1730, Jan 8, 2062
"Alright, to start, feed your belt into the slot."
Two figures sat nearly alone at the open range, a windswept and foggy patch of ice and bare trees that stretched for about a kilometer. They were each huddled into a pre dug hole, just large enough for the two of them, and set before them in the ground was a bulky 40mm grenade launcher.
One figure, a platinum blonde wearing a black vest over a white dress, fiddled with the belt of blue tipped grenades set in the box beside the weapon.
The other, a short haired, hazel eyed woman sat beside her with a pair of binoculars in one hand and a tablet in the other. She wore a basic black jacket lined with straps, and was covering her braided brown hair with a red cap.
"Okay, next?" the blonde asked.
"Close the dust cover."
The blonde did as she was told, shutting the bulky cover atop the weapon and securing its rounds in place. She then looked expectantly at her instructor, who was carefully eyeing up the range.
"Charge it."
The blonde gripped the two handles hanging on either side of the weapon and ripped them back to their stops, her efforts rewarded with a hefty thunk and a jerk in the ammo belt.
"What's the safety on?"
"Safe."
"Switch to fire."
A small click, and the weapon was hot.
"Ready?"
"Ready."
The instructor tapped a few things on her tablet, and a few moments later a few dozen little figures emerged in the distance.
They scuttled along on four legs and held up a big rectangular screen displaying a target. Each moved semi randomly, dashing to and fro, grouping up and spreading out.
"Eight targets, forty seconds. Fire when ready."
The gunner squinted as she started to track the targets with the barrel of the grenade launcher, her hands wrapping around the handles and thumbs rubbing up against the trigger between them.
A three-fold thunderclap ripped through the air, the weapon and belt jerking around violently and throwing snow dust in every direction. Through her binoculars the instructor noted the impacts.
"One miss, two near."
"Grrrr," the gunner growled, "Come on."
Another four grenades flew, sending puffs of snow and dirt up into the air as their intended targets scuttled away unharmed.
"Easy does it 1911, slow and steady."
"Tch," the gunner, 1911, gritted her teeth.
Three more rounds flew out in a rattling clamor.
In the distance, two puffs exploded harmlessly around one of the scuttling targets. However, the third landed right on target, and sent the thing hurtling off down the range.
"Time, and a hit. Good job," the instructor, Haenel RS9 praised her, "what did you do differently?"
1911 beamed, "I spread the shots out around where I thought it was going."
Rs nodded, "Well done," She said, ruffling the dolls hair, "we might just make a gunner out of you yet."
1911 blushed.
"Having fun you two?" A familiar voice called.
Rs glanced back to find the tall pink haired doll she never seemed quite able to escape, wearing what was by her standards a simple green and white overcoat with long lacy boots.
"Hey Cano, what's up?"
Cano strolled up to them, "Not much, the girls and I are going to dinner. Figured you might wanna tag along."
"Sure," Rs answered before glancing back to 1911, "You need help cleaning up?"
1911 shook her head, "I got this!"
"Alright, I'll be inspecting later, so don't skip steps."
Rs scrambled up out of her hole as 1911 began stripping down the mk19. She quickly got up to Cano, who was waiting with a quietly amused smile.
"So, how'd it go?"
"She hit something," Rs chimed as they began strolling away, "perhaps more luck than judgment, but her method was sound."
"Our wise teacher is good at her job then."
"Pffft, don't even start with that."
"Oooh, embarrassed?"
Rs shrugged, "humble, it's one of my many virtues."
"Uh huh, alongside your winning personality and excessive smoking?"
"So glad we agree," Rs answered, pulling her carton out from her breast pocket and pulling out a cigarette.
Ahead of them a small group appeared through the trees, chatting away as their paths converged.
Third Echelon, the same team Cano was assigned to and both of their roommates. The lead of the three noticed them first, and her brilliant golden eyes widened with excitement as she rushed over.
"RS!" she squeaked, charging in for a hug.
"Hey M14, how was the range?" Rs replied as the doll ran into her, wrapping her arms around her.
"Good," She said, nodding vigorously," I got an 80% rating!"
"Good improvement," Rs replied.
"M14," another of their group interjected, "release RS9."
"Aww c'mon Babushka, let us stay a little longer."
