Free All Light Will Fall by Almney King Page A

finally spoke, her voice
was heavy with contempt. “Ms. Sandra, the safety suit please.”
    The woman nodded and raised the suit to me. “Please
undress,” Dr. Hailey ordered. She looked down at her halo-pad, typing something
over the screen. When I didn’t move, she gave me an impatient look.
    “Aren’t they going to leave?” I ordered.
    She looked at her guards. “Why?”
    “Because,” I insisted, “they’re men.”
    Dr. Hailey raised a brow. “My guards are not to leave my
side.”
    “Then they can turn around,” I ordered. “Couldn’t I at least
keep my dignity?”
    “Are you human, 2102? No, you’re not. Then you understand,
you have no dignity.”
    I glared at her for a moment. My chest was hot and heavy. I
had never been so enraged. This woman did that to me. And she would know it one
day, and one day, she would regret it.
    I snatched the suit from the woman and undressed. It was
humiliating. The guards wore helmets, so I couldn’t see their faces. But they
were watching. They were humans after all, sly and shameless.
    When I finished, Dr. Hailey smiled. She was satisfied. And I
swore to myself that on the day of her death, I would be there.

CHAPTER EIGHT
INTUITION
     
     
    Soon enough, I was promoted. Elric was thrilled about his new
black suit. Tank had been rather collected about it. That was the difference
between them. While Elric was vibrant and curious, Tank was cautious and
low-energy. They complimented each other well. Kitty, on the other hand, was
always a nuisance. I had no tolerance for her at all.
    “Just wait, Red. Soon I’ll be showing these sorry arsenals
how it’s done,” Elric said. He gave me a wink, and I glared at him in return.
“Even you’ll be in line for a lesson.”
    “I have no intention of learning any lesson from you. And
stop calling me, Red,” I hissed.
    Tank snickered. “You don’t like it?” Elric asked. “Tank came
up with it. I thought it was kind of endearing.”
    “Did he now?” I glanced at the both of them. “Then when we
get in the arena, I’ll be sure to remember.”
    “What about me, Tank,” Kitty chimed, “don’t I get a
nickname?”
    “What for?” Tank asked.
    Kitty pouted. “Fine then. Nicknames are childish anyway.”
    “Attention!”
    Captain Valler entered the room with pristine military
formation. “Congratulations, arsenals. Now that you’ve become full-fledged
soldiers, it’s time to get those hands a little bloody.”
    He lifted a large weapon from one of the tables, fiddling
with the mechanics. “The new laser mr2,” Valler introduced. “Isn’t she a
beauty?”
    Valler had a strange enthusiasm for weapons. He treated
every armament and piece of technology like a work of gold.
    “This is the Aeromatic Alistair.” Valler drew back the bow’s
metal thrust. “There’s a red blinker on the arrow head set to discharge once
the bow is activated. The energy inside will explode five seconds after being
fired.” Valler handed the bow to a nearby recruit then moved on to the next
device. It was nothing but a thin metal bracelet with a bright lens in the
center.
    “These are halo-coms. They’re touch and voice activated. Any
information you may need is stored on this little trinket. Maps, wildlife,
geographic inventory. At times, you will receive notifications from Eden on
recent activity in the area. You can also track and communicate with your team
if need be. At some point and time, you’re bound to get separated.”
    He picked up another device. “Moving on, this weapon here is
the Laser Ray Grenade, or lrg for short. When this here button is released,
hundreds of rays shoot out and dissipate anything in their path. Obviously, you
don’t want to be anywhere near the range of this weapon. It has a one hundred
foot radial distance, so take caution.”
    An hour passed when Valler stood at the final table. “The
Iron Sling Gun,” he announced. “It’s one of our newest