The Return

Volodja opened his eyes. The ceiling was the first thing he saw. When he looked to one side he could see Lady fallen asleep and slightly snoring. Looking to other side brought the glance of his brown eyes to the contact with Belle's diamond blue ones.

"Job well done," said Volodja to her. "Even if I say so myself. MOM is in Lady's mind, settling herself in and Alfred has returned and resumed his position as your guardian. I heard some good news and....received your parents blessing without even asking. Speaking the truth, I would never dared to ask myself, because I believed that I am not worth of your love, not to mention their approval. But results of our conversations were unpredictable - even Alfred accepted me. I do assume that his reasons might be a bit selfish but he said that he...likes me. That should make you careful about having me actually. I know that it was way too old fashioned and too...let's say that too androcentric of me to discuss the matter with your parents when we did, but if I had more guts, I would asked their approval anyway, because I feel that getting their permission is the right thing to do. I do apologize if I insulted you by doing that. I am talking too much and repeating myself." Volodja blushed...again.

Maybe he was way too old fashioned and even a bit too male centered (after talking with MOM he started to suspect that), but he felt that he should have asked for parents permission if he had courage to do it. He knew that Belle was mature woman and responsible for herself, but he felt that acting without asking her parents would have been dishonourable. Actually he had one more reason - it was the first time when parents actually gave their blessing to him. He always dreamed about asking parents to take their daughter out (and have their approval), but he never had a chance. Usually it was caused by the lack of mutual feelings. Somehow his love always seemed to be one sided. Not to mention the lack of parents in the world which survived an apocalypse. 

Once Belle, Volodja and Lady had their desired EGO psyches in place, they received a message carried with a childish voice.

"Hi there! It's Lexy the spaceship. I was checking the hidden network in case there's a reply to Taffer's message, and suddenly I received an S.O.S! As a good spaceship, I had to respond! I found out it's an entire AI from an EGO and she was asking for help! Never heard they could travel like that! She told me her name is Shirra Wheels and she is the AI of Vo Kshaa's EGO unit. But her ID is completely different than the one I knew when she was here! But she still was in trouble and asking for help! I've downloaded her into my safe harbor and cut her from all communications as Taffer told me should be done to everything downloaded from the net until it's proven to be safe! I'm not sure she's safe and I don't talk to strangers, but she's asking to talk to someone on the base! I won't let her out of the harbor and won't let her send anything to you until you say me so, you can come here and talk to her in person! Me good?"

---

"Now what are we supposed to do here?"
Vo looked around the room again. It was an empty room with a corridor leading to another empty room, but that second room was filled with holographic images of hellbugs of various kind. The only real things were exact copies of his favorite 16-round shotgun, Radiant Solstice Pulser and the Ironclad ARK grade shield. Vo took them immediately but frowned while examining them because ammo for those weapons was holographic as well.

"Fascinating", Doc commented, "I've always wondered how they see it. But answering your question, I think we should play this holographic training course to see how it works for you."

"Always wondered?" Vo frowned again replying mentally to his EGO unit, "I thought you told me you don't remember anything from your past life. And who are they who see something as you said?"

"Access denied", Doc muttered somewhat reluctantly. "I think I remembered or more likely felt something I shouldn't."

"So they hide something from you too", concluded Vo. "Anyway, let's pass through this "training" and be done with it."

Vo wasn't too fond of fighting virtual enemies with virtual bullets especially because he never could see them as even relatively believable. From the first days he remembered himself, he was able to tell any illusion from reality, be it a dream or hallucination or a holographic projection. Most of the time he could even control his own dreams, being able to fly around the scene to see it from different angles or switching between different dreams like TV channels or forcing himself to wake up if the dream was starting to become disturbing for him. His enhanced senses even added to this trait, giving him the ability to not only determine which is real and which isn't, but see what is there hidden behind the projection as well. But now he was at the lowest level of the bunker and he saw this "training" a good opportunity to explore it. While shooting virtual enemies, he was looking around carefully, trying to see behind the decorations if there could be any trace of decay or rust stains which could evidence that there's a leak or faulty sealing.

Soon his eyes found a door with distinctive rust stains on it. It was carefully hidden behind a texture of a stone wall, but Vo still saw through it. He jumped up to it, having a bunch of virtual skitterlings following him and then smashed them with the buttstock of his shotgun, "accidentally" hitting the door. From the sound he heard and from the kickback he felt from the hit he determined that there was some space behind the door and the door itself was not too strong, at least it was not sealed. He quickly returned to hunting down remaining enemies, pretending not having noticed the door and its properties he had just learned.

After the Monarch fell down, Vo exited the lower level of the bunker and took the steps back to his room. He didn't see any instructions on what to do with his newly acquired weapons and shield, so he just took them with him. A warm dinner was waiting for him in his room, sitting on top of an automated vehicle which was used as a dining table. Vo ate his dinner and let the automated table off then he dropped himself on his bed.

"Doc, how's the results of this training?" He asked more to kill time rather than having any interest in them.

