I tried the device again that afternoon after the bleeding has stopped. It wasn't much different than the first time. I stood for twice as long, still with help, and it was just as excruciating. When it was over, I bled almost as much. Afterward, I was too exhausted to do much of anything, but I was still growing very tired of the curtained cubicle I was stuck in. Despite normally keeping to myself, I was willing to break that habit if only to have some distraction from the throbbing in my back and the constant buzz of machinery. "Hey! Is anyone there? Kasey?"

I heard some shuffling, and after a few seconds, the curtain opened. Kasey stood there a moment, her eyes puffy and tears streaming down. "Are you okay?" I asked. She ran over and sat next to the cot, pulling her legs close to her chest. She started crying worse. I sat up, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, what happened?"

She sniffled. "They took Kaden!" I had learned by now that this was her brother's name. "They took him hours ago and he's not back yet."

"I'm sure he's alright, okay? He's coming back." I tried to reassure her, though I had no idea if what I was saying was true or not. "They're probably just putting those sensors on him." 'Sensors' sounded better than 'Implanted metal'.

Kacey shook her head. "They didn't do that last time they took him, but he had a bad headache when he came back. And last week, they took someone away and they didn't come back."

I wasn't sure how to respond to that. Of course she was worried: it was her brother. I didn't even know Kaden but I was already worried on his behalf. Any sort of doubt that he was well was sure to hit like an emotional gut punch. "You can wait with me until he gets back. He's sure to be back soon." I thought for a moment... whenever I was worried about something, I tried to distract myself. "Is there anything else to do here for fun, while we wait?"

She sniffed and nodded, wiping tears off her face. "Yes. There's an old tv on the other side of these rooms."

Hmm... this would require getting there first. That would be a problem. But, I wanted to be with Kasey if something went wrong, and there was little we could do in here that was sufficiently distracting. "...Do... do you think you could help me there?"

"I thought you can't walk?"

"I can't really," I said. This was probably a mistake. Even if I could take a couple of steps on a good day, I was still recovering from surgery on my legs, and my back was killing me. "But I can go a little ways if I have help."

"Okay." She stood up. "I can help you there."

I shifted so I was sitting on the edge of the cot with my bare feet on the concrete floor. You can do this, Shilo. Don't look weak in front of the middle schooler. "Okay, so if you're on the side, I can put my arm on your shoulders and lean on you a bit."

She got into position and slowly pulled me up to standing. My legs shook under me and I was already a bit dizzy, but there was no giving up now. "You okay?"

I nodded. "Let's go slow." Step by step, leaning a lot on Kacey, I made it to the curtain and out into a sort of hallway between the different curtained cubicles. I counted five on each side. One side led to the central part of the hangar and the mechanical equipment. Several soldiers stood guard. The other side led to the corner area with doors to a few off, and an old couch, a table, a few folding chairs, and an old tv balanced on top of a bare, waist-high bookshelf. The furniture all looked like it had been picked up from a curb. Unfortunately, I was in one of the farthest rooms, and still had quite a few steps to go to make it there.

Wincing back pain from one of my knees, I leaned a bit more on Kasey, and she suddenly buckled under my arm. Falling, I grabbed hold of one of the curtain poles. I managed to lower myself onto the ground before I could knock it completely over; it wobbled a bit, but luckily no one got hurt in the end.

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!" Kacey stood over me, hands over her mouth. "I didn't mean to!"

"It's okay!" I was not okay. The hard floor made the nodules in my legs dig into my skin. "You didn't mean to."

Someone else spoke up. "What's going on!?" I turned my head; it was Andrew. He was dressed similarly to me but was wearing boots. He didn't look happy at the commotion.

Kasey stammered. "I was just - just trying to help him get to the..."

"Why would you expect a little girl to carry your weight?!" Oh. He was talking to me. Oops. "That's a bad move man."

Kasey came to my aid. "How else is he supposed to get to the tv?"

Andrew thought for a moment. "Hold on, I'll be right back." He ran off. A couple of minutes later, he came back with a wheeled stretcher, the kind I'd been put on when I first got here. He pushed the gurney right in front of me. "They have two of them and this one is normally just sitting about by the door. Here." He offered his hand.

