VIRUS

Chapter 12- Us and Them

    I honestly wasn't surprised when Magdalena left Squad 352. I don't really know if she left the army or transferred to a new squad. Not that it really matters. She's gone, and we have no doctor, now. Sam tried to talk Magdalena out of leaving, but she seemed pretty determined to leave. I didn't say anything to her about Amelia and Hamada. What would I say?

    I overheard Logan talking to one of the Connectors soon after Magdalena left. They said something about wanting to leave, too. The Connector didn't seem to like that idea very much. Unsurprising. Logan is one of the best fighters they had from what I've heard. Logan accepted hesitantly, but they asked about Hamada before leaving.

    "Hamada is the best fighter in your squad," they replied evenly. "No matter what the rumors state about Hamada, and no matter what the truth is, she is incredibly valuable to this uphill battle."

    "What about the virus she carries?" Logan spoke carefully.

    "Amelia's power has proven valuable in the past," they replied evenly. "Amelia and Hamada have assured us that Hamada is human. As long as she is not a demon, luck will be in our favor."
    "With all do respect, sir," Logan started carefully. "We are fighting the viruses rather than the demons... Correct?"

    "They are both our enemies. Whether you kill uninfected demons whilst on the battlefield is none of my concern."

    There was silence for a while.

    "Do you understand, Catiyama?" Logan sighed.

"Yes, sir. I understand."

Noise was heard from the room, and the Connector walked out, boots stomping on the floor. They glanced at me and kept walking. I lookedback into Logan's room, and I met their eyes. They frowned.

"I suppose it's in your nature to eavesdrop."

"Um... Sorry, I just overheard you talking to the Connector, and I wasc urious as to why," I apologized. They sighed.

"It's okay," they said, sitting down on their bed. "Why don't you come in rather than peak your head around the corner?" I walked in hesitantly, standing beside Logan. "Have you been improving at all with your training with Clarissa?" They asked suddenly.

"Um- Yeah, I suppose," I replied. "I can defend myself a lot better, and she's taught me some offense moves, but... But obviously we haven't had the time to practice." Logan stared at me, in that same skeptical way they did the day I first joined the army. "Why do you ask?" Logan paused.

"I was just curious," they spoke finally. "Clarissa is an... Interesting person, to say the least. I didn't know how she would par as a teacher." They hesitated. "Apparently they didn't do all that well."

"That wasn't her fault," I shot back. Logan looked at me.

"You could've died. Regardless of who's fault it was, she was on the wrong end of the sword."

    "Hamada wouldn't have hurt me," I argued.

    "You're far too trusting," Logan insisted. "What happened to the whole avenging your family thing?"

    "Hamada isn't like that!" I yelled.

    "Oh? And why's that?" Logan questioned.

    "Because she's-" I froze. Because she's...

    "Because she's human, right?" Logan finished. "Just because she's like us, that means she doesn't have the will to murder? That all things that don't look like us, are different in any way must carry a virus?" I thought back to Tony. We were so close when we were little...

"You know that I want to leave. You overheard that much," they spoke evenly. "I don't want to leave because of Clarissa or Amelia. And of course that's something that unnerves me to say the least, but I wish to leave because I am sick of people being ignorant. I am sick of people assuming that every demon out there carries a virus and that they all deserve to die. I am just done with people thinking it's us and them, when it is in no way like that."

"I-"

"If you can't understand that, then fine," Logan interrupted. "But I hope you and the rest of Humanity stop killing off an entire species just like us."

Logan sighed and walked out, seemingly angry, although they didn't look it. I exhaled and looked down. Thoughts of Tony popped back into my head- his smile, his happiness, our friendship.

I get it, Logan, I thought. I really wish it wasn't us and them, too.

At this point I'm just killing my old friends on the battlefield rather than avenging my family, aren't I?