SECONDS AFTER MIRKO FALLS
"WHY THE HELL DID YOU SHOOT?!"
Reeves thundered, spinning around.
The soldier who fired flinched but snapped back, "He was gonna shoot us first! That weirdo had a gun pointed at us!"
Reeves stepped forward, fury burning behind his eyes.
"You don't fire unless I give the order! Are you out of your damn mind?!"
Before the argument could go further, one of the soldiers shouted—
"HEY—LOOK!"
They all whipped around just in time to see Aiko sprinting through the brush, pure rage and grief twisting her face.
She dove for the gun Mirko dropped, hands shaking, eyes wild.
"YOU—YOU MONSTERS!!" she screamed.
Her fingers brushed the gun's grip—
But a soldier lunged, tackling her to the ground.
"LET ME GO!!" Aiko shrieked, kicking, clawing, tears streaming.
"DON'T YOU DARE LEAVE HIM HERE TO DIE! I swear—
I SWEAR I'll kill all of you!"
"We don't have time for this," the soldier holding her muttered and—
CRACK—hit her across the head.
Her body went limp.
"What the hell was that for?" another soldier barked.
The guy shrugged.
"What? She was annoying."
Then saw the looks the others gave him.
"…What?"
Reeves clenched his jaw.
"Grab her. We're finding the others."
THE CAPTURE OF THE OTHER FOUR
The soldiers fanned out through the trees.
Izuku was the first they grabbed—he fought like hell, shouting, kicking, trying to bite.
Two men forced him face-down, hands behind his back.
Then Tenya—he froze the second he saw Izuku pinned. He didn't even resist.
Anna was dragged screaming from behind a pile of cut logs—
Her voice cracked with terror.
And then he stepped forward.
Kaito.
Her brother.
In soldier gear.
Helmet under his arm.
Eyes full of shame.
"Anna…" he whispered.
She froze mid-scream.
"You…?"
Her voice trembled.
"Kait..how could you
..
But before she could move toward him, she saw it—
Aiko's unconscious body being carried out of the trees.
Her hair sticking to her face.
Her clothes smeared with blood.
Anna's scream tore through the whole forest.
"AIKO!!!"
She tried to break free from the soldier holding her.
"What happened?! What DID YOU DO TO HER?!"
Her eyes snapped to her brother, voice breaking—
"Kaito—tell me—TELL ME WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED!"
Kaito swallowed hard, throat tight.
"It's… not her blood."
Everything went silent.
Izuku stopped struggling instantly.
Tenya's eyes widened.
Anna's face drained of color.
They looked at each other—
And the fear hit all at once.
If it wasn't Aiko's blood—
It was Mirko's.
Tenya suddenly snapped, rage exploding out of him—
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?!"
Izuku's voice cracked with fury—
"I swear—if he's dead—I SWEAR—!"
"It was a mistake," Reeves said sharply, stepping in.
He sounded angry at his own men, tired, and worried all at once.
"But right now—
we move."
He motioned for the soldiers to drag the kids forward.
"We're going back to the base."
Anna choked out a sob as they were forced ahead.
"Mirko…"
She whispered brokenly.
"Oh god… Mirko…"