“3\nminutes and we’ll see them,” Udaloy whispered, looking at his\nwatch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Are\nthey always that precise?” Elena whispered back, looking along the\nroad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nUdaloy nodded. “The cans are always well-coordinated. It’s only\nbeen different for the past few days; their activities have gone up.\nFor the road here, they’re still slowly working on it, but where it’s\ngoing, we haven’t found out yet.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“By\nthe way, why do you call them ‘cans’ and not ‘E.L.K.s?’ “<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“‘Cause\nno one can say where ‘E.L.K.’ came from. Easier to think of them as\ntin cans. That’s what they really are, anyways.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nElena nodded. “I figured as much. But no one has ever found out\nwhat ‘E.L.K.’ means?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nUdaloy shook his head. “It’s been lost to history. Everyone called\nthem that and it stuck for everyone who wasn’t a Fighter. To us,\nthey’re not something to be feared, but to be destroyed.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nElena checked her firearm, the icon in her vision lighting up as she\ndid so. She hoped that she could appropriate more magazines for it,\nsince all she had to back it up was the tomahawk that Susanne had\ngiven her. She looked to her right and saw the heavy weapon the other\nfighters had set up, using improvised camouflage to mask it. To her\nleft was a similar weapon, though with a larger bore — she had been\ntold it was a grenade launcher but they would only use it to cover\ntheir retreat; the ammunition it used was far too difficult to\nacquire to use it regularly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nElena had barely slept at all the night before; she kept second\nguessing herself, feeling anxious about the upcoming battle, yet\nstill mystified over what, exactly, had happened to bring her to this\nodd place. Susanne would not elaborate on her relationship to the\nCommander, save for cautioning Elena against telling him her full\nstory. Susanne did at least apologize for not being entirely\nforthcoming about what being a “Prospect” meant — though Elena\nposed the very difficult question of what would happen if she became\na Breeder, given her current condition. Susanne had simply shuddered,\nwhich was enough of an answer for Elena.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\nknow who I am, <\/em>Elena\nthought, yet\nat the same time, I’m not sure <\/em>what\nI am. If this is all a dream, it’s a very surreal one. Despite that,\nI kinda want to see where it goes — where it ends. There could be a\nvery deep message here that I’ll need to remember when I wake up. If\nI wake up.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n “There\nthey are,” Udaloy whispered, interrupting Elena’s thoughts. He\ncarefully pointed to the end of the road, where a small column of\nE.L.K.s were marching, along with a pair of vehicles. They seemed to\nbe considerably advanced compared to what the Fighters had.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Wonderful,”\nElena mumbled, readying her pistol. “Wait til the big guns open up,\nthen charge in. Nothing hard about that.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Only\nway to fight, Prospect. At longer ranges, they can shoot better than\nwe can — ignoring the advantage their armor gives them.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nA familiar pop in Elena’s right ear cued her to an incoming\ncommunication again, though she wasn’t sure if it would be the female\nor someone — or something — else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Unit\nDCL5656xeb,” an unfamiliar voice began, the tone feminine with\nrobotic undertones, “nearing previous work site. Construction of\nroute 48x-122 to continue per previous update.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Unit\nWFS092xfa. Potential contacts detected. Request sweep,” a masculine\nvoice said, apparently part of the group that Elena was watching.\nElena’s heart dropped as she realized they must have spotted her\ngroup. Who\ndo they see?! We’re all under cover here!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \nElena looked around, then spotted a man fumbling with a rifle. She\ntried to carefully get his attention, but he was still trying to do\nsomething with his rifle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Psst!”\nElena tersely whispered. “Stop moving!” The man still didn’t hear\nElena, focused entirely on his weapon. Udaloy frowned at Elena, then\nlooked at the man. His eyes widened when he, too, realized what he\nwas doing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Partisan!”