STEEL WOLF

Chapter 15: The Best Solution

Family mansion, Vargas Estate, Korla,

Lyran Alliance,

September 2, 3075

"So, did you have a good evening?" Carlos Vargas asked his girlfriend with a small smile as the both of them settled onto a wide couch in one of the mansion's sitting rooms. A fire danced in the fireplace and late evening light shone through the room's tall windows.

"You don't have to ask. Of course I did," Cassandra said kindly, leaning over and giving Carlos a quick kiss. "That concert was a lot of fun to attend."

"Right. The symphony guys really know their stuff, huh?" Carlos chuckled, reaching over to pour two glasses of deep red wine. He made a quick mental rundown of his evening with Cassandra: a fine dinner, watching a performance of Holst's The Planets, and now relaxing and chatting in this sitting room with wine and a fire. Indeed, it seems that he was doing everything right.

"Mmmmm, they do," Cassandra said with content, sipping the wine and enjoying the tingling sensation on her tongue. "The Jupiter song was the best."

Carlos reclined on the seat next to Cassandra. "No way. Mars is the best one!"

"That one was the loudest and fastest song, but that doesn't make it the best," Cassandra teased him. "Jupiter sounded so light and happy..."

"Well, I guess..." Carlos conceded. He took a quick sip of wine then cleared his throat. "So, my finals match is bright and early tomorrow. Wish me luck!"

Cassandra made a little gesture. "I'll just use my best good-luck spell, then!"

"I'll need it. My opponent, Wild Marcus, uses a Champion to deadly effect. But I could handle the other guys, so I can take him too!"

"I'll be there to watch, champ," Cassandra smiled, wrapping her arms around Carlos and hugging tightly. It will be the last arena tournament I watch with him in it, I bet. When I leave Korla with the other Arctic Wolves, it'll be tough leaving Carlos behind. His future is here, and mine is elsewhere. I'll have to break it to him sooner or later... at least I can be nice to him in the meantime.

"You know," Carlos said after a moment, watching the fire, "having you with me is the best thing that's ever happened to me, Cassie. You know that?"

"Feeling sentimental?"

"Maybe it's just my way of dealing with nerves," Carlos laughed. He took one of Cassandra's hands in his, savoring the soft, warm feeling of her skin. "But I mean it. I hope..." he swallowed nervously. "I hope that I can spend the rest of my life with you."

Cassandra glanced away. "That's... a big commitment."

"Yeah, but we could make it work," Carlos encouraged her. "I've been thinking about it, and our future together looks great. Korla is a technician's paradise, and the Vargas Estate will always be friendly to you, even if the other Arctic Wolves switched over to those Alvarez creeps. I'll be a part of the family administration, and you'd have your dream job working here." He looked right into Cassandra's eyes. "What do you think?"

"Um..." Fighting for the right words, Cassandra took a deep breath. "Well, for one thing I'm glad that the Estate has no hostile feelings toward me. But still... this is a lot to think about, Carlos."

"Well, that's true," Carlos conceded. "But I really think that we could make it work, if you are willing to make it possible. I for one think it's a great plan."

This isn't good, Cassandra realized. It's like I thought. He wants a committed relationship on Korla but I can't do it. How do I break it to him? That I will be leaving him? She tried to keep a straight face, but her anxiety must have showed because Carlos asked, "Are you feeling all right? You look upset..."

Cassandra quickly shook her head. "N-no, it's nothing."

"Come on, if something's bothering you then you can tell me," Carlos insisted. "Bottling up a problem isn't the right thing to do. It just make a person ill inside. Besides, if there's a problem about me, I'd really like to know it."

"There isn't anything to worry about!" Cassandra snapped impatiently, then realized that she just gave herself away.

Carlos sat back, keeping his hands to himself. "Give me more credit than that. Something's been eating at you since our trip to the oasis and I really want to know what. If you're secretly getting bored of me, then..."

"That's an awful thing to say, Carlos. Jeez," Cassandra said defensively.

"Then what?"

Realizing that her options were narrowed down to one, Cassandra steeled herself and said, "Yes, it's about you. Your plan for us living together on Korla won't work."

Carlos' face fell. "Are you serious?"

"I am. Listen." Cassandra leaned forward slightly toward Carlos, her heart hammering anxiously. "This is your home, but it isn't my home. I'm not ready to settle down, Carlos. I'm a part of the Arctic Wolves on an extended tour, and I have commitments with other people and other planets in the Lyran Alliance and Free Worlds League."

