Get Me out of Here

[Cat]

15 minutes after Kyle's message was recorded
La Tramontane, l'Ane-class Gallic Brigand transport

With Remy gone, Kyle used this opportunity to take his seat again, leaning backwards and looking around with a seemingly relaxed expression. His thoughts however, were nothing close to his expression. Was it all an act? If not, how much did Kiara actually remember? How much truth had the Gaul told him? All of those questions nudged at Kyle's mind. But minutes later the door opened again, and Kiara stepped inside. "Uh, hey," she said to him before sitting down in front of him, seemingly unsure what to say.

Kyle nodded in turn: "Hey, Kiara." He looked at the door and saw Remy walking in as well. The Gaul sat in the same chair he had been sitting in before. He then kept eyeing Kyle, waiting for him or Kiara to start the conversation. The woman was the first to resume it: "It's Aurora," she corrected Kyle and sighed. "Why have you gotten my name wrong? I don't think I would have lied to anyone about that..." She placed her elbows on the table, resting her chin on her hands, but kept being visibly nervous.

"You were always known as Kiara Garlow to me, and I just find it hard to switch to that new name of yours. Please bear with it?" Kyle leaned forward, his hands and wrists on the table now. "I believe you've got questions." The woman didn't seem to be too annoyed with how Kyle referred to her, although she must've found it strange: "It's no new name... I've had it at least for a year, as Remy confirmed, and why would I change my name? It's my first name, that's all." After a pause she continued: "Who are you, and how do you know me?"

Kyle tilted his head: "Well, as I said, I've known you for the last half a year or so, and you never mentioned anything about Aurora." He pondered on Kiara's question, wondering if he should mention his real name or not. When he first headed to Gallia, he decided to go under Brian Scott, a long lost friend of his. That way Kyle would be sure that even if Kiara mentioned his to whomever who held her hostage, 'Brian' would still be able to go around freely, and might even gain the kidnapper's trust. But seeing as he knew where and with whom Kiara was, he didn't seem the need to hide anymore.

"My name is Kyle." He started explaining patiently. "Kyle Cross. We met in Sirius, in the Magellan system, as I mentioned earlier... I... uhm... tried to intercept your ship the first time we met. You managed to outrun me, but stayed in contact, and even promised to go back... which you did." He shrugged, looking at Remy, unsure how much he knew. "That day we stared at the Barrier nebula and later went to Barrier Gate station, where we... had a date, you might say."

The woman nodded: "Kyle, I see... huh. I must have been quite young then. How long were we together, before I married Remy, like, a year ago?" she asked, apparently disregarding the mention of the 'last half a year or so'. "And you're... jealous, I guess, of Remy? Why else try to convince him I cheated? That is quite... rude, to be honest. Affection can be quite complex, huh, making people do such things..." She tilted her head to the side, trying to remember what else she wanted to say for a few seconds. "But it's strange I gave you a wrong name..."

Kyle shook his head: "You misheard me. You only stopped replying to my messages like a month or two ago. Until then, we were pretty much together." He glanced at Remy briefly, but didn't dwell on it: Kyle indeed felt jealous and didn't quite like the Gaul's selfish attitude. Besides, there were some inconsistencies in what Remy had told him, so Kyle thought that Kiara's input could help: "You're right though. I am jealous... and I don't understand what happened and why you left without saying a word. You never mentioned a 'husband' to me, let alone the name Aurora. The only one who knows why you might've given me a wrong name is you."

"So you are actually accusing me of cheating on him?" she asked and raised her eyebrows. "Why would I do that? I... uh, as you probably heard, can't remember..." She anxiously started scratching over the medical patch on her neck absent-mindedly. "I don't know why I would have given you a wrong name... in fact, I can barely remember you at all. You... seem familiar, but that's it right now." She bit her lip, starting to look more and more distraught over the time they talked. "I spent alot of time in Sirius, that's for sure, but I... didn't expect I would... you know..." She looked at Remy briefly, hoping he wouldn't get angry at her, everything pointed to her having cheated on him over a long time in Sirius, but she just couldn't fathom why. "This makes no sense... that's not who I am!"

