Episode 3

6/17/1983

Impressive. Rin tossed her gun aside and kicked the boy's out of his hand. He jumped to his feet and swung at her. Rin ignored this and clutched his throat with one hand, dragging his face toward her. He almost pulled free, and she realized she was being sloppy. It wouldn't do to have some pup raising the alarm.

She grabbed his hair from behind with her right hand, while her left released his throat and clutched his wrist instead, twisting his arm behind his back. She stopped when she heard a yelp of pain.

Rin scrutinized the boy. He was handsome. Very handsome. He seemed familiar. For a moment she wondered whether they had met before, but knew it was impossible. No, he was just a good-looking boy. And not a terrible soldier either. She glanced at her shirt. The clustering of the three shots was very good. Rin consulted her watch.

Over the remaining two miles to the Capital, the population density would grow quickly. It was quite possible that the gunshots had been heard. Most likely they would be ignored, part of the ordinary course of checkpoint business. If not, the phone would ring. When nobody answered, they would send soldiers.

So far, the phone hadn't rung. If anybody remarked the absence of the soldier diverting traffic, they probably would not complain about one less bribe to pay. Until someone official happened by, there would be nothing to worry about.

Rin estimated she had at least twenty minutes and probably a lot longer. More importantly, her quarry would not worry even if informed of a skirmish. This far from the Capital, a few gunshots would be no cause for concern. By the time the real threat was apparent, it would be too late. But first things first.

The whole affair had gotten Rin's blood flowing, and the anticipation of what was to come heightened her senses. She felt alive and in the mood for some fun.

Rin dragged the soldier into the cabin, ignoring his gasp at the sight of the commandant's body. She used that man's belt to tie the boy's arms to a ceiling beam, stuffed the sullied shirt in his mouth, and quietly removed the boy's shirt and pants. His struggles annoyed her.

She whipped him on the back twice with his own belt. Hard, but not hard enough to leave a permanent mark. Probably.

"Children should be seen but not heard," she crooned in English, rubbing the belt under his chin. From his expression, it was clear he didn't understand a word of it.

To his credit, the boy did not sob. She guessed he was around eighteen or nineteen. Was he a virgin? Probably, unless he'd seduced or raped somebody local. Rin doubted that. He just didn't seem the type.

"You've probably never been kissed," she laughed, pulling the shirt from his mouth. He didn't scream, but launched into a stream of staccato speech. Something about this country's language grated on Rin. She kissed the boy passionately. At least that shut him up. He may have tried to bite off her tongue, but she couldn't tell. She gently bit his lip, then stuffed the rag back in.

Rin ground provocatively against the boy until he was hard and still. It was tempting. Very tempting. But that wasn't the plan, and she was short on time. Besides, a mere boy couldn't satisfy her.

She slowly caressed him, her hand gliding to the peak in his briefs. She gave a contemptuous smirk. Pressing her cheek against his, Rin whispered in his ear, "Did you actually think that was going to happen?" He might not understand her words, but he surely would understand her tone. Well, she'd toyed with the boy enough. She had places to be, people to kill.

Rin lingered in the doorway. The whole thing hadn't been nearly as satisfying as she had hoped. To her surprise, she actually felt bad for the fellow. If he was a virgin, he'd probably stay that way. It wouldn't be easy to approach girls now, let alone get it up for one. It felt like a waste, but she had no problem with that.

What Rin did have a problem with was his docile reaction to being humiliated. She felt unappreciated and wondered what he was thinking. Did he hate her, love her, want revenge for his comrades, want to be with her? No, he was a boy and boys were simple. He just was scared and horny. Lots of animals went silent and still when threatened. It wasn't a bad strategy.

If he managed to get free he'd probably paint things in quite a different light. Maybe he'd even make it sound like he had his way with her. Rin was fine with that, in principle. The problem would be what came afterward.

Somehow his commander and comrades had been killed, and he had seduced the attacker? That would earn him summary execution for the sheer effrontery of the lie if nothing else. Was he smart enough to avoid that sort of bravado? Even if he was, concocting something plausible would be difficult.

With a sigh, Rin turned around. Despite herself, she liked the boy. He hadn't shown any fear, and had accepted his fate when there was nothing else to do. He would make a fine soldier one day, and she would let him have that. Besides, there wasn't much point in sparing his life if someone else would kill him a few hours later.

"Your dignity is the price you pay for annoying me," she announced as she walked over. She kissed him on the cheek. "But I'll let you keep your life for being a good soldier." She kissed him on the mouth. "And not too hard on the eyes."

She punched him in the face twice. Hard.

"Now you have a chance," she explained. "Try not to squander it."

If the boy understood, he did not show it. After examining his face, Rin was satisfied. If he was stupid enough to free himself, he deserved what he got.

Once outside, Rin quickly surveyed the weaponry at her disposal. Three AK47's, forty-seven bullets. The guns were of low quality, and she considered bringing all three in case two failed. But it would weigh her down, and getting a good start was more important. She had tarried long enough. Even if the gunshots went unnoticed, the bodies would not.

Rin wanted to make it far enough to melt into the city before the alarm was raised. If nobody was paying attention, she probably would have little trouble doing so in uniform. But if the city was on alert, she would be noticed. That would prove tedious in many ways.

Worse, it could give him a chance to flee. If he disappeared into the woodwork, it would take her forever to track him down again. She already was ashamed it had taken this long to find him. To let a man like that rise to Dictator unnoticed was embarrassing. Rin worried she was losing her touch. On the other hand, it was precisely because he had done so that she found him. Maybe he was losing his touch.

Surely, he knew the risks. Why would he be so stupid? Maybe he had grown complacent, been seduced by the delusion which allows people to keep their sanity in the face of all the horrible things that can happen: the belief that none of those horrible things will happen to them. Well, she was about to happen to him.

First things first, though. Rin almost had forgotten, and that sort of sloppiness would not do. She discarded one of the AK47's. It would be inconvenient if the remaining one jammed, but this was more important. She reached into her pocket and wrapped her hand around something cool and round. Even after all this time it was an odd sensation, something unsettling and perplexing, something the senses rejected. Would she use it? It would be a moot question if she didn't have it. Things could get a bit bumpy, and there was only one way to keep it safe.