on your way out of the Bar you note a 'Stranger' thake note to you, not unusal for a male, you have been gett quite a few second looks, but you notice that this stanger becouse he seem to you as some 'out of place' here. and well built in body to, though the face could be better looking, but overall not to shaby in apance, though no sence of the the current fasion' though you do notice him looking at you with a questioning eye.

Minwhile in the Head of said stranger .oO(Desinate fimialr: ID search....Error File corrupted. Need more data.)Oo. and follows Smantha out of the bar, and watches enter the van. .oO(no Data on vehicle.)Oo. and prosidesce to think about his next move.

the stanger begins walking past the back of the van, trying to be non-chalante (sp?) abouy 7 meters away. .oO(The van appers to be shielded from my theomgrachic vision, though i can still detecter her, inside, and she is human, lets see if this bluff will work, thank fully the parking lot is empty of onlookers)Oo. he thinks as he gets directly opposite the van doors. In a mono tone voise he calls "Target aquireded. Resistance is Futile, you have 15 seconds to surrener.

while this is happening, inside the van Smantha Cain puts the two Berates in her belt after checking there was a built in the chamber, picks up the shotgun and primes it when her mind flashes to another unfimulr time and place.

"Agent! your are to Train the unit in unarmed combat!"

"No disprespect sir, we don't need these artifials in this war!"

all the whiles there stands with totlal rigdity just out of the corner of your vision a near fimilur form

she comes out of her retive just as the stange beginds his demands.

As he stands there in the darkened and desolate street pondering the imponderable the side door of the van slides open.

"Hey you! Yes you with the stunning dress sense, perhaps you would care to explain why you followed me from the bar hmmm...?"

He finds himself looking down the barrels of a Beretta 92, 9mm and a Remmington 12 gauge shotgun with pistol grip and pump action. Both the proximity of the guns and the matte black finish of the guns contrive to lend an ominous look to the weapons. The hard look in her eyes as she sits on the step to the van doesn't help to reassure.

She looks composed, relaxed and somehow accurate....

"You looked familar but I don't remember you or were I know you from it apppears that I am suffering from memory loss I think its called amensisa what I do now is that in the past 3 weeks I have killed a lot of people trying to esacpe from somewhere and it disturbs me I don't want to have to kill you so put the guns down. if you don't innocents may die."

"Threatening moi? Listen chump! I'm not running on all four cylinders myself at the moment but I do know flawed logic when I hear it."

"Let's examine it all dispassionately for a moment shall we? You don't want to kill me so I should put the guns down? Either a) the guns don't worry you and so it doesn't matter that they are pointing at your uninteresting face. Or, b) they represent a distinct bargaining chip for me in the little conversation we are about to have."

The gun barrels don't waver as Samantha smoothly slides into a standing position and steps into the deserted carpark.

"Now... talk, shall we start with what seems familiar about me and follow with everything you know about yourself. The guns are going to stay till I trust you but I'm not going to use them unless you give me a reason."

"It has been my observation that when people meet they introduce themselves in which case introductions are in order before I begin. As I cannot remember my name you may call me Max. Whats yours?"

"You can call me Samantha Caine, its as good a name as any and will serve for the moment. Please carry on..."

Her shotgun swings down to her side to make less of a silhouette the Beretta in the other hand is brought down to hip level but the barrel remains pointing directly and unwaveringly between his eyes.

"Well now that's out of the way. As I told you before you look familiar but I can't remember where I have seen or met you before. I was hoping if I followed you that I might be able to place were we've met. Anyway back to my story. About three weeks ago I escaped out of a research facility I killed everybody that got in my way, even innocent researchers. I destroyed that evil place, i still can see their faces. I evaded my pursuers by keeping my movements random, setting up random sightings to keep them away from my real objective. "

"I am not entirely sure what I was doing there I or what they did to me I only know is that I'm not going back if anybody tries to take me back there is good as dead. Ive told you what I know now tell what do you know about me. Why was I there and who am I?

"I'm moved to tears by your story, but to be quite frank if you are looking for answers you have come to the wrong woman. My own memory is a mess at the moment though I might be able to help you with some answers."

She sighs and appears to come to a quick decision. She looks around the car lot and moves towards the van again.

"This is not the place to be having this conversation. Get in and we will talk elsewhere, or not! Your choice because it makes no difference to me either way. If you do come with me now, understand it's under my rules. You followed me, so you do as I say, you don't touch anything or demand anything of me. Those are the terms, no negotiation."

She stows the guns, slides the door shut and holds the passanger door open while she starts the engine.

Max moves gracefully towards the open van door, nods his thanks to Samantha. In one smooth effortless movement he climbs into the van and closes the van door behind him.

"I accept you offer lets us go somewhere a little less public."

Samantha guns the vans motor and pulls out of the parking lot at high speed and zips into the Paris traffic at a breakneck pace. Six blocks later, as the van passes under a bridge she reaches over with one hand and her fingers dance over a button pad array on the dash in front of her.

