I thought everything would be calmer...
There were loud bangs and crashes. The smell of death, and the taste of blood... Ringing in my ears.
Have I been here before?
My vision blurred to static, as I rolled onto my back cradling my broken arm.
I saw something, was it a vision, or a memory? I don't remember
***
"There's no more time. With them spreading like that... we have no choice but to take her out." I could hear my own voice, young and quiet.
"Don't tell me! She's making her way here! We have to do something about this before those things spread worldwide!"
Kayla's voice was easily recognizable.
What was this?
What was I remembering... I never went through this...
I would find it familiar if I had.
Why was my mind making its own, false, memories?
A flash passed my eyes, and the memory changed to me as a little kid. Living somewhere other than the house my parents died in. A girl sat across from me, her long black-ish brown hair was beautiful and shiny. I couldn't remember her name...
She approached me and pulled on my sleeve.
"Cali, we have to go."
"Just call me Cal, remember?" I could hear my young voice say.
"No. Cali is more suitable for a coward like you. We have to go with the rest of the village and get supplies from the woods." She said, pointing to the rest of the group waiting.
This wasn't Kayla... but I knew them.
We were in Andreo. The town I've lived in for a long time, yet there were no fences, no gates. Only expanding fields where animals roamed freely, and exotic plants grew.
It was beautiful.
Where had I seen this?
It was probably another fake memory.
"Shit! Cal!" I heard someone's voice over the loud explosions. I was dragged from the ground and pulled into the treeline, where I looked up at my savior.
It was Jax. I tried to speak, but dry blood was coating my mouth and lips. Jax reached for his bag and pulled out a small flask. He dumped its contents onto my face, which allowed for me to breathe.
"This place is more dangerous than when we fought Nato... they're shooting explosives at us!" He yelled. He had blood on his shirt, so I assumed three things. Either it was his, mine, or he had killed someone.
"Stay here. I have to go find the others and make sure they're safe."
I didn't listen, I instead crawled to a tree, pulling myself up.
I reached for my gun from its holster.
I aimed at the wall of the city and shot. A man began screaming as he fell off of the wall to his death, with a loud audible snap of his neck echoing.
I closed my eyes as he fell. I didn't want to see what I was doing.
My wounds were healing quickly, but enemy fire flew towards me.
Shreds of bark flew at me from the tree.
I felt... cold.
I drew a small breath, the frigid air swirled around my lungs.
I could hear screaming, gunshots... the smell of blood. It all made sense.
Without fighting back... we'd all die.
I peeked out from cover again and began shooting in the same direction as before. The screams of the Savito soldiers continued.
I crouched behind the tree, my eyes dripping with tears.
"You're just like that church Cal." The thing inside of me reminded me.
I wanted to tell it off... but no words would come out. It was right. Killing people... like my parents were killed. Mom... dad... what was your plan with me?
***
I closed my eyes and the sound of gunshots seemed to vanish, the world was quite in my thoughts.
"Cali." The girl's voice echoed around me. I nodded my head and spoke, wiping my tears away. "Yes?"
I heard her giggle.
"Aren't you excited to help?" She asked.
These false memories had to be coming from... the Pathogen inside of me. My Pathogenic side.
"No." I heard myself reply.
"Why not?" She asked, curiously.
"It's so annoying... you are annoying. You never leave me alone." I heard my young voice say.
Her face sagged, a frown now covered her face.
"I know..." She said quietly.
Her name seemed so close... yet so distant.
"I'm sorry Cali." She said before she ran off in the forest by herself.
***
She was missing for days as my false memory was showing me. She never returned, but one day, the search team found something.
Something huge.
They found a large tomb-like structure in the forest, where one had never been before. Inside, was the girl. She was alive, but something was seriously wrong with her.
***
A bullet crashed into a nearby tree, waking me from my mind.
I continued shooting for what felt like hours but was only minutes. I was out of ammo and the war was still raging on.
"Calibrum. I could take over if you'd like." The Pathogen said to me. I replied coldly to this disgusting side of me. "No. I won't let you just do whatever you want." followed with a sigh.
***
Sooner rather than later, I passed out on the thick snow. Only being awoken when I was picked up.
"Sleep well?" Markus joked.
I shook my head and looked around.
There were no gunshots, no screams, the battlefield was a bloody mess of Andreo Soldiers and Savito Soldiers.
***
Returning to camp was... a difficult task. Everyone was distraught and traumatized. I couldn't take my mind off of the fake memory, and it seemed my weariness from the memory was leaving. I could think and hear clearly once again.
I had more than just one task at hand now.
Task 1: End the War.
Task 2: Find out why the Pathogenic side of me is tricking me.
Task 3: Survive.