"Wait!" Isaac keeps a tight grip around my wrist and stares deep into my eyes. "we can't screw this up okay..." he says. I break free from his cold fingers.
"I know" my voice sounds off, distant, *"Don't show any fear."* Jona's nasal but comforting words echoes through my skull. It's ironic really. My brothers small hand was clutching around that twig so tightly that his knuckles went all white, his lips were quivering and blood was trickling down his cheeks and mouth, yet he kept repeating the same phrase: "don't show any fear."
He would be so disappointed in me now, Jona.
I snap back to reality when I feel Isaac's somehow even tighter grip around my wrist. A reminder to not drag it out any longer. Soon I'll have my shot, I'll revenge my brother and the war can finally come to an end. It ends with me.
"He will stand right here" Isaac points towards a table across the end of the woods. Where Zero would say his speech. Teach his army, "the lost army" how to best make us suffer, when our Akilis point is. How to end us.
The grip around my sword tightens when I hear the sound of army boot. I expect them to march towards the podium, but instead, all their eyes turn to me, they're cold, empty. Fearless. I turn around and search for Isaac, silently praying he would somehow figure it out before we're both bleeding on the ground. But he's gone, I hadn't even noticed the missing presence of his fingers around my wrist. I turn around again. Nothing but a sucking feeling in my stomach, I'm floating, nothing to support my feet. It's happening too fast, the ground gets closer and closer.
