Chapter 80 - Natural Selection

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Thirty years ago. East Timor. 14:00 

Somewhere in a tent on the outskirts of the main town of East Timor,  a man was building a Pindad SS1 battle rifle with his own hands, checking the number of bullets inside as well as any magazines he had in his pocket. It was a steady process to ensure the rifle functioned in every component it had, even the rate of fire and placement of the magazine. 

The man had slick, black hair while wearing a green camo shirt and pants while keeping a worn-out backpack behind the bunk of the bed. It contained the items necessary for a soldier when they were deployed, including ammunition, rations, water, and even radios in case of an emergency call. Even during the most unlikely of events, such equipment was necessary to hand out in order to keep every soldier in check if they got lost. 

But just as the man finished counting the remaining bullets he had to insert into the rifle, a figure approached the tent, the shade of it that partly covered the entrance which blocked out part of the sunlight. This was enough to make the young man shift his glance to the figure who stood up in front of him. 

"I figured that you're under a new assignment from me, private Adi," the man said with a thick, foreign accent. Adi blinked his eyes as he leaned forward so he could get a better glimpse of the foreign man. 

"Uh, yes sir?" Adi asked, his tone a bit weak out of such unfamiliarity when talking to a man who didn't appear to be from his homeland. What kind of special circumstance would have brought him here? 

"Yes, you heard that right, my boy," another soldier said, this time one with a beret and rounder face, with three yellow bars in his uniform. The figure knelt down to observe Adi. He was a bearded man with black hair all around him, as well some gray in them, as well as some white spots on his forehead. He looked like a renowned veteran of sorts, but still, why bring him here? 

"You can call me Boris. I'll be of great help to you, whether you like it or not," Boris replied with a smirk, his piercing eyes overseeing every aspect of Adi as he stared at him wide-eyed, not used to having a strange like him make such kind of observation toward him in his life. 

"Private, surely you haven't thought of someone from a faraway land working with us before, right?" the staff sergeant asked once more as glanced at Boris, who merely nodded in response. Adi was still at a loss for words over this sort of circumstance. 

"I've heard that most soldiers here have trouble keeping order with the villagers on the island. Perhaps they need more of a helping hand by uncovering the hidden rebels among them." Adi raised his eyebrows as he stood up outside the tent to meet Boris. Even though he knew a reason for it, it may risk bringing someone as overqualified as him to East Timor. It was just a small island with nice sights of the sea, but the case of rebels was another thought caught by the travelers who were on the island. 

From this alone, Adi sighed in response while keeping a steady view of Boris and his commanding officer. 

"Lending a hand? I guess you could try..." But before Adi could say something else, the officer grabbed him by his shoulder while turning away from Boris, who stood there unflinching without any change of expression. 

"You better show some respect to him, my boy! We are talking about a feared warrior among us!" the staff sergeant replied with a high tone, and even though Adi tried to suppress a laugh from him, he knew that he needed to show the utmost of discipline in front of Boris. If they managed to get someone like him in here, then it's for a good reason, it seemed like. But no matter, as Boris merely shoves the staff sergeant aside while he placed his right hand on Adi's shoulder, presenting a slight smile on his face while Adi tried to glance everywhere else to no avail, aside from Boris' silver ring on his finger. 

"Pay only to what's in front of you, Adi. Whatever comes next, follow the flow of your surroundings and you'll survive, if only by a mere measure of survival anyway." Adi nodded after hearing Boris' statement, and finally had his grip released from him as he moved back to the tent to grab the rifle, using a towel to swipe some of the dust and be as good as new for use. He did this as he still stared at Boris' shining ring behind him. Why bring such a beautiful object in the middle of a military zone? Must be something close to him. 

"Right then, without further ado, we'll march in a few minutes for a routine patrol. Hope you're ready for anything, my boy. I'm off for now," the staff sergeant said as he left the two on their own while letting out a big laugh from him. It appeared as if he wanted to give some comfort to Adi, but the timing of Boris' interruption could indicate that it was for something far bigger than his CO would rather not risk. Especially when it came to men like Boris. 

