Chapter 1:

Montenegro, Solaris City

Solaris VII

February 14th, 3062

The rain, if you could call it that, pelted against her and she pulled the hood tighter as she moved quickly down the streets around The Factory in the Free World's League's district of Solaris City. She could hear the crowds cheering in the arena as another bout of mech on mech combat began. Normally, she would have joined the masses, but today she just wanted to get home.

It had been a long shift at Brit's, the patrons particularly unruly, rude, and, in one particular case, handsy. She had solved that issue quickly, she recalled with a wicked smile.

As the woman rounded the bend to her run down tenement block, she could already see her landlord waiting for her. She hesitated for a second, sighed, and kept moving forward.

"Well, Ms. Redd, looks like you've had another long night." The old woman said cruelly and flicked the ash from her cigarette. "Look, Ivy, I've been patient but you're two weeks past due on rent. I need that money or I'm going to have to evict you."

"I know, I know. I get paid tomorrow and I'll give you everything I owe then, ok? I just wanna shower and crash right now." Ivy replied, making her voice sound weary. Not that it was hard at the moment.

The old woman looked Ivy over, sighed and nodded once. Ivy took a step forward towards her door but found the old woman's arm blocking her path.

"Tomorrow, no later than 8 am, I expect to see the money transferred. Got it?" She asked, her voice harsh and commanding. Ivy just nodded and unlocked her room's door before closing it and leaning up against it.

She sighed heavily and pulled her soaked jacket off, tossing it over a wooden chair to hopefully dry before she had to go out again for her shift tonight. She slowly undressed, her body aching from the days toils, and caught her reflection as she passed the dirty mirror.

Her long hair hung over her chest, dirty and knotted and the ugly scar on her stomach clearly standing out on her well-maintained physique. Ivy sighed, finished undressing and turned the shower on as hot as it could go.

After she was done, she flopped down on her small, firm mattress and stared at the ceiling before falling asleep. When she eventually woke up hours later she turned onto her side, pulling the personal noteputer she kept hidden in the bottom of the drawer of her bedside table. First she opened her messages, a ritual that never changed whenever she booted the little device on. And, also never changing, she found her messages empty.

Then, Ivy opened the secure app that had her banking in it. Truth be told, she had more than enough to pay her debt, but had other things in mind for what to use her c-bills for. A small smile crossed Ivy's lips as she quickly got up, got redressed and grabbed her bag. She packed everything she could into the duffel and grabbed the noteputer, sliding it into her pocket carefully. Just as Ivy was about to leave, she hesitated and, sighing heavily, pulled a wad of crumpled c-bills out from her jacket and set them on the bedside table. The accumulated tips would cover her debts, as much as she wanted to put it straight in her account, the old woman had been kind to her. Ivy wasn't completely heartless, after all.

Afterwards, Ivy peered outside and made sure it was clear before readjusting the duffel bag on her shoulder and walking into the rainy morning. The Scrapyard awaited and she was practically salivating at what she was about to accomplish.

…

Ivy entered the main building of DeVall's Scrapyard and rang the bell on the counter. She tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for DeVall to make his way to the counter. Finally, the man showed up and looked her over.

"So, back again huh? You plan on buying something or just window shopping again?" DeVall asked and Ivy rolled her eyes at him. She was used to this song and dance, after nearly two and a half years of saving every penny she could and looking at all the old, abandoned carcasses in the yard.

"I'm here to buy." Ivy said confidently, feeling all the long days of nearly 18 hours of work at 3 jobs fade away as she looked the man in the eyes. He rubbed his stubbly chin and nodded.

"Alright, how much you have to spend?" He finally said, starting up his computer and opening the inventory. Ivy felt some of her bravado fade away at the question, suddenly unsure if she would have enough.

"About 4.5…" She finally said, feeling DeVall's unwavering gaze linger on her for an uncomfortably long time. He nodded and added the amount to a tab on the screen, thought for a moment, then replaced it with 3.5 million instead.

"That way you have enough for the equipment you'll need to buy to get the wreck running again. Not to mention a bay and techs to work on her." DeVall explained after he saw Ivy looking at him incredulously. She nodded and let out a breath she didn't even realize she was holding.

