The bombs fell above the civilians.
Houses gone.
Chains of explosions tore through the district in a straight line, carving a path of fire and collapsing debris.
Not random.
Not chaotic.
Controlled.
Akane's eyes narrowed.
"They're... herding us"
Hakamo didn't hesitate.
He called and told the HQ what had happened.
"HQ, this is Squad Seven, Situation has been escalated, We are under sustained bombardment"
Static.
Then—
"Squad Seven, extraction en route. ETA: two minutes. Move to designated pickup point immediately."
A marker lit up on their visors.
Far.
Tanako let out a short laugh.
"Two minutes?, We're not making that in—"
Another explosion cut him off.
Closer this time.
Debris rained down.
Hakamo turned.
"No more time!"
No arguments.
They moved.
Fast.
The ground beneath them cracked and shifted, barely holding together after the bombardment, every step felt like the floor would collapse.
Another line of bombs dropped—
ahead again.
Blocking.
Redirecting.
"They're cutting off our routes!" Aira shouted.
"They're forcing us into a corridor!"
"Then we'd follow it!" Hakamo snapped.
Gunfire erupted from the sides.
Mercenaries took positions.
Not engaging fully.
Just enough to pressure.
To keep them moving.
Akane fired without slowing down.
One shot.
Two.
Targets dropped—but more replaced them instantly.
They weren't trying to win.
They were guiding where they wanted to.
"This... isn't... a fight,"Tanako said, breath heavy as he ran.
"We're being pushed"
"I know" Akane replied.
His voice was steady.
Another blast hit behind them.
Closer.
The shockwave threw Aira forward.
Akane caught her before she hit the ground.
"Keep moving" she said quickly, pulling away.
No hesitation.
They ran.
The path narrowed.
Collapsed buildings leaned inward, forming a jagged corridor of concrete and metal. Smoke filled the space, limiting visibility.
Then—
A body.
A civilian.
Burned.
Still.
Tanako slowed for half a step—
"Don't stop!" Hakamo shouted.
He moved again.
But his expression changed.
Akane noticed.
Didn't say anything.
The hum returned.
Louder now.
Directly above them.
Akane didn't look up this time.
He already knew.
"ETA?" Hakamo demanded.
"Thirty seconds"
"We're running out of time!"
"Move faster!"
Another wave dropped—
not behind—
not ahead—
in front of them.
The explosion tore the path apart.
The ground split open, forcing them to scatter.
"LEFT!"Hakamo shouted.
They split instinctively.
Akane landed hard, sliding across broken concrete before catching himself.
He looked up and-
Tanako was on the other side.
Separated.
"Akane!" Tanako shouted.
More bombs dropped between them.
Cutting them off.
"GO!" Tanako yelled.
"Don't wait!"
Akane hesitated—
for half a second.
Then moved.
The extraction point came into view.
Barely.
The dropship was already there—
hovering just above the ground, engines roaring against the unstable terrain.
"GO!, GO!, GO!" the pilot shouted over comms.
"I'm not gonna stay here for too long!"
Hakamo reached it first—grabbing onto the side rail and pulling himself up.
Then pulled Aira in
Akane was seconds behind.
The hum peaked.
He looked up.
The bombers had fully aligned.
Directly over the extraction point.
"They... knew"he said quietly.
"AKANE!" Aira shouted.
He moved.
Jumped—
Grabbed the rail—
Pulled himself up—
The moment his boots cleared the edge—
The dropship shot upward instantly, engines screaming as it forced its way out of the blast radius.
The bombs dropped.
Shockwaves chased them into the sky.
Inside—
no one spoke.
No one looked at each other.
Tanako wasn't there.
Akane stood up, and slowly walked near the ramp.
Looking down.
At the fire.
At the destruction.
where they recently just been.
where Tanako still was.
The ramp closed.
Darkness filled the interior.
The hum faded.
Silence remained.
Akane didn't move.
Didn't speak.
Regretting his decision.
Thinking if he stayed-
He could've said tanako.