"But I'm your boyfriend!" Carlos insisted, alarm clear in his eyes. "Doesn't that count for something?"

"It does, and that's why this is so difficult for me," Cassandra told him, her throat getting tighter. "When the Arctic Wolves leave Korla, I'm going with them. I can't keep up a long-distance relationship like this, Carlos. I didn't think this far ahead when I visited this planet last year, but I thought about it now."

"What if the Wolves aren't in any shape to leave?" Carlos retorted. "Then you'd have every reason to stay!"

Cassandra sighed shakily, suddenly wishing that she was anywhere but here. "It doesn't work like that. I still have other manufacturers and institutes that I'm involved with. Korla is just one of several worlds I deal with, and even if I came back, I don't think our relationship can take much more of this on-and-off business. You've got a life here! There's other women here for you."

"I don't want those other women! I want you!" Carlos fired back, folding his arms.

"I know, but I don't think we have a future together," Cassandra reminded him, and she could feel tears welling up in her eyes. "Either I was too short-sighted to realize it before, or I just didn't want to consider this issue. But after hearing that you have a lifelong commitment to the Vargas Estate at our oasis trip, I realized that we would have to part ways soon. It's the best solution, Carlos. You have your life and I have mine."

"No! There's no way," Carlos blurted, bolting to his feet, his breathing hard. "After all we've been though?"

Cassandra got to her feet too, fists tight at her sides. "I wanted to save this until the Arctic Wolves were ready to leave, but I guess you wanted to know right now."

"You're... breaking up with me?"

Cassandra silently nodded, hoping that her tears didn't leak out.

Carlos' jaw worked. "Don't tell me that that Alphonse guy talked you into this? That meat-headed quarterback..."

"Don't drag him into this," Cassandra bit back. "And no, he didn't convince me. I convinced myself. I had a great time with you, Carlos, but I jumped into this relationship last year without thinking in the long term. I'm sorry if I helped set up a relationship that couldn't last. It was stupid of me."

"No," Carlos argued. "Maybe it was me being stupid, dating a girl who obviously loves running around the Inner Sphere more than a real commitment!"

"Don't you talk about me like that!" Cassandra growled.

"Then fine. You've obviously made up your mind, and I don't want to talk about this anymore," Carlos shot back. "I'll arrange a car to take you back to the technicians' dormitory. You've got work in the morning, don't you?"

Cassandra sniffed, turning and stalking out of the room. "Yeah. I do."

Carlos watched her go, sinking back into the couch with his head in his hands. How could this happen? We were perfect together! She has to live on Korla together! He regretted the thought an instant later. Forcing her into a life she doesn't want? I can't do that. I won't sink to that level. But I still can't believe... He looked up at the wine bottle and briefly considered emptying its contents. No, I've got my match tomorrow. And alcohol won't change anything anyway. He slowly got to his feet, feeling numb. Maybe going to bed early would help.

*o*o*o*o*

Mech Bay 01, Vargas Estate, Korla,

Lyran Alliance,

September 3, 3075

"So, are you all set, Mr. future champion?" Lyla Lister asked Carlos excitedly as she handed him his cooling vest and boots. Carlos' towering Shadow Hawk stood at the ready, a set of scaffolding positioned up next to the machine.

"Yeah, I guess," Carlos mumbled, wandering into a side room to suit up. Lyla followed him there, a curious look in her eyes.

"What? Aren't you pumped for your big victory match?" Lyla persisted. "Or is it just nerves? I have a tonic for that..."

"I don't need any help, Lyla. It's fine," Carlos snapped, closing the room's door for privacy. He sighed and took off his shirt and pants, then changed into his short and boots. Last he slipped on his cooling vest and zipped it up, but he didn't feel his usual thrill of adrenaline that he got while suiting up for a match. As Carlos shuffled back to his waiting Shadow Hawk and climbed the stairs on the scaffolding, he remembered his breakup with Cassandra the night before. He could still hear her telling him how she had no future with him, and that she had more important things out there to think about.

I thought I had it all, Carlos thought, climbing into his Shadow Hawk's cockpit and settling into the command couch. Wealth, Battlemech skills, comfort, a great girlfriend. And what does this prove? That there's better things out there than me. Hell of a wake-up call... I was being naïve, thinking that I could keep it up forever.

The Shadow Hawk's canopy snapped closed and Carlos powered up his machine, moving levers into position and fitting his bulky neuro-helmet onto his head. His helmet comm channeled the 'mech's computerized voice: "What is the only indestructible weapon?"