"OK, it's as safe to talk now as I can get. I'll give you a brief synopsis of what I know and then you will answer my questions....understood?"

"I am, to all intents and purposes one week old, I woke up in the south of France on a beach with this bullet wound and no memories to account for it or anything else about me."

She pulls back her short blond hair to display a well tended and healing scar on the side of her head.

"I have reason to believe that I have been trained to fight, possibly for a covert goverment organisation though that is just conjecture on my part. and the bullet wound leads me to suspect that I have enemies whom I wouldn't even recognise if I met them. For this reason I am making preparations to leave the country. Where, you don't need to know at the moment. All my equipment has been aquired from that point."

"The only reason I am talking to you now is that your arrival triggered a flashback for me so I am guessing that you might be able to jog some more of my memories. The flashback, near as I can tell pertains to my refusal to train 'artificials' to fight."

"Now, given that little factoid, in combination with your own self confessed history I am tempted towards my own conclusions and as such I don't entirely trust you."

"At the moment the only reason I am tempted to believe that you aren't a plant is your ineptitude at following me. I find it difficult to believe that you have ever received training in trailing people."

"Now I want you to tell me a) where is the facility you escaped from? and b) how often have you shaved since you made your getaway?"

"I will attmpt to answer your questions to the best of my ability"

"A) where is the facility you escaped from?"

"Nearest I can tell its about a weeks travel roughly south east direction from Paris"

"B) how often have you shaved since you made your getaway?"

"I can't recall weather i have had a shave or not but I am a mutant i might not have to shave i don't now"

"now I have answer your questions now i would like you ta answer some of mine."

"1) what is an artifical?
2) any idea why you were you were training artificals to fight?"

"Okayyyyy, I was only checking, just stay over that side of the van alright? In the meantime..."

"Answer one...I have no idea beyond the obvious inference"

"Answer two...What sort of question is that? I dunno.. Perhaps so they could fight effectively? Seriously, I have no idea though I'm more and more inclined to be cautious digging up my past."

She stops talking and appears to be thinking for a moment.

"Well, Metal Mickey, this is your stop, meet me here in three days time at this spot seven pm and what say we swing by and go on a roadtrip south east of here? I here it's lovely this time of year, wherever 'it' is."

"I would ask you to recall landmarks but somehow I don't think that's going to be a problem."

As she talks, Samantha pulls up by a small cafe a hundred metres or so away from the main road. It's dirty windows proclaim it to serve "Pomme au Frites, English style"

She leans across and pops the door and looks expectantly and her soon to be ex guest.

"Did I hear you correctly, your asking me to take you to the palce were ive just escaped from. NO Way lady im not going back there. I think it is a bad move for you to go there. If we indeed have meet there it is quite safe to assume that they may be the people who shot you and caused your memory loss. It is also quite safe to assume that they believe you to be dead and tuning up with me will put both our lives on the line. The way i see it we need each other. For the time being I suggest we keep well away from that area of France until either one of us or preferably both of us have regained our memories."

"If you accept my offer I will need to get some id, cash cloths etc..."

"A lack of information is equally likely to kill us. I'm not suggesting a gung ho US Marine style attack here. I would just like to have a look at the place and see if we can perhaps find out something about my past...or lack thereof.

"I'll take you on the following conditions. Firstly the first signof trouble were out of there. secondly if im scene we may have to shoot our way out of there so i will require a weapon in the case of that eventuallity."

"As for papers and funds, if you aren't interested in showing me the facility you left why should I help you?"

"Think about that while you have time. If you aren't here at the time I specified I will assume you aren't interested, in which case I can't see any particular reason for any further association with you."

"I will be on this spot in three days at this time don't be late."

"I have enough problems of my own without adding yours to the mix."

"Now please leave me, I have things to do and the pavement ever doth beckon more urgently."

Max exits the van in one smooth motion and dis apperas into the night.

THREE DAYS LATER....

Samantha, pulls up to the spot and Max is standing nearby, and approaches the van when it stops.

The passenger door swings open and Samanthas voice issues from within. "So...are we agreed on going back to have a look at the base you escaped from?

Max gets into the vehicle, the door closes and the van sods off in a generally easterly direction.

After consulting a road map, they find:

The closest public access road is a mile of mountainous terrain away from the rough location of the bace. it will take three days worth of road travel to reach that point (could take 2 and half but that rotue is via a certain town...).

They stop the van at a spot that looks like it has a nice sunny glade. Samantha locks the 'currently' cream coloured van, spreads out a blanket with some partially eaten food and wine, two glasses etc beside the road, turns on a little radio to a music station, and leaves a jersey and shorts beside the blanket.

She then pulls on a dark form fitting T-shirt, cammo pants and her leather jacket, slips a sheath knife into her boot, clips a canteen, an army surplus pouch full of steel ball bearings to her belt, a pair of binos. Her beretta is tucked into the back of her belt, a slingshot goes into a thigh pocket and she picks up a flat case marked 'bowmaster'.

She pauses giving Max a chance to reply and prepare before consulting a compass and map and slipping out into the trees at a steady jog.