Disclaimer: The characters and story originally created by Dmitri Glukhovsky in the book and video game series "Metro: 2033" and its sequels do not belong to me. Those properties are owned by Glukhovsky, 4A Games, and Deep Silver. This work of fiction is intended for entertainment purposes and is not meant to be canonical, though I tried very hard to make it fit within the parameters. I do retain my rights for the creation of my own original characters and ideas. I do not make any money from writing this story.
Song Recommendation: "Had Enough" – Breaking Benjamin, "Only for the Weak" – In Flames
Chapter 42: Life, the Universe, and Everything
Colonel Melnik watched silently as three of his soldiers filed into the office and made a semi-circle in front of him. He had just concluded the debriefing with Bravo Team and regretted giving himself only ten minutes of silence between that task and this upcoming one. Even though the rescue mission was highly successful, it wasn't without great worry and stress. Aleksandrya's liberation had brought about fresh turmoil on several fronts; her critical medical status, the shocking revelations of Mikhail's relationship with her, and the inevitable backlash that the Reich was about to launch as they came to realize which of their prisoners was missing. There was a possibility for him to avert their retribution by offering a personal correspondence to the Führer himself, and he tried with difficulty to gather up his remaining strength.
Ulman was tapping his foot impatiently, wound up either from the same tension that the Colonel was feeling or simply still riding on the emotional high from the mission. Dukov stood at ease with his usual plastered smile and Melnik hoped that some of his youthful enthusiasm would rub off on everyone else. Tatiana stood between the two Rangers with her arms folded together and her normal steel expression, she hadn't been involved in the rescue mission but Melnik requested her presence as a balance to the cavalier personalities of the other two men. That, and he was aiming to send her along with a partner to sabotage the listening post directly following this interaction.
"Thank you for joining me. I fear I can't stomach any more severity today and yet this is quite a necessary phone call. What is said here in the next few minutes may determine the ultimate success or failure of our greater mission involving Aleksandrya and all that she entails. One wrong word, wrong tone… any misunderstanding could spark further conflict and escalated legalities."
"Yeah, no pressure," Ulman snickered and looked over at Dukov to provoke the same reaction.
"So, after all this I'm guessing she passed the test?" Tatiana asked hesitantly.
"Well, I hope she'll stick around, 'cause I haven't even gotten to meet her, yet!" Dukov grinned excitedly.
"The decision will be up to her, who knows if she'll even be able to," Melnik didn't want to think out loud. All opinions were trending negatively and he didn't want to manifest any of it. After being so uncertain about her at first, curious yet disbelieving of her relationship with Hunter, he wasn't sure when exactly his view flipped sides. It had to have been the moment that Artyom accused him of sending Aleks into dangerous territory on purpose. All of his sobering words added up and put things into perspective. Now he had his own guilt about her on his conscience, Artyom's concern adding more weight, and Mikhail's sudden disappearance plaguing his thoughts.
"She better sign on!" Ulman almost seemed annoyed, as if the effort of the rescue mission was only worthwhile if Aleksandrya agreed to enlistment.
"We'll just have to convince her how great it is to be in the Order! When she wakes up, that is, and after all those injuries heal," Dukov started out cheerfully but ended up depressing himself.
"Don't make me regret asking you two to be present for this," Melnik let out an audible sigh, his only clue that he was completely exhausted with this whole situation. "My resolve wears thin, I need your collective input before I answer this damned phone."
"We gotcha, sir, and we were already pretty epic at Chekhov even though Romanov and Idiot did most of the talking," Dukov flashed a confident smile.
"No wonder they were pacified for so long, those dumb border guards were probably trying to figure out what the heck Idiot was saying… the way he prophesizes like that," Ulman crossed his arms and looked baffled, having heard several of the mentioned Ranger's puzzling decrees before. Idiot was usually a man of few words, fewer than Artyom, even. And his chosen nickname represented quite the opposite of his intelligence.
"Good choice on both accounts, sir," Tatiana complimented the Colonel in her quiet deep tone. "You had the right people in the right places."
"I already gave my commendations to Bravo Team; their effort shouldn't be minimized. Just as Alpha Team shouldn't monopolize the accolades," Melnik nodded his response.