Remy looked at the woman and joined the conversation: "Are you sure that's really true? We've been together for a year and you've never looked like the kind of person to do this. You've always seemed happy around here. It's just a bit hard to believe." He then looked at Kyle for a couple of seconds; Kyle couldn't read what that look was supposed to mean, so he just shrugged: "I'm only saying what I know. I can't quite put it together myself, Kiara. I never knew you as Aurora, so I can't know your reasons for doing what you did. Then again, you always seemed like a sensible, yet 'troubleseeking' type." He put an emphasis on the word 'troubleseeking' for a reason. Back in the day Kiara used to call him 'troublemaker', and he could only retort it with 'troubleseeker'. As cheesy as it was, it stuck, and Kyle was wondering if these little things could actually help.

"T-Troubleseeking?" the woman asked, looking confused for a second; it was as if Kyle's remark worked. However, Kiara then looked at Gaul and nodded: "Yeah, I wouldn't do that. I'm happy with Remy, and I have been for the last year." Was she just saying that because she wanted to believe she wasn't as bad as Kyle's testimony made her look? Either way, she continued: "That makes no sense. Are you sure it's me? Maybe I have a sister or something who looks very similar?"

Kyle tilted his head, as the thought was far-fetched: "That was my first thought when I saw you. But then I heard your voice. Someone who looks and sounds like you? I don't think so. And, even if you do have a sister, it'd be one weird coincidence that your sister-person disappears without saying a word to me after months of a relationship, and then suddenly you lose your memory. That, and the fact I seemed familiar rules that theory out, unfortunately."

While saying that, Kyle was trying to figure out a plausible explanation that would help to solve the puzzle. It was as if everyone had been lying to each other to some extent. Remy probably lied to Kyle about Kiara's ship. Kiara might've lied to Remy and Kyle; it would be harder to imagine, but here they were, discussing all this. Kyle himself was lying to Remy (or rather, not sharing all his sources of information), but he wasn't lying to Kiara. Still, he couldn't dwell on it, as he had to continue.

"As much as it's hard for Remy to believe that you cheated him, it's also hard for me to believe that you hadn't told me about a life you had in Gallia. Like, at all; you never told me you had an Aurochs freighter too. All the ships of yours I knew were Sirian, with references to mystical water-related creatures." This could be a good chance to remind Kiara about her past.

It seemed that Kiara had realized there was no hiding from what Kyle was saying: "Yeah, of course that's a stupid idea... but nothing else makes sense..." she muttered, more to herself than anything else. "But I had an Aurochs, yeah. That was where I had my accident, something with alcohol. Sadly the ship got lost in that process. So I had Sirian ships aswell? Water-creatures? Huh... I can't remember any of that."

It was the best time to remind Kiara of the purpose of Kyle's visit: "It doesn't make sense to me either. So all I can count on is you regaining your memories and telling me what it's all about. Even if the truth might hurt." Kyle glanced at Remy again, remembering that his goal was the opposite. "And yeah, all your ships I knew were Sirian. Naiad, a Scimitar-class light fighter, and the Sea Nymph, a Voyager shuttle retrofitted with a living room and a shower. That was the ship I assumed you were piloting when you got missing. At least that's your last ship I heard from." The Gaul simply shook his head, and his expression didn't tell much to Kyle: "Non, she was in her Aurochs, when I found her, not a Voyage, Voyagre or whatever you said it was called. I've never heard of any of those other ships. The only ships I've ever seen Aurora pilot, were the Aurochs and the Courier."

"Sea Nymph? Huh... Silly name. A freighter with living space sounds like me, though, yeah..." The woman replied and nodded slowly: "So I had separate ships for Sirius and Gallia? But that means I had... two lives or something... that can't be true!" Kyle could understand why Kiara was scared at the thought: it implied that she had been a lying manipulator with two separate lives.

