Chapter 25
Briareos woke up!
Breathing harshly, he almost fell from his bed, landing on his knees and both hands firmly on the ground.
His all too human heart was pounding like it wanted to explode, like he had just lost a race to death.
It took him a moment to realize where he was and furthermore what he was. His artificial fingers trembled as he realized that it had been nothing more than a nightmare.
He was used to that dream, once every other month he would dream it, remember that very moment, feel each single second. He remembered his short breath, the sweat under his thermal suit pressed against his scraped skin, the pounding at his right temple, where he had taken that one blow.
He remembered the airship, the way it almost floated midair, watching his death like a silent witness and he remembered how he had prayed, prayed for Deunan to be safe.
In that very moment he remembered how he had bargained with that God he didn't believe in. How he had threatened that he wouldn't rest as long as she wasn't safe, couldn't rest as long as he didn't know that she would survive.
He remembered clear as day how he had dared that God to take him before he could give her the life, she deserved.
Take my body, but my soul is hers.
And God had listened. That God he didn't believe in had taken his body that day, not able to peel his soul from this earth.
A sudden knocking against his door brought him back into the presence.
"Hey, Briareos, it's me. We're running late!"
Yoshitsune!
He stumbled back on his feet as the engineer entered.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. My alarm just didn't go off, must have forgotten to set it."
For a moment they just stood there, Yoshitsune staring at him, before smiling softly.
"Don't be nervous, Briareos. Today's your last simulation and I'm sure everything will work out just fine."
Surprised Briareos looked back. Was he so nervous other people could actually see it on his expressionless cyborg face?
"You're probably right," he answered, "just give me a minute to grab my stuff and to change real quick."
"Sure, but hurry up, please."
Briareos simply nodded as the other one backed out and closed the door.
With a silent sigh he got dressed. He was nervous about the coming day, but on the other hand he was glad that all that babysitting would be over soon. It was annoying how everybody checked on him every other minute, telling him where to go, what to do, asking him how he felt, if he was ready, if he was nervous.
He was no ordinary soldier, suicide missions were kind of his thing and he was used to do them on his own, still he knew that this one here was different. He wasn't preparing his gear to fight an unbeatable enemy, not laying out a strategy to outsmart his opponent.
This time however, he would have to face the one person, he might lose against.
With another sigh he pulled the zipper of his dufflebag close and threw it over his shoulder, before following Yoshitsune outside. This night he wouldn't come back for this room, for the researchers had to check his data about twice an hour.
In silence they arrived at the lab.
"Briareos, are you sure, you're…"
"I'm fine," he grumbled, well aware that his dark voice was enough to make Yoshitsune tremble in fear. "I'm fine, stop asking me every five seconds."
"Well, I would believe you, if you weren't gnarling at me like a bitten dog," Yoshitsune replied, his voice slightly too high.
They weren't the first to enter the main operating room, but most people present were too busy working to pay attention to them. Some mumbled a greeting, some swiftly nodded, but most worked concentrated on their task.
Briareos dumped his bag next to the strange dentist chair.
"Okay, I'm off then," Yoshitsune mumbled, his former happy mood obviously gone, "I come back to check on you after the simulation."
"Yoshitsune," he mumbled and sighed again, "I'm sorry. It's been some rough nights."
"It's okay, I understand that it's hard for you." The engineer showed his friendly smile. "You should rest and try to relax a bit."
"I will but can I ask you for one more favor."
"Sure."
He was no hesitating man, but right now Briareos wasn't sure if he was ready to ask what he wanted. It had something final, something irreversible, but then he remembered that there was no deed in this world that could be undone.
"Just in case, I won't make it," he mumbled and fetched the small metal box in his dufflebag, "can you give this to Deunan?"
Yoshitsune made a step back as Briareos offered him the closed box.
"What the…? Briareos, what's that supposed to mean?"
The engineer raised both hands in defense.
"Relax, Yoshitsune. It's just some box, no bomb or nothing."
"What the hell are you talking about Briareos?"
Now he was the one two lift both hands.
"It's just in case, okay? You know that we're not talking at the moment, and I can't change that before tomorrow, I can't explain her what's going on, but if it goes south, I need to make sure she gets this, do you understand?"