"You're welcome!" Dukov grinned proudly. "Kinda wish I'd been on the fun team, though."
"Maybe next time," Ulman said encouragingly.
"There better not be a 'next time' like this ever again," Tatiana glared at the facetious men.
"Indeed," Melnik concurred with a hand over his eyes, trying to stifle an audible complaint of his intensifying headache. "Focus, please?"
"Alright, so Petrovich is on the line. What's the most important thing to establish here?" Ulman held out his hands and glanced around at the others. "Does he really want to go to war over Aleks?"
"We need to admit our actions without inciting retaliation," Tatiana said calmly.
"Maybe it's more important to figure out what we shouldn't say," Dukov pointed a finger towards the ceiling to emphasize his suggestion.
"Well, I wouldn't say anything that could implicate Ivanovich, that's a death sentence," Ulman said ominously. "Kirill, too. Anything related to the Resistance."
"Agreed." Melnik nodded, starting to formulate his opening statement.
"And you probably shouldn't say anything about Zakharovich," Dukov put in with a fearful look.
"As much fun as it would be to rub Führer's big ugly nose in it," Ulman chuckled lowly, imagining the possible reactions in his head.
"I think that's about it," Tatiana gave a short nod.
"Just remind the bastard that we've got the upper hand no matter what. Even if we can't say it, we know a lot more than he does. We got her back, and I'd do it all again, no questions asked," Ulman said with a very serious expression, not even vying for another chance to use explosives.
"Make sure you use all those fancy politic words, sir," Dukov nodded eagerly.
"Right, okay," the Colonel said in a tone that commanded silence from the trio as he set both hands down flat on his desk. He let out a long breath and then pressed the blinking red button for the speakerphone. "Colonel Melnik here, go ahead."
"About time you returned my call," the Führer began with glaring contempt.
"Ah, Petrovich, how are things in the Reich?" Melnik deflected with a purposefully carefree approach.
"Well, as you've no doubt instigated, Melnikov, we've had a little incident at Darwin station recently."
"I hadn't heard, at least not officially," he stressed. The Reich had yet to say anything publicly about Aleksandrya's capture or the assault on the Second Unit. Melnik was always confident that Yevgeniy Petrovich would never announce anything that would tarnish his image or undermine his authority in any way. For him to even admit that a breech had occurred at all, let alone in their most notorious facility, would make the Reich look weak and signal others to exploit the same faults.
"If those men at Wagner station didn't arrive on your orders, then—!"
"Ooh, he's so mad!" Dukov whispered to his compatriots behind his hand and Ulman pressed his lips together uncomfortably, trying not to laugh out loud.
"Now, now, don't pretend as if you didn't know what it was about." Melnik admitted readily, not even bothering to deny that he had full knowledge and intent in sending Bravo team to Chekhovskaya as a diversion.
"Don't pretend that you do know," the Führer spat back. "This is a family matter and the Order has no right—"
"Family my ass," it was Ulman's turn to whisper humorously. Tatiana smacked his arm with the back of her hand and then glared at Dukov quite severely with a finger over her lips.
"Unfortunately for you, I'm well-acquainted with your stepdaughter," Melnik cut him off again and tried to hide the wry smile from his voice. Ulman and Dukov grinned with mischievous encouragement.
"So... she is one of yours, after all?" he sounded as if he still doubted the fact, even though Aleksandrya had been wearing a Spartan uniform.
"Aleksandrya Dmitriyev was granted diplomatic asylum by my second in command quite some time ago. Either way, we were going to get her back."
"Asylum, hm? Remind me, does that usually extend to accused murderers?"
Melnik didn't respond right away, it was one more fact that he hadn't been told about, yet it didn't take him by complete surprise. He was simply trying to think quickly about how to turn it around and keep control of the conversation.
"Ah, so there are still yet details that she neglects to report to you. Obersturmführer Varnayev and I thought as much. That wretched girl belongs behind those bars, she deserves to pay for her crimes in blood, and you have no right to impede such a trial and sentence."
