Chapter 18

Brit's Diner, Montenegro,
Solaris City, Solaris VII,
Freedom Theater, Lyran Commonwealth,
November 26, 3068

Cheap didn't justify good food, and Brit's Diner was all that: cheap. The food was mediocre at best. But it was dirt cheap, and for a member of a straggling stable like Jeremy, affordability trumped taste. And fortunately for Jeremy, he never indulged himself in food anyway. Food was just a necessity to live and to function. He could use better food, but in dire times, he could eat just about anything to survive.

Munching alone in the diner, Jeremy turned his attention to the TV broadcasting a press release from Solaris Gaming Commission. The spokesperson animatedly stated that the Solaris Gaming Commission rejected the new system promoted by the Word of Blake. The SGC also condemned the acquisition of Class-6 arenas by the Blakist's operatives and their decision to exclude non-Blakist mechwarriors to fight in them. The SGC swore to restore the order at Solaris arenas and solicited support from mechjocks who were still loyal to the old government.

"Took them a long time to come up with the statement, don't you think?"

Jeremy turned his head around and saw Amber standing behind him, carrying cheap food and a can of soda in a tray. Sometimes Amber's decision to follow his lead was a little confusing for him. Amber was arguably the best mechathlete at the Ground Control, and she was with Mac, the former best mechathlete of the Ground Control. Staying at Ground Control would hurt her career. Granted, her decision to stay lifted up the morale of the team, but Jeremy couldn't help feeling suspicious about her maneuver. Nevertheless, he forced a smile and a quick nod at an empty chair in his table.

"You have to be careful when dealing with the Word of Blake," Jeremy replied as Amber took the seat in front of him. "They like low blows. They have nukes and gas and flesh-eating germs, and they'll happily use them to get rid of their opposition… or 'infidels', as they call us."

"True, but sometimes silence can give a false impression of submission," Amber said while munching on her pickle. "Solaris Gaming Commission has been the ranking coordinator and matchmaker for hundred of years. They shouldn't keep quiet when the Word of Blake suddenly changed the rules of the games." She finished her pickle and stared at Jeremy's. "Are you gonna eat that?"

"Knock yourself out," Jeremy shoved his tray at Amber so she could get his uneaten pickle. "But what can the SGC do? Making statement doesn't do anything. Wanna unseat the Word of Blake from the gaming world? That's not wise, since the Blakes have too many daggers on our backs and too many guns pointing at our heads. The Blakes do not give a lot of room for us to even squirm."

"Anything but a sense of submission. I understand that this is a difficult time for Solaris people, but what they need is hope. People want to know if they can still depend on Solaris century-old tradition, or they have to start thinking about another line of work."

"Hope," Jeremy sighed. "What good is hope without your lives?"

"More often than not it's the only thing people need to live through hardships," Amber said coldly. "They may take away our lives, but they may never take away our freedom."

"Who said that? Nelson Mandela?" Jeremy scoffed.

"No, William Wallace. Nelson Mandela was the guy that made that 'I Have A Dream' speech."

"Your history is as weak as your swashbuckling, Amber," Jeremy quipped. "That was Martin Luther King. Nelson Mandela said 'Eat Shit And Die, Asshole!'"

"I thought it was Dick Cheney when he shot his own teammate," Amber picked up Jeremy's prank. "And don't you dare to judge my swashbuckling! I'm ready for Round 2 if your ass isn't sore enough from our first fight." She leaned on her chair, observing his face with a smile in her face, then looked at him in the earnest. "But in all honesty, Jeremy, what you did was admirable. You gave us hope. We need that, considering what's happening to Solaris these days."

"I'm part of the team," Jeremy smirked. "Every team member would do the same for the team. It's just a matter of who initiated it."

"Don't be modest, Jeremy, you deserve the credit," Amber said. "At least in my eyes you do. But I am curious, though. Where does this selfless deed of yours sit with Evee and your plan to get her back? If I understand correctly, the path you take will take you longer to accomplish your mission. Do you hate the Word of Blake that strongly, or are you just not interested in her anymore?"

It was not an unexpected question, but Jeremy still didn't have a solid answer. He had the same conversation with Major Tom and it had never been fully resolved. People that knew his true intention – or suspected that he had a hidden intention at Solaris – asked that same question, including himself. Too bad he couldn't answer his own question, much less other people's.