For several seconds Yoshitsune simply stared at him, but then he nodded slowly and reached for the box.
"Fine, I'll take it, but just to be clear, I plan on handing it right back to you."
Briareos chuckled slightly.
"I would appreciate that."
"So, now try to sleep a little bit, before they realize you're here and make you work."
How long had he been asleep?
He didn't know. He was still so tired, his body almost heavy, but also light as a feather, far away, like he was still caught in his dreams.
Briareos had no idea why he was so tired or why he had such a hard time waking up. He was usually a light sleeper – unsurprisingly – so he wondered if he had been drugged. But by whom and for what reason?
Slowly he started to wonder, what was the last thing he remembered? What had he been doing before he went to sleep?
He didn't know, he didn't remember.
Had he been in the base? Had he visited Carl yesterday? Had he been training with…
Deunan!
"Oh, he's responding! We got a connection!"
He heard a stranger's voice and tried to get up, but his body was too heavy, like somebody had buried him in cement.
"It seems he can hear us. Screen four detected a reaction."
Another stranger's voice. Sounded like they were monitoring him, maybe he was in a hospital or something like that.
But why would he be in a hospital?
"Hello? Sir? If you can hear us, please think as loudly as you can 'Yes'," the second voice asked.
What a strange request. He hadn't been in hospital very often, never been in such a bad state that he was barely feeling his body.
At least they were talking a language he could understand, but he had no clue if they were friend or foe. Was it smarter to play the unconscious one? But if they were actually monitoring him, they would notice whenever his brain function would rise, right?
He wasn't too educated when it came to this medical stuff but assumed it from their previous words.
"No respond detected, doctor." That was another voice.
Resigned he decided that this was no situation he wanted to stay in. A heavy, floating, not responding body, closed eyes, darkness, and… oh no, he was wrong, he could smell something.
It smelled… clean, yeah definitely a hospital and now he started to hear other noises as well, several annoying beeps, all in a different rhythm, a continuous buzzing, the sound of running fluid and footsteps, breathing people, at least five of them.
Why wouldn't his eyes open and his body move?
"Pulse rate is rising."
"He's definitely awake, but I'm not certain if he can hear us."
Oh, yes there was something he had decided to do.
Yes!
"Oh, there it is! A strong amplitude! He's there! He's reacting!"
He could hear several people cheer in celebration, even clapping of hands and with every passing second his hearing got clearer.
"That's good, very well done, Sir! I know the situation is everything but comfortable for you, but I need you to stay calm. We're taking good care of you. Please think 'Yes' again, if you understood."
He did as he was told, but he wasn't as calm as voice number one tried to reassure him. He worried about Deunan, where was she and what had happened?
Hopefully she was safe, but he couldn't recall what had happened the last days, his short-time memories seemed to be messed up. Maybe he got a blow against his head during practice.
He wished for his memories to be not this blurry, but he couldn't change that at the moment, the only thing he could influence was his body and how he reacted to the strangers surrounding him.
The male person, who did most of the talking, was at it again. He sounded like an older person, maybe in his forties or fifties, probably a doctor or something like that. From his accent, he could be from central Europe, but that was not much more than a guess.
"Sir, you had some life-threatening injuries that we are currently treating, but you must understand the situation you're currently in." Well, if that wasn't some nice welcoming. "We are barely able to keep you alive at the moment and if you want to survive, I need you to cooperate, do you understand?"
And that was a clear message Briareos had been waiting for. Apparently, he was in bad shape, he had no idea why, but he could deal with the task, the stranger had given him. There was no other way for him out of that situation than to play along, at least until he knew more about his whereabouts and his physical condition.
"If you do understand, I need you to reply like you did earlier by thinking 'yes'. We're able to detect you brain activity, but aren't able yet to distinguish between different words, so this will be our only way of communication for the moment."
Briareos did as he was told, scoffing in his mind about that man describing this one-way-ticket as communication. All he could apparently do was to give a signal or not. What a tricky situation and it was making it almost impossible to receive any information except for what the strangers – probably doctors and other staff – would willingly offer him.
"Very well, at this moment you shouldn't feel any pain, is that correct?"