"Perhaps you should have killed her back when you had the chance," The three soldiers all stared at the commander in horror, how could he suggest such an awful thing? "Though, we both know that the only reason you didn't do so is because you believed that she had information regarding D6"
"If she had given it, I might have shown mercy," the Führer began insincerely.
"It's not important now. What's done is done, and the only way you'll ever infiltrate the bunker is through this phone."
"Oh, shit!" Dukov couldn't help but squeak out. Tatiana swatted at him fiercely and he apologized to her with his eyes.
"Isn't it? I should think that such a steadfast man of upstanding values would be disinclined to admit a murderer into his elite regiment." He surprisingly stuck to the subject of his missing prisoner, perhaps unwilling to admit his endeavors in Operation El Dorado. Upon second thought, Melnik guessed it to be a dismissive tactic; Yevgeniy Petrovich was trying to dissuade the Commander from accepting Aleksandrya – as if he'd change his mind and hand her over so the fascists could continue to torture her for the information they so desperately wanted. Something tensed up in the pit of his stomach and a newfound source of energy sprung up from his outrage.
"As far as I see it, she was simply settling the score," he replied darkly. And Melnik was settling his own score.
This time the Führer declined to answer. Perhaps he didn't fully understand what the Colonel meant by that. Melnik took in a breath and narrowed his eyes, discarding the advice of his subordinates right in front of everyone as he began to explain it more clearly.
"I know what happened with her fiancé... with Obergefreiter Vorobyov. And if she was your daughter in any capacity, then you'd know her well enough to appreciate that she isn't the type to take things lying down. You brought it all upon yourself."
Even Tatiana covered her mouth with a hand at the startling admission from the Colonel. Dukov stretched out the fingers of both raised hands as if to signal the Commander not to expand upon his utterance.
"Now there's some ancient history. I'm surprised she mentioned it to anyone, though, it seems you were only told one side of the story. Vorobyov was a treasonous saboteur and he received the full and just punishment under the law," Yevgeniy Petrovich growled as if he had read the ghastly sentence only minutes ago. But, of course, only Melnik knew the true meaning of the punishment that was indicated. Everyone else displayed a mix of confusion and concern.
"That's not how I understand it. They only wanted their freedom and happiness."
"And you're telling me she has that with you?" he spoke sarcastically again.
"Yes... they do," Melnik narrowed his eyes with fearless determination, he wanted Petrovich to truly understand how ineffective he was in this entire matter. Ulman covered his mouth to keep himself from protesting out loud, though it was already too late to take the statement back. Dukov raised his eyebrows dramatically, with shock at first but then pursed his lips in a way that came across as an impressed concurrence.
"They?" Führer's voice sounded hollow and shaky, as if he'd just turned into a ghost. Melnik wouldn't give anything further, he'd already said too much in his anger though he didn't regret it at all. He continued on with a final threat, making it as clear as possible what the terms of this unwritten accord were going to be without offering any concession or alternatives. He wouldn't allow this pompous figurehead a chance to even think about mounting a counteroffensive.
"You should consider yourself fortunate that my stealth team completed her rescue so efficiently... and it was carried out in such a way that you don't have to tell anybody what really happened underneath Tverskaya. You can continue to preserve your sanctimonious image and I strongly suggest you employ that opportunity for your own sake. After all, you were only so eager to get her back because she discovered your darkest secrets… and if you make any motion or statement regarding Aleksandrya or this incident at the Council, I'll see to it that they aren't secret anymore. You want to put her on trial? Then you are required to allow her to testify – to tell her complete story under penalty of perjury. The Order is responsible for all cases of diplomatic asylum and the protection of endangered witnesses. The Council will certainly vote against extradition in your favor once they've heard what she suffered through, what you put her through, both back then and just now. So, what will it be?"
The leader of the Fourth Reich didn't have a witty retort this time, seeming to be stunned momentarily as he took in those words and calculated them carefully.
"Fuck yeah," Dukov whispered under his breath as he raised a clenched fist. Ulman copied his gesture but didn't make a sound. Tatiana nodded her tenacious agreement. After a long minute of weighing the possibilities and the truths, Yevgeniy Petrovich made a quiet inquiry.
"She means that much to you, eh? Touching." The whole group caught the sound of a final breath of a sarcastic chuckle that crackled through the little speaker. And once again, Melnik didn't answer his opponent directly.
