The Pawn Series Book Two: Hide... and seek

By Rik V. Sandman

In a dystopian world, Earth, Moon, Mars and Asteroid-belt population fights against a new enemy, the Venatores. The enemy is the descendants of the DNA altered humans, the runaway Super soldiers that the Companies had produced inside their military Labs. Some of them look like humans, but most of them were like monsters to normal humans.
A secret Super soldier Series in the development, the P-Series, was an all female Super soldiers group. The P-Series was a military Lab project and the last Series produced before a rogue military group with the help of Venatores purged it. The P-Series soldiers were 12 years old when they all were terminated... Except one, P31x2.
She is searching for her place in the world and finds herself between the fighting groups. P31x2 had hunted down the killers of her little sister, and now continues her search for the Player and the Queen. Soon she noticed that a tracker was after her. The Captain of the Pleiades Guards M45, Jon Eriksen, is ordered to hunt down the Pawn, P31x2. The game of cat and mouse begins...

• Language: English
• Publisher: Rik V. Sandman
• Release date: Nov 20, 2022
• ISBN: 9789526987217

Rik V. Sandman

The author is Nordic who has worked on computers and networks most of his career. He has also done some odd jobs, served his conscription in the Army, worked in a steel factory and studied in the USA.His favorite things are reading, sports and hiking in nature. He collects graphic novels and is a friend of Japanese culture.

Book preview

The Pawn Series Book Two:

Hide... and seek

By

Rik V. Sandman

The Pawn Series Book Two:

Hide... and seek

By Rik V. Sandman

Copyright 2022 Rik V. Sandman

Cover Copyright 2022 P. Santala

Published 2022 by Pekka Santala at Smashwords

ISBN 978-952-69872-1-7 (EPUB)

ISBN 978-952-69872-3-1 (MOBI)

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your enjoyment only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Contents

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 01 THE ZEVEN STERREN

CHAPTER 02 THE ORDER

CHAPTER 03 THE CHESS MASTER

CHAPTER 04 THE WOLFMAN

CHAPTER 05 THE 7 MINUTE 49 SECONDS WAR

CHAPTER 06 THE QUEEN AND HER GUARDIANS

CHAPTER 07 THE DARK WATERS

CHAPTER 08 THE BIRDS OF PREY

CHAPTER 09 THE WOLFMAN AND THE COMET

CHAPTER 10 THE RUSSIAN ROULETTE

CHAPTER 11 THE BLUE

CHAPTER 12 PANDORA’S BOX

CHAPTER 13 HIDE AND SEEK

CHAPTER 14 THE KILL LIST

CHAPTER 15 TEAM WHITE

CHAPTER 16 TEAM BLACK

CHAPTER 17 THE MOON LAB ATTACK

CHAPTER 18 TEAM RED

CHAPTER 19 THE PAWN DROP

CHAPTER 20 THE FOUR SURVIVORS

CHAPTER 21 THE NEW GAME

CHAPTER 22 THE ESCAPE FROM TYCHO

Terminology

About the author

Other books by Rik V. Sandman

INTRODUCTION

The human population on Earth, Moon and Mars is less than 3 billion after the several epidemics and wars that coincided in the last two centuries. It started when the scientists began to fix the non-coding DNA of Human genome to get rid of diseases. About half of the Earth population had their DNA changed or fixed. These changes in DNA also caused unwanted results, immunity to several old diseases was weakened. The only ones who survived the pandemics were those whose DNA was not fixed. In the aftermath of the pandemics, several wars followed, in which more than 3 billion people died.

The wars collapsed the civil, national and state structures, and the corporate structures replaced them. As the wars progressed, the Earth, Moon and Martian governments changed, and the international Companies took over. The Companies had their own Defense Forces and Armies and used them to resolve their disputes with other Companies. Soon the disputes grew larger and eventually a full-scale war broke out, a war lasting over 150 years.

The Companies produced Lab-grown test-tube soldiers whose body parts were replaced with animal tissue. The Lab scientists made changes to DNA to make the soldiers more agile and stronger. Controlling the new Super soldiers was unsuccessful, some Super soldiers ran away and began to gather, forming a new force on the battlefields. The children of the escaped Super soldiers had brought a new breed of humans, their descendants Venatores, who were born with Super soldier abilities. Some of them look like humans, but most of them were like monsters to normal humans.