Briareos agreed, still wondering what had brought him into this mess. This sounded way too serious for a simple injury during practice.
He heard the people surrounding him talking about suppressing pain receptors and activating the system but he had no clue what they were talking about, except that it seemed to be a success, that he was able to communicate with them, without feeling pain, and he wondered in what situation he was and if he was actually supposed to feel pain.
Afterwards the main talker kept asking different questions about Briareos being able to use his senses and if he felt his body and he answered the only way he could, certain by now that this could have only happened while being in action and that worried him deeply, because if he had been in action, Deunan probably had been as well.
But there was no way for him to ask about her, no way to make sure she was safe, so there was only one thing he could do. He could lie in this nothingness, in this pitch of darkness, listening to the doctor and answering useless questions, not knowing if she was still alive, and pray that she was.
He knew it was most likely that she was dead, that whatever had put him into this sorry state, had killed her, and that rational thought alone was enough to push him to his limits, almost enough to make him black-out, because there was nothing he could do, just being here, his heart fighting a lost battle against his rationality.
"Please Sir, stay with me, I know this situation has to be difficult, but you have to stay focused, do you understand?"
Briareos wanted to take a deep breath, but not even that he could do. That was right, there was one thing he could do, he could communicate with this person and this was his only way of regaining his senses, his mobility, and that was his only choice to confirm whether his mind or his heart was right.
"He's calming down, Doctor," another voice commented. "His heart-rate is steady again."
That other person sounded surprised, but they didn't know him, they didn't know Briareos.
"Okay, Sir, are you listening to me?"
Briareos replied.
"Fine, my name's Doctor Wilder. My team and I are currently trying to save your life and I know this must be a tough situation for you, but if you want to survive, you cannot grow hectic, understood? You're a soldier, right? So if you want to survive this situation, I need you to stay focused and calm, otherwise you won't make it, do you understand?"
He replied again and actually, those words had a calming effect on him. After all he was the perfect soldier and this situation sounded like something that could even challenge him, and Briareos had never been the type to step away from a challenge.
"Good, so let me explain a few things. Do you know what cyberization is?"
Oh, that surprised Briareos probably more than it should. Yes, he was aware that limbs and organs could be replaced by synthetic ones nowadays, remembering General Schulz, who had been a proband for some artificial brain. So, it had been that bad, right?
"So, in order to keep you alive we had no choice but to substitute the missing parts with artificial materials. Among others your eyesight has been impaired and currently we're repressing any sense of pain, otherwise you wouldn't be able to stay conscious. The sheer pain could actually be enough to kill you. But suppressing your sense of pain is also disabling you from feeling your body currently. We're working on that."
Oh well, so it was that bad. It usually took a lot for him to be shocked, but right now – not remembering what the hell had happened and not knowing if his friends were, if Deunan was, safe – right now he kind of realized that the situation was bad.
His eyesight was affected, but other things as well, as it seemed. He had no clue how cyberization actually worked, but he knew from comrades that the rehabilitation could take weeks, even months, if successful at all. Many wouldn't come back to active service, some would even go crazy, chopping the artificial limbs off.
He had heard the stories, had seen some with his own eyes… which were probably gone, now that he thought about it. That was strange, he really didn't know what he had expected. He had always been ready to die in battle, to die in war, and he had always known that it also could turn out like that, but he kind of had expected, that if he were to fail, then he would pay with his life.
So apparently he had survived, whatever had happened, he had survived, badly damaged, probably in such an agonizing pain, that this sensation alone could be enough to kill him, and he knew pain, knew torture.
He stopped himself right there, brooding wouldn't do him any god, he knew that, whatever had happened to him and whatever path lay in front of him, he had to keep fighting, just so he could make sure, that Deunan was still safe.
"Okay Sir, do you remember what happened? Why you are in this situation?"
He didn't reply.
"Very well, I know this will be unsatisfying, but I would prefer that we leave it like that for the moment. I know you want to know what had happened, but in your condition right now I predict it's for the best to not recall any memories, the shock might be too much. Can you settle with my decision?"
Briareos replied. He wanted to know what had happened, but right now all he knew was what that man told him, and if that Wilder told him, that this knowledge would be able to kill him, then he preferred to stay ignorant. He had to survive in order to search for Deunan, and if those memories would come back and tell him the one thing he didn't dare thinking about, then he had to be the one to tell Carl that he had failed.