There was a long moment of silence as the computer searched DeVall's yard for any chassis that were in Ivy's price range. She could feel the anxiety building in her gut as time ticked by. She had quit two of her three jobs a few weeks ago, figuring just working at Brit's and the tips she could make would cover any other expenses after the big purchases were done.

"Alright, well, it's a bit of slim pickings given what I remember you looking for…" DeVall started but a designation caught Ivy's eye and she nearly leapt over the counter to point at it.

"There, that one." She said, pointing to the screen and DeVall raised an eyebrow.

"You sure? I mean, Marauder's are good 'mechs but there's a reason that one is in your price range. And even then, it's above what I entered." DeVall said, motioned to the price tag of 4 million and change. Ivy shook her head enthusiastically.

"I don't care, I want that one." She said confidently, handing him the chit to pay for the chassis. DeVall shrugged lethargically.

"If you insist. I'm gonna be real with you, though. About the only thing besides the structure on that thing that's still intact is the engine, which is lucky considering a single one of those things would cost damn near as much as what you just paid. On top of that, its a 3R, so it's got some stuff on it that's out of date and…"

"I know what it's got." Ivy interrupted and DeVall looked her dead in the eye.

"You never did answer my question from before. I've seen your sim scores at the bars and shit. Why haven't you ever gone to one of the stables and seen about getting a job with one of them? It seems like a waste you've spent two and a half years dispossessed." DeVall said, finalizing the transaction as he turned the screen to Ivy and handed her a stylus.

"I don't want to be on anyone's leash and I want a 'mech that I and I alone own." Ivy said, signing her name on the line.

"Well, congratulations, you're the proud owner of what amounts to an endo-steel frame with an engine in it." DeVall said as he wrote a few notes on the screen and sighed. "Look, kid, I'm gonna throw in transportation to your bay for you and put in a word with Theo. He's a wiz kid at salvaging bits and pieces and sells them on the cheap. You go see him to get the parts for that thing."

"Thanks, DeVall. I appreciate it." Ivy said with a smile.

"Yea, well, it would've just rusted away in the yard. Just, when you get her up and running and hit the circuit, remember who helped you out, huh?" DeVall said as Ivy nodded enthusiastically.

"Of course, DeVall. I'll see you around." She said with a wave as she exited the shop and headed for the mechbay she had purchases to store the chassis she bought the day before. Truth be told, some of the money she was spending had been sitting in a private account she hadn't looked at in years, but it felt good to have earned the lion's share herself. Even the cold rain couldn't put a damper on her mood as she walked through the streets to find Danner's shop and see if he had any of the parts she wanted for her new baby.

…..

The bays weren't glamorous, but then neither was her 'mech. It hung in its bay, assisted by and array of gantries and lifts. The techs weren't confident she would stand on her own yet but Ivy didn't care. She looked at the mangled, melted armor on the Marauder with pride and watched as another pallet truck drove in with the things she had bought from Danner's.

Turned out, much as DeVall had said, Theodore Danner was a wizard at salvaging parts and DeVall's vouching for her had gotten her a bit of a discount. She didn't have everything she wanted yet, but she had way more than she thought she would at this stage.

"Blake's Blood, Redd. I might be a helluva tech but I'm not a miracle worker…" The chief tech said as he looked at the mangled chassis hanging in the bay. She had paid for he and his crew to help her fix up the behemoth, although she fully intended to do some of the work herself. At very least, she wanted to learn how to make repairs and the ins and outs of the systems.

"It'll be fine Tyrol. You and your crew have fixed up worse. I trust you. And I will help were I can." Ivy replied, still staring at her Marauder. Chief Tyrol looked at her strangely before sighing and going to inventory the pieces of equipment that had been delivered. Ivy, meanwhile, ascended the gantry and climbed into the cockpit.

This part of the chassis was at least undamaged, for the most part anyway. The systems had all been fried and the console panels were broken in places, but those could all be replaced. The temptation to start the beast up was almost irresistible, but Ivy simply leaned back in the command couch. She simply relished the feeling of the material against her body for a moment then stood up and checked the backroom of the cockpit.