The Planetary Trade Association issued a purge order for every Super soldier. Under its supervision, the military killed all the product Series except the few who had managed to escape from the purge. These were the N-, O- and K-Series. These Series were the base for the Venatores population, which grew fast and began to hunt humans. There was also another Series in the development, the P-Series, an all female Super soldiers group.

The P-Series was a secret military Lab project and the last Series produced before a rogue military group purged it. The infamous Dr. Luka Popov was the project leader who had developed the DNA enhancement to a higher level than anyone before. The P-Series was ten times more advanced than any other Series before it. It was even more advanced than the Venatores, who took a part in purging the P-Series before they were fully grown up to become a major force on the battlefields.

The P-Series soldiers were 12 years old when they all were terminated... Except one, P31x2.

P31x2 survived the Purge, but the termination of her little sister changed her. She became the Pawn. From the Super soldiers about 1/64000 individuals has abilities that make them exceptionally stronger or mentally superior compared to others. These individuals are anomalies among the DNA produced Super soldiers. They are called the Pawns and the Queens. They can have a lower Code in their Series, but still be physically and mentally stronger than their peers. The strongest Pawns and Queens are the ones who have also their Code at the top of their Series. The higher the Code is, the stronger the Pawn or the Queen is. There are differences between a Pawn and a Queen, the Queen’s powers are her intelligence and her ability to use telepathy that is called the Mental Pressure, MP. The Pawn’s powers are speed, strength and intelligence. The Pawn can also use MP, but the Pawn’s way of using it is much more limited.

Normal humans could not work with or fight against these anomalies, who were monsters compared to normal humans. Only a few humans have abilities that make them capable of working or even controlling the Pawns. These persons are called Players. The Pawn can accept orders from the Player if the Player is at least at the same level as the Pawn mentally, but the Queens usually killed the Players. There can only be one leader in the Hive.

After P31x2 had hunted down the killers of her little sister, she then continued her search for the Player and the Queen. Soon she noticed that a tracker was after her. The Captain of the Pleiades Guards M45, Jon Eriksen, had the orders from General Bishop to hunt down the Pawn. The game of cat and mouse begins...

CHAPTER 01

THE ZEVEN STERREN

The armored trucks moved slowly forward on the dirt road, the Fighter planes flying above the desert surrounding the Base were ready to attack on command. Inside the first vehicle, the soldiers were sitting quietly in their seats and waited for something to happen. So far, no explosions, gunfire or signs of the enemy, but they knew everything could change in an instant. Lieutenant Lai, sitting behind the driver and the Gunner, looked at the control panel display in front of the driver, the Base looked strange. There were no signs of enemy forces, no lights, or anything suggesting defensive actions against the approaching forces. The Lieutenant asked the Gunner:

Anything? Have you checked the heat sources?

Yes, Lieutenant, I have nothing on the sensors... It could be a trap, Sir!

The Gunner turned to the Lieutenant, who saw how nervous the Gunner was, the Lieutenant’s voice was calm:

OK. That is why we are here to check the rumors. The enemy’s abandoned Base, it does sound weird...

Lieutenant Lai was also nervous, but he did not show it to his men. They had been ordered to check the Base just a day earlier. General Bishop had sent the order after his agents had reported that something strange had happened at the ECT/TMM Group’s Base. The war between them and the Zeven Sterren had lasted more than 140 years, with no end in sight. The battles were mostly sporadic, there were no fixed battle lines on the ground, and both Companies had avoided massive troop battles because of the costs. The usual fights were on the business side, making contracts with other Companies. Occasionally their soldiers and Units end up in places where the other Company already was, and then the real fighting began. No mercy was given to the enemy, the fighting was fierce and bloody and insignificant to resolve anything between the Companies. If the rumor is true, the abandoned Base could be a great opportunity to salvage enemy’s equipment and other resources for the Zeven Sterren. It was a business opportunity that was too good to be ignored. Lieutenant Lai then turned to the Communication Specialist who sat behind the Gunner and asked:

Sergeant, have the Fighters seen anything? Are there any biological risks or radiation inside the Base?