"Now you see why I was so confused when I first met you. I didn't know what to think when you started acting as if you had never met me. You just disappeared from my life all of a sudden, and I was assuming the worst. Then I found you and..." Kyle paused, thinking how to end this: "You know the rest. But anyway, separate lives... that's how things seem to be so far... Of course, there is also an option of either of us lying to you." He glanced at Remy, curious how he'd react, although not making it too evident.

Remy seemed slightly irritated: "What do you mean 'either of us'? Why would I lie about something like this? I'd have to be a special kind of twisted to do that..." He replied with an annoyed tone, as Kyle tilted his head: "Look at it from her perspective. She wakes up, remembering... how much of her previous life? She then gets two contradicting stories. They either make her seem like a bad person, or one of the stories isn't true." Kyle paused for a moment, turning his face to Kiara: "It's a good question, actually. How much did you remember when you first woke up?"

"I didn't remember anything until Remy reminded me, but then things started coming back slowly, yeah. Why would he lie? You, on the other hand..." she hesitated for a few seconds, as if thinking about her words: "... Jealousy is a good reason to lie, right?" Great; now she was probably hoping that the whole story about Sirius was a lie. That way she wouldn't be the bad person in the story. A sad smirk appeared on Kyle's face, as he lowered his face for a few moments to come up with the answer: "I suppose you are right. I really have nothing to prove that I'm telling you the truth." He looked at the Brigand, thinking if Remy had had to prove anything to Kiara. He also remembered what the Gaul had asked him to do: hide the truth from Kiara and say an occasional lie. Kyle could expose Remy right here, but it'd be an accusation without proof. So instead he opted for another route.

"Yet I only came here because I was looking for you, Kiara. I went to the ship of a Brigand who could've easily get me killed, considering how we met and what he might think of me. All of that, just to share the memories of the events we had together, so that you could recover your own, and hopefully, tell me if whatever we had was for real. And that's what I'm trying to do."

He paused, thinking what else to say; he needed proof, not just words. That was problematic: Kiara wanted to hide her relationship with Kyle from Forlorn Hope, the organization she had been working for. They never took any photos of them together, and Kyle could only count on keepsakes or items from Kiara's past. One of those items, a pistol, had been taken by Remy's thugs. Bringing it up here now would be unwise. There was a Forlorn tracking device that Kiara had asked Kyle to dispose of, but it was now on Malta. And Kiara's old ship with any of Kyle's gifts was probably still in Sirius.

Eventually he found a straw to grasp at: "We could go to the receptionist on Freeport 6, so that they'd be able to tell you if you showed up there with me. There must be a record about it, and they might remember you, since we went there two times, and you wore quite an outstanding black dress. But Tau-29 that's a long way from here. So for now, I can just offer my story and answers to whatever questions you might have."

That's when the Gaul interfered: "I'm not sure how I'd feel about letting my wife go to Tau-29 with a man we don't know. Not to mention, one that has admitted to be jealous because of this situation..." To Kyle's disappointment, Kiara reluctantly supported him: "Yeah, I can't just go there with you, it's far away, and I don't... know you, at least anymore... for now..." She sighed before continuing: "I suppose in theory I should go with you, visit all the places we've been at, see if it triggers any memories, but... I can't just leave Remy, and.. the last time I headed out on my own for longer times, look where I ended up. I can understand why he wouldn't want me to leave" She started rubbing over the patch on her neck again, but caught herself after a few seconds and put her hands down onto the table again. "And I'm still not feeling too well, I need more time... but I'm alright. I'm fine" She nodded slowly and started staring at the table.

Kyle had to agree: "Fair point, I suppose. Why not take him too? It's not like I'm asking you to come to my ship or anything. Freeport 6 could be a nice place to start, since that's the place where you and Remy met," Kyle made a pause, that gave Remy an opportunity to insert his remark: "Pardon moi, but I don't think I'd feel very comfortable going to Freeport 6 to find out if my wife was cheating on me with the man accompanying us, either. There are bound to be less unpleasant ways for everyone to do it." The Gaul made a sigh to complement his point.