It was small, but would serve its purpose well enough. Tossing her duffel against the far wall, she opened the bag up and pulled a number of blankets out and made a makeshift bed for herself on the metal floor. It wouldn't be comfortable, but Ivy hadn't been comfortable in years and decided she could tough it out until she didn't have to anymore. After a while of relishing the sights and smells of a cockpit once again, Ivy climbed down and inspected the boxes of parts that had been delivered.

The boxes were massive, easily encompassing an entire wall of the bay and each was labeled with a general term while the paper attached had an actual manifest of what was inside. Ivy looked over everything and then turned to Tyrol who was standing near-by.

"Alright Chief, what do we need to get in her first?" Ivy asked enthusiastically, causing the man to look up from his noteputer for a moment.

"Well first we need to get the replacement gyro in. That Rawlings Stabilitrak will at least keep the thing from collapsing on itself once we cut the restraints. Of course, we can't do that until we get the new computer systems into her, since she's braindead right now. And that alone could be tricky since you're using refurbished Dalbans." Tyrol said as he made marks on his work order display.

"Alright, well what can I do to help?" Ivy asked and Tyrol, slightly agitated, checked his watch emphatically.

"You can get your butt to work. Look, I know you wanna help us out and I appreciate that but the first steps to getting your 'mech up and running require professional hands. I don't need you shadowing my crew while they trying to reconnect the Marauder's brain to it's heart." Tyrol said and Ivy checked the time herself, realizing with a start that she was running out of time to get changed and get to Brit's before her shift started.

"Oh shit, yea ok. Well I'll be back when my shifts over. Call me if anything comes up, alright?" Ivy said, racing back up the gantry and into the cockpit. She quickly changed into her uniform and left the bay behind, deciding to grab a taxi instead of try and walk all the way there.

…..

The shift went by as it always did, mostly uneventful with the ever leering eye of the occasional drunken louse, but Ivy couldn't care less about them. She was floating on cloud nine, her mind a wash with fantasies of her new 'mech and what she would do with it. Even her boss noticed towards the end of her shift, watching her with a smile as she counted down the drawer behind the bar and receipts.

"So, what's got you in such a chipper mood, Redd? I don't think I've ever seen you this happy." David asked as he moved from his spot and began wiping down the bar. Ivy turned and beamed him a bright smile.

"I bought a 'mech!" She practically shouted and David stopped, looking at her carefully. After a moment he chuckled to himself.

"No shit? Well, I suppose you'll be leaving this gig behind to go make it big on the circuit then?" David said, the slightest hint of disappointment in his voice.

"Oh no, not for awhile anyway. The thing is a wreck. Bought it from the Scrapyard." Ivy explained as she finished the till count and wrote down the total on the noteputer under the bar.

"Well, then you spared me from having to train a new bartender and waitress for a little bit." David said with a fake and over exaggerated sigh of relief. "So, what'd you end up getting yourself?"

"A Marauder." Ivy said matter of factly and this did actually cause David to stop what he was doing and look at her.

"That thing must really be a wreck if you could afford it. No offense, of course, but you don't strike me as particularly well off." David said and Ivy shrugged.

"I'm not and it is, but it's mine all the same. I've got techs working on her as we speak and once she's running and at least a little bit armed, I'm gonna take her into the Factory and win some real money." Ivy said, the words flowing from her mouth almost unbidden as she excitedly babbled on.

"Look, I respect your enthusiasm and I've seen you in the simulators, but there's a world of difference between a computer sim and real combat. Maybe it'd be better to just take her out on some practice runs before diving into a real match?" David said and, at the word "combat" Ivy froze.

He had seen her get like this before, a glazed and distant look in her eyes as if she was lightyears away and in another time entirely. David wasn't sure were Ivy came from, no one was in fact. Ivy had just shown up two and a half years ago, looking ragged and like she had been through hell and back. She wouldn't say anything about where she came from or if she had any family. Just that her name was Ivy Redd and she was looking for a job.

Truthfully, however, David wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. Ivy had proven to be a fast learner and equally as adept at dealing with patrons who got too unruly. She was never late and had never called in in two and a half years. He dealt in enough of the underworld to know sometimes it was better not to ask questions.

