*I don't have enough knowledge on the backstory of Exteel, so I'll leave details such as years and key battles relatively vague. I'll probably revise this when and if the backstory is translated.
VI. History Lesson
Well, this was uncomfortable.
I was led down a hallway, flanked by a soldier on either side of me, the Colonel leading, and a soldier behind. In other words, I was surrounded, and forced to follow the woman. The alarms were gone, now that the danger was averted, and the cargo bay (probably) was being fixed. Still, I felt uneasy. Was I being taken to my execution? Did they think I was trying to escape? Well, I was, but they didn't know that. For all they knew, I had been trying to help. I grimaced as I was suddenly shoved to the right by a soldier. Damn, I'd gotten so wrapped up in my thoughts I didn't watch where I was going.
Oh yeah, I still had a huge scar on my stomach. It was a miracle it hadn't ripped open again when I was piloting that thing. What was it anyway? And the more I walked and thought about it, the bigger the ship seemed. We'd been walking for five minutes already, through a labyrinth of white, occasionally passing a window. Maybe it was because I was unfamiliar with the Aegis. I hoped I wouldn't stick around long enough to familiarize myself.
"Inside," the Colonel said sternly, opening a sliding door with a card, and pointing in. With little choice or enthusiasm, I let the soldiers usher me inside. I found it wasn't empty. Nurse Sarah was there, and I felt a little relief. Although we weren't exactly friends, I felt closest to her, since she took care of me and all. Heck, she even stuck up for me that time the Colonel tried to torture me. She smiled and nodded in greeting; a gesture I returned.
The room was bare, much like my last room. Actually. Wait, this was my room. The door closed behind me, and a sinking feeling hit me. Oh no, was she going to torture me again? The Colonel motioned for me to sit down on the bed and I complied, gingerly setting myself down so my wound wouldn't open. I grimaced as I made myself comfortable. I noticed the soldiers weren't in the room with us. Did that mean she trusted me a little, or was she going to torture me and spare her soldiers the sight of that? Have them clean the mess up later?
Nurse Sarah began shoving needles and tubes into me again, but I was able to ignore the sensations this time around. However, I was a bit distracted by the console, which flashed to life. The stomach is orange now. I guess it's getting better. I looked at the Colonel, who seemed deep in thought. I felt something rushing into my bloodstream as Sarah injected something into me.
"Why did you go to the Cargo Bay even though the warning said, 'Cargo Bay Breached?'" the Colonel began, taking a seat next to me with her arms and legs crossed.
Oh, so that's what it was. I suppose I should have known from the big boxes, but the cloth covered shape made me curious. I shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't even know where the cargo bay was. The door opened, so I start walking around…" The Colonel stared as if she couldn't believe how stupid I was. I could see the gears churning in her head: He didn't know it was the cargo bay. However, she didn't dwell on it, because she asked another question.
"Why did you steal the Rushnik?"
"The what?" I remembered hearing or seeing that word, but I couldn't place my finger on it.
"The mechnaught you were piloting."
Oh, so that's what it was. Now I remember! The log in screen thing. "Oh, umm….," I began, but couldn't answer. How was I supposed to answer, anyway? "Oh yeah, Colonel. I stole it because I wanted to escape." Instead, I tried to lie a bit. I was tempted to make myself as some sort of hero who wanted to help them since they helped me, but I was afraid it would be too obvious. "Well, I was curious what was under the cloth, so I stepped under and poked around. Then, the hatch opened and I went inside. Next thing I knew?"
I shrugged. "Another one of those things was pointing a gun at me." She stared at me briefly before moving like the flash. Whap! Christ, I didn't even see her move! But I was fully blow away by her backhand; the sting of her knuckles could still be felt as my head turned with her blow. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Nurse Sarah flinch, possibly trying to pass it off as fidgeting. "Ow!" I cried, holding my right cheek. Nurse Sarah looked as though she wanted stop the Colonel, but lacked the power or courage. Instead, she abandoned me and left, the door sliding shut behind her.
Christ, I was alone with her.
"Don't f*ck with me," Jean said menacingly, and placed her hand over her chest again. She leaned in close, as though she knew everything about me, and as if this was just some kind of test. "Say it. You wanted to escape, and you saw that as the perfect opportunity." I blinked. Wow, she was dead on. Could she read my mind? I decided to test my theory by thinking of lewd things, all of them involving the Colonel. I might have been too obvious, because she suddenly said, "Eyes up here," lifting my chin to look at her face.
