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       The soldier was armed with a long knife and a light submachine gun. I made one extra hole
in his belt and crawled back into the palm trees.
       As for weapons and their handling: I was never among the absolute worst      - although I
haven't shot in a long time: actually since the tests before the mission to Uranus:    which was
already quite a few years: but back then: I was only one point behind Robert.
       I took the sniper prone position and unlocked the safety.
       The temperature rose slowly:   and the irrigation system: three times:  waved a mist veil
in the air.
       For a moment the dripping took on the intensity of an incipient rain.
       A hummingbird flew to the red puddle under the soldier's bare feet and:     flying on the
spot: stuck its long orange beak into it.
       I assumed: it would fly away right away: but no - after a while of concentrated drinking:
it started bathing carelessly.
       The fragile girl hiding inside me found it deviant      - she flashbacked with horror the
events of the last hours:  realized:    that she is part of a cruel killer and tried to create a
destructive panic in me.
       "You can't murder people and mutilate their lifeless bodies!"  :she shouted at the snake-
skin green huntress."
       "Their pities are buried with the fallen:" the huntress hissed: baring her teeth:     and
running her forked tongue along their edges.
       The hummingbird froze and disappeared with the speed of liquid light.
       I aimed.
       Just as I predicted: the woman quickly came under the power of my plant idol: and walked:
magically drawn by it: right in front of my barrel - she didn't even prepare her weapon.
       The man was a little more careful: he crouched: watched the surroundings:  and when I fi-
red: he immediately laid down - but one of my bullets still hit him in the side.
       He roared and started shooting in my direction.
       The woman fell on her back and grunted holding her stomach.
       Quiet shots was hitting the leaves with a whisper.
       The soldier suddenly turned his weapon up.
       Several heavy panes of glass shattered with a crash.
       One long shard got stuck right next to my head and cut off my left ear.
       The heat was almost pleasant.
       New rain of glass forced me to roll aside and this hurt really bad.
       I fired and waited for a response. 
       There was silence.
       I fired again.
       Still nothing.
       When I reached the fountain after about an hour of careful crawling: the man was gone.  I
looked for a blood: but found only one small drop on the way to the exit.
       The gasping woman woke up from unconsciousness and fixed her dying eyes on me.
       "Save her: heal her and save her:" pleaded the girl at the bottom of my mind.
       "Take the knife: and make her scream - let her scream in terror:" ordered the snake hunt-
ress.
       I put the gun to her head and pulled the trigger.