Chapter 6: Too fast to see
I looked into the bright light of the overhead lamp, blinding me. A hand moved it. "You are awake boy. Good. Shall we?" I heard the sound of tools on a tray.
"No. Stop!" I knew what they wanted.
Other hands and voices were around me. "Morphine?"
"No, I want him to feel it." I felt them move me on my side, a cold edge on my back. "This will be very painful, not like the little bastard deserves such a thing. Now, stay still Wolfgang. It will be worse if you move." The cold blade sliced into my skin and around my spine.
"NO!" I Shut my eyes tight and clenched my jaw, the pain. I reopened my eyes and screamed. I tossed around, reaching for the knife. Trying to fight the hands. "Get back!" I fell out of the bed and fell when I tried to stand, my right leg and arm exploding into pain.
"Dunmore!" I looked to her voice. My vision blurred, the room was dark. The curtain pulled back, the scratching sound of metal hooks on the bar. "Stop!"
I knocked back the hands. "Don't touch me! I won't let you! No more!"
"Stop, it's me! Perrine! Dunmore, stop, you'll hurt yourself!"
The hands grabbed my shoulders and held me still, my chest heaving and sweat dripping. I blinked as my vision cleared and the room was lit by the moon. "I…they…."
She held me still. "It's okay, breath. Just breath."
"Perrine…"
"I'm here, I'm here. You're okay, just a nightmare." A nightmare, one that felt so real. Memories I relive.
"No…its memories…." I got too far into it.
"Just take a moment. Wait." She grabbed the cane from the side of my bed. "Come on, let's get you some air." She helped me up and handed me the cane. My shirt clung to me, the sweat soaked it. My feel scrapped across the cold floor.
She led me out of the room. I heard other doors open. She dismissed them and they closed. "It was the same one."
She took me outside to a small garden. Had me sit down. "Dunmore, you still won't tell me what these dreams are."
"I can't. It was worse then what the dreams make it. So much worse. I just…...I'm going back." I slowly got up, the cane offering support.
"Stop." She grabbed me. "It will be like last time; you'll keep having the dream. You won't be able to sleep. That's why you need that cane."
"I'll be fine Perrine."
"That's what you said last time." She took my hand. "You're sleeping with me. It might c-calm you." I could see the blush in the moon light. "As we are in a relationship, it is my duty to make sure you're okay. That's all."
I sighed. "Fine." She helped me back to the room. Helped me lay down and she laid next to me. Putting her arms around me. It was comforting. I was able to sleep.
The next morning was like the last. Helped to the dining hall. Helped get food. Helped. I grabbed my spoon with my right hand, shaking. Dropping it. "Damn it…" I picked it up with my left and ate. Awkwardly, but I had to eat.
"Alright, today we have someone coming to visit. She- "Hartmann jumped up, interrupting Minna.
"My sister! With some new thingy!"
I sighed. Hyper as always. "Hartmann!" Barkhorn. "sit down, that's unfitting of a soldier of Karlsland!"
I looked to Barkhorn. "Very fitting of her though. What's a soldier without personality? Mhm?"
"Sir, you know- "
"Don't call me 'Sir,' Barkhorn."
"Of course. Sorry Wolfgang."
I sighed. "I hope it's a new striker design, maybe a faster one I can tinker with." Shirley, of course.
I took my cane and got up. "I'll be in the hanger." I left. Not wanting to keep a downed mood in the ever so lively dining hall. I stood at the hanger door, just standing there.
"D-Dunmore?" Miyafuji. I turned to look at her.
"Yes? What is it Yoshika."
"I need to check your arm and leg, may I?"
"Of course." I came over and took and leaned on a work table. I removed my coat and pulled up a sweatpants leg. Uniform pants were a tad painful to put on. "Not much has changed. Still in pain."
"C-Crashing will do that." She used her magic to check it. The numb feeling was welcome. "It seems to be getting better."