The shortest of the E3 was a white clad doll with blonde hair. She had an ancient Nagant revolver at her hip, which she often claimed was made during the Tsarist era.
"Nyet, come," Nagant said firmly, peeling M14 off of Rs, who obligingly let the familiar routine play out.
The two dolls stumbled a little away from her, M14 trying and failing to escape Nagant's iron grasp. Rs couldn't help but smile as the doll half her height managed to subdue M14.
That left the third doll standing awkwardly by herself. WA2000, or Wa as she was known, was about Rs' height, and carried herself with every centimeter. Tried to at least, as she stood proudly alone behind the rest of the group, watching M14 beg Nagant to release her.
Rs shot her an amused glance, and gestured her to come closer, which Wa did interpret and act on. Eventually.
"Evening miss Walther," Rs greeted her, "range day enjoyable?"
Wa nodded, "I surpassed my prior record."
"Congrats," Rs said with a small golf clap.
Cano appeared on Wa's far shoulder, leaning over a little, "Maybe on the heels of her great achievement she'll finally have the nerve to ask the Commander to dinner?"
"Oh, will she?" Rs replied, spying at the beet red face of Wa.
"I-I-I," She stammered, "Ich weiß nicht, worauf du dich beziehst."
"Oh I think you do," Rs replied in German, before switching back to English, "Come on, it'll be fun. I'm sure he'll say yes."
"Stop it, I can't do that."
"You'll do great Wa, we support you!" M14 chimed in, Nagant still wrapped around her.
Wa glanced between the four of them, eyes growing redder each second. It was fun to tease the girl, they all took part and knew that it was innocent enough. Still, it was best not to let it get too far, especially with someone as excitable as M14.
"Okay, okay, let's give the girl a break," Rs said after letting Wa stew a little long, "I was promised a dinner night."
M14 was at last released. The group shuffled around and formed up, Nagant coming up and happily trotting along between Rs and M14 as the five began winding their way through the snowy forest road towards their base.
"So how did range really go?" Rs whispered to Nagant.
The shorter doll shrugged, "Well enough, their coordination has improved. Ever since Miss Cano joined our ranks I have been able to better control those two."
Cano grinned self satisfied on Rs' other shoulder.
"Glad to hear it."
"They also seem to be taking your instruction to heart," Nagant added, sending a glance to M14 beside her, who was happily chatting away with Wa, "That one in particular."
"How so?"
"She's been trying out different ideas, trying new approaches to the different range challenges."
"Anything effective?"
"Somewhat, perhaps it's simply hard to tell what factor has had the greater impact."
Rs nodded, "well keep me posted."
"I will."
Cano smacked Rs on the back, "See, you are a good teacher."
Rs answered with a grin, "I know. I just don't like to brag."
"Ah yes, your humility."
"RS9, of your many qualities, I am unsure Humility is one of them," Nagant chimed in, "I do believe that such a quality includes charity. Perhaps if you would like to prove it, you could pay for dinner?"
"Eh?" Rs stifled a reply.
"That sounds like a great idea Babushka, give our dear, humble adjutant the chance to further prove her virtue," Cano added.
"Wait, hold on-"
"Rs is paying for dinner!?" M14 then exclaimed. Beside her even Wa was wide eyed with excitement.
"No, I'm n-"
Cano draped herself over Rs' shoulder, whispering in her ear, "Shhhh, I know what they're paying you. You can certainly afford to treat your poor, broke friends right? If you do, we can afford to go out tomorrow night as well."
Rs glared at Cano, the doll's verdant green eyes sparkling with mischievous excitement. Defeated, she tapped at the arm around her neck.
"Fine," she sighed in defeat, "but I'm not covering booze, that's on you."
"That is amenable," Nagant replied, " I don't believe encouraging Walther with free beer would be wise."
1000, September 1st, 2061
J sat alone, staring at three blank gray walls and a fourth that was pretty clearly one way glass. To her right was the only door, a blank steel thing without windows, and before her was a table.
She was being watched. Had been for a while, ever since the doll's that'd escorted her here had left. In that time she'd had plenty to think about.
To start, the date she'd been given seemed absurd. 2061, nearly ten years later than it ought to have been. However there was consistency in that date from what she'd seen.