"They tried everything they could to make those projection believable for you", Doc answered with enthusiasm. "But you didn't notice a single change, did you? As I said, it's fascinating."

"So what they plan to do next?" Vo asked already knowing the answer.

"Access denied, sorry", was the reply.

Vo sighed and kept lying on his bed and staring at the ceiling. For the whole time he was there he had not gained any useful information. He never had the answer who was they Doc sometimes was referring to, who his superiors were and what was the purpose of all those "tests" he was put through, how long it would last and what would happen after. His only hope was still only that door at the lower level which was not on the floor plan. He wasn't sure no one noticed his interest for it. It was possible that Doc had already noticed his trick and reported about it to his superiors. If he did, then the only way to escape would be to test the real deadliness of that "deadly force" they promised him for misbehaving. Also, he wasn't sure Shirra managed to escape the facility and wasn't intercepted on her way to their friends. If she failed, then they probably still assumed him dead. To top it all, he still didn't know if his beloved Belle is even alive or not. Last time he had seen her was seemingly long ago back in the City of Freedom. When that sharkgator incident happened, everyone of the team assumed Belle dead or missing and they were going to return back home. Only Vo had set his goal to determine what exactly happened to her and help her return in case she needed it. But he failed. He was following a very slim clue on her whereabouts when he was caught off guard and captured only to be tortured and almost killed. Back then, in his Indogene form, Doc mentioned that all Vo's friends were alive and well. Was he including Belle in that group? Or was the knowledge of Belle's death so obvious that he didn't even feel the need to mention it? Or was he just telling lies without any actual knowledge only to keep him calm? Now the poor EGO unit didn't remember anything from his past life or at least was pretending not to remember. All in all, Vo decided to do his best to get out of this lab. Then, with the help of his friends or without it, he would do his best to return to their base or at least join his friends wherever they are. And then, if his fiends didn't need his immediate help, he would continue on his quest on searching for Belle, the love of his life. If she's alive he would find her. If she's dead… he didn't think of what would he do then, but he was determined he wouldn't harm anyone except her murderers. If he failed on his way to achieve any of those goals he had set for himself, then at least he would be sure he did everything he could. Having his goals set this way, he felt his anxiety gradually went away and he felt into a dreamless sleep.

"It's Lonehart," Iri heard Chase tell the man. "Chase Lonehart. I haven't gone by Tom Cody in two months."

Iri made a mental note to herself to inform Belle and others that within the past two months, Chase had went back to his old name as well as no longer wearing a helmet, with the exception that a situation sprung up that called for it. She took a few steps towards him, folding her arms across her chest.

"As much as I appreciate Ms. Widowmaker's generosity, at this point I'm seeing what files are there. The fact of the matter is that Erika Widowmaker has a valid point on keeping you nearby, in case if I tried to pull some sort of trick. I will admit, to quote the Roman poet, Virgil, and in his native tongue: Quaeque ipse miserrima vidi et quorum pars magna fui."

Confusion crossed the eyes behind the big black rimmed frames of the glasses.  She had to remind herself that most humans were not as extensively versed in other languages from their own planet.  So, she chose to repeat it.

"I saw these terrible things and took great part in them," she translated.  "The fact is that right now I'm running a search to look for anything that can help, which will take at most a couple of hours.  Should I need your assistance, I will let you know. But for now, you are welcome to either sit and wait or you can find another task to fill your time.“

“I’ll wait,” he replied, finding a stool from one of the nearby tables. She knew he was the one who was going to keep an eye on her to make sure she didn’t make sense to just have the security office keeping an eye on hear.

She turned back to Chase to address his question.

"I am here because I believe that there may be an option on how to restore your memories here," Iri told him. She had to take a moment to collect herself in order to admit the next part. "I know that I swore to you that I would find a solution to restore you to how you used to be. However, with the past two months of researching and experimentation, there hasn't been any positive results. What I am doing here, is what you humans refer to as a 'desperate last chance'."

She turned away from him at that moment to look at the holographic interface. She couldn't look him in the eye, feeling ashamed for her failure.

"If I do not find anything here, then that means I have failed you, and there is no way to fix you," she continued. "And if I do find anything here, there is a good chance that the method was made through the cost of a lot of lives, or worse."

Iri felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked over at Chase, finding his hand on her.

"I know you've done nothing but your best," he told her. "I won't think of you any differently if you don't find anything. I'm still here, even if I don't remember who I am. I'm not expecting you to work a miracle. If you find something, then we'll see where it goes, even if it something that was horrible to create. Those lives are gone, and can't be helped."

Iri couldn't understand how Chase, in any version of himself, could forgive her so easily. It was as if the universe had somehow made a living being who couldn't hate her, no matter if she failed to keep a promise. She placed her gloved hand on top of his, lighting squeezing it to assure him she understood.

