Chapter 2: Losses
Losses
Cold.
High mountains were trying to touch the sky.
The sky was white, filled with grey clouds and a fog was setting up.
Thick snow was building up and the only warmth we could feel was inside our jackets.
"Okay, listen up!" a man's voice said, "A Gradammoth has been seen here. Around two days ago"
The man was standing next to a tall tree, talking to three other persons.
One of them was me.
He was planning our move against this crisis.
"Sarah, Rakut and I will be team one, we will be searching the eggs in the targeted area"
He turned around towards me and Simeon: "You guys will be keeping an eye out. Go to that area and scout" pointing towards a cliff.
"The mother will be coming back for its eggs, we don't know when. Maybe three hours, maybe a week or two. Scout-team keep looking for it"
That was the instruction. Nobody said a word.
The moth was there and so we waited till its leave. I was on top of the cliff with Simeon.
Keeping an eye on it. The trees below me were trying to block my view, but the absurd body of the moth couldn't be blocked by those.
Sudden movement.
It left
Team one waited a bit more to be sure.
Five minutes passed.
Team one began spotting the eggs and started destroying it with a blade. Cutting it open, the body dropped out with some fluids.
Nine eggs were destroyed, everything is going smoothly.
While I was watching them, a big shadow covered the area for a split second.
Simeon grabbed my shoulder hectically, warning me.
My teammate was calling the others to inform them.
I tracked the moth with my binocular, only to see it land where my friends were.
I could hear a panicking voice from the radio.
A sudden scream.
Marcus!
His scream shook my hearth. His pain could be felt though the device.
I looked back to Simeon.
He was sweating, his eyes where terrified. It looked like he wanted to say something, but he couldn't open his mouth.
"Simeon?" I asked him.
No answer.
"Simeon?!" this time louder. I tried to wake him up.
"We have to go" A cold voice answered me: "We have to save them"
"I don't know"
"I have to save my brother!" He looked me deep in the eyes.
He was dead serious.
He grabbed his Grand.
And started to run down.
I still didn't know what to do in this situation.
I don't KNOW!
It was Sarah's voice
"Haah… Simeon? We can't run! Marcus is badly hurt. And I too…"
She paused, her voice was getting weaker, the breaks between the words longer.
"Get help, we keep it busy"
There was another scream in the background.
"I don't think we can make it"
It ended there.
I was terrified, without a second though my body started to move on its own.
My Grand in my right, realizing I left my blade.
I didn't care.
RUN!
I kept running.
I don't know when I get there.
JUST RUN!
It got darker around me as I was going deeper in the woods.
I kept running.
My breath hurt
RUN!
There was a person laying there.
I got closer and saw Sarah's face in pain.
As I was getting closer, she began to see me.
"Why are you here?!?" she asked me in a shivering voice. She started to cry, asking why.
"I got you, ok? Sarah!" I tried to tell her, giving here hope. Ignoring the blood, she has lost to this point.
"Please" Her voice was getting quiet as a mouse: "Run…"
"NO!" I grabbed her: "Sarah, no!"
She didn't resist.
The dying being opened its mouth for a last breath:" Please… just run"
It was dead silent.
My mind too. I couldn't think nor blink.
She died in my hands.
A sudden bang woke me up. My loss, my rage and anger dedicated towards the being that killed her.
As she told me I started to RUN.
RUN towards the bang using it as my path.
I RAN and RAN again like before.
My chest hurts but I don't care, I just have to RUN.
Another bang and coming from my left. It was near.
The being appeared White fur and a giant body.
It had red stains on its fur and wings.
The man fired a last shot with his Grand.
The giant screamed from the shot and threw him away.
Its eye exploded.
Enraged from the pain it ran up to Simeon.
RUN!
I couldn't stop, it needs to DIE.
I ran up to it with my Grand ready to fire.
My hand gripped its fur, with my other I shot—BANGGGGGG
Another! ---BANGGGG
AGAIN! ---BANGGG
AGAIN, AND AGAIN!
I pulled the trigger, not stopping.
Screeching, and dying breath.
The giant fell over, not moving an inch.
I let go of him and took a look. A giant hole was stretching out of its right side.
