Four years pass in Manticore. All the colors I see in this place as I call home, are gray, white, and grayish-blue, like the night cammies they makes me wear. They shave my hair every week as I know what color it will become. Blonde. Every time I see a nurse with long lushes' hair, I feel jealous because they have it and I don't. I dare not ask my wet nurse, Emily Plaksin, why she have hair because my only thought is to follow orders and never question them unless called upon my superior officers; that is everybody older then me.

I speak various languages from English, to German, French, Korean, Chinese. As my knowledge increase drastically, the words I remembered from my photographic memory, when I was an infant, intended that I'll be leaving Emily soon. I've always known it as while as she. I've grown a bond with her, a bond that my knowledge can't explain. Usually I substitute false answers to not hack my brain to understand the truth. Finding the truth in Manticore comes with consequences and consequences means punishment. By the shakiness in Emily voice, she tells me to follow orders all the time no matter what. I thought she only said that because Lydecker told her to say it, but she wanted me to be safe and away from his grasp. Lydecker from my point of view, is a man that I don't want to cross. Every time he comes in my working room, I have to salute him, respond loudly and shout out answers on Que. My pride grows every time he says.

"Good job soldier."

Those words stick to me everyday. Embracing it, loving it, consuming those words that made him proud of me. I tell myself to always accomplish my objectives no matter how impossible they are.

As Lydecker would say "Failure is not an option. Where there's a will there's a way."

He gives me lessons in training twice a week, drilling those lessons in my brain, as I won't misinterpret those words.

*** I wake up on a Monday. Everyday for four years I get up, learn my lessons, eat three square meals a day and go back asleep. This day was different. Felt it in the atmosphere of this mouse tap I live in. They made me get up 0550 hours, ten minutes earlier then usual. I walk out of my quarters, as what I called home for years, to be transported elsewhere. Lydecker stood outside my door, boldly with his hands behinds his back relaxed, wearing a leather black jacket, with a black shirt and black jeans. Black seems to be his favorite color; must go with his male ego.

"Sir." I salute him, standing straight, and chin up, shoulders arched back looking directly forward.

"X-5 995, today you will be trained in a unit of other x-5 such as yourself. There, you'll be trained to become a true soldier. We expect nothing but the best from you as you showed us these past years. Understood 995?" He loudly said.

"Sir yes sir." Shouting out.

"Follow me."