TWENTY THREE

Wildcats Headquarters, International Zone,
Solaris City, Solaris VII,
Freedom Theater, Lyran Alliance,
August 28, 3065

Steiner's fist finally fell on the Wildcats like a hammer.

I was just out of a simulator when the voice of Omar screaming his lungs out reverberated through the entire hangar. Pilots and technicians bartered looks; some of them talked in whispers, others quickly left the buildings, opting for ignorance. Some of the pilots just wanted to fight. They did not want to take part in stable management, especially with a greedy owner like Omar.

I did not care about managerial duty, but I had never seen anything pissed Omar the way he did. I had a feeling that it had something to do with the Steiners. I had been waiting for this, so I dared myself to knock and fib sincerity when I asked, "What is going on?"

"Look at this crap!" Omar hurled a piece of paper at me. "Who do you think they are, treating me like some stable master that cares nothing but money? How dare they do this?"

The paper was a notice from Coliseum manager, written with Lyran Alliance letterhead. It was a short letter, however, it was the content that almost made me smile:

We discovered that Wildcat's pilot had conducted fights on Davion-sanctioned arenas. For civil war security matters, the Lyran Alliance authority cannot accept fighters that conducted such fights. Therefore, all mechwarriors from Omar's Wildcats will not be granted access to the Coliseum. Such mechwarriors will be excluded from Assault and open-class Grand Championships.

The Lyran Alliance sends its condolences to parties that may be affected by this new regulation in any way.

I posted a long face, but mentally I was grinning from ear to ear. The Steiner had this planned long before they issued a duel with Killer Knauer at The Labyrinth. They knew that Omar would not pass an opportunity to cement his superiority on Solaris arenas. They chose the Labyrinth, a Davion place that favored me and my fighting style so I could win. When Omar's confidence was sky-high, they hammered him, dramatizing the fall Omar had to endure.

I did not care about the civil war. To me, Davions and Steiners were just two different sides of the war. But I rejoiced in Steiner's ploy, and the frustration in Omar's face was a sight to behold. Davions like Kyle Garret would not do anything to Omar. He was too honorable to deal with local troublemakers. But the Steiners would accentuate their dominance on every planet within their space, including Solaris. It was foolish of him to think that the Steiners would let him be the king on his own term.

"This is not fair," I inflamed his anger further. "I am not a Davion, and I will never be one. They cannot treat me the same way they treat Davion loyalists. Solaris should be free from politics. Is there anything the Solaris Gaming Commission can do to overturn this regulation?"

"SGC can do many things, but as long as you aren't granted access to the Coliseum, you can't fight there," Omar let out his steam. "This is not a matter of scheduling. This is a matter of security clearance. You know what this is, Parker? They're jealous. They think we are a threat to them. They think they can bully us by showing off their authority at Silesia. Well, apparently they don't learn from George Hasek and his Capellan March Militias. If Hasek can defy Katrina, so can we!"

"What are you going to do?" I asked, curious about what he planned to assess the situation.

"I'm going to court!" he brusquely got up from his chair. "Keep practicing, Parker. This is not over."

As he went out of his room, I finally had a chance to release my long-overdue chuckle.

Solaris Courthouse, International Zone,
Solaris City, Solaris VII,
Freedom Theater, Lyran Alliance,
October 16, 3065

It had been grueling months for Omar, rallying supporters and lobbying authorities before he went to court. I could not tell how much money he spent to enlist anybody he thought could give him an advantage in court. I thought at one point he went to Davion authorities, claiming that his victory over the Steiners would benefit the Federated Suns in the most possible way. But like I predicted, Davions turned down his plea. He should have known that Davions were not interested in Solaris domination. Apparently, he did not see it.

Today, it was time for the verdict.

I sat among other pilots from the Wildcats behind Omar, supposedly showing supports for the stable master. But I was there for anything but support. I wanted to see his face when he realized that his quest was finished. I wanted to see his eyes when he learnt the fact that his career as stable master was over, and that the money he invested would only bring him so far.

"Mister Omar, it is Lyran Alliance's right to protect its interest," the judge said, trying not to lead everybody to any conclusion. But his eyes gave away the fact that he would disappoint Omar. "The Coliseum is in their territory, and it is their decision to not grant Davion-connected mechwarriors to fight in the Coliseum. We can't overturn this decision. Your plea has been denied."

"Your honor, were my client a Davion loyalist, we would have accepted this regulation," Omar's attorney appealed. "But he is not, and neither is his mechwarriors. Parker is one of the highest-ranking players. It will be a shame if he does not compete because of administrative matter. Besides, the fight at The Labyrinth was instigated by the Steiners. They chose the arena, not my client."

"Be careful of what you're saying, Counselor," the judge suddenly gave a stern look. "Are you implying that Mister Omar does not have connection to Davion?"

