- M E N A - J U R I V I C H -

     Breathe in.

     This is a bad dream. It has to be.

     Breathe out.

     I watch, frozen in place, as Natalia stumbles down the hall. She's barely able to keep her footing as she grimaces in pain, holding her finger as blood pools around it. Her tactical gloves stain red as she yells something to me, but I don't hear her.

     Is this what being in a trance feels like? I'm screaming to my body to move, but nothing's happening. Anger and fear boil behind Natalia's eyes, saying something unintelligible to me. My eyes move towards the room where it happened - where I watched on. Lucas's body is sprawled on the ground, lifeless.

     My vision seemingly tunnels in on that sight, the walls around me fading quickly. Lucas. Not fucking Lucas. Ever since I met him, he'd been one of my best friends; he'd been one of everyone's best friends. And Natalia... she shot him.

     My focus snaps off of Lucas, eyeing Natalia with a cold, piercing gaze. I watch her face contort as she finally gets my attention, a hint of bewilderment in her expression. It's as if she's sizing me up as a threat, reading every micro-cue in my body. Her lips move as she tries to say something, and I feel my nails dig into my gloves as-

     Plaster blows by my head as I'm snapped out of my trance. The massive sniper round nearly takes my head off as I fall to the ground dazed. I begin crawling away from the bedroom, almost on autopilot, as my ears ring in pain. Shot after shot rings out, tearing the walls apart and ripping through the rooms. Dom crawls beside me, his eyes wide in terror and realization.

     The three of us make it to the courtyard, standing up as Natalia helps Dom. Fury boils behind my eyes as I look at the two of them, seeing everything I wished I never would in them. How could they? Have we really fallen this far? Thoughts swirl through my mind as they hobble forward, Natalia struggling to support Dom but managing.

     Is this my fault?

     I could've stood up for her, I could've changed things... maybe Lucas would-

     Stop.

     None of this would've happened if Raleigh never lied. He's the one who did this. The two next to me don't have clean hands, but they subscribed to his ideology. Perfect soldiers.

     I notice, though, the lack of noise. Adara's gunshots had vanished. My eyes go wide as my mind goes into overdrive. Is she okay? What happened? Is she just out? Did she... die? No. She can't, that can't-

     Dom presses a door open, and wind bursts through eagerly. My ears are taken over by the unmistakable chopping of rotors outside as I lurch forward, now feeling sick with worry. Smoke emanates from the palace, the smell of burnt stone filling the air. I look at the helicopter, realizing what I'm about to do as I stop dead in my tracks. The two of them make it to the helicopter, throwing the door open. 

     I can't board it.

     If I board, Raleigh wins. People like him, Natalia, and Dom never have to face justice. They'll bury what they did to Lucas, I'm sure of it. Adara is just a loose end to these people. I don't even know them anymore. We're not the good guys if we're killing our own just to keep the narrative intact, but... I almost have to go.

     If not, these people can go after my family and friends. I wouldn't put anything past them after this. I'd be a defector, killing any chance I have at a career. No military would ever want something like this. It's dangerous, it's suicide.

     So why do my feet feel rooted to the ground?

     Natalia looks back at me, one foot on the landing skid as she glares at me. "Mena, come on!"

     I look at her, brow furrowed as I swallow hard. Her head tilts slightly, pain etched into her eyes as she seemingly works through the situation in her mind.

     "Don't do this," she warns, a hint of plea in her tone. Lucas's face flashes in my head, his laugh drowning out the rotor wash as I grit my teeth. "Mena, don't!"

     My nails dig into my palms as I step back, my boots on the stone feeling like shockwaves as I turn away from Natalia. My eyes linger on the door as the wind whips by my hair. I can't become even more complicit. I've already built all the tech we've used; I can't stand by it as well. I step forward, slowly finding my way back to the palace. 

     Footsteps rush towards me from behind. I turn around, watching Natalia jog towards me. My muscles tense as I see her face... the same face she had when she shot Lucas. Her glare digs into me like daggers as she throws her arms up, stopping about ten feet from me. Light catches the blood coating her hand from her finger as she holds a piece of cloth over it.

    "What the fuck are you doing?" She asks incredulously, nodding sideways in confusion. "Are you trying to ruin your life?"

     I breathe out, trying to keep my composure as I reluctantly meet her gaze. "Boarding that chopper ruins my life."

     Natalia huffs, pursing her lips and hanging her head before speaking again. "You're reacting. You're not in a good state of mind. Don't throw it all away over an emotional decision."

     "No, I think I've gone sane," I scoff, standing still as her frustration mounts. I can't see her as a friend anymore... only a predator. "Get away."

