Freecloud Justice Reprieve

Posted on Sat Mar 15th, 2025 @ 12:45pm by Lieutenant Adrianna Baciami

2,216 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Stars Around the Well
Timeline: Past

Adrianna had been walking along the cobbled streets of Rome, having arrived a little later than expected, the evening air thick with the scent of freshly baked bread and the distant hum of street musicians. The city had always felt like nostalgia personified, its winding alleys and ancient ruins offering a comfort she had not realised she still craved. But that comfort shattered the moment she heard a voice– low, familiar, and laced with dangerous intent.

“Reggimi… Baciami.”

She froze.

Turning slowly, she locked eyes with Lutz. He was dressed as he always was– sharp, dark, and deliberate. His stance was casual, but she knew better. He had been hunting her.

“You’re a hard woman to find,” his smirk was all teeth, a predator who had finally cornered his prey, “you know why I’m here, Adrianna. It's time to go back to Freecloud to face the consequences of your actions.”

Adrianna’s stomach twisted, but she forced herself to remain still, calculating. If Lutz had come all this way, it meant the wrong people wanted her back on Freecloud– him and the crew of the Pendragon being just a few. Someone needed to pay for what had happened to Vance and the bloodshed at his funeral, and she was the easiest target. Rightly so, she thought.

“I don’t have time for this,” she muttered, stepping back.

Lutz chuckled, shaking his head, “You don’t have a choice, sweetheart.”

He reached for her.

Adrianna quickly moved. She spun on her heel and bolted, shoving past startled pedestrians. The streets blurred as she ran, her boots slamming against stone and asphalt, weaving through narrow alleys and bustling piazzas. Shouts followed her, but she didn’t stop.

Rome had always been a maze to outsiders, but to her, it was a lifeline. Having grown up there, she knew it blindfolded.

She leapt over a low wall, landed in a courtyard, and tore through a market, knocking over crates of fruit as vendors yelled in protest. Lutz was behind her– close, too close– but she had the advantage. He wasn’t from here.

Adrianna veered left, down a flight of stairs that led to an underpass, heart hammering as she reached the other side. She knew a dozen different places to disappear, but she needed time.

A side street. A back door. A Vespa.

Something.

A chance.

She ducked into a crowded café, pressing herself against the wall, and forced her breath to steady. Lutz’s footsteps thundered past outside, but he didn’t stop.

Not this time.

But he would be back. And next time, she might not be so lucky.

Steeling herself, Adrianna waited until the murmurs in the café returned to normal before slipping out the side entrance. She kept her head low, adjusting her coat as she stepped onto the street. The adrenaline still thrummed in her veins, but she forced herself to walk, not run. She needed to stay inconspicuous.

Lutz wouldn’t have come alone.

As she neared Piazza Venezia, the shadow of the Altare della Patria looming over the bustling square, she spotted them– two more familiar figures lurking near the fountain. Grax and Nia. They weren’t as skilled as Lutz, but they were dangerous enough. They had been late additions to the crew. Used as muscle when required. They had known Vance for years, but had only agreed to join the Pendragon in the past few bigger runs owing to the guaranteed pay.

Dio santo.

Adrianna turned sharply and pushed into the crowd, her heart hammering. She wove through tourists snapping pictures, past street vendors selling trinkets, keeping her pace steady. She needed distance, a way to shake them before they spotted her–

Too late.

Nia’s voice rang out, sharp with recognition, “There!”

Adrianna bolted.

She tore through the square, dodging a Vespa that swerved with a blaring horn. She didn’t dare look back as she sprinted down Via del Corso, her breath ragged.

The Colosseum was ahead, its towering ruins bathed in golden light. If she could reach the Metro station, she might lose them in the tunnels.

Footsteps pounded behind her. Too close. The woman didn't have time so changed direction.

She veered right, nearly knocking over a street artist. The Spanish Steps loomed ahead– packed with people. She charged forward, leaping over bags and startled tourists, taking the steps two at a time.

