PREVIEW

I, Kerensky - Season Two

Solaris City, Solaris VII,
Freedom Theater, Lyran Alliance,
September 19, 3066

As adrenaline jumped into my head, I rushed to the room and sprung the door open. I did not believe my eyes. She did not change at all. Not a bit, except a few pounds thinner than what I remembered.

"Evee?" I croaked.

She smiled. "That's not a proper greeting for an old friend, Parker. You still need to learn a lot about us, Spheroids."

Not even her with had changed. I felt my head exploded with sensations. All the good memories I spent with her came back in a flash, making me dizzy. I wanted to lunge at her and kiss those sweet lips, letting her how miserable my life was without her. But I restrained myself. I was the one that wanted this separation, so I had to keep my dignity intact. I walked toward her, grabbed her hand and kissed her palm. "I am sorry, I have no manner. Welcome to Solaris."

"Thanks," she hugged me in response. Not a ravenous hug she used to give me, just a simple but warm hug. "It's good to see you. Oh, I missed you."

"I missed you too," I wrapped my arms around her. "This is unexpected. What are you doing here?"

"I wanna watch," she pushed me gently. "You're fighting in Grand Championship within a week, and I've never been to a game before. I thought it would be nice to watch the championship live, while my favorite warrior is in the field. I've put some money on your name, you know."

"You are crazy," I could not help but to chuckle. "You bet on me?"

"Everybody does. I went to the betting stand and asked the cashier if you are a good name to bet. You know what they told me? 'Have you been living under a rock, Sister? Parker is the main man!'"

"I never knew this side of you," I cringed. "I never knew you are this… impulsive."

"It's not about the money, Parker. It's about the festivities. The betting craze, the talks, the food, the anticipation… these people have no life but this game, and it's fun to get lost in the crowd sometimes. I wish you could feel what I feel."

We both smiled. I forgot to close the door, so people started peeking and whispering. "Speaking of festivities," I grabbed Evee's hand, "let me show you things you might be interested in."

So I towed Evee through the crowd, and hailed a taxi. I asked the cabman to bring us to go around Solaris City, enjoying the glamorous side of the arenas. We drove past the Liao's Jungle Arena, the Marik Tower, and the Steiner Coliseum. I asked the cab to stop and wait while I brought Evee inside. The guards let us into the arena with a couple of my signatures. I brought Evee to the center of the arena, surrounded by Romanesque structures and mech debris. It was the first time for me to enter the Coliseum on foot, so the sensation was electric. But for Evee, it was more than she could handle.

"Oh my," she gasped. "Oh my God. I can't believe I'm standing here. Holy crap, I don't believe this!"

"Have you bought your ticket?" I replied. "I can get you a VIP pass. I can give you the most coveted seat in this entire place that will give you first-class view over the arena. You can sell your ticket at the black market. The price can go three times higher than the price at the stand, which I assume had been closed by now."

She gave me a devious smile. "I stand corrected. You are more Spheroid than I am."

"I take that as a compliment," I grabbed her hand. "Come on, there are more for you to see."

We got back to the taxi and drove past several places, until we reached Valhalla Club. I paid the taxi and asked him to pick us up in 2 hours. The ambience inside was sultry, and it made Evee relaxed a bit. I ordered a table, and some mechwarriors came and talked to me. I introduced Evee, which was utterly flabbergasted to shake hands with big names of Solaris. The server came, and I ordered the club's specialty for Evee, while I ordered a simple steak for me. While waiting, the server brought us a light beverage.

"You impressed me, Parker," Evee said after sipping the drink. "You've made a name for yourself, and life finally treats you well."

"I manage," I said. "I do not come here often. You know me, I do not like publicity. But like you said, it is nice to get lost in the crowd once in a while. For Solaris people, image is everything. The highest-paying job in Solaris is mechwarrior, but the best job is in the media. You can live a long happy life by making someone's life miserable, and I am not talking about combat."

"They must've made millions out of you, then," Evee leaned on her chair. "So is that what you want to do after fighting? Being a newsman?"

"Perhaps," I sighed. "But journalistic was never my forte. I was designed to fight. I was good in the field, inside a mech. Besides," I paused, making sure nobody heard our conversation. "The media was the forefront of a mask everybody has to wear, here at Solaris. Nothing you see here are real.

"Solaris is a game world. Everything you see is a game. And like any other games, some people do not like playing fair. Sometimes pilots reach the top because they are tied to some big names, the decision makers inside Solaris. Sometimes you do not have to be a good pilot to climb up the ladder of success. You just have to know somebody that can help you do it. And the worse part: it is no charity. You have to pay for the service, and it hurts you more than your bank account. It hurts your dignity."

I wanted to tell her about the scandal, but I did not want to ruin her mood. Still, I had to tell her how I felt. "I am sick of this life, Evee. I am sick of the mask that I have to wear everyday, and I am sick of the masks that everybody wears in this place. I wish I could 'get lost in the crowd' and enjoy this lifestyle, but I cannot. Perhaps the Clan in me still dominates the way I think."

