“Use that to speak with my men, and you can do that while you eat lunch that they will bring you.” He waved off Sam’s attempt to plea, causing her to cough more from the smoke tossed around. “My men will tell me when you are done. Then you can go do what you please.”
What the ever-living fuck?! Are they really serious? She cleared her throat to respond but had seen Mr. Galeano was already leaving. You have got to be kidding me! She then turned to see the eight men around her still busy and ignoring her presence for the most part. Helplessness reared its ugly head again as she sulked. I really, really hate this country right now. Stupid mentalities, stupid language, she continued in thought, letting out a defeated breath.
[Excuse me, miss, but,] a man from behind said as he patted her on the shoulder, holding up his removed smart watch. [I overheard your complaints. You can use mine for now.] He then took her left wrist and attached it to hers, held it up, and opened the active translation application. [There, good to go.] He said as his words appeared in English through holographics just like hers would have done had she not lost it. He could see through Sam’s eyes her stress levels started to drop immediately.
And to think at ANY given time ANYONE could have done this for me.
▽ ▽ ▽
Sebastian had a slight hobble in his gait as some of his crew helped him into their truck’s back seat, passing him a water bottle once he got set. [We can’t afford to lose our last one,] he said as he looked on Renzo’s MI-r watch over them from within the compound, taking a sip from the bottle. He then looked back to his half-wrecked MI-r with a long face. [Where do they keep coming from?]
[You heard the transmission?] the man standing next to him asked. [We found a whole lot of bodies without valid ID and are clearly not locals.]
Another member who sat down in the front passenger seat added: [Someone is getting paid big money. What is it going on here that attracts this level of attention?]
Sebastian
replied with a shrug: [It might be the elections coming up, but we’ve never
seen it get this bad.] He then straightened himself in his seat and buckled in.
[Get me back to base. I need to get my head straight before I can start to help
figure this out.] As the driver started the engine and pulled the truck around
to leave, Sebastian could see Dani’s truck still working on pulling his wrecked
MI-r into the compound’s garage. Down to one. Now what? He then looked
back down at his right knee he was massaging. [We also need to do something
about leg padding in those things. This is the second time I’ve done this after
taking a spill.]
The truck eventually found even pavement, passing several fire trucks and a few ambulances. As his focus shifted to the passing stores and apartments, he continued in thought: So much in so few days. This might all be for nothing. Hell, at this rate tomorrow will be our last. He then remembered the initially unwelcome but ultimately useful interventions Sam came back with during the encounter. Maybe the Boss was right. Maybe her connections are stronger than I thought. Maybe she can do more for us than I thought. He then felt his attention start to wander into nothingness from the heat and exhaustion before a shake of his shoulder woke him back up.
[Boss is asking for you,] the man from earlier said as he offered his mobile.
[Bas my boy, how are you holding up?] Sebastian heard Mr. Galeano from the other side to which he responded:
[Banged up, down another Caballero. Things aren’t looking good, sir.]
[The Vera Paramilitary also took a direct attack this morning to their northern borders. We might be approaching ‘that time’, I’m afraid. But before we make any rash decisions, I need you to go check on the girl. I think she needs your help again, but before you say anything I think that today she has repaid you for your previous efforts, don’t you think?]
Sebastian let out a sigh. [What do I need to do?]
[Go to her, you know where to find her. And… sorry to hear about your loss. I know you were very attached to it. But there will be better days coming ahead, so keep your chin up.]
Sebastian walked up into the communications room where Sam was to find her surrounded by five others near the main display where she had pulled up simulation software of multiple LTAC bogeys along with their compound’s sensor activity details. He could tell everyone was listening intently, taking notes and discussing things amongst themselves. He approached the group as he spoke up over their volume level: [Well, look at that, girl! You already learned that much Spanish?]
Sam turned to see him and returned a laugh, seeing his message translated from her borrowed watch. “No, silly, I got a translator going for me now so there’s been a hell of a lot less holding me back.” She then motioned him over to join.
“Oh, and I was hoping you learned something,” he sarcastically replied.
