Ziya's Perspective
I stand outside the military base hidden in the forest as I wait for the action to begin. Tonight the X5 will break into the compound and attempt to blow it up. When they come out, I'll be waiting for them. My thoughts drift off to other things as I wait for the attack to begin.
Like all solders, I have to follow orders, even if I don't want to. I was tired of listening to everyone, especially Renfro. I wanted to be in charge, and Renfro was stopping that. She controlled the one thing that could stand in my way, Manticore. I recently found out about a group of X5 that had escaped and they were my key to destroying Manticore. I may have been ordered to destroy then, but I'm going to have some fun first. They were the only ones that could help me, so they get to stay alive, or at least for now. I sought them out; I wanted to know everything there was to know about them. I sent Vriel to find them and watch them. He was supposed to let me know when their was a good opportunity to attack.
When I finally got word from him, I sent in my troops. I ordered them to bring back the X5's that Vriel had found. I went with them of course; I didn't know what to expect. Renfro warned me that they were good, but I had no clue that it would turn into this big of a fight. I wanted the X5 alive, but if we had to, we could kill them. They were only a causality of war; others like them would be found. Others who would help me.
I knew about the computer system that was set up inside the cabin thanks to Vriel. I was curious to see what was on it. I wanted one of my people to set up a connection with that computer and the system I was in control of. Once the connection was made, we could download all the files. We could see what the X5 were up to. In the end, we ended up getting the connection, but we didn't get the files. They we encoded and when we tried to break the code, we lost everything. This battle had to great of a cost, especially with the loss of my solders, my students.
My students are good, but they were no match for the X5. One on one, they will loose every time. That was pretty much proven during the attack. I lost a bunch of my best students, and they will be hard to replace. It would be nice if I could get a few X5 to join up with me in my continuing war against Manticore, but before this can happen, I'd have to earn their trust. Vriel did a good job of getting that started, so I'm going to continue to use him to deal with the X5.
No one knows what is truly going on except for me. I have no intention of giving Renfro any information on the X5 I have found and the information we tried to get off the computer. I'm definitely not going to check in tonight either; I want Renfro to worry about it for a bit. She thinks I'm one of her little lapdogs, but really, I'm in this for my own personal gain, and the gain of my country. There is a great war brewing in China, and by taking control of the military here, by taking control of Manticore, I can ensure victory for my side. The X5 want to destroy Manticore completely, so they are my enemy. Tonight, I'll kill two birds with one stone; that's why I gave them the blueprints for the lab. I knew they couldn't resist destroying a target that was as easy as I made it appear. Besides, they think Manticore has Jace's baby; they don't know I have her. All of the X5 that go in the building tonight will be terminated. We will shoot them down as they run for the forest. We will of course let them blow of the building. It's a small loss for Manticore, but a enormous victory for me.
When I'm standing there ready to take out the rebel X5, I'll be the hero. I'll be in the right spot to take over Renfro's position after she has an unfortunate accident. I can take over and use the army she created to save my country. My plan is flawless there is no way I can loose.
I'm personally overseeing the destruction of this lab, and I'll make sure the X5 goes down with it. After this is all over, I'll take Jace's baby and rename her. I'll give her a new identity and raise her as my daughter, teaching her the ways of my people. Eventually, she will take my place, and she will become the greatest leader my people have ever known.
Renfro's Perspective
I sit in my office staring blankly at my computer screen. My heart is cold with anger and hatred for those known as the X5. Their faces keep popping up in my memory. No matter how hard I try, I cannot forget them. I want the problem dealt with, and I could careless whether I got them back dead or alive, as long as I got them back. I ordered Ziya to find the X5 and bring them in. She didn't have much to do with Manticore, but I could control her easily. She had a good army of soldiers; I could tell they had been well trained. The X5 mess needed cleaned up so I could get back to work on my perfect solder, and she was the one to do it for me.
I had finally created the perfect solder, X9-865. We haven't discovered any flaws in him yet. I was a little skeptical about the accelerated growth chamber, but we put him in it and aged him. The results were magnificent. He was only five and he was able beat Brinn in a deadly hand to hand combat after only seven minutes. I feel bad for loosing her, especially after all that time and money that went into reprogramming her, but it was necessary to see what he was capable of. X9-865 has become my pride and joy. I can still remember the look in his eyes the first time I sent him into battle. He was hungry for destruction and he had inside him the desire to kill. The moment he saw Brinn, I could tell he wasn't going to stop until she was dead. Finally, after all these years, I had accomplished what I had set out to do.
I created a new lab for the soul purpose of cloning him, my perfect soldier. I will produce mass armies of this one major accomplishment. If I haven't found the X5 after I've created a few more of these, then I will send them after Lydecker's Kids. They won't even stand a chance. I'll be able to control the people around me even more so then I already do; I'll be able to destroy Lydecker and push him out of the seat he now holds on the committee. I'll be able to take over this country and put it back in order.
I'm brought back to reality by a knock on the door. I look up to see one of my men standing there, "What is it soldier?" I ask him.
He tells me that Ziya hasn't checked in yet and she should have done so over an hour ago. My temper flares as I yell at him and tell him to find her. When I get done yelling he excuses himself. This annoys me even more. I wasn't done yelling at him! Ziya has always made sure she checked in on time, she usually checked in early. I should know by now whether or not her mission was a success, but instead, I know nothing. For all I know, her entire team has been wiped out and the X5 have been pushed into the open.
This will be a good opportunity to see if my X9 can handle a mission. I'll send him after her. I call up the lab and wait as the phone rings. No one answers. Someone is supposed to be there at all times. My men wouldn't leave their posts unless, ... My mind trails off expecting the worse. They were dead; my X9 was in danger. I call up Lydecker and tell him to get his @ss over to the lab pronto. After I get off the phone with him and I'm sure he's on his way, I notify my people and get a group together to head in that direction. If Lydecker screws this one up, there is no way he's getting out of there alive. I'll kill him myself if I have to.