"Simeon?!" I asked, running towards him: "Simeon, how are you?"
"Did you kill it?" ignoring my questions.
"Yes, it's dead" I answered.
He chuckled: "Haaa, you killed it. Good job"
"Simeon wait don't move!" He raised his hand: "No, listen. I won't make"
I cut though his sentence: "NO, you listen! Don't we can save you!"
"I can't, please" He was getting weaker: "Can you do me a favor?"
"Yes, sure, everything!" I answered.
Can you leave your gun with me, the" He coughed: "the smaller one"
"No!"
"I don't want to die in pain" Simeon answered with a sad face.
"But you can make it, please!"
He shook his head: "There is nothing to live for anymore. My brother died"
I kept silent and gave him my revolver.
"Ha-ha, thanks"
"Are you going to leave me here alone?"
Simeon was holding my gun towards his skull.
He said nothing, staying still.
"I am sorry Oliver"
---Bang
"Sir Lake, do you know why you are here today?"
An oddly calm voice asked him. The two men were sitting in a bright room. The walls made out of stone and covered in dark grey only for the white light to finish the design off.
It was just disgusting, no creativity.
"I have a guess", The other man answered, in his tone was a little bit of annoyance to hear:
"is it because of last year?" He kept going.
The other man sitting in his big leather chair leaned back and nodded lightly.
Lake sighted quietly to that answer, still making somewhat an effort to seem not annoyed.
The man in his big chair leaned forward: "I am going to ask you some questions. Are you hurt anywhere or do you feal some sort of pain?"
"Ah yeah", Lake answered with a satisfied look: "the other day I had a neck strain, could be because of these beds you guys provide"
"No pain at all" The man mumbled to himself writing it down on a notepad.
"Anything else?" Lake asked.
"Yes, I will begin the test about whether you are fit to go back or not"
Lake nodded.
"The incident, November the 12th. How would you describe it? In simple words?"
Lake leaned back into his small metal chair and began to think.
"Unexpected"
"And why is that?"
"The situation was quite good before, but it changed so fast"
"Hmm"
Another line was being written in his notebook.
"What do you feel now, if you have to think back to it, sad? Or maybe enraged, maybe you want to take revenge?"
"Probably sad, I don't usually think back to it you know? Ah, and revenge? I already got it"
Lake observed the man asking, how he was adding a second line of writing into his notebook.
"And your Teammates? Describe them to me"
"Hm, weird family. No wait, they were not family, no. Just comrades"
"How many were in your team?"
"Four"
"Describe them individually"
"Hmm, where do I start"
The listener interrupted him with his finger pointing to stop.
"Start with Marcus"
"Marcus was our leader, a douchebag. More likely someone who likes to be in charge of others"
"How you describe him, Lake, did you have any problems with him in the past?"
Lake shook his head softly.
"Okay go ahead with Ruckus"
"Big guy, big heart. Always helpful, was a bit weird"
Lake waited till the man finished writing.
"Let's continue with Simeon"
"Weakest but tallest, probably had the most courage out of us all. Marcus little brother"
"Hmm, and Sarah?"
Lake didn't answer immediately like he did with the others.
He stared into the void for a second and getting a grip of himself after:
"She was beautiful, I loved her, I mean liked her the most."
"But?"
"I think everybody knows it already"
The man didn't answer, waiting for Lake to answer.
"She betrayed me with Marcus, she chooses him over me, after holding my trust for over a year"
This time it was a long line for him to write it down.
The man then got up after checking his notebook and reached his hand towards Lake.
Lake did likewise and shook his hand.
"Sir Lake, I think you are qualified to officially end your military service now"
Lake nodded with a bright smile.
"That's it?"
"It isn't our first time having this talk. Ah, and just a reminder. There are tons of girls waiting in the city. Don't keep your mind on her. I know how you feel"
Lake tilted his head in agreement with a little smile.
The man laughed at that face:
"Lake you are still young. So, you got a lot ahead of you. Just don't make the wrong decision"
"Thank you, Albert"
"I hope we meet again Oliver"
Lake went back to his quarters and packed his bags with hope and a little void now filling his stomach.
Memory 1 Before the Loss/Year 1023 December 20th
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone