[center][h2] [color=f7941d]The Last Campfire[/color] [/h2] [h2] [color=ec008c]Samantha Dalton[/color] [/h2][/center] Samantha was sitting in the wooden chair in front of the fire. She had on boots, leggings, a flannel shirt, and a heavy winter coat. She had her hands tucked into the pocket of the coat. Most of the Lichtenberg Scars she had were hidden away under clothing. The long spidery red marks that marked her skin were the calling card of having been electrocuted. Then there were the heavy burn marks where the electricity had entered and exited her body. The marks that could be seen appeared as jagged red marks like creepy bony fingers trailing up from her chest, over her neck, along her jawline, and up onto her cheek bones. Her ribs were wrapped tight to give them support as they healed. She had a massive nanite skin graft hidden under a bandage that was centered on her chest. She had a smaller one on her thigh where the electricity had arced from the floor. Her boots had been insulated but there had been enough energy that it had been attracted to some of the circuitry in her suit on her chest before traveling back down her body and out from her thigh and back to the floor again. She had burned gnarled skin in the middle of her chest with the spidery red Lichtenberg Scars spread out like a star from the center of her chest. She had a smaller set that traveled up her thigh and around it from that burn. Samantha was struggling with the pain when she moved. She knew from Sophie though that without some movement the scar tissue itself could tighten up and cause her issues with movement. She was struggling to come to terms with everything. She needed to heal though and quickly. Rose was still out there. She didn’t believe that she was done trying to kill all the people on the planet. A leopard couldn’t change their spots. She believed that Rose wouldn’t stop now. She was more dangerous than ever. She was cornered and had nothing left to lose. Desperate people did desperate things. She feared what Rose would do next. She obviously didn’t care about the consequences to anyone anymore, even herself. Samantha had come to the campfire hoping to get her mind off these depressing thoughts. She had been teasing Skye and filling her in on her condition, when Embrima stepped out of the shadows dressed in furs. [color=f26522] Ebrima: ”I got the impression that by now, Doctor Keller knows better than to expect miracles.” [/color] Samantha watched amused as he took some roasting sticks from Adam. [color=ec008c]“You would think so. I think she lives for those moments when she gets to complain.” [/color] [hr] [center][h3][i][color=fff200]An Auspicious Work[/color][/i][/h3][/center] Samantha was once again wearing black cargo pants, tucked into combat boots, a black tank top, with a flannel shirt over it. You could see the top edge of the large bandage on her chest where the flannel shirt hung open. The red jagged lines from the electricity radiated up from her chest, up her neck, along her jawline, and up onto her cheek bones. Her chest had radiated pain from the healing ribs, bruises from the CPR, and the burn where the soldier had accidentally elbowed her. She was grateful for the distraction of Ban’s cooking and the silliness of the soldiers who were cheering him on. It distracted her brain and helped her cope. She had sought him out wanting to know more about him. This was the first time she had worked with him. Not that they had been on the same mission. She had been on the blimp and he had been with Chuck and Freya on the rig. She knew there had to be more to him since Skye had sought him out after she left the team in Japan. She had waited until most of the crowd had food and had thinned out before approaching Ban and asking for her meal. It truly smelled divine. Ban bowed to her as she introduced herself and put in her request for some of the fish and pork. Samantha couldn’t bow back as deeply as he had so did her best to bow. She knew that Ban was showing her great respect. She felt compelled to try and show it back. She winced and gasped in pain as the skin on her chest pulled at the bandage and her ribs twinged at the movement. She quickly straightened back up. She gave Ban a wry pained smile. [color=ec008c]“My apologies Ban. I can’t bow as far as I would like to at the moment due to injuries. Your forgiveness?”[/color] She inclined her head. That she could do. She appreciated that Ban had been there to help Skye when she couldn’t be there to help her friend. She didn’t know him yet but he had already earned her respect with his actions. Not that he probably knew that or why. She gave him a warm smile as he straightened up and began to talk to her. [color=6ecff6]"Dalton-sama, Konnichiwa." He smiled before continuing, "Yosh! Fish and pork yes. Would you like that with noodles? Soba with some rice vinegar and pepper flakes, very tasty. Or Rice? Lightly friend, egg and some rice wine splashed in, I'm proud of it, perhaps both?" [/color] Samantha was amused as he was serving her up some of everything before she could respond. She responded to him in Japanese [color=ec008c]“Konbanwa (good evening) Ban San. It looks as good as it smells. I am humbled to have the pleasure of sampling your cooking.” [/color] She accepted the plate of food he served her. Before she could leave to find a seat he invited her to sit by him as he cooked. He offered her a seat at the counter. She took the chair he pointed her to and gingerly lowered herself into it. She couldn’t hide the sigh of relief as sitting released some of the pressure on her ribs from standing. Ban set a cup of sake next to her plate. She sipped the sake so she didn’t insult Ban. She was not a fan of alcohol. She couldn’t deny that some numbing agent wouldn’t go amiss right now. [color=ec008c]“Thank you Ban san. The sake is indeed good.”[/color] She gave Ban a smile and folded her hands and bowed her head over the plate. [color=ec008c]“Itadakimasu (I humbly receive).”[/color] She tucked into the exquisite smelling food and purred in delight. She had not had Asian food this good since she last had dinner with Kameko. That made her feel a little homesick. She would definitely have to visit her soon. Work with Raven had been flitting from one crisis to the next. It had been several months since she had the opportunity to visit in person. The flavors exploded across her palate and she appreciated the texture of the pork. She made sure to slurp the noodles slightly as a sign of respect for his cooking. She looked up at Ban with a grin “Oishii desu” (It’s delicious)! She continued to eat her meal as Ban let the others know he would be cooking seconds. He continued to chat with her as he bounced energetically as he cooked. [color=6ecff6]Ban: "Tell me Sam-chan, how are you feeling? I read the reports, you took a bad hit...they say you almost went to see the Kami. We would have lost a good person if I understand everything correctly. Are you alright?" [/color] Sam was surprised and a little touched at genuine concern in his voice. She thought about her experience as he brought up her memories about it. She thought he might understand. She set down her fork before turning her eyes up at him. She looked at him thoughtfully and used Japanese to tell him. She didn’t want to explain their conversation to others. She doubted many of them would understand Japanese. It seemed fitting somehow to have the conversation in Japanese since Ban had invoked Kami. Samantha took a fortifying sip of Sake before she began. [color=ec008c]“Thank you for inquiring about my health Ban-san. I did in fact die on the mission. I am recovering. I suffered some pretty severe electrical burns, broken ribs, and bruising. Skye-sama saved my life.” [/color] She paused wondering if she should say anything. They were just getting to know one another. She had not shared the experience with anyone other than her grandmother. She thought he might understand. She took another sip of the sake as she tried to decide. She looked decisive as she began speaking once more. Maybe if she told someone else that sense of dread and foreboding would lessen. [color=ec008c]“I need to share something with you. I don’t want others to overhear me. They will not understand and think me delusional. I hope you don’t mind my poor Japanese a bit longer.”[/color] Samantha was fluent in Japanese but still had a California accent. She bit her lip but then went on. [color=ec008c]“While Skye-sama was saving my life, I was visited by the Kami, my parents, and grandfather. They told me it was not my time. I had to come back. That the world still needed me to save it. I have had the worst feeling of dread ever since. Rose is still out there. I can’t help feeling she is not done yet.”[/color] Her eyes met his almost pleading for understanding, agreement, a sign she wasn't crazy. There was such a celebratory mood around the base. Samantha felt like the only one worried that Rose would reappear with some new mad scheme to end the world that would be even worse.