salvation ; 𝐛. 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐬 , 𝟐

014. answers

HE WAS NO one, nothing. He was put on this planet for one reason, and that was to do the job he was tasked with. To obey his superiors and follow every direction they gave him. No matter the consequences, he was to succeed. He was to become the ghost he'd been once before.

Very good, Soldier, the voice in his head smiled. You're proving me right.

He grunted in his seat, tightening his grip on the firearm in his hands. Squeezing his eyes shut, he tried to center his thoughts as he felt the phantom caress of the woman in his head, grazing his cheek with her thin, calloused hands.

Don't fight it, she chided seductively, embrace it. Embrace me. We're in this together, Soldier.

The lick of curiosity that washed through his brain was unable to be stopped. He couldn't hide his thoughts from this voice, from this woman that was an authoritative voice in his head. Together, he thought hesitantly, testing out the sound of it in his mind's space.

Yes, she agreed, now making him feel as though she was standing in front of him with a sly smirk across her lips. Everyone else thought it was too soon to put you in the field. They wanted to keep you asleep for decades, possibly even a century before using you again. They wanted everyone to forget about you, but I stood up for you. Me. I told them it would be a downright shame for you to go unused for so long.

I told them you were strong enough, and now you have the chance to prove me right. The phantom version of the woman in his head patted him on the shoulder. Show them how strong you are, Soldier. Make me proud. Make Asset 53 proud.

He nodded, blinking to clear his head. It felt like he had two voices in his head, one that was ordering him around, and another that sounded like himself, locked away in the deepest corners of his mind.

Break free, it chanted, screaming louder and louder with each passing second, break free! GET OUT! GET OUT OF HERE! YOUR NAME IS—

But the woman always silenced it with a swift sentence. Clear your head, Soldier, she always said. Let me be the only thing in your head. It will make all of this so much easier.

He inhaled a deep breath of the cold air that surrounded him, shocking him back to reality. He opened his eyes and observed the walls around him, a barred window on his right that displayed an image of the landscape outside that rushed by, his body bouncing with the bumpy road that the vehicle was driving along.

That small square near him was the only hint to where he was, as he spotted the edge of a bluff that went hurtling into a raging body of water, the most striking blue that he thought he'd ever seen. Even in the darkness, he could feel the absolutely incredible scale of the natural beauty in a place he didn't recognize.

Knowing your location will only distract you from the mission, Soldier. You came here to do a job, not to be a tourist.

His jaw clenched and he stared forward at the gray slab of metal that closed him into the jostling mode of transportation. I am nothing, no one, he began to repeat in his head, like a mantra. It centered his mind, calling him back to the job he had to complete.

The weapon in his hands felt heavy, so he reached instinctively for the knife in the holster strapped to his thigh. It slid out with a slight metallic ring, glinting in the moonlight. It was light, perfectly balanced as he held it in his palm.

The woman in his head, Asset 53, smiled. I see you still prefer to savor the kill rather than make it an execution, she hummed in approval. Just like me, Soldier. We're still alike, you see. It's like nothing's changed.