Children's Games: A Story of Modern Punishment

Chapter 17 - Emilia

~Emilia~

"Hey. I said you could have as much time as you needed."

Emilia laughed, positivity returning. "Well, it turns out I don't need too much time to adjust when I can't remember... otherwise."

Jonny's headquarters was right at the end of the warehouse, so it boasted two walls lined with ginormous arched paned windows. They didn't match the style of the building, and Emilia guessed that the larger room was once part of the office section of the building. It was similar to Elliot's in that it had a large oval table in the centre to fit thirty, then was surrounded by many different workstations to fill the rest of the large room. But this room was warmer and was home to surprisingly friendlier faces.

She recognised a few people around the room who all smiled but kept to their own work, always busy and eager to help. They had a livelier atmosphere than in Elliot's lonely section, and she overall felt more welcomed. Jonny stood and offered her a seat and some food. She took the seat and took only a glass of water before he sat back down, leaning back far on his chair with his hands clasped over his stomach. Compared to the deeply muscled nature of his arms, seeing his slightly swollen belly almost made her laugh.

"So. Now that you've finished with all your Australia business, what is your mission now?" She leaned forward, eager to convince him that she was ready. It didn't matter that she couldn't remember anything, and it didn't matter that she woke up determined that it wasn't time yet... something about Elliot's disappointment was encouraging.

"Mm, it is very complicated work... fuckin' tricky to explain here... How would you feel about diving into some more work into our Australian investigation? I've got so many files that we could go over, so many names that you might find familiar or can clear up for me? We'll have to organise another trip over there, and I've been thinking of planning an operation to find where their government is situated and then organise how to get in. Gabi's unit- he looks at Russia- will be good to officially join with now that we're low on numbers. I know he's been working on getting into Russia as well, which can only help us in our Australian endeavours. I'm happy you're on board... but I know it's a lot."

"Oh. How soon will that be?" Australia or Russia, it didn't matter.

"Maybe not for a few months but sooner rather than later. Elliot should've told you about all the rising talk in the other settlements about rebellion and shit. The people want a way back to proper civilisation... that can only happen when the war is over, which is literally impossible unless we get the full picture."

She was about to tell him that it was alright and that she could still help... but the thought of going back to Australia caught her off guard. She found the idea strangely alarming... it was her home, but she realised in that moment that she never wanted to go back. Her words stuck in her throat, and she quickly scrambled as his face started changing in understanding.

"You," came the voice of the enthusiastic Frenchman as he entered the room. "You were magnificent! I didn't want to be too forward but now that you're here I am finally happy to be working with you!"

"Emilia, you remember Loic?" Jonny introduced, sighing tiredly. She nodded. Jonny swore under his breath at the interruption.

Loic had a short, spiked mullet that complemented his single gold sleeper on his left ear. He had red tartan pants and an oversized leather jacket that made his shoulders look bigger. His smile was small, but it was kind as he looked at her then around at the remaining members of Unit 332 for encouragement. She reminded herself that he was the one standing next to Jonny when they first met, so presumably his second in command.