"Congratulations on your newborn son, I hope he looks just like his father." Even the Colonel didn't believe this most recent propaganda from the Reich; it was more likely that the Fuhrer had taken someone else's child to claim as his heir.
"Congratulations on your new daughter. She can be quite a handful, to say the least. If the mood suddenly strikes her to betray you as well, don't come crying to me. And if I ever see her again, anywhere within our jurisdiction, she will be shot on sight. Be sure to relay that to the little—"
"I've got it covered," Melnik cut him off gruffly and gunned for an immediate conclusion, spent of all useful words and unable to hold back his fury any longer. "Good day, Petrovich."
"Good day, Melnikov," the Fuhrer grumbled reluctantly, accepting that he never had a choice to begin with. The speaker crackled once more and then went silent. The Colonel pressed the button just to be sure and then decided to unplug the phone altogether.
"Holy shit," Ulman said breathlessly. "That was awesome."
"Way to go, sir!" Dukov beamed.
"What now?" Tatiana prompted as she was the first to notice how the Commander sank into his chair and deflated. His sniper division was too adept at reading body language to deny his fatigue, and she was prompting him to lay out his next orders so they could be on their way.
"Which of you boys wants to escort our Black Swan to the listening post?" Melnik didn't even look up to see who responded.
Dukov raised his hand but Ulman spoke up for everyone as he pointed to Tatiana, Duke, and then himself in order.
"One sniper, one spotter, one commander," Ulman submitted with an unseen grin.
"Fine," Melnik sighed heavily as he conceded to the request and left the details up to the new team to decide. "As you please. Put it in writing when you get back, I need to… see to some other things."
"Yes, sir!" The trio all straightened up as their farewell salute and left the office swiftly to prepare for their mission. Finally, he could have a moment of peace.
Today was the fourth day since Aleksandrya had regained consciousness, nearly a week since they had blasted into the holding cells and collected their precious treasure. She was beginning to grow restless, seeming to be in a new stage of denial about her condition and trying to find excuses to get out of bed at every turn. At first, Artyom had been understanding, his natural responses tended towards sympathy, and he knew that he wouldn't enjoy being confined to a bed and a secluded hospital room either. However, after he'd had his own conversation with Doctor Orlov, he had changed his tune and become more strict with her.
The course of her care was becoming clearer with each passing day. Artyom had even asked for a detailed description of the medicines she was being given, what they were all for, and how long she'd probably need them. It had only just dawned on him that he was entitled to, or at least privy to, that kind of information since he was still her medical proxy as well as Melnik's eyes and ears. The doctor said that she could come off the IV today, they'd switch her pain management and immunostimulants to an oral form so she could begin to have a little more freedom. Yet, she was still forbidden from putting any weight at all on her injured knee. The fancy hinged brace supported the joint so she could flex it a little bit, that was important to do several times a day to keep the blood circulating properly.
'The swelling has come down a lot thanks to the treatments we've been giving, we'll just borrow her for a bit to take a new x-ray.'
Her surgery still wasn't scheduled, they were waiting for an orthopedic specialist to arrive from Hansa, all thanks to the same tense arrangements that facilitated the ease of travel through the Ring for members of the Order. They only briefly explained that they'd basically be placing metal screws and rods to hold the bone fragments together as if they were whole again. Doctor Orlov snapped the new plastic sheet into a box on the wall and switched on a light to illuminate the black and white picture of her broken leg. Artyom didn't need to be a doctor to see the evident damage that was displayed but it was explained to him anyway in a bunch of long words. All he could do was sigh heavily and try to believe that the medical team would be able to fix it as they planned. He only wished that he could have gotten her out of the collapsed building on his own.
"Aleks…" he said in a warning tone as he stepped into her room to see her sitting precariously on the edge of the bed. She flinched a little bit, caught red-handed.
"I wasn't going to," she began dismissively but knew that he wouldn't believe her. "I know."
"Look here," Artyom stepped closer and held the black plastic film over his head so she could see from the light on the ceiling how bad it was for herself. "Doctor Orlov said there's four pieces and there should only be one. Don't you feel it?"