"Fine. I would like you to rest for now and in a couple of hours, we will continue with the next steps."
The doctor continued his explanations and Briareos listened, afterwards one of his colleagues stayed behind to supervise his data and to talk, in order to keep him sane or something, but he didn't care, he didn't need anybody talking to him or telling him how much time was passing. He remembered very well that one time as a kid when he had been in that pit for what could have been mere hours or whole weeks, this here didn't scare him. He couldn't change what had happened to his body, but as long as it was his body and as long as he were able to see Deunan again, he would be fine.
But as the time passed, he couldn't hinder the silent fear creeping up within him, filling him with doubt and desperation, not enough to silence his rationality, but enough to drown his heart.
He wanted this to end, he wanted to know if his prayers were a foolish hope by now or if they still mattered, he wanted to know if she was safe or if he had lost her.
He didn't know if he would be able to survive losing her, but not even knowing felt like he would lose her over and over again. Every time he remembered her smile, her voice, her laughter, her touch, every time he thought about her, each single time he also lost her and he didn't stop thinking about her, not for one second.
How was he supposed to rest like this?
"You should rest a little bit now or take a walk or something." He nodded as they finally pulled the countless plugs out of his body. "But don't walk too far, we need another blood sample in about 26 minutes."
"Yes, yes, I know how this works."
Briareos got up. His heavy body felt as light as a feather, and his mind didn't even feel tired, but he should be, he knew, he had just passed the last simulation and usually he should feel deadly tired right now, but his body had reached the 100% and his artificial brain was able to unload the pressure on his real one.
It was almost two thirty in the morning and gosh, he should be tired as hell, but he wasn't, yet he felt exhausted. He wanted it all to be over, the hiding, the lying, the secrets and then it dawned to him; this was the day. Today was the day his personal secret mission would reach its climax, and he would either fail or make Nike really really happy.
Now Briareos paced an empty corridor up and down, trying to move his sorry muscles. The last weeks had been tough on him, not only emotionally but also physically. Although his artificial body had reached its peak condition, he had not been able to be half as active as he was used to, and his body was growing restless.
Not that his mind was helpful at all. Briareos wasn't the nervous type of person, and usually the opportunity of facing a challenge, that could be too much even for him, filled him with some sort of curiosity, maybe even excitement, but this time it was different. This time he wasn't facing invincible foes, nor was he in a do or die situation. This here wasn't about his skills as a soldier or as assassin, this here wasn't his territory, so he was nervous, but at the same time, he was deadly calm. If this was how it was supposed to end, then he would face it.
A sudden phone call interrupted his brooding and the foreign number got his attention.
Wary he picked up.
"Good evening, Sir," he was greeted faster than he could have said anything. "Attorney Smith here, from Singer and Partners. I'm sorry for calling so late, but my secretary said you sounded urgent, so urgent actually you forgot to mention your name."
Briareos didn't reply to the soft chuckle, falling against the wall and sliding to the ground, having a hard time to comprehend reality.
"Sir, are you there? I can't hear you, maybe the connection is faulty. My secretary said it's an overseas call, if you have any trouble…"
"Aaron," he whispered and for this once his artificial voice mirrored his feelings, "is that you?"
"No," it came from the other side of the line, "that can't be."
He heard harsh breathing and Briareos understood all too well what the other one was going through while he buried his head in his hands.
"Is this even possible? Can that be?" The other one sounded exactly like he felt. "Briareos, is this you?"
"Yes, Aaron," he whispered, feeling the unredeemable urge to cry, "yes, it's me."
"Oh God!"
And even though Briareos couldn't, he heard just fine that the other man was crying, relieving his own feelings as well. There was nothing he could do, but listen to the sobbing of his old friend, feeling the same pain, the same joy, the same sorrow, and the same relieve in his inhuman body.
"How is that possible?" Aaron asked, his voice hoarse. "How can you be alive? How did you survive? I know what happened in Mayaba, this is just impossible."
Briareos observed his fingers, wondering if he had actually survived it.