\nUdaloy barely whispered, trying to keep silent while loud enough that\nthe man could hear him. The man looked over at Udaloy and opened his\nhands. Udaloy shook his head, then pressed his hand down, telling the\nman to get down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Unit\nWFS092xfa. Hostile contact detected. Armed individual bearing 234.45\ndegrees,” the masculine voice said. Elena’s eyes widened and she\nlooked at the column, seeing several E.L.K.s break off and begin to\nmarch in her direction. This\nis not gonna be pretty!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \nUdaloy, realizing what Elena was, looked over to the crew on the\nheavy weapon and waved his hand toward the E.L.K.s. The crew threw\noff their camouflage and began firing, spraying rounds off into the\ndistance at the E.L.K.s. The machine gun thundered out, its large\ncaliber rounds splashing into the E.L.K.s with devastating force. One\nE.L.K. lost an entire leg and fell down, dropping the rifle it\ncarried; another took a round to the chest and keeled over backwards,\ncompletely lifeless. The remainder quickly moved to cover, getting\ndown and returning fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Partisans!\nAttack!” Udaloy shouted, standing up and leading the charge. Elena\ngritted her teeth and shot up, following him down the small hill they\nhad been hiding behind. As the others rose up and followed, the sound\nof smaller weapons began to pepper the air, as the E.L.K.s returned\nfire against their attackers while the Fighters tried to pick off the\nE.L.K.s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nissue that Elena saw was that they had to cover far more distance\nthan they had originally planned on. The E.L.K.s were not flinching\nfrom the fire coming their way; instead, they were standing their\nground and taking precise shots where they could, while those\ncarrying heavier weapons attempted to use suppressing fire to push\nthe Fighters away. All around her, fighters began to fall as they\ntook hits — she was certain some of them were dead the moment they\nhit the ground. If\nthis keeps up, we’re all going to be dead!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Keep\ngoing! Forward!” Udaloy shouted, waving his arm. He closed the\ndistance to an E.L.K., running right up to it and firing a burst from\nhis short rifle into its chest. The E.L.K. shuddered from the hits,\nbut rose up to try and grab Udaloy. He growled and stopped, taking\ncareful aim at the E.L.K., then fired one round into its unprotected\nthroat. The E.L.K. stopped and fell over, its limbs twitching as\nblood began to pool around the wound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “I’m…\nFree…” a man whispered into Elena’s right ear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Sector\n48x-122. Hostile contacts detected,” the familiar strictly-robotic\nvoice said. “Light resistance. Standing by for support requests.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Crap!\nNot what I wanted to hear!<\/em>\nElena slid down next to the E.L.K. that Udaloy had killed, grabbing\nfor the short rifle it had left behind. As she picked it up, a new\nicon came up on her vision, indicating she had just picked up a\n“SMG-01k” with 19 rounds. She looked over the weapon and felt a\nstrange knowledge of it pulse into her mind, cuing her to remove the\nmagazine, pull back the charging handle and ensure the chamber was\nloaded, then slip the magazine back in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Udaloy!”\nElena shouted, getting back up and trying to catch up with Udaloy.\n“We need to move quickly! They’re onto us!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Thanks,\nProspect!” Udaloy growled back as he dove behind a log. “I don’t\nknow where we’d be without you!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nElena crashed down next to Udaloy, panting as she caught her breath.\n“I’m just saying!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Say\nless, kill more!” Udaloy twisted up and fired a few rounds, hitting\nwhat looked like a much heavier and bulkier E.L.K.. His rounds\nricocheted off the E.L.K.’s armor, getting its attention — as well\nas the massive weapon it carried. Elena’s eyes widened as it began to\nfire, the rate of fire of the weapon sounding like a buzzsaw. Crap!\nCrap! Crap! What the hell is that thing?!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \nUdaloy ducked down as tracers soared over his head and rounds\nimpacted the log and dirt around it. He cursed as he looked around\nand saw fighters falling down left and right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “This\nis not going the way I expected it to!” Elena exclaimed, tightening\nher grip on her new weapon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “It\nnever does, Prospect!” Udaloy shouted in reply, the heavy E.L.K.’s\nonslaught briefly stopping. He carefully stuck his head over the log,\ncausing the E.L.K. to resume firing. “Damn!” he growled, dropping\nthe magazine from his rifle and inserting a fresh one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Unit\nGVN309xaa,” Elena heard a masculine robotic voice say in her right\near, “two hostile contacts suppressed. Requesting units to flank\nand capture.