"We look stupid."

"Perhaps."

"You're nuts." He groaned right to my ears. "Who, in their right mind, would escape with an invalid?"

"You planned this." I grabbed his legs. "I am simply bringing the mastermind, make sure he didn't deceive me."

"Right." He huffed and tapped at my shoulder. "I heard something. An alarm, it seems. And...."

"They're coming." I heard that too. My head whipped back and forth, left and right. They were coming from all directions. I didn't know where we were and no maps to tell me anything. "We need to find a lift. Hang on tight."

We turned to the nearest turn as group of wardens and soldiers in black unidentified uniform approached us from the end of our way out. They blocked all our sides but one.

I turned right and there was it: the lift.

"You knew you don't have to do this, Neil." Omar said as he clung to me. "You should save yourself. Don't bother to save me."

He was right and some rational mind in me admitted so. But I couldn't allow that. I didn't want to imagine escape with left him behind, in this place. They could do something worse and just imagined the probabilities of they did worse harm on him made me sick.

"You said you missed your family." I reminded him. "You said you had a son and a daughter. You said your son would be in school by now. You said wanted to meet them."

Omar didn't answer for a brief moment. "Yes...."

"Then I'll take you to them." I said. "I promised you'll meet them. So don't ever think of staying here ever, Omar."

And I would keep that promise until the end.

"What was that? Not 'hey', again?"

"Silence." I cut him. "I'm thinking a way out of here."

At that, Omar laughed in a way that I've never heard of him. "You finally called my name, Sahabi."

***

I ran faster and managed to arrive at the lift before them all. My thumb pressed the button. The lift was not far away, but that damn steel box moved like snail. Our pursuer was ready with their guns and bombs but we were stood still in front of the lift.

"Neil?" I felt Omar pressed against me. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet." I swore. "I have a promise to keep. I have to take you to your family.""

"You will." He whispered, then just like when we were in cell, he tapped my shoulders. "I will finally meet them again today."

When it rang opened, someone pushed me to the lift.

I heard a shot. Many times. I turned around as the lift closed itself.

Omar, who had no feet or arms, had pushed me with his torso and whatever remained of his limbs. He shoved me to the lift, and became my shield.

The bullets pierced his neck, crushed his veins, stab his vocal cord. He fell helplessly to the floor, tainted the white road red with his blood. I could everything from where I stood, his blood splattered on my face, the whirred bullets rained at his already helpless vassal.

I could only witnessed him, laying and bleeding on the floor, and for the last time, raised his head to face me. He was smiling through wounded lips. Soundlessly, he said something.

"Take care."

Another shot hit him. Right on the head. And immediately, the lift door completely closed.

***

I fell on the floor while that moment repeated again and again in my head. His smile, his words, and the stupid promise I made even without knowing the truth.

I looked up, saw my weird face reflection on the mirrored wall. Blood was never looked so red.

He died. No matter how many times the realization hit me, it still pain. It throbbed in my chest, swirled up my stomach, and blew off my brain.

My fists clenched. Those were holding Omar just now, held him close, never let him go. Yet, with just one push, he was no longer on my back.

What was happening to me?

I should've anticipated that kind of an attack. And he wasn't pushed me so hard that I should be pushed down like that. What was happening?

I lost him. Sahabi.

He called me that: a friend. I lost a friend. I've lost many men in the war. But never, I found myself unable to face the truth like this. Rationally speaking, Omar was just someone. A man in thousands of death in this war. He was nothing. I should move on without even looking back. I should be free in five seconds.

But I didn't. I couldn't.

The lift door opened. This time, a group of men waited for me on the outside. The killer of Omar. The killer of my friend. And all of them shot me at the same time.

***

I didn't know what happen after that. The only thing I remembered was their guns and the sounds of their consecutive shots. The next thing I know, my body bathed in blood. Strangely, the smell of this blood seemed to be a mix from more than one person. And I didn't feel any pain. I have no wounds.

It didn't matter.

I looked up at the dark sky, at the buildings that burned down behind me. When I was about to retrieve Omar, someone threw a bomb on the floor, then on the next floor and the next one, threw the entire building in fire instantly.

I couldn't even buried him properly.

Glittering snow fell upon my face. The cold bit my naked feet as it walked away for a few steps before the sky suddenly looked further.

No, it was me that kneel. I was fell. I was shivering from cold.

This wasn't right. None of it. These hands of mine supposed to be hold something. These cold shouldn't feel this bad.

"Take care."

The pain came again. This time, it intensified, shattered my bones and veins. The images of Omar, the memories with him, the talks, his fragile and disfigures shape, and his unrivaled foolishness ... the way he saved me from my own carelessness ... his stupid way of using his own body to protect me. He lost the very last thing he own in his last moment.

I took it from him. The last thing he had: his life. I was no different than those wardens.

"....just scream."

Then, I opened my mouth, as wide as possible, and let out all the pain that tormented me

The sky cracked apart, showed the world how much despair it had witnessed on the earth. The snow stopped falling. The winds whirled like a storm.

Then everything stopped. Everything ended, along with darkness that befall upon me from the sky.

"Hold your fire!"

"Princess, what are you doing?!"

Someone came at me. A man and a woman, with unrecognizable faces. I never met them.

"No, please. He looks injured!" The so-called princess approached me, kneeled before me, accompanied by bunch of soldiers with familiar black armor suit that hide their faces. They all aimed their guns to me. "Are you all right? Can you hear me, Sir?"

I looked at her from up close. Unlike the others, she unmasked her helmet, let me saw her face. He talked in Arabic and appeared like one: long straight black hair, darker skin tone, hazel eyes just like ... Fatima, and more feminine voice, unlike ... Reana.

"Sir?" The woman looked at me with great confusion. But then, I realized that maybe, those guys and this woman, could do something.

"Help...." I grabbed her arm, and all those guys loaded their weapons.

"Wait!" The woman shouted. "Help ... what?"

I looked at her and another pain stung my eyes. It was hot, but I didn't have much time to think about anything. I pointed at the burned down buildings behind me. "My friend there..." I told here. "Please bring him here."

"Your friend?" She looked at the buildings. I saw confusion in her eyes.

I grabbed her arms harder with two arms. "Please." I bowed down to her. "I don't care what you'd do to me, but please ... please let him ... let Omar properly...."

"All right." She tapped my shoulders. "I'll retrieve your friend, Sir. But first, please calm down, and identify yourself. Can you do that?"

I nodded.

"Good." She said, oddly satisfied. "My name is Latifah. And you are? Where do you came from, Sir?"

***