A fateful reunion

[Ramke]

And there it was. The question she was sure was going to be asked, one she didn't want to answer at all. Nevertheless, it was too late to back out now, and catching his gaze made her start speaking without thinking.

"I'm sure you've noticed when I went missing.. roughly two years ago. Just when we were starting to raid Southampton before the push, I was on an operation to harass the traffic there and take out patrols." she went quiet for a bit, reminiscing what happened next.

"I've encountered one of the Bretonians' best pilots which nearly took me out, but the very last second I've managed to take him out with a Veuglaire shot. I wanted to call it a day and return to Leeds, but on the way near Southampton I've come across something that I had to chase further into the system, towards the sun. Later I realised it was some sort of glowing alien that turned its guns on me as soon as I was away from traffic." Ambre explained as she put her hands down on the table - she was clearly shaken by this experience.

"I.. had no chance against it, felt like it was messing with my head as I fought it. My guns literally flew off the wings when it shot me, so I had no option left but to try and escape. Just as my ship was about to tear itself in half from its shots, my countermeasures worked and I ended up in cruise. I was a second away from death, completely exhausted, the engine overheating, leaking coolant and the wings on fire. My luck didn't end there - just as I was about to reach the jump hole back to Leeds, a Liberty Navy patrol disrupted me in that state.. I didn't have a choice. The Cougar's reactor blew up when they tried to escort me towards their battleship." she answered dejectedly. She didn't look at Augustin in the eyes, fully expecting him to soon reinforce her thoughts that she failed completely.

"I somehow survived, although with major burns, and had to live in Bretonian custody until the war ended. They didn't treat me well after what I've done. I only had the opportunity to escape when the Council wanted to take custody of me, probably to sent me to the guillotine for 'war crimes'."

It was best for her to lie about what happened after, just to avoid upsetting him. If anyone had heard that she worked for what turned out to be Bretonians, especially on this planet, she'd probably be dead or rotting in a cell within hours. And just like that, her appetite was lost.

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