At first she'd assumed Cano was simply a very advanced doll, one far more capable and intelligent than any she'd seen, but it was now pretty clear that she was closer to the norm than not. She'd seen at least two dozen dolls in the last forty eight hours, and each had proven to be talkative and independent in their own ways. Some were near perfect replications of humans.
A far cry from what she was used to.
Also odd was their handling of her. There had always been an armed guard nearby her. Her information access had been frustratingly limited as well, though the dolls she'd gotten to speak to had been willing to talk about a few odds and ends.
It was strange though in that she'd not spoken to one human since she'd arrived. Every interaction, each check in, every guard posting was with a doll. She wondered if any humans were here at all.
The door clicked.
J's eyes shot across the room as it began to creak open.
"Buongiorno~"An all too familiar voice said, "How are you J?"
She couldn't help but smile as the pink haired Cano stepped into the room, a tray holding two steaming cups in her hands.
"Buongiorno to you too, whatcha got there?"
"Hmmm? Oh, Coffees," Cano answered as she sat down.
The doll handed one cup to her, then took a small sip from the other before placing her's down as well. J stared at the paper cup, observing the swirling steam rising from the black liquid.
She then shot a side eye at the one way glass.
"Thank you, but I'll pass."
"Oh, do you not like coffee?" Cano almost whimpered, her eyes softening.
"No no, just not in the mood at the moment."
Close enough to the real reason she supposed. Though the thing killing her mood for it was the potential of what it may be laced with. She couldn't even ask Cano to take a sip to verify, what with her being a doll.
"Okay…" Cano pouted, "So I was told to ask you some questions really quick, shouldn't take too long."
"I figured. Let's hear them at least."
Cano hummed merrily as she unpacked a data pad, likely to view a live chat with whomever was on the far side of the glass, and took another sip of her coffee before beginning.
"Alright, can you verify your name?"
"No."
"Why not?" Cano asked, almost pouting.
She flicked her head to the glass, "Just move on."
Cano furrowed her brow, "Okaaay… Can I skip stuff like Date of birth and place?"
"Mmhhm."
"Alrighty… So-" she began, though pausing and glancing up for a curious moment before returning to the question, "What is the date?"
"September 1st, 2061," She said, "Least that's what I heard."
Cano glanced back at her tablet, "What's the last thing you recall before you awoke on August 29th, 2061?"
August 29th was the night she met Cano. So before that…
Well, she had a pretty good idea where she thought she had been, but if the date was to be believed that was certainly not where she had been. Annoyingly she couldn't think of a way to deflect the question either.
She stayed quiet.
Cano waited a few moments before the interviewer must've told her to move on.
"Do you know how you came to be in that compound?"
"No," she answered honestly.
"Are you familiar with the name Rudolph von Oberstein?"
J's eyes' narrowed as she dropped all pretenses, glaring at the window. Of course she knew that name, but who knew that she did? The list of folks who ought to know of the connection should be very, very short.
"Have you had recent contact with him or any associates?"
"Not that I know of."
She could answer that without necessarily answering the prior question, though that threw a couple more questions of her own into the ring. Von Oberstein was a politician, and a crafty one at that, but he was pretty firmly in the East German camp.
She glanced back at Cano, who was looking thoroughly lost.
"Anything else?"
"Um, do the words 'The shining beacon in a brave new world' mean anything to you?"
J cocked her head, "Sounds like a cute catch phrase."
"It's the company slogan…" Cano mused.
"Pretty idealistic for a PMC."
Cano offered a shrug, " I think it's nice."
"To each their own, I suppose."
Cano went back to her tablet, but her face again twisted with confusion, "I guess that's it then."
"Somehow, I doubt it," J sighed.
She was proven right about a minute later, as the door once more swung open. This time however, it was pretty clear that the man entering was no doll.
Salt and pepper hair, slicked back and messy, and with a beard to match. Despite all those changes she recognized the sharp eyes underneath them all, and it ran a chill through her.
"Berezovich Kruyger," She began, connecting several dots, "I appreciate the hospitality."
Oddly his expression softened as she spoke, "the pleasure is mine, old friend."
"I don't know if friend is the word I'd use."
