I Am Annika

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

The day was long, dark and hopeless. 

The compound was quiet, an unusual occurrence for such a large base filled teeming with soldiers. I took care not to pass the infirmary on my daily round; it would most definitely be chaos, a constant tangle of bustling doctors, the smell of bleach and blood-soaked bandage. The rebels, despite not having as much number or ammunition, had still dealt the compound a blow, something I'm sure that would have Vanessa livid and ready to throw just about anyone under the bus.  

I quietly walked through the concrete and metal jungle, a sultry silhouette stalking along the shadows of late evening. I felt like a cat, one that could play any game I wanted at any time with any thing. I felt in control of what I could see, but not of what I felt. Lately, the few emotions I had were all in a jumble, indistinguishable from the human part of me and the altered. Was it possible to feel like an angel and the devil at the same time? 

Tonight, I made my way to the outer corners of the compound; not my orders, but the inner layers had been lit up with flood lights, eradicating any darkness, any shadow, any possible place for a rebel to hide. Vanessa had strategically taken away their cover. 

Vanessa. She was smart, cunning. 

Dangerous. 

A trait, I knew, we both shared. But while I might be the head, capable of action, she was the neck and she could turn me any way she wanted. It was an unsettling thought, one that made my shoulders tense. Was it her who had requested a superhuman? A killing machine? I wanted answers. The more inhumane I became, the more I questioned. Who would want to create something like me? 

I continued down towards the back gate. A tall looming structure, built from dull steel and fitted with bolts the size of my fist. It was high, high enough that I had to crane my neck to see the prickly barbed wire that rested on top. Guards stood at the bottom and in the watch tower up above. Looking at it from this angle, feeling so small compared to this vast wall; it made me feel a prisoner. In a way, I was. To myself. To Vanessa. To this life. 

I glared at it. No wall would keep me. Not here. 

"Soldier AAA," a guard called down with a quick salute. I nodded to the woman as she turned back to her post. I turn away, my earpiece crackling to life. 

"Most of city patrol injured; take over." The monotone voice droned in my ear. I didn't answer back right away, as if that was any form of actual defiance. 

"I've been transferred to city patrol," I called up to the guard who had saluted. She nodded, shared a word with her partner and began to control the opening of the gate. It was slow, but surprisingly quiet. I raised a hand in authoritative thanks, slipping out of the compound.  

The city lay just out of reach, down a long stretch of concrete bridge cut through mountain. On the right, the docks bobbed, the ships of steel statues even in the churning waters. The road was wide enough for three vehicles to fit comfortably, with thick sides that would need drills just to get through. Here and there, soldiers moved by, some on foot, others on government electric bikes and in the occasional armored truck. There was no chatter, not after the previous infiltration. People were on edge. 

The long road came to an end with a final checkpoint, which I was quickly waved through. No one wanted to waste my time. 

The edges of the city were desolate and barren, as if the very place itself wanted to get as much distance as it could from us. Charred ash consumed walls, old cars, trash cans. Warmth was not abundant here. Windows were boarded, clothed, anything to keep the cold from settling in to the little shelter they had. This place was pathetic. It was crumbling, falling apart. It had given up as a whole, a hopeless city with it's hopeless people. 

I walked the streets. By this time of night, almost everyone had turned in. What was the point of staying out if you had a place to return to? Nothing seemed to be amiss. The city patrol was more of a power trip than an actual security check. How much did we need to take from these people? Their dignity too? 

A large office building, surprisingly still intact, even with a few windows left, glinted in the night. I looked up, my sharpened vision making out the outlines of figures in the windows. Firelight flickered behind them. I stood, watching, as the figures watched me. No one moved. It was me and them, staring each other down. I had even forgot to cover my face. They would see the governments pet standing below them. 

Then the figure raised its hand. It was waving. I was taken aback; didn't they know who I was? All of them disappeared like flickering shadows, no proof they had been there at all. I stood for another minute or so, scanning the building for any other signs of movement. I was about to continue my rounds as I heard the door open. I whipped around, ready for an attack of some sort. Citizens didn't favor me.

But even in the darkness, I knew the face. 

He was back. 

I could be your end, rebel. How can you not see?