Chapter 19: A necessary sacrifice?

When the group stopped, the sun was already at its zenith. The jamming was still active, and the group's speed was getting slower and slower as the clones became more and more exhausted, not to mention the psychological pressure to flee the imminent attack. However, Matricule 231 brought the group to a halt, speaking in a voice imbued with determination.

"We are now very close to the Allied lines. Our base camp is further to the east of here, so we'll continue to the northeast after a short pause."

Even the usually impassive clones sighed with relief, while a small number of the androids under Davis's command stood still, seeing the pause as a curse. All were staring at their dangerously low batteries, so the now total absence of life and water in this arid environment threatened even the most disciplined clones. Some even spoke to Davis before going into sleep mode, hoping to continue the journey on the little battery power they had left. Even so, the despair that had once gnawed at faces was now almost absent from the group. The hope of finding their camp within the next few hours replaced this undesirable mixture of feelings. A few smiles even bloomed on the faces of some of the androids as they chatted more actively and cheerfully, trying to forget all the worries that were eating away at them from the inside. Most of them remembered what Davis had told them to lift their spirits, and how close they came to fulfilling those same words.

Jeffe approached the small group of Davis, Melissa and Alice, who had been chatting for some time.

"Back at camp soon then?"

Jeffe said, trying to intrude awkwardly on the conversation that had come to a halt as he approached.

"Yes, soon."

Alice replied with a smile, leaving Jeffe to ask.

"Sorry if I disturbed your conversation..."

"No- no you didn't..."

Melissa shyly retorted, as Alice added.

"We were talking about what we were doing before we ended up here. And I'd just finished my short story, so if you don't mind, you can tell yours Jeffe."

Alice replied, flashing her usual dazzling smile, making Jeffe blush slightly as he suppressed his smile as well as his stray emotions by responding calmly.

"Well... I'm not that different from other clones... I was raised in the vat, trained in the vat, grew up in the vat, then when I came out, I met all my clone brothers. I was told I was an anomaly because I showed a few emotions, so my destruction was decided shortly after my first training session when I showed hesitation in shooting. But my excellent performance saved me, and I ended up here... that's the only difference between me and the other clones. Ah, and the fact that you gave me a name too sets me apart, but that's all."

"You say that as if you've experienced nothing else, you didn't do anything after getting out of the cloning complex?"

Davis replied while scratching his chin, puzzled.

"No, I was sent straight here, I must be a little over two weeks old now, soon to be three."

The small group seemed astonished, apart from Davis who seemed saddened by now knowing Jeffe's age. But these emotions were short-lived. A shockwave made everyone freeze, as Matricule 231's body collapsed to the ground, his head almost completely decapitated.

Panic swept through the group as the dormant androids were forcibly reactivated, adding yet another layer to the general confusion. All squad members looked around. Yet no silhouette could be seen on the horizon. At least, not until a confused, non-human word reached everyone's ears, simultaneously with the appearance of five humanoids close to the corpse of Matricule 231, standing at the center of the general gathering.

" zo...Zory... zorie..."

However, the shapeless humanoid silhouette, made entirely of pure white, devoid of the slightest orifice, not even possessing a real face or even features on its body, was electrocuted by the collar it was wearing, almost dropping it to the ground due to the intensity of the shock. This triggered a reaction from three of the other silhouettes wearing no collar at all, instead fully clad in black armor slightly more advanced than that created by humans. They spoke in an unknown language, but just as their words ceased, the last humanoid demon-like figure wearing a collar on its neck made a slight hand signal. Black wires shot out from it, heading for the corpse, barely hanging up its head as it rose to its feet. Matricule 231 accordingly charged his former comrades without even retrieving his weapon from the ground, which one of the armored figures picked up instead. The figure then discarded it, paying no attention to the clones or androids surrounding them, instead taking out his weapon, similar to Matricule 231's, although it also appeared slightly more advanced.

Davis was the first to emerge from his panic at the general torpor, quickly shouting an order.

"Everyone assemble with me in battle formation! There's only five of them, so it'll be easy! Eliminate the corpse of matricule 231, it's no longer your-"

However, as he spoke, one of the armored figures looked at him briefly before executing two shots in rapid succession, tearing off both Davis's legs, before firing at a clone who collapsed almost immediately, before standing up again after receiving the same strange black threads as Matricule 231.

Davis was horrified, he hadn't even screamed, his mouth hanging open, his eyes conveying the immensity of his terror as he knew the end was near.

"They're...they're...they're gods and they're...no...they're demons!"

Smith screamed, tetanized, as he fell to the ground, retreating hastily in terror.

All the androids and clones were firing, yet not a single shot reached the five mysterious figures. Only the body of serial number 231 received the shots intended for it, melting away little by little, without stopping its frenzy. But it was at this point that Alice rose up, taking on Davis's responsibility as a symbol of hope. At least, that's what he wanted to believe when he saw Alice standing alone in the middle of this horrific scene. But it was not to be.

She spoke in a hushed voice, even more terrifying than the spectacle unfolding all around her, her calm contrasted with her frightening eyes, yet simultaneously conveying an urge to survive so great it was impossible to describe.

"Everyone get into position. The androids on my opposite side will occupy these monsters or 'demons'; the rest of you, follow me. We're heading for the camp, no refusals will be tolerated or I'll execute you myself."

