CZERKA CHAPTER
Kara awoke with heavy mist clouding her thoughts. No matter how many times she blinked, the images remained fuzzy as the memories of a few hours earlier slowly pierced through the mist. The pain, her own screams and the people in scrubs standing around her. In the corner of her eyes she seemed to remember seeing a woman wearing a Czerka uniform. Someone else's crying, a baby, then muffled talking, panic, more pain and eventually a sedated fade-to-black. The corporate hospital of Etti IV had drugged her silly after giving birth, it seemed, but why she wasn't sure. Had something gone wrong? And more importantly.. where was her baby?
Her vision suddenly improved and she tried to sit upright, but her body felt weak and even if it hadn't she would never have been able to wrestle out of the restraints that had been tied her to the bed. Where was her child? They hadn't even given her the courtesy of telling her if it was a boy or a girl. She had worked at the Czerka factory in chains and then when she wasn't physically able to continue moved to the hospital to wait. They didn't trust her to do any labor on digital devices that could connect to the HoloNet, which meant they'd known she was a slicer. Well, considering they had caught her red-handed holding slicer equipment probably didn't make that deduction a difficult one. Even idiot corporate executives could figure that one out.
The exertion of sitting upright almost had Kara out of breath, but while she was now able to look around the room she didn't see a baby anywhere. "Where is my child?" she muttered, almost breathlessly, and as if on cue the door to her room slid open to reveal a middle-aged human man wearing a Czerka uniform.
"Hello, Miss Kara Zaa Fenn," his smile betrayed an immense smugness, "You must be wondering why you've suddenly lost so much weight."
If she'd had the strength and energy to do it, Kara would've jumped out of the bed and strangled this smug corporate douche right then and there. How could he be so smug to make such a joke at her expense? "Where is my child?" the question seemed to surprise the Czerka executive for a moment, for he knew something that she clearly did not, but his smugness quickly returned as he waggled his finger. "No, no, no, miss Kara-" he took a small holo-projector out of his pocket, removed one of the shards that had been placed inside and then pressed a button. A second later a holographic still appeared of a baby draped in a towel bearing the Czerka logo. He tossed it over to her and she caught it while a shock ran through her entire body. The child was beautiful. It was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen, but it was draped in the ugliest thing in all existence. "Give me my child," she whispered, anger rising within.
"I've named him Dismas," he grinned now, but all Kara could think to do suddenly was look at the holographic still and look at her son for the first time. Perhaps he did have some likeness to Crix already. As a mother she should've seen it right away. She felt guilty, but her guilt was nothing in comparison to the anger in her eyes when she turned her head upwards to look back at the Czerka executive. "Where I'm from that's the name of a rather famous thief. Unsuccesful, ofcourse, just like his parents."
He jaw clenched, "Shut up and give me my child," she gritted, but the anger, the emotion, it already took a toll on her weakened physical state and she suddenly felt too tired to sit upright and slunk back down into her pillow.
"Rest, Kara of the Zaa Fenn. You'll see your child after you've served your sentence in full," her sight faded as exhaustion slowly overcame her, "until then he'll remain in the care of the Czerka Corporation."
TBC
Kara awoke with heavy mist clouding her thoughts. No matter how many times she blinked, the images remained fuzzy as the memories of a few hours earlier slowly pierced through the mist. The pain, her own screams and the people in scrubs standing around her. In the corner of her eyes she seemed to remember seeing a woman wearing a Czerka uniform. Someone else's crying, a baby, then muffled talking, panic, more pain and eventually a sedated fade-to-black. The corporate hospital of Etti IV had drugged her silly after giving birth, it seemed, but why she wasn't sure. Had something gone wrong? And more importantly.. where was her baby?
Her vision suddenly improved and she tried to sit upright, but her body felt weak and even if it hadn't she would never have been able to wrestle out of the restraints that had been tied her to the bed. Where was her child? They hadn't even given her the courtesy of telling her if it was a boy or a girl. She had worked at the Czerka factory in chains and then when she wasn't physically able to continue moved to the hospital to wait. They didn't trust her to do any labor on digital devices that could connect to the HoloNet, which meant they'd known she was a slicer. Well, considering they had caught her red-handed holding slicer equipment probably didn't make that deduction a difficult one. Even idiot corporate executives could figure that one out.
The exertion of sitting upright almost had Kara out of breath, but while she was now able to look around the room she didn't see a baby anywhere. "Where is my child?" she muttered, almost breathlessly, and as if on cue the door to her room slid open to reveal a middle-aged human man wearing a Czerka uniform.
"Hello, Miss Kara Zaa Fenn," his smile betrayed an immense smugness, "You must be wondering why you've suddenly lost so much weight."
If she'd had the strength and energy to do it, Kara would've jumped out of the bed and strangled this smug corporate douche right then and there. How could he be so smug to make such a joke at her expense? "Where is my child?" the question seemed to surprise the Czerka executive for a moment, for he knew something that she clearly did not, but his smugness quickly returned as he waggled his finger. "No, no, no, miss Kara-" he took a small holo-projector out of his pocket, removed one of the shards that had been placed inside and then pressed a button. A second later a holographic still appeared of a baby draped in a towel bearing the Czerka logo. He tossed it over to her and she caught it while a shock ran through her entire body. The child was beautiful. It was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen, but it was draped in the ugliest thing in all existence. "Give me my child," she whispered, anger rising within.
"I've named him Dismas," he grinned now, but all Kara could think to do suddenly was look at the holographic still and look at her son for the first time. Perhaps he did have some likeness to Crix already. As a mother she should've seen it right away. She felt guilty, but her guilt was nothing in comparison to the anger in her eyes when she turned her head upwards to look back at the Czerka executive. "Where I'm from that's the name of a rather famous thief. Unsuccesful, ofcourse, just like his parents."
He jaw clenched, "Shut up and give me my child," she gritted, but the anger, the emotion, it already took a toll on her weakened physical state and she suddenly felt too tired to sit upright and slunk back down into her pillow.
"Rest, Kara of the Zaa Fenn. You'll see your child after you've served your sentence in full," her sight faded as exhaustion slowly overcame her, "until then he'll remain in the care of the Czerka Corporation."
TBC