Heroes

Aftermath

I awoke in Jun's house, on the sofa. Not exactly what I expected, but I was glad to be alive. Then I remembered. I'd taken a bullet, and my sister was gone. I wasn't gonna think about that until I had some answers.
Our town was attacked by a group. I assumed things were okay, seeing as I wasn't dead. But I didn't know for sure. I tried to get up, but winced, my chest burning. I looked down and saw bandages plastering the right side of my torso. Eventually, I decided to stay put, wait for someone. I drifted off to sleep, thoughts tumbling through my head.

A few hours after I fell asleep, I was woken by two voices. Lizzy and Aria.
"For Christ's sake, my dad isn't doing anything!"
"I know, but going into the warzone won't help. Walt for Rivio to wake up."
"I still can't believe the guards let in the Coldhearts. Damn..."
Again I tried getting to my feet, but this time I was able to stand up. I had to hobble to Aria and Lizzy, but their faces were shocked when I entered the same room as them.
"Rivio!" Lizzy was happy to see me. She rushed towards me, but then stopped.
"You're one tough bastard, Rivio." Aria seemed impressed.
"Thanks Aria. What happened?"
Lizzy answered, "The Coldhearts attacked us, aiming to gain control over our town. Ten people are dead, and..."
"My sister. Where is she?"
"I'm sorry, Rivio." Aria looked grimly at me.
"Sorry for what? Where is she?"
"She....she didn't make it. I'm so sorry."
No. No. No! Fuck! I was supposed to look after her! I was supposed to save her! The Coldheart bastards would pay!
I didn't reply to her, just walked straight outside, throwing the door open.
"Rivio! Rivio, stop!" Lizzy was calling me back. I had nothing left. My mother was probably dead too, and she wouldn't even care about Renée's death. Lui Scalleti, he let the attackers in. If his damn guards hadn't been slacking off, none of this would have happened.
I walked for what seemed like hours, time blurring into one lazy mess of sadness. Eventually I arrived at my destination.
Lui Scalleti's house.
I booted open the door. He was sat by his desk. Lui was a short, fat excuse of a man. His hair was balding and greasy, his skin dark. He was practically the opposite of Aria, she was much nicer. I could see why she hated him.
"Mr Agani? What is the matter?"
"You damn well know what the matter is! My sister is dead because of you! So are countless others!"
"You're blaming this on me? I believe you were the one who didn't get your sister out of the rubble in time, so can you-"
"FUCK YOU! THEIR DEATHS ARE ON YOU!"
"Guards! There is a traitor! Take him to jail!"
I lunged at Lui, and cracked my fist against his nose. Blood came flying out, but before I could do some more damage, the guards dragged me away from him.
"This is all your fault!" I screamed before I was smashed over the head.

I vaguely remember being dragged into my cell. My memory returned when I heard someone harshly whispering my name.
"Rivio! Rivio!" It was Jun. What was he doing in jail?
"What are you doing here?"
"Got into a fight with some of the guards about what happened. You okay man?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Dragged in here because I smacked Lui across the face!"
"Nice!"
"What are we going to do?"
"I say we try and escape, then get Lizzy and Aria and leave this town, find somewhere in the country to stay for now."
"Anythings better than staying here."
"Inmates! Quiet!"
The guard dropped off a poor meal of soup.
We devised a plan. When the guard came around to give us food again, we'd assault him, steal the keys and escape. After about two hours, he came back around. He reached his hand through the bars of my cell, and I grabbed it. I yanked his hand forward and his head hit the bars repeatedly. He fell to the floor, unconscious.
The keys were on his body, and I unlocked my door, and then went to help Jun. We snuck out of the prison, weaving through cell blocks and avoiding guards.
The cold air of the outside world was refreshing, and I breathed a loud sigh.
"So, Rivio, let's go find Aria and Lizzy, and get the hell out of here!"
The two of us walked back into town. The curfew was in place, so the streets were empty. Lui always said the curfew was temporary, but he was obviously lying.We passed where I used to live, now just rubble. I remembered Renée and clenched my fist. I couldn't believe she was gone.
Lizzy's house was quiet, but Jun found an open window on the ground floor and we crept in. Aria was walking around the house, and she was shocked to see us.
"Guys! What are you doing here?"
"We broke out. We're leaving town, and you're coming with us." Jun got straight to the point.
"Fine by me."
"Me too." Lizzy was walking down the stairs, bleary eyed.
The four of us got into Aria's pickup truck. Apparently it was a "gift" from her dad.
We drove out of the town quietly. Where we were going didn't matter. We couldn't stay in that town, not while the war was going on. It was unsafe, and all the laws didn't help either.
After we were into the countryside, Aria drove us along the coast, next to a blooming green forest. Everything seemed fine, for now. We'd left town, and the Scalleti's behind. We had a chance to start again. But something was burning at the back of my mind.
When Renée died, I wanted revenge. Now, however, it just seemed wrong. War didn't solve problems, just created them. People were suffering all over the country, and this was not the way forward. Peace. That's what I wanted. I wanted the families to get along, and I wanted to be able to walk along the beach with my friends again. I'm sure the rest of the country did too, but the families were too caught up in their own arguments.
My mind relaxed. The four of us, maybe we could help the country heal. Maybe we could fight for peace, not war.
The happy thoughts that washed through my mind were cut off when Aria's head hit the wheel. Blood was pouring out of her chest.
The car veered left and we plunged into the sea.
As we fell, I saw the glint of a sniper in the trees.
Later, I awoke to find my arm lodged under a chair, and my friends unconscious. The car window was cracked to hell, and on the verge of breaking, but the worst part?
We were underwater.