I hesitated, and turned my head to the side, wrenching it out of her grip. "If you knew, then why'd you ask?" I spat. Christ, my cheek still stung. Was she actually muscular underneath that uniform? I shuddered at the thought.
"I wanted to see if you were trustworthy."
"Well, I'm not. I just want to be out of here. I want no part of you and your little games." I returned her sharp stare, determined not to let her stare me down. She returned my stare for a moment, and in that moment, we were both completely motionless until – ahh,itchy…. Until I turned away to rub my eye. She gave a soft scoff and fished something out of her pocket.
"What if I told you about our ambitions…. What should I call you?" she swiveled in her chair to look at the wall rather than me. I didn't know what that meant; perhaps it was going to be along story, and she didn't want to look at me as she told it. But yeah, I needed something close to a name, so she wouldn't refer to me as "hey," or, "that guy."
"You can call me whatever you like," I said with a tone of finality, but immediately regretted it. What if she gave me an obscene name like, "Sh*t," or something? I waited in anticipation.
"Then I'll call you Zero," she said with a small smirk, glancing sideways at me. "Zero after the mechnaught you stole." I rolled my eyes, and her hand moved, causing me to flinch slightly. However, all she did was take something out of her pocket. A tissue, with which she blew her nose. She probably didn't notice my flinch, or ignored it, because she began to tell her story. "Are you aware of the state of Taryn at the moment?" She turned to look at me. "Do you remember anything in the last…. Ten years?"
I stared blankly at her. "No. I have no recollection of actual events, just practical things."
She nodded slowly. "I see." With a shrug, she continued, uncrossing her legs and changing the order in which they were crossed. "You don't seem to be the type to be interested in history, and I'm a hundred percent clear on the details myself. So I'll give you a condensed version." I nodded expectantly, my curiosity peaked. "It is currently year 2247, and are currently on a planet called Natha." Natha. I said the word over in my head. It didn't ring any bells, but I was willing to expect what she was saying.
"Go on…"
"A long time ago, there was a war. Like most wars, this one was fought for territory, and sparked by violence. There were four factions that inhabited the continent of Taryn before. Today, they are united, albeit forcefully, under one name: The Marston Federation." She paused and reached over for a glass of water I had no idea was there. "Before they were united, they warred with one another. The war was initially between Marston and Palamo over border disputes, but when you live so close to a conflict, you can't help but join in. Aiers and West Palamo joined in as well." She stood up now, beginning to pace around the room as she spoke. I couldn't help but think she'd make a good teacher.
"Marston won?" I asked, incredulous.
"Yes," she said, nodding. "Their victory can most be attributed to a mechnaught they developed in the last years of the war: the Zeeker." I nodded as if I understood. It sounded mean, but I wasn't entirely convinced one piece of technology could win a war against three other nations. "One by one, the nations were invade and molded into Marston until the entire continent of Taryn was under Marston's control. Now a military dictatorship, the Marston Federation is the reason we, Genesis, exist." I blinked. A terrorist organization with piss poor mechnaughts and (as far as I knew,) one ship wanted to remove Marston from power? But she wasn't done yet. "Marston is ruled by aristocracy. Still is. Humanity isn't so equal under their rule. In fact, it's downright depressing." She returned to the chair next to my bed and sat down. Oh, she was finished? My opinion on her being a good teacher disappeared as I realized she wasn't too great a speaker. I got the point, yes, but her speech wasn't quite eloquent.
"Right…," I said, nodding my head slowly. I still had little interest in this affair. The state of the world be damned, I just wanted a normal life. I think I could make do without my memories. "Why did you tell me all that?" I inquired. It came out a little rude, and I was the one who asked her to "carry on," but she didn't hit me or anything.
"I was hoping you'd stay and fight with us."
I looked at her in surprise. "You thought that if you told me…"
"Yes, I thought you'd join me –us, if I did." I remained silent for a while before laughter suddenly escaped my lips. She looked infuriated, but she resisted the urge to hit me.