Alice clenched her teeth so hard she felt the pain anchor in her jaw. She forced herself to wear a ruthless, cruel expression, a mask of determination forged from her pain. However, her hands were trembling. This detail didn't escape Melissa's notice as she took her arm in a whisper.

"You don't have to do this, we can get out of this another way, there are only five of them, Davis is right!"

Alice accordingly stole the knife Jeffe kept on his belt, stabbing it into Melissa's arm, taking care, however, to damage only the superficial part of it. After this blow, Melissa looked at Alice, horrified in her turn, while Davis couldn't discern reality from a nightmare as he sank into madness.

"No refusals tolerated, you're far too idealistic! Don't you think it's strange that despite all the shots fired, none of them hit those five monsters?! Yet the corpses that get up are all down again in just two shots!"

Alice's tremors intensified, her hands became clenched fists and a solitary tear fell from her right eye. However, her voice was as stoic and terrifying as ever.

"I'm sorry, I'm doing this for your own good. So that, at least, we survive. Please, come with me. I don't want you to die here. Know that I'll deactivate you to save you if I have to."

None of the survivors wanted any part of Alice's plan, all of them tetanized as they fought desperately for everyone's survival. Yet the majority of squad members near Alice gradually, albeit reluctantly, began to turn their backs on their comrades, following Alice who led the way, now firmly holding Melissa's arm. Yet her arms were shaking more and more, her eyes were watering, too, but she moved on determinedly and swiftly, hoping to achieve the escape she'd never wanted to orchestrate. However, Davis' distant cry brought Alice back to reality, causing her to burst into tears as she quickened her pace.

"Let go of me, Jeffe! I'll stay and fight to the end! I'll save them!"

However, Jeffe ignored Davis's words, carrying the cripple on his back, and headed for Alice. Still, Davis struggled with all his might, screaming and crying all he could, never looking away from his comrades left behind, being exterminated at a frantic pace. He shouted pleas to Alice.

"Please don't abandon them. Don't abandon them, they're all our comrades, our brothers in arms, without them we'd never have got here! We can't abandon them, I refuse to abandon them! Listen to your boss! It's incomprehensible that you're doing this! I... I..."

Davis' sobs became so profuse that it prevented her from forming even the slightest comprehensible word, yet it was these incomprehensible mumblings that brought Alice to her knees. She struck the ground with all her might, letting go of Melissa as she sobbed to the point where her words were barely comprehensible.

"You think I want to do this! It's the only thing to do! Would you rather die needlessly with them?! The survivors deserve a chance! You want them to die too?! That's right! You just want to drag everyone down with you! You-"

It was Melissa's silent slap that cut Alice off. When Alice saw Melissa advancing alone, not even turning around, holding back her emotions as she shakily moved forward, she stood up, thinking.

[At least they'll survive... Yes, they'll survive, she'll survive, Davis will survive... all... all is not lost, if sacrificing everything that made me human is the price of their survival, so be it. I'll be hell if I have to be. I'll bring you back alive].

However, despite her strong thought, she couldn't stop her tremors as she resumed her walk. Without even realizing it, she whispered the same phrase over and over, trying to reassure herself.

"It was the only thing to do... It was the only thing to do...It was the only thing to do...It was the only thing to do...It was the only thing to do...It was the only thing to do...It was the only thing to do...It was...It was the only thing to do..."

* * *

It wasn't until the eight survivors' frantic race came to a halt after an indiscernible time, that Davis spoke again, staring at Alice with a resentful gaze from behind Jeffe's back.

"You abandoned them, left them alone! With Melissa...you...you told me I wouldn't lose anyone again! What was that?! Bullshit?!"

Davis shouted, starting to cry again, while Jeffe was unrecognizable. Something in him seemed to break as his eyes were devoid of any vitality.

"They would have exterminated us all!"

Alice replied, screaming just as loudly, tears beginning to flow from those eyes again.

"You said you weren't a hero, so if you can't do it... I will... I'LL SAVE THEM!"

Alice added, screaming her despair at Davis, who was petrified by the situation. However, he came to his senses as Melissa once again slapped Alice's face with all her might, tears beading at the corners of her eyes.

"You're going too far! Do you realize what you've done? It may have been necessary, but what you just said wasn't! Apologize, you can't imagine the pain of losing someone! For you, they were just strangers, but for him... they were his friends, he entrusted everything to us! And you scorn his courage as if nothing had happened. You even think you're better than him! He said he made this mistake, that he thought he was a hero, and you think you are?!"

Melissa's legs weakened, knocking her to the ground as her eyes stared at Alice, filled with fear, as well as inconceivable sadness. Yet she still wanted to believe in Alice, she just couldn't anymore, only fear, sadness and incomprehension dominated her. Alice looked away, isolating herself from the others, barely recovering from their emotions. These moments would no doubt remain engraved in their memories forever.

Alice remained immersed in her thoughts for an indeterminate time, before a sound entered her ears and brought her back to reality. It was Melissa, standing in the middle of the camp, singing in a trembling voice, barely holding back her sobs as she fought her anguish, hoping that her voice would at least enable the few survivors to get back on their feet, to finally end this short journey that seemed to last forever. Alice desperately rubbed her eyes, hoping in vain to hold back her immense sobs as she prayed to wake up, racked by regret for her actions, her body collapsing in on itself, robbing her of all strength in an unstoppable tremor. She really had no strength left, other than to continue crying for the little water she had left as she curled in on herself.