All of my characters are tied together by a shared childhood on Manhattan. All of them are the children of parents who'd left their homeworld, hence the name they gave themselves. (OK, the "brat" part was other people's idea, but they adopted it with some pride.)
This is a "story thread", if you will, and I'd appreciate it if any comments were made via PM so as not to disrupt any ::ahem:: narrative flow that might exist.
The comm chimed insistently, dragging my attention away from Scheherazade's refit reports. I pulled my glasses off and rubbed my eyes before hitting the accept button. The LNS logo dissolved and was replaced by a face I hadn't seen in years. There was a more than a touch of gray in her honey brown hair and it was considerably shorter than when I'd last seen her. Well, mine was grayer and shorter as well. But her face was still strong and the laugh lines around her mouth suited her.
"Bonsoir, Cher." And that Gallic accent that even twenty years on Manhattan had failed to blunt. Still, I can't say a word myself without betraying my Bretonian childhood.
"Genevieve! How long has it been?" As if I'd had to ask. What was it - yesterday - that I was thinking about our old gang?
"Too long. For all of us." There was hesitation in her voice. As if the years made her question the friendship we'd shared. "Have you kept in touch with JD?" She asked.
Another name. Another face from the past. For a moment everything seemed a bit unreal, as if the world had turned suddenly, taking a new direction.
"Not really." I said, and shrugged. "Her name's crossed my desk a few times when she's passed through New York, but we haven't spoken since Dad died."
"Oh, Cher, I'm sorry. I didn't know." The comm screens resolution wasn't that good, but she had that expression on her face that said tears might be coming.
"Five years ago," I said, "JD was in-system then and I don't think she left his bedside the whole time. I tried to find you. All of you, but..." Another uncomfortable silence. Of all the old gang only JD and I were there at the end, although Miharu made it back in time for the funeral.
"And whose fault is it, Cher, that we all went our own ways after school? Eh?" She shrugged.
She was right. We'd tried hard, but everyone seemed determined to go in a different direction. I stayed in Liberty, and was the 'stable point', if you will, of our little group, but there never seemed to be a time when we were all in Liberty at the same time and so we'd stopped trying. And then, well, somewhere along the line we stopped talking.
"Why are you looking for JD?" I asked.
"I have a contract to take some executive types out to the Omegas on a "oversight tour". She began, and I could see her distaste for them. "More of an excuse to party, if you ask me. The fee's more than enough to compensate for their unpleasant company, but you know how things are out there. Elysium's Gate is a strong ship, but I was hoping for an escort. Molly's coming along to mine samples for them and her Spatial is a tough nut for pirates to crack, but more and more we're seeing multiple ships pirating together. I was hoping I could hire JD."
"I'm sure she could use the money. The last I heard she'd gotten her ship blown out from under her."
Genevieve's eyes widened and she shook her head.. "Some one got JD? That must've been one tough hombre."
"Half a dozen, actually. Some new Rogue group has been kicking it up in New York and Colorado." I shrugged. "The Colorado picket ships got there fast enough to chase the bastards off before they could pick up her escape pod, but you know how she is - she would never back down, regardless of the odds."
"I see," she said. "Well, I need someone and I hate to hire someone I don't personally know."
"How about Mila? She's been prospecting out in the Omegas lately. In fact her knowledge of the area might be useful to your executive types."
I pulled up my contacts list, then paused. She didn't seem happy with the idea. "Genevieve?"
"Eh? Oh, sorry. No, Mila will do fine. And two mining ships may well speed things up."
"I'm sending her comm code to you now. Say Hi to her for me, would you?"
"Of course, Cher. Take care." She smiled as she shook her finger at me. "And try and call once in a while."
"You too. I'd rather not wait another ten years." I said. "I'd say come visit, but I'm stuck in a secure shipyard while Scheherazade's getting upgraded."
The silence filled up with all the things unsaid. "We should all get together some time," was the most obvious, but it seemed the most unlikely. Still, it should be said.
"We should all get together some time."
"How about New Years?" She said, and a shiver of anticipation ran through me as I realized she was serious.
"Yeah. That would be great." And suddenly I realized I was serious. "I'll let Miharu know on her next run through New York. I'm sure she can arrange to be ... where? Manhattan?"
"Bon!" And she laughed. "I'll leave it to you to warn our old "friends" on the police force." Suddenly she was serious again. "And, Cher? Can you try to find JD? I'm worried about her."
"I'll try. I know some people in the Guild. Maybe they know where she's gotten to."
"Merci. I'll call you when this contract is done. Thanks for Mila's codes. Adieu, Cher."
"Bye."
And it was over, just like that. But the world *was* on a new course. I could feel it. Our old gang was getting back together and something big was coming.
