Mark too used to think like the sniper.
One month ago, if someone asked Mark what he thought about the union, he would have said that it was humanity's only hope, that was a good thing, and the sacrifices were worthy, Only after he was used as an experiment and felt in the flesh the horror of the union, that his mindset changed.
Only now, hearing what the sniper said, the same kind of things he used to say, he realized why Frank and Jane never told him before that they were rebels. After all, Mark was, as someone could say, a good soldier. Someone who defended the union with conviction.
Mark shook the useless thoughts and refocused his gaze. He was bleeding too much, to the point of almost making him faint. He felt as if his conscious was coming and going and disconnected thoughts flashed on his mind. It was a matter of time before he passed out for good.
"I used to be like you until they betrayed my trust, caged me, and used me as an experiment. What will be of you when you gain an ability?" shouted Mark aloud, while his vision suddenly became dark and then came back to normal again.
"I will not. I will stay away from it. I don't need any ability or whatever," said the sniper after a few seconds.
"Be realistic mate! No one can avoid the allure of abilities! What do you think will happen once we win this battle? Everyone still alive will do everything to get one. It's a new era that is beginning. Will you stay and be used by those old fogeys, or rebel and lead the new era with us?" said Mark in a low voice, almost without any strength in his body to even speak loud, but he knew the sniper could hear him well, because only a dozen feet separated both.
A few seconds passed, and no response came from the man, and Mark knew the guy was pondering over the matter. So, he took a risk, "Ok, I'm coming out. Shoot me if you want, I will die in a few minutes anyway, it's your choice," said Mark aloud while putting all the strength that he still had in his body to slowly raise himself from the bloodied roof.
After a few seconds Mark stood up but almost lost the balance, his legs were weak, and his mind felt numb, but he mustered the strength to raise his both hands high, as if he was surrendering, but the goal was to show to the sniper that he would not attack him, and also, to show to Jane that something was happening there, this way she would not shoot down the sniper too.
Mark could see the shadow of the sniper behind the chimney, but the man was still not coming out, so he said aloud, "Will you trust a guy that put his life in your hands or a bunch of hypocrites that will throw you away the moment you are no more useful to them?"
"That sniper over the radio tower doesn't know we are talking. He will shoot me the moment I come out." said the sniper from behind the chimney.
Hearing that, Mark crossed both arms above his head as if doing an X letter. It was a universal signal for 'do nothing' used in the army.
"Satisfied?" said Mark, but before the sniper came out, he said, "You better hurry in your decision. I already lost too much time here." but what Mark was truly thinking about was that he lost too much blood already. If things continued this way, he would not be able to fight on the lower floors of the building.
After a few seconds, Mark saw the shadow of the man moving behind the chimney, and a sniper rifle coming from behind it.
For a moment Mark thought the sniper would shoot him, but once his vision recovered he saw the rifle was not pointed at him, but instead, was pointed to the other side.
Mark hated to trust people decisions, but now he was trusting his own decision, and something in his guts told him that the man behind the chimney was just like Mark used to be, someone who only wanted to survive, and soon enough his bet paid off, because a man in brown-dark military clothes came from behind the chimney, holding his sniper rifle away from his body, clearly showing he would not shoot.
"Took you long enough," said Mark, before dropping to his knees. It was hard for him to even stay up already. He lost too much blood and the wounds over his body were still open and gushing blood out of it.
The sniper felt tricked when seeing Mark drop to his knees and clearly almost dying, but remembering that the other sniper over the radio tower was still there, watching everything through his scope, he stood still.
Over his knees, on the bloodied roof, Mark caved the sword tip on the cement to use as support, or at least he tried, because the sword slipped on the blood and fell to his side.
Mark looked to the side, where the sword fell, and let escape a single depressing laugh when seeing how weak and pathetic he was right now.
'And I even thought about revenge. How pathetic! Stupid!' cursed Mark in his mind, trying to grab the sword with his right hand, but the moment he inclined himself to grab the sword, blood gushed from his left arm and an acute pain assaulted him, and he slipped to the side, over his own sword.
He mustered the strength in his arms to raise his face from the blood pool below him but after a few seconds and barely raising his face a few inches from the ground, darkness finally came to embrace him, and Mark fell again over his own blood.
This time, his body didn't move anymore.