"Hah! You were right before," I said, leaning back in my bed. "You were right – I did steal the mech, hoping I could escape with it." My smile disappeared as I asked her a question of my own. "What makes you think I want to be involved in all this?" I pointed to my stomach. "Look at me. I'm basically a cripple." My smile returned as I tried to warm up to her a bit. It seems I wasn't a very charismatic person. "C'mon, Colonel. Give me a crappy shuttle or something, and let me-"
Colonel Jean suddenly removed something from her pocket – a small device with a button on it. "Do you know what this is, Zero?" I paused. It didn't look good.
"It's a lighter," I guessed, taking a stab in the dark.
She smirked at my response as if the joke was on me. "If I push this button, your blood will turn into acid and corrode you from the inside." My heart stopped at her words. Was she serious? I stared at her blankly for a second before chuckling. This woman! She was a funny one, alright! What, did she think this was some kind of bad science fiction movie?
"Good one, Colonel. How the Hell are you going to do that?"
"Nurse Sarah injected you with something a few moments ago, before she left." My heart stopped again as the realization set in. No, but still! It was in my bloodstream; it'd still filter out after a while, right? If anything, it would just dissolve in my blood. "Care to guess what it is?"
"Your love juice."
Wham! I was hit in the exact same place again as she lost her temper and backhanded me again. However, she was a lot stronger than she looked, because next thing I knew, I was on the floor, the Colonel standing over me. Acting quickly, I threw my legs out at her ankles and caused her to topple over, the device slipping out of her hands and skittering across the ground. Lunging under the bed to get to the device, I threw myself on top of it before she threw herself on me, pinning me down. My stomach screamed with pain, but I was in no position to complain. This was 99% my fault, the other 1% the Colonel's stubbornness. We both lay there for a few seconds, her catching her breath, myself trying to filter out the pain.
"You son of a b*tch," she breathed, putting me in a headlock. I gagged as my air was cut off, and I did the only thing I thought of. With a grunt, I pushed up with both my arms, flipping myself up and reversing our positions. However, I was still in a headlock, and I was beginning to feel weak. For some reason, I felt reluctant to hit a woman, but I reminded myself that she was going to kill me if she got the device. I held tightly to it, trying to-
FWSH. The door slid open and the guards walked in, rifles drawn and safety unlocked. "Get off the Colonel, motherf*cker!" they yelled, shaking the gun the way someone might shake a fist. I looked up the barrels of the guns for a few seconds before the Colonel released her hold, and I stood up, backing away from the panting female. Stealthily, while everyone's attention was focused on her, I slipped the device down my pants into the private area. A little uncomfortable to be sure, but I had to do this. She wouldn't dare reach down there, would she?
"Are you alright, Colonel?"
"Yeah…I'm fine…," she said, wiping her mouth as she looked everywhere for the remote. Her gaze turned to me accusingly, and she held out her hand. "Turn it over."
"Three guesses where it is, honey," I said with a grin, and she suddenly kicked me where I'd put the remote, causing me to topple over, my pain increasing tenfold. Jesus Christ! As I moaned on the floor, holding my family jewels, she came over and kicked my face with her boot, turning me over. The soldiers quickly came and held me down as she did the tricky business of reaching into my pants and removing the device.
"You're a cheeky one, aren't you?" She slipped the thing into her pocket and held out her hand, and a rifle was quickly passed to her. "You think I didn't see you? Or I wouldn't dare go there?" She held it by the tip of the barrel and swung it into my shoulder, bringing me more pain. Oh God, she was going to kill me. I knew I could take her on myself, but I'd forgotten about the guards. She returned the rifle back to the soldier and they released me. But it made no difference, because I was in too much pain to move.
"I can push this button and kill you at any time. Remember that," she spat, and began heading for the door. However, she stopped short and turned around for last words. "I'll be coming once a day to hear your decision. I want to hear the following words: 'I will swear loyalty to you and join Genesis.' If I don't hear those words, we can keep having fun like we just did."
"Can we do it on my bed next time?"
Wham! She kicked me in the hip with a blank expression on her face and briskly left the room before I could make anymore lewd comments. Her soldiers followed suit, a bit shaken. Was I the only one who dared say such things to her? The door slid shut, and I groaned, forcing myself to get up so I could lay down on my bed. Well, I'd figured a few things out about her, and one of them was that she wasn't going to kill me.
Yet.