Sorry

Anna could understand why things happened the way they did. Wolf and his mech were put into a vacant mech repair station and covered up while under guard. Only certain individuals were allowed to make contact with him. They knew about the implant, but they could only see the surface and assume it was simply to connect the user interface directly to the pilot. They had no idea that Wolf and Anna were in constant contact. He kept her up to date on all happenings.

Stephanie was thrust into the world of creation, starting with simple blacksmithing. She was promised an education like no other with multiple apprenticeships. She was beginning to live a dream, for sure.

But Anna... She was a grunt from the military. She was alone. She wasn't particularly adept at creating like most of the people on this rig seemed to be.

Anna was feeling out of place so she mostly just stayed in her room. She was assigned a room in a house that several night shifters lived in, making the day peaceful and the night easy to sleep. A few days later, one of the five captains of the rig knocked on her door.

She acted surprised at his arrival since Wolf kept her up to date with everything.

"We've come to a consensus with the A.I. that you call, "Wolf." The data it leaked onto the internet helped us with our technology hundredfold. But, it seems it still has some tricks up its sleeves. In exchange for rebuilding the mech's frame to its specifications, we will be awarded even more information on technological advancement. It seems to have taken a liking to you. It won't speak to anyone that isn't worth negotiating with. And, you were brought up in the negotiations. Upon the completion of the new mech frame, you will be free to go."

Anna knew about all of the information except the part about her being "free to go." What did that mean? Was she considered a prisoner? Anna suddenly wanted to punch the guy in the face. She held back if only because Wolf was asking her forgiveness inside of her head.

It turned out that she was part of the negotiations in the beginning. Wolf had used her as a bargaining chip to gain interest before throwing in other things to really wet the pallet before pulling her off of the table.

The captain had left and Anna felt more alone than ever.

"That was a really shitty thing to do. I thought we were friends..." Anna covered her face with her hands as she sat down on the side of her bed.

A nearby electronic picture frame replaced the current image of a ship at sea with text from Wolf.

"Pic-pi-picture-ure-ture fr-fr-fr-frame-rame." He attempted to say.

Anna looked up. It read,

[To them, you looked like a bargaining chip. I would have never accepted the deal if you couldn't stay with me.]

The text disappeared and was replaced with more.

[To me, you are the key. Without a full moon, a werewolf cannot transform. Without you, My Moon, I am not Wolf.]

"But you still put me on the table like a slab of meat up for sale. Friends don't do that. Not if they are true friends..."

Wolf did nothing for a few minutes. Anna laid down, facing away from the picture frame. The last words on the picture frame simply said, [I'm Sorry, Anna.]

On the following morning, Anna got out of bed and ignored the picture frame that hadn't changed since last night. She went to the kitchen and was surprised to find breakfast waiting for her. One of the night crew must have made it before they went to bed.

Anna sat down to eat. A *ding* from the nearby fridge alerted her. It was another "sorry" message from Wolf. She ignored it too.

She left the dwelling after finishing her food. Her goal was simply to explore.

Anna started by visiting some shops to browse but every time she checked a price on something, the electronic price tag would change to say sorry. When she gave up on the shops she decided to check out some of the open workplaces on the lowest floor.

Anna stopped by the "Simple Smithy" where Stephanie was currently honing her skills. There was a screen that showed current orders for specific parts, every name and part listing on the screen changed to Sorry. It caused some ruckus so Anna took her leave.

She started running, trying to find someplace that Wolf couldn't pester her or interrupt others.

It seemed like everywhere she went, a screen showed the word "sorry" on it. It was like she was being followed by a pest.

Anna then had a thought. Up! There was a helicopter pad off to the side on the rig on the uppermost level. There's no way any screens were up on that lonely pad.

She ran through crowds and up stairs. All the while, dozens of screens around her were changing to that same word. Anna found a personnel elevator that went to the surface. She ran out and up several flights of stairs until she found the highest point on the rig that she could get to. There were no screens. Wolf couldn't pester her up there.

The wind picked up. It was cold. She wandered over to the edge and looked out over the ocean where waves were crashing and the occasional chunk of ice floated by. She held onto a stiff wire railing that hung as high as her upper torso.

A light buzzing caught Anna's attention. From seemingly nowhere, a little toy quad copter floated up from below. It had a little ball in front that moved around like an eye. It emitted some light and began projecting the word right in front of her.

Anna paused as she grumbled for a moment. She then jumped up and reached forward in an attempt to snag the toy out of the sky. It quickly backed away and Anna's hand dropped in defeat as she rested her stomach on the wire railing. She let out a sigh before falling back to her feet.

"So annoying… just like…" Anna turned around and sat down with her back against a lower railing.

The little quad copter came around to her front and projected a question mark.

"Someone from my past. When I was upset, he would follow me around and ask what's wrong. He wouldn't leave me alone. You're just as annoying."

Anna slowly put a hand out and gently pushed the toy away. The eyeball looked around for a second and the toy floated back to where it was before.

It then began projecting a series of words.

[I don't]

[want you]

[feeling]

[bad.]

[Especial]

[ly]

[when it]

[is my]

[fault.]

Anna pushed the toy away again like last time. This time it didn't return. Anna let out another sigh and closed her eyes.

"I'll accept your apology if you promise not to sell me off. Even as a fake bargaining chip."

She looked up.

[I]

[promise!]

"And no more following me around like you did today."

[No deal.]

Anna clicked her tongue.

"You little bastard!" She stood up and started to chase the flying toy around the helipad for a while.

As inferior as the quality of the toy's camera was, Wolf could make out a smile on Anna as she chased his proxy around.