R E M A I N S

by Ketti-K

After the events of Tekken 7: The war is still raging and the rebel group around Lars Alexanderson with Jin Kazama's help has made it their task to end it. But one day Jin meets the teenager Mila Kilian. She fights against strange powers, which she can'T understand and is hunted by a mercenary group sent out by the G. New threats are already in sight. M/violence/strong language

1. Awake- (Prologue)

Introduction:

Hello dear Tekken fans and/or readers. I'm glad that you're interested to read my first fanfiction here. First of all I'm not a native speaker, so I will excuse myself for some spelling and/or grammar mistakes first.

Some words to this fanfiction: This chapter is more a prologue than a canon chapter to introduce my OC Mila and her backstory. So don't be surprised that you won't find many Tekken characters here. Maybe this chapter seems a bit confusing to you,, but don't worry you will find some connections sooner or later at the storyline ;) , The story is connected to Tekken7. So some knowledge about Tekken 7's storyline is helpful to understand the scenario. So that's it I hope you enjoy reading :)

Tekken Characters belongs to (c) Namco/Bandai and the Tekken Project Tea

little changes and improvements reserved!

1. Awake-Prologue

Somewhere in the middle of a forest in the USA 3 a.m:

She just stands there, paralyzed, staring at the flames. They gape and seem to come closer and closer, as if they wanted to devour her, just like the little house. Little flaming devils who seem to conquer her old life bit by bit and know no mercy. She doesn't know whether to scream, cry or be angry. On herself, on her mother or on her, because she persuaded her to leave despite her reservations? What the hell, right now she's like a stone, feels nothing. How could she?

A few hours ago:

"So he draws his sword and prepared for the last fight. . . END. "

"Whaaat? Oh, no. That can't have been the second book of "The prince and lady darkness", yet," he sulked. A little blond boy half asleep.

"Oh, yes. Seems so. And that also means bedtime. And don't be so sad. The third book will be released, soon.", she says and smiles while she puts the book aside. Then she sits up. Another blonde girl, a few years older than the boy.

He rubs his sleepy eyes.

She wants to get up.

"Mila. Are you looking forward to tomorrow?"

She turns around to him.

"Yeah, I think so, Mum promised me a big surprise to my 15th, even when I turned 10. With that she has raised my expectations very high," she says and laughs.

"Now try to sleep, Mum should be back soon, by sunrise at the latest. "

"Mila. What does Mum always do? Why does she leave so often at night?"

"I don't know, Jason. She never talked to me about what she does, but maybe tomorrow, I mean, then I'll be 15. Then I'll probably get over it and now Prince Junior it's time to sleep. Good night. "

She kisses him on the cheek. Then she leaves the room and closes the room door quitely.

She walks down the stairs into the living room of the little forest cottage she and her family live in.

"Okay, and what do I do now until I'm finally 15?"

She's running towards the couch.

"Let's see what's on TV for almost 15-year-old girls. Since Jason's in bed, it could be a horror movie, too," she reflects.

So she zaps through the programs. And in fact she finds a horror movie quite soon. "Night of the dead redemption. I think Vivi told me about it once. She loves movies like that. "

She's about to make herself comfortable as a vibrating sound echoes through the room.

Mila reaches into her pocket and pulls out her cell phone.

"Strange. It's not mine. "

She gets up and follows the sound until she lands at the kitchen. There's actually a phone there.

"This is Mums. Damn it. She left her cell phone. "

Mila turns on the display:

"New message from Gianni. "

"Gianni, who is that? When will she introduce us to our new father?" She tries to remember her mother's pin because she is curious who this Gianni is and what he wants. After all, she and Jason are also affacted by the decision, if there might be a new man in the game.

In fact, she remembers the sequence of numbers that her mother always types in, she had observed it several times before. So she unlocks the phone and listens to the message. What this however contains is a mystery to her.

"Oh man, what is this creepy shit. Sounds like a code. What this guy's talking about? Does Mum understand that? What the hell's she doing? Maybe she's like an assassin, like in this movie with the killer couple," she starts making assumptions.

However, she decides not to think about it any further, even if she does not understand why her mother does not talk about what she is up to. But at some day she'll tell her, for sure!

Then she returns to the couch and nods off a little before being woken up by a noise. She doesn't know if she's dreaming or awake when she thinks a cardboard box is running past her. She has to rub her eyes before she realizes that it's actually only her cat that has got caught in the box and desperately mumbles and tries to shake it off. Mila has to laugh.

"Wow. Schroedinger's cat's alive," she laughs.

She hurries to help her kitten.

Then she takes a look