"Only a little, it's numb most of the time," she was looking at the injury and rubbing it a little with one hand as if trying to assess the current status of it.
"You're laying still most of the time," he insisted. "I bet you'd pass out from the pain if you tried to walk, so don't even start. If you mess around then they might not be able to fix it at all."
"Yes, sir," she said mournfully.
"I'm just looking out for you," he said in a softer tone.
"I know."
He put the x-ray film down by the door and went over to comfort her physically, sitting next to her and settling an arm around her shoulders. She leaned her head against him and sighed. He didn't feel nervous from her touch anymore, it had become a lot more familiar and frequent since he'd been watching over her.
"I hate being broken," she clenched some of his shirt in a fist.
"They'll do the surgery as soon as the specialist from Hansa gets here, should only be a few more days."
"Yeah, if I haven't gone insane with boredom by then," she tried to laugh but couldn't make it form. "Can I at least sit in the chair for a bit?"
"I suppose," he conceded with a little shrug.
He got up and stood in front of her, taking both of her hands in his own. She took a breath and held it while she tensed her muscles and depended on him for stability. He pulled her upwards and then placed her hands behind him so she could hold on while he started to shift her over towards the chair. She pressed her face against his chest but she didn't withdraw once he'd gotten her to her destination.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly.
"What for?" He tried to pull back so he could look at her while they talked but she wouldn't budge.
"For everything. I… I didn't think you would ever come back, after what I said, after what I did," she sniffed and his shirt felt damp. He gently stroked her hair while she continued, was this what she had been trying to say on that very first night in the hospital? "I took advantage of your trust for so long, I'm so sorry. I don't know how you can even stand to be around me now. I end up dragging everyone down."
"Now, that's not true," he squeezed her a little, holding her if she wanted to be held. "Nikolai is doing fine, your people at your station are healthy and happy, Ivanovich is with his daughter."
"But the people I love…" she didn't specify but Artyom knew what she meant.
"It's not your fault."
"How do you know?"
"I just know," he was smiling but she couldn't see it. When was he going to be able to tell her that Mikhail was here in the Order? When was he going to come see her? Had Melnik gotten a hold of Katya yet? "It will be okay, I promise."
"What am I supposed to do, now?" she finally withdrew and wiped the tears away while looking up at him hopefully.
"Right now, you just need to rest, and I'll be here with you every day until you're better. There are still things to look forward to," he paused to think it over. "Your birthday is coming up soon, right? And you'll get to visit your home when you're healed, I'll see if I can go with you. And um… what about Emerald City? Your true mission?"
"I don't know anymore," she looked away and finally took half a step back but didn't sit down. "It doesn't matter… nothing matters."
"Come on now, turning thirty is pretty important. When is it?"
"It's… December first."
"Only a few weeks to go!" He tried to give her some happiness through his voice but it wasn't working so he changed tactics. "I brought a new book; would you like to hear it?"
"Not more pirates," she groaned with disgust.
"No, no more pirates," he grinned and took the new volume from his back pocket and handed it to her.
"From Hunter's box?" she ran her fingers over the cover thoughtfully. It was the biography of his shared namesake.
"Are they related to each other?" Artyom had been tempted to dig further in the veteran Ranger's storage to try to answer the question for himself but the discomfort he felt kept his hands from wandering off course.
"He never actually told me but I think so, somehow, yes," she set the book on the bedside table and reached for him again, hugging him tightly with no fear. "Thank you, Artyom. I wouldn't have made it without you."
"You mean Ivanovich, and Kirill," he tried to minimize his effort but returned her embrace as a concession.
"I mean you. Do you see anybody else here?"
"You don't need to thank me, or apologize. I understand why you couldn't say anything about your family. It's horrible you had to live with him at all. I can't imagine."
"I didn't stay there very often." Aleks finally leaned back and sat down in the chair uncomfortably, having to use both hands to straighten out her leg because it couldn't bend like it normally would. "Even after they got married, I was mostly still staying where I was before, with my… with Mischa."
"I'm sorry about him," Artyom patted her hand affectionately and tried not to smile. She finally said his name.
