soldiers, war, invasion, aliens, survival, dark, tragic
Quick Tip: Listen to the instrumental "EIGHTY-SIX" by Hiroyuki Sawano for an enhanced experience while reading.
Bombs dropped and bullets whizzed around Taehyung as he scrambled from building to building. Taehyung stopped to catch his breath between two damaged skyscrapers and observed his surroundings. Several buildings had collapsed since yesterday and even more holes were in the streets.
Taehyung continued running as three alien hovercrafts flew over him with lights searching for any remaining stragglers. His shoulders ached from carrying the backpack as he lifted his arms to reposition his hat. He wore as much black as he could to conceal himself in the darkness.
He could hardly see, but he quickened his pace, anxious to get back. While passing a bombed-out building, Taehyung heard a shot, and a sharp pain pierced his body. Taehyung stopped running and fell to his knees to keep his balance. Touching his hand to his shoulder, Taehyung felt a slippery liquid.
Taehyung ran his fingers over the wound but did not find a bullet. The bullet had barely missed, grazing the top of his shoulder. Forcing himself to stand, Taehyung continued running. Over time, the pain dulled, and he hardly felt anything as he focused on finding his way back.
Taehyung hugged the side of the buildings to avoid the streetlights. After a few minutes, he could see the doors of the North City Public Library. Running up to them, Taehyung opened the tall glass doors and walked inside the massive building, his footsteps silent.
Taehyung climbed the stairs to the third floor and opened the door to the café. He then walked behind the counter where he saw Jungkook leaning against it. Kneeling beside his captain, Taehyung unzipped the backpack and pulled out a fresh roll of gauze and medical tape. He could hear Jungkook's labored breathing as he leaned down to inspect the wound on the captain's leg.
"What happened?" Jungkook asked as he saw the gash on the base of Taehyung's neck. He lifted his hand to inspect it.
"A bullet grazed me. It's not serious," Taehyung voiced quietly as he gently pulled Jungkook's hand away and set it down. Taehyung redressed Jungkook's wound before handing him a water bottle and an energy bar.
The pain from the bullet's graze returned as Taehyung was about to bandage the gash on the nook of his neck. Wincing, Taehyung dabbed the wound with a wet cotton ball to clean off the blood.
"Let me do it," Jungkook offered, motioning for Taehyung to sit next to him.
Taehyung obeyed his commanding officer and sat beside Jungkook to let him clean it. Taehyung forgot how gentle the captain was as he carefully dabbed at the wound, though his appearance would tell you otherwise. Jungkook was tall with dark hair, and brown eyes, and was incredibly strong. His hair had grown out from its short, military cut and feathered onto his neck beautifully.
Taehyung grabbed a blanket after the two were all patched up and had finished their energy bars. Huddling closely for warmth, the two soldiers went to sleep. They had been separated from their unit the day before and were trying their best to survive in the war-torn city that once was the bustling capital of Earth.
It had been two months since the invasion first happened. Taehyung was serving his mandatory enlistment required by the world government and was nearing his discharge date, but that had been momentarily postponed due to the crisis plaguing the planet. How long the "moment of postponement" would be, Taehyung did not know.
For now, he was stranded with the captain of his team, and his mission at hand was to reunite with the rest of his unit. Although he had been out searching for signs of other soldiers, Taehyung had yet to discover any hints that his unit had survived the night. The war with the invading aliens was brutal, and few who fought the beings head-on made it out alive.
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Taehyung woke to Jungkook softly nudging him. Jungkook held his finger over his lips as Taehyung opened his eyes. Nodding in understanding, Taehyung remained still. The captain then pointed to a searchlight lingering in front of the window. Taehyung slowly reached for their bags as Jungkook placed his hand under Taehyung's arm. Jungkook tightened his grasp around Taehyung as the light crept into the café.
