The Program [COMPLETED]

Chapter Twenty-Four

"Sergeant Jayda Cerise was among one of the finest soldiers Second Unit has to offer," the General said solemnly. "She served her country valiantly, and with the utmost dignity. She will be dearly missed by all those who knew her. Her death was, indeed, a great tragedy."

Aiden shifted restlessly in his seat, tuning out Xylem's meaningless words. The General had requested the presence of every soldier in the Unit to gather in the Foyer three days after the laboratory raid, in order to properly acknowledge Jayda's passing. They had all been instructed to wear formal black clothing for the ceremony, and Aiden hated the gravity of it all. It shouldn't be like this. He, Virgil, Zariah, Rania, Theo and Jayda should be meeting for lunch in the dining hall by now, making jokes and highlighting the events of the day.

Today, Jayda's memorial would be one of those highlights.

Theo had skipped out on the assembly, disgusted by the idea of General Xylem giving a speech in Jayda's honor. Aiden couldn't blame him. Jayda had meant everything to Theo. The couple had often talked about leaving the Program together after their fifteen year service was up, settling down in one of the nearby cities and starting a family together. That dream was shattered, along with Jayda's very existence altogether. Theo had managed to slip out of attending the ceremony unscathed, which was a fortunate break for any soldier of the Program. Protocol stated that all soldiers who failed to meet curfew would be severely punished in the Pit; a holding cell for soldiers who acted out of order. Jayda's death had shook everybody to the core, but it had hit Theo the hardest of all. He lacked his usual wide smile and steady energy. Instead, it was replaced by the shell of a broken, damaged man. Aiden couldn't bear to face Theo.

Aiden yearned for vengeance upon Xylem. He had allowed the General to control him for years, and he'd obeyed hardly without a second thought. Jayda's death had completely changed his perspective towards what was right and what was wrong. All his experiences in the cities, with Roman, with Zariah and with his friends had made him ask real, genuine questions for the first time in his life. This wasn't right. None of this was right. Aiden couldn't do it anymore. The Program could take away his memories, his influence and his life; but it could never take away his friends. 

Virgil was seated next to Aiden, seething in fury. Their group often joked around about Virgil always being a huge flirt with Jayda, but everyone knew better than to take it seriously. Jayda had been one of the only girls that Virgil had seen as a true, genuine friend. She had treated him much like a younger sibling, and the two had interacted in ways that resembled kinship. The loss of Jayda was heavy on everyone in Second Unit.

Aiden had been the last person to see her alive. She had asked him to deliver her final message to Theo, and yet, Aiden struggled to talk to him. He felt as though Jayda's blood was on his hands. If he had acted more efficiently, taken out the guards faster to make up for wasted time...

The scene replayed in his mind a million miles per minute. Jayda's deteriorating figure slumped lifeless in the gas chamber, her fist slamming against the bulletproof glass to alert Aiden of the approaching guards. It all came crashing down on him at once, and the tears threatened to re-emerge from his eyes. Aiden fought them back, of course. He wouldn't dare risk being noticed by one of his friends, or another soldier in Second Unit. He could cry later, on his own time. Right now, he had to be strong.

"...a confident, loyal and earnest friend," Xylem continued. "Sergeant Cerise was adored by many, and her sacrifice will forever be remembered. Every soldier could learn something from her actions, and she was always keen on bringing out the best in those around her."

It felt unnatural to refer to Jayda in the past tense. To Aiden, she was still very much alive in the sense that all of his memories surrounded the fact that she had lived. He refused to remember her as a still corpse, but instead as a living, breathing human being who'd made a huge impact in his life. He'd been with her when she was alive, and he was with her as she died. Aiden was thankful he had known her. Despite all the guilt that he still felt from her passing, it didn't change the fact that Aiden had loved Jayda like a sister.