Back in Katrina's Office...

  Once John and the girl, Niki, departed the station, Katrina returned to her office. Two women were waiting for her outside of it and followed her in without a word. They sat down around her desk and awaited her to begin speaking. She ignored them for a moment and started reviewing some paperwork on her computer, but that only required a quarter of her Parallel Mind impnt's processing power to handle. Another part of her mind was working on reviewing the discussion she just had with her mercenary captain, while the remaining half focused on the two women in front of her. She sighed yet again.

  If I only had more hands, I could get a lot more work done.

  "So what do you think?" She asked the two women, breaking the silence in the room.

  “Ma’am, John’s responses showed no indication that he is of a Royal or Noble bloodline. Everything seems to indicate he is just concerned for that poor girl's welfare. Security footage shows they only had two interactions before the altercation, though he may not be entirely aware of the first interaction he had with her." The first woman said. She was Evelin, the second-in-command of her squadron, well, her former squadron.

  "The medical scans I took show no signs of him trying to hide anything, either. His responses were genuine, his confusion and anger about our systems were real. The girl was exactly as she seemed, just a young woman who had several tragedies happen in her life, ending up becoming an IDS through no fault of her own. I am 98% certain she is not a pnt to get close to the INP's new merc to find out inside information from us." The other woman, Casandra, said. She was Katrina's security specialist assigned to protect her by her father. She continued to speak.

  "However, back to Mr Wayne. When he mentioned that time seemed to slow down, I took a deeper look at the impnts in his head and well... I sent you the list of what he has plugged in there. He has more gear than even you do, my Lady. I sent a detailed list to your Link that you can review at your leisure. Suffice to say, he might not remember he is a Royal, but everything that is plugged in there is all cutting-edge tech and would cost as much as Parrax's yearly GDP. He had to be somebody important before coming here."

  "So do you believe him when he says he lost his memories?" Katrina asked, browsing the list of a dozen impnts that were in John's head. There were several fairly common ones, but a couple made her wonder just who this man was.

  And that one... oh my... that could be enjoyable... and a bit dangerous.

  "I cannot say for certain without putting him in an A-Css Auto-Doc, but he did likely lose his memories somehow. If you can find a reason to bring him into the First Ring's medical centre, we can scan him and find out what exactly he knows." Casandra said, still reviewing all the data on her Link.

  Katrina paused and thought about that for a moment. If she did that, and he regained his memories, she may end up losing this powerful merc as he would probably return to wherever he came from, leaving her to deal with the pirates and other threats here without his ship's support. However, if she didn't, then she could continue to use him for support while he was under contract with the INP.

  She sighed. "Unless you think it is necessary to have it done, I will just offer him the choice the next time we meet. If he doesn't want to, I won't push it. If he is a royal who was truly lost in a hyperdrive accident, then someone is bound to start enquiring about him eventually. I will speak with my father about him. He is in a better position to know if one of the other nations' royals has been lost than I am, stuck all the way out here on the edge of our territory. For all we know, he could be from the far Eastern edge of the Empire, and we wouldn't hear any information about him for months."

  "It just seems so peculiar, my Lady. It has been decades since the st hyperdrive accident occurred, and I have never heard of memory loss as a side effect of a misjump." Evelin said, adding her own concerns to the conversation.

  "Same. Still, continue to monitor him at any rate. You will be working closely with him in the coming months as your squadron will be attached to the Phoenix Hawk when we deploy. If you have any concerns, bring them to me immediately." Katrina said. She dismissed the two women shortly afterwards, then put the mercenary out of her mind. She had a lot to do, and focusing on John's situation was not at the top of the list at this time.

  Still, one of her parallel minds kept drifting to the list of his impnts, and the thoughts of having an actual date with the man made her cheeks begin to blush.

  Damn it, girl, stop it. You are going to turn yourself into a wanton whore with those thoughts.

  Still, a fantasy romance built in the back of her mind, of her and a runaway royal escaping the confines of noble society to change their destiny, the pair of them beginning a new life amongst the stars. She had been training to become a ruler for over twenty years now, ever since she was five years old. It was intense, to the point of literally needing to have impnts installed in her head to be able to handle all the responsibilities of governing over fifty star systems. For someone like her, the thought of escaping this hell was almost intoxicating.

  In the INP Penal Office

  "You have got to be kidding me! That is insane!" John said to the man sitting across from him and Niki. He looked like he could be the twin brother of Agent Swind Ling from the INP Port Authority Office, though much less greasy.

