Chapter 7

Ground Control Stable, Montenegro,
Solaris City, Solaris VII,
Freedom Theater, Lyran Alliance,
November 2, 3067

Major Tom scratched his head. First, he had not seen Amber for weeks. Then, Jeremy's Apocalypse malfunctioned in the arena. Luckily the new kid could pull it through. Kilroy had run a thorough check on the Apocalypse and hadn't found a single problem with the mech. Now he was in talks with VEST to figure out the cause of the malfunction. Major Tom didn't know why, but he had a feeling Mac was involved in the two events.

Major Tom played with the thoughts for a while when somebody rapped his door. He knew who it was. "Come in, Mac."

"What can I do for you?" Mac asked apathetically, as if he knew where the conversation was headed.

"Where's Amber? I haven't seen her for a while," Major Tom didn't waste time to ask.

"How the hell should I know? She's a big girl with a big sword. She can take care of herself."

Major Tom shook his head. He didn't know what Amber saw in this man. "Look, Mac, she's been missing for days. You're her closest companion, but you don't look like you care about her. Added with your ties to the Bertoli Mafia, anybody can draw a conclusion that you're responsible for her missing."

"Yeah, OK, pin this on me!" Mac spat. "It's always the boyfriend, isn't it?"

"Then what's your excuse?" Major Tom pressed his anxiety. "Do you know what happened about the Apocalypse on the last fight?"

"Why do you ask me?" Mac shrugged while walking toward the door. "Ask the damn tech!"

"Mac! We are not finished!" Major Tom hollered.

"I am!" Mac returned fire.

Major Tom watched Mac disappeared behind the door. He paused a moment, thinking of what he should do next. He always discussed any hard situation with his best friend Stan. And as if his best friend could read his mind, Stan came in.

"I heard your conversation with Mac," Stan stated coldly. "He didn't care about his own girlfriend, did he?"

"I think he's hiding something," Major Tom replied. "I have a feeling he knows something we don't. That's what I want you to find out. Take Jenny with you and ask around. There has to be somebody in this town that knows what happened."

"Easy for you to say since you're not the one who do the asking," Stan grumbled. "Where is Jenny? I haven't seen her all day."

"I don't know," Major Tom rolled toward the window. "Strange things happen here lately. Why don't you check on her place?"

Sandway Building, Montenegro,
Solaris City, Solaris VII,
Freedom Theater, Lyran Alliance,
November 2, 3067

Jenny flipped through the TV channel without any particular interest in the shows. Most of the shows were arena fightings, and Jenny was not in the mood of in-depth analysis. The rest of the shows were politics or dumb soap operas. Their kissing and intimate scenes weren't even realistic.

It had been weeks since Jeremy joined the stable, and Jenny couldn't get him out of her mind. She never felt strongly for anybody before. Sometimes she imagined Jeremy's whiskers tickled her skin, but behind their sharp raggedness hid his soft, tender lips. His slim but hard muscles added the sweet sensation. Before long, Jenny leaned on her couch, touching her own lips with her fingers, imagining it was Jeremy's lips that touched hers.

The thought about Jeremy completely occupied Jenny's mind. She slouched on her couch and closed her eyes, ignoring the stupid show on the television, and savoring the delight of Jeremy's kiss. Her hands glided down to her neck, but in her imagination it was Jeremy's lips kissing her delicate skin. Jenny started to feel heat surging through her body.

Just then, her door buzzed. Grumbling, Jenny got up from her couch and answered the door. Stan stared at her, bedazzled by her flustered face and labored breath. "What are you doing here at this hour?" he asked. "Am I interrupting something?"

Jenny's face turned redder, realizing that Stan might've overheard her releasing her tension. "I'm... uhm, exercising. What do you want?"

"Amber has been missing for sometime," Stan explained, observing Jenny's couch and some wet stains on it. "Major Tom thinks she's in trouble, and I tend to agree with him. He wants us to start searching for her."

"Major Tom didn't know what he's asking for," Jenny sighed. ""As far as I'm concern, she's probably home with Mac screwing each other brain's out. Do you come this far just to tell me this?"

"You can talk bad about Mac anyway you want, but Amber is our friend," Stan blurted. "She had a high morale standard and good work ethic. I'm going out for her, and I need your help."

Jenny sighed and stared blankly on the TV screen. She hated to admit that Stan was right. Amber was a respectable mechwarrior, and she needed help. "Alright, I go with you," Jenny finally made up her mind, "but only if Jeremy goes with us."

"Jeremy?" Stan mumbled, then shook his head. "Why Jeremy?"

"Look, Montenegro is a big place," Jenny put on her jacket. "I suggest we start from Bertoli Mafia, and we're gonna need more than four hands. Jeremy can help, and he's willing to help. He shows good sportsmanship, and we ought to give him more opportunities in stable business."

"What on Blake's word are you talking about?" Stan held Jenny's arm. "The kid is bad news for the stable! I'm not going with him!"

"Then I'm not going," Jenny yanked her arm from Stan's grip. "If Jeremy doesn't go, I will not go."

Stan couldn't understand why Jenny asked for Jeremy. They were going on a delicate mission, and he would not trust a newbie. Jenny should not either. If he had to take another personnel, he'd go for Kilroy. The tech didn't have any military training whatsoever, but Stan trusted him. Jeremy… he was new, and Stan didn't even like him.

But Stan realized he didn't have a choice. Jenny was the best person to do this job. The girl had extensive infantry training in her past, and she had proven her loyalty to the stable many times. Taking Jeremy with him was better than not going with Jenny at all. With a heavy heart, Stan knew he would have to agree to Jenny's term.

"If he screws up the mission, I'll have your head," Stan fizzled. "And certainly his."

"I guarantee you that he won't," Jenny winked. "I'm on his ass."

Ground Control Stable, Montenegro,
Solaris City, Solaris VII,
Freedom Theater, Lyran Alliance,
November 2, 3067

It was late, and Jeremy was half asleep when a vicious knock banged his door. He came to the door and opened it, thinking it would probably be Mickey or Kilroy. His eyes widened as he saw Stan and Jenny on the door, and his hand reflexively covered his boxer. He felt his face reddened as Jenny stabbed a sharp stare at his boxer.

"What are you doing here this late?" Jeremy stammered.

"Dress up," Stan said curtly. "We're going to get Amber."

"What? Is she in trouble or something?" Jeremy blabbered.

"Where have you been? She's been missing," Jenny explained. "Major Tom thought that she was kidnapped by the Bertoli Mafia. Maybe Mac owed them money, and they used her to press him."

"So we don't know for a fact if she's kidnapped or not," Jeremy replied while putting his shoes on. "This is just Major Tom's conclusion about everything that happened recently. You know, Amber's disappearance and stuff..."

"If you don't want to go, fine, go back to your bed!" Stan hissed.

"Hey, I'm helping you guys, but we have to have a solid plan!" Jeremy growled. "Come on, we need more than Major Tom's insight! Do you want to search the entire Montenegro? What if Amber's decided not to come to Ground Control anymore? Don't you think this is a bit rushed?"

"Amber's not Mac," Jenny explained. "She has a code of honor, and she'll tell us if she's moving out. I'm telling you, something's happened to her. For a start, we're going to visit Sutter Warehouse. That's where the Bertoli Mafia resides. If she's not there, we'll ask around. Somebody must have heard something." Once again Jenny looked at Jeremy from head to toe. "I reckon you had some basic infantry training, did you?"

"I do you one better," Jeremy reached under his bed and drew a katana. "Intermediate ninjitsu."

"Pfft..." Jenny chortled much to Jeremy's chagrin. "What are you, Mary Sue? Put that thing away!"

"Do you want to wake up the entire mafia with firearms?" Jeremy was a bit upset. "This blade is quiet, efficient, and doesn't need ammo like your Mydron!"

"Dude, seriously," Jenny drew another Mydron from her ankle and tossed it to Jeremy. "You have 15 rounds. Use it wisely. And keep your steak knife in the kitchen."

Jeremy took Jenny's Mydron and put it at the back of his pants, the slung his katana over his shoulder. "I'm taking it with me."

"Kids!" Stan snorted and shook his head. "Jeremy, stay behind me. Let Jenny and I do most of the work."