"I guess I'll see him again someday. We used to talk about the afterlife, reincarnation, and that kind of thing. He believed that love never dies and the soul is eternal and just goes from place to place and keeps coming back to learn more each time."
"That's really nice," Artyom patted her and began to read the book about Vassily Zaytsev.
Her beautiful explanation gave him a little more hope because if what she said was true then there was a chance that Mikhail still believed in that sort of thing. Combined with Aleksandrya's viewpoint that everything in the world happens for a reason, he could see how much they had in common. Even Artyom had a general belief in some kind of divine power, universal forces, or benevolent energies that weren't necessarily controlled by a singular omnipotent being yet had some kind of design or plan for the beings it oversaw. That was the kind of vague stuff that Khan was always going on about, he understood it a bit better now. And maybe, like that lesson of Hunter's which encouraged having confidence in your natural reactions, maybe all one had to do was go with the flow of the current and not fight against your own destiny. At the very least, he was sure that Aleks would see Mikhail again, not just someday in another dimension, but sometime soon in this one.
"Senior Warrant Officer Ekaterina Viktorovna Zaryanova, reporting as ordered, Colonel!" Katya announced clearly as she stood firmly in the threshold of the main office.
"Come in, Katya, let's dispense with the formality and get down to the task at hand." He waited for her to close the door and the distance before beginning with the specifics. "You already know what this is about, I just want to be sure we're all on the same page before any intervention takes place."
"Yes, sir." Katya stepped into the middle of the room but neither she nor the Colonel took a seat.
"Will you tell me what you know thus far so I don't go repeating myself?"
"Whew, where to start," Katya let out a breath and widened her eyes, only sitting on the arm of a padded chair in front of Melnik's desk.
"Why don't you begin with Aleksandrya's side of things before we get to our current assignment," the Colonel suggested calmly, holding one hand out as he always did to invite the response. He said 'our' on purpose so as to remind her how much this situation plagued him as well. He knew it was likely that he'd have to play a personal role in this at some point. Undoubtedly, he would need to speak with Mikhail himself, especially if this forthcoming attempt to reason with him failed.
"Well, I don't know that much really, only what Artyom's said and he seems just as perplexed about it as the rest of us," she shook her head but her gaze was fixed on the floor.
"I trust his knowledge and his opinions, especially as it pertains to her," Melnik admitted with a reticent nod. "It's all we have to go on, anyway, since we can't ask her ourselves."
"I'll tell you that I did meet her once before, briefly, in Venice. About six months ago, right after the Asimov job, remember Tomilin and Zero both got food poisoning? Well, while I was waiting on them to recover, I'm at the bar one night and this one guy just wouldn't take no for an answer. I was just ignoring him for the most part but then Aleks came along with her friend Nikolai and they told him off for me. We shared a drink after but I didn't think much, ya'know?"
"Hm, interesting coincidence. Did you learn anything about her at that time?" Melnik frowned but with intrigue.
"Not really, neither of them said anything about Avtozavod or their clan or whatever. I only learned that stuff later on when she showed up in the barracks and was introducing herself to everybody," Katya shrugged. "After we got to talking those first few days, she did mention that she was originally from Chekhov but that's not meaningful in itself. All the girls wanted to know about Hunter, not so much about her."
"Right," Melnik tried not to roll his eyes as he finally sat down in his chair.
"So, let's see, up to when she got back? I know what everybody else knows about her now, about her family and all that. The poor thing had to live with the Führer, imagine."
"Which happened well after our Sparrow left the Reich," Melnik almost mumbled it to himself but Katya jumped on it to get their dialogue back on track.
"She was talking about him in her sleep, saying his name a lot, Mischa anyway. I wouldn't have made the connection without Artyom mentioning what happened on the railcar, and he told me that she has a tattoo, of a sparrow even," Katya leaned forward in anticipation of an affirmative response.
"Of a sparrow," Melnik repeated but he was gazing off at his bookshelf against the wall, remembering the moment the tattoo was uncovered and the look on Mikhail's face when he revealed it.
"I guess they were together way back. I dunno if Artyom's asked her anything about it since, and he said that she's never talked about Mikhail ever before."
