."

"Just keep trying, Ruby," Chakwas said warmly. "It'll come back to you eventually."

She nodded, face uncertain as she began examining the emblem again. Before she could become engrossed in it, Chakwas cleared her throat before gesturing towards the Admiral.

"Ruby, this is Admiral Hackett. He has a few... questions to ask you," she said, scowling.

Ruby's face twisted in confusion. "But.. I don't rememb..."

"We know," Hackett interrupted. "But there are things we need to know. Things only you can tell us."

"Uh... okay?"

"First of all, your memory. Is it only large chunks you can't recall or is everything gone?"

She thought for a moment before shaking her hand. "No. Everything gone, accept my name... and even that took me a bit."

Hackett's eyes narrowed. "I see. Next, you said you woke up in the middle of the fire, correct?"

"Y-yes."

"Where were you when you woke up?"

"I... don't know. There was just f-fire everywhere."

The questioning continued on for a few more minutes, as it did, Hacketts fears slowly started to abate. So far as he could tell the girl had no traces of mental conditioning or brain washing. Despite his earlier argument, however true it may have been, he really didn't want to do this, but Alliance Intelligence had been all too clear with their demands. And he'd be lying if he said he wasn't a little paranoid too. But so far Ruby was showing none of the dozens of symptoms Intel had listed off, if anything...

"Do you... think I'm a spy?" Ruby asked slowly after a particularity obvious question about her political opinion.

"Others do, yes," Hackett admitted. "But you have me convinced."

"And that's... good?"

His lips curled upward slightly. "Yes, that's good. How has the good Doctor been treating you?"

"Umm, good."

"You really need to ask?" Chakwas asked dryly, scandalized that he'd even ask that.

"Just precautions, Doctor," Hackett said with a rye smile before turning away and heading back for the medical bay door with Anderson trailing behind him. He briefly heard Chakwas sit down at her desk as the door shut behind them.

"Was that really necessary," Anderson said as they started heading back to the bridge.

"I wish it wasn't," Hackett replied stiffly.

"There must have another way."

"Tell that to Alliance Intelligence. They'll be here in a few hours."

Anderson's eyes widened in surprise. "What?"

"They want to conduct their own investigation," Hacket growled. "I'll call them off, but you know how well they can make someone disappear."

He stopped and gripped Anderson on the shoulder, stopping him. "If they come within ten feet of her I want them locked in the brig. Understood?"

Anderson nodded. "Understood."

-Linebreak-

Never before, in the history of all time and space had remembering been sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo boring!

Ruby stared up at the ceiling, drool overflowing from the corner of her mouth as she lay on her back. There was nothing to do.

Nothing!

Doctor Chakwas had long since stopped prodding her with that glowing holographic device on her arm, and had long since told Ruby to stop drooling over it every time she saw it. She just couldn't help it, that... omni-tool thing fascinated her. And she was pretty sure she'd never seen anything like it before or she would've remembered it. Well, it was almost like a Scroll, if a little more advanced and...

She bolted upright, drool gone as she fought to keep the word in her head.

Scroll. What was it? What did it mean? What-?

She groaned despairingly as she flopped back onto the bed. She almost had it. Almost.

"Ruby?"

She glanced over at Chakwas and the concern written over her face.

"I'm fine," Ruby sighed, rolling over onto her side. "Just... thought I had something there."

The Doctor's encouraging words were lost on her as she laid down again, twiddling her thumbs as she stared at the ceiling once again.

And then the boredom was back with a vengeance, and soon, so was the drool.

She stared blankly up at the ceiling, begging for something, anything to make it go away. She would have even settled for falling asleep, but she just couldn't nod off. Her limbs still thrummed with a nervous energy brought on by the near success of remembering, making any form of rest impossible. So she just lay there, still bored, staring at the ceiling, just... waiting. For what, she didn't know.

But the energy just wouldn't go away, building up like a dam inside her, ready to burst at the slightest move. And she just didn't know what to do to get rid of it. She felt like she needed to move, to just get off this bed and...

"Hey doctor?" She turned her head and met Doctor Chakwas' eyes as they glanced up from her paperwork. "Is there somewhere here I can... run?"

"Run?" Chakwas asked, rising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, like, you know, a jogging track?" Ruby supplied, gesturing with her hands. "Round, circle... thing you can run on?"

The Doctor let out a soft laugh. "I know what a jogging track is, Ruby. And yes, we do have one. Its smaller then one ground-side, but..."

"That's okay!" Ruby exclaimed, blotting up into a sitting position. "Can we go?"

Chakwas considered it for a long moment. "Well, your vitals are good, no major injuries aside from a few burns," she muttered to herself. "Really all matters on how you're feeling right now."

Ruby flashed her a big smile, the first real smile since she got here, and gave her two thumbs up. "Oh yeah, I'm good."

Giving her own smile, Chakwas rose from her desk. She sorted through a stack of datapads for a moment, selected the ones that needed her attention the most before heading for the door, gesturing for Ruby to follow.

The trek through the corridors was a long and twisted one, which involved passing through the mess-hall, earning many curious and sympathetic glances, and three long boring elevator rides. By the time the last elevator reached their floor, Ruby was ready to fling herself out and kiss the floor for joy. Who designed elevators to go that slow?! But soon they approached the double doors and they hissed open, admitting them into the ship's gym.

As they stepped in, Ruby's eyes widened in wonder as she took in the wide expanse.