"Courage," Carlos grumbled, gripping his joysticks loosely as the computer accepted the password. He pressed his foot onto the pedal and got his Shadow Hawk moving at half throttle, marching the 'mech out of the hangar and toward his starting position on the desert arena.

"This is the big day, ladies and gentlemen of the Vargas Estate!" boomed the announcer. "This is what you've been waiting for: the final showdown that will decide this year's arena champion! From the north side, I give you Wild Marcus, a tough-as-nails warrior with his eyes on the prize! And from the south side I give you none other than Carlos Vargas, a wily young fighter with determination like we've never seen before! Our finalists are in position... let the match begin!"

From the other side the desert arena, nearly one kilometer away, Wild Marcus' Champion quickly trotted across the sandy dunes, its wing-like arms pointing their barrels straight at Carlos. Pushing all the way down on his pedal, Carlos set his Shadow Hawk into a full sprint, his stomach churning with mixed anxiety and shame. What does this matter now, anyway? Carlos wondered as the Champion drew ever closer. He lined up his crosshairs and opened fire, his Ultra Autocannon 5 spitting out a cluster of deadly ballistic shells. The UAC shells went wide, hissing through empty air as the Champion continued its charge.

"And Carlos Vargas opens up with a weak medium-range barrage!" the announcer stated. "He'll need more power than this if he wants to take Marcus down!"

The Champion drew within 300 meters and strafed to the side, the torso twisting in order to keep the 'mech's guns trained on Carlos. The 'mech's LBX-10 roared to life, and Carlos felt his Shadow Hawk reel back and shudder from the ballistic force. Flakes of armor rained down to the sand, and the damage tracker reported heavy damage on his right and center torso. Seconds later, the Champion spat out two medium lasers, and the twin beams slashed deep into the Shadow Hawk's injured chest.

"Wild Marcus lives up to his name, and he's already got Carlos Vargas on the ropes!" the announcer continued excitedly. "Mr. Vargas needs to get his head back in the game because he won't last much longer with damage like that!"

Shut up already, Carlos thought. He adjusted his joysticks, aiming his arms at the Champion and opening fire. His two wrist-mounted ER medium lasers burned off a layer of armor from the Champion's right torso, but the 60-ton 'mech recovered quickly and returned fire. Its SRM launcher spat out a cluster of six missiles that exploded against the Shadow Hawk's upper chest, nearly knocking the 'mech off its feet. Carlos fought to get his 'mech back on its feet, but the Champion fired its lasers again, gouging off even more of the Shadow Hawk's chest armor.

Dimly aware that he was falling far behind, Carlos reluctantly strafed to the side and re-adjusted his crosshairs, wanting this match to be over with. His UAC 5 fired again, and the shells scraped against the Champion's left arm, scratching off a layer of armor.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it seems that Mr. Vargas' heart is not in the game," commented the announcer. "He'd better get his mojo back quick or this match is already over!"

The Champion marched even closer to Carlos' Shadow Hawk, proving the pilot's contempt for his opponent. Two small lasers punched into the Shadow Hawk's damaged chest, then the LBX-10 cannon slugged the Shadow Hawk with a vicious barrage of cluster shells. Carlos' ears were filled with alarms as his 'mech's critical systems were breached, one after the other. Another SRM barrage exploded in the Shadow Hawk's ravaged chest, and Carlos knew that he had one option. Forget this game. I don't want to play anymore.

Before the Champion could fire again, Carlos adjusted a few levers and guided his damaged Shadow Hawk onto its knees, then raised his 'mech's arms in a clear sign of surrender. "Congrats, Wild Marcus. You've got me," he announced into the comm.

Marcus' deep voice responded, "What's the matter, kid? I thought this tournament meant everything to you. Everyone knows that."

"Lost my fighting spirit. Personal matter," Carlos told him with a shrug. "I need some time to myself. Enjoy your victory, all right?"

Marcus definitely sounded confused. "Well.. all right, then, kid. I accept your surrender." He backed up his Champion a few steps and fired all four lasers into the sky in a victory shot.

"We have a winner! Wild Marcus smashes Carlos Vargas with an easy victory and claims the title of 3075's arena champion! Well, there's always next year, Carlos."

A new year to re-think everything, I guess, Carlos figured, getting his 'mech back onto its feet. He set his Shadow Hawk into a trot back to the 'mech hangar, wondering what complaints that Lyla Lister would hurl at him for his performance.