The woman jerked slightly as Kyle spoke again, startled: "What? Oh.... yeah, and we just spent some time away from home, Remy needs to get back to work," she added and shook her head. "There must be an easier way, yes... but I haven't cheated! I wouldn't do that!" she repeated herself, and then went back to staring at the table, her lips moving slightly, as if she was talking, but no words were leaving her mouth.

Kyle shook his head, but not in a denying way, but rather as if he tried to shake off a fly or a thought. "Well, I can't think of anything yet. Too bad we never took photos together, or I would've shown them." Kyle kept thinking what else could evoke Kiara's memories, when an idea came across his mind. "Actually, I can think of another thing you might be curious about. A person rather. Remy mentioned you had nightmares about the woman with blue hair. I met her once, when she came to you." He stopped, hoping that it has piqued Kiara's interest and waiting to see what Remy had to say. That blue-haired woman, Elena, had close ties with Kiara. Maybe reminding her of what happened on Freeport 6 with Kiara's shuttle and a tracking device could help. Remy's comment was something Kyle expected: "I'm not sure that'd be the best thing for Aurora to think about now. Whoever that was, she gave her nightmares these last weeks. She is probably better far away from Aurora's mind."

As if to confirm the Gaul's remark, Kiara visibly recoiled in her chair when Kyle mentioned the woman and shook her head rapidly, erratically: "No, no, I don't want to hear anything. Not about her. Nothing," she said sharply and started scratching over her neck again, not really even noticing she was doing it. "I'm fine... I'm fine...", she said quietly, to herself, and closed her eyes, shaking her head again, trying to clear her mind. "I'm fine...", she said one last time and opened her eyes again, not moving much anymore now. She looked pale, even a little older than before, exhausted, after this.

Seeing Kiara's reaction, Kyle was visibly and audibly worried: "Kiara?! What's wrong?" He jumped up from his chair and leaned forward while his hands were on the table, staring at a sudden change. As she calmed down, Kyle asked more calmly: "And what's that medical patch on your neck?"

In the meantime the Gaul just shook his head: "Sit down. You just made her nervous. I told you that's something she isn't comfortable talking about..." He looked back at the woman: "Are you alright, petit oiseau? If you're feeling tired from this, you can go rest a while. You've had a long and, obviously, confusing day."

Kiara's reaction to Kyle's question suggested that the woman was not alright: "Would you listen to me?!" she asked Kyle in an upset manner. "I'm fine, I said I'm fine!" She squeezed her lips shut and covered her face with her hands afterwards, not saying anything else for a minute. Then she inhaled audibly and shook her head towards Remy: "No, no, I'm fine... it's okay, thanks, Remy."

Kyle sat down on the chair, visibly upset. He exhaled, wiping his face with his left hand and leaving it like that for a while. As Kiara started speaking again, Kyle only muttered: "I'm sorry..." He was now deep in thoughts, trying to figure out what went over his ex-girlfriend after a simple mention of Elena. It was as if she had become another person. At this point Kyle was unsure what more to say, waiting for someone else to say something.

The Gaul, however, seemed somewhat amused, but then he turned to Kiara: "Are you sure you don't need anything? I'm sure this isn't being easy for you." "I'm fine," the woman repeated as she turned her head to Remy and smiled slightly. "Can you get me some more wine?" She grabbed her glass and held it out towards him. The Gaul nodded and got up: "Oui, of course. I left the bottle on one of those cabinets," he went over to the wall with the cabinets and cupboards. "Thanks..." Kiara now looked at Kyle again. "So... is there anything we did, anything that might trigger memories, that... uh, you know, wouldn't upset Remy?"

"I... remember how we discussed the potential layout of your ship, the Voyager shuttle. Not sure if it's important... You wanted to have a window in the roof to be able to look at the sky, so that we could travel to distant places and enjoy the views. Apparently that wasn't an option, so instead you thought of a holo-projector... Oh, and you had a penchant for making risky moves. Like going close to dark matter clouds or wanting to go to a system with the black hole. Does it help?" Kyle asked hopefully. At this point he only had one way to prove his point: quote any random facts and hope that one of them would ring a bell.

