Youngguk's POV

You know how they say that your ‘life flashes before your eyes’ when you die?

I aimed, pulling the trigger.

How, apparently, the second before you die you’re meant to realize all your flaws and successes?

The shot echoed through the narrow hallway.

And when you die, you’ll find nothing but peace and prosperity?

Such as Heaven! Paradise!

The bullet goes straight through the heart.

All that, is wrong.

A scream of nothing but agony erupts.

Three...

Because Death isn’t peaceful;

Two...

It never was, or will be, because Death isn’t an escape.

One...

But most importantly, death is never the end. It is always the beginning.

Zero.

The beginning... of a  new life; for the better or worse.

Boom.

I looked away as the bright light erupted from the tunnel, the explosion deafening. I could hear their hollow screams as their bodies were blown up. The force almost knocked me over, causing me to stumble backwards.

“Five down!” I screamed, my voice hoarse from the smoke; the cloud of Death.

“Three down!” The reply came, the voice echoing through the hall. Ashes began to fall like a cloud descending, transforming the room like a black hole. All noise reduced, all happiness gone; all vision tainted; the signs death leaving its mark.

I sighed, tucking my gun back into its holster. Blood was covering the tile floor, mixed with ashes and remainders of the dynamite, seeping into the thin cracks, some of it stained on my jacket, tainting it, tainting me.

Of course, none of it was mine.

And hopefully, it never will be either. I could hear steps nearing, a fast padding from south of the hall.

I watched as a figure made its way through the smoke, running towards me.

“Youngguk!” He shouted a grin on his face as he quickened his pace, a grin plastered on his face. I couldn’t help but smile, throwing my arms around him in a hug.

“You okay?” He asked, pulling away to take in my stained jacket. I grinned back at him, noticing a splatter of the red liquid on his cheek, a hint of worry in his eyes.

“Fine.” I answered. No, was the real answer... And he knew it. We all did.

“Are we done for the night?” I asked, looking over his shoulder, seeing as the others entered, backing up against the wall, camouflaged into the shadows, into the smoke.

“We are... Chief said we’re in for a heavy raid-planning tomorrow” He walked over to one of the bodies, kicking what was left of it to the side. I watched in gruesome disgust as one of limbs came off, thudding against the ground lifelessly.

“Another one?” I groaned. Bastards. Wasn’t one raid per 24 hours enough?

“I know, it’s not like we need to sleep to survive or anything.” He said, sarcasm like acid dripping of his words. I sneered as I walked over to him, crouching to meet his level. The body in front of us, limbs tumbled together in the most awkward bends, hadn’t been young. A year, tops.

“It’s getting worse.” I said, my voice low, the truth of my words almost physically painful.

We’d all noticed it; it was impossible not to. Every night, there was more than what we’d expected. Every night, they appeared out of nowhere, younger than ever. Stronger than ever. Smarter than ever.

“I know.” He said, staring hard at the body.

“What does Chief say?” I asked, raising my hand to the cross around my neck, twisting it between my fingers.

“’Kill to your last breath’.”

I sighed, knowing not to expect anything different. Every night, we saved hundreds, thousands even. And the best part? They never knew about it. Completely oblivious to their saved lives, they remained ignorant.

I suppose I couldn’t blame them... Ignorance, had I had the opinion, was always the best option.

It wasn’t that I was scared; I’d seen more dead bodies that alive ones. Death didn’t scare me. I could never feel frightened that I would die. Because, death, I’d come to learn, had fear to its advantage, to its evil benefit.

The only thing scary about it was how many people saw it as an escape. How many people committed suicide because they thought that nothing could be worse than their lives... Despite, not knowing what death actually held in store.  

And here we were, having saved only God knows how many lives, for those who were willing to throw theirs away like confetti.

But yet, I knew, deep inside, better. Deep inside, I knew it wasn’t like that. Deep inside, I knew that it was different.

It had to be; Because if it wasn’t...

 ... Then why did we even try?

We walked away in silence, out of the abandoned building. Me and Dae... We had that silent understanding most people claimed they knew about.

Having been fighters, warriors, for so long... We were inseparable.  We had each other’s backs, even when the situation seemed insurmountable.

The only difference we shared... were skills.

He was far stealthier than me, obtaining a certain fondness for daggers and the small knives alike. He could become one with the shadows, sneaking and stalking until he’d make the move. And when he did, the Corruptive would never see it coming. I remember asking him about it once, years ago.

“It’s not something about the knives...” He said, shifting uncomfortably.

“Then what is it?” I asked. I was curious; I’d never seen him uncomfortable before.

“It’s what they do...” He stared into space, deep in thought.

“What, Cutting?” I asked sarcastically.

“Yes! I... I like seeing the blood flow out of them.” He said, his eyes twinkling in delight in the dim light.

“Why?”

“Because... It reminds me that what we do is right. It gives me hope that they are not undefeatable. It gives me a reason to fight.”

And still today; he kept true to his word. Never once had he faltered in his fight. Never once had he hesitated to kill. And never once, had I seen him watching blood without a small smile of satisfaction playing on his lips.

I saw the limo parked outside the building a few meters behind, its sleek black colour more than familiar now.

 I looked up, watching the bright moon as it shone across the land, illuminating everything. I’d always fantasized what it’d be like to watch Earth from afar... See it for the beauty of the land it really was, not as something I had to save each day.

Sometimes... I was too busy fighting, to remember what I was protecting.

“What time do we need to be there tomorrow?” I asked. Well, this morning, technically.

He began to jog down the sandy hill. I trailed him, soft clouds of sand swirling at our feet. “5 am sharp.”

I nodded, checking my watch. 00:59 am.

Slowly, giving each other a fist bump, we got into opposite ends of the car. The Chief always sent us a car to pick us up; a silent sign of gratitude for almost dying each night.  

“Drive” Daehyun ordered, putting his seatbelt on. The engine growled to life as the doors auto-locked.

I sighed dramatically. A night’s job survived once again.

 My wristwatch beeped, declaring the hourly time.

1:00am.

I looked behind, a final observation of the building, multiple decaying bodies inside. Bodies that no body would ever know about. Mutations which wouldn’t be buried. Corpses which wouldn’t be missed.  

And with a final look...

 I watched as the explosion worked its magic, the bombs going off exactly as planned, exactly on time. Sudden outbursts of flame and smoke erupted from spefic parts of the building, the fire exploding through the windows, the force forcing the stones of the solid walls to burst outwards. The building began to collapse, parts falling with deadly gravity acting on them.

And, in contrast, I could see the smoke rising in black sky, the stars disappearing one by one in the cloud of thick soot, contaminating them, tainting them. Proving that the world wasn’t perfect,

Wasn’t flawless like most prefer to think of it.

But I knew, that behind that drape of smoke, was a brilliant moon, waiting to shine.

A/N: and 3 hours, 2 nuttella jars and one untidy room later, it is updated xD

Okay so... Feedback? I know this chapter wasn't the best... And I don't even know what happened in the ending (it sounded good in my head, okay xD) But comments are always appreciated! (Like seriously, at times, when you guys are happy with me, I will cry)

Oh, and for you guys who are not reading Animal Love, some weeks ago, my CAT managed to sit on my keyboard (she isn't THAT big... okay who am I kidding I need to put her on a diet) so some of the keys haven't... Recovered yet, so to speak, which is a leading cause to why some words just turn out randomly.

I DID review this chapter... to a point xD

Anyways... I luuuuuv you all who are reading this *sends love to wherever you are* <3 Thank you all so much... xx

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