No, Sir! They dropped the sensors just before we left from the Transporters landing site. The sensors have shown nothing, no biological weapons, radiation... or life forms, Sir.

Lieutenant Lai was puzzled, he turned to look at the small screen on the vehicle’s control panel again. This was ominous, why has the enemy left the Base? Was it a tactical move for some bigger operation, or was it just luring other companies into a trap? The Lieutenant glanced at the soldiers sitting behind him in the vehicle. Besides him and the three soldiers at the controls of the armored truck, there were twelve other soldiers behind him. He saw the nearest soldier looking at him, Master Sergeant Chiang had a cigar in his mouth and its thick smoke was circling inside the truck. The others did not complain about it, they were used to it after all the missions with him. Chiang was a strong and capable soldier, one of the best that Lieutenant Lai had in his Unit. A real specialist of killing others, like all the rest of his soldiers in the Unit. Next to Chiang was Sergeant Arvidsen and Sergeant Johnston, both snipers had been with the Unit the last ten years and were still alive because of their skills and cruelty. They were both in their thirties and ready to fight without any hesitation, a fearless duo that he could rely on. The group’s second Communication Specialist Ishiyama shouted from the rear of the truck:

Sir, we are ready to jam the enemy radio-waves, all the supporting troops are on their positions!

OK! When we hit the Main Gate activate the jamming, on my mark!

Lieutenant Lai turned to look at the control panel display and saw the Main Gate of the Base getting near, he raised his hand and signaled Ishiyama to start the jamming. If there were any active enemy mines or explosives in the Base that were set to work on remote, the jamming would fry their circuits. The three trucks progressed slowly to the Base and the Gunner next to the driver was watching the surroundings. Lieutenant Lai glanced at the troops behind him and saw them getting ready to move out. Master Sergeant Chiang looked at Lieutenant Lai and waited for his command. Suddenly the truck stopped, the Lieutenant lost his balance and hit his head on the back of the driver’s seat. He cursed and then turned to the driver and said angrily:

Watch it, no sudden stops!

Sir! I... just saw something... What is that?!

The driver pointed to the small screen that was in the middle of the truck’s control panel, it showed what was in front of the truck. Lieutenant Lai turned to look at the screen, and he stopped breathing for a moment. So did the Gunner, who had also turned to see what the problem was. Lieutenant Lai then took a deep breath and turned to Master Sergeant Chiang, saying:

We have a problem. A possible Venatore situation.

Master Sergeant Chiang took his cigar and then stomped it on the steel floor of the truck. He turned to the other soldiers and shouted:

Venatores! Get ready to hunt!

The men all looked nervous, the situation had gotten worse. Lieutenant Lai gave a hand sign to Master Sergeant Chiang, who ordered the soldiers out of the truck. Soldiers ran out and spread out next to the buildings and near the truck, using trees and shallow ditches as a cover for their advancing. The Base was quiet, no sign of the V’s or enemy troops.

Lieutenant Lai stood next to the truck and was watching now the Base. He took a deep breath and began to walk towards the Main Building. Sweat dripped down his face, and he looked around nervously as he approached the building. He had seen it and hoped that it was something other than he knew it to be. Then he stopped and looked at it. He had been a soldier for most of his adult life, but he had never seen anything like it. The mere sight of it made him feel nausea. The corpse hanging in front of the main doors of the building was almost unrecognizable. What had attacked this man? The Lieutenant assumed it was a man. It was hard to say because of the mutilation, something had basically gutted the man. Lieutenant Lai heard footsteps from behind and then Sergeant Arvidsen and Master Sergeant Chiang were standing next to him. They just stared at the corpse that hung and swayed lightly in the beam above the main door. Lieutenant Lai’s words were still calm:

We need to check the Office, there might be... others that have been...