  "I'm sorry, but that is what the paperwork says it will cost to purchase Miss Hanson's debt. Trust me, you are not the only one shocked in this room." The man, Agent Bezr, said. They were reviewing the documents yet again. He even called a supervisor to check that these were indeed the correct figures.

  "Can you break the cost down for me then? This figure... is quite excessive." John asked the man. Niki had pced her hand in his, but he refused to look at her at this moment.

  "Of course, here." He said, transferring a file over to John's link. "As you can see, it is 220000 GSC for the damages to the station after the assets of the estate were liquidated. 180000 GSC for the Freedom of Movement Certificate, which is Miss Hanson's approximate lifetime taxes. Finally, 50000 GSC for legal and processing fees. To be honest with you, John, the cost of the damages is actually much greater than that amount, but the total was reduced significantly, as the actual amount a single person employed at a normal job would be unable to pay off in their lifetime. The taxes are based on forty years at 12.5% of a basic sary. As you work in space, no further taxes will be charged on her income unless she moves back to a station or a pnet's surface permanently. "

  These numbers are insane. 450000 GSC? Tanya told me that an engineer makes around 6000 GSC a month. Using that number, it would take over six years to pay back if you didn't spend a dime of it.

  "And there is no way to negotiate the amount?" He asked.

  "I am afraid not, at least in a timely fashion. This office does not control the price; that would be the courts, which, if you tried to challenge it, would also drive the cost up again for legal fees." Agent Bezler said, looking at them sadly.

  "I see," John replied, contempting his next move.

  "Well, that's all I'm afraid. If there is nothing further, I'll leave you two. I have other work I need to attend to?" The agent said, standing up.

  "What? No, it’s fine. Go ahead and process it." John said, fully understanding that the man didn't think he would be willing to spend the equivalent of 2 million USD on a random girl with no experience or training in anything spaceship-reted. That conversion didn't quite work as prices in this world were very different from Earth, with rents and food seemingly much cheaper, but material items, water, and air costing a buyer a significant amount more. He chuckled for a moment.

  I wonder if there are actual Oxygen thieves in this world.

  Bezr stopped and looked down at him. "Are you sure? That is nearly fifteen years' wages for the average person. You surely cannot afford to spend such a rge fortune just to purchase an IDS contract of an untrained debtor with no skills."

  "There are mitigating circumstances here, but yes, I can easily afford it," John said, and he really could. It was a significant chunk of money, but spending it would keep him from needing to flee the station. Not to mention that Niki was quickly growing on him, with her sweet demeanour and cute personality. "Also, I would like a list of IDS you have avaible that would be willing to work onboard a mercenary vessel, preferably with some training in engineering and other spaceship operations."

  "You are serious, aren't you?" Bezr said, looking at John in incredulity.

  "Very, she is important to me. I am the Captain of the Phoenix Hawk, a light carrier, but I ck a crew. I am looking at hiring some of my fellow mercenaries as well, but they suggested I also talk to this office about hiring IDS, too." John replied, ignoring Niki's squirming beside him. He could have sworn she gasped a little bit when he said she was important to him, but he didn't pay it much mind.

  Of course, she is; she is keeping me from becoming a fugitive. Not that I want to be that callous. I do want to help her.

  "Well then, let’s start filling out Miss Hanson's paperwork first, then we can talk about the other IDS. I was serious, though. I do have other appointments today, but I can at least give you the information." Bezr said, opening up a few files on his Link. “Honestly, it usually takes a week or two to get an appointment here. My family owes Lady Eligan for helping us out before, so I fit you in the schedule during my lunch break today instead of making you wait. Next time, please book a time in advance.”

  It only took about fifteen minutes, and just as John finished transferring the money to the INP, another man walked into the room. He looked almost like Antonio Banderas, though his eyes were brilliant silver in colour, wearing a bck suit.

  "How are things going in here, Em?" The man said, looking at Bezr.

  "Good Sir, just-" The agent replied, but was interrupted by a flying cat girl.

  "Mr Garcius!" Niki shouted out in glee and hugged the man.

  "Niki! Oh, Niki, you have no idea how good it is to see that you are safe! Did you manage to get hired on with this man?" He replied, hugging her in return.

  "Yes! I just got hired on a mercenary ship. My Captain here is just finishing up the paperwork." She replied, hugging the man tightly.

  "I take it you two know each other?" John said, turning his attention away from the paperwork.