Evee did not responded. Just then, the food arrived. It gave me some time to get my composure as she marveled the taste of the food. I had lost my appetite, so I just played with my food, waiting for her to get out of her trance. It was entertaining, watching her moaning with a mouthful of food, and the scene took away my frustration a bit.

"Enough about me," I said when she paused eating. "I never heard anything from you the past 4 years. How are you? Is life treating you well?"

"I can't complain," she smiled. "I am the Chief of Security of House MacGregor in New St. Andrews, the position that my father held until he died."

"Congratulations," I showed my sympathy.

"Thanks. I also brought the boy and the girl with me. You met them, they went to Wotan with me. Together we made the Ridinghood Cavaliers, my personal unit. I dedicated the unit to House MacGregor and rebuilt it into a battalion-sized unit. Additionally, three ex-Kuritans joined my force. These Kuritans provided invaluable skills to train the locals. So I have a company of battlemech, a company of armor, and a company of infantry, all under my command. The other families on New St. Andrews don't have organized forces, so we simply become the strongest family in the planet."

"Impressive!" I smiled. "That is quite an accomplishment. You should be proud of yourself."

"I am, indeed," she smiled back before putting the last bit of food into her mouth. "We are still growing in numbers. My dream is to command an RCT. So we are still recruiting, and we still need real warriors to teach the local about piloting, and mostly, strategy. The MacGregor family tries to provide me with money, but it's not comparable to – say – Solaris earnings."

I saw where she was heading. "Evee, what are you saying?"

She looked me in the eye. "I need you in my unit."

There. I knew she was hiding something. "I know you are not here to watch the game. I know you are not here to gamble. I am flattered, Evee, that you went the distance to ask this personally. But have you forgotten about what we went through? Have you forgotten who I was and what I am capable of? I will only bring death to your home."

Evee just smiled, which took me by surprise. She asked the waitress to turn up the volume of the TV, broadcasting the interview with Duncan Fisher just several hours ago. People quickly recognized me, but I quickly waved my hand, asking for privacy.

"You can't do anything quietly. Your face is all over the media, Parker," she explained with dead-cold composure. "I can hear your maneuver as far back as New St. Andrews. I have been watching your games for four years, in my bedroom. Now if I see you and Red Baron from my bedroom, don't you think people from Strana Mechty can see you too? And how many Clanners came to Solaris to kill you since you rose to stardom?"

"N-Nobody," I replied.

"I don't come to ask you to go home with me," she leaned forward. "I come for your promise. You said that if you were sure that you posed no more danger to me, you would come with me. Now is the time. You will not harm me in any way, Parker."

"You sure? How can you?" I panicked. "I made a hundred more enemies that want me dead here!"

"They don't care if you're dead or alive," she replied. "They just want you out of their way. How many times did they try to kill you outside the arena? How many times did they bust into your place and snatch you against your will? No, Parker, they don't care about you. They only care about their money and fame, and as long as you don't stand in their way, they'll leave you alone.

"Money-wise, my offer is nothing compares to what you can get here. You will be living in a secluded place, in the middle of nowhere, far from the glimmering hurrahs of spectators that revere you like a god. I offer only me. You own me. I know you are afraid if there are others like Jerome Helmer, but I have a trigger-happy battalion behind me. Nothing can hurt me at New St. Andrews."

I smiled at her comment. "What if I do not survive the Grand Championship?"

Her eyes lost their shimmer. "Then I guess I can't compete with what Solaris offer you."

"Come on," I sighed. "You know money and fame have never been an issue when it comes to you."

"I know," she mumbled. "But battle is. I can't compete with battle because it is you. You're not here for the money and fame. You're here because you are home, among explosions and blood and death. I am sorry, Parker, I didn't learn from the past. I've been naïve for trying to make you something that you're not."

I could only stare at her eyes.

She finished her meal, winked at the fact that I did not even touch mine, then tapped my arm, feigning a heavy smile. "I'm glad I'll be watching you live on the biggest battle of your life. Hell, I'm glad we met today. I wish you the best, my dear warrior. Know that whatever you do, whatever happens, I will always be with you." She kissed my forehead, then walked out of Valhalla Club.

I sat there, dumbfounded. There she was again, trying to own me and disregarding all the logic. She knew I was facing a battle I might not win. She knew I was in the throes of death. Yet she asked me this irrational request as if I had all the might to grant her wish. How could she overlook the fact that I could be slain in the Grand Championship within a week? She was not that blind.

Blind?

As I watched her back slowly faded away in the night of Solaris City, I was wondering if it was I who was blind. I never understood her, and I never made an attempt to understand her. She was a freeborn, a Spheroid who was brought to maturity in a very different way from mine. Her wisdom was my stupidity, and my logic her imprudence. As long as I basked in the pride of a Clansman's logic, we would always be strangers, no matter how much we loved each other.

I felt like I was standing on a crossroad.

I, Kerensky – Season Two

Spring 2007