My Protective Soldier

Chapter Fourteen-The kid

Just as I feel myself on the verge of passing out, the water starts to slowly drain from the glass tank I'm in.

I can feel my body heavily shaking from the heavy breaths I'm breathing in, and the freezing cold.

The water drains completely and my body collapses to the floor.

Moments later someone picks me up and carries me back to my cell.

He tosses me down making me roll, as I hit the ground, I look up to see Aaron in his masked man outfit still.

I gain enough anger in those few seconds to stand up and rush him but he easily dodges me and I'm sent flying into the bars of the cell.

As I lay on my back looking up at the ceiling Edwards face comes into view. He grabs onto the bar while leaning over me with a grin on his face.

Fear builds up inside me and I start to crawl backwards till my back hits the wall. He stays where he is and turns around facing Carl, who is on the outside of the cell.

Edward says "Told ya it wouldn't take much to break her."

I feel an anger uprise in me, more than I've ever felt before. More than I had for Aaron in those moments, more than I've ever had before.

I stand up and rip the metal bar off of the wall with all the force I have.

Next I run up to Edward and I put the sharp edge of the metal bar to his neck and pull his body backwards slightly so he's off balance.

Carl and Aaron pull out their guns and aim at me.

Edward yells out "no, we need her alive."

They lower their guns and look at each other wondering what to do. I take this as my chance.

"You two are going to move out of the way and let us leave or I promise you I will kill him."

They look at each other again then Carl being the idiot he is says "your bluffing."

I cut Edwards neck just enough to prove my point and Edward yells out "let us through."

They both back up and I slowly exit the cell carefully making sure there's nobody close enough to us. I make Carl and Aaron walk in front of us.

As we get close to the exit from the last time I was here, there's five armed guards aiming rifles  at us. We stop in front of them and a man in what looks like a commander uniform walks in front of them.

He says to me "let him go, I won't ask again."

I shake my head no, while wondering why he's so confident in what he is saying.

Just as I go to speak a single gunshot goes off hitting Edward somewhere in the chest. He collapses to the floor and I'm left standing there in aw.

The guards start rushing towards me so I quickly put the blade to my throat and yell out "stop or I'll do it."

At this point I'm desperate, if they are willing to almost drown me just to prove a point, then I might as well end it all myself then have to live like this.

The guards stop and the guy walks forward towards me, he stops a few feet away and says "you won't do it, you won't leave James all by himself."

Tears start to stream down my face as I can't hold myself back. The man starts to slowly move forward but I keep him back by yelling out "Don't move or I swear."

He stays put and watches me carefully, it feels like his eyes are buried into my soul searching for the few words that will make me put the bar down.

Someone grabs me from behind causing me to drop the bar so I let out a bloodcurdling scream that makes everyone cover their ears. The man lets me go to cover his ears and I take off running down a hallway at lightning speed.

As I'm running I look back once or twice to see how far behind me they are and their slowly catching up. At every hallway intersection I find, I turn to make sure I can lose them.

Once I'm satisfied that they don't see me for the few moments I have, I start to walk down a hallway trying to not cause suspicion.

I find a door that looks like a back entrance to the outside, and right as I put my hand on the door I feel the barrel of a gun on my back.

I throw my hands up in the air and the voice tells me to turn around slowly.

I do so and I see a young kid who looks no older than fifteen is standing there with a pistol in his hand. He is visibly shaking and there's uncertainty in his eyes.

I can see he has a bruise on his cheek and on his hand.

He says "what happened to you?"

I look down at my body and I'm still wet, bruised, shot, and my wrist is still hurt from the cuffs.

I look back up at him and reply "I'm all alone and scared, you?"

At this point I don't know what I was doing, I wasn't trying to get in the kids head or try to fight, but to find similarities between us. From the looks of him, he's hurt, and scared as well.

He thinks about it for a moment then says "I'm not good at the obstacle course, and the worst student in every class gets punished."

He looks down half way through the sentence.

A small flashback fills my head we're I see myself getting beat by other kids because I wasn't good at everything like they were.

The stupidest mistake I ever make might be this but little kids don't deserve a war.

I look over him and see the man and a few guards running down the hallway towards us and I quickly whisper to the kid

"Look were not so different you and I, I want you to remember this and do good in life."

Just because your not good at something doesn't mean you are worthless or deserve to be punished for it, it just means your different and that's the greatest thing ever.

You are strong, brave, and you will help so many people. Just keep your head up and be smart."

The kid has a few tears roll down his cheeks and his gun starts to lower. I look back up and the men will be here in about ten seconds.

I say in a demanding yet quiet voice "now stop crying and when I get on my knees, hit me as hard as you can in the head with the back of your gun."

He gives me a very confused look then I drop to my knees and yell "just do it!"

For the split second he thinks about it I know this wasn't a mistake. It may be stupid but this kid was not bad and I may have just saved him from being bad.

As a kid before the war all I needed was one talk from an adult and I immediately realized that I was not worthless but strong and I wanted to do good and not cause harm.

I may be tortured and even killed but at least I can go out knowing this kid will do good, he reminds me of James.

He does as I say and my world fades to black.