"Really now? Still feels like hell." I put my coat back on and fixed my pants.
"S-Sorry."
"Not your fault." I looked to my striker. Sitting in pieces. "Best to get to work I guess."
"A-Are you feeling okay?"
"Yes I am, no need to worry."
"That means I should."
"Better at reading people then I thought. Tell me, what do you think?"
"You were distracted, tired, and in pain. You didn't sleep. Your magic gave out and….."
"Not what happened. What do you think is wrong?"
"I think it's- "A horn from a truck took our attention. Three trucks came towards the hanger. Last time I saw trucks come into our hanger, it wasn't a good day.
"Seems like that will have to wait. Seems like they've arrived." The trucks pulled to a stop and a girl with glasses that looked exactly like Erica stepped out. "Mhm, twins?"
"Ursula!" Erica, where did she come from? Speeding past me, hugging the girl.
"Hello Erica."
I leaned over to Yoshika. "Not one of much reaction it seems."
"She looks like Erica…."
"Must be twins."
"They are." I looked behind me to see Minna. "That's Ursula Hartmann, Erica's sister."
"She looks…. never mind. I have to go, things….to do." I walked off, well, limped.
"Wait, Dunmore, don't you-"
"No Yoshika, I'm fine. Things to do." I left the hanger. I passed Perrine on my way.
"Dunmore, where- "
"Nowhere. Just go see Erica's sister. I have something to do."
"Dunmore, what are you- "
I looked back at her and glared. "Let me be." I left her there. I had things to look into. "She'll understand. Maybe…" No, I can't get any of them involved. I came to a small room I found a while back, made it into an office of sorts. I went in and sat in a chair. On the desk were folders, papers, photos, and diagrams. Formulas, medical reports, scout reports, and more.
I looked at the folder's name. 'Sister.' I opened it. First paper was a letter written by Maloney. It talked about a Wolfgang. Not me. Female. Young, angry, and rather difficult to control. No name, location. Just description of the person.
The next few papers were reports on the 'patients' condition. "Where did you go?" I looked over the material. I found the medical documents I found on me from the facility that comes to me in my sleep. "Spinal intrusion. Injections. Blood taken. Not much…. reports of injured personnel. One guard in pieces from a shield…." I remembered. They left a door unlocked. I was young.
Being young made me stupid. But, also scared. I took the chance and ran. I was seen, and the alarm was raised. A guard stopped when he saw me, he aimed at me. I raised my hands and a moment later, there was blood everywhere. I created a shield inside him, tearing through his body and eviscerating it. I kept running. There were more, but, they died. Not by me of course. Soldiers, coming into the facility. My memory is a blur at that point. Might be a mental block, can't tell.
I flipped through the papers, turning to the world map on the wall I put up. Pinning papers to it, pictures, notes. It was confusing, marks all over it. I remember reports speaking of bodies, witch bodies recovered from battlefields, then experimented on. I didn't read those too much. A tad too sickening.
I looked over the papers again, stopping when I heard the door open. I looked up to see Perrine. "D-Dunmore?"
"What are you doing here? Didn't I say to leave me alone? I have things to do. You- You shouldn't be in here." I tried to push her past the door and out, but she slipped past me. Looked at all the papers and pictures.
"What is this?"
"One of the reasons I scream at night. Every time I look, it reminds me. It also leads me closer, or so I wish. To finding…no. Get out. You can't be in here. I won't let you-"
"Wolfgang!? Where are you!?" Sakamoto.
"Did you tell her?"
"No, she just noticed me coming down this way maybe looking for you."
"She can't see this; I don't want any of you getting involved in this. I can't- "
"What even is this?! Dunmore, you were hiding this from us. From me! What are you doing with all this?!"
"I'm- I'm trying to find my sister!" She stopped. "It cost me. They found me looking. Took me. They- "
"Wolfgang, where are you?! We have important guests!" She was getting closer.