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “They’re\ngonna flank us!” Elena shouted, rising up and firing a few rounds\nat the heavy E.L.K.. Like Udaloy’s before, they simply ricocheted off\nits armor. Damn!\nWe need that heavy gun to take this thing out!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Its\narmor is too strong for our weapons!” Udaloy shouted, pulling Elena\ndown. “We gotta get the big guns on it!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Elena\nnodded and glanced to her right, seeing a smaller E.L.K. moving to\nflank them. She lined up the weapon’s sights on it when she saw a new\npiece of symbology appear in her vision: a red crosshair. What\nthe… Oh! For the weapon! Great!<\/em>\nShe grinned and lined the crosshair on the E.L.K. and fired a single\nround. Unlike the heavy E.L.K., the lighter one’s armor did not hold\nup and it took a couple steps, then fell down from Elena’s hit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “I\ngot him! I got him!” Elena excitedly shouted, looking back to\nUdaloy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Good!\nNow get more of them!” Udaloy shouted back, the withering fire from\nthe heavy E.L.K.’s weapon drowning out his voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n OK,\nenough of this, <\/em>Elena\nthought, grasping her weapon and spinning around. She closed her eyes\nand tried to calm her mind. Faster.\nNeed to go faster. Need to be as fast as I’ve ever been. Reflex\nenhancement… On! <\/em>Her\nfeelings driving her body, she felt the world slow around herself,\ncuing her to open her eyes and rise up. Instead of seeing things\nslowly, everything had stopped<\/em>\n— she could see tracers in the air, Udaloy’s face frozen in\nsurprise, fighters frozen mid-run, and E.L.K.s firing wildly. She\nlooked around with wonder, trying to understand what had just\nhappened. A yellow exclamation mark in her vision broke up her wonder\nas she realized her reflex enhancement only worked for so long.\nRight!\nNeed to take advantage of it while I still can!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Steeling\nherself, Elena jumped over the log and ducked underneath the frozen\nbullets fired by the heavy E.L.K.’s gun, closing the distance and\ngetting behind it. She saw the rear of the E.L.K. was relatively\nunprotected, giving her an avenue of attack. OK,\nlet’s do this! Enhancement off!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \nThe world sped up and Elena gasped as she felt everything shift and\nthe physical feelings of the world return. She steadied herself,\nfeeling her mind twisting as she tried to find her balance. In front\nof her, the heavy E.L.K. continued to fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Prospect?!\nElena?! Where are you?!” Udaloy shouted, his voice barely audible\nover all the weapons firing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Taking\ncare of this bastard!” Elena shouted back grabbing her tomahawk and\nslamming the sharp end into the back of the heavy E.L.K.’s neck with\nall her might. It sunk into the relatively unprotected flesh, almost\ncompletely cleaving through the E.L.K.’s spine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “U-u-u-n.\nIt. G. V-v-v. N. 309. X-x-x. A. A. F-f-fault,” Elena heard the\nmasculine voice of the E.L.K. defeated in front of her stutter, then\nshift, as she had heard before. “I’m… Going… Home!” a\nrelieved man exclaimed, then the E.L.K. fell over. Elena panted and\nfell to her knees, feeling her body shake from adrenaline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Unit\nDCL5656xeb. Weapons unit down. Request retreat,” the feminine\nrobotic voice echoed in Elena’s right ear. Elena looked up and\ngrowled, seeing that the action was still going on all around her.\nShe looked behind her at the pair of vehicles, apparently remaining\nstatic despite all the action. Time\nto turn the tables in this battle!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Elena\nshoved the heavy E.L.K.’s body aside and picked up the belt-fed heavy\nweapon, grunting with exertion as she felt herself barely able to\nlift it. C’mon!\nGimme strength enhancement! Now!<\/em>\nAs she desired, an indicator in her vision showed “StrEn ACT” as\nwell as “MMG-01b,” allowing her to swing the weapon up and bring\nit to bear on one of the vehicles. She mashed the trigger and the\nweapon roared, flames bursting out of the muzzle and the sound of\nmetal tearing as she peppered her target with fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “My\nturn, you tin cans!” Elena growled, feeling her heart pump as she\nput all of her anger into the machine gun. Sparks began to fly and a\nfire started on the vehicle she was shooting, but she continued to\nhold down the trigger. As more rounds went into the vehicle, a small\nexplosion rocked it and the vehicle’s hood flew off, causing a larger\nfire to begin to rage on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Unit\nDCL5656xeb. Secondary vehicle destroyed. Request retreat,” the\nfeminine robotic voice said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Elena!