"Perhaps, perhaps not. Maybe we can discuss it another time."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing malicious I promise. Now if you'll excuse me one moment," He said.
Kruyger stepped towards the table and reached across, grasping the still steaming cup of coffee meant for J and took a sip.
"Ah, good stuff," he exhaled, before setting the cup back down before her.
J held a glare at the man, who seemed entirely unconcerned by it as he snagged a chair that'd been stowed in the corner of the room and sat down beside Cano. For her part the doll seemed almost starstruck as she watched him, staring with wide eyes and an agape mouth.
"Sir-r, why are you-?"
The man gave the doll a warm grin," No worries miss Carcano, feel free to take your leave."
"Um, yes sir," Cano stammered, quickly collecting her things and getting up from the table. The doll offered J a quick look of sympathy just before she slipped out the door.
Kruyger let out a sigh, settling into his chair a little deeper, "I'm surprised to see you."
"I guess I shouldn't be as surprised to see you."
"I read Carcano's report, I'm shocked you weren't suspicious when she said the name."
J shrugged, "It was my first thought, but yours is a common enough surname. I figured it was a coincidence."
"Fair enough I suppose."
"Who's Griffin?"
Kruyger cracked a grin, "Interesting fellow I met a couple years ago, lots of bright ideals."
"mmmm,"J hummed in reply, "Was he where you got that slogan from?"
"Yes actually, though it's a fairly common one these days."
"Why ask what I thought of it?"
"For the same reason I asked about Von Oberstein, which I'll get to in a little while. But enough about me. There's something I'd like to clear up about you."
J leaned back into her chair, surprised there was only one thing, "What might that be?"
"There is about a ten year gap between now, and when you are listed as KIA in the official records, that's Soviet and Western. Could you explain what you've been doing in that time?"
J's eyes narrowed. She drummed her fingers against the metal table, tapping a rhythmic pattern over and over.
KIA.
She stayed quiet, but her body felt heavy, like someone had wrapped her in lead.
"Is that news to you?" He asked.
It was, but her first response wasn't so much confusion, but suspicion. This was reading more and more as an interrogation, an elaborate one admittedly. The dates, Kruyger, the breakout. Even using Cano as her initial interrogator, She could justify them all as tricks to get her to talk.
The dolls, Cano. Cano was simply too advanced though. J had been the one to revive her, she'd chosen her out of all the other dolls in that room simply because she was the latest to arrive, and so the only one intact, maybe that was a setup too.
Cano had done a restart procedure in front of her, for ten minutes. J had even ensured that she was really out. She could have marched off into the forest and been well gone before Cano could catch up.
There was too much chance, too many factors to go wrong. Maybe they were playing a risky game, but still the fact remained that the dolls used were simply too advanced. Maybe if it were just one doll, but a dozen? No way, there would be better uses for them if the Soviets had even just that many.
Ten years? She could see ten years of hard development and research resulting in an advancement like she'd seen.
"Is the war over?"
Kruyger's lips upturned into a small, almost reassuring smile, "The war is over, long over. I've been out of the service for nearly as long."
J took a moment, "Who won?"
A darker look came over Kruyger, "A few borders moved westward, but no one truly won."
"And Germany?"
"Unified, sort of. Berlin is fairly neutral, though perhaps more friendly towards us than you may like."
J nodded slowly, processing the words. So the East had partially won. They likely wouldn't accept her back into the military then, probably try to prosecute her for one reason or another. Her being KIA might help with that actually, they wouldn't bother looking for her if there were rumors.
J snagged the coffee cup, and took a sip.
"All that to move a few borders, huh?"
Kruyger nodded, "As you might imagine, it left some feathers ruffled."
J scoffed, "I bet."
The man smiled, fuller this time, and still seemingly genuine, "Well then, would you be willing to answer my question?"
J groaned, her fingers resuming their rhythm against the cup held between them, " There's nothing to say, it's all a void."
"So you've no memory of the intervening time? Nothing at all?"
She shook her head, "Nothing. I fell asleep one night, and woke up the next."
"And ten years passed you by in that time."
Strangely Kruyger seemed pretty willing to accept her explanation, again defying her expectations of the man.
"Pretty much."
Kruyger rubbed his eyes, "Well, that puts me in a tight spot."