Lieutenant Lai did not finish his sentence, he just walked past the hanging corpse and stepped into the building. Sergeant Arvidsen followed him, while Master Sergeant Chiang ordered the rest of the troops to inspect the other buildings at the Base. The three trucks had unloaded the soldiers, who were now moving in groups at the Base and to find out if there were any survivors left. They all knew that if the Venatores have been here, there are no survivors. Inside the Main Office Lieutenant Lai was examining the three bodies they had found in the Commander’s office. All the victims had been killed and mutilated, and all of them had half of their faces scratched off. Sergeant Arvidsen gave a sound and Lieutenant Lai turned to him and asked:

What is it? Did you find something?

Sir! I think... this is not the V’s, Sir!

What? Then who, can’t you see how they have been mutilated?

Lieutenant Lai saw how pale Sergeant Arvidsen was, the man was looking around nervously and squeezing his sniper rifle tightly against him. The frightened sniper almost whispered:

I have heard of this type of corpses before... The Red Snake Group! These men must be from the RSG, Sir! If they are... we must leave as soon as possible, Sir!

The RSG?

Lieutenant Lai turned to examine the corpses and began to empty the pockets of the corpses to verify their identities. One of the men had an ID-card, and he read it and said:

This one is a RSG soldier. How did you know, Sergeant?

Sergeant Arvidsen looked like he was going to flee from the office when he said nervously:

The RSG! They are from the RSG! Then we are in big trouble, Sir! Haven’t you heard? The RSG is under the Game, Sir! They are the Unit that... the Pawn is hunting!

Lieutenant Lai froze in place, staring at the three corpses, and he asked:

Are you sure? The Pawn?!

Yes! I heard it from one of our agents, she said the Pawn hunts the RSG members and marks them by slicing the victims’ faces! Look at them! These are RSG members! Their faces... Sir, we have to go!

Lieutenant Lai was pale as he raised his arm and said into his ComUnit:

To all troops! We have a situation! The victims are members of the RSG! There is a strong possibility that this has been done by... the Pawn! Move in groups and report all activities to me!

He then looked around, thought for a moment, and walked out of the office with Sergeant Arvidsen, who almost stepped on his heels. In front of the building, he walked over to the armed truck and gave an order to the Communication Specialist:

Contact Headquarters, tell them that we need more troops. We have a Pawn situation. No sightings yet, but we have found several enemy soldiers the Pawn has killed.

One soldier ran towards him as he turned, the soldier stopped in front of him and said:

Sir, we found at least six corpses in the Medical Office... They were... mutilated and...

Half of their faces had been scratched off?

Yes, Sir! How... did you know, Sir?

Lieutenant did not say anything, he just turned to look at the corpse that was hanging in the beam and started to walk towards it. Sergeant Arvidsen and Master Sergeant Chiang, who had just returned from inspecting one of the other buildings, noticed what the Lieutenant was doing. The hanging corpse was dried up, most of the blood had dripped onto the stairs and the ground in front of the building. Lieutenant checked the pockets of the corpse and found an ID-card with a name. He looked at it for a moment before he glanced at the others, his voice sounded nervous:

It killed the Base Commander, he is also a member of the RSG. We have a Pawn playing the Game someone had put on the RSG!

There was not really anything else to do but wait for the reinforcements. If the Pawn is behind this massacre, there was no need to try to escape. They were already inside its trap, the only thing that can save them was the reinforcements. The Pawn was playing its Game, and they were in the middle of it. Now they just have to wait, will it attack or will they survive.

CHAPTER 02

THE ORDER

General Bishop stared at the report angrily, how could this happen?! The report was short and had only a few lines, but it still made him feel sick. He just stared at the words of the battle report about the enemy’s movements. The Zeven Sterren infantry had managed to find one of the Bases the ECT/TMM Group had used in recent months. The report had the usual jargon about the Base and the armaments, and information of the enemy’s paperwork they had found there, there was nothing strange about it. The Base had been abandoned, and the reason for it was unclear until the troops had found the bodies. It was the strange part of the report. They had found ten bodies, all of which had been mutilated in a certain way. Half of the victims’ faces had been scratched off. The Lieutenant, who had made the report, had been certain that only one person was to blame. The Pawn. They had inspected and verified all the victims, each of whom was a member of the RSG, including the leader who had been mutilated the worst. The Pawn had gutted the leader of the RSG and had left him hanging from his own intestines to a beam.

