Sometimes things never go the way you wish it... things change, people change. How life always went, the normal path anyone took to become a man, the path children took to be the person they are to today. My case was simple, it never happened to me, all because of some project done by some company nothing went clear as it should.

            You think your having a good life and enjoy everything you ever wished for, but in the end it’s all some sorry nightmare you end up waking up from. And you battle every fear you’ve ever had in your vein. People could be so heartless, man is capable of it...

            “Dylan” a soft voice echoed in his mind like some high singer screeching in a large hall, “Dylan wake up.”

            The voice had been that of a girl’s someone he’d known, someone he cared for... his mind was weak he had dreamt about bad things, and he felt like some washed up fish on a sandy shore waiting to be eaten by some passing, unsuspecting parakeet.

            “What’s wrong with you? wake up!” Finally he felt his body jerk sideways and he finally fluttered open his watery eyes.  

            All he saw at first was a small hand in his face, he brushed it away briskly. His head still throbbed like a time bomb waiting to crack. His blurry eyes finally after what felt like an eternity, started to focus. Dylan saw a uniformed body, a skinny girl’s body and she had the stars and stripes of a officer.

            “You’ve been having nightmares again.” the girl said with a flashy tone, sounding like she was angry, “Why didn’t you tell me?”

            For some apparent reason he couldn’t pinpoint her name, feeling as if he was searching for it in his head like a drunk secretary trying to find a needle in a haystack when he wasn’t even supposed to be looking in a haystack in the first place or even a needle for that matter.  

            “I’ve been sick, what do you expect?” Dylan almost scared himself at his ridiculously groggy voice. Then like some miracle that drunk secretary found what he was looking for, “Natasha...” Dylan soon added.

            Lieutenant Natasha Hind to be more exact he thought in his head trying to focus himself. Surprised at the fact he found out he was in his bunk bed rather than the sickbay.

            “You were sick and you didn’t go to sickbay? You remember the rule, you march there yourself.” Natasha gave a light sigh after that and smacked his cheek, not hard just enough to make his eyes open a little wider, “You should actually march over there yourself if you don’t want to throw up during our session this afternoon.”

            “Right...” Dylan still a little groggy sat up, and wiped his eyes shaking his head, he looked before him seeing his reflection on Natasha’s Military badge. He was still well in his uniform only more tattered up and even his short black hair was messy. He also took notice of his tag on his uniform designating his identity.

            LT. DYLAN THEALLE

And he remembered then who he was, his memory slowly drifted back to him as he expected. He had experienced the exact same thing the night before. But typically he wouldn’t remember that either.

            He fixed up his uniform and stood up brushing himself off looking to his friend, “Still any word from Reizak’s squad?”

            “None at all, we suspected they were killed or captured or vice versa...” she didn’t sound all too happy just the straight monotone voice she’d always use when she was upset.

            “How about my sister?”

            “She’s fine, resting in the room across. Don’t worry Dylan.”

            He only sighed and shrugged as he pushed his way out to the hallway, with Natasha following him, he was in bad mental shape so he guessed he should take care of that first. Worry about yourself first, that’s what the book said, he thought.

            “Wait up!” Natasha jogged up beside him, he hadn’t noticed he’d rushed out so quickly. Maybe he was really mental.

            “Gee whiz you have been acting strange these past couple of days,” she said huffing softly, too softly to really notice.

            “Oh don’t worry about me, I can handle my self.”

            “The last time you said that, you almost blew your leg off running over a mine.”

            “Okay so maybe I can’t handle myself, why would you care?”

            She just blinked as if she had just talked to an alien and didn’t know what to say next, “Well I’m worried about you.”

            Dylan stopped with a sigh then leaned on the nearby wall, “Why does everyone have to worry about me? Can’t they just leave it to their own business?”

            “Well... I don’t know, because we care for each other? And teamwork is the only thing that keeps us moving? What’s been happening with you? Your dreams or whatever they are; are driving you mad.” She said with a cracking tone like she was about to smack him.

            “You think I can do anything about that? Stop worrying about me and think about what’s best for everyone else!” He pushed away from the wall and stormed down the hall.

            Natasha just stood there sighing, obviously not wanting to anger him any longer. She knew something was wrong, she didn’t know why or what but she wanted to help, it was how she was, even if Natasha was known as the hardest tight butt officer in their part of the school. Her real self was just the opposite. A good caring young woman with the intelligence a skilled doctor and with the softness of a modern day nun, all nicely hidden under her officer’s stripes.

            No one knew why she was like that, maybe it was just to be an officer you had to have guts, and guts never came with kindness, it came with anger.

            Dylan sat on the medical bed gulping his throat in like a goldfish, his mind still seemed to teem relentlessly, he waited until one of the doctor’s finally came into the room, he wanted to get this done quickly.

            Some more hours passed. Dylan had long ago finished with his “appointment”, not to intrigued by it at all. He was more disappointed rather than relieved, his headache was gone and his memory returned as those hours passed by, he had to go through a brain scan. The medic told him to take some medication and Dylan knew better than to disobey that.

             A cold breeze made it’s way to his neck as he stood in a large grassy field, his hair swaying softly. He had his eyes closed narrowly to shield his eyes. At the same time being calm. It was just after dawn and night was settling in. He knew the sight he saw as a beautiful scenery in his eyes, would look nothing more than black desert by morning.

              A soft rumble came under his feet, the sound of approaching death, another simulation. Another test, to the limit were death would be a release.

            “Lieutenant,” a private called behind him, “We should go, Alpha Lance will be here shortly, It is not wise to linger here.”

            Dylan turned to the private and nodded turning around to the large force that was coming over the virtual plains, he nodded and ran to them.

            Once he came there Dylan stood ready in front of a group of men. The attack force that were to meet the enemy at the plains were composed of three tanks, 2 support vehicles and 50 infantry in total. The exam today was to test field combat, something Dylan wasn’t clearly used to.

            “Alright get on your positions this is no drill, people this is the real thing!” he commanded with hand signals. His men nodded taking their positions on tanks or lying low walking with the support vehicles. As they moved closer to the battleground.