[ZO]Enek's Log: Drive

The Man I Killed Part 2

The fingers shook as they gripped the trigger. Leather sliding upon polycarbonate created a tight squeezing sound as the resounding whir of the rotating barrel could be heard from outside. The scanner beeped.

The target has been confirmed out of commission. Your orders?

The voice echoed in the pilot's ears as he sat, staring at the man he killed. A faint thump, thump, thump could only be heard as his hearing turned in on itself. He sat there, staring at the man he killed. Fingers on the trigger. Still ready to fire. Still feeling the rush. A sudden jerk in the mech forced him back to his senses. A voice responded to the jerk.

We are engaging in combat with XX at coordinates (XX, YY). Your orders, sir?

The pilot looked again at the man he killed, and then at the trigger he held in his hand. He smiled. What he had held in his hand was more than a trigger; it was power. It was bewitching. It was lust. When there were only two beings in space, and only two choices, the war had become so much more intimate. This was no longer a war, no longer a battle. It was a dance of seduction, where only the strong survived. Kill or be killed; those were the only options. Life became simple...and simple is beautiful.

The pilot squeezed the controls; the mech responded. He readied for battle, bowing to his partner. As he began the deadly waltz, he felt as if a voice were speaking inside of him.

I have killed beauty. Beauty no longer exists in this world.

He shivered, feeling chills in the base of his spine. The target clicked; he had a lock-on. As he pressed the trigger, he felt a response to the notion.

You have killed beauty, but in the process, have created something even more beautiful. Beauty no longer exists because only in the process of leaving is it truly beautiful.