"And why's that?"
Kruyger looked at her, "Can I trust that what I say next doesn't leave this room?"
J raised a brow, "What is it?"
"Relevant information, but It would be very wise that it not spread far."
Again, odd behavior. He was putting far more trust in her than she thought he would've, certainly more than she was giving him.
"I'll keep quiet."
Kruyger nodded, "I didn't ask about Von Oberstein because of what happened during the war. A couple years ago a small number of genetic clones attacked several of my installations without warning, and I've reason to believe he may have been behind it."
J cocked her head, "Genetic clones."
Kruyger nodded, "Yes, of his dead daughter no less."
"Jesus…"
"They were all heavily indoctrinated, the one we briefly held seemed to be almost worshiping the man. I asked you about the slogan as it worked as a kind of trigger for her, sending her into a deteriorating spiral that ultimately killed her."
"You were checking if I was indoctrinated as well?"
Kruyger nodded grimly, "You see why I am cautious about a supposedly dead individual with connection to 90Wish and the Von Obersteins suddenly resurfacing."
J was quiet. It was a lot to take in afterall. She didn't feel all that different, her body was exactly as she would've expected it to be whether those ten years had passed or not.
The amnesia wasn't too much of a surprise to her. She had plenty of gaps in her memory after all, but the scale of this latest gap was a concern. Perhaps that was a recent development, the result of recent trauma, but she couldn't be sure. The hard part was that it was very unlikely those memories would ever come back.
"Is there a way to be sure?" she asked.
"Interrogation and a verifiable alibi. It's been a couple years since this incident, so his capabilities could have expanded, prior triggers may have been fixed."
"Right," she answered, pondering the issue.
A thought struck her, "Kryuger, how much do you know about my 'condition'?"
He cocked his head, "Only the anecdotes, and that it's the reason behind you haven't aged a day over twenty."
She grinned, "You're too kind. And You're not wrong, however there's a few things about it that aren't so obvious. The records you spoke of never mentioned my body, right?"
He nodded.
"They wouldn't, were I to actually die there'd be nothing left within a couple minutes. I doubt there was even a search."
The last few words rolled off bitterly. For a split second she could almost picture the officer walking up to her family's door, with no proof she existed for them to hold on to. It was something she'd known might happen, but no one thinks it'll happen to them when they sign on.
Lord knows her's wasn't the only family that had to deal with it.
"Well, if that's the case then there's no way anyone could've gotten your genetics, I'd consider that good enough. Can you prove it?"
"If I do, where do we go from there?"
"Well, do you have any family outside Germany?"
"In the US, yes. Least I used to."
"Give me their names, I'll see if I can find them."
She cocked her head, "Why?"
Kruyger reached his hands a put further across the table, "I'll send you home. This world won't heal if we all keep bickering. We may have once been foes, but I do sympathize."
J's fist clenched tightly, "And if I don't want to go back, or can't?"
Kruyger had a thoughtful expression come over him, "Well I think of anyone, I'm a good judge of your capabilities. Perhaps I could find a place for you here."
1830, Jan 8, 2062
"Cheers!" Five voices sang out, the glasses in each of their hands clinking.
Rs took a big gulp of her pale orange beer, her face pressing into the foam and leaving her with a little mustache of the white fluff as she withdrew.
"Gah that's good," She gasped.
"Mmhmmm," M14 hummed in agreement as she pounded back a second mouthful.
"Babushka slow down!" Cano shouted jovially.
At the opposite end of the round table from Rs, the little russian doll was busy chugging away her drink. Amazingly she didn't stop once, only dropping her glass when it was empty.
The four of them burst into laughter at the sight of her, and her smile showed her living it up.
All around them similar scenes played out. A dozen different tables hosting different groups. Humans, dolls, a mix of both at some. All seated around their own round wooden table, drinking and eating.
The Cafe was the best, and only, place to have a meal not consisting of MREs on base. It was good food too, hand made by one of the couple dolls that staffed it and with healthy portions. The human staff could afford to eat there every night, but the dolls typically weren't paid enough to do so, so it was usually a once or twice a week thing.
Fridays, like this one, were the most popular.
