Road to Hell

Ethan had never felt so relieved. The moment his feet touched solid ground, he bolted downhill, eager to get as far away from the heights as possible.

He ran until his legs gave in, then dropped onto a rock to sit. He wiped away his tears, breath ragged, throat burning with regret.

He should've brought water.

Now it felt like fire was crawling down his throat.

Desperately.

NEED.

Water.

His eyes scanned the area—and there it was, an old well, weathered but still standing.

Summoning the last of his strength, he staggered toward it and lowered the bucket. But as he hauled it up, his heart sank.

The bucket had a massive hole in its side.

Water leaked out fast. Ethan gritted his teeth and pulled harder, faster, hoping to beat gravity before every last drop spilled back into the well.

Fortunately, the bucket was tilted just enough that some water remained, spared from the gaping hole. Ethan drank it greedily, gulping down every drop like it was sacred. Then, he fetched another round to pour over himself, letting the water fall wherever it pleased—soaking his hair, his face, his shirt—cooling the fire in his overheated skin.

It felt divine.

Like he'd been a zombie, and the water brought him back to life—fresh, soaked, and breathing again.

He collapsed beside the well, not caring anymore about the dirt beneath him or the dust the wind carried into his face. He pulled off his footwear and massaged his sore toes, eyes drifting across the empty land.

Nothing but sand, rocks, weeds, and cliffs.

Who would've thought he'd actually miss the chaos of city life—the noise, the people, the ease of simply studying and eating.

But there was no time to sit around. It was already 4 PM.

He had to move before it got dark. That's when the bigallows came out of their nests to hunt, and Ethan bet it wouldn't be a pleasant experience to meet them.

First thing that he checked is Marie's phone battery which is 40% left.No time to waste.

He typed a message to the mysterious woman:"I don't know if I can make it there. The battery's at 40% and I didn't bring a charger. I'm not sure I'll remember the directions if the phone dies."

Still, he got up. He had to keep going.

This was the only way to save the children. And it meant leaving Hamman far behind.

On foot.

If this weren't life or death, he'd never be doing this. But it was. So he took one last sip of water, then started his journey.

The map said it was a straight shot—just walk straight until he reached the meeting point near Bono Bakery.

If the phone died, all he had to do was find that bakery.

And he'd be where he needed to be.

Having no one around makes Ethan go a bit nuts. Maybe because he's too tired and too hungry to keep himself in character, but he starts to sing. A trembling voice of someone lacking food and drink, just singing to make himself feel better.

Bored of singing, his thoughts start to wander.

He remembered his house, his cozy flat. Where the balcony is filled with flowers, a place where he rinses and dries the laundry, with Jacques loving to sit at the door while drinking something.

Jacques loves to sit in front of the door with a drink beside him. Be it coffee, a can of soda, tea, or a bottle of beer.

Wait—beer? Isn't he 15?

Yep, beer.

Because it's not their first time around.

For some reason, Ethan remembers it as if it was only yesterday. Not sure what's going on, but it seems like time loves to go merry-go-round. Maybe it's how the universe works.

But he remembers the days he spent with Jacques, watching how their hair slowly turned grey and wrinkles grew on their faces. He's still that gentle craftsman who builds things—from tools to homes. He is not like any other man; he is very supportive, never tries to dominate, and sees everyone as equal until they prove him wrong about it.

There are a lot of things that made Ethan fall in love with him, but his kindness is number one. It's something that people these days are lacking. However, his kindness is also something that makes him unable to fly.

And it makes Ethan feel guilty about it.

His monologue of thoughts is interrupted by the sound of a car engine in the distance.

The sky is almost dark. When the night comes, it will be really cold out here. A hungry stomach wouldn't survive easily, especially with no shelter, no water, no food. Different from Jacques, Ethan is not a traveler—he doesn't have that kind of endurance, let alone hunting skills. So a car—sign of another human being—means space and speed—also shelter—for him to protect himself from the night.

Ethan turns around to make sure the sound of the car engine isn't just his hallucination.

There it is—a pair of lights from the car's front. It's a white van, not too old, not brand new, but still working fine.

Shall he ask for a ride?

He's heard so many stories about serial killers targeting people like him; desperate for a ride in the middle of nowhere.

But the pain and the discomfort he feels ignore all those survival thoughts and makes him signal with his hand that he wants to ride along.

The van stops.

Ethan tries to peek into the driver's seat—what kind of person is driving? It's too dark to see inside.

The back door opens, and a hand quickly stretches from the interior of the van, grabs Ethan's collar, and pulls him inside. 

Hands, so many hands grabbing him, pulling his clothes away from his body. 

"W-what the? Let me go!!" Ethan screams while throwing his punch hoping it will hit the perpretator.

They won't let him go, of course.

"Hold his hands and legs!" one person, a man, commands his friends and the other do as he said. 

"Get over here, boy!" They grunts, trying to remove Ethan clothes, stripping it away from his body.

Don't know how, Ethan manages to leave the van, and he did not waste his chance. he run his way. Far away from the van. as fast as he could.

It's such a scary experience.

***

Long story short, it was 8:30 pm when Ethan arrived in Ferlude, where the Bono's Bakery is. It was a city by the harbour, there are a lot of rivers in the city and the road mostly made of the stone brick. This city looked like a classic European city that still contains a lot of historical remarks. especially the arch stone bridges above the rivers.

Bono's Bakery located near the harbor, just across the river. 

Marie's phone is already dead, running out of battery, so Ethan got no choice but to look for Bono's Bakery and here he is. 

The pin point is accross the bakery right on the bridge.

"Hello?" Ethan calls, perhaps the mysterious woman is waiting for him near the bridge. But as far as he could notice, not so many people around the bridge. Most are old people having night snack at the cafe near the area.

Ethan walk to the bridge, feeling exhausted. He sits under the lamp street and look around, if there's any sign of someone looking suspicious.

But then he notice a man is looking at him, waiting for Ethan to notice him.

When he see the man, Ethan run to him. As he run closer to the man, Ethan notices he is wearing black trench coat, and there's burned mark on his left side, fire accident that happened in the past had took his left eye. Maybe that's why the man looked at the world with bitter expression.

"Are you working for the woman who send me here?" Ethan ask. 

The man nods, "follow me."

The man turn his body and enter the shadow of the bridge.

Just right after the two guys disappeared under the bridge, someone from the distance far enough from the bridge, pressed a detonator.

Explosion collapses the bridge, fire engulfes everything under the bridge, and the stone structure burries anyone who happens to be underneath it.

The same man that Ethan saw walking out of Marie's car, now smirks satisfyingly, and he call someone, "target eliminated."

"Good job," Sigma replied. "I'll send you the rest of your payment. Happy vacation, Beta."

The assassin, Beta, left the scene. This time, police comes after someone calls them, just 10 minutes after the bridge collapses.