(coming from character draft intro in archives)

26th of April, 2033

<<<Map Image 1 Here>>>

The hickups started an hour after they left the ports of Alexandria. Three days later, Peaches isflat on her belly, all fours streched out, right at the railing.

Not-a-Prince brings her another bucket of water to his travel partner, carefully scooping it towards her lips with both hands: "We're almost there. I can see land alreay."

Instead of an articulate answer, Peaches just moans loudly. And greedly proceeds to drink the water from his hands. This feels good, she relaxes a littlen.

<<<Map Image 2 Here>>> - Battle with Frontex Vessel in round based RPG popup overlay.

The hit comes hard and unexpected. The world tipping over. The last thing Peaches hears is an amplified voice: "Coastal Guard, you are under arrest." Then she hits the water head first. She falls into the dark, his consciousness receding, only a single dot of light ahead, very far away. Then, deep black nothingness filling his entire being.

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<<<Map Image 3 Here>>> (close up crete coast, drifting, picked up by fishers boat.)

Blinking. Sand. She is lying in the sand. Is that it? The Beach at the end of life? Her thoughts meander back to the desert, all the corpses in the sand... her mum... she is thinking out loud: "Am I dead?"

"Your breathing quite heavily for a dead body." Despoine turns her attention to todays catch as she wakes up, rolling the Amulete between her fingers. "Welcome to crete". "You... Did you...?"

Peaches feels her heart pumping heavily, breathing deep... "Thank you."

"No worries.", Despoine replies with a smile, checking her phone again. "The reward has been paid. I will return your Amulet to UNHCR now. May it guide another rescue party." She makes the traditional three dent hand sign with the right and bows her head. After the ritual three seconds of silence, she adds: "You look weak. There is a Hestian temple just behind the dunes. You will find drinking water and food there. Farewell."

There are hundrets of people queing at the temple, the line streching back further than she can see. So Peaches pulls together her last bit of willpower and starts trotting past the line.

"Hey, you." Ergün spotted the new arrival right away. This one needs some extra care... "You know, they are rationing at the temple. It's only snacks today. If you need a proper meal, come along. Me and my friends are having a picknick down at the meadow by the river."

"River? Meadown?" Peaches eyes brighten up. Oh yes. OH. YES. She follows the young priest with no hesitation. The fresh and cold river not only quleches her thirst, but also freshens up her salt-crusted skin. She is still standing in the water up to her belly, munching, when her memory slowly come back. "Coastal Guard. Arrest..." She turns to the priest: "I have to find my partner. He was kidnapped!"

Again. Ergün looks around, shrugs at his friends and raises his finger to the lips: "Don't talk about Frontex here. I cannot help you." He then gets up and goes for a bath himself, getting close up. When he is right next to her, out of hearing range of anyone else, he whispers in her ear: "Ask at the Hermes Shrine. Codeword Article 14. It's at the end of the village, in the basement right behind the packet shop. Tell them Ergün is sending you and give them this." He swipes her a pizza voucer.

<<< map detail on crete? >>> (Assassins Creed Map!!!)

Peaches discovers the door at the bottom of an ancient marble stairway. The the graffiti of a winged shoe indicates she found the place. Knock-Knock.

Xhin is checking the certificates. The Pizzatoshis are valid. Since Papa John donated the original Pizza Block to the Hestian Foundation, the priests are throwing pizza parties like there is no tomorrow. Ergüns sign tell her all she needs to know: "So a coastguard kidnap, I guess?" Fucking Frontex wankers. Her stomach cramps with anger. "When?" "Just... Today?"

Peaches is unsure how long she was unconscious, drifting in the sea.

Xhin is checking the reports right away. "There was an attack this morning, just off the south coast. Prisoners were taken and distributed to various camps across the island. Afraid that all we got in the public records... If you can give me a name, maybe one of the moles can get us further?"

"Not-a-Prince."

Xhin checks in with his favorite OSINT broker. Shit, that is gonna cost a lot. Far more than a pizza night. Xhin make a grunting noise and stares at Peaches for a while and then starts scrolling through the marketplace. Perfect. "I got a gig. Could use help from someone of your caliber. Wanna help me carry a whole bunch of tech up a mountain? If we We split the reward 50/50, it will easily be enough to cover the mole request."

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<<< map detail on crete? >>> (Assassins Creed Map!!!)

The view from up here is fantastic - all the way over the coast and far out on the ocean to the south, a view over further mountain ranges to the North. Xhin is mounting the sensors, cameras, microphones, solar panels, batteries and the sattelite uplink. All connected via a Raspi 7. Power on. "Good luck to us". Just a few minutes later the confirmation comes in: "He is in Lorchia." A fucking hellhole. Xhin is scanning the valley. "See down there, between the cliff and the forest? That compound."

Peaches stares at it. Her prince is down there. "How do we get him out?"

Xhin is diving deeper into the Hermes Networks, scannign through the latest Antifa intel on Lorchia. There are high-res airial photos, security posts and cameras marked. She is checking the strategy forum. There are several incomplete attack plans, one of them 87% finished... open. "So the Supersoldiers could distract the guards, while the mole guides the victims to back door. But they have no plan to break it. Steelreinforced, mechanical high security lock." They shake their head. "That kind of warrior mission is not my turf. I almost getting a panic attack just thinking about it. But if you could bust that back door... The other would be ready to go in half an hour." She swipes her the plan.

Peaches is fokusing. The backdoor is facing them. The route through the valley is straight - and very very very steep. "We will go at sunset. I will give the signal."

"Good luck." Xhin ties her leather jacket around her shoulders. "Take this, it will hurt less."

The very moment the sun touches the ocean, Peaches it calling the attack. Her battlecry echos over t he entire valley. And GO. Gathering speed, she is soon more falling than running, pushing herself off the ground, faster and ever faster, hardly noticing the shrubs she is scrunches on her way. Hyperfocus. The Door. Sirens are screetching, there is smoke in the air. And BAM. The steel door is no match for her shoulder, flying off the hinges on impact. The pain bearly recognizes - and timing was perfect, the first victims are arriving just then. A supersoldier all in black nods at her: "συντρόφισσα ελέφαντας, είναι τιμή μου“." And there he is.

Not-a-Prince can't believe his fate. Peaches. She broke door open. He runs at her and straight into a hug. Kist seconds later she graps him with her trunk and lift him onto her back.

------------------- Loggout to Liquid Reign Real Time --------------------------

"And that was how I found my prince again. And earned this medal". Peaches closes her diary, and we are back to her homescreen. "Wow, you are a real heroine!" I'm deeply impressed. Taking a closer look at the medal, I decypher the signature: "Proof of Liberation, Gold Edition, 2033." 2033? Curious. "May I ask which OS you were using back in the day?" Peaches can't help but lkaugh. "That was prior to my first upload... Back in the day I still did the vast majority of the thinking in my good old elephant skull. As as matter of fact, I was running my very first install of OpenMammalSoul 3.6 AT THE TIME. running on an in-ear system. Version 3.6! I remember all too well - most of my conversations at the time were concerning the reality of celery meals.

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