“Hey, now it’s your turn. Look,” Sam wittedly replied as she pointed to the screens. “All your boys are pretty much done figuring out the main controls and adjustments to be made with the NOx sensor sensitivity and display configurations. All that’s left to be done is adjusting it to their preferences and making split-second judgments based on the information flow, which is kind of what we were doing just now.”
Sebastian chuckled a bit. “Who made you a teacher?”
“Actually, my brother did a lot of things like this. I just took after him, a bit, I guess?” She took a step back to see the others already toying with the configuration menus she explained earlier. “Here,” she said to the man nearest to her who gave her the watch. “Thanks, I think my work here is done,” she said as she returned it to him. As she picked up her half-full juice bottle and wadded wrapper and started on her way out, she left by saying: “I need a break, and looks like you do, too.”
Sebastian paid little attention to the invitation as he looked to the man who loaned his watch. [Just a bit surprised she did so much for you all. Is everything figured out like she said?]
[Oh, no problems here, she was much clearer than the instructions’ vague attempts,] he answered with confidence. [But Bas, don’t think it was out of the goodness of her heart. Boss came by. He made her do it or she wouldn’t be allowed to go back home, so…]
[Is that so,] Sebastian mumbled to himself, looking back her direction, seeing she had just walked out the door. He continued in thought: [Of course. I’d be stupid to think she would be doing otherwise. I just need to keep moving.]
Sam
tossed her wrapper in the trash bucket and stepped outside on the balcony. She
took a seat at one of the chairs, turning to see the break room still empty.
She sighed, then turned back to the view of the neighborhood beyond the walls. One
more evening to pass. One more evening, and a lot of this becomes one big,
crazy memory. She then looked down at her shirt and laughed under her
breath. Maybe I should buy some souvenirs on my way out. She then
scooted her chair back under the shade and leaned against the wall, realizing
now how tired she was after finally being able to relax.
I should’ve bought some sunglasses while I was at it. Hell, after all this shit, I think I earned the right to use a tad bit more of the Galeano’s money. That was some real work put in. She then remembered her talks with her father. Damn… that’s right… one last big job. NOx trainer today, latest Hexa model frame trainer tomorrow. She uncapped and took a sip from her bottle, placed it on the table, and adjusted her chair once more, putting herself in the corner where she could lean against one wall and prop her foot against the other. Moments later, she felt herself halfway fall asleep as memories from before came to her mind.
“But you are sure you won’t be seeing anything besides riot control? I heard there was an old A-7 that came crashing down over there the other week. Those are what I used to fight against, and those are monsters compared to what you are going to run around town with.”
“Dad, that was a one-off. The only time an MBI was ever spotted since decommission orders. But Hexa already trained me on that, and we have anti-MBI outfits that would cut right through them in the event we need them.” She then saw the concern that Al had been trying to hide. “It’s going to be alright. They are very thorough with everything.”
Sam laughed at the thought. Everything, thorough… they still got me fooled. Watch, an A-7 or B-8 will show up tonight or tomorrow at this rate. Her thoughts carried her into a light slumber as more memories came about.
“Mom, no! I am sick of never making my own decisions. I am getting on that shuttle.”
“Sam this running away won’t do anything but make life worse for you! I know all about countries in the SAU and you won’t last!”
“So, you get to leave everyone for work you choose and I don’t? Even though no one is left behind from my end? Whatever,” she said as she hung up, walking away from the taxi rotary and towards the Akkadia Services and Recruitment Center.
A distant blaring of horns that erupted from a nearby traffic jam slightly startled Sam just enough to halfway open her eyes, noticing Sebastian was sitting at the opposite end of the table from her with his news cards on display, humming the same familiar tune. She sat up, still somewhat dazed from her awakening as a pillow fell from between her head and the wall and onto her lap. She also noticed the sun had set quite a bit. Ah, damn it, let me guess. I just lost a whole hour or two.”
“It’s the five o’clock traffic you hear. You slept for about two hours.”
“Where’d this pillow come from?” she asked as she held it up, puzzled.
“Dani told me to give it to you, so I tried my best not to wake you up. You seemed to need it.”