"Never have and never will, Your honor," Omar replied.

"Mister Omar, I have in my hand an affidavit of transfer of a Gladiator mech from Ryan Thatcher, Chief Technician of Shooting Stars, to Omar's Wildcats. Correct me if I'm wrong, Mr. Omar, but isn't the Shooting Stars the nickname for 160th Davion Guards?"

I must have grinned from ear to ear. For the first time since I came to Solaris, I started to like Kyle Garret.

"What?" Omar's disbelief thundered throughout the entire courtroom. "I didn't know… he didn't say anything about it! I swear to God I didn't know if he's a Davion! I wouldn't make the transfer if I knew he was a Davion!"

"So when you signed this document, did you overlook his name? Or did you ignore it because the transfer was 'just' 25 grand?" The judge drew a deep breath before uttering his final words, "This part is mostly your own fault, Mr. Omar. You put yourself in this situation. There nothing I can do. Your plea is denied."

"No! No, wait!" Omar stormed the judge's table, drawing the security guards to usher him. He writhed under the restraints of the security guards, but soon found out that his effort was vain. In a desperate move, he looked at me, fire burning in his eyes. "Are you any part of this?"

My answer was just a simple shrug.

"If you think you can play me, you're dead wrong, Parker!" he burst. "You know what I am capable of!"

But I knew he was not capable of doing anything anymore. He was a beaten man, dejected by the Steiners, rejected by the Davions. And after today, nobody would want to work with him anymore. Nobody liked a traitor. He most likely would lose his job at the SGC, and with the Wildcats being banned from Silesia, soon pilots would leave the stable. What was the point of fighting on Solaris without a shot at the Grand Championship?

I did not need to see the end to predict what kind of life Omar would lead for the rest of his life. I felt sorry for him, but he brought everything upon himself. Or to be exact, his greed brought everything upon himself. He had everything: money, power, position, fame, everything a man could ask. Had he stopped after winning everything on the heavy circuit, none of this would happen. But I guessed money was like a blanket. The more you had, the more you wanted.

I was walking out of the courthouse when several men approached me. The one in the middle was clearly the leader of the pack. His eyes stabbed me with a sharp confidence, and his expression told me that he wanted something from me, and would not stop at anything until he got it. The small Lyran emblem on his collar led me to one name and one name only.

"Hauptmann-Kommandant Robinson, I presume," I said.

"You are foolish to disregard our invitation, and chose death instead," he wasted nothing. "However, looking at your reputation, we would like to give you another chance. On the championship, kill Kyle Garret. You don't have to win it or to surrender like the last time. Just kill that Davion bastard and we'll welcome you."

"You are forgetting something," I smiled. "I am banned."

"No," Robinson shook his head. "Omar's Wildcat is banned. You don't have to be."

"In other words," I surmised, "I can still play if I quit?"

"You're smart, Parker," the Lyran man snorted. "You'll figure out what's best for you."

Once again, I was not interested in politics. I did not want to be any part of it. But if I had to choose, I would lean toward Kyle Garret. He was Evee's best friend, and he proved himself to be a true friend, even when I was less than friendly to him. Robinson, on the contrary, had tried to have me killed.

When Robinson disappeared from my sight, I drew my personal comlink. I punched in some number, and waited for several seconds before somebody answered from the other line. "Kyle? Parker. You will not believe what I just heard…"

Kinebatu Travel, Montenegro,
Solaris City, Solaris VII,
Freedom Theater, Lyran Alliance,
January 17, 3066

"Hello, Solaris fans! This is Duncan Fisher, bringing you the play-by-play of Assault Championship 3066, live from Solaris! It's been a crazy season so far, and most unexpected rise of two mechwarriors, Kyle Garret and a man only known as Parker. Their legendary rivalry harkened back to the light circuit in 3063, and together they knocked out the majority of Steiner loyalists, shifting the balance of power from Steiner domination to dark horses.

"In a surprising move, Parker had declared independence from Omar's Wildcat, and is one of the finalist that will fight for Assault Championship. As we all know, Parker is enlisted as one of the mechwarriors that was banned from the Coliseum due to prior engagement in Davion-managed arenas. I think this regulation is not fair, but who can blame the Steiners in this civil-war atmosphere? Just thank the Lyran Alliance that make Parker's fighting on Silesia possible. The championship will not be the same without him.

