Julie:

"I don't know..." I say. "The clones are in no shape to fight."

"But they will be! With some training and rest, they'll be perfect. They can be back up if we can't handle the demons on are own," Night babbles excitedly. She suddenly looks freer as she explains her plans to me. She was beginning to evolve from the reserved, distrusting girl from before. Was she starting to trust me? Her body seems less ready to fight as she stands beside me, but somehow I can tell she hasn't fully come out of her shell.

"Alright, alright," I sigh. "We can at least ask Mary." Night's gaze grows weary, but soon hardens to hide any weakness. I guess she doesn't trust as much as I thought. I look at the clones, not wanting to do anything without their consent. They say nothing, their emotionless faces completely unreadable. I hardly expected them to refuse, since they seemed to do anything for my approval.

"We'll fight with you, original," the lead clone answers without being asked. I look at clones, suddenly eager to fight on my behalf. Just looking at them brought memories I forced myself to forget.

"Thank you," I mange to say. Then we walk out of the hall and into the building beyond it. The clones are silent. Some fall to their knees in exhaustion, while others stand transfixed by the sight of something besides their prison cell. I hear the familiar sound of heels running on tile floor. I look up to see the stunned expression of Mary. She stops a few feet away from us, frozen in place.

"What the...?" her voice trailing off.

"This is precisely what we need; an army. Of course, it'll be last resort, but its always best to be prepared," the priest says, emerging from the shadows to stand beside Mary.

"We are clones, Mary,"

"We are here to help,"

"Get out of my head," Mary snaps. She storms over to me, confused anger clouding her brown eyes. "What the hell is going?"

"These are my...clones," I answer slowly. I expect Mary to snap, to yell, to demand an explanation. Instead, she sighs, running her hand through her hair. Her expression saying that she longer had the energy for things like this.

"We need to talk," Mary says flatly, glancing at the clones with distrusting eyes.

Summer:

I look around with room with excited awe. What a marvelous show awaited me, not only did I have the promise of winning my parents affection, but I also get to be entertained by these fine folks! I eye the clones closely, barely listening to the arguing of Night and Mary. Whether the clones get to be soldiers doesn't concern me, I am too busy amusing myself to care. Apparently, no one shares my excitement. Shane stands off in the background, still grieving from his encounter with Night. On the other hand, Night seems to have forgotten it, since she's already charged into another war. Julie fidgets uncomfortably under the unreadable stares of clones. The priest just observes, like me, never saying a word.

"These clones are hardly stable enough to go to war! Are you insane? We have no idea what their capable of," Mary yells, her voice coming into focus.

"We need them. We can't fight a whole demon army alone!" Night shouts back.

"Well, that's your  job. If you can't, you're  more than welcome to leave," Mary growls furiously. Julie steps in to play peacemaker, but by then I've lost interest. My eyes shift to the one of the clones, eager to start probing. I delicately connect are minds, careful not to draw attention, but I am caught moments before the link is stable.

"What do you want, intruder?" the clone demands. I grin back at the clone, fascinated by telepathic communication.

"So you can talk telepathically? Interesting,"  I answer, grinning with excitement.

"Of course I can, I was artificially built to surpass you in both intelligence and strength," the clone responds as if its obvious.

"Is that so? Today turning out to be very interesting," I giggle to myself. Telepathic communication excited me, for no one shared the burden of my gift, but now it seemed that someone of equal strength had arrived. No, actually someone stronger than me and that was even more exciting.

"I'm not here to amuse you, petty intruder," the clone says telepathically.

"It's too late for that. You've already become another actress in this play we call life," I smile, deciding it was time to end this little discussion. All fun things must end. I turn away, surprised to find every clone watching me. I simply smile in return, then focus my attention to listening to the conversation going on around me. Admittedly, this isn't as fun.

"I think its a great idea! What's holding us back? The clones are willing, aren't they?" the priest says, his voice smooth and persuasive. I watch him charm his way to Mary's good side. That sparkle in your eyes won't fool me; I'm on to you.

"I thought you said it wouldn't come to that," Mary protests, though there was little fight left in her voice. The priest expertly chipping away at her protests.

"I never said that," he says smoothly. "The demons will fight dirty, you know that, don't you? We must be prepared to fight just as dirty."

"I suppose so..." Mary agrees, her voice trailing off. The priest leans in close, taking her hand in his hand and squeezing it reassuringly. Mary looks away, his gaze too intense.

"Trust me, Mary," he says softly. "It'll just be a precaution." From the corner of my eye, I see Shane boiling in jealousy rage. It seems his heart has not decided who he loves more: Mary or Night. You can't have both, Shane.

"Fine, I'll talk to the researchers tomorrow," Mary growls, finally giving in. She stands up to challenge Night, their faces inches apart. "If I find them incapable I'm revoking my previous decision, no question asked, understood?"

"Thanks," Night mumbles, her pride not allowing any more than that.

"You won't regret this," the priest smiles. He slithers like a snake around Mary, clouding her judgment. Our eyes only meet for a moment, but I see darkness in his soul. What is this priest after?