     I turn around, stepping towards the building as I hear her say something behind me, unable to make out her words. They don't matter to me anymore, quite frankly. She-

     A loud metallic sound catches my attention, freezing me in place. It takes me a moment to register what happened, but once I do, it disgusts me. I turn back around, noticing Natalia's intact hand holding her acidic blade towards me. She's really gone. My jaw tightens as my eyes bounce between the weapon and her face.

     "I won't let you throw it all away."

     Her words send chills down my spine as I stare into her eyes; the conviction in her face matches the threat. She holds her other arm against her body, the blood from her severed finger running down her tactical gear and dripping on the ground. 

     "Lucas wasn't enough for you?" I snarl, flipping my fingers in my gloves as anger rushes into my bloodstream. The words seem to slap her in the face, her body flinching at the sound. "Adara too? How many would you kill, Natalia?"

     "I had to!" She screams, fury in her voice as she tightens her grip on the sword. "You think I wanted to? Fuck you." 

     I nod in disapproval and disgust as Dom watches from the helicopter. His eyes go wide now as he looks on. I sigh, my fists balling up. She's gone. She's really gone. I watch her take a step towards me, the blade just feet away from my body.

     I hear a faint whirr in the air as Digit swoops down, its talons striking at Natalia's hand and knocking the blade out of her grasp. It slices at her fingers, causing her yelp in pain as she gets shoved to the ground. I take the moment to turn and run, sprinting into the palace and slamming the door shut as Digit keeps Natalia occupied. It wouldn't kill her, but it would stall her long enough.

     The air smells of smoke and metal as I tear down the hallway I just came through. My lungs protest, but not loudly enough. Torches along the wall sit extinguished, moonlight and the occasional ember guiding my steps. The blood on the floor reflects in my eyes, steeling my resolve as I run forward.

     Did I make a-

     No.

     The walls around me begin to fall into disarray, dinner plate-sized bullet holes appearing all around me as I round the corner. My boots nearly slip on the shattered plaster as my head whips right. The bedroom comes into view, a couple of torches faintly shining the way to-

     Lucas's corpse lies, unmoved, on the floor. I close my eyes for a moment, my breath heavy as I hold back tears. The smell of drywall and stucco overwhelms my senses, making me cringe and turn away briefly. 

     How is this not a bad dream? I step backwards, not having the guts to look at the gaping hole in the back of his head. My feet feel rooted, again, but for different reasons this time. The walls feel as if they're closing in as I realize the gravity of what happened here - I'm standing at a graveyard. 

     Somehow, though, I feel myself turn around and walk forward. I feel as though I only have control of my upper body, turning my head away from Lucas and searching the bedroom. I feel the wind blow through the large window, a thin trail of blood coming from behind the bed and flowing out. This was where she was...

     I turn around, looking at the walls around me. Light from neighboring rooms bounces in from the holes in the walls, everything feeling slow and strange as I hold my hand up. I trace the room, counting each one. A single shot goes through the far wall, pieces of metal and traces of blood embedded into the wall behind it - Natalia's.

     Water begins to pool in my eyes as I crawl through the open window, my hands gripping onto the roof tiles as I pull myself out. Sirens ring out in the distance, echoing against the palace walls. The city skyline grabs my attention as I stand up, the lights of the towers seemingly watching me as I gaze into the distance. I follow the trail along the roof, the moonlight my only reference as I balance on the slope. I make it to the edge, stepping along until - 

     Her.

     A body lies against the rocks on the edge of the palace, the mountains the only things visible behind her. My eyes widen as I see her motionless, one hand resting over her stomach. Her rifle sits on a rock near her, too far to be grabbed. My fingers twitch as I drop down, making it to the ground with less grace than I intended. 

     I wince as I pick myself up from the rocks, rushing over to her. She lies motionless, only her matted hair lightly blowing in the breeze. Her blue shirt is tinted a dark, terrible red below her hand.

     "Adara!" I exclaim, grabbing her hand and squeezing it. Her eyes flicker open after a moment, gasping as she recognizes me. Her breath is pained and slow, but it's there - that's all that matters.

     "Mena?" She whispers, trying to get up but recoiling in pain. Her grip tightens, digging into my hand like she's terrified I'll let go. "What..."

     "Stay with me," I plead, my other hand pressing onto her stomach. She gasps, cringing slightly as I hold pressure.

     "You... stayed," she murmurs, almost too quiet to hear.

     "You were right," I sigh, noticing the gash on her cheek she'd gained from Dom.

     She chuckles lightly, trying to avoid the pain in her torso. "I'm always right."

     I grin, trying not to cry. "Shut up."

     I sit down, keeping my hands where they are as I look at the sky with her. In my peripheral vision, I watch as a helicopter flies away, chopping through the night as sirens descend onto the palace. With it, everything I've known races toward the horizon.

     "Thank you," she stammers. I look back, noticing her eyes locked on me - not the stars, not the helicopter, not the city.