\nElena!” Udaloy shouted, grabbing Elena’s arm. “Stop!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nElena released the trigger and looked over to Udaloy, gritting her\nteeth. The sound of sporadic weapon fire still echoed over her ears,\nsnapping her back to reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “What?!”\nElena tersely replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nUdaloy gently put his hands on the machine gun. “We’ve won. We need\nto retreat,” he whispered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nElena looked around, seeing fighters finishing off E.L.K.s and\ntending to the dead and wounded. She closed her eyes and let out a\ndeep breath, then the “StrEn ACT” in her vision disappeared and\nshe felt the weight of the machine gun in her arms again. She grunted\nand set the weapon down, feeling her whole body shivering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Oh…\nI don’t… Feel so… Good,” Elena mumbled, falling down next to\nthe weapon. Shit.\nJust like before. Cold… Feelings. <\/em>She\ntried to focus on her breathing, attempting to avoid vomiting as she\nhad the day before. Udaloy hovered over her, placing a hand on her\nback.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Are\nyou hit?” Udaloy asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nElena shook her head. “No… Just… Cold… Not used to…\nWeight.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “I’ll\nsay. The damn thing probably weighs 30 pounds.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nElena looked up and narrowed her eyes at the surviving vehicle. She\nforced herself to get up, stumbling closer to the vehicle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Elena!\nNo! We’ve got to run!” Udaloy shouted, trying to pull Elena back,\nbut she jerked her arm to herself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Fuck…\nWalking… Back,” Elena grumbled, slamming her hands on the\nvehicle. She felt around, seeing the lines for doors, but no handles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “We\nhave to! The longer we wait, the closer their reinforcements get!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Open!\nOpen, damn it!” Elena shouted, slamming a fist on the door.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Unit\nDCL5656xeb. Hostile contacts on vehicle. Support requested,” the\nfeminine robotic voice said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Elena\nlet out a deep breath and placed her hands on the vehicle. I\nknow this will work. It <\/em>has\nto work! So… Unit DCL5656xeb: open the doors.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Unit\nDCL5656xeb. State your designation,” the E.L.K. that Elena assumed\nwas inside the vehicle said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Elena\nnarrowed her eyes at the tinted window. Unit\nELK00. Open. The. Doors.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Error.\nError. Err- Objection. Override code required.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nI know the code. I know it. It’s… Yes. I feel it.\n69-6d-6e-6f-74-61-6d-61-63-68-69-6e-65.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Code\naccepted. Opening doors.” The vehicle’s doors popped open, allowing\nElena to pull the right front door open to see an E.L.K. sitting in\nthe left front seat. It looked over to Elena, displaying no panic or\nurgency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “What\nthe hell?! What’s going on here?!” Udaloy shouted, grabbing for his\nweapon. Elena held a hand up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “I\ndon’t know, Udaloy. But you won’t need that,” Elena said. She\ntilted her head down at the E.L.K.. Unit\nDCL5656xeb: Get out.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Unit\nDCL5656xeb. Command received,” the robotic voice said, then the\nE.L.K. pushed the right front door open and got out, moving over and\nstanding next to the hood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Elena\ngrinned. Unit\nDCL5656xeb: Hold position. Communication silent.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Unit\nDCL5656xeb. Position hold. Communication paused.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nElena got up into the cab of the vehicle, sliding over to the left\nseat. She looked around, seeing no controls for the vehicle anywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Elena,”\nUdaloy whispered, disbelief in his voice, “how are you doing this?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nElena shook her head. “I don’t know. But I think I can drive this.