In all, the room was fifty yards in length and about the same in width. Around the perimeter ran the painted white lines of the track and in the middle was a large assortment of exercise equipment, ranging from dumbbells, bench presses and a bunch of stuff Ruby couldn't recognize. There were also a few dozen Alliance marines dressed in their standard PT gear, completing their usual workout for the day. As the two walked in, a few paused in their exertions and stared. As their eyes fell on her, Ruby stopped dead. The earlier excitement she had felt was gone and she felt uncomfortably self-conscious.

"Oh, don't mind them," Chakwas said. "They won't bother you."

"You sure?" Ruby asked, looking up at her.

"I'm sure," the Doctor smiled. "I am the one who gives them their injections after all."

The marines who were close enough to overhear visibly paled and returned to their workouts with renewed vigor.

Still a little put off, Ruby glanced back at the track and followed the white lines as they arched around the gym. They seemed so... inviting, somehow.

Before she knew what was happening her feet were already moving, picking up speed as she settled into one of the lanes and turned the first bend. A grin broke across her face and she pushed herself to go even faster. The wind blowing in her hair, rushing over her body was so welcome, so relaxing, so... familiar.

She turned the last bend and passed the door, barely catching the Doctor's surprised face as she sped by. No wonder. By now she was in a full out sprint, turning at the bend with practiced ease.

As she finished the second lap she caught Chakwas activating her omni-tool and pulling up a stopwatch, her datapads long forgotten. But Ruby didn't care, she was too caught up in the bliss. Never, in her sort time awake, had anything been as soothing as this. Her legs, pounding against the floor stayed strong and she wasn't even sort of breath. It was like she'd been built to run, and she loved it.

Third lap. Through her bliss, she could feel... something. A pressure inside that seemed to come from deep inside her. It grew slowly, spreading out to her limbs like the roots of a tree. It felt strange, but she wasn't scared. It didn't feel bad, if anything, it felt... right, somehow.

Forth lap. The pressure was building up, filling her arms and legs with a strange tingle of energy. Now it felt like she was physically trying to hold it in. But still it felt so... right.

Fifth lap. It was starting to get unbearable. The energy had filled her, making her legs tingle and burn, begging to be let out, to be used.

To run.

Then, as she passed the last bend, it broke free, blazing through her like a wildfire. Everything snapped into focus as her foot planted in the ground and for fraction of a second everything about her seemed to freeze.

But she wasn't scared. Far from it. As her eyes locked on the far wall, she embraced it, guiding the energy to her legs with such ease it was like she had been born with it. But overshadowing it all was something she'd never felt before.

Contentment. Like she, Ruby Rose had been made whole once again.

Then she kicked off the ground and the wall rushed up to meet her.

-Linebreak-

The door to the medical bay opened and Anderson stiffened, the all too familiar smell of blood filling his nostrils. Worry filled his chest as he saw a large group of nurses and marines in PT gear gathered around one bio-bed in particular. Over all the commotion the group generated, he could hear Chakwas' stern voice calling out; "that's enough! Give her room, now!"

"What happened?" Anderson demanded, shoving to the front of the group and staring at the sight before him.

Ruby was sitting on the bio-bed, face screwed up in pain as she clutched a large wad of bloody medical gaze to her face. Soft whimpers made through the thick dressing as Chakwas gently wiped away the blood that trailed down her chin.

"We don't know, sir," one of the marines answered. "One second she was on the jogging track, the next; BAM! Face first into the wall fifty yards away."

"Right! That's enough!" Chakwas yelled over the noise, standing and pointing at the door. "Get out! I have a patient to treat."

The marines hesitated briefly before walking out and the nurses that had gathered, mostly out of worry then necessity, all disbanded to return to their duties. Once they did, Chakwas sighed and softly rested a hand on Ruby's shoulder.

"Feeling better?"

Ruby nodded, eyes still screwed shut.

"Doctor?" Anderson asked, stepping forward. "What happened?"

"Biotics," Chakwas sighed. "At least... I think so."

"You think so?"

"Well," she said stiffly, reaching over to her desk and snatched up a datapad before offering it to Anderson. "What would you call this?"

He took the device and saw a video file ready to play on its surface. Tapping the play button, he watched the view from one of the many security cameras stationed in the gym as Ruby started her run. He was honestly impressed as she reached her top speed and managed to maintain it for four laps with out getting short of breath. Then on the fifth lap, he watched as she turn the last bend and just... vanished.

"Face first into the far wall at speeds I can't calculate," Chakwas summarized. "Biotic charge. There's nothing else it could be."

"Possibly," Anderson murmured, replaying the footage and stopping it at a certain point. "But I don't see any eezo residue... And what are those?"

The footage was frozen just after Ruby sped off screen, and there, in the path she'd traveled, were small red specks that slowly drifted down to the ground before fading into nothing.

"We don't know," Chakwas said after she examined the clip. "Everyone was more worried about her then anything else. And, as you can see, they just... vanish. As for Ruby, well, she's better then I expected. No fractures, breaks, not even a broken nose."

Anderson looked at her, surprised. "Nothing?"

Chakwas was about to reply when a nurse strolled up and handed her a datapad.

"Thank you," she said, scanning over it's contents. As she went further, her brow furrowed. "This can't be right. Run another scan."

"I did, Doctor. Twice," the nurse replied. "Eezo readings turned up negative."

"That's impossible."

As the talk began to get more technical, Anderson's eyes wandered, eventually settling on Ruby; the sole survivor of Mindoir. As he stared, he couldn't help but get the feeling he'd be seeing a lot more of her in the years to come.


Updated: March 7, 2017