I grabbed it, and he pulled me up and lifted me onto the stretcher with ease. I sat on it as the two of them pushed me down the hallway. A couple of the soldiers gave us weird looks but didn't intervene. Kasey and Andrew pushed the stretcher into the back of the couch, and I pulled myself off and flipped over the back of the couch onto the cushion; even though the impact sent pains up my back, I couldn't help it and started laughing.

Andrew scoffed but still peaked a smile. Kasey giggled a bit... an achievement that made me glad. I rolled over and sat up, to face the tv. It had a black and white tv show playing. "Can we change the show?"

"Nope," Kasey said as she took a seat. "It's just reruns. We can't change the channel."

"Believe me, we've tried," Andrew added, crossing his arms as he leaned against the wall.

That was disappointing - at least some tv was better than no tv. "Andrew... how did you end up here?"

There was a pause, and I was afraid he wasn't going to even answer the question, but he eventually did. "I had just graduated from high school and was told this was a good way to get into advanced military programs. They didn't tell me that MECH split off from the US government years ago... but at least I'm a part of something, I guess."

"...How many chose to come here?"

He shrugged. "Most of us, for one reason or another. What's the matter, do you regret it now, legs?"

"Legs?" I hoped that nickname didn't stick. "Nope. I don't regret it. I needed to try something. I'm sure it'll get better when I get used to the device." I wasn't going to allow myself to regret it, because I was in too far now and had no way of backing out. "...Did Hillary want to come here? I mean, she probably did because of her arm."

"First lesson, newbie: Don't ask about Hillary," Andrew said as he started to walk away. "She doesn't answer questions." I don't know where he was headed, but he left us alone.

We watched re-runs for the next hour or so, making fun of the shows whenever we could. It was nice to have someone to talk to, regardless of the circumstances. I remembered reading an article once that said laughter did a lot to calm the mind and body, and make a person less worried. If I could do that for Kasey, then that was what I was going to do.

Sometime later, I heard the scientists from earlier in the hallway of curtained rooms. They came walking our way and stopped when they saw Kasey and me. "Shilo, are you ready to try again?"

I nodded, though I didn't think it would make much of a difference whether I agreed to it or now. It was probably just a formality to even ask. "Can we go back to my room first?" I knew I would have to take my shorts off and I was not doing that in front of anyone else.

"Of course." I got back on the stretcher and was soon back in the curtained room, sitting this time on the metal folding chair. The smooth surface was cold against my bare skin. This time, the scientists pulled out a different device than last time. Instead of being in multiple pieces, it was instead a singular box that would hook onto my lower back. They attached it while I was sitting in the chair. The prongs were smaller, and though the feeling of it being attached to my spine was just as unsettling as ever, it didn't hurt as much now that I was expecting it. The soldiers lifted me up as the device was activated. It didn't hurt nearly as much as last time, and it spread down my legs far faster. Every node ached, but it didn't feel like they were being ripped out or my bones torn in two so that was an improvement. When the legs were fully transformed over my own, they set me back down on the chair. "Okay, Shilo, this time, could you try standing on your own?"

On my own? Last time I could barely stand with help without it being excruciating. I had strong doubts - but I decided to try. Trying wouldn't kill me. I leaned forward in the chair, trying to focus on how I was going to do this. Most people take for granted standing or walking... but I hadn't been able to do either for some while. It was like a part of me had forgotten how to even do it. The very idea of getting on my feet unassisted sent shivers up my spine. The anxiety was substantial.

I tried to forget the pain in my legs and the fear associated with standing. I imagined the times when I was younger, running and playing at recess with not a care in the world. I looked down at my legs and pushed myself up off the chair with some assistance from my hands. To my surprise... it worked. I was standing, and my legs weren't even tired. It was like I wasn't even moving my legs, but the metal suit instead. It was so easy. Painful, but easy. I let out a nervous breath in a half-laugh.

"Good. Can you take a step?"

I was already on it and moved my leg forward before the suggestion was even finished. One step. Two steps. The ache was infuriating. Every node was like fire shooting up my body, but I ignored it. The fire was nothing compared to the ardent joy of walking. "Can I... can I keep going?"

The science types looked among themselves, one taking notes, and another shrugged. "You can, yes. As long as you don't push too much. Your implants are still healing."

I smiled and went over to the curtain, pulling it open. This was amazing. I walked down the hallways between the curtained rooms, seeing everything from a higher perspective than I was used to. I was surrounded by an illegal operation and children who were hurting. But at that moment, I was only filled with elation.