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nUdaloy hesitated, looking over the vehicle. After a moment, he\ngritted his teeth and and pulled himself into the cab, sitting down\nin the right seat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “You’ll\nhave a lot of questions to answer when we get back to the camp,”\nUdaloy grumbled. “But for now, if you can drive this thing, let’s\nget the wounded into it.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Elena\nnodded, looking around. She saw what looked like a hand hold on the\ncenter console, so placed her hand there. As she did so, new\nsymbology appeared on her vision: a wireframe of the vehicle, several\ndata readouts on the vehicle’s status, and a slew of other details.\nRight.\nOK. So… Close doors?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The\ndoors on the vehicle began to close and Udaloy looked around in\nsurprise. Elena sheepishly smiled, then focused on how she would\n“drive” the vehicle. Uh…\nYeah… Forward? No, there has to be a better way.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Fifth\nLetter,” the familiar, compassionate female voice said into Elena’s\nright ear, “once a connection is established with a vehicle, it can\nbe controlled as you remember.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Elena\nnodded and imagined that she was driving a car, the wheel moving and\nher foot pressing the accelerator. As she did so the vehicle began to\nmove forward, following her thoughts. OK!\nNow we’re getting somewhere!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Elena\nfelt as if the female voice was smiling at her. “You are learning\nfast, Fifth Letter. Soon you-” the voice gasped and Elena felt\ngoosebumps ripple across her skin. “Hurry. Hurry!<\/em>”\nA pop in Elena’s right ear cut out the voice and the normal feeling\nof sound returned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “I\nwon’t complain too much about the ride,” Udaloy remarked, “but\nyou’re going down roads that I don’t think I can follow. No pun\nintended.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nElena laughed. “Sorry, Udaloy. I wish I knew where this was all\nleading to myself, but I’ve got nothing.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nUdaloy pointed to a wounded fighter, leaning against a tree and\nlooking on the vehicle with disbelief. Elena nodded and brought the\nvehicle to a stop, commanding the doors to open again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Hop\nin the back, Partisan!” Udaloy shouted. The fighter shook his head,\nthen limped over, hopping into the back. He looked at Elena in the\nfront and frowned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “How\nis she-” the fighter began to ask, but Udaloy held a hand up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “We’ll\nfigure that out later,” Udaloy said. “How many did we lose?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “I\nsaw 5 dead, 10 wounded,” the fighter replied. He looked at Elena\nagain as she moved the vehicle again. “I never believed I would see\nthe legend with my own eyes.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “The\nprophesies are ravings of those losing their minds, Partisan,”\nUdaloy said, looking ahead. “Don’t go spreading false rumors.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Do\nyou believe your eyes deceive you, Udaloy?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nUdaloy shook his head. “It is more likely that she is a new can\nspy, Tim. We’ll bring it up with the Commander when we get back.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Guys,”\nElena interrupted, “despite appearances, I can<\/em>\nhear you. If you’re going to take me out in the woods and shoot me\nwhen we get back, then I’ll just leave and find my own way.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Shoot\nyou?” Tim said. “No! We have been waiting for you ever since\nLucas told us of his dreams. The dark-haired woman who would lead us\nto finally defeat the cans. When the Commander hears of what you’ve\ndone here, he will know it is time to go on the offensive!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “If\nanything,” Udaloy remarked, “she will be a Breeder. You know the\nrules, Tim.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n “And\nyou<\/em>\nknow the legends, Udaloy! She is the one we’ve all been waiting for!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nUdaloy held a hand up. “Enough. We’ll discuss more when we get back\nto camp.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Elena\nsighed and continued driving, bringing the vehicle to a stop to allow\nmore wounded to be loaded into the vehicle. The fighters all looked\nat Elena as if she was some kind of divine figure, causing her to\nsheepishly smile at them. I\nhad hoped more answers would be forthcoming after this, but all I’ve\nfound are more questions. How can I hear these E.L.K.s? And who is\nthis woman who keeps calling me the “Fifth Letter”? And how the\nhell is it that I have these enhancements? What am I?!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \n–<\/p>\n\n\n\n