“Thanks, well-”
“-Hey, come here,” Sebastian interrupted as he waved his hand. “I need you to see this.” She was slow to get up, prompting his manners once again. “Are you ok?”
“Hm, my whole body… like…” she said as she winced a bit, still slow to make her way towards him. “I think my body is in more need of my next bone density medication than I realized.” She then stretched a bit as she looked down at the display. “Anyway, what’s up?”
“Before I explain, watch first.” He then swiped over to a separate screen and motioned it to play. It was an Akkadian news outlet feed with Spanish subtitles at the bottom.
“We
bring you updates to the escalated violence occurring amidst heightened unrest
in the SAU’s Colombian capitol city, Bogota,” a female reporter started. “The
calls for the restoration of pre-dissolution era government have grown to such
a dangerous point that SAU officials have started to question whether
neighboring countries should intervene.”
Pictures of Hexa LTAC wreckages were
then scrolled across the background. “In an attempt to avert international
intervention, local authorities hired Hexa International’s security services
known as Infinity, and after what seemed a peaceful reception ended quickly and
devastatingly, claiming the lives of many volunteer pilots and support crew
members from around the world and from space; a total of eleven pilots and
seven crew members perished in the ambush led by unknown hostile extremists
utilizing unfamiliar LTAC weaponry and what appeared to be a tank, also of an
unknown origin.
CEO Vincent Vrey has remained mum about how he will approach the remainder of the contracted services, but what has more speculation and controversy going on is more on the new hire of former Akkadian Navy high ranking official, Alexander Knight,” the reporter spoke as Al’s face and position title came on screen. “Mr. Knight has assumed the role of logistics and seems to be changing course within the written contracts; details remain unknown at this time.”
Wow, I forget how we might look when things go bad.
The reporter turned it over to her co-host as he started off. “But the biggest part of the ongoing speculations pertains to whether or not the claims that the lone surviving pilot is the daughter of the logistics department head, Samantha Knight.” Sam choked in reaction to the unexpected exposure. Even her Hexa official ID picture was used in the displayed bio information screen. “We are unable to confirm these claims, but sources just got us this information only minutes ago.”
“Would this have led to Mr. Knight’s sudden taking of the position? The timing seems appropriate. The day the operation in Bogota went sour, that same evening he took the position.”
Sam could only put her hands over her face, dragging them down slowly as she muttered: “No confidentiality when you are a for-profit organization’s hired member abiding by all international transparency laws. Might as well sell my chances for a proper rescue while I still got them.”
Sebastian then swiped to the next screen, saying: “But this is the other one you need to see.” This time he had up a local news outlet with the captions in English.
[The Galeano’s really went all out, hiring the help of that downed Infinity pilot,] one of the two men on screen spoke. [They, like many others struggling to keep order in the city, are getting to the point that they will take anything that comes their way. People are getting crazy these days and the acts of violence don’t even follow protests or demonstrations anymore. Not even riots.]
[These are almost like acts of insurrection, but rather than towards the government, they are towards the ruling Familias. What do you take of the most recent development?] the other spoke.
With that, a video recording of Mr. Galeano was brought up where he was speaking: [These insurrections are not civil. These are men brought in from other countries. Our plea to the watching world is that we are not dealing with protests or anything we can take a more diplomatic approach toward. This is terrorism with international interests involved in our affairs. They want you to believe that we are causing this, but the destruction to this level is unacceptable and we never once did any such thing to provoke such actions. If you speak with anyone, they will tell you that our men have always responded with non-lethal methods. The use of our destructive weaponry only came out of necessity. Tanks? Mechs? Who brings these in? What is their goal other than wreaking havoc on our city?]
[You see, Paulo,] he continued in response to the clip. [I think it’s to do with Mr. Galeano involving himself with Infinity. They dealt the first hand. They brought in international firepower, and so to help keep the momentum going, the protesting public has to get some help. Do you blame them? You don’t just sit back and watch the overly powerful get more powerful. You strike first. And then did you hear about them paying for new technology upgrades under the expert advice of Alexander Knight’s own daughter today?]
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