Soldier x Soldier - Rescued (Closed to TertiusHuman)

AlwaysFaithful

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Sitting in the dirt that was the floor of her prison, Katherine Doyle sat in the corner, wrists cuffed above her head to the stone wall, there was no windows in her cell, but by the heat that filled the room, covering Kat in a layer of sweat, she knew it was day time. Pale grey eyes opened, looking at the cell she had memorized, she knew the exact count of the number of stones in every wall of this cell. Long ago the brunette had lost track of how long she'd been in this cell, and she'd stopped expecting rescue. The only thing she couldn't figure out was why she was alive. Her team was dead, that she had been told and from what she could remember of the crash she'd believe it.

Kat couldn't remember why they'd been out, what they'd been doing, she only remembered riding shotgun in a Humvee, laughing at something, Jack, the driver, had said, when the Humvee in front of them had exploded. Seconds later, she'd felt a huge impact at the rear of their Humvee, it had flipped, rolled a few times. She'd passed out and woken up to members of the Taliban dragging her out of the humvee, shouting. She'd glimpsed Jack as she was drug from the truck, and he looked dead, she'd passed out again soon after, so she didn't get a chance to see any of the rest of the members of her unit.

They'd moved around a lot in the beginning but as of the last while they had stayed put. Some days, the good days, they never came in, on the bad days, they dragged her out of her cell to beat her, or rape her, or threaten her. She'd long ago given up on rescue and given half the chance she would try to take her own life, just to end all the pain. Looking up at her hands, she saw the uneven fingers, from repeatedly have her fingers broken and healing incorrectly. Her skin was marred with scars from knives and burn scars from cigarettes.

Her mahogany hair had been chopped to just below her jaw line, after it had gotten too long for her captors liking. Though they still wanted some to grab her by. Sighing she looked down at her body, at one time her 5'6" frame had been an athletic 130 pounds, fit and toned from hours of working out. But now she looked gawky and malnourished, she'd be surprised if she was much more than 100 pounds. Her naturally gold-dust skin, a legacy of native american heritage, was covered in a layer of dirt and scars. Closing her eyes she laid her head back against the stone wall, praying today would be a day they left her alone.
 
Thor Krauze

He settled into his position, the rest of the team already slotted in. Through the scope of the heavy calibre rifle, he scanned the terrorist base. Aerial surveilance had shown the basic structure, they had to determine if anything or anyone of importance was at this base, before hitting it.

Twelve hours earlier

"Good morning gentlemen, take a seat"

These were the words that started their briefing, "As all of you are well aware, we have been looking for possible hard sites from which Taliban leaders could launch an attack. These bases are highly mobile and very difficult to track down."

A photo appeared on the wall, projected by a rugged little projector, "This photo was taken by long range recon, it is clear that it have been static for longer than any of these hard sites. Your mission will be to get close and find if there are any of our top ten at this site. Capture is high priority, but if all else fails, we have air support ready to hit the base. Your transport is ready gentlemen."

The commander paused, then with a soft sigh, clicked the button of the remote control, "Also keep an eye open for these three MIA soldiers, they are the only unaccounted fors after a hit on a convoy."

The images slowly clicked by, giving each of the assembled soldiers the time to memorize the faces.

"Good luck gentlemen and God speed. Dismissed."

Now

"Movement. North East."

He reported as three figures appeared, dragging a fourth into the early morning heat. When they dropped the figure along with a hearty kick to the ribs, his finger automatically curled around the trigger, only to ease away. That would not help.

"Thor you seeing this?"

"Rodg, Ace of Hearts and Jack of Clovers."

He shifted his aim to the figure on the ground, studying the ragged, dirty features. "We have an MIA."

"Confirm that."

He studied the scarecrow figure, found the tattoo on the back, though marred by an open wound, it was the same tattoo, "Corporal Jennings. Confirmed"

It was clear that an interrogation was about to start and there was nothing they could do. All they could do was watch as the desert sun baked down on the scene before them.
 
