The Bar Scene

                            By:

                         Fox Cutter

02/18/97:

Pulling my coat around myself, I walked through the door of
the bar on Mydisia Base. Up until two weeks ago I never had
any intention of stepping foot back into the base, or even
on the moon it was set up on.

But that was then, and right now I was back there. Wearing
the same trench coat Fox had gotten for me the first time we
had come to this place. After a couple dozen times through
the wash, it actually was rather decent.

Stopping my hesitation, I walked right in, and headed for a
booth in the back of the place, one that gave me a good view
of the bar as a whole and the main door. I suspected there
was more then a few back doors out of the place, but I
doubted anyone would be coming in through them.

Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out a few bills, and order
some coffee from the waitress who came to my table. This
time I made sure to give her a five, not five-hundred like I
did last time.

Leaning back a bit in the seat, I slowly scanned over the
crowd. I was looking for an old friend, just as I had
decided to do when I returned to Prid.

I was looking for Marn.

I really didn't know how long I was going to have to wait
for him to show up, as I didn't see him in there already. He
did tell me he was a regular here, and I was hopping that my
run in with him three months back didn't scare him off.

I actually had no idea why I was trying to find him. I think
mostly it was because it was something to do, and also
because he was a mystery. He said himself that he had three
governments after him and from Ken's description of how he
had fought against the HammerHeads I didn't doubt it.

I tried using that to find him, with Page's help, but that
proved to be useless. It was to vague of information, and
Marn was surprisingly a common name in some places.

This was my first day at on this search. I would have
started sooner, but as the base it's self isn't in the
Council's database, it didn't have a verse number. So I had
to do a little digging to find the actual fold number for
it.

Getting the cash was a little easier. More then a few verses
knew about the base, so it had a sort of money changer at
hand. Though I'm rather sure I got less then the best
exchange on my money.

Halfway through my coffee, I found my wait cut short as Marn
himself walked through the door of the bar. He was dressed
in some sort of body armor, not very bulky by the look of
it, but it still clanked lightly.

Luck must have been on my side right then, as he sat down at
a booth just down from me on one side. Picking up my drink,
I was about ready to walk over to him when someone else
walked into the bar.

It was three females who attracted a bit to much attention
for this type of place. Two where standing a bit in front,
one was a Mink, and the other a Cheetah. Both of them where
wearing lose pants and shirts, as well as long jackets.

What really was interesting was that every bit of clothing
was clean, and crisp looking. There boots (they both had
them) where shined so much they reflected all the light in
the room, the laces where tied almost exactly the same way
on both of them.

The two of them looked around the bar, there eyes focusing
on someone. As they started to walk towards them, I noticed
there walk was almost in sync, not to mention stiff and well
coordinated.

It all screamed military to me.

The third female with them, who the two others seamed to be
guarding, was a mouse. She was glancing all over the bar,
and shaking like a leaf. I got the idea she didn't like the
choice of venues for whatever the three of them were there
for.

Making a quick glance around the bar, I noticed I wasn't the
only one who read them as being military. A good third of
the patrons of the bar had vanished to some place else. The
most of the rest of them them where still watching the three
females.

Including Marn.

Smiling I picked up my drink, and slipped into the other
seat in his booth. Setting my drink down I spoke up. "Nice
to see you again Marn."

He twisted around so fast I'm surprised he didn't sprain his
neck. Seeing me, he groaned a bit. "Why are you here?" he
asked.

I shrugged. "Oh, this and that really. Mostly I had nothing
better to do with my time right now."

He glanced around the room. "Is Fox with you?"

I shook my head. "No, this time I came by myself, and to
find you."

He frowned. "I suppose you want me to go back to Prid with
you?"

"Wrong again." I smiled. "I came because I'm trying to do
something to get my mind off of Fox."

This got his attention. "Really? Something happen between
you two then."

I frowned. "Yes, I walked out a month and a half ago."

He raised an eyebrow. "Walked out..." he sat back a bit.
"Sounds like you two finally got a relationship going."

I shook my head. "No, nothing beyond friendship. Not for
lack of trying on my part."

He nodded a bit. "Ah yes, I see." I shifted a bit in his
seat. "I do seem to recall you showing a bit of affection to
him after are little adventure. I gather that he didn't
return it."

"He didn't even appear to have noticed it."

He shrugged. "Ah, such is life for the young and in love."
He gulped down the last of his drink. "Now, if you would
excuse me, I was just stopping for a drink. I'm currently on
the clock, and with a job. So, as I gather for your
appearance here, your not going to leave me alone, I'll tell
you here and now I won't be back for at least a week."

"For some reason, I suspect that may be longer."

He laughed, reaching over and patting my cheek. "You went to
all this trouble just to meet me again, why should I end it
because it's inconvenient." He stood. "Though I do hope to
just talk, and not dig into my history if that's alright
with you." He smiled, then walked out of the bar.

I sat back a bit in my seat. "No," I muttered, "it's not
alright." One thing I had learned about Marn in the time I
had know him, he was stubborn. If he didn't want to talk
about his past, he wouldn't.

But there are more ways to find out about a person then just
talking to them.

Digging out a large scrap of cloth that I had brought with
me. I carefully used it to pick up Marn's glass, then
wrapped it up in it, slipping it one of the pockets of my
trench coat. A DNA sample is a very good way to identify
someone, and I hopped Page would be able to get some off the
glass when I delivered it to her.

Throwing a bill on the table, I walked out of the bar
myself. Marn was a personal mystery, and one I was planning
on cracking.