That's when the Gaul walked back to the table and poured some of the wine into the woman's glass and his own. "Alors, here's the wine." He then sat back down, commenting on Kyle's story: "Black holes, huh? You almost seem to be describing a completely different person from the one I know..."

Kiara closed her eyes again for a few seconds, then shook her head: "No... not really... I remember a black hole, at least a little... but I visited it with.. some woman. I don't know her... it's.. hazy." She grabbed her glass and drank a good amount of wine. She put the glass down again and leaned back: "So... uh, just.. hypothetically... if I had cheated on Remy for months in Sirius... what would be the reasons for that? Why would I ever do such a thing? I... don't think I'm that type of woman..."

Kyle sighed because he had to repeat himself again; it felt like banging his head against a brick wall: "I wanted to learn that from you, once you regain the memories. As I said, you didn't mention anything about being married. Nor did you call yourself Aurora. So, you just told me you wouldn't mind having a drink with me, and I kind of liked the idea too. So we went to Barrier Gate, shared that drink, you said that there wasn't anything that I could do wrong when I moved in for the kiss..." He sighed, thinking back to it, but then the disappointment of the current situation got to him: "Apparently, it won't ring any bells for you now."

"Do you really have to go into details about what might have happened at that station?" Remy joined the conversation again. "Pardon moi. I didn't mean to interrupt, again. I know you're curious about these things, but it isn't very easy to hear them." Knowing the Gaul's true motivation now, Kyle sighed: "She asked for reasons why she did what she did. I didn't know. To me it just seemed like she wasn't married or didn't have anyone else."

"But... I wouldn't say such a thing, if I was married..." Kiara sighed in a frustrated manner: "If his... stories are hard to listen to for you, you could wait outside, Remy, I'll be fine" She eyed Kyle again; maybe there was still a chance to get through to her old self. "So I... let you kiss me, and we... did more? Met regularly, in Sirius? Did... things?"

Before replying, Kyle looked at Remy, curious how he'd react to Kiara's offer to leave the room. "Perhaps it'd be best if I told it to her in private, Remy. Now that I know that things aren't that simple, I won't push it. I'll just let Kiara... or Aurora... know my version of the story. I think I can recall a lot, and some things you might not want to hear indeed." At least this allowed him to fake some degree of concern for Kiara's alleged 'husband'. As expected, the Gaul shook his head: "Non, I'll hear it. It may not be nice, but I still think I should stay and listen to this, as well." Kiara nodded, before turning her face back to Kyle: "If you say so... Go ahead, then."

"Right... As I was saying, I first met Kiara Garlow in the Magellan system. I was very low on credits, so I was looking for a ship I could intercept. That's when I saw a Voyager shuttle. I gave chase, but the pilot managed to take the tradelane before I could keep up. However, she didn't jump immediately, and actually was keeping up conversation... I don't know for what reason, and frankly, I don't remember how we ended up chatting... Just so we're clear, do you need this level of detail, or just the brief story?"

"Not sure... none of that tells me anything. I... can't remember anything like that." She sighed and grabbed her glass of wine again, taking a sip. "I... don't really know what will trigger my memories, to be honest... so maybe you should just continue, yeah."

"Alright.... "Strangely, she even promised to return for a chat -after- she got to her destination. Apparently, she was transporting people from Leeds to the safety of Liberty. And she did deliver on that promise. I found it strange, because people rarely return for a chat with someone whose ship broadcasts an Outcast IFF. Maybe Kiara just liked pira... Outcasts," Kyle smiled faintly as he said that; it was another thing that only him and Kiara knew about: she was once unsure how to refer to him, and Kyle used every opportunity to remind her of this.

"So, she ended up keeping her distance as I was just staring at the Barrier Nebula, even though I disabled my ship's weapons and shields just to make her feel more secure. Eventually, we ended up on the Barrier Gate, like I told you, and spent a night there. Not the most luxurious room, but it was memorable," Kyle made a pause, so that Kiara (or Aurora) could think back and comment.