"The anticipation is mounting up, the inevitable is looming. Who will win the Assault Championship? Many major players had been disposed, and all talks are about Kyle versus Parker. A Davion front-liner against a man with Clan background. And will they bring their rivalry to the Grand Championship? That's the one million c-bill question that will haunt us for a month. One month, for a five-minute rumble in the Coliseum. Who will win the Grand Championship? You have your opinions. Let's follow the opinions of Solaris experts…"

I watched the TV, smiling at the irony that this was the third time in 2 years I queued up behind the counter of Kinebatu Travel, trying to make an exit out of Solaris. It was the end of the season, and only the Assault and open-class Grand Championships remained. Kinebatu Travel was flooded by mechwarriors and game enthusiasts that purchased home tickets. And the crowd did not justify the number of spectators that visited Solaris just to see the championships. Most of them had already booked round trip tickets. But the ones that still had to buy tickets had to spent nights and days at Kinebatu Travel. People sleeping on the floor were not an uncommon sight.

As the line moved up slowly, Duncan Fisher kept babbling over and over about the odds, while the other two speakers profusely flamed his outlook. It brought my mind to retrospect my life as a Solaris jock, from the time I stepped my feet at Solaris soil. I was nobody, unknown, neglected in the razzle-dazzle of this intergalactic game. Today, I was a celebrity. Half of Solaris was behind my back against Kyle Garret, which was evident in my 2:1 odd. But it was not an easy 4-year period. The glamour of Solaris almost sucked me into its trench. My rectitude had to suffer from Solaris lifestyle, because there was only one pride in Solaris: to win the championship. Even with the money and fame from winning the championship, this was nowhere near what I envisioned, long before I arrived at Solaris.

So here I was, queuing behind thousands of thousands of Solaris visitors, wondering if I really should be doing this. Sometimes I asked myself: was I that hard to please? What was it that I wanted? I had a life that many people would kill for. Yet my mind wandered away to the place that was almost impossible to reach. A place that might not be there when I arrived. And if it were there, was there a guarantee that I would not stray to some other place? I did not know the answers. Only time would tell.

When I finally arrived at the counter, the cashier greeted me with a sour smile and a generic question where I wanted to go. My hat, sunglasses, and unkempt beard hid my true identity from the cashier, and I could not imagine what happened if she realized that she was talking to one of the Grand Championship finalists, trying to get out of Solaris. I bought a ticket to Tamarind in Free World, and stated my belongings. She entered my information, then gave me the two tickets, one for me, the other for my mech.

I was just barely walking out of the building when Kyle and Natalie greeted me. I saw that my disguise failed to fool them, and I sensed mixed signals on their presence. "If I didn't know you better, I would've guessed you chickened out," Kyle joked. "Are you scared to kill me?"

I smiled. I was nowhere close in solving my dilemma, so I gave him a sincere reply, "I am not leaving yet. I will still meet you at the Assault Championship. But there are only 2 commercial flights to New St. Andrews. One is from Tamarind in April, the other one is from Circinus in December. The flight after Assault Championship is the closest one to catch the flight from Tamarind. As soon as it concludes, I am going out of Solaris."

"Then suddenly it's Evee above everything else," Natalie tuned in. "Are you done caring about your past catching up with you? The very reason that brought you to Solaris? I thought you were going to Atreus first."

I simply smiled and shook my head. "Once I woke up at Engadine, knowing nothing but my presence. I learnt to be someone new, and this is who I am now. Perhaps it was better to not remember who I was. I cannot change yesterday, but I live today and I can always prepare for tomorrow. Next time another ghost comes for me, I will be ready."

"Have you thought over what you are walking away from?" Kyle tuned in. "The Grand Championship… testing yourself against the best of the best. The pumping of testosterone in your veins. Being in the place where you're made for and excelled in. Being in the single most coveted, most exalted battle the Inner Sphere had come to learn. It's a one-life chance to prove yourself and to be a billion c-bill richer. You have a shot to immortalize yourself in Solaris."

"You are asking the wrong question," I smirked. "You should have asked 'Is Solaris worth her'? My immortality does not lie at Solaris. My immortality is Evee Ridinghood. I am taking my one shot at immortality. It is a long shot, but it is worth everything. She might not be worth it. She might have moved on. And after what I did on Solaris, she might not want me anymore. But at the very least, I owe her an apology. I owe her a concession that I was wrong. If I can win her back, then I will live the life I always wanted. If I fail, only oblivion is left for me. But regardless what happens, tomorrow will always wait at Solaris."

"Then there's nothing here to hold you," Natalie said in full smile. "We're gonna miss you. You know how to fight better than any of us, Parker. Fight for her like you've never fought before."

"Thank you," I moved to hug her, gently as to not put too much pressure on her bulging belly. "I am sorry for missing your first child. I will remember you."

"We're not here for long either," Kyle quipped. "After the Grand Championship, Natalie and I are going back to the front line. Davions had been gaining grounds everywhere, and it's time for me to make the final push toward New Avalon. But don't think you rid of me this easy, Parker. I hope to see you again someday," and he leaned toward me, whispering and winking, "in a tuxedo."

I burst out laughing. "That is not my decision anymore, is it?"

"No. But you can always try."

"True," I shook his hand as hard as I could. "I can always try."