I couldn't quite figure out what Rose meant by "we have to do something." How could we possibly help Diana and Jose when we didn't even know where they were? But when she explained the plan in her head, it left me speechless.
"Whatever that zeppelin up there is, I don't think our friends were expecting it. Plus, with that thing in the air, how can we move around the city without being seen? My guess is they were trying to pull a fast one: distract the whole army to the other side of the city and open up a secret path for us to the capital. The problem is, no matter how much they distract them, it's not going to be easy to sneak around with a massive flying mutant army and a giant zeppelin overhead." Rose began to explain.
"Yeah, it won't be."
"So we have to take that zeppelin down!"
"Do you have a weapon for that? Something that could pop that huge zeppelin like a balloon?"
"A weapon? We don't have anything like that, but I have another idea."
"What kind of idea?"
She pointed at the mutants flying in the sky. "Mutants aren't very smart creatures, are they?" Then she glanced at me. "And you look a lot like a mutant. You're human, after all."
"What? You want me to infiltrate the zeppelin?"
"Exactly."
"How am I supposed to do that? That enormous thing is at least a few miles high… No way… Is that what you meant by looking like a mutant?" When Rose raised her eyebrows and stared at me, I finally understood how serious she was. "You're expecting me to become one of those winged mutants? Don't be ridiculous…"
"Look… Those wings have to be compatible with human genetics. If we can attach them to you, the only thing left to do is find a power source to feed them. The mutants are probably powering their wings with energy they produce themselves. I think we can take care of that with a few insects we can find in the wilderness."
"I don't want metal parts attached to me. I can't agree to an operation like that! This plan is insane! What am I even supposed to do after I get on the zeppelin?"
"Didn't I train you for this? Didn't you get through even tougher missions in the mind tunnel?"
"I did, but that was my mind… This is the real world… I may have aced most of the missions, but I also failed a lot of them. I'm afraid this one will be one of the ones I fail."
"Don't worry. There's no need to be afraid."
"Oh really? Why not?"
"You were alone in your mind. Here, you'll have friends… If anything happens to you, don't worry, I'll find you and kill you to end your suffering."
"Thanks a lot. That really puts my mind at ease."
"You're welcome…"
"But seriously, I don't want to do this. The wings on my back and all… I'm just a normal guy. I've never even had an implant anywhere but my penis."
"It won't be any different… And didn't you promise you would become a hero? Are you really going to go back on your word over something this simple? Just because of a small surgery?"
I looked up at the zeppelin for a while. Then I looked at Rose. "Fine! I'll do it!"
"That's my boy!"
***
Rose and I were fighting mutants in the sewer when we noticed a few of them had wings. So, we dismembered their corpses, taking their mechanical wings and the organic parts they were attached to. We stuffed everything we could carry into the sacks we found in the market, whether it was in good condition or not.
"This is a mutant village, right?" Rose said. "If so, there must be a lab here where they test these mutants… Or a workshop where these mechanical parts are attached. How can we find it?"
"You're asking me?"
"No… I'm just thinking out loud."
***
After some persistent searching by Rose, we found a door on the sewer wall with "Maintenance and Repair" written on it. The air inside smelled of rotten meat and waste. The moment we stepped inside, an electric generator hummed to life, its rhythmic, grating sound filling the room.
"What a great place!" Rose said. "Just what we were looking for…"
"Come on! You're not going to operate on me in here, are you? I'll die from the filth!"
"I'm sure there's a sterile room somewhere…"
And there was. A room that looked like a surgery theater with a huge window. Unlike the other rooms, it was covered in clean white metal and brightly lit. Rose tinkered with some controls on the console outside the room. Machines in the corners of the room began to purify the air.
In the very center of the room was a long operating table. And on the table, a manual machine with hundreds of different surgical tools. Rose put her hand on my shoulder and guided me to the table.
"I'm not ready for this. Can you even do an operation like this?"
"You can trust me. I've gutted thousands of people and tortured just as many. There's no one better than me at torture or keeping someone alive. So you definitely won't die in my hands. You might only get crippled…"
As soon as I heard that, I wanted to bolt, but Rose had such a tight grip on my shoulder she wouldn't let me go.
"Where are you going?"
"I like being alive…"
"I promise I won't kill you."
"I don't want to be crippled either."
"And what if you were? We'll save Jose and Diana, then we'll plug you into a healing computer. And boom… You'll be even better than before."
"Nothing you're saying is making me feel any better."
"Don't you worry… Just close your eyes, and when you open them, you'll have metal wings. I'm going to put you under. You won't feel a thing."
"If you say so…"
"I do…"
Reluctantly, I took off my clothes. Then I lay down on the metal table. As soon as my back touched the cold metal, I tried to get up again, but suddenly, the table locked me down with metal restraints.
"Wait…" I said to Rose. She had her hand on the machine above my head and was making adjustments. "…I changed my mind."
"Look, you might think you've changed your mind, but when I get you off this table, you'll regret being a coward. Your friends' lives could be in danger… Are you going to let your friends die just because you're scared?" Rose said, leaning close to my face.
Her words fueled me. "Go on!" I hissed through gritted teeth. "I'll do it! For Jose and Diana!"
"Good boy…"
At that moment, I felt a sharp pain in my stomach and let out a pathetic "Ouch..." I looked down and saw a huge needle from the manual machine above me plunged into my gut. As the needle moved, my stomach was ripped open, my organs spilled out, and blood splattered everywhere. "What the f*ck!" I yelled, and everything went black.