2

When I got older, I was able to build something similar. I worked hard to create a masterpiece out of ordinary trash, looking for parts and components. And when I was about to start installing it, the Captain caught me. He immediately realized what I wanted to do and got very angry. My prosthesis shattered against the stone wall of the small apartment we were living in at the time.

Later, when his rage had subsided, the captain explained it all to me. He told me then that no prosthesis in the world will ever replace a healthy, full limb, no matter how much strength it gives to its wearer. Any prosthesis is just a piece of metal attached to an arm, that's all.

After a year, we started having problems. The recycling plant closed, all the workers were laid off. We no longer had money for water, food or medicine. The captain started disappearing, going somewhere. Sometimes he was gone for days at a time. But after these disappearances, he would bring money. But one night he said to me:

- "Tomorrow you're coming with me. This time the hunt will be for the creature I know how to hunt best - man.

So we became assassins for hire. The jobs were not heavy - small bandits, debtors, unwanted people. For each order, we devised a plan to eliminate the target and escape routes.

For a few years we made money that way. I had already mastered the craft, and the Captain had taught me a lot. But you can't anticipate everything, just like that time.

This was supposed to be a simple job. Eliminating the target from afar, as we've often done before. The customer is the target's business partner, so we were well aware of when and where to do the execution.

Preparation was standard, escape routes worked out to perfection. We are in place. Here trucks are arriving, people are getting out of them. They're discussing something. Our target is the leader of one of the gangs who's here to make this deal in person. We didn't know what they were selling or what the deal was. And we don't need to know that kind of information. Our job is to kill the right man and get away without being seen.

The high-caliber rifle worked just fine. Body on the ground, people in the scope scrambling. And that's when the first surprise came. We were spotted by the flash of the weapon and returned fire with an old-style fragmentation mortar, of which there were still plenty on our planet.

We survived, the Captain was injured - a shrapnel cut his side. But our troubles didn't end there. The bandits launched search drones to keep us from leaving and gave chase in desert buggies.

None of us expected this. The drones, like the buggies, weren't supposed to be there. That's why we didn't take special jammers for the drones. We had to leave quickly and stealthily, so we had to reject the usual way of leaving the desert by transport. To prevent the drones from detecting us, we decided to leave through the earth cracks. They were formed after the Earth's core was completely dried up. But this way was dangerous, as we had to climb over small protrusions, risking the risk of falling down.

The drones couldn't track us there, because the earth's air currents blew them away when the drones were above the crevasse. When we were already inside the crevasse and approaching the place where we could climb out, the Captain's right prosthesis suddenly jammed and the mechanical fingers did not catch on the right ledge. The man lost his balance and began to fall backwards. I don't know how, but at that moment I held on to the Captain as if I had pinned him back against the wall with one more hand.

It took almost all my strength to just prop the old man up from the back for a few seconds, but it was enough for him to get a good grip on himself with his working arm. I was covered in sweat and breathing heavily. It took a while to regain consciousness and we continued on our way.

By some miracle we managed to get out of the gorge. The Captain's wound had taken a lot of strength from him, but the main path had been traveled. The only thing left to do was to get to the transportation we had left behind and make our way home.

When we were already home, we worked out with the Captain what it was. The psi energy had awakened in me. Which means I can move things with my mind and more. It's a whole different way of life, if you develop your own abilities well.

After that mission, the Captain reminded me again of my desire to replace my hands with prosthetic limbs.

- You see, Rix. That damn thing almost got me killed. If you had done what you wanted to do, I would have seen for myself what the Earth's core looks like.

If I'd really replaced my hands back then, I'd never have been able to control full psi energy. Mechanical limbs would have limited me too much. At that moment, I was insanely grateful to the Captain for stopping me then.

The old man's wound was not as minor as it seemed at first. He had lost a lot of blood, and in addition, sand had gotten into the wound. It was festering. And it wasn't good at all.

It was impossible to find a doctor here. Everyone who knew how to do anything had left this dump long ago. The only people left were those who were nothing. Biowaste. That's why the Captain's condition worried me so much.

I needed money to buy some medicine. I took order after order, trying to earn money for the medications I needed, but the medications here were very expensive. I got very little sleep, came back from my assignment, spent some time with the Captain, trying to relieve him with what I could find, and then left again for another assignment.

The Captain was getting worse every day. His temperature was rising, he was feverish. I once again took a new assignment, demanding payment with medical supplies. I had hope. The customer agreed, promising to bring sanitizers.

I was very tired, the task was not the easiest, but I managed. The customer, as promised, paid with the medication I so needed. I hurried home, feeling time slipping between my fingers. I just had to make it.

But as soon as I pushed open the door to our apartment, I realized it was too late. I could feel in my gut that there was nothing alive in the room. And I wasn't wrong. The captain was lying on the bed, just where I'd left him last time, but it wasn't the wound that had killed him.

There was a gun lying beside the bed, the Captain's head turned toward the wall, and blood splattered on the wall. My name father had shot himself.

Feeling my heart bursting in my chest with grief, I stepped closer. He'd already cooled down. He must have done it right after I left. There was a sealed letter on the nightstand beside the bed. It was written in uneven handwriting, "To Rix." My hands were shaking and tears were streaming from my eyes, but I found the strength to read the letter.

"Rix, I watched you try to save me, how you exhausted yourself searching for medicine and money. I couldn't watch it anymore. Don't blame yourself, it was my decision. I didn't want to be a burden to you anymore. I'm sorry, kid. It's my decision. And I want you to know that I've always been proud of you. You've become the son I always wanted. Live well. Captain."

After the old man died, something inside me snapped. I realized clearly that no one else needed me. I was all alone now. My grief was killing me. For a while, I tried to distract myself with missions. Like I used to do before, I took the easy tasks. But it didn't help. I no longer had the will to live. My next assignments were considered suicidal. Big shots, serious businessmen, heads of criminal gangs. But I did it. Every time I went home, dressed my wounds and contacted a new client. I slept only a few hours at a time, because even extreme fatigue did not help me to sleep properly. I couldn't go on like this. Something had to change. I couldn't stay here, in this city and in this apartment.

That same night, I left my hometown by intercity bus, taking with me only the letter and the plasma knives the Captain had given me for my thirteenth birthday. The bus traveled for several days, and the whole time I slept. I guess the fatigue must have worn me down. When I woke up, the bus was already entering the big city of Kerst. There were hardly any passengers left, everyone had already left the bus. I went to the final stop. I didn't look for a hotel, but decided to go straight to the mercenary units. I realized that I needed to be among people, otherwise I would go crazy. But it was not easy to get into the squad. To join the mercenaries, you had to complete a task. An entrance exam, so to speak. And that mission was also to kill a human being.