~~~~~~~ Chapter 1 (Introducing: Mercy, me.) ~~~~~~~
Diary entry: January 8th, 2558I am definitely out of place with the normal soldiers and people of this era. I am a clone from some woman's brain that had been frozen after she died back in the early 21rst century. They used DNA reconstruction to bring me to life - calling me subject 7A officially, though I am generally called Mercy by those outside the program. It gets snickers when I startle someone as I suddenly appear or dart by and they yell my name. I usually cry back at them "Didn't startle you did I?" or "I didn't know you were so polite." while laughing before I disappear. I get into shit every time I pull a stunt like that or similar. But mostly worth it. Haha.
I do remember bits about my previous life's childhood, though they are painful and I can't help but wish I didn't some days. Each year I gain more and more of her memories, though some come slowly, others hit me like a train and some I just, know. I've yet to get any information on why I'm here now or what the lady's life story was or who she was, but the memories/emotions give me clues here and there that she was a unique person for how deeply caring, loving, and tough a woman she was throughout her difficult life. The last recalled memory happened while I was swimming.
I had just dove under the water to continue my laps and suddenly everything came at me like a sudden movie I'd never intended to watch; Hiking through a park with a young, short, brown-haired, tomboy who I repeatedly called my sister. It was raining during what seemed like the springtime and I felt this overwhelming feeling of being whole, like this person was my life partner or that we shared some deep secret that bound us inseparably together. As I watched on, I experienced our hike in a park we called "The Gully" a steep-sided ravine which we climbed all over while chatting till we stopped at an oak tree and hand lunch. I got some tea boiling with the fresh water from the nearby streams which we enjoyed with some sandwiches she had made then packed up the small lunch kit afterward, proceeding to slide down the muddy hillside, giggling and laughing merrily as we held onto one another.
The slide went on a bit longer than expected, then faster, began to blur then I woke with a start. Scaring the hell out of the person who'd jumped in to pick me out of the water (thinking I was in trouble or drown), when I jumped to my feet and gasped for air. I had to spend the next hour explaining I was just practicing holding my breath and that relaxing helped. Not many believed me but passed it off as me being strange and left me alone. I still kick myself for using that lame excuse, but what could I tell them that wouldn't get me in needless shit with some kind of brass who knew of the program that created me.
I do tend to get myself into needless trouble regardless with some antics I pull and as a result, I was put into military training early; that was a few years ago. I'm now physically a young teen (About 13 years old), but due to slow physical aging from something that was done during my making, my aging process has been odd. I aged normally till I was five then it considerably slowed. They've guessed its slowed to approximately 2 years to one year of physical aging now. But estimate, due to the increases, that gap is only going to lengthen as I age. I have also had odd sixth sense capabilities since my childhood which are listed thus far in my file, which they theorize is a facet of the precognition's recent emergence. This all makes the doctors suspect I may have some additional dormant skills or that these known skills will develop more as I age. I do find they help me with training and many combat situations, however, like my combat sense, are undeveloped and at times, unreliable.
The only one that's so intense they had to intervene and get me training with it has been my Empathy psychic skill due to it causing me to be unpredictably emotional around other people, something unacceptable for combat or general life on a ship or in the military. I enjoy the time with my trainer and she's helped me also understand my "gifts" as she refers to them. She's about 54 years old; an older motherly woman with silvering red hair and the most lively, earthy green eyes that sparkle every time she sees me. The colors of her hair and eyes offset the finely tanned skin on her rather youthful body.
Well... It's about 18:00 now and I'm gonna go practice Parkour (Urban Gymnastics) around the ship before I cool down, practicing my knife throwing then hit the sack before training in the morning. Hopefully this time I don't jump off a level and scare the hell out of that snarly ONI captain again. Or fuck up and literally run into that "old guy" again. He's new on the ship and so far its been pretty hush hush about him. Though from the look in his blue eyes, he isn't dangerous or surly just emotionally hurt from what I can tell. He seems to be a mix of emotions, mostly of regret and loss. But despite that is a typical soldier, by the book, quiet, and reserved while also being from what I can tell from the few times I've met him, that he's gentle and kind. I've heard whispers of him being an accomplished soldier from the Covenant-Human war too! That young though? He cannot be more than 25 or maybe 30 something. Eh - either way I should get going. Before I spend my entire night sitting here typing up about random things. Haha.
Well, that was my first entry before it happened. My first mission assignment: Learn to work with a partner and do my best to challenge him to learn about his own humanity, and perhaps my own too.
Well, it's been awhile since I've posted anything; yay irl life. But strangely enough how my life goes, I happened upon this story in my many and found it misfiled under incomplete. Looks fine to me, so after a read through I confirmed this and began the final editing process to post it here for others to enjoy.
As always, reviews are the lifeblood of writers like me and it always helps us keep going. As well as may even give us ideas for new stories to go off on or inspirations for others we may have going in the background.
Sadly, it seems Ghost in the Hold will not get a sequel in the foreseeable future; but To Make a Long Story Short, may get a re-write with my better skills than when it was first written in the early 2000's. So, enjoy lovlies and I shall try to get chapters posted as quick as I can.
~ Rose