Shouts echoed behind her, but she didn’t stop.

At the top, she raced towards Villa Borghese. The park’s dense trees and winding paths could buy her time. Adrianna’s lungs burned as she sprinted through the winding paths of Villa Borghese. Her boots hit the gravel hard, her breath ragged. If she reached the Tiber, she could slip away into Trastevere, disappear into the labyrinth of old streets.

She just had to keep running.

Then she skidded to a halt.

Lutz stepped out from behind a statue, blocking her path.

She spun around, but Grax and Nia were already there, closing in. More figures emerged from the trees– silent, watchful, dangerous. They had her completely boxed in.

Adrianna’s chest rose and fell as she took a slow step back, calculating. No way out.

Lutz smirked, “it took us long enough to pin you down, Baciami. We're not about to let you disappear again.”

She forced herself to keep her breathing steady, “funny. I thought you were getting sloppy.”

Lutz chuckled, rolling his shoulders, “we both know how this ends. You come with us willingly, or I make you come with us.”

Adrianna knew he wasn’t bluffing. She also knew she wasn’t going anywhere willingly.

He moved.

Fast.

She dodged the first grab, but he anticipated it, swinging his fist toward her ribs. It connected– pain exploded in her side. His fist connected with her cheek, with a satisfactory crack, as he seemed to hit out his frustration and hurt of losing Vance. She staggered, barely keeping her footing, stars starting to circle her vision, as she saw him rear back to knock her out.

Then a voice cut through the night.

“Ehi!”

It wasn’t one of Lutz’s crew.

A man stood just beyond the trees, hands in his pockets, head tilted in curiosity. His sharp suit looked out of place in the park, his dark eyes flicking from Adrianna to the group surrounding her.

“What’s this?” his tone was casual, as if he had just stumbled upon an interesting street performance.

Lutz and the others hesitated, assessing.

Adrianna coughed, straightening slightly. “None of your business, amico.”

The stranger hummed, unconvinced. “See, I think it is my business when I find a bunch of men circling a woman in the middle of the night,” his gaze sharpened, “doesn’t look good.”

Lutz glanced at his crew, weighing his options. Whoever this man was, he wasn’t acting like someone who had wandered in by accident. And the way he stood– relaxed, but utterly sure of himself– set something off.

Not worth the risk.

Lutz clicked his tongue, stepping back. “This isn’t over, Baciami,” his eyes lingered on hers, “you can’t outrun us forever.”

Adrianna wiped at her mouth, leveling him with a look, “you’re right. But I'm doing your job for you. There is nothing that you can do that will make me feel any worse. That I can assure you.”

Lutz stared at her, a realisation coming over him. She looked ill– not just winded from the run– she looked like she hadn't been eating well for months, she looked drained, exhausted. This was a woman who was punishing herself– for that she was right– there was nothing he could do that would be worse. “Should you find yourself of Freecloud, or in the same place as the Pendragon again– consider this a warning. We won't kill you, but we will enjoy handing out Freecloud styled justice to ensure you continue suffering for what you did.”

One by one, Lutz and his crew melted into the shadows. The stranger waited until they were gone before stepping forward. “Alright,” he said, dusting off his sleeve. “Who exactly did I just piss off?”

Adrianna exhaled, pressing a hand to her ribs and another to her cheek. She studied him properly now– the cut of his suit, the sharp features, the quiet confidence in his stance. Then it hit her, “…Giovanni?”

His brows lifted. “Oh? So you do know me.”

She let out a disbelieving laugh, “sei il mio dannato fratello.”

Giovanni blinked, processing. Then his lips quirked into an amused smirk, “Huh. Small world.”