"I was lucky," he lied, "got saved by some Olympic airship, but I was in a bad shape and then I heard the base got attacked, didn't know you made it."
The other one stayed silent.
"I've spent quite some time in a hospital and I only knew that all active operators were killed during the explosion. Olympus got hold of some of Carl's belongings, but I… there was an unknown address with your name on it, but I just found it a few days ago…"
Now he was the one not knowing what to say.
"The day you… left for Africa," Aaron mumbled, his voice still cracking and barely under control, "that day Alexander came to the base, do you remember?"
Oh, yes, and how he remembered that sunny moment.
"We had been thinking about moving closer to his parents for a long time already, and that day he came back from Montana to organize the last few things. I wanted to make it official when you'd come back."
Briareos stayed quiet. Unlike Nathaniel, Aaron had never talked a lot about his private life. The only time it had ever affected him was during the adoption process of little Tommy. He remembered very well that it had been a rough road for his friend to finally become a father. He even remembered that Aaron had mentioned that thought once in a while, but he had no idea, that it had been more than a thought.
"On the day of the attack…" Now Aaron sounded rational and Briareos knew exactly what he was doing. He knew very well that rationality was the easiest way to talk about those things. "I was in Montana to sign the contract for our new home. I wasn't supposed to be there, but I got the call in the morning that we would either sign the same day or somebody else would get it and Carl – tze, that stubborn idiot – he almost kicked me out of the base. Seriously, he came after me, waving that cane like a freaking baseball bat, yelled at me not to come back before it was all settled and that the war would wait for me. Took a plane and left, eight hours later war had happened without me."
The other one took a deep breath.
"So, Carl died in action?" Briareos asked, staring at the cold stone in front of him, trying to comprehend this situation, trying to comprehend all of this.
"Yes, he did," Aaron confirmed. At least that, at least Carl had died the way he'd lived, somehow that knowledge reconciled his past.
"I thought I was the last one," the other one continued, "I thought I had lost all of you, and now you call me? Just out of the blue, what, fifteen years later, and you're alive, have been alive all this time?"
Suddenly the other one chuckled.
"Damn it, I can't believe it. You're alive, oh God, Carl's freaky prodigy child made it."
"I've told you numerous times, I'm not a child, never was, and it's been sixteen years, get your dates straight."
Now Aaron laughed wholeheartedly, lightening Briareos' mood as well. How he had forgotten this, how he had yearned for something like this.
"Oh, it's really you, Briareos, nobody else would scold me in such a situation."
"Well, Carl would've."
"Yeah, he would."
The timer of Briareos watch told him that he had less than ten minutes before the next sample was due, even if he had finally found his past, it wouldn't change the present.
"So, you live in Imperial Americana now," he mused, "and you became a lawyer?"
"Well, sixteen years are a long time, my friend. Some things have changed, more than I could ever fit into a phone call."
"Then why don't you take two minutes to date me up?" Briareos asked, well aware that this could very well be his last time speaking to Aaron.
"What? Right now?"
"Yeah, right now."
He didn't like the silence that followed, because he knew how smart Aaron was and he feared the questions his friend could ask.
"Fine," the other one agreed surprisingly soft, "well, to make it short. After the war was over and most US-citizens fled to IA, I promised Alex to leave active duty, and that's what I did. The system here isn't easy, but we're doing good. Maria died during the uproars, so we took Lia in, oh, of course you don't know. William is Lia now, and she's the best pastry chef in whole IA, and I bet Nathaniel would be damn proud of her."
Tell William, he's no soldier, he should never have to fight. He's great at baking. You'll never taste a Schwarzbrot like his. He should do that.
Briareos remembered Nathaniel's words very well.
"Yes, I bet he would," he agreed.
"And Tom is in medical school right now. To be honest I've not seen him for two months at all, that boy is busy as hell. He's specializing in cyberization, because he wants to help veterans."
He had never liked that word, he couldn't even explain why exactly, but he didn't like it. It reminded him of his days in the hospital, the days of darkness and uncertainty, it reminded him of his body and this prison that kept him alive.
"So," he heard Aaron carefully speaking, breaking the silence Briareos had caused, "what about you? You said you were saved by Olympus? What happened then? Where are you now? Are you still working in…?"