General Bishop threw the InfoUnit furiously at the wall next to his office door. The broken InfoUnit fell to the floor in several pieces. He looked at the broken InfoUnit angrily, there was only one thought on his mind. The Pawn had killed his little brother! The leader of the RSG was Colonel Bishop, his younger brother, whom he had protected all his life. Now he was dead because someone had placed the Game on the RSG and ordered a monster to kill him. He remembered what his younger brother had said when they last met. He had been sure the deaths of the RSG members in recent years were the plot of someone powerful. All the killed RSG members had similar wounds on their faces. The RSG had been disbanded, and its members had even tried to hide, but one by one the Pawn had killed them all. General Bishop could not help his brother this time, his brother belonged to the enemy Company. When the younger brother’s Company merged with the ECT/TMM Group, the brothers began their arms and drugs smuggling business with the help of some powerful civilians who helped them get the needed resources. Now everything had been lost, just because someone had activated the Pawn against the RSG.

He leaned back in his chair and glanced through another report that had been brought in just before the death of his younger brother had been etched into his mind. The war was in deadlock, just the way they wanted. Their smuggling business was going well, at least until his brother had been killed.

Then there was this pesky group that was a thorn in his eye, the M45. The Unit was constantly messing with his plans. The M45 was winning most of its fights and even caused heavy losses to the enemy. That was the problem, the M45 was not doing what it was supposed to do. It was supposed to be destroyed in their battles, the Unit was not following his orders. General Bishop had made it sure the Unit would always be sent to the heaviest enemy fire and without support to make sure they will suffer heavy casualties, as many as it is possible. His goal was to kill every member of the M45, the Unit was a danger to his business dealings with his brother. He felt his anger getting even worse when he thought about the Captain of the Unit. Jon Eriksen, the notorious Nordic who somehow always managed to get his Unit out of the trouble with minimal casualties. The blond-haired man was openly against all the orders he received from his senior officers. Normally this would cause an execution after a military trial, but the Captain’s battle results made him irreplaceable for the Zeven Sterren.

General Bishop stared at his table, and then it came to his mind, a solution that would take care of his problems, at least one of them. He held out his hand and pressed the intercom’s button and said:

Jackson, come here, I have an assignment for the M45.

After a few seconds, the door opened and the young Sergeant stepped in. The brunette was curvaceous and did not look like she was military trained. She had been hired as a secretary to General Bishop just a few weeks ago, just when she was accepted into the internship program. Her appearance had been the reason she was now the General’s secretary and not at the boot camp. She did not mind, she was paid a lot more and the groping hands of the General were a small price to pay for a safe job in the military. The young Sergeant walked into the room and accidentally kicked the broken pieces of the InfoUnit that were on the floor. She glanced at the pieces of the InfoUnit and then the General, and said:

I will clean them after writing down your orders, General.

After closing the door, she walked next to General Bishop’s table and sat down and made sure the General got as much cleavage as possible. She crossed her legs, so her skirt would rise higher than was necessary. She then lifted her own InfoUnit and looked innocently at the General and asked:

What do you want, General?

General Bishop stared at the young Sergeant, he was almost forgetting what he was thinking a few seconds ago. He then forced his gaze away from the young woman and then said:

I have to send an order to the M45. You know the drill, make one of the other officers to take it to them. Make it look like it came from someone other than me, OK?

Certainly, my... General...

The Sergeant’s voice sounded like honey was dripping from her lips as her eyes were blinking a couple of times with their long eyelashes. General Bishop felt his pulse increase, she knew exactly how to tease him. He coughed and continued:

I... OK... The order is that the leader of the M45, Captain Jon Eriksen is ordered to track down and kill the Pawn. It is moving near the mountainous area of the southern part of the province. The Pawn in question causes harm... to the civilian population. The Pawn must be killed, this is a one-man operation, no other soldiers will take part in this mission.

He watched how the young Sergeant was writing down his orders on her InfoUnit. She pretended to focus, she just wanted to tease him. He knew that she knew that he knew it. The plump red lips were partially open, and her tongue licked them moist from time to time, then a small bite on her lower lip, as if she was trying to write on her InfoUnit something really difficult, like a long word... General Bishop felt much better, she was a cure for his bad mood. Then the big blue eyes stared at him, and her voice almost whispered:

Anything else, General? What else did you wanted me... to do?

