Necrocide

Chapter 33

FIVE YEARS BEFORE THE OUTBREAK...

Simon was right. Ares did break on the first day, physically speaking.

In the last three months, Ares had already broken three bones: his left leg, his left arm, and now his collarbone, all thanks to those training dummies. He never thought he'd face a punching bag that could punch back with twice as much power as he had.

Fortunately, thanks to the Ambrosia, his bones healed in two hours at most and he'd be back in the training program in no time. In fact, he had been one of the best fighters in the entire project. Seventy-two rounds, seventy-two wins. He was also assigned to train Hermes in hand-to-hand combat, but he was worried the old man would break easier than he did. From the way Hermes looked, he was probably in his late sixties, one of the oldest veterans in the facility without a doubt.

But now the Ambrosia Project was about to change. Schaefer reported an incoming wave of new recruits, all of them cadets. He claimed the new recruits would range from sixteen years old to twenty-five, some of them barely enlisted and others right out of training. Once they showed up, the Ambrosia Project's subjects would consist of the young and amateur and the old and experienced.

Ares sat in the infirmary with his arm in a sling. The only person in there with him was Hera, who rarely spoke aside from instructions and deadpan snarks. She was at the sink washing blood off her hands after working with another subject's fracture, one that was a hundred times worse than Ares's broken collarbone. Apparently, the bone penetrated through the poor soldier's skin.

"So it's that bad, innit?" Ares asked.

"Yes, sir," Hera replied, turning off the water. "Dionysius received a compound fracture after the training bot stepped on his foot and knocked him to the floor. Once he was down, the bot kept walking across his leg and smashed it to bits."

"Please tell me he didn't feel that."

"He wasn't supposed to if the Ambrosia functioned properly, but he did. Granted, he wasn't screaming bloody murder like one would expect, which hopefully means it wasn't as bad as it could've been, but he was still in too much pain to move. Given the Ambrosia's healing process, he should be fine in a few hours."

"I recall you people saying it's supposed to work in seconds. Or at least that's what Artemis implied."

Hera glanced at Ares with a cold expression. "We're humans, not gods. And just like gods, our creations are flawed but well-intentioned and can bring destruction if not put in place. Because of that, we are endlessly working to improve Ambrosia and make sure it meets its full potential by healing immediately after the harm is done. However, Dionysius may be removed from the Ambrosia Project if his healing isn't successful."

"Can't you just shoot the wanker with the AMBR-TRIG like on the first day?" Ares replied. "That's how my hand got healed."

Hera grabbed a paper towel and dried her hands, throwing the paper in the trashcan once she finished. She pulled up a seat and sat down in front of Ares. "The AMBR-TRIG only activates and deactivates the nanites. It doesn't speed up the process. We might be able to speed up the process if we somehow aggravate the nanite's healing powers, but the side effects can be fatal if it goes wrong."

Ares raised an eyebrow. "What could go wrong?"

"The nanites could overpower and explode, unsurprisingly killing him from the inside. Some of the chemicals used in the Ambrosia could leak out and poison him. In fact, leaving inactive nanites inside of you already increases your risk of metallic poisoning and blood clots. Anything could happen to you and the rest of the subjects, but that's what these tests are for."