Plot armor

Prologue 3 - Last words

Camp Humphreys, now solely owned by South Korea after the United States pulled out still houses some 500 buildings and amenities. A third of which is occupied by Armed Robotics on the northeast side of the camp. It is a company run by the defense department to develop robots and armor that can assist the South Korean military force.

This led them in search of many scientists and programmers that altimetry made them hire many foreigners. This is why Sheyken's father ended up working for them as they scouted him. He was an I.T specialist. Unfortunately, he had a heart disease that he couldn't win against. Next to those buildings is the human resources department where Sarah's office is located.

About 45 minutes after Sheyken left Sarah's office, she was almost done writing notes of her session with him. It was nearing 7:30 pm and was already dark outside. The office was erringly quiet as there seem to be no one around since it was already late.

She finished her work and when she was putting her notes in the drawer which is situated next to the exit door, someone opened the door. It startled her as she was not expecting anyone. The first thing she saw was the K2 assault rifle that is the standard service rifle of the Republic of South Korea Armed Forces. It was armed with a suppressor and slowly creeping into view, followed by a man wearing the same army uniform Sheyken was wearing.

He was holding the rifle ready to fire anytime. When the door opened, it had hidden her behind it. By the time she saw that the safety pin was off, it was too late. The man was already about to look in her direction by the door.

Her stomach felt like it was sinking in on itself. She knew this was not a prank and she could die at any moment not even knowing why anyone would try to kill her. At that time, she thought about Sheyken but alas, she could not afford to be thinking about him right now.

The man was beside her, almost in front of her with his back facing her and still pointing his rifle wherever he was looking. At this point in time, her training kicked in, overcoming her fear. She was a feisty woman when she decided to fight. She kicked the man with all her might at the back of his legs, by the back of his knees to try and make him fall down which worked splendidly. The man fell down hitting the back of his head on the floor and losing the grip of his rifle which landed on the ground inches short of his left hand. She knew she had no time to pick it up as the man was closer to it. She decided to play it safe and kicked the rifle as far as she could.

At that moment, the man stood up calmly almost like a robot. She took a defensive stance ready to fight for her life but when she took a look at the man's face, she was so shocked such that her soul could have left her right there and then. The man was not wearing a mask, but his face was blurry ....no eyes, nose, mouth, or even ears. In a flash, he had stepped in front of her.

She couldn't do anything. He was just too fast. It made it apparent that she was lucky to even land a sneak attack on him. He grabbed her neck and lifted her up with ease. As she was gasping for air, her mind was blank. She did not know what to think at that moment, but just before her assailant snapped her neck like a twig, she managed to say one word with her last breath ....

"Sheyken!"

The man let out an angry grown then let go of her. He took his rifle and run out at a speed that would make Olympic sprinters cry out with shame.

By this Time, Sheyken had reached the Pyeongtaek metropolitan area. He passed by an old lady begging for change and an idea came to him. He went to the nearest ATM which was about 100 meters away and stood in line. The city was still buzzing with people. When it was finally his turn, he put in his ATM card and check his balance. He had around $ 3000 he had saved up. It was a reasonable amount for a young man who had one year's salary to his name so far. He took out $1600 and left the rest just in case Sarah was right about him being paranoid. He went back to the old lady and gave her $1500. She thanked him with all her heart and showered him with so many blessings. He almost couldn't walk away from the old lady who seemed to have gained new vitality by that point.

He continued on his way and thought about what happened days ago. He had gotten his week off from the Army and it happened on the third day while he was from shopping for some home suppliers. A year ago, he got a studio-style flat on the south side of the outskates of Pyeongtaek. It was cheap, but you had to walk about 10 minutes to get to the supermarket.

On that day, when he bought his things and was walking back to his flat, he saw a puppy crossing the road while a white truck was speeding towards it. His instinct took over. He dropped his groceries and rushed over to try to save it, only to stop when he was about to cross the road. He wasn't going to make it and his intuition told him that. Good for him because it didn't fail him.  Seconds after he stopped, the truck was already passing over the puppy. To make things worse for him, the puppy was not hurt at all. The truck passed over it since the bumper was high enough and the puppy was not near the wheels, making it go under the truck without any problems. He realized at that very moment that he could have just died for nothing.

The second time was on the same day. Before he could get home, he had to cross the road at a zebra crossing a block away from his flat. When he was crossing, he could swear that the same white truck came out of nowhere and was speeding to run him over without any regard for stopping. This time his instincts saved him. He jumped forward with a front roll and the truck narrowly missed him. He tried to look at the number plate but he couldn't see it. The numbers seemed to be blurry.

The next day, he could see the same white truck passing by the same street several times whiles he was looking through the window. That is when he made the connection to the feeling he had ever since he was born and it was because whenever he saw it, he could feel something inside him. Like his soul was resonating. Plus, the fact that he could not see who was driving whenever he saw it.

He thought he might be going crazy.

'Since when can a person feel his soul?'

He thought he was sick or maybe that was how people knew they would die and were being hunted by the Grim Reaper. That's why today, he chose to go to the Army camp to see Sarah in the morning rush since there would be many people around hoping that maybe the truck would not see him and it worked.

Thinking about it made him tense, but so far, he hasn't seen it. It was a lucky break for him because in front of him was Grandma's Tofufive. The restaurant where he and Baek - hyun are supposed to meet. He couldn't wait for some sundubujjigae and kimchi jjigae. Whenever he comes here, he becomes a glutton. He opened the door and got in. Without looking any further, there he was, Baek- hyun was already waiting for him with his face red from Soju.