Now he was smiling, he just stared at the young woman and asked:

Did you lock the door?

Well, of course, my... General. I know that you don’t want to be disturbed, when you... dictate something to me...

Then she smiled innocently and stood up before she glanced at the table and said:

Oh my, your table is so messy, do you mind if I help make it look pretty, my... General?

The young Sergeant then moved between General Bishop and his table and put her InfoUnit to the corner of the table where the table lamp was. She then leaned over the table and began to arrange the things on the table. General Bishop just stared at her butt as she helped him, then he saw her glancing back at him with her big eyes, and he heard her soft words:

Oh General, I think I need some... help, this is so... difficult.

Of course, it is my duty to take... care of my subordinates when they need assistance.

General Bishop stood up and put his hands on the young Sergeant’s waist, and he felt how she pressed her butt against him. He said:

I think I have a new task for you, Gina... It is Gina?... Ms. Jackson?

The young woman turned her head to look at him, and she sighed:

Yes, General, I’m Gina. You know that. Oh, you are just teasing me... General.

Then he felt the woman make a couple strong pushes with her butt against him, he just grinned to her. General Bishop had forgotten everything he had been worried about just a few minutes ago, the only thing he was thinking was that who is teasing who, really? After that, he was not thinking anymore.

About half an hour later, Sergeant Jackson unlocked the door and left General Bishop’s office. She then sent the General’s order to a friend of hers, a Major she had used for these kinds of orders before. She liked the Major, the man could get all sorts of stuff for free from the military warehouses, it was the stuff she liked. Maybe she will visit him, it can be so rewarding after the exercise with the General. This job can be so satisfying... with the right person.

CHAPTER 03

THE CHESS MASTER

STRAY CAT

The morning mist had moistened the ground, the narrow road was slippery, and the cool mountain air had partially frozen the road surface. On the road, a man walked looking at its surface, each of his steps was careful, no rush in such weather, he thought. The road was like a snake taking turns and twists left and right. He knew the road, so many times he had traveled this route to the village and back to his home. Even though he knew the road and was able to walk through it with his eyes closed, after the mist it would be deceptive, it would kill a thoughtless traveler, the road is vicious. He walked with a heavy load on his back, the monthly supplies in his rucksack weighed on his shoulders, these should be enough for a while. The man looked around while he was walking, the early rays of the Sun had begun to warm the air and melt the partially frozen road. He took support from his staff, it was hitting the road hard as he advanced, its metal end gave sparks as it hit the rocks of the road. He listened to the sounds of the surrounding mountains, the wind in the trees, the water on the streams and the animals, large and small, he was one with the nature.

The man arrived at the steep ravine and the bridge over it. The bridge was old and narrow, he had used it three days earlier when he had traveled to the village to get the supplies. He stopped and looked at the bridge, one of the support ropes had broken, and some bridge boards were missing. He hoped no one had used the bridge when the rope broke.

The man sighed, there was no other way, he had to climb down to the bottom of the ravine and then up on the other side. He took off his rucksack and the rope he always carried with him and tied the rucksack to the rope. He then lowered the rucksack down to the ravine slowly with the rope before he started to climb down. At the bottom of the ravine, he lifted his rucksack and carried it to the other side of the ravine. He was just fastening the rope to his waist when he heard a sound that came from somewhere close, a sound of someone in pain. He looked around, but saw no one. Maybe he was imagining it all, and began to handle the rope again. Then the sound returned, this time it was more clear. He immediately dropped the rope and took his staff and began to search the source of the sound. He found her behind the bushes near the other side of the ravine, from where he had just come. It was an Asian girl, between the ages of sixteen and eighteen, and she was covered in blood. There were several deep cuts on her left side, sharp rocks must have done it when she fell off the bridge.