"Everyone's under orders not to say anything to her… not even my orders," Melnik sighed and chose his next words very carefully. "I can understand where he's coming from, knowing what he's been through. But I don't think he's able to see this clearly. That's why this next step is so… perilous."
"We just want to help them, there's got to be a way," Katya said quietly, not sure how to do that.
"What else do you know about Mikhail?"
"As much as anybody, I guess, you know how he is," Katya was somewhat guessing. Though, nearly everyone in the Order had run into the invisible wall that Mikhail kept up around himself at least once.
"Unfortunately," Melnik said as he did to Artyom earlier.
Katya sat down fully in the chair, crossed her ankles, and leaned her elbows down on her knees to support her head while she considered what to say. It had been just over five years of service for them both, and she had worked alongside Mikhail just as much as she'd worked alongside anyone else.
She always dared to believe that the Sparrow might have let his guard down a bit more with the women of the Order than with the men. But of course, the type of girls who were strong enough to enlist here weren't shy in sharing their affections or turning a conversation towards personal matters. The men rarely conversed with each other about their love lives, only a few brash young recruits would boast now and then about a visit to Tsvetnoy Bulvar or Venice or wherever else single female civilians congregated.
Mikhail was never like that; in fact, Katya had eventually learned that he had a strong aversion to those kinds of locales, furthermore objecting to sex as a soulless transaction rather than with someone you cared about, and he did admit once after much provoking from a certain comedian that he'd had relationships before but not since whatever happened to him in the Reich. Now that answer made all too much sense and gave her memory of his confession a further tinge of misery.
"He's from Chekhovskaya, joined about five years ago after some time in Polis, expert marksman from the start. Pretty much everybody knows he lost his memory for a while, something about the Honor Guard security force, and obviously he didn't just walk out of their stations one day…" Katya trailed off as she began to break it down to a more human level. "He's intelligent, and not just like a strategist but I mean he knows about a lot of different stuff. He's very considerate… shy and confident at the same time… and sad. It's like he's always thinking about… well, maybe he's always been thinking about her."
"Maybe," Melnik conceded somberly and didn't dispute anything she had said.
"So, what do you want me to do?" She sounded a little apprehensive but she was ready to jump into the next stage of this operation, if only to help bring about a favorable outcome.
"I need… he needs… someone who can understand something like that. Someone on his own level. Force is not the answer, here, and I'm not too good with…" but he wouldn't admit exactly what. He didn't want to sound as if he was deferring to the fairer sex because of the subject matter. In fact, he was almost grateful that Artyom had confided in Katya about this particular situation. The sniper's own dreadful origins would play a part in getting through to someone who suffered similarly. The Colonel didn't exactly know her full story, only the watered-down facts that Anna had reported when she brought Katya in from the wilds.
"I get it," she said softly, accepting her role knowingly. She would have to go and trade her own injustices for his. Commiserate with a fellow victim of circumstance. "One for one."
"Do you think you can handle this task? I'm not looking to coerce anyone at any point in this," Melnik rose to his feet, too uncomfortable to remain seated. "However, we can't just let it lie, either."
"I'll try my best, sir," Katya tried to give herself some confidence as she made the promise.
The Colonel almost regretted asking her, asking anyone, to intrude into such an intense private matter. And he would be breaking a personal rule for the first time simply by telling Katya where Mikhail habitually retreated to when he needed to be alone. It was a secret that he'd kept for the Sparrow for a long time, but this resolution was more important, and he couldn't let Mikhail hide forever.
"Go to the graveyard beyond Smolenskaya, and tread carefully, very carefully. I'm sorry that I can't supply you with any kind of advice on how to… just… If nothing else works, you tell him he's due here at thirteen-hundred," Melnik checked his watch as he estimated how long it might take for Katya to run this awful errand and return with enough time to re-think their approach. "I'll be the last stop on the line."
"Yes, sir!" Katya nodded readily, putting the joy back into her voice with effort.
"Good luck," he couldn't chance not saying it, giving a nod as if to impart some of his hopeful energy telepathically. "Return to me immediately with your report."
She only responded with a stiff salute, pressing her lips into something approaching a smile as she turned away and set off to find the solitary Sparrow.