  "Yes, Sir! He was my counsel and case manager. He was also friends with my parents..." She replied, pulling back from the man a little bit.

  "Heh, I am Garcius Maxims. You are her new custodian, then?" Garcius said to John.

  "Is that the proper term for the owner of an IDS contract? If so, then yes. My name is John Wayne, and I am the Captain of the Phoenix Hawk. I am bringing her on board as my first crewmember. We are heading over to the Mercenary Guild after this to get her signed up." John replied, feeling a little awkward about saying he was buying her. The reality of the situation was just beginning to set in for him.

  "Excellent," Garcius said, then looked over at Bezr. "Is everything good with the paperwork?"

  "Yes, Sir. The payment just cleared. I just need to modify her chip to allow her to travel off the station, and they will be good to go." The other man replied.

  "Then get to it. I want to talk with the Captain for a few moments." Garcius said, then turned to Niki, "Go with him to the medical bay down the hall. The nurses there will get your chip sorted out. I will see you in a few minutes, okay?"

  "Sure. Umm... is that okay, Sir?" She said, asking John.

  "Of course, Niki. Go and get it done, then we will get out of here. We still need to go shopping for some clothing and other things today, too, right?" John said.

  Once Niki and Em Bezr left -Wait, is he another pun?- Garcius sat down across from John. "So, John. How did you find Niki? After her trial was railroaded, I never expected to see her again, or if I did, it would have been in the hands of that Lord Timur Bannon's greasy hands." The man said without any preamble.

  John thought for a moment, but decided not to tell this man everything. Instead, he told him a sanitised version of events, with no mention of killing those thugs, but mentioned that Lady Katrina had set up this appointment for them to get this done.

  "I see. You seem to have some reservations about this." The man replied, picking up on John's feelings.

  "Well, let's just say I am not exactly from around here, and having an IDS is a weird concept for me," John said, evasively.

  "Then why are you getting an Indentured Servant to begin with?"

  Good question. To save myself because of my actions. My hero complex. Because she is cute and calls me Sir.

  He sighed. "Because it's the right thing to do."

  "Very well." He said, then steepled his hands in front of his body. It almost reminded him of how Alec sat back in DEN, judging John. After a few awkward moments watching each other, he continued to speak. "I have concerns for Niki."

  That took John by surprise. "For Niki? Why?"

  "Frankly, Captain. Because of you."

  "Why? What did I do?"

  "Something seems... off about you, though not necessarily in a bad way. You mentioned not being from here?"

  Is this guy a damn psychic?

  "Something like that. I-"

  "Stop. I don't want to pry into your personal life, but wherever you are from, our system here seems to be a foreign concept to you, yes?"

  "Yeah. I don't actually want a sve... err... IDS, but I defended Niki from some... trouble, which I won't go into details about. I don't want to see her hurt. This led to me purchasing her debt."

  "Captain... no, John. It is honourable that you want to protect her, and I personally am quite happy about it, as her father was a good friend of mine. Despite that, I am going to give you some unsolicited advice. If you pn on staying within the Empire's borders, harden your heart and mind your own business."

  "What?"

  "You cannot save everyone. There are a lot of terrible things that happen in the Empire, and everyone has a sob story. Don't let your kindness be taken advantage of, or else you may find yourself in the same predicament as Niki is, and everyone you have taken in will now be back to square one. One mistake is all it takes, and your life will be forever changed."

  He isn't wrong. I have an advanced ship and a lucrative job here, but the more I learn about this world, the more it seems like my situation is the exception rather than the rule. This pce reminds me of a sci-fi version of The Great Cleric, just on a much more massive scale.

  "Ha, yeah, I know I can't fix everything. Thank you for reminding me of that." John replied.

  "No, thank you. Niki's parents were friends. Honestly, the whole situation seemed fishy and screams of a cover-up. Niki just happened to be colteral damage. I wish I could have helped her, but there was no feasible way to purchase the contract myself. Anyway, they are probably nearly done by now. Let's go pick her up. I would like to see her off." He replied.

  They walked out of the office in silence, the conversation giving John more information to digest.

  A cover-up? Maybe Niki's parents didn't cause the accident, but were just the fall guys. Not that I have any way to investigate that... I will just pass on what Garcius said to Katrina the next time I see her. She probably has some people she could put on it.

  John squared his shoulders and rubbed his lower back. It was starting to cause him some pain, and it was only early afternoon. He was already looking forward to soaking himself in the bath tonight.