*A YEAR AND A HALF AGO*
"Hey, this one's still breathing?"
"Seriously?"
"Yeah, not joking, she still has a pulse"
"Let's take her, she might be the one who blew up the barrier"
Time had passed. That much I am aware of. I tried to feel my surroundings, but I learned that I can't move any of my limbs. Or I can't move at all.
What happened?
I remember blowing up the barrier. I remember drowning and being buried under a sea of fire. I remember Damian.
Iavan? Miisa? Did they make it out alive? Did the SDC finish the nin?
I remember…
Dying…
How long has it been?
"Hey, I don't think she's that person"
I felt someone grab my arm and raised it. Whoever he was, I certainly don't appreciate the touch. But, this only confirmed that I am indeed alive.
"What makes you say that?"
"Well, it's been over a month. You think someone would survive a month out here? You see any other life forms in here?"
I felt myself shiver and I am sure the person holding me could feel it too.
A month?
"Well, she is alive so might as well take her with us"
This is impossible. I need to wake up. I need to push this man carrying me away.
I need answers. I tried to shake myself awake but instead of waking up, I found myself slowly becoming unconscious.
My head was spinning terribly and it hurt so much. It was the aftereffect of having my memories come back to me.
As my head hurt more, the more I could feel myself drifting into a dream.
I wouldn't call it a dream. No, it can't be a dream.
I looked around and found myself near the riverbank. I saw myself tracing the barrier with my bare hands, just like how I did it before.
"MAIA!!"
Damian. His hands were full of blood and knives, I looked at myself and saw her gritting her teeth before thrusting the pin to the barrier.
I instinctively ducked but found out that the shrapnels were only just going through my body. The other me who was in the water was now gone and what I saw were flames.
"MAIA!! DAMN IT"
"MAIA!!"
I looked back and saw Iavan and Miisa who were running right after Damian. Their faces were etched with worry and fear. Damian was about to jump into the water too when numerous helicopters came landing.
SDC.
Aside from that, I could make out several soldiers swimming in from the other side of the river.
The nin was a success. I saw Uncle Sei and my dad, they immediately ran towards Miisa and Iavan who were now both hysterical.
"NO, WAIT, MAIA IS DROWNING PLEASE!!"
"SAVE HER!!"
The two older males looked at each other before turning their gaze to that part of the river where Miisa and Iavan were pointing.
I saw Damian not hesitating before jumping into the river. The older males called out to him but he did not bother looking back at them. It was only seconds before Damian rose. He caught his breath before diving back. The second time he did, the soldiers who rode a canoe were already grabbing him. Trying to get him out of the water.
"No, she's still there. If you won't search for her then I will"
"DAMIAN!!"
My father who was now trembling, let a teardrop from his one good eye. His voice was authoritative yet full of pain.
I could see the tiredness and pain washing over Damian's expression. He finally could remember us, me, the way we used to be, but it was all too late.
The same goes for me.
The vision shifted and what I saw was darkness. I could feel all the water from my lungs dissipate like thin smoke. I felt something from behind me push me upward. Like soft hands from the depths of the river, they kept pushing until I was on the surface.
Then I heard a whisper.
Maia, we're still on the battlefield. You need to wake up.
It was at that moment that I opened my eyes and gasped. My eyes hurt from the bright light that welcomed me, I felt myself floating, an apparatus covering my mouth.
When my vision adjusted, it was then that I realized where I was. I was inside a room in the center.
I was naked inside a tank full of green fluid. What it was, I was so sure that it wasn't good. The apparatus that covered my mouth wasn't giving me oxygen. It was another type of gas, a gas that was giving me a hard time to breath. I held my throat in a choking manner as I felt another surge of gas entering my lungs.
Outside the tank, people in white robes were eyeing me like some kind of spectacle. Further back were soldiers, I could identify them as a part of the government faction because of their uniforms.
The amount of toxic gas that I had inhaled was almost enough to kill me, I felt the surge of pain inside of me. However, as fast as the gas had entered me, it only took seconds for me to feel it dissipating from inside of me.
And a few moments later, I felt as good as new. Aside from the uncomfortable feeling of being naked inside an unknown tank of liquid, the pain the gas had brought was nowhere now.
It was then that a woman entered the room. Instantly I felt the room become colder and slowly the green liquid was going down.
"My apologies, I wouldn't be able to converse with you if your tank was still full of arsenic?"
"Arsenic?"
I was stunned by my capability to speak now. I don't know how long I have been in that water, but I should have a coarse voice from not being able to speak for so long. And yet, what came out of my mouth was a powerful voice that even I have no recollection of having.
"It truly is fascinating"
I stared at the woman. She was eyeing me so intently that it almost made me cower. Her eyes were visibly full of excitement and curiosity.
"You were in a tank full of arsenic chemical and was given phosgene through the gas mask every hour since you came here and yet, there are no anomalities detected in your body"
My eyes widened at the realization of what was happening right now. I was being treated as a subject of an experiment. At an obvious government facility at that.
Phosgene. If I recall, that was the gas used during World War I. I grit my teeth. I don't know what the woman was talking about. About having no anomalies despite being bathed in multiple chemicals.
I want answers too, but being in a government facility was dangerous enough. I don't want to become their experiment.
As futile as it may be, I clenched my fists and pounded on the fiberglass tank. I thought that it wouldn't have any effect but on the contrary, the tank produced a crack. Even the woman's eyes widened and at that moment when everyone was panicking, I landed another punch at the tank.
As I stare at the shattered fiberglass, I knew that something had changed.
Something changed inside of me. I wasn't physically strong before and those toxic chemicals should have made my lungs and heart explode. But it didn't.
I grabbed the woman by her lab coat's collar and lifted her. She was almost as light as a feather. Through gritted teeth, I spat at her afraid face.
"What did you do to me"
"No…nothing. Yo…you were brought in here last night by the soldiers and all we did was test the chemicals at your body"
"You…"
I knew that the government had always been shady, but I never expect them to conduct experiments on chemicals.
Arsenic alone was toxic enough when made contact for a long period. But if phosgene is that gas that had killed thousands of people during the war then I could only fathom what they wanted to do with it.
Before I could utter another word, tens of soldiers came into the room. Their guns pointed at me.
Strength alone won't take me anywhere.
"Release her, NOW!!"
Damn it.
Even if I take this woman as a hostage, with their number and weapons, I was at a complete disadvantage. Let alone, being naked and utterly vulnerable.
I let go of the woman and the moment that I do so, something bad was bound to happen.
"Shoot her"
The woman smilingly ordered and without further ado, a soldier shot me straight at my heart. The pain lasted for a short moment because for all I knew, at that moment I drew my last breath.