"Yes," he mumbled, "I'm working for Olympus' ESWAT."
He could hear a silent sigh.
"It took me long to recover and I thought there was no reason left for me to go back to America, so I… so I stayed."
"And… what about Deunan?"
There it was, the question he knew Aaron had wanted to ask from the very beginning, but hadn't dared to.
"She's still my point man, making Carl proud every damn day without even knowing."
"What? She survived as well? She's with you at Olympus?"
An aching joy filled his heart. Yes, she was at Olympus as well.
"Yeah, she did. We got separated in Mayaba and she survived all that time while I wasn't able to look for her. Took me forever to find her, in Eastern Europe, that damn girl." He remembered the moment he had seen her again, a moment of unbelievable happiness and unbearable fear. "It was her idea to move to Olympus, so here we are."
There was no we at the moment, but he didn't dare to say that.
"Working as ESWAT operatives," Aaron continued his sentence, sighing loudly. "Not that it surprises me. It's in your DNA; both of you grew up like that, of course the two of you would stay active."
Briareos wanted to reply something, but suddenly there was a mood change and his friend asked in a much lighter voice.
"But wait, when you're saying you're an ESWAT, doesn't that mean you know that guy? You know, this Hecatonchires? Tom doesn't shut up about him, he even decided to write his thesis about him. He said this guy is like the medical future, but I have no real clue what he means with that, all I know is that he's apparently some superhuman weapon. They say he's a perfect soldier. Must be tough on you, right? After all what Carl put you through, getting beaten by some non-aging cyborg. Do you think it would be possible for Tom to get in contact with him? You would save his life – or at least his career – he's trying to get information about this guy for half a year already, but Olympus is really possessive about all his data. Do you think you could help him? Like maybe a phone call, so Tom could ask some questions. I think he would be…"
"Aaron," he interrupted the other one softly, while his system told him that his oxygen level was dropping rapidly. It was unusual for Aron to chatter like that, maybe it was the sheer shock of Briareos' resurrection, but it certainly confused him.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I went too far. It's just, I didn't expect any of this to happen, you being alive and stuff, I feel lightheaded and probably annoy you with my babbling. I must sound like Nathaniel. I'm sorry."
"It's alright," he lied. "I can't promise you a phone call, but I'll make sure Tom will get the files. Although it will probably take some time. You should give me your current contact information. Your secretary can send them to this number."
"Wait… what? You… you can do that? How important are you over there? In what position are you that you have access to such information? Like I even made Watson try to get a grasp on something and he didn't get nothing!"
"The chief? He's still alive?"
"Oh yes, but no chief anymore, part of the congress now, a man with power, you could say, but not enough to get Tommy that one phone call, and you want to tell me you're even able to hand over a whole file about him?"
"Well, you could say I'm quite close to the source. I will have to talk to my boss for it, but it should be fine."
"That would be great… and I'm sorry for ruining our reunion with something this frivolous."
"No no, don't be. It's good you're asking now, because… this way I can make it work."
He didn't want to lie to Aaron, at the same time there was no way he could tell him the truth.
"Briareos," the other one mumbled, and the seriousness in his voice reminded him of old days, "what are you hiding?"
Now he was the one to chuckle slightly, yet it was neither light nor joyful.
"I can't tell you," he admitted, "but it's good you called back so quickly."
"I understand." Of course he did, Jackson would have asked for obvious answers, but Aaron never did. "So me looking for a flight to Olympus within the next couple of days right now would be a bad idea?"
"Deunan would probably love to see you again," he replied. "But yes, it would be a very bad idea."
The other one murmured something agreeing.
"So when do you think would be a better time?"
"In about a month, I guess. Like I said, I can't promise Tom any phone call or even conversation, but at that time he could receive the files and I guess it would be really good for you to meet Deunan then."
His voice got hoarse. This was what he had yearned for, had never hoped for, but here he was, talking to Aaron, who had known him since he had been just seven years old. The very man Deunan had asked for help about confessing to Briareos, the very man he had asked about proper proposal, about talking with people, about making friends, and about mourning the dead.
"Briareos. Will I be able to meet you then as well?"
Aaron didn't have to ask this question, he knew damn well the answer, so the only reason he could be asking was because…
"I don't know."