"Perrine, just…. leave."
"No, not till you tell me what- "
"There you are, Wolfgang what are you and Clostermann doing in- "Sakamoto looked around the room. Then to me. "What is this Wolfgang?"
"Nothing the Five-o-First needs to get involved in. Just, don't."
"Wolfgang, you need to tell me what's going on right now. If you think- "
"You do not understand! There are reasons I hide things like this!" I took a breath. "Leave this to me. You and the others do what the five-o-first does. Let me do what I have to do. The reason I worked with Maloney, worse then you thought. You don't want to even start here, there are somethings people should never do or see. This is some of it. Leave."
"I don't know what- "
"Now!" I shook. I couldn't tell I it was fear or just the adrenaline. "Just, leave."
Sakamoto looked to Perrine and back to me. "You know we're here if you need us. You- "
"I know. That's why."
She nodded. "Clostermann, let's go." Perrine attempted to protest, Sakamoto stopped her before she could speak. "Let him be." Sakamoto left, Perrine hesitant to leave.
"Dunmore…. I…"
"I know. Love you too." I fell back in the chair. "I'm sorry."
She closed the door and was gone. I looked back to the desk and sighed. "Even when you're not here, you still manage to make life hell General."
I got up, opened the door, turned the light off, and left. As I was walking down the hall, an alarm blared. "Neuroi…." As I made my way back towards my room, Barkhorn was running down the hall. She honestly looked like shit. "More time past then I thought." I followed her. Led me to the hanger. She was gone and Ursula was explaining the effects of some new striker. "What's going on?"
Minna looked to me. "Wolfgang. A fast moving Neuroi is heading our way, we can't catch it. Barkhorn just took the jet striker and-"
"Right. I'll be back." I grabbed a small pack of ammo and first aid.
"What?"
I looked to the available strikers. "Commander, I need to borrow your striker."
"Wolfgang, you are medically grounded. You can't- "
"Watch me." I tossed the cane and forced my body to cooperate and I got into the striker. "Major Dunmore Wolfgang, taking off." I grabbed the Mg-42 and left.
"Dunmore, get back here!" Perrine?
"Are you following me?" Good to know comms work at least.
"You're going to get yourself hurt, killed even!"
"Sorry, got to get a rebellious Barkhorn back here."
"I'm coming too!" Shirley?
"How many of you are following me?"
I noticed it in the distance. "There. Neuroi. Coming fast."
"Move!" Shirley blew past me, I struggled to keep up.
"It's coming!"
I didn't know how far from base we were. Couldn't tell. "Hey, stay close, don't- "The right striker faltered. "Shit." Not good. My leg burned with pain. "Hey, where's Barkhorn!?"
"She's taking care of the –"
"Shirley, what's going on?"
"It's done for, the Neuroi is destroyed! She, she's falling!"
Damn it. I charged on ward. "Hang on!" The right striker failed and fell off. "Shit!" My leg was numb. My right arm struggled to hold the weapon. "I'm going down!" The other striker struggled to hold me up, not tuned for my magical output properly.
I saw the city below. "Dunmore!" Perrine cried out. "I'm coming! Hang on!" The other striker died.
"Hell, might…. want to hurry!" I could hear Shirley got Barkhorn.
"Hey, we got to get out of here, the Neuroi are rather unhappy and- crap! Cubes!" Territory security.
"Perrine, get out of- "
"No, I almost have you." She managed to catch up to me and attempt to grab me, my weight with the dead striker pulled her down with me, the incoming cubes didn't help.
"Let go, we're going down! Get out of here."
"No! I won't!" Stubborn girl.
A cube hit her left striker and we now fell faster. "Shirley, we're- "All I got was static. I watched ass the city got closer and closer. I put up a weak shield and pushed Perrine away as I fell so she could get a softer landing. I hit a wall or something hard and that was it.
-_-_-
Dunmore:…...Chapter 7: Secrets Survive