Fallen Grace

[Dane Summers]

Richard closed his eyes, opened them, gave a glance around the room at the people there. Most of them were looking right at him - hoping not to miss the moment of his response. Marek Belka stood as implacable as a greek statue, and just as unreadable. He imagined that the Intelligence Director might be telling him to say yes to this opportunity - after all, hostages would ensure the safety of the operation, and make sure that the Colonial Military wasn't betrayed. That alone was enough to agree. But there was more to it. Maybe in ancient days, such practices were common, but Richard always saw this new age as an enlightened one, where governments dealt with each other in a civil manner. Was that true? Was it ever true?

And then there was more. With his family - himself and his wife - looking at time as it slowly wound its way down. Their children gone. He knew that his wife, Patricia, had suffered an emotional heartbreak over the last year, and while she smiled, he knew there was something broken inside her. For the woman he loved, had been with all these years - it was heartbreaking to see them come to the end like this. Some days he looked in the mirror and wondered why he didn't feel the same. Wondered when it was he stopped recognizing himself in the mirror. Would taking in these children, would it change anything? Make it worse?

Make things better?

Could that even be possible?

"Alright. I give you my word, I'll look after them for you."

He took a deep breath, and sat down in his chair. Leather, high backed, rather nice. His wrenched back was aching. He could still remember the high velocity ejection from the Charon that was tearing itself apart around him, back when he was just a teenager, fresh in the military, just like his brother, David. Could still remember spending six months in the medical bay, and never fully recovering, spending days without sleep because the pain was too much - waking up in cold sweats on the nights he could sleep. His bones had never set right, never healed right, and he was in constant pain day in and day out. Just the cost of life's mileage. He felt every single mile in that moment.

Every single one.

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