Katherine cowered back when the door opened, but the small figure made Kat relax. The nine year old boy came in, carrying a bowl and a rag. He sat down next to the woman and dipped the rag in the water, though the two rarely spoke, Kat felt a connection to this boy, he was her caretaker, he made sure her wounds didn't get too badly infected, he fed her, he gave her water. She'd seen the leader of the terrorist cell beat the boy. Katherine leaned forward to let the boy clean the whip wounds on her back. She flinched at the roughness of the cloth, but didn't make a sound, the boy flinched and apologized. Luckily Katherine spoke the same language as the boy, so occasionally they had conversations. It's fine. She murmured when he apologized.

Once the boy was finished, he offered a tin cup of dirty water, holding it to her mouth for her, she eagerly swallowed all of it, though it wasn't enough to quench her thirst. The boy stood, murmuring a goodbye he carried his things out with him, once again leaving Kat alone. She sighed, leaning back against the stone wall. On the rare occasions she imagined that she would one day be rescued, she prayed she'd have a chance to take the boy with her, at least out of this hellhole. He was the closest thing to a friend she had here, and this was as much a prison for him as it was for her.

But for the most part she didn't expect rescue, if it hadn't come yet, it likely wouldn't, in her mind. Though the one thing that gave her hope was that she had a lot of classified information in her head, she of course has not revealed any of that information, though not for the terrorists lack of trying, but she had been trained by the best at resisting torture. But she knew with the information she had, it would be incentive for the military to want her back Closing her eyes she relaxed, trying to get a little bit of sleep.
 
Ben saw movement close to the hut, when he focused on it, he saw a boy enter a building and just for a fleeting moment there was enough sunlight inside the building for him to make out the features of Lieutenant Katherine Doyle.

"Sir we have priority MIA. Lieutenant Doyle."

He wasn't sure if the silence was shock or just normal radio silence, he knew that he was shocked. She had been given up for dead, even if the briefings still carried her pictures.

"Thor, can you confirm?"

"Negative, she is situated in a building."

"Rodg. Hold."

Another silence followed and Thor knew that the Lieutenant was busy phoning in the information. He watched as a scorpion came to rest in the shadow of his rifle.

"Squad be advised, this is now a snatch and grab rescue operation. Priority targets remain, capture or eliminate. MIA personnel to be extracted at all cost."

He could feel his adrenaline kicking in, this mission could go so wrong, but had all the makings of the breakthrough they so badly needed.

Ten hours later

He crouched in the shadow of the building along with four of the squad, the other were in place to provide backup. He had his knife in hand, holding his free hand over the blade to prevent any glint. The guard came trudging by, but did not go any further. Silently they moved the body to the deeper shadows.

Moving around the corner, they entered the building. Both their marks was asleep. Subduing and thrusting them up went silently and easy. Together they crept back outside, two of the members moving silently away with their burdens.

Thor and the other two crept slowly and silently towards the huts, pushing open one door and entering. Lockpicks working quickly to unbind the scarecrow figure. "We're here to rescue you. Remain quiet."

A nod showed that the man understood, they moved back outside, closing the door. The same action with the next man and that left the last building. The other's remained outside as Thor made his way silently inside. He placed a hand over Katherine's mouth, before she could make a startled sound or mistake the situation and scream.

"We are here to rescue you. Please remain quiet."

He used the lockpicks to open the locks and placed fingers on her shoulder to help her to know where he was in the darkness, "Can you walk?"
 
Katherine managed to sleep for a bit, the boy even coming in to sleep next to her, as was fairly common. It seemed when he wanted an escape from whatever his life was like, he came to the little hut that Katherine lived in. She woke when the boy left, leaving her alone again. She remained alone for a long while until she fell asleep again, she must have been more tired than she thought, since she didn't wake until she felt a hand over her mouth. Pale eyes snapped open as she struggled, gasping, trying to get away from the man. Of course she assumed it was one of her captors. but then she heard the words she never thought she'd hear, We're here to rescue you. Kat nodded, assuring she would be quiet.

It shocked her how quiet this all was, though she knew she shouldn't be surprised, these were Special Forces soldiers, they worked as silently as any predator. He released her from her bindings, causing her to wince, her shoulders were so sore. Nodding she spoke, "I think so," She muttered, her voice was raspy and rough, but beneath that was a strange accent, a western usa drawl with just a whisper of Irish. She attempted to stand, her legs shook, her legs lacked any muscle tone, she hadn't walked anywhere in months.