The line was silent for a moment.
"Do you know that I really didn't like you, when you came to the States?"
"What?" He replied perplexed.
"Yeah, I wondered why Carl would bring such unsocialized child to our base and it really annoyed me when he put you in my charge."
"Wasn't it the other way around?"
"I had no idea, what to do with such a strongminded, coldhearted, and merciless child-assassin like you were, and I doubted Carl's judgement. He saw incomparable potential within you, I saw an uncontrollable risk, maybe even a threat, and I wasn't even sure if you were able to learn any social behavior. God knows it took me years of patience."
"Why are you telling me now? I never knew any of this."
"Of course you didn't, unlike Nathaniel I was well aware that your lack of composure would make you act dangerously towards any hostility, so I played along."
Slightly Briareos shook his head, Aaron had always been the smarter one.
"The thing is," the other continued, "I was wrong, thoroughly. I had distrusted you, far longer than anybody else in this base, maybe even longer than you had doubted us. For years I waited for the big bang, I waited for you turning on us, and you never did. In the end I've been the fool, so certain of your unpreventable betrayal that I've been the only one, who hadn't seen what you had become."
He stayed silent, not knowing where this confession was leading to.
"For years I saw that emotionless assassin, while you became what Carl had seen in you and even more. It took me so long to realize that you had become exactly what he had hoped for, not only a perfect soldier, unmatched by all, but a good leader, a great protector, and a true friend." By now Aaron was clearly fighting to keep his composure. "So let me tell you this. I have no idea what you're facing, but there is none like you and I have seen you do the impossible more than once, you just came back from the dead to me, so believe me when I tell you, that whatever lays ahead of you, I would doubtlessly bet my life, that you will succeed. I was the one, who doubted you the most, Briareos, and now I have unwavering faith in you and your decisions."
It hurt! There was no other way to describe what he was feeling right now. This pain was almost unbearable. How could this man say something like this, after all this time, after more than a decade, how could he simply say something like this, putting his faith into Briareos like this, looking through him like this?
"Can I tell you something?" He whispered, regarding his artificial fingers and hating that this inhuman body wasn't able to process his human feelings. "Something I can't tell anybody?"
"Of course."
He stared at those fingers, not able to move them at all, not able to move this foreign body at all.
"I'm scared," he finally admitted. "I'm so scared I might fail and I'm so scared that I might succeed."
The line was silent for a moment that seemed to last eternity.
"It's a good thing I called you, I guess," Aaron finally said, "because I always wondered if you could actually feel fear."
"This is a bad time for a joke."
"Fear means you have something to live for, my friend, something you don't want to lose, so I'm glad you are scared of what lies ahead of you. I'm glad you're not facing your challenge with a deathwish."
And suddenly Briareos knew what the other one meant, suddenly he felt heat rushing through his body, as he finally understood, as he finally knew where this unknown fear was coming from.
He didn't want to die!
Briareos wanted to live, he wanted to be alive again, but he knew just as well, that he wouldn't last in this body much longer, he knew this body would kill him sooner or later. That had been the reason why he had decided to keep Deunan out of this, because he knew that if he'd fail his mission, he would rather die than keep living in his unforgiving cage. But now he knew that he didn't want to die. He wanted to survive, he wanted to live, with Deunan, with Aaron, with all his friends in Olympus and that meant he had only one choice.
No matter the obstacles, no matter what it would mean for him, he had only one way to go, he needed to succeed.
The timer called him, reminding him, that it was time for another blood sample.
"I need to leave," he explained. "Thank you for calling me back."
"Will you pick up, when I call you again tomorrow?"
"No."
"So how can I reach you?"
"You won't. In a few hours, this line will be dead. I will make sure they'll contact you for Tommy's thesis."
"Aren't you a cruel one. Calling me after sixteen years and now leaving me behind like that again."
"I'm sorry, Aaron."
"Don't be, come back alive, and don't be sorry."
"I will, I promise."
"Don't promise, just come back alive."
He hung up.
His body shivered and breathing was difficult, he couldn't move, he couldn't think straight, but then he got up, loosened his artificial muscles, straightened up and walked back into the lab.
Once he had been the hope to win a war, now he had to win his own.
