Get Me out of Here

[Cat]

Three days before Kyle's message was received
A random bar on Monte Carlo Freeport, Provence System

As Kyle was approaching the table, the vision didn't fade away: a blonde girl with shoulder-length hair, wearing a gray sweater, blue jeans and small white shoes. She looked pale, tired, and there was a large brown medical patch was on one side of her neck. Yet she was smiling nonetheless, and Kyle would recognize that smile anywhere, even when drunk.

It was her, Kiara Garlow, a freighter pilot presumably captured by a criminal from Gallia. Kyle's missing girlfriend... For a moment he thought that his drunken mind was playing games with him, so he didn't head straight for the table, as if afraid that the vision would fade away. That, and Kyle didn't know what to say to the man that the vision was sharing a table and two bottles of beer with.

Clearly in his late-thirties or early-forties, the man had a tired look on his face, and it seemed as if he hadn't shaved his beard for a few days. The two people were talking, and apparently were enjoying the conversation: the vision smiled to the Gaul at least once, and the Gaul seemed caring; at least he replied softly, but Kyle couldn't hear their conversation from the distance.

Pulling himself together, Kyle tried to approach the couple in a way that wouldn't make it evident that he wanted something from the them until he'd stop right by the table. "K... Kiara?" He asked with a pause, unsure if it was actually her. "What are you doing here?" The woman turned her head to look at Kyle curiously, a bottle of beer still in her hand. But it was the Gaul who replied to Kyle's question. "Pardon moi? You must have us confused with someone else. La mademoiselle s'appelle Aurora." Kiara's companion tried to shoo the apparent drunkard away with his hand. "Now, if you don't mind, we were talking about something." The woman joined the conversation a moment later, making a gesture with her bottle towards the Gaul. "Yeah, what he said. You must confuse me with someone. Maybe you had a drink too much?" She definitely had Kiara's voice, and she kept eyeing the newcomer somewhat curiously.

Kyle looked at the couple with disbelief, questioning either what he heard or what he saw. His drunken mind was trying to put it together, yet failed. But once the vision spoke to him in Kiara's voice, he was certain that it was Kiara, and not some random and very Kiara-looking Gallic girl.

"I may be drunk, but I recognize that voice, and the looks. I could question myself until she spoke, but not now. This is definitely Kiara Garlow, in the flesh." He replied to the Gaul's comment, but disregarded his shooing gesture, turning his attention to Kiara instead. "So, 'confuse you with someone', huh? You mean you don't recognize me? The tones in Kyle's voice went from surprised to suspicious, with a hint of jealousy. Or are you pretending not to? First I hear about your shuttle ending up in Tau-37 damaged, so I start searching and assuming the worst, only to find you here, safe and sound, enjoying yourself, and pretending not to recognize me?" Kyle was repeating himself, maybe to try and actually voice his thoughts to make sense of this sudden meeting.

The woman listened to what Kyle said and tilted her head, acting surprised and yet curious. "Kiara?", she asked and looked at the Gaul confusedly for a second, before turning her head towards the stranger again. "No, I'm Aurora. I really don't recognize you. Remy, do you know this guy?" The Gaul looked over to Kiara and shook his head. "Non, petit oiseau. I don't know him. He has probably just had one too many beers." He turned back to Kyle. "I told you, la mademoiselle's name is Aurora, and she says she doesn't know you. Why don't you go back to your table? I'll even buy you a drink, if that makes you stop bothering us."

However, Kyle was already too confused and even angered by the whole situation to give the Gaul any attention. How could Kiara do this to him? Disappear like that without a word, only to show up in Gallia and play all innocent with that old geezer who looked twice her age! No, he wasn't going to make it easy for her. "So, you're going to keep denying it... I see where this is going." He said that with a somewhat sinister smirk, but then he turned his head to the Gaul. "For how long have you known that woman? Whatever she's told you, it's probably a lie. Her real name is Kiara Garlow, and until recently she wouldn't even come near Gallia. I don't know what she's up to, but it can't be anything good, apparently." Triumphant, Kyle turned his face to Kiara again, to see what sort of devastating effect this revelation would make.

The result didn't disappoint him: Kiara's eyes widened in surprise as she heard him, but as soon as she got a hold of herself that turned into a frown. "I don't know who you are, but I suggest you stop making baseless accusations. I've been married to Remy for a year now, and we're happy", she explained sharply and put her beer down with a thump. "What is this, a prank? It's not funny", she continued and shook her head.

As the woman spoke, her companion nodded to affirm her words, still eyeing the man suspiciously. "I'd prefer if you didn't call my wife a liar. Like she said, we've been together for a year and, obviously, she doesn't have a problem with Gallia." He added, clearly getting upset. "Alors, move along. I think I'm not wrong if I say you are troubling both of us."

For a while Kyle just stood there astounded, trying to put together his previous experiences with Kiara and what he learned from the couple. He then turned his face to the woman: "It sure isn't a funny prank, Kiara. Married for a year, huh? So, does your 'husband' know of your trips to Sirius? Saving refugees from Leeds my rear. You must be a really good con artist if you kept meeting with me, staring at the nebula in Magellan, then spending time at Barrier Gate, all the while being married to some old geezer in Gallia."

He then quickly turned to the Gaul, replying in a manner that some people would consider sarcastic. "Sorry man, no offense meant, I'm just really riled up here. It appears both of us have been played. She kept dating me, pretending to be a simple freighter pilot from Rheinland, while she was also married to you. How she managed to combine long stays at Trenton, meeting up with me, and all that is simply beyond me."

Kyle raised his hands, as if giving up, continuing with his preaching and sarcastic "I know, I know, you don't want to trust a drunken stranger. I've got proof. Just go to that Freeport in Tau-29 and ask whoever gives rooms for rent there. We used to go there and have some wiiiiild times. Apparently the girl really loves the view there... You know, the 'staaaars'..." He looked at Kiara with a wide smirk that had a mixture of pain, regret, disillusion, and a bit of contempt on top. At least he had the pleasure of ruining Kiara's alternate life in Gallia to repay for what she's done to him.