She swallowed thickly, "There's a boy, a little boy, he kept me alive." She whispered, she knew that there was little chance they'd be able to take him with, he wasn't a part of the mission, but she had to try, for the only friend she's had during her captivity. Her pale eyes lifted to look at the soldier that was taking her out of her own personal hell.
 
He gently shook his head, "Sorry ma'am, we are behind schedule as is. We had to grab our priority targets first. There is no time to look for him"

He lead the way to the door, looked outside, the camp a green glow in the night vision goggles, he motioned and the other four moved out, as silent as possible. He secured the MP-5SD in the swing holster and drew the silenced G-19, motioning Katherine forward as he followed the others.

Half an hour left, he made certain that she followed closely as they went. He knew that once outside he would have to carry her, the pace from there would be quick if they want to make their extraction. He stopped a few times to give her time to rest and to scan the surroundings, the second ticking by in his mind.

Then they came to the fence, he slithered through the hole and helped Katherine through. Now the hardest part waited for them, "Sorry again ma'am, just hold on as best you can."

Without preamble, he knelt, pulled her onto his shoulders into a fireman's carry, his rifle was with Franks on point, so he didn't have to worry about that as they all rose to their feet and started a hasty withdrawal. The road to their extraction zone being quite a long one through rock and sand.
 
Katherine nodded, she expected that answer, even if she didn't like it. Her walk was slow and unsteady, her legs trembled and her whole body shook in fear. She'd managed to escape once, and when they'd caught her, it was the worst pain she'd ever felt, it had left a lasting impression on her Do Not Escape.. Once outside, the soldier apologized again and picked her up. It was uncomfortable for her, both emotionally, being touched, and physically, her body was sore, she had open wounds all over her body. She shifted carefully to try and get comfortable for what she assumed would be a long walk.

At least she was fairly light, probably weighing in at only 100 pounds, Katherine tried to relax, but her body was rigid and tense, the constant contact was bothering her, she'd learned to fear being touched, even rationally, knowing that this man wasn't going to hurt her, she still had that instinctive reaction to fear touch, especially from a man. She sighed, finally finding a halfway comfortable position as she watched the scenery, her mind was still in shock that she was being rescued. A thought occurred to her, and she murmured softly, not having to speak very loud for the man to hear. "How long was I gone?" She'd stopped keeping track of the days long ago It seemed pointless, but now, she wanted to know just how long she was held prisoner.
 
It felt like carrying a piece of wood, but he knew that there was just no way that in her current condition, she could have walked the distance, much less have trotted along with them. He felt kind of sorry for her, having all the information in her head and not being able to tell anybody about it just because it was that dangerous.

"How long was I gone?"

The hoarse whisper took him by surprise, abut after a few steps he replied "Fourteen months."

That sounded inadequate, "They kept moving and we could never catch up to them. We had no idea that the three of you were still alive."

The steady throb of two helicopters became audible, "Not too long now ma'am. Sorry for the rough treatment so far, I am sure the medics will have a gentler touch than I have."
 
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((Oops so sorry, I thought I wrote it in one of my posts but I didn't xD, I actually had it planned out that they were gone something like 10-14 months. ))

Kat watched the rocks and sand that they passed over, "I didn't even know any of my team was still alive." She whispered, "I was told they were all dead." she chewed on her lower lip as he apologized. "Trust me, I don't consider this rough treatment." Though she'd rather not have any medics poking and prodding at her. Though of course she knew it would happen, especially once they reached a hospital. They would surely want to do tests, bloodwork, x-rays, probably ultrasounds on her organs. It would be a long process that Katherine was not looking forward to. The sound of the helicopters hit her ears and it finally felt real, that she was getting rescued, nothing was going to happen, they weren't going to get ambushed and she'd get drug back to that horrible room.

Even though she rested stiffly over his shoulders, she still shook like a leaf, her body going into shock as her brain tried to process everything. She'd gotten so use to the lack of stimulation in that room, no lights, little sounds, except when her captors were in the room. Now suddenly all of this was happening and it was a lot for her to try and process.
 
As they came over a sand dune, the two Black Hawk helicopters were already kicking up dust, "Close your eyes!" He shouted over the throbbing of the rotors and the whine of the turbines. He picked out the white circle and red crosses on the helicopters which would be the medivacs and made his way through the defensive perimeter and moved to the waiting medic standing outside the door. The other two were already in the bay, with a medic checking them out as fast as he could.