She did not have much to carry, just a small rucksack and... a few guns, at least she was ready to protect herself. The man checked her vital signs, she was still alive, but just barely, she must have been here for at least two days. He ran back to his rucksack and took out his first aid kit. When he returned to the girl, he noticed the marks on the ground, she had moved after the fall. The tracks on the ground showed that she had used her hands to crawl forward, to get behind the bushes. She must be on the run, he thought, the girl was traveling light and had guns with her, someone must be after her.

He treated her wounds to the best of his ability, she was unconscious and did not respond to his treatment. He finished the first aid and took her rucksack, it would be her harness for the lifting. The girl was not heavy for him, he was used to carrying things to his log cabin. After carrying the girl to the other side of the ravine, he lowered her against the rocky wall of the ravine. He fastened the rope to her rucksack and checked the belts and locks, so that everything will hold as he is lifting her out of the ravine. He climbed up and found a tree for the rope, he was using it as a pulley for the lifting. It took almost ten minutes to lift the girl out of the ravine, but he succeeded. He moved the girl to a grassy area near the trees, he covered her with his travel blanket before he climbed down to the ravine to get his rucksack. He tied it to rope and then climbed up with the other end of the rope and pulled the rucksack up the same way he had pulled the girl up.

Using the small ax he had in his rucksack, he cut down a couple of smaller trees near the ravine’s edge for a stretcher. He made a harness on it using the rope he had used on the climbing. He lifted the girl on the stretcher and put his rucksack under the girl’s legs, and made sure he had firmly attached the rucksack to the stretcher. Again, he checked the girl's vitals before he began to pull the stretcher after him the way the horse pulls the plow in the field. It was hard, he was sweating, and his shoulders were aching, but he kept on pulling. Occasionally he heard her moan in pain when the stretcher’s other end hit the rocks of the road.

It was almost night when he finally arrived home, the air had cooled down, but he did not feel it, he was sweating and still breathing heavily after the travel. He looked at the girl who was still unconscious, but alive. He carried the girl inside and put her to bed before he started to make fire in the fireplace. The girl was in hypothermia, she had been out there for at least two days without shelter. The mountains are dangerous at night when the temperature drops close to the freezing. The air in the log cabin began to warm up, he had covered the girl in blankets to keep her warm. She had lost a lot of blood, but the cold may have saved her life. It had slowed her pulse and bleeding, in a warmer climate she would have already died.

The man took her rucksack and studied its contents, mostly weapons and ammunition, some food and first aid supplies. Then he found a jacket. The jacket. With a logo on its sleeve. He saw it and felt rage. A logo of a red snake inside a yellow ring. He held the jacket in his hands and his rage grew, it reminded of the life he had lost, the life that would never come, a future that had been destroyed. He stared at the girl in bed, the rage kept growing, a thought came into his mind. No one knows she is here, he could... just kill her and throw her into the ravine, she is the enemy, no one will know. Then he looked at the jacket in his hands, his fingers were squeezing the fabric hard, his knuckles turned white. The rage made him clench his teeth hard, his face was pale with anger. He dropped the jacket and took his knife before walking next to the bed. He looked at the girl in bed, she was waking up, he heard her say in a low voice:

Sister...

The man stopped moving. He made no sound or movement, he was frozen to his place like the ice outside the window. He had seen them... fangs! What the...?, the thoughts in his mind had cleared, he was no longer furious, he thought what he had brought to his home, an enhanced human? Are those still alive? They were supposed to be killed, all of them! There were rumors that some of them had escaped the purges, but... here? No wonder she was on the run, everyone is after her. He had once seen how the Army had killed one of them, it was years ago, the killed girl was even younger than this one. The Army had killed her, they had slaughtered her on the street without mercy. He remembered the girl’s screams when the soldiers had caught her. They tortured the girl before killing her, and left her body on the street, no one cared about her. The man remembered the city workers arriving the next day and dragging her body to the dumping ground and there she was burned with the garbage.

He remembered. He was then a man with a family, he had a wife and a daughter. A daughter that was the same age as the killed girl. Like everyone else, he had watched what the soldiers were doing, and did nothing to save the girl. He remembered. He wondered if he had done something, his family might be alive today. The enemy had attacked the city a month later, and he lost his wife and daughter in the raids. If he had done something, maybe... He turned his head and looked at the small picture frame on the table near the window, there was a smiling