I lay there in the warm dirt, waiting to strike. Makarov had betrayed me and left me to die. There was no way I would take this lying down. I heard the enemy troops approaching. I checked my rifle and ammunition. The footsteps were getting closer. Two hundred meters. I closed my eyes and thought about the importance of the mission. One hundred meters. I took a deep breath. Fifty metres. Their footsteps stopped. I could hear them getting into formation. 3, 2, 1, now! I sprang up and emptied my rifle. These invaders, they never expected an ambush. The enemies were so terror-stricken, they could not react. They fell, one by one. Click. My rifle was empty. The two remaining soldiers saw this and seized the opportunity. One of them threw a grenade at me. I leaped for cover but I was too slow. The blast threw me down the hill path, onto the street. As I was slowly gaining consciousness. My legs...I could not feel them. As I bent ahead to look at my limbs, a piece of concrete displaced from the blast fell on my head and knocked me out. The last thing I heard before going unconscious were the sounds of my attackers looking for me. “Hey, hey, Vasili. He’s waking up.” I saw people running around me. I grabbed the throat of the man closest to me and I screamed at him, “WHO ARE YOU?! WHERE AM I?!” Thunk. I felt a sharp prick and my vision became blurry. My grip loosened as I fell unconscious again. When I woke up again, I saw that I was restrained on a gurney. But what had happened to my legs? I strained my head and looked down. Horror filled me. My legs. They were made of iron. My head was spinning as I cursed fate. I wanted to scream loudly but the shock rendered me speechless. I stayed awake, restrained on the gurney, in a small, white room and I waited. After about an hour, a doctor arrived. Two guards accompanied him. “Well, good morning soldier. I see that you are awake.”
“Yes, Doctor.” Andrei freed me from my restraints. As I got up, I expected to fall. Surprisingly, I did not stumble. I felt as steady as a mountain goat. “How is this possible? I have friends in the army who have prosthetics but it took them years to adapt to their new limbs.” “Ah, that’s easily explained”, said Dr. Pavlov. “You see, the models they supplied earlier were primitive pieces. Not very good. But these are state of the art. There is a direct neural link and so, your brain treats these as your natural legs and not as artificial extensions. Therefore, you can adapt quicker. Much quicker.” “I see. Thank you.” “I suppose you won’t wait here?” asked Dr. Pavlov. “No, doctor. Thank you for rescuing me and thank you for all the help you have given me.” “It is our duty. You fight for the Motherland and we fight alongside you.”
He saluted me and so did the rest of the personnel there. They took me to their armoury where I retrieved my gear. “What’s your mission, soldier? If I may ask”, inquired the doctor. “The mission is to end the traitor, Makarov and to free Kursk from his control.” “Understood” As I was leaving he called out “Wait. I have something that can help you.” Pavlov reached into his workbench drawers and handed me some canisters. “These are incendiary grenades. Use them to give your opponents a fiery surprise.” “Thank you, doctor. I must go now.” I followed Andrei, who took me to a secret exit.
Now, I just had one target. Makarov. As I walked out of the base, I saw an armoured car heading towards me. “Perfect. I can use this”, thought I. I pulled out an incendiary canister and threw it in the vehicle’s path. As expected, it came to a screeching halt. I watched as a soldier walked out to investigate the path. As he moved away from the car, I struck. Two shots were heard. Two bodies fell. I got in the car and started driving towards Makarov’s bunker.
Three hundred meters from the entrance. I stepped on the pedal harder. Two hundred meters. I was closer now. About 50-60 meters from the entrance, I jumped out of the car. The vehicle rushed ahead and slammed into the entrance. As expected, the alarm rang. I ran ahead with a rifle in my hand and an incendiary in the other. I entered through the base and fired a few warning shots. Smoke and dust obscured my view. Out of the haze, Makarov lunged at me with a knife. He punched me in the gut and disarmed me. I was dazed. He grabbed me and pinned me to the ground. “You shouldn’t have tried this, boy. I am never going to lose”, he said. “Well, I always have an ace up my sleeve”, I said calmly. I quickly pulled out my incendiary and triggered the fuse. I threw it inside his boot and kicked him back with my mechanical legs, stunning him and freeing myself in the process. “What?! How?” Makarov was struggling to get the grenade out. I shot his arm to immobilise him. “You snake. You must pay for what you did. Goodbye .” As I walked out of the bunker to a new, free Kursk, the last thing I heard was the activation of the incendiary device.
I stood outside the bunker door. I felt the warm sunlight and the cool wind. I had done it. My city was free. A small victory.
He injected me with something and I felt that I could fully control my body again. I asked him, “Who are you? Where am I?” “I am Doctor Pavlov. You are in one of the few bases belonging to the resistance. We found you near the Holy Hill, knocked out because of a grenade blast.” “And my legs…..?” “Well, you lost your legs. The blast took them out. So, we gave you robotic limbs. You can run faster, jump higher and kick harder. You’ve become enhanced.” “Well then, can I be freed?” “Yes, yes. Of course. Hey! Andrei! Remove the straps”, commanded the doctor.
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