The woman seemed to be feeling uncertain about this story, but the quote had some effect. Still, she wasn't sure, and seemed to be surprised by what she had done: "Delivering people to 'the safety of Liberty'? Why would I ever do that? That doesn't sound like me. I... steal things, I shoot at ships, I..." She gave out a held-back sob. "... Even kill people," she finally concluded the sentence, her voice pitched up from the anxiety, and spent the next seconds breathing slowly to calm down. "I'm not your girl, I can't be! You mistook me for someone else. It's the only logical conclusion!" she stated and looked down. Did she really mean it or was she just afraid of Kyle's story being true? That Kyle still couldn't figure out, but Kiara certainly seemed conflicted.

It all played in Remy's favour so far, so the Gaul interfered again: "I agree with her. Are you absolutely sure you're not mistaking her for someone else? You said you haven't seen this 'Kiara' for a while, maybe they just look a little similar and you're a bit confused? Very little of what you are describing seems like Aurora."

Kyle shook his head: "I'm certain. 'Aurora' looks like Kiara, sounds like Kiara, and..." He made a cough, as he was about to say that she kissed like Kiara too. "Nevermind, I'm just certain. And as I said earlier, it's pretty weird thing when I look at it from my angle: my girlfriend disappears, and suddenly a person who looks and sounds exactly like her shows up in Gallia with a recent amnesia, and apparently married to a person my girlfriend had never mentioned."

"Mmh... of course, but then we're running out of explanations..." The woman said and sighed. "So you're supposedly my pira... Outcast," she said and frowned confusedly afterwards, as if unsure why she had put it that way. She continued after a short delay: "And supposedly while doing whatever I was doing for Remy or on my own in Sirius, I met you and just fell for you within a day? That's... hard to believe."

Kyle smiled at her 'pira... Outcasts' thing, it felt almost like that day he had met her. Still, he couldn't offer any proof or explanation, except for reiterating what he had already told her: "You've said that my story is hard to believe a few times already. I'm just telling you how it was from my angle."

"While I was waiting for Kiara to return to Magellan, I found a nice view on the Barrier. When you're right outside the nebula, you see it going farther and farther until a wall of ice and water becomes a path in the distance. Kiara caught me while I was staring at that, and apparently she was into starscapes too. Maybe that brought us together. So, we ended up on Barrier Gate, I made her a cocktail of martini, and orange juice, and things kind of went on." Kyle shrugged, looking at Remy and then at 'Aurora' again.

The Gaul didn't seem to be enjoying the poetics: "I don't mean to be rude, but do you really have to mention details like 'a wall of ice and water becomes a path'? It's been a long day..." He took a sip from his glass and looked back at Aurora. "Is this really worth it? We've been at this for quite a while now and very little of what he said seems to be helping you with your memory..." He paused for a bit to take another sip. "How do we know this is all true? So far it's been seeming like a waste..."

The woman seemed rather emotionless or disconnected, but she stepped in: "I don't remember any of that... but there is too much in what he says that's accurate. I do love staring at the stars, for example..." She gulped, despite that state still feeling the consequences of what this meant. "So that's it, then? I'm..." She blinked a few times, having trouble saying it. "I'm a.. lying, cheating ***** of a wife... leading two lifes at the same time, with two men?! Maybe it's good I don't remember... if I was such a... despicable person..." She stated and looked down, seemingly on the verge of crying.

Kyle couldn't blame her: such revelations about one's own life could have quite an impact. He lowered his head, thinking what Kiara's attitude implied. Apparently she now thought of herself just as Kyle had thought of her when he had seen her in that bar with that old geezer for the old time and realized that the man who looked twice Kiara's age was her husband.

Yet the woman who sat in front of him now was clearly embarrassed and even fightened by her actions. If she had this attitude to cheating, could she have actually done it? And if she was just playing a part, she was so good at it that it didn't matter whether it was real... Or maybe those were just Kyle's feelings for Kiara that got in the way of his judgement.