The medic helped Thor to Slip Katherine from his shoulders and place her on the stretcher waiting for her. He moved close to the medic, "That is Lieutenant Katherine Doyle!!" The medic nodded and clambered up into the bay, he plugged in his headset and spoke to the pilot, Thor turned away, swinging his MP-5 from the sling, when a whistle stopped him. He turned to look back and the medic patted the M134 mounted in the door. Thor nodded and secured his SMG again, then swung up into the gunner's seat, strapping himself in and taking the helmet offered to him.

"You copy Sarge?"

Thor nodded, "Yes sir."

"We're bugging, our gunner will join your squad. You handled one of those before?"

Thor gave a chuckle, "Affirm sir."

"Good."

The rotors started to pick up speed and the bird lifted from the ground, seem to pirouette and then they were moving, fast and low.
 
When they came over the dune, Katherine ducked her head against the shoulder of the man carrying her, keeping out the dust that was being kicked up by the Black Hawks. Soon enough they were at the chopper and she was being slid off his shoulders and onto a stretcher. When the medic tried to strap her down, she bolted up to the sitting position, shoving his hands away "No." She ordered sharply, she refused to be restrained again. The medic didn't fight with her, he didn't see the point. Her body trembled as she was poked and prodded, checked over. The medic flicked a light in both her eyes, making her flinch. "What's your name?" The medic asked, "Lieutenant Katherine Doyle." her voice was low, emotionless, her pale eyes showed that primal fear that wild animals had. "Home state?" "Montana," "Age?" "28....or I was." She chewed her lower lip, realizing she didn't even know her age. "Call name?" "Lucky" For any ops that needed code names, hers was Lucky. Part of it was the fact that she'd made it out of some hairy situations, but also it was a bit of a joke, because she wore a four leaf clover tattoo on her left hip, right where the waist band of her pants would sit, it was the size of a silver dollar coin.

Pleased with her answers the medic stopped his questioning. He wrapped a blanket around her after assuring she didn't need much tending. He couldn't give her any food or water though, as she may need surgery. They would run more tests once they reached the base. Katherine sat quietly on the stretcher, her pale eyes flicking around the chopper, not seeming able to settle, her body shook harder, she was going into shock. Finally the brunette's eyes landed on the soldier who had carried her out of her hell, who had rescued her. Sure she understood it was a team effort, but he was the first friendly she saw, who had cut the chains off of her, who had carried her out of that cell. In her mind, he had rescued her. She watched him silently, for a long time, probably being rather awkward, just staring at him in silence, but she couldn't be expected to have social skills after what she'd been through. Being alive was more than expected.

Finally she felt the Black Hawk sinking, they were landing. Her eyes moved off the man, and out the window, watching, seeing more medics waiting. She was not looking forward to this part, endless tests, poking, prodding, people touching her endlessly. She just wanted to retreat, to not have people hovering over her, but she knew she wouldn't escape it, not yet anyway, so she remained quiet, not struggling, though her body jerked and trembled every time she was touched.
 
The trip went by quickly, it was sure much better than hiking the distance. At some stage, he got the feeling of being watched, he glanced around to see Katherine looking at him...staring more like. She was shaking like a leaf in the wind and from the paleness of her skin, even he knew that she was in shock. He saw the medic looking at her, unable to do anything unless the situation became drastic.

As they landed and the turbines started to die down, he slipped the helmet off and swung down from the seat. A doctor and nurses were on hand to take care of the three soldiers, as Thor watched Katherine was loaded onto a wheeled stretcher, her pulse taken as well as her blood pressure.

He took hold of the handrail, "I'll help." The nurse nodded and they started wheeling her towards the building, Thor pushing the stretcher. He made eye contact with Katherine and gave her a smile, "Sorry about the rough treatment ma'am."

The nurse looked at him like he had lost his mind, but he ignored the nurse's look and just kept his gaze on Katherine. He was certain that anybody else would have looked at him in the sand camo, face and hands covered with cosmetic camo and just discarded him, but it seemed different with her, almost like she gained a small measure of re-assurance and he was the last person who would want to take that from her.
 
