Creed
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PRIMUS data-file:50026
The Story of Toby Castiel is that of one that is unfortunate, dark, and overall saddening. I remember getting a chance to interview him, getting some insight on his dark childhood, I being a soldier myself, have been battle-hardened, and I can't make enough excuses in the world to hide the fact that the story of this kid nearly has me bawling like a teenage girl being stood up at prom. I can't fathom on how much this teenage kid, who hasn't even reached adult-hood yet, has seen, and lived through events that I hope in my military career as a sergeant that my men don't ever witness the things that this practical bite-sized cannon fodder has seen in his first 9 years as a Soldier of (mis)fortune.
To start it off, through all the stuttering this kid makes, none that I blame him of, really. He tells me that his first memory into the hell-hole of a life he had was that he was being taught how to walk by some "apparent" friendly helmeted faces of some VIPER troops, one named "Cobra" he told me, but other than that, he doesn't go over much mainly because my guess is that he doesn't remember it. But aside from that, he told me that once he was "Eligible" age of joining the military, (five years of age according to the jerk-wads in charge)he was taught how to fire a pistol that was too big for his hands at the time, and when he fired the thing it hit him in the face, along with another hit followed from at the back of his head, to which he didn't tell me what they said, but he stated it was a "Firm scolding." and left it at that. After some more training exercises he went over the "Mental training", God I almost lost my cool listening to this, he went over on how he had learned to "Embrace death like a mother's caring arms." by taking UNTIL POW's, and using them as target practice, of all the sick things I've heard in my career as a PRIMUS agent, this by far is the worst documentation of humanity's cruelty I had ever experienced in my life. Using the world's protectors against super-crime as target practice for kids? What on Earth is wrong with these people? Why in the world are they training kids at five years old on how to cope with death by causing it? Well, I asked, and Toby replied with "They wanted super-soldiers who would not flinch at seeing someone at the end of the barrel, nor would the hesitate to pull it." Simply put, that is depressing, as well as horrifying, taking the practical humanity out of a child before he can learn to kick a ball.
But this snowball isn't done rolling down the hill to hell, yet; he was far from done on giving me the whole jist on what "The Young Snakes" program was, here. Just by that God-forsaken TITLE of the program you can see a whole world of wrong; after they use the UNTIL agents as target practice, they learned how to reload as well as how to use the gun in general, no gun-safety, at all. Just how to reload, and how to check if it's jammed. I was nearly sick to my stomach hearing him go over this, and he could tell, but I couldn't just stop here when he asked if he wanted to end the interview, I wanted to know the entire story of why someone would create this diabolical program, especially the person behind it. Well, he himself didn't know, but I asked him to continue on past the training, mainly because I thought that was the worst of it, but I was so, so wrong.
He then told me that these "Young Snakes" were to be expendable, as well as a secret weapon, mainly because a soldier who wasn't trained like him would hesitate, even go to a complete stop seeing a kid on a battle-field. They got that part right by a long shot! I don't want to meet the sick excuse for a person who wouldn't flinch seeing some kid in a VIPER T-shirt and shorts in a jungle, but then, I'm not sure how one would react, and by then, it'd be too late, the kid would either blow themselves up, or shoot you, it's a lose-lose situation for those who aren't quick enough to at least try and disarm the kid. He went over how he was the weakest, and how he could never keep up with the other kids in his group, pretty much the "Runt" in the huge litter of puppies that this program had the intent of making into full fledged Dogs of War, so, mainly he was slow, and couldn't remember how to reload and work the rifle very well, because he couldn't think straight when the apparent "Demon Soldiers" that they brainwashed him to think of the UNTIL soldiers were, were around the corner. Then came to how he fought, he went over how he felt when his heart was pounding, how his hands sweat holding a combat-knife, how he felt when he was waiting for someone who didn't expect to see him around a corner, and how he felt when the kill was made; and at such a young age, at that. God, I'd expect someone in adult-hood to talk about this, as well as how they'd be crying about killing someone.
Honestly, I thought that'd be the end of it, but there was one more thing to go over on Toby's life here, and I tried to make myself ready for it, but I wasn't, and believe you me, when this battle-hardened teenager started to tear up, I can tell I was going to follow suit, he told me had a friend named "Daike", who would always keep his back, and he had a high opinion of this fellow child-soldier, so I guess he was a respectable kid. But, one that'd I'd never meet, unfortunately; he described Daike, how he was Japanese like all the other kids, and could never understand how he, himself had lighter skin and hair than all the others, and Daike, as smart as he was told him there were "Other races" of people, and how Toby himself was fascinated by this. But he goes to tell me the last time he was able to talk to him, and this is when the shock, as well as the sadness comes in. Toby, or "Creed" as his only name was at the time, was just finishing up a mission, and not the "Fun Missions" you'd get in video games, a real, and soul-wrenching military mission, at nine years old. When he described how he was crying, walking with his group, other members telling him to stop crying as he was too old for it, Daike stayed next to him, with his hand on his shoulder, and comforting him on how well he did, then he described how he was only able to look up at him for a split second, before he noticed a hole in Daike's eye, followed by something warm on his face, blood.
This is when I couldn't believe my ears, Toby, little Creed, watched his best friend fall forward, and hit the ground, dead. He told me the shock he was in, the way the world stood still for a very long moment, seeing the blood pour from his friend's skull, his friend, Daike; was gone just like that. Then, something seemed to had awoken, deep within him, a sort of rage he never knew he had, he told me everything after that was a blur, but he described to me to what he saw afterwards, he told me that he had found the sniper that had gunned down his friend, and somehow ripped the gun from his hands, and caved in his skull with the butt of the rifle, and how his arms ached and burned after doing so; apparently, this is when he noticed he had BMD, because that aching and burning lasted for a longer period than his colleagues had told him it would last. But then, comes to the tear-jerker. Toby described how he had to bury his best friend in a crude grave outside of their base, like some pet in the backyard somewhere.
He told me how he dug a hole next to where he had his dead friend laying, and how he barely had the strength to roll Daike in, then after burying him, he silently went back to his quarters where the other kids slept, them looking at him as he came in, and how he collapsed in his bed, and went to sleep. After that, I was crying. I was simply, crying. I can't believe all of this, came from a seventeen year old boy, who hasn't even hit the drinking age- Not that it doesn't matter, he told me he started drinking at twelve, and I don't blame him one bit. Because even after that, he continued to fight, and didn't leave that mountain in Kyoto until he was fourteen years of age, and that was before he was ran-through with a sword, conducted on with experimental power armor that he somehow survived from, and was picked up by Fulani Okonkwo in a crater from a bombing run somewhere north of Monster Island.
I am Sergeant Julias Masters, and this is by far the worst case of VIPER's programs and experiments that I have ever had laid upon my ears by someone that had somehow, in some way survived, relay to me in my entire career as a PRIMUS agent, and by God I don't ever want to hear it again. I hope to who ever was in charge of this program, is brought to justice, as I can't fathom the amount of hate I have for that person, to think Creed is actually getting help, and giving help to the people that need it with the armor that VIPER had given him, modified as it may be, kind of shows the world isn't such a bad place after all.