Either way, Kyle felt compelled to encourage his girlfriend somehow: "None of us knows what's what by now. And the only place where we all can figure it out is Tau-29." Kyle paused, unsure if the idea would get any approval this time. Remy had shot it down, but Remy clearly was looking out for himself. "If it counts for something, the Kiara I knew didn't seem like the shoot-at-ships or steal-things type to me. And if it weren't for today, I'd never have any reason to doubt her. She was doing risky and questionable things at times, but she had a moral compass of sorts. That's why she'd never date a slaver or support what the Outcasts do, for example."

Kyle leaned forward a little before continuing: "If you feel the way you feel about it now, it might be that you wouldn't have it in you to actually lead two lives. But casting your memories aside means you won't be able to learn from them and figure out what you, Remy, or myself did wrong." He looked at the woman now, ignoring Remy and awaiting some sort of response.

Remy too interfered in the conversation; it would almost surprise Kyle, if it weren't for the fact that he was once again trying to make Kiara discard the whole story: "You're not a despicable person. Don't forget that there is no way to know if this is all true." The Gaul glanced at Kyle briefly and continued: "So far, part of what he has said is a bit easy to claim. Many people like watching the stars. It's like saying that you are this Kiara person because you both like music... " He paused to take another sip from the wine, but then addressed to Kyle: "Why are you insisting soo much about Tau 29, anyway? Even Aurora has said there are bound to be other ways around it. There's no need for you to keep insisting on going to that Freeport, every three minutes..."

Having the only real evidence being discarded like that again wasn't in Kyle's plans, so he decided to go on the offensive again, hinting at Remy's earlier demands not to tell Kiara too much: "And why are you constantly trying to discard the only proof I can think of? Judging from our bar meeting and your comments, so far you only wanted her to stay out of any of this, including this whole meeting, or any conversation. It might be just me, but it sounds as if you don't want her to remember something." Kyle tried to maintain control of himself, but inside he smirked triumphantly: he looked forward to see how the old geezer would try to beat that card.

To top it off, Kiara also seemed to have become supportive of the idea: "But it's true, Remy, much of what he says either seems familiar, like most lost things, or fits too well onto my personality to be a coincidence..." She emptied her glass of wine: "I'm not sure what to think... none of this makes sense! Who am I?!" her voice sounded frightened and confused. "What am I to do with this? I... still need to go to Sirius, Remy, as we agreed earlier, to visit places I know to get back my memories. Uh... wouldn't this be a good chance to do that?"

Apparently, Remy didn't have any way to beat that card, so he sighed and shrugged: "Maybe, I don't really know. You have to understand my skepticism. I don't think it's that strange that I don't want us to visit that particular place, just to find out if you were cheating on me or not..." Kyle couldn't let the opportunity slip, so he pushed on: "Yeah, I know. But you have to understand that it's important for all of us. Freeport 6 was a special place for me and Kiara Garlow as well. If 'Aurora' recovers her memories there, we'll have it all settled. If she tells me... to get lost after that, so be it." That seemed like a good concession; Kyle was certain that in Sirius he'd be able to provide solid proof to back up his claims.

"Sounds fair, we should do something like that, yeah... I have to know, Remy. Can we maybe plan a trip, either me alone, or with you?" she asked Remy pleadingly. "I can understand if you're busy for now, it's not -that- important to do it now, but... soon?" The Gaul had to give in: "Fine, when I have some more time we can go." He sighed and emptied his glass: "When that happens can we at least go alone? I'd rather we go just the two of us, then with him..."

The old geezer was smart. If he were to go with Kiara alone, who'd stop him from influencing her? Luckily, Kyle had a way to counter that: "And how are you going to find the right receptionist and figure out if I was actually there, visiting that place with Kiara?" Kyle's heart sang when Kiara took his side again: "No, Remy, he has to go with me, or with us. If you want to come with me, you have to endure that..." The woman's reply was stern, and she crossed her arms on her chest. "No way around that, sorry... it's as hard for me as it is for you, but I just have to know."

The Gaul sighed, apparently because he had to make concessions again: "Alors... I'll try to do it. You'll have to wait a while, though. After the trip we took, I won't be able to leave Gallia like that for a little while." The woman looked disappointed, but she still nodded: "Yeah, I understand that. Then please, put it into your schedule, in the near future, okay?" she asked the Gaul, looking even more pleading, this seemed very important to her.