After a minute, Ivy shook her head and smiled at him, clearly back from wherever she had just been. He smiled back and nodded at her, deciding this was probably as good a time as any to end their conversation. Ivy finished the work she had left, clocked out and headed for the gym, slinging her bag over her shoulder and readjusting as she did.

…

A dark cloud had come into her mind suddenly, she knew she had drifted back while she was talking to David again. The incidents had become more and more frequent recently. She had known people who would've said it was her subconscious or fate trying to tell her something. Ivy didn't put much stock into either and she shook her head vigorously to clear her mind of the encroaching memories. For now, the lights of the gym beckoned and Ivy hoped that some vigorous exercise would help finish clearing her mind of any lingering darkness.

Ivy returned to the hangar around 0900, finding the gyro had already been slotted into the chassis and appeared to be sitting pretty. She found the morning shift leader and grabbed a cup of coffee. She took a seat at the desk in the small office opposite of the lead tech and sipped the hot drink. It was strong and slightly burnt, as usual, but she enjoyed it all the same.

"So, do you have any estimate on time for my Marauder?" She asked, barely containing her excitement. The tech looked at his datapad and pursed her lips.

"Well, given the extent of the repairs needed as well as the fact you're using mostly salvaged and refurbished equipment…roughly about two months and change. If nothing goes wrong, of course." The tech replied and Ivy nodded, pondering the time. "Honestly, that's makin' really good time for what we have to do. We're practically making this thing from scratch. And even than you won't have the main turret. Unless you ordered a cannon between now and yesterday."

Ivy shook her head and took another drink of coffee. She had hoped to have the 'mech sooner but if the cost of getting it up and running right was time, then she could wait. After a moment, Ivy sighed heavily.

"Alright. Just let me know if I can help at all. Or at least shadow while your crew works. I know I talked to Tyrol already and got the okay from him but wanna make sure its across the board." Ivy said, finishing the mug and setting it aside. The tech nodded and took a drink from her own mug.

"He had mentioned that, yea. We're going to be repairing the panels later today. If you wanna learn some electrical wiring, anyway, I'm sure my tech would appreciate an extra pair of hands." The woman said with a warm smile and Ivy nodded. She was still enthusiastic about the project, even if it would take longer than she anticipated. Ivy stood and shook the lead tech's hand before heading back into the main bay of the hangar.

The Dalban HiRez had already been installed and the safety harness had been removed. The Marauder was standing on its own, at very least, which was a good sign. All at once, Ivy felt a pang of regret hit her like a wall. She wasn't sure if this was another of the incidents she had been having or just at the realization that she could've saved a bit more and gotten a MAD-5D instead. Ivy shook the feeling off as she climbed up the gantry to cockpit level, walked across the 'mech's shoulder and dropped into the cockpit carefully, moving around the tech that was inside. The tech jumped slightly when Ivy tapped her on the shoulder and turned to look at her.

"By Kerensky! You scared my half to death!" The tech exclaimed as Ivy raised her hands apologetically. "You must be the owner of this scrap. Marie said you might be in to shadow me. Well, that and…"

The woman threw a thumb in the direction of her makeshift sleeping quarters. Ivy just shrugged in response and got an eyeroll for her effort.

"I just wanna learn how to do some of this myself so I don't need to worry about always having a tech with me." Ivy explained and the woman sighed heavily, but nodded.

"Fine, I'll show you the basics and you'll hand me the tools I ask for. Sound fair?" She said and Ivy nodded. "Good. I'm Angela by the way. Everyone calls me Angie."

There was a moment of silence before Ivy nodded sharply. Angie raised an eyebrow but didn't comment. Every mech jock she had ever met had some odd quirks to them. She just assumed it came with the job at this point.

The pair worked for about an hour and a half, repairing the damaged panels and rewiring the systems that needed it. Angie was still cold and, at times, outright hostile towards her but Ivy kept at it and eventually seemed to win her over a little. After the last panel was in place, the tech crawled out of the cockpit and Ivy felt the weariness from the long day hit her like a ton of bricks. She slowly crawled into the backroom of the cockpit and laid down on her makeshift cot before drifting off to sleep.