Redemption [| PHILLIP GRAVES |]

CHAPTER XLVIII: The Feeling of Nobody Can, and Ever Will Return

The dawn breaks as the sun rose in the horizon, only to witness the beautiful destruction of the base within the sand – fire roaring and debris scattered around the perimeter as a pit formed where the based was supposed to be, mirroring how big the device's destruction was. They'd expected it to actually nuke the whole place along with the country, but they were surprised that the explosion was the size of the base itself.

Nikolais knew how to change the explosion's radius. He knew, and still got himself killed in the process.

All for playing a stupid sacrifice.

Both Graves and Shogun took a moment to sit down as both of them face the ruins, unwilling to accept that he was actually dead. In a way, you would think that someone could survive and escape this kind of explosion, but knowing the Russian's condition, he couldn't survive it. And that's what Graves hated the most. He couldn't survive the explosion, because they all knew, that the device could nuke a whole country, eventually destroying it with the taste of nuclear poison.

That was an actual burden to them all. Even if they tried escaping, they would still get killed by the explosion overall – and that's why Nikolais had the idea of using himself as a sacrifice in order to protect those he absolutely loved.

Graves couldn't even bring himself to look at the base's ruins, knowing that- that's where he died. That was where his body was, never to be seen again, goddamnit.

"Graves..." Gryffin tried calling out to the man as he was the only one who had courage to face the base's ruins, not being able to get a proper response back because he knew that Graves hates him for what he had done to most people.

Shogun sighed, "Look. I know you very much hate me, lad, but I have feelings too. I know what's it's like to lose someone that you– also loved. I cannot express myself, because I know what's it's like to hold that much pain in you. So, I understand you, Graves. Sometimes, we get caught in moments where you just had to witness somebody you care and love for dying, and we regret those moments a lot, because... well–",

"You couldn't save them."

Shogun had described what he had experienced and felt to Graves, hoping to make the man have a heart to talk back to him, whether he was still mad at him or not. Surprisingly, he had been given the benefit of the doubt, and he actually took some time mourning in order to talk to him.

"You... wouldn't know what– what that would mean."

"Trust me, I do. We weren't able to tell you this sooner but," Graves spun his head in order to look at the man, curious of what he would say as he still avoided looking at the ruins.

Shogun couldn't bring himself to tell him as well, but he knew that, Graves needed to know the truth. He needed to know why they turned as enemies to them. To why they were all acting like enemies, even if they knew that Graves was present. One of the truthbearers couldn't hold the guilt anymore as he sighed beforehand, his sitting stationary as he looked towards Graves with a serious look.