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I wasn’t honestly paying attention to where I was going, so more or less, I ended up at a sort of a dead end. I took a corridor that lead to a locked door, and due to the corridors being so narrow, the beast had me cornered. With the walls made out of a sort of metal alloy, the electricity would spread much easier, but on a good note, the shell shock was beginning to fade out. This, meaning that I would only be shocked for the next few minutes before I was to be eaten.

“Have fun eating my crisp, metal plated body, jackass!” I said in a futile attempt to a furry, carnivorous reptile that would hardly understand the English language. I raised my unloaded shell shock rifle to defend myself, even though I knew it was pointless to.

I began to feel the bolts of electricity sting me as the dinosaur charged after me. Holding my gun as a weak attempt for a shield, I closed my eyes upon seeing its fangs at nearly fifteen feet away. The next thing that I could hear was not the battle cry of a beast, but of a man as the sound of metal seemed to drag against the floor. It was a sound that I was thankful for.

I’ve only heard that sound a few times in this new life, and every time it came from one source; the tip of Kaemon’s sword dragging against the ground before it was brought up into a powerful uppercut. The beast never saw it coming.

When the shocks stopped, I could really make heads and tails of the situation...literally. I survived only because Kaemon had rescued me yet again. I was thankful, but I was more peeved that the beast actually didn’t eat me now.

“Nice job killing the beast without my help.” Kaemon smirked as he sheathed his katana. The fair-built asian man then swiped a bit of his bangs out of his face, as if to show that killing the creature hardly broke a sweat. His black hair was cut fairly short, with his bangs being the only lengthy part of his hair, ending at his cheekbone. He was a man that died in battle in the Meiji Era at the young age of twenty-five. He offered his hand to help me up from my now kneeled position, but instead, I slapped his hand away.

“Don’t bother!” Was all I could mutter as I lifted myself up. It ached for me to stand, and the armor made me feel even worse with the burning pain I felt due to the shocks, but I didn’t want to damage my pride any further.

Kaemon laughed. “What a nice speech you had a moment ago.”
I was a bit confused as to how he heard. “Were you following me this whole time?”

He shook his head. “You thought that your connection on the intercom was lost because it was broken. Actually, we could hear everything you said, but you couldn’t seem to hear us. It’s a good thing for you that you talk to yourself a lot.” He began to laugh again.

I placed my gun back into its holster that was tied onto my back after shutting it off. After doing that, I began to ignore his snide comments and proceeded to grab at one of the beast’s leg. “Well, are you just going to stand there or are you going to help me drag this thing back?”

He placed his hands on his hips and turned away. “I think you can handle this one without me. You don’t need me to help you with everything, eh busu?”

“Why do you keep calling me that? What does that mean?” I retorted, but I knew he wouldn’t tell me. I watched him walk away, and knowing that he wouldn’t help me, I began to drag the odd creature by it’s leg. That’s when I noticed that the head was no longer attached. I cringed at the thought of carrying the severed head, but I was sure that the head was more important than the body of the beast. I waited until I was dead sure that the shock shell was completely finished before lifting the bloody head.

Ten minutes later, I braved picking up the head and began to limp my way back to the lab. Along the way, I cursed myself for still being with this Project, and began to wonder when I would ever make my move. Deep down, I knew it was impossible to escape and remain alive for long, but it was really the only thing I lived for at this point. It sure as hell wasn’t over becoming an ‘American Dog’ myself.

Of course, speaking of the devil, I run into Renato over halfway to the exit of this lower laboratory. This man who’s last day alive before resurrection was in his late twenties, was heavily built to the point that even without wearing armor, he would still look as if he were wearing it under his clothes. Despite the muscles and the strict military hairstyle and mannerisms, he was actually a real sweet heart. Not that I would go for him with intentions of being more than a friend or a comrade, but speaking as a woman, I could easily see why maybe the women would love him.

Even though the beast was surely dead, I still hated carrying its head, and seeing as I went through more to kill this than even Kaemon did, I didn’t feel bad in the least when I threw the head at him for him to carry. “Got a gift for ya.”

Renato caught it, knowing what it was. “Eww, I thought furry animals were supposed to be cute.” He joked as he began walking alongside of me with the wide-eyed head in his arms.

“Well, apparently that theory doesn’t work for him. I’m glad it doesn’t bother you to carry it.”

“Eh, it’s the least I can do. Sorry we left you alone back there.”
I wiped my bloody hands on my pants in a calm fashion. “Bah, it’s no problem. If there was anything left of me, I’m sure I would have been resurrected again. It seems like good help is hard to find these days when it comes to us.”

We were fairly silent the rest of the way to the elevator, but as soon as we reached it, the burning sensation overcame me a bit, and without knowing it would happen, I passed out.

Of course, it would be too much to ask for me getting to my room without falling or stopping. In an attempt to go to the right side of the hallway from being on the left side, I tripped and fell on my side. It was at that point Renato walked around the corner from where I was heading towards. He ran up to me, but like I did with Kaemon, I refused his help before he could offer it.

“Sorry, but I need to prove I can take care of myself.” I muttered while trying to push myself up.

“Kaemon, right?” Renato had leaned over, as if still ready to help me up, although he apparently took heed to my demand.

I nodded. “But even then, I need to get strong if I’m to keep up with the rest of you. I’ve got a long ways to go, and the more I depend on you guys, the longer it’ll take to reach your ranks.”

Renato smirked. “Well, remember, everyone needs help here and there. After all, we had our times of help, but since we either didn’t use it or have it offered, we did end up here, didn’t we?”