Slowly standing to their feet, Jungkook took Taehyung's wrist and quickly led him away from the ever-creeping light. Hurrying out of the cafe, the two soldiers made their way to the emergency stairs where they raced down the steps. A rumble sounded from above as the two made it down to the second level.
"They're going to destroy the building," Jungkook stated as he realized what had caused the rumbling. An alien craft had landed on the roof of the library and was preparing to shoot a powerful blast through the building that would cause it to crumble in an instant.
Tightening his hold around Taehyung, Jungkook raced down the stairs and sprinted toward the lobby the moment they landed on the ground floor. Just as they reached the doors to the library, a bright blast flashed before them just outside the building.
"Xion!" Taehyung shouted Jungkook's call sign as he pushed the captain to the side. The blast broke through the glass wall of the library and slung the two soldiers into the air. Taehyung took the brunt of the explosion and almost lost consciousness as he collided with the marble floor.
"V!" Jungkook was quick to recover and immediately ran to the lieutenant's side. "V, open your eyes, V. Look at me." Jungkook patted the side of Taehyung's face as the lieutenant's eyes fluttered while he fought to remain conscious.
Whipping his head around, Jungkook observed their situation. An alien craft was hovering just outside the library while the one on the roof was preparing to fire its deadly blast. If they stayed in the lobby, they would be crushed as the building crumbled. If they ran outside, they were sure to be spotted and eliminated. Neither option boded well.
However, Jungkook was desperate to survive, or rather, he was desperate to save his lieutenant. So, he cradled Taehyung in his arms and rose to his feet. The rumbling from above intensified as the hovercraft prepared to destroy the entire building. Although the building could crumble down at any second, Jungkook stood still. He held Taehyung close to his chest as he stared out at the alien craft hovering just outside.
Jungkook waited for just a moment longer. As the hovercraft on the roof charged its blast and opened its weapon to fire, Jungkook then sprinted for the bombed-out entrance of the North City Public Library. The blast shot down through the library the same moment Jungkook ran through the newly non-existent wall.
Taehyung's eyes snapped open as the building began to shatter and fall behind them. A new rush of adrenaline coursed through Taehyung as he grabbed the pistol from his waist and began firing at the hovercraft that was hot in pursuit.
"Can you run?" Jungkook inquired of the lieutenant as he rounded the corner of a neighboring skyscraper and headed into an alleyway.
"Ae," Taehyung answered while dropping the now-empty magazine from his gun.
The moment Jungkook set Taehyung on the ground, the two began sprinting down the dark street. Reaching into one of the pockets of his cargo pants, Taehyung extracted his last magazine and inserted it into the gun.
"Xion!" Taehyung called out as he spotted an opening leading out of the narrow alleyway.
Noticing Taehyung's gesture, Jungkook quickly took a right and began racing down a wide street. However, halfway down the street, Jungkook unexpectedly stopped in his tracks. As Taehyung reached him, Jungkook took ahold of his wrist and led him into one of the buildings lining the street.
Seeing Jungkook's expression, Taehyung remained silent. His captain was concentrating on something. He had heard a sound that could be their salvation.
"There's a unit close by," Jungkook whispered as he continued to listen intently.
Taehyung furrowed his brows as he, too, focused on his hearing. Sure enough, after a quiet moment, he heard it. It was faint, but it was there. The sounds of helicopters flying overhead sparked hope in the two soldiers' hearts. Another unit was near!
Looking around the building they had snuck into, Jungkook immediately began leading Taehyung toward the stairs. "We need to get to the roof," the captain explained as he began racing up the steps.
Having lost the alien hovercraft down the narrow alleyway, Taehyung prayed they would be able to evade it for just a little longer. If they could make it to the rooftop before the helicopters passed over them, they could potentially signal for help before being found again.
Taehyung was exhausted by the time they reached the tenth floor. He had been running on pure adrenaline for the past day and a half, and he was nearly out of every reserve of energy. However, he continued to ascend. His survival depended on it. Jungkook and Taehyung would likely not survive another night on their own. They needed to regroup.