Including the wait staff, there were twenty eight people in the room, which lent to a full atmosphere that didn't quite feel overcrowded in the space. About four people were sitting at the bar, a wooden topped slab with taps and coffee machines lining its length, and was tended by a doe eyed brunette in a white apron.
"Gahhhh-" Wa gasped after downing another big gulp, "Why is Springfield always so pretty!"
"She's Springfield!" M14 answered.
"She doesn't even try…she doesn't have to !" Wa pouted, "s'not fair-."
"Jealous Wa?" Rs asked.
"No," Wa said, turning away, "M'not."
"Come now, do not compare yourself to Miss Springfield," Nagant chided, "It is not a fair comparison going either way."
Wa stared at her glass for a moment, then snatched it up and began drowning herself in the alcohol, causing Rs to pinch the bridge of her nose in disappointment.
"Wa, stop it."
The doll held up a finger as she continued chugging her beer, earning groans from the four of them.
"Wa!" M14 said, reaching across the table and physically pulling her glass from her, "Stop."
"Don'wanna," Wa replied, "leave me alone."
"At least tell us what's wrong," Cano protested, "Are you jealous of Springfield? Why?"
Wa relented, gave up her glass to M14 and gestured vaguely to the barmaid who was happily handing out drinks to a few humans.
"She's so… Springfield. Everyone likes her."
Rs and Nagant exchanged a quick glance, before the smaller doll cleared her throat, "Well, yes. Do you feel people don't like you?"
Wa answered with a general 'yeah' gesture, before crossing her arms on the table and nestling her head miserably between them. Cano beside her began patting the doll's back.
From the corner of her eye, Rs spotted another two Springfields, dummies the doll used for waiting, approaching with plates of food. The four of them made room quickly, and Cano helped get Wa up and out of the way as a plate was set down beside her.
"Thanks Springfield," Rs said to the dummy which set her plate down.
The dummy smiled politely before heading back towards the kitchen.
Wa perked up a bit as she looked down on her plate of sausage and veggies, while Rs' own mountain of carbs and protein, shaped vaguely like a (good) american hamburger and fries drew her in.
There was about four polite seconds of waiting, before they all began tearing into the meals.
And damn was it good. All five blitzed through their food, stopping only for brief sips of beer until their plates were empty.
"Whoa," Rs gasped.
"I want more," M14 whined.
"You'll have to pay for it," Rs said, "I'm not that well off."
"Fiiiine," 14 pouted.
Rs leaned back into her chair, holding her glass in one hand as Cano and M14 began going off about something or other. Knowing the two of them it really could've been anything, pastries, guns, the commander.
Her attention was drawn elsewhere, or rather everywhere. The patrons of Springfield's cafe were growing in number. It was around 1900 now, so most of them had probably just gotten off their shifts and had managed to just crawl on over.
Dolls and humans. Lots of them. The room was feeling a bit more claustrophobic.
Wa started talking, well, ranting more like. Something to do with the commander, so not her concern really.
Ah, Springfield was coming back over. Rs felt around for her wallet, and pulled out a thin plastic card stamped with the Company crest.
The doll took it without a word, seemingly unnoticed by the rest of the dolls at the table. She knew she'd set the line at booze earlier, but it was just easier to pay for it anyway so it wouldn't disrupt whatever moment they were having.
Wa was head down again, Cano and Nagant patting her sympathetically. 14 was happily chatting away about something to do with shooting. Everyone's glasses were drained at this point, save hers. She'd not taken a sip in a while.
Another half dozen dolls walked into the cafe, trailed by a couple humans.
At one table a bunch of cheers erupted as the overhead speakers began to play a popular song. Food and empty plates carted in and out of the swinging doors.
Smiling, drinking, laughing. It was getting louder, too loud.
At some point her glass was emptied, she realized staring at the little streaks of beer and foam that were the only evidence of its old contents.
Rs quickly glanced at the rest of her table, who were still chatting away.
She slipped out of her seat at a well chosen moment, and wove her way out of the room as quietly as she could.
Frigid winter air whipped over the rooftop, cutting through Rs' jacket and sending a chill through her. Goosebumps plagued her arms and body, and her nose was starting to go numb. Still it wasn't too bad, something she'd be willing to stand for the short few minutes she planned to be up there.