Remy's attempt to bide his time didn't matter to Kyle; it was still small victory, so he didn't mind: "That's ok. As long as we get it sorted out in the end. If she regains her memories and tells me that whatever we had was a mistake..." He sighed, clearly reluctant to say the next part, as evident by his changed expression. "...Then I won't stand in your way. So, what happens until then?" It was a concession that he had to make, to prove that his intentions were genuine too.

"Oui, of course. I'll try to get it done." He reached for the bottle on the table and filled his glass again. He then signaled to the woman, asking if she wanted more: "Is there anything else you two need to talk about? I'm getting fairly tired." Kyle looked at the Gaul, and then at his girlfriend: "If you have any more questions, I can answer them. Other than that..." he paused, realizing that he had achieved a lot already and that he shouldn't overstay his welcome: "Maybe it's best to wait until we check out the Freeport. That way you might at least remember some more things, and my story would help you to fill in the blanks better."

Kiara concurred: "I think it's enough... can we stay in contact somehow? I can message you when I have questions, and when Remy is ready for us to go to that Freeport. Other than that I think we can end it here, for now." Kyle nodded: "Sure. I'll contact you via the Neural Net, probably a holo-message." He stood up, looking first at Kiara, but then at Remy. He hadn't forgotten the old geezer's threats, but the fact that he was supposed to contact Kiara later gave him some confidence that the Gaul wouldn't try to dispose of him right away. "I assume that's it then. Could you get me back to Monte Carlo Freeport, where your guys picked me up?"

Remy nodded and got up as well: "Sure, we can drop you there. Did they take anything from you when they frisked you?" As he finished talking, he turned to the woman: "If you want, you can go rest in the room while I take care of him, since we are already done with this." The woman nodded and stood up. She walked over to Remy, to get on her toes and try to give him a brief kiss: "Thanks, Remy, I'm sorry I had to push you like this... I'll make it up to you, okay?"

The whole scene was revolting to Kyle on so many levels. Not only was it 'his girlfriend' that was kissing that guy, but the old geezer looked twice her age! What's worse, she seemed to be concerned with the Gaul's feelings and completely disregarded Kyle's when she promised to 'make it up' to the Gaul. Kyle didn't want to imagine what she implied, so he had to put all his strength into saving face and remaining calm as the woman turned back towards him and acted as if nothing happened: "I'll await your message, Outcast. Hopefully it won't be long until we can go."

Kyle thought for a bit, then decided to reply to Remy first, simply nodding to the woman's remark: "Yeah, they took a laser pistol that Kiara had given to me, and my stun baton." He tilted his head as he looked at the Gaul: "I wasn't quite sure how it would go, so I brought some protection. I know you'll understand. So, I'd rather get that stuff once I'm on the Freeport." With that Kyle turned towards the door and started walking, as he saw Remy leaning over to kiss Kiara in turn. Still, he couldn't but hear the Gaul's voice: "It's alright, just don't forget you said you'll be making up for it." He then noticed Kyle walking away: "Wait for me. I assume you want to go fetch that pistol of yours."

The comment forced Kyle to stop and make a half-turn around: "Sure thing. I thought I'd get it by the exit. But if it's somewhere else, lead the way." Kyle heard Kiara joining the conversation again: "I'll wait in our quarters, Remy" The woman winked to the Gaul. "I think we earned some time off after this, just the time until we're back home, right? Let's... Have our special evening, okay? You have some.. uh, sleeping medicine? I need the sleep" She glanced at Kyle again, but then focused on Remy, smiling.

That was too much for Kyle, he couldn't take it anymore. It felt as if the woman had been mocking him in front of her husband... Kyle couldn't remember the time he felt worse; even ending up on Malta as a captive wasn't as traumatic, at least emotionally. He turned away and walked out of the room. He wouldn't hear any more of 'this', and he was glad that nobody in the room could see his pained expression.