He actually had a point there. If I would have spoken to my parents when I found out I was pregnant back then, maybe I wouldn’t have got into that car accident when I tried to delay going home. If I had pursued their help instead of feared it, maybe I would be living a normal life...or actually have a life. I couldn’t believe what I did next, but I extended my arm towards him to ask for help.

It was like Renato intentionally said what he said so that he could convince me to accept his help. I don’t know if it was because I was a comrade or if I was a woman, but he was always eager to help me when I was in a bad situation. Maybe he pitied me for being here.

Of course, as soon as he lifted me to my feet, Kaemon walked from around the corner with his arms folded. His expression was most foul, when he discovered that I was using Renato’s help.

“Typical. Just when I thought maybe she could take care of herself, I discover she’s using you to take the easy path.”

Renato didn’t seem angered, but he definitely didn’t agree with him. “Don’t act that way. We all need help at times. I’m not saying that because she’s a woman that she’s having trouble with this kind of life, but you have to admit that this came easier to us since we were in training since we were little. She’s not exactly a big built woman either.”

“You’re right. She’s built like a typical woman. Frail, weak, and yet, the most her body could do was to give birth to a dead child.”

That struck a nerve with me, and whereas in the past, I would have begun bawling at the subject, I found myself grabbing for Renato’s gun that rested in it’s holster and aimed it at Kaemon, shooting him in the shoulder.

Apparently that was the most I could do, as I then fell to my knees. “You’re lucky that I’m not feeling well right now, or they would be resurrecting you again.”

eek Wow, that was really long. But definitely worth it! biggrin I can't wait to read some more of this.

I decided to drop the matter as well, as I was positive that this past of his was as much of a painful one as my dead child was. Though it made me suddenly think of my own family again and what they were possibly doing now. Especially of Henry. Had he already moved on? Had I already been forgotten, or could I possibly still be mourned? I then asked something I didn’t plan on asking.

“When will I ever see the outside world again? Or will I?”

The doctor seemed glad for the change of the subject and seemed to be his happy self again. “I believe that after a little bit more training, you may see it sooner than you think.”

“What do you mean by that?”

The doctor walked back to the life-support container and opened the fuse box to check the condition of it. “It seems that the military is keen on having a special assassination force, and they are more interested in the three of you. I’ve been meaning to talk to you all about that, but I was actually afraid to bring it up.”

“Afraid?” I asked as I walked towards him. “I guess I could understand why, but anyway, don’t they already have assassination teams? And there is Michael after all.”

While still focused on the machine, he continued to answer my questions. “Well, that is true, but they are already known by the President. General Leswall has been keen on this secret group ever since he first found out about it, and he seems bent on having a secret group to take care of, sadly to say, the dirty work. I’m personally against it, but I seem to be one of the few to feel that way. I would like to say that my word is final, but even though I have been here the longest, things don’t work that way. General Leswall has much more authority than myself, and really, in the end, it’s up to you three in whether you can do it or not.”

“Wow, you mean we have a choice in this? That doesn’t sound like the government, or rather the military way of going about things.” I jested.

“That’s because it’s not your choice if you know about it. They were wanting to put you through a series of tests as soon as I told you, whether you wanted to or not. So if you want, I can act like I never mentioned it to you, or you can wait until I’m either forced to tell you with a witness around, or until someone else tells you.”

“Hell, I’ve gone this far into the project, I might as well prepare now for this one so I can at least have a bit more meaning in this existence. I’m sure Renato and Kaemon would jump at a chance like this.”

“I’d imagine they would. I was more worried about you, seeing as you’re still pretty new to this, but I’m actually amazed you want to pursue this. I guess I can’t blame you. But if you do go through with this, you’re going to have to stay quiet about your opinions of the government, as you are going to learn that it’s just as ugly, if not then more ugly than you ever thought before. For we’re not talking about criminals you’ll be killing, we’re talking about political leaders and ambassadors. These people may be the nicest people in the world, but because they are on the opposing side of our political views, you might get ordered to kill them. And remember, General Leswall isn’t a very caring man.”

I gave a sigh and thought about it for a moment. “I already figured that this went on, but I never would have dreamed that I would be the one pulling the trigger. I suppose I’ll just have to know as little about their personal life as I possibly can to get by.”

The doctor finally stopped for a bit. “And also...remember, that you will be used at times as a decoy, and may get killed in the process. You may die many more times being in this line of work, and that’s probably what the general is the most interested in. He’s so obsessed about preserving his own men that he wouldn’t mind having a group of soldiers that could be disposed of time and time again. I hope that never happens, but that’s just wishful thinking. That’s why you have to train harder, but since you are a sniper, at least you won’t be in direct contact like Kaemon or Renato.”

I chuckled and commented on his last sentence. “I would feel bad for Renato, but I could feel the least bit of pity for Kaemon for being a sword-wielder.”

“True, but he seems to be the best trained soldier out of the three. Renato is pretty close, but he still lacks the quick thinking skills to be on the frontline. Kaemon seems to be well balanced with all the skills needed to be a great warrior.”

I rolled my eyes and turned to face the complicated machine before me. “And it’s because of that his pride is the biggest of anyone I’ve ever met. I wonder what he would be like if he were more like a normal man.”
The aged man laughed at my comment and answered my rhetorical question. “He’d probably be like you. No offense, but your pride is almost as strong as his since you took up training in Project U.S. But I doubt he would be as mean as he is, though.”

I did take some offense to what he said, but I wouldn’t let him know it. I knew that he didn’t mean harm by it. I figured, though, that I should let him get back to work on checking the machine without me distracting him further.