The chopper touched down and Kat trembled as she was moved to the next stretcher. Her eyes snapped up, realizing that the soldier was staying with her. She made eye contact hesitantly and smiled very faintly at his words. As they wheeled her into the hospital, she found it comforting to focus solely on the soldier. She didn't look anywhere else as they moved into the hospital. "This still doesn't qualify as rough treatment." She murmured, to the soldier. Finally getting into an exam room, a doctor was waiting. "Welcome home Lt." She spoke softly. Then eyed Thor, "Are you staying for her exam?" She asked, Kat blinked, eyes jerking from the doctor back to the man, hoping he would choose to stay. She felt an attachment growing, she wanted this man to stay close. She felt safer with him near her.

Doctor Evans looked at Kat's file quickly, getting history, then spoke. "We're gonna draw blood, do a complete physical, get some ultrasounds of your organs, X-rays on your midsection, and your hands." She said, looking at Kat's hands. "But from the looks of it, I doubt surgery is gonna help you much other than cosmetic." She mused, hand surgery was a delicate and tricky business, with the severity of her hands, it wasn't likely she'd get better use out of her hands after surgery, though they'd look normal.

Kat just nods, "Alright." She whispered, knowing this was going to be a long and unpleasant event, but she wouldn't fight it more than she could help. They took her temperature, her pulse again, drew blood. Katherine watched calmly as they poked the needle into her vein, she didn't even flinch, honestly she didn't even feel the pain. After what had been done to her, a poke with a needle hardly counted as pain anymore. "Alright, while we wait for results, we're gonna get some ultrasounds of your organs, get some x-rays, see how your bones have healed. I'm assuming you've had multiple ones broke?" Kat nodded, "Yes, ribs, multiple times. I've had a couple concussions. My collarbone was broke once. And of course my hands." She said. THe Doc nods, "Alright, we definitely want to check those ribs. Have you coughed up blood, been dizzy?" Kat shakes her head, "Not without reason. I've bit my tongue a few times, or my cheek and bled, and I've had dizziness from hunger or dehydration." The Doc nods, "LEt's get you up to get the tests done. Tomorrow we have an OBGYN that will do an exam. " They began to wheel Kat out of the room to head upstairs for more tests to determine if surgery was necessary or not.
 
At the question if he would remain, he glanced at his watch, "I can remain a short while. We have debriefing in an hour and I am starting to feel a bit out of place."

As they started poking and prodding at Katherine, he stood nearby, looking at the woman who looked nothing like her picture and whose spirit seemed quite capable of slipping over that edge at just the wrong word or touch. It was a nurse who handed him a wet towel and a packet of alcohol wipes. He used the wipes to clean his hands and face, discarding the dirty wipes and finally clearing away the alcohol residue with the towel.

As they started to wheel her out, he took over from the orderly and gave Katherine a small smile when she looked at him. "Just let me know if you preferred the face paint and I'll change." They came to an elevator and he pushed the stretcher inside, then moved to stand next to the stretcher, a hand resting on the side, more to prevent it from moving away than anything else.

"You still hanging tough with us Lt?"
 
Katherine seemed a bit dazed as they wheeled her from the room. But the soldier's voice snapped her back, she nodded. "Yeah." though she wasn't sure that was true. Once they were on the right floor they wheeled her into the Xray room. Hands came first, and Kat watched in mild curiosity during the process. Then she was laid out on the table to get her ribs, and collarbone checked. Next they did an MRI on her organs. Kat was then shuffled into a quiet part of the hospital, hooked up to IV fluids and a few monitors.

By the time that was done, the doctor came in, "I have many results for you." She said, flipping through the paperwork. "First off you are one lucky lady. Your bones healed alright. You properly will get surgery on the ribs, as they are just crooked enough they might cause issue, but it's not life threatening." Kat listened silently, "Your hands are as bad as expected, surgery isn't going to help, you will need to relearn how to use your hands, but with time, I expect you'll have decent range of use." The doctor paused, looking at Kat before continuing. "Blood tests show you are negative for the worst of the STDs, Some antibotics will clear up the others, you won't have any long term affects." Finally she hesitated, "You are pregnant." Kat's head snapped up, panic in her eyes. "Your body is in no shape for a pregnancy. I expect you would miscarry or it would be a stillborn, but I recommend you terminate, for your own well being." Kat's eyes were wide, fear and panic. "I can't have a baby. I don't want it." She whispered. She couldn't have a baby that looked like her captors, she knew she'd come to hate the child for its looks, for the memories it caused.