Giovanni’s smirk faltered as he studied her properly. His eyes flicked to the bruises already blooming where Lutz had hit her, then back to her face. She looked like she was in an awful state– in fact, he would have walked right past her if it hadn't been for the gang surrounding her. Whatever amusement he’d had vanished. “Cristo, Adrianna,” he exhaled, raking a hand through his hair, “do you have any idea how long you’ve been gone?”

She crossed her arms, shifting her weight slightly– every muscle in her body still humming from the chase, “I know.”

His jaw tightened, “months, Adrianna. Months of nothing. Not a single word. You were gone.”

She let out a slow breath, “I had to be.”

Giovanni scoffed, shaking his head. “You had to be?” his voice rose slightly, but he caught himself, glancing around. He took a step closer, lowering it again, “You disappeared right after the funeral. You walked out of our lives like we didn’t matter– like I didn’t matter. We were scared out of our minds that you'd done something stupid. And because you were Intel, we couldn't put out a missing person report. I had to tell our parents that you had business on a ship somewhere that didn't have a signal! I thought I'd have to bury an empty box!”

Adrianna swallowed hard. The weight of those words hit sharper than she’d expected, “That’s not true– I'm alive and nothing happened.”

Giovanni let out a dry laugh, “no? Then tell me, sorellina, why did you run? Why did you go MIA.”

Adrianna looked away, her fingers tightening around the edge of her coat. She hadn’t planned on saying all this here, in the middle of a damn park, but maybe it didn’t matter. Maybe it was time. “I wasn’t running,” she said finally, her voice quieter now, “I was grieving and needed the solitude to come to terms with everything.”

Giovanni didn’t say anything, but she could feel his stare.

She took another breath, “I wasn’t just mourning Vance, Gio. I was mourning me– the part of me that should have died with him.”

His expression darkened. “I remember,” he muttered, “you wanted to follow him. You wanted to die.”

Adrianna’s throat tightened, “and you didn’t let me.”

Giovanni clenched his jaw, “damn right, I wouldn’t.”

She let out a breath, rubbing a hand over her face. “That’s why I left. I was furious with you. I was drowning in everything I had lost, and you kept dragging me back to the surface,” she dropped her hand, looking at him again, “I needed to get away. To heal. And fix a few messes.”

Giovanni studied her for a long moment, his usual sharp wit absent now. Then, softer, he asked, “And did you?”

Adrianna hesitated, “I’m getting there.”

He exhaled, rubbing a hand over his chin, “dio santo, Adrianna… You could’ve told me. Anything. Just so I knew you were alive.”

She gave a small nod, “I know. That’s why I’m here.”

Giovanni raised a brow.

She shifted slightly, “I wanted to make amends with you– with Constantine– with the family before I ship out.”

That got his attention, “ship out?”

Adrianna nodded, “in a few weeks. The USS Arcadia.”

Giovanni’s mouth pressed into a thin line, “Starfleet let you back in? They agreed that your stupid plan was worth it?”

“Yes.”

“Intel?”

Adrianna shook her head, “no, I'm done. I need something more stable. I don't want to lie to people any more. I'm going into Comms.”

Silence stretched between them.

Then, to her surprise, Giovanni let out a slow chuckle, shaking his head, “figures. I'm surprised that you're not going back into Intel though– you’re stubborn enough.”

She smirked slightly, “runs in the family.”

He sighed, then reached out, pulling her into a tight, unexpected hug. Adrianna stiffened for half a second before melting into it, the tension in her shoulders easing slightly. Giovanni muttered something against her hair.

“What?” she asked.

He pulled back just enough to meet her gaze, “don’t disappear on me again, Adrianna.”

She swallowed hard, seeing the hurt she'd caused by going off the grid, “I won’t. Not intentionally anyway.”

Giovanni studied her for a moment longer, then nodded once. “Good,” he exhaled, stepping back, “now, let’s get out of here before any more of your friends decide to show up.”

Adrianna smirked, “they’re not my friends. Well, not anymore.”

He smirked back, “exactly. Either way– I don't want to know.”

 

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