"I told you guys. That is my way to bring peace unto the world!" John said. "It's only in the testing phase, but I call this guy...a super soldier."

"W-What...did you do to that person?" Anna asked with a terror-filled expression.

"It's in the test phase, but to create super soldiers, test subjects like these guys have to undergo extreme modifications to their bodies to surpass the physical limits of a human," John explained. "It's a painful, torturous process for them, but it's all for the good, of the country."

"F-For the good?"

Suddenly, the unconscious man began uttering agony-filled groans. He slowly lifted his head. In a broken expression, the man looked at the Hayes couple.

"P-Please..." He uttered with his remaining strength, surprising them. "Ple...ase he..lp...me..."

That was all he could say. His head hung back down as he returned to his state of unconsciousness.

BEEEEEP!

A long, ear-piercing, and constant sound was audible from the life support machine, along with a straight green line on the display.

"Aww, another one died?" John nonchalantly asked. "I guess a few more tweakings are in order."

"Another...one?" Tomas asked. "Just how many people...have you tested on...?"

"Only a few," John responded. "I got the vision about this not too long ago."

"No, this cannot work! We're leaving!" Anna said as the couple stormed out. Surprised at their actions, John followed them.

"What's wrong?" John asked. "Why are you guys angry?"

"This is the opposite of what we are striving for!" Tomas exclaimed. "We want peace through overarching empathy, with no one viewing each other as tools. What you've shown us is the opposite!"

"C'mon, don't you think not fighting for peace, even a little is unrealistic?" John countered as he was following closely behind. "These super soldiers will theoretically be enough to stop those criminal bastards. It's like having blessed humans of our own but on a leash."

"That's the type of idea we want to avoid! Everyone should be free, so why turn some into tools!?"

"In life, sacrifices have to be made at times!" John said. "I appreciate your speeches as they have contributed to lowering crime somewhat, but if we take our heels off the problem, we'll never fix it completely!"

The Hayes couple suddenly stopped and turned to John.

"Nothing is more important than human lives...all of them," Tomas said before they continued. Knowing it was futile to continue, John let them go.

"Tsk, dammit! What's the matter with them all of a sudden?" John asked.

I didn't expect your parents to act this way. I valued their relationship so much. I've been supporting all their speeches and even told them about this super soldier plan...but they rejected me so coldly. Wondering if I was truly wrong, I decided to get advice from a trusted individual, my lieutenant.

Entering an office, John noticed a younger Harvey around his desk, seemingly expecting his arrival.

"Lieutenant." John greeted him with a salute.

"C'mon, you don't need to be so formal." Lieutenant Harvey stated. "Have a seat."

Obliging, John sat down.

"So. How has the super soldier project been going?" Harvey asked.

"They keep dying, but my men and I have gotten closer to keeping them alive and stable."

"That's good, that's good." Harvey commended. "I can't wait to see the fruits of your labor. That will be the key to our nation's stability."

"Thank you, Lieutenant." John expressed. "But I don't think everyone thinks that way."

"Hmm? What do you mean?" Harvey asked.

"Do you remember the social activists I've built a relationship with?"

"Oh, yes. You told them about your vision, right? How did it go?" Harvey inquired.

"Not well. I thought because the Hayes couple were striving for peace, they would agree with my vision." John explained. "However, they were very much against it because we were sacrificing other people to turn them into war machines."

"I see...in their speeches, they always heavily emphasized empathy and equality." Rubbing his chin, Harvey added. "However, I don't think there's anything to worry about."

"Really?"

"Yes. Normal people will have a hard time accepting things if it violates their 'moral standards,' but if they think it over, I'm sure they'll come around."

"Ah, that is true," John said with a smile.

"Exactly. Like the Hayes couple striving for peace, you do the same in your own way. Perfect the modifications for the super soldier, so you can advance to project 'Zero.'" Harvey advised. "Once it is finished, Tomas and Anna will see the good in this."

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Yes, sir!" John said with determination.

With renewed determination, I continued the 'tests'. Harvey allowed me to understand why your parents reacted like that, so I no longer felt any anger towards them.

Although we never spoke as much, I continued to support them in their speeches. I even watched as their name spread across the nation. I was proud that they became known as inspirers. However, nothing else made me proud more than the Super Soldier project, which just made a breakthrough.

Dripping was audible in an infirmary-like room, as liquid from spilled canisters drained from the table. On the walls and floor were heavy bloodstains, and the room was filled with human-sized containers, eerily glowing blue liquid on the inside.

Lying on a hospital-like bed was a heavily scarred, shirtless male. He was attached to an intravenous drip and a heart rate monitor, keeping track of his vitals. Surrounding him was John, with professionals in lab coats and medical gear.

"H-He's alive!" One of the professionals excitedly said as they watched the heart rate monitor. Showing the usual jagged lines, the monitor indicated his vitals were normal. "We finally kept a test subject stable after all the modifications to his body!"

"This is a breakthrough! We must take note of this for project 'Zero'!" Another professional stated ecstatically. In response, John simply smiled.

Finally, after all my efforts, it finally became real. To be safe, however, we decided to test his physical aspects.

That's exactly what we did. We brought the super soldier to a training ground to understand the true extent of his capabilities. Effortlessly beating large groups of trained soldiers by himself, he had the endurance and the skill. Dodging multiple bullets fired at him, he had the speed and reflexes. Punching walls to the point of destroying them with his bare hands, he had the strength. Surviving being struck by numerous combat weapons easily, he had the durability. Even gaining perfect scores on object tracking exercises, he had the reaction speed and visual acuity. He truly was the perfect soldier that I envisioned.