Her back against the railing and to the wind, Rs flicked a small lighter and lit a thin white cigarette held in her other hand. She brought the now smoldering cig to her lips and took a breath of the acrid smoke.
A calm fell over her as she exhaled the smoke. Above her the stars were twinkling brilliantly, constellations and galaxies visible even to the naked eye.
On her second puff the silence was disturbed by the screeching of the rooftop access door, and she was momentarily bathed in yellow light before it shut again.
"Hey Cano," Rs greeted the doll," Come to make sure I'm behaving?"
"No, just making sure you're okay. You seemed pretty off down there."
She shrugged, "Yeah, well. I think it's just not settled in yet."
"Hmmm?"
Rs took another breath off her cigarette before answering, "The calm. It feels weird seeing people so carefree." She stared up at the sky, "Maybe it's just the alcohol talking, I'm more of a lightweight than I remember."
"Heh, feeling your age?"
Rs chuckled, "Yeah, middle age isn't treating me so well."
"Your back hurt too, knees? Is it time for the nursing home already?"
"Oh my god, spare me. I'm fifty-two, not ninety."
"Okie Grandma, whatever you say."
Rs rolled her eyes at the last jab, but still couldn't help her smile. The pair of them stayed there for a minute, Rs taking a drag every now and again.
"I've been meaning to ask, why RS9?" Cano asked.
"What do you mean, why did I choose that name?"
"Well, yeah. You weren't a sniper were you?"
"Nope, just a standard rockhopper. Anyway I would've gone with G29 if that was the reason."
"So what is the reason?"
"A bit of a long story."
"You have somewhere else to be?"
Rs shook her head, "Not really I guess. It was just after I joined the army, so before Belian. My Dad managed to get his hands on an RS9 through a friend of a friend, and gave it to me on my first leave."
"That's an insane gift. Not to mention expensive."
"Hell yeah it was, but that's what made it so great too," Rs snorted, "He never told me the details, but there's no chance he could've bought that full price."
"Sounds kinda shady."
She shrugged, "Maybe, but I didn't really care at the time. Joining the army was a huge deal for me, and I guess him giving me that rifle was a sign he accepted who I was, that he was proud."
"He wasn't before?"
"Longer story, but suffice to say it was complicated. The Army was the last thing my mother wanted for me and Dad stayed neutral the best he could."
"Ah, you humans and your family politics."
Rs took another drag, "Yeah, well its ancient history these days, though I think the rifle is still at my Dad's place. I had a lot of fun shooting that thing with him when he moved to the states."
"Maybe he could send it to you?"
Rs grimaced, "I doubt that'd get through customs."
"Never know."
"I guess, but… I dunno, I can't really stand even thinking about contacting him now, after all this time."
Cano cocked her head, "wouldn't he be happy to hear from you?"
"I'm sure he would, if I'm really who I think I am."
"Why do you say that?"
"Let's just say Kruyger put some doubts in my head, gave me good reason to worry that I'm not really me. I can't take my Dad's daughter away a second time like that."
"Is that why you stayed here? "
"Partially," Rs admitted, "there's…"
A half dozen violent memories rammed their way into her brain, flashing and tearing away. Her face twitched, but she managed to force them down after a moment.
"There's other reasons, let's just say."
"Okay," Cano said, poking her cheek, "well I think you're you. So don't worry."
"Very reassuring, thank you Cano."
"You're welcome~"
At long last, Rs' cigarette burned down to the filter. On noticing she spit it out and ground and pressed a boot atop it, grinding it out. She watched as the wind whisked the lingering smoke away into the night.
"Done?" Cano asked.
"Yeah I think so."
The doll smiled, and began heading towards the door alongside Rs. However, just before they reached she paused, then glanced over to her.
"Oh no," Rs said, recognizing the look, "What now."
"M14 and Famas, again," Cano managed with a pained grin, "Outside E1's door."
Rs growled, flinging open the door and stomping into the warm hall, "goddamn kids."
Notes:
And there's Chapter 2 redone. Overall I think this was the one that bothered me the most looking back, just too short and alot of the included details were too contrived imo. Anyway, I'm working at a good pace on these so far, so I might start thinking about going for a new chapter as well atop the rewrites, keep the story going while we catch up with the rewrites.