Just a few more. You can do it, Taehyung. You've got this. Taehyung continued to mentally pep talk himself into not giving up as he ran up the stairs. But it was so hard. He longed to just sit down and rest. But he knew that if he did, he would miss his one shot at being saved from the terrifying solitude.
Noticing V growing tired, Jungkook reached back and took his lieutenant by the wrist before helping Taehyung continue to ascend the seemingly endless steps. Luckily, the building the two took shelter in was not the tallest highrise, so they were able to make it to the rooftop before dying from exhaustion.
Taehyung heaved a huge breath as he and Jungkook broke through the door to the roof. They had to shoot the lock on the door to open it, which unfortunately would notify the enemy of their location. But Jungkook hoped they could flag down the helicopters before that happened.
Seeing the helicopters rapidly approaching them, Jungkook and Taehyung began to wave their arms over their heads. Since they were both dressed in black and it was currently night, the chances of them being seen were slim to none. Nonetheless, they continued to wave their arms desperately.
Save us, please! Tears touched Taehyung's eyes as desperation flooded him.
Jungkook watched anxiously as the helicopters grew increasingly nearer. Please...please...! Craning his head, Jungkook sighed helplessly as the helicopters flew by.
Despair filled Taehyung as the four helicopters passed over them. They didn't see us. Lowering his arms, Taehyung sunk to his hands and knees as he saw the helicopters fly away.
A bright light suddenly shining on the two soldiers on the roof alerted Jungkook that their location had been compromised.
Shit! With only a few moments to act, Jungkook whipped his head around to see if he could find a way to escape the impending danger. While Jungkook surveyed their surroundings, Taehyung looked up with wide eyes as the helicopters began to turn around. They had spotted them!
"Xion!" Calling out to his captain, Taehyung pointed at the helicopters as they began to fly toward them at top speed.
Following Taehyung's outstretched arm, Jungkook looked at the incoming helicopters for a split second before turning back to the alien craft that was locked in on their position. The aliens would be within firing range anytime, and it would take at least thirty seconds for the helicopters to reach them. And thirty seconds was not a luxury afforded to Jungkook at that moment.
After running through the possible scenarios, only one ended with a survivor. Choosing that path, Jungkook raced toward Taehyung as the alien craft became within range. Glowing bullets raced toward the two soldiers as Jungkook took Taehyung in his arms. With Taehyung in tow, Jungkook ran to the edge of the building.
"Hold on," was all Jungkook said as he held Taehyung tightly and threw himself off the roof. The blasts from the enemy collided with the roof the moment Jungkook jumped off, causing the building to explode. Had they remained on the roof to wait for the helicopters to reach them, both would have died.
As Jungkook turned himself to be beneath Taehyung, the lieutenant realized his captain's intentions. The outcome of the scenario Jungkook had chosen had only one survivor, and it was Taehyung. Knowing that Jungkook planned to use himself as a shield to cushion Taehyung's impact caused the lieutenant's throat to tighten.
Jungkook would sacrifice himself to save Taehyung from the fall, giving the helicopters enough time to arrive and save his lieutenant. With the realization, Taehyung tried to flip himself over, so he would take the brunt of the impact, but Jungkook wrapped both his arms and legs around Taehyung, preventing him from moving.
No, no, no, no. It wasn't supposed to end like this! Tears trailed from Taehyung's eyes as the two soldiers neared the ground. I don't even know your name. Don't leave me, please. Don't do this, Xion.
Jungkook cradled his lieutenant tightly as the two plummeted toward the ground. Please survive this, V. Survive this hell and live. Jungkook lifted up a quick prayer as a cry ripped from Taehyung's throat.
What do I do? What can I do to stop this? Everything was happening so quickly and so slowly all at once. And, as the ground grew nearer and nearer, Taehyung knew there was nothing he could do to stop it. All he could do was cry out his captain's call sign.