So when we were alerted of criminal activity taking place by a blessed criminal, we didn't hesitate to take him for a test run. Of course, he gave amazing results.

John entered inside of a bank, where the super soldier had someone pinned down to the ground.

"Target is suppressed. There are no casualties." The super soldier reported. Not being able to hold it, John chuckled.

"Haha...good work!" John commended.

This continued for weeks as my first super soldiers generated amazing results against the blessed criminals. I even gave him the nickname the 'Blessed Slaughterer.' I knew that Tomas and Anna heard about those events, so I thought they would see the good in it.

However, that was only the beginning, as project 'Zero' was ready to be implemented. We needed funds, however, so we had to speak with the president, who at the time, was President William Gregory.

Sitting in a lounge similar to when John spoke to President Garfield, John and Harvey met with President William.

"Good afternoon, Sergeant, Lieutenant." William greeted in a deep and base-filled tone. He was a man with a bald hairstyle and bushy eyebrows. His charismatic smile was similar to the one Garfield has. Fitting for a president, after all. "I'm aware of the good you have done so far with the super soldiers, which is why I agreed to this meeting."

"Yes. For the power of the super soldiers to become fully realized, we have to go through with Project 'Zero'." Harvey explained. "Which is why we need the funds for research and development."

"I understand. I want to give you guys the funds, but I also understand that it could go against human rights." William countered.

"You don't have to worry," John assured. "We only use existing soldiers that have given their full consent."

"Hmm..." President William mumbled. "Well...for the good of the country--"

Suddenly, the television in William's lounge was switched to a specific channel, attracting their attention.

"Huh? What's this?" William asked in confusion. "I thought I had the television off."

Yes, Nathan. This is where the story takes a turn for the worse. Just when things were going in the right direction, a random live broadcast took place.

"The crime rates have gone down a great margin," Tomas said as he and his wife were making a public speech, surrounded by numerous civilians as the audience. Flashes of light were visible as many people were taking pictures. "The peace we all desired is on the horizon now!" He said with an excited look on his face, which quickly disappeared. "Or...is it?"

"Is this the peace we wanted?" Anna asked, grabbing onto the audience's emotions. "Didn't we want empathy and equality among every one of us? So why is it that we are turning people into disfigured war machines to suppress and even eliminate broken criminals!?"

As they were talking, John and Harvey's face slowly warped into an expression of great nervousness.

"Are some lives more important than others!?" Tomas asked.

"NO!" Members of the audience shouted.

"Is the answer to violence more violence!?" Anna asked.

"NO!!!" The audience angrily shouted.

"It's clear that they only care about themselves! They don't even see their subordinates as humans...just tools!" Tomas stated, riling up the audience even more.

"This is not true peace..." Anna stated. "We do not, and will not support anyone who agrees with the abominable act of the super soldiers!"

In response, the crowd went wild with their cheers and roars.

"W-What...?" John stuttered in utter confusion.

"...Well, I think that they might be right." President William awkwardly stated. "From the information I received, super soldiers are created by putting the subject under heavy modifications, which is equivalent to torture...it goes against human rights no matter what you say..."

"But, Mr. President..." Harvey softly uttered in hopes of swaying him. It was futile, however.

"Sorry. Besides, the Hayes couple said they wouldn't support anyone who agrees with the super soldiers." William said. "If I'm found to be on the side of the super soldiers, that will hurt my reputation, considering how many followers the Hayes couple has."

Isn't that unfair?

"It's a shame because I think super soldiers are a good idea...but to keep my reputation, I'm afraid I'll have to reject your request your funding," William stated as he got up. "If anything changes, which it likely won't, I'll change my mind." With that said, William left.

"John..." Harvey called out. John had a confused expression on his face, as he was stunned by the public speech he heard.

After all my support for them, they returned it by vilifying the military... vilifying me and ruining my chances at success! I was mad...and I wanted to know how your parents could do this to me!!!

Immediately driving to the scene, John confronted them after their public speech.

"Hey!" John called out to them in anger. "What the hell are you guys talking about!!!"

"Huh? Oh, hello John." Anna greeted him coldly, confusing him.

It's as if we've never met each other, with how they were acting!

"...How could you say all those things in your speech! You just put the public against us!!"

"What...we were just telling the truth," Tomas stated, angering John to the point of clenching his fist.

"Because of you guys, the president withdrew his funding for Project 'Zero'! What I envisioned is now ruined because of you guys!"

"I see," Anna said. "At least the president understands that people's lives aren't playthings."

"DAMN IT! YOU GUYS SAW THE NEWS REPORTS OF THE SUPER SOLDIER GETTING RID OF THOSE CRIMINALS! THE IDEA IS GOOD, AND YOU GUYS ARE STILL REJECTING IT!!!"

"If you think that idea is good, then you should have never joined the military," Tomas said, utterly shocking John. "Let's go, honey. We have nothing more to say to him."

"Yes, darling." Without any more exchanging of words, they left. John simply stared in the distance with a shocked expression and widened eyes.

"Y...You...bastards..."

Your shit parents honestly thought they would ruin my dream...my reputation...and get away with it!? No, I just had to pay them back!!!