"Why is this important to you?" he tried to change the subject. "Why are you interested in my personal life, all of sudden?"

"I'm not interested, mind you," Amber scoffed, but Jeremy could see a smidge of blush on her cheeks. "I just don't see somebody like you stick around with a struggling stable like the Ground Control."

"Somebody like me?" Jeremy cocked his brows.

"Somebody like you," Amber quipped. "Young, rich, gifted, crazy for a girl, and running out of time."

"Well…" it was Jeremy's turn to show a tint of redness in his face. "None of those matters now."

"How come? Aren't you afraid that you'll be too late for Evee?"

"I don't know," he came up with the only answer he knew. "All I know is that the Word of Blake is bad news to everybody, and it is just our bad luck that they occupy Solaris. We shouldn't cooperate with them, just because they hold the authority to the Class-6 arenas. There are other places we can make money from." He paused, gauging Amber's reaction, then continued, "You should've seen Mickey the other day. He won big in the 4-Cross. Seeing him converting our support and trust into c-bills is greater than dreaming of getting Evee back. It's totally worth staying with Ground Control for a while."

Amber finished her food, then observed Jeremy's expression for some time. "Maybe you're right," she broke the silence after some awkward minutes. "Maybe I should start coming to matches."

"Why didn't you?" Jeremy asked.

"Because…" Amber suddenly choked. "Because they hate me. You see how Jenny looks at me. Kilroy… all he does is fixing my mech, and he does a good job on that, but you can see it in his eyes that he doesn't want to do it. Major Tom and Stan are just… meh. Mickey and Hyolee are nice people but they're just kids."

"You can't expect people to treat you like their teammate when you don't treat them like your teammates," Jeremy stated. "Everything works both ways, Amber."

"Well easy for you to say because you're the Knight in Shining Armor," Amber retorted. "You come in a white noble steed to deliver us from evil. I'm… I'm… I'm the witch that sleeps with the Dark Prince."

"The truth is, Amber," Jeremy tried hard not to laugh at Amber's analogy. "After Mac left, you're arguably the best mechwarrior we have. I'm just the new guy. I still have a lot to prove. Mickey is just starting to gain momentum, but it'll be long before he can hit your level of confidence. Stan is going nowhere. He might be the cofounder of Ground Control but his combat skill and his old Cyclops will continue to suck Ground Control dry. You, on the other hand… if this stable still floats after everything that happens to us, it's because of you. You're steady, you're skilled, and you have high moral standard."

"I don't agree with high moral standard," Amber flashed an involuntary smile. "Didn't you hear me about the witch and the Dark Prince?"

"Everybody makes mistakes," Jeremy smiled back. "But you'll be surprised how much people actually respect you if you show the same amount of respect for them."

"You're just going to turn our lives upside down, aren't you?"

"Look, I'm the new guy in this stable, and I have to prove my worth," Jeremy stared into her eyes. "This stable used to be a bunch of individuals fighting for themselves, and the only thing that glue you together was money. That's not what a team should be. From now on, we are a team. We can do anything as a team. And as teammates, we support each other. I will make sure everyone of us act as a team member."

Amber leaned on her chair, observing the gusto in Jeremy's face. It was hard to believe that a snotty rich brat that came to Solaris gaming world just to get his fiancée back could fix so many broken things in Ground Control stable. For a de facto replacement for Mac Storm, Jeremy accomplished more things than all of their vain effort for so many years. Something set his priorities right and Amber was just glad it was for the better.

"I'll see what I can do," Amber finally yielded. "Now excuse me, I have other commitment."

"I take that as a promise," Jeremy replied. He watched the ex-Styx militia walk toward the exit, and wondered if she had anything to do with his decision to stay longer in Solaris VII. She exuded lots of courage, lots of skill, and lots of grace. Their brutal swordfight session carved a deep impression in his heart. Jeremy prided himself highly in his swordfighting skill, and not a lot of swordsman could match him, let alone a woman. Amber did, and if Jeremy shedded some pride, he could admit that Amber actually beat him. Behind the cockpit, there was no contest. His statement that Amber was the best mechwarrior in Ground Control was not a lie. He saw what Amber could do inside a battlemech, and it was terrifying and awe-inspiring at the same time.

Could she be the reason of his change of heart? Only time could tell.