From this alone, Boris merely nodded at Adi while walking off to where he came from. Whatever would come next, it would demonstrate if Boris was the right one for the job the army needed. 

13 minutes later. 

The soldiers marched on the crossroads as they kept each tightly, but still observed every part of the terrain around them, rifles close and such with eyes that glanced at every corner, even though they were surrounded by nothing but trees and grass with a hill overlooking the small town near the coast. The sound of their footsteps filled up part of the quiet and serene nature of the hill as they marched onward. A situation that called for a dire moment like this, it looked like. 

Boris, Adi and two others marched in front of the group, perhaps due to their bigger knowledge of the terrain or just plain confidence in what to expect. 

"Mr. Boris, please excuse me for this demeaning question, but..." Adi asked, only for Boris to raise his hand in response, which got Adi to shut his mouth. 

"My work in Bosnia and Afghanistan allowed me to show how better people can be controlled. Only through large contingents like this, it's where they'll know when to know better," Boris replied. 

"I know, but... Don't you think it's a bit too much when it comes to villagers in here?" 

"You can't ever tell them apart. It's not their fault they deployed many of us if it means rooting out terrorists. It's always law to prepare the worst, so we're here for that." From this, Adi could only sigh in response while lowering his head. It would be futile to arguing with someone like Boris in a moment like this, not when they could be in danger of being attacked by any unexpected intruder. 

Then, the staff sergeant raised his hand which prompted the rest of the soldiers to stop in their tracks. What could have made the staff sergeant halt the advance? 

"Sir, is that...?" Adi asked his CO, as he looked at a man with a similar camouflaged outfit aside from some medals in his chest and showed a bald head to the rest of the platoon, with a machete hanging from his belt. He smirked at them as the CO slightly approached him 

"Ah, fancy meeting a fellow soldier here. I'm Lieutenant Uwir of the 611th. And you may be?" Uwir asked the Staff Sergeant who stood silently. 

"We are supposed to be on patrol. My name is of no importance right now." This prompted Uwir to raise an eyebrow at this while chuckling for a bit. 

"You're in a rush, don't you?" 

"We just want to be on the lookout for any potential danger, that's all." Uwir chuckled once more while glancing at Boris, something of interest may come out of this. 

"And is that a volunteer from another land? Quite peculiar to bring him here even though we, Indonesians, can handle ourselves quite well without the need of others." But before Uwir could respond even further, a rock is thrown from a figure in a shaded treetrunk, striking Uwir's shoulder which made him stumble backward. This action was enough to make most of the soldiers turn around and check the source of it. It looked like a shirtless, dark-skinned man running in the wild, heading deep into the forest. A soldier pulled the trigger to fire at the man, but he didn't seem to have fallen down. 

"Who threw that?!" Uwir asked, this time with a furrowed brow and a grimace while covering his shoulder with his hand. 

"Must be a terrorist!" The CO said once more, still looking in the direction of the escapee. 

"Guess I spoke too soon. Now, you better take care of that pest and any potential rebel you encounter along the way, or else they'll be further trouble for us all. See you around, fellow soldier." With that, Uwir turned around as he ran past the battalion, all while the soldiers murmured to each other about what happened and what the next course of action should be. 

"It appeared that he ran back to a nearby village. What now, sir?" Adi said as he closely observed a glimpse of buildings in the distance, which mean the trek could be shortened for a bit. The CO stared at Adi for a moment before glancing at Boris. 

"I believe we should interrogate them just in case," the CO replied. 

"Mister, by the time we get there, most of them would already find a way to oppose you and may not even bother to tell you even by the edge of a knife," Boris replied too. This made the CO raise an eyebrow in response. 

"Is that so? Then what do you propose, Boris?" 

"If all else fails... Then they'll die anyway." This prompted a few laughs from the soldiers but Adi, who only frowned in response. 