The doctor nodded, "Alright, it's alright, don't get worked up. We can terminate easily, you aren't very far along." Kat nods, to finding some relief, she'd gotten pregnant multiple times, but had always lost them due to dehydration, starvation or the beatings. "Since you don't need surgery, I'm going to have a meal brought up, Some medications. I want you to try and test, if you can't, I'll prescribe a sleeping aid." she said before leaving. Kat curled in on herself, under the blankets, her body shivering slightly, as she tried to not panic with all the newness and stimulation, all the people touching her, being near her.
 
His time ran out during the testing, as she was in another machine, he couldn't say his farewells, which suited him. He never was any good with people. He could handle soldiers, it was humans he couldn't get along with. He slipped out and double-timed it to debrief.

He had to write out a complete report, be present when it was read and had to answer questions. One of them was why he bugged out with the medivac, the only real answer he could give was that the pilot out-ranked him. The question did make him think though, why did he allow it? Not like he didn't have the right to deny the request. After debriefing, he regained his rifle from Stewards and after securing his weapons, he went for a shower.

Clean and dressed he felt human again and with down time on his hands, it was time to have a beer with the guys. But instead of the watering hole, his steps took him to the hospital. It wasn't like he needed anything there. At reception, he got directed to the room that Katherine was placed in. He arrived along with the orderly bringing the food. He didn't even realize that he was gone this long.

He took the tray and entered the room, closing the door behind him. He noticed the lack of light and pushed open the curtain a bit. "I have your chow Lt."

He placed the tray on the bed table and stood to the side, subconsciously standing at parade rest, "I have also come to apologize for leaving. I had to go to debriefing."
 
Katherine wasn't all that surprised that the man had left, she knew he was a soldier and had better things to do than babysit her. She heard the sound of the door opening, and she flinched instinctively, the sound of doors opening were one of many triggers for her. Then a man opening the curtain to let in some light. Blinking rapidly she let her eyes adjust. KAt recognized his voice and she smiled slightly. "Thanks," She took the food, picking at it at first, eating slowly, but then her appetite kicked in, and she began eating so fast, she barely took time to breathe, as if expecting it to be taken from her.

Katherine didn't pause until she finished all the food, then she drank two bottles of water before responding to him. "It's fine. I didn't expect you to stay." Kat was still in the mindset that it was her against the world. So she didn't expect to have anyone she could trust or anyone would even want to stay with her. She kept herself curled into a tight little ball, her shaking was lessening, her pale eyes stayed fixated on the soldier.
 
He watched in fascination as she wolfed down the food, he did think of trying to get her to slow down, but then again, when hungry... He smiled slightly when she finished off two of the waters as well. Luckily the portions was small, or she'd be sick. But as things stood, she might just tolerate it.

He removed the tray when she told him that she basically understood and "forgive" him. He moved the bed table away and then pulled a chair from the corner to sit down close enough for her to see him, but not close enough to invade that personal bubble, which she didn't really have at that moment, but he knew the boundaries.

"Mind if I stay a while Lt?"
 
Kat flinched a little on instinct when he reached towards her to move the tray. Even though she'd decided that this man was the only one that wouldn't hurt her, it was a natural response now, if she saw a man reach towards her, she expected pain. Katherine was curious when he pulled a chair up and sat down, asking if he could stay. Then she shook her head, "I don't mind." She murmured, the spoke again, "it would be kinda nice to not be alone." On one hand she'd been alone nearly two years, she didn't know how to be around people, and on the other hand she felt she might scream if she was left alone any longer.

Pale, nearly colorless grey eyes looked at the soldier. "I don't know if I ever said Thank you. For getting me out of there. I'd stopped expecting rescue a long time ago." And she'd just started to accept her fate and had begun to search for a way to end her life. She picked at one of the scabs on her arm, to give her hands something to do, her eyes lowered to focus on what her fingers were doing, trying to make them do what she wanted. But as it was, she wasn't have any luck doing much other than scrapping her nails along her arm.
 
He looked at her and when her eyes dropped away, he looked at what she had focused on. It was clearly something to do, yet it didn't go the way she had wanted it to go. For a few moments he looked at her misshapen hands, then he leaned back in the chair.