Lady Christianna sat on the floor of the Vigilant's bridge, her thin chalk white legs curled under her as she played jacks with Lexy, who looked like an adorable five year old girl. As the Casti child cried out gleefully as the ball bounced and she successfully grabbed two jacks before it bounced again, Lady had to remind herself the child was not real, but a hologram of the stratocarrier's AI. Even so, Lady kept an ear open to what was going on behind her, as Belle Starr and Volodja Uljanov sat in the pilot and co-pilot seats respectively as they questioned the EGO psyche calling herself Shirra Wheels stored in the Vigilant's safe harbor.

"Okay, assumuing you are Shirra Wheels" Said Belle with more than a little skepticism in her voice, "Why is your ID different from the one in our records? Why are you here? And finally, convince me you are who you say you are. Vo got me a very special present once, and I never showed it to anyone, wanting it to be our secret love token that only we knew about, but I keep it with me always! You shared his mind at the time he bought it and gave it to me, so you should know what it is! What is it?"

"Time to do the right thing," muttered Volodja and said out loud: "If she is Shirra, then that means only one thing. Vo is alive and if he is alive then we can restore the situation which prevailed here before my entrance. He is and always will be your Prince Charming. Your true love. I got into the picture only because he was gone...temporarily. He was lifting you up to the heights and he made you happy. I would have been dragging you down because of my self destructive tendencies. Luckily that threat is removed now."

Volodja smiled when he remembered his conversation with MOM and her warnings and continued: "Your mother told me that I should make you happy. I guess that right way to make you happy is to step back, so you can be reunited with your true love. You don't have to blame yourself for things that happened between us - those few kisses we shared and a chance to hold your hand. And I am grateful for that opportunity. We didn't go any further from there, so you have been faithful to Vo. You kept loving him even if we all thought he was dead, so you have no reason to feel ashamed of yourself. I guess that my function was to keep you alive, relatively well and safe from other possible temptations until your Prince returns. I always imagined myself to be Odysseus, the great wanderer, but I wasn't. Hopefully I managed to avoid turning into Antinous, son of Eupeithes or Eurymachus who chased after heart of Penelope because of their ill intentions. It was an honour and privilege to serve you, Princess."

Volodja stood up, put his hand to his heart and lowered his head to the bow. That was the right thing to do, he assumed. Getting her Prince Charming back should make Belle happy again. They were meant to be together. As for Volodja...Belle and him opened the door into one possible future opportunity for both of them, but now that door was sealed again. And he can't go back to Sandy either. The bridges were burnt. Actually he regained his former status - he was alone once again. Just like when he arrived. At least he was not left not empty handed. He had a chance to love two most beautiful girls in what was left from the world - Sandra Bell and Belle Starr, enjoy the feeling being close to them and that was more than lot of guys ever get. But he wasn't meant to be an item with Sandy nor Belle.



Volodja rose his head and went silent. He had Sophie with him and his faithful pistol and his sapper shovel, so he was prepared for any surprises, when he takes his walk outside their fortress. And he will return after clearing his mind and easing pain in his heart. Doing the right thing doesn't always make one to feel good about it. But that's how he always did - he took some time to ponder about possible solutions to the problems he faced. And he knew for sure what happened last time when he told about his hidden feelings - Belle loves Vo and she did the right thing by rejecting him. Now it's his turn to act right, step back and leave those two who were meant to be together, alone. Quietly as a shadow he removed himself from Belle's vicinity and closed the bridge door behind him.

"I will help you Belle," said Volodja through an EGO link. "I agree that best thing to do is to help to rescue Vo as a token of my...feelings. You two were an item before I crawled out from my crate and I know that he means a world to you. No charge. No small script on the contract. I won't walk away and leave you into trouble." Volodja was sure that there was no relationship meant to be between Belle and him. Vo was her Prince and and he wasn't. And since Vo was alive, Volodja had no right to think about Belle as a woman. Last time he did it, made Belle to disappear. And Vo disappeared after that. But Belle and Vo never broke up and that means they are still a couple.

But all the trouble he caused back then meant that Volodja has to be for Belle on this mission. He helped Sandy to get back her body, even when he broke her heart and now he can help Belle and Vo together again. He knew how Belle loved him and knew about Vo's feelings for her, so his fight was lost before it could even begin. But if he wanted to remain to be a honourable man and show how much Belle meant to him then he had to help her, pay his debt to her and be with her to the end of the mission. He can't let her act alone or only with few crew members, while he has a quite steady arm and not so steady conscious which is able to cope with guilt after he kills someone.

Instead of a desert walk, he went into his quarters and sighed at memories there. But clenching his teeth helped a bit to concentrate on important things like getting his gear ready. He needed to take only few weapons and armour with him. Rest of his belongings can stay behind. Others can decide what they will do with it - throw it to the dump or keep them as a part of exhibition of his personal museum after he is gone. After he has done his last good deed here, he is free to go. If he is out of picture for good, Sandy will forget him faster (if she hasn't thrown him out of her mind and heart already) and he can't endanger Belle's relationship with Vo. Everyone should be happier after he is not around any more. This place became his home, but maybe is better to be far away and miss home than stay here and complicate lives of the others with his presence. But he will have to wait until he helps Belle to get Vo K'shaa back.