Stay with me.

Aiku's heart pounded rapidly in his chest as he sprinted down the ruined road, his breathing jagged and uneven. The asphalt beneath his feet was cracked and broken, threatening to trip him up with every step.

The landscape around him was a scene of devastation, with broken buildings and damaged vehicles strewn about like toys. The air was thick with the noxious fumes of smoke and dust. Aiku's gaze remained fixed on his goal, his body pushing forward with every bit of strength he had.

Aiku's exceptional speed and agility allowed him to surge ahead of Tobi, who was starting to fall behind. "That's the gap between us," he thought, struggling to keep up with his captain who had earned his rank through sheer brilliance.

Tobi's eyes widened in admiration, his mind admitting, "I'm nowhere near his level. " His face twisted in exhaustion, his breathing ragged and labored, as the gap between him and his captain continued to expand.

Aiku's voice echoed through the air, "Tobi, where are you?" Tobi, who had stopped to catch his breath, responded with a strained yell, "Go on without me!" He paused, gasping for air, before shouting again, "I'll be right at your back!"

Upon hearing Tobi's words, Aiku sprinted forward, pushing his exhausted body to its limits. Tobi watched in awe as his captain accelerated even further. "This is the reason Aiku is our captain—this is the proof."

The address they had traced as the unknown callers location grew clearer with each step. His focus narrowed, his eyes fixed intently on the entrance, his mind racing with the possibilities of what he might find.

Aiku's sprint came to an abrupt halt the moment he laid eyes on the building, or what was left of it. The structure had crumbled to the ground, reduced to a massive heap of rubble and debris. The scale of the destruction left him breathless, a haunting testament to the shockwaves that had radiated from this very location.

Aiku's thoughts shifted to the potential victims, and his expression darkened. "Anyone in that building is already dead," he said to himself, the gravity of his words settling in. The delay in his arrival had likely sealed the fate of anyone who might have survived the initial collapse.

While scrutinizing the scene, his gaze landed on two bodies, partially buried under the rubble. One lay in the living room, and the other was discovered near the back door. Aiku exhaled sharply— "Whoever it was had tried to escape. But failed."

He instinctively tried to lift the rocks off the body near the back door in an attempt to save them, but then stopped, realizing the futility of his actions. The person was beyond saving.

Aiku slumped down onto a block of rubble, his chest heaving in his desperate attempt to catch his breath. He was consumed by the intense pain of his injuries, his bandages soaked with blood that had seeped through to stain his uniform. The weight of his failure to save anyone bore down on him, crushing his spirits. "Darn it," he muttered, wiping the sweat from his face with shaking hands and drying them on his pants.

Looking down in defeat, his eyes fell upon the ground, and something caught his attention. His curiosity piqued, he stood up and shone the torch light from his phone to get a closer look. And then, he saw it - a faint yet unmistakable set of small footprints, trailing away from the ruins. A child. A survivor.

"I need to find him fast. He might be in grave danger." Aiku gritted his teeth, bracing himself against the searing pain of his reopened wounds. With meticulous care, he followed the footprints, his cellphone's torchlight casting an eerie glow on the dark, devastated surroundings. The destruction around him was severe, with streetlights toppled and debris scattered everywhere, making it difficult for him to see without the aid of his phone's light.

While proceeding, the footprints suddenly disappeared. Aiku stopped in his tracks in the darkness, his eyes scanning the ground frantically, wondering where the child could have gone. " He must be around here somewhere," he muttered to himself, his mind racing with possibilities. He swept his phone light around, trying to detect any sign of the child, but there was nothing.

Moving a bit further, he realized half of the road had crumbled downhill. His heart sank with the realization that the little boy's footprints had disappeared at the exact spot. Without hesitation, Aiku carefully made his way down the less treacherous part, calling out for the little boy.

"Is anyone here?!" Aiku shouted, his voice reverberating through the night air. He continued to shout, his eyes scanning the darkness for any sign of movement.

And then, he heard it - a faint voice crying out, "…Help...". Aiku's heart skipped a beat as he heard the voice. He rushed towards the sound, his heart pounding in his chest, only to find the little boy lying on the ground, blood oozing from his head. Aiku's eyes widened in shock at the sight of the boy's injuries. The child appeared to have lost a substantial amount of blood, leaving Aiku to wonder if the child had mustered his last strength to cry out for help.

Aiku's hands trembled violently upon reaching out to check the boy's pulse. His fingers hovered over the wrist, hesitant to confirm his worst fears. He felt for a heartbeat, but felt nothing. "No!" Aiku exclaimed, his voice shaking with fear. "This can't be happening now!"

Desperate, Aiku tried once more, pressing his fingers firmly against the boy's wrist. "Come on" he urged, his voice trembling, "Come on boy, give me a pulse." Then, like a spark of hope, he felt it—a weak, but unmistakable pulse.