"My earliest memory strangely enough is not of family. It is how the late afternoon light fell on a beerstein. You know a beerstein Lt? Those huge beermugs with the lids? This was an old one, an original so to speak. Made from real rock. It came all the way from Austria with a great-great parent. I have no idea how old it really is. But the way the golden sunlight would reflect of the surface, that I will never forget."

He gave her a slight smile, "Of course I had to lie a few times about that memory. Six foot two, two hundred and twenty pound guy who can remember the way light artistically speaking, reflected from an antique. My favorite lie is the family dog. German Shepard, my father named him Adolf. Of course the whole image of the proud dog protecting his family, brings out the patriot in many people and they leave me be."

He looked at her, "What about you Lt? You have a first memory?"
 
Katherine tilted her head, eyes lifting to look at him as he spoke. She smiled slightly, yes she could see why he lied about his memory. Then she shook her head, "I tried not to remember much of anything." She whispered. "Though it would've been of my team. I consider them family, almost the only family I have. Except my brother." She mused softly, watching him. Suddenly realizing she didn't know his name, "What's your name?" The question seemed to come out of no where, but it bothered her that she didn't know his name.

Katherine stopped picking at her scabs, it wasn't doing much good anyway, and now she had something else to focus on, the conversation she was having with the soldier. As they talked, she stretched out, slowly uncurling herself from the tight little ball, her shaking was slowly stopping. The talking, seemed to settle her a bit, Though she still wasn't tired yet, and didn't want to take any sleeping aids, for now she was content to sit in the mostly darkness and talk with this man.
 
He smiled in the semi-darkness, "Like the song says, his momma named him Tommy, but folks just called him Yellow. My real name is Thorvald, but people call me Thor. I think the thunder god would either weep or laugh his head off."

At least she had stopped scratching, that was a plus. "It always tickle me that people think I am Scandanavian when they hear my name, think I am German when they hear my surname and struggle to believe I am second generation American who grew up in Nashville."

He gave a chuckle, "Books and covers right?"
 
Katherine smiled ever so faintly, Thor, it was a fitting name for him, in her mind. She nodded when he mentioned people guessing his heritage based on his name. "People always thought I was Irish. Though I'm not, that I know of." She murmured, her Irish accent came out during that sentence, making her smirk, "my last foster family was Irish, I lived with them for several years and adopted their last name. So I guess I'm kinda Irish." she shrugged, "But thats mainly why my team nicknamed me "Lucky" I guess it's fitting." Kat whispered, finally yawning hugely, her eyes suddenly tired. It would seem she was finally having that adrenaline crash, her body needed to sleep, but she was afraid to. Bad things happened when she slept. They often came for her while she slept, to catch her off guard, now it made her leery of sleeping.
 
He listened to her and smiled slightly, "Well perhaps one day we should have a few beers and see if you are Irish. I think Saint Patrick's Day is not too far away. Perfect opportunity."

He leaned back into the chair, "Why don't you rest a bit Lt? I will stay here if you need some company, I really have nowhere to go or anything to do at the moment and you sure do look a bit knackered out. I think the helicopter ride got to you."

He purposefully tried to make a joke, get her to relax. God knows that she needed the rest and he really had nothing else to do, but sit with her. He thought about her nickname and wondered how she meant that she had been lucky. For him to think about what she went through was not lucky, he would have preferred a bullet or shrapnel than to go through what she and the two men in her squad went through for almost a year and a half. In fact it took so long, that people actually had given up hope on ever finding them, thinking that they were dumped into a crevice in some cave.
 
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She sighed, "I'm afraid to sleep. The nightmares are so life-like. I know I'm going to forget that I'm free, that I'm back in that cell, waiting for the next time he's going to come in there and hurt me." She whispered softly, hating to admit that she was afraid. She chewed on her lower lip, looking at Thor, "you'll stay?" Her voice suddenly small, she gained comfort, knowing he would be there with her.

No matter her fear, she couldn't fight the exhaustion. Her eyes finally fluttered shut, and she drifted off to sleep. The first few hours were peaceful due to her being so tired. But then the nightmares started in, she shook and jerked. Yelping in her sleep, twitching. "No. No. No. No. No." She whimpered, shaking her head back and forth as she thrashed around her bed.
 
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