"You sure are quick to answer, even though the neighbors from down under would yell at us once more." 

"Your people are already under scrutiny from many organizations and activists for what you've done to the people on this island. But they don't truly understand how meaningless their cries will be. It's not like the future would be even brighter for them, or even all of you. Not if they deny what's truly in their hearts." This brought silence to the entire battalion, with some even clenching their teeth in response to this response from Boris, with Adi staring intensively at him. Some even were raising their Pindad P1 pistols from their holsters to retaliate toward him. However, the CO raised his hand once more as he approached Boris, this time with a frown as he leaned near Boris. Perhaps a bit of lecture coming from him or something else at hand? 

"What are you implying?" 

"The rules of nature, mister. It's what all comes to when it comes to war. A selection of those who are fit to understand the world. And let me tell you, some of you may not live for much longer anyway." The statement appeared to have made most of the soldiers fall into silence, with some gasps heard as well. For all that they may boast, such is the truth when it comes to living in this world. And yet, how would they handle it if it came to that, they wonder? Perhaps some nice venting would alleviate those concerns of theirs. 

"Well? What's it gonna be?" Boris asked one more time. And after a few more minutes of silence, the CO turned in the direction of the village. 

"Mobilize to the village and interrogate every villager until we find the intruder. If they further resist, then don't hesitate to open fire. No regrets." With this command, the majority of the battalion smiled and even laughed in response as they load their rifles and marched toward the forest to head over to the village. All with the exception of Adi, who looked wide-eyed at this turn of events. But as a soldier, he had no choice but to obey them, no matter the cost. 

Stepping closer to the village, Adi could see the villager's chatter grind to a halt as they backed away from their presence, some even hiding in their homes and closing their doors as gasps could be heard around them, some even shielding their own children. All of this while the soldiers shoved some of them aside with sneers on their faces while they aimed their rifles in case some of them did something "funny". With every troop gathering around every perimeter, it appeared to be the perfect time for them to reconsider their choices. 

"What the hell are the invaders doing in here?!" a male villager asked, grabbing a fellow woman's arm tight as he scowled at them. 

"We seek a terrorist from here who dared to disrupt our patrol. If you surrender him to us, we'll spare you," the CO said as he pulled his gun out of its holster. 

"A terrorist?! We would never help them out! And even if we did, you won't get anything from us, you sons of bitches!" another male villager yelled out in response. The CO then aimed his gun at him, which while silenced him, still gave a long grimacing scowl at him, unflinching at the sight of the barrel of a gun. 

"This is your final warning. Deliver him to us, or else..." Aside from some whimpers and sobs, silence is what was still heard around the area. It looked like none would ever try to budge out their position in this, even if it meant that their lives would be on the line. 

But before someone could have tried something else, a gunshot was heard from afar, and before anyone could react, a bullet impacts the CO's cheek, the force was enough to make a bloodied hole in his mouth that showed part of his teeth before he fell down to the ground, with chunks of skin surrounding him as well with some drips of the crimson blood as well. 

From this, with one pull of a trigger, it was followed by thousands more. 

"Let them have it!" Was one of many shouts as they opened fire at the villagers, filling them up with holes, some bursts even exposing chunks of brains and guts, and some even emptied their whole magazines at those who weren't even mobile anymore, all while spouting some faces or even laughed like never before. Children could be heard trying to crawl away from the noise while tears filled their faces, but even then, those who could even barely walk weren't spared by the barrage of bullets that tore them down bit by bit, even if they stopped screaming. And even when they were out of bullets, a few slices and slashes from the machetes would have finished the job on them, tearing them limb from limb, even as they merely knelt down in surrender. 

All the while the villagers tried to run as far away as they could. 

"We surrender! For God's sake, we surrender! Please, stop!" a villager pleaded to no avail before meeting their end at the barrel of a gun. 

At that point, it wasn't clear what was more deafening; the sound of combined gunfire, the screams of the villagers, or even both. 

Amidst the cacophony, the one peculiar element was Adi, the one soldier who stood frozen without ever pulling the trigger, as he turned his head side to the side, seeing either corpses or his fellow soldiers opening fire without end. His eyes were wide enough to show the whites, highly trembling, unsure of the next course of action to take. 

He jerked his head around, with Boris in sight as he approached a bleeding woman covering her shoulder as he aimed his gun at a door in a cottage to his left. 

"Stop! That's a hospital!" the woman said as she coughed. 

"It matters not. Consider this as mercy," Boris said before he pulled the trigger, the sounds of screams filled up during the process and only stopped once he stopped the fire. And with this, tears fell down on the woman's face, shaking highly before she stopped breathing. But Adi's breathing rhythm only increased tenfold,  and before Boris could move out, Adi let out a scream. Enough to make Boris turn around and face him. 

"Damn it... God damn it, I can't do this! I can't really do this! Mr. Boris, I can't go on! What good is keeping order if we earn it this way?!" Adi shouted as tears continued to flow down from his cheeks. This prompted Boris to merely tap his shoulder while giving a slight smile. 

"Tell me, Adi. Why did you join in the first place?" 

"To... To support my country..." Adi stuttered, in an attempt to regain his composure as the gunfire and screams continued. 

"Why would you support your country?" 

"Because... Because they said it is what makes you a good citizen. A hero..." Silence followed for a bit as Boris only nodded his head in agreement. And yet, it's not what it seemed to be. 

"So tell me, Adi, is it really worth serving your country? Or serving your own family? Do you think that those are what it will take to make you into a good man? Will saving these villagers make you into a good man?" Adi is silent in all of this, such questions were never asked him like that in all his life, especially in bloodshed. "Of course not. They would have died regardless if we came here or not. It's part of a natural selection, a selection of those who either admit the truth of the world or not." 

"But not like this..." Adi muttered with a throaty voice. 

"Things like honor and duty are nothing but empty platitudes in a world like this. The only things that have any meaning are when we kill others for the barest of differences or leave them all behind, it's because it's the only thing we're good at. That's all you need to know and accept." After that, Boris let go of Adi and turned back to scout for any villagers in sight left to root out. 

And then, Adi jerked his head to the right, witnessing a fellow soldier dragging a male child who screamed for his parents while being pinned down to a tree trunk. But just as the soldier pulled the trigger, Adi decided by pulling it first, this time in the direction of the soldier who was about to execute the boy. The bullets impacted near the heart, which was enough for him to stumble backward and drop his rifle too. Despite this, Adi couldn't stop breathing heavily or even stopping his own tears from falling down. 

The noise was noticeable enough to make Boris turn back at him, now seeing the sight of both the fallen soldier and the boy who ran away. All of this made Boris laugh in response in front of the shaky Adi. 

"Now you resort to that? Do you still want to believe in foolishness?" But before Boris could respond, Adi grabs his rifle and tried to hit Boris in the head like a club. He was aware of the consequences, but at this rate, it was the best thing he'll have to do to make up for it. But before his rifle could even approach Boris, he grabbed the rifle right in the barrel and then threw it away before using his own rifle to push Adi aside, which sent him rolling down in the grass. This made Boris chuckle even more before pinning Adi down through his throat, which made him try to gasp for air as much as he could as Boris tightened the choke on him. 

"Now you've shown an act of insubordination, private. I think some discipline is needed." But as Boris continued to choke Adi, a gunshot was heard from behind, impacting Boris' shoulder which made him release Adi and turn around to see the one responsible. 

The same one who threw the rock in the first place, breathing and sweating heavily tried to pull the trigger once more, only for clicks to be heard. This sight was enough to make Boris growl and pull his handgun and pull the trigger, striking him down in retaliation for this backhanded attack on him. With three bullets in his chest, the man collapsed to the ground. 

But unknown to Boris, this gave Adi the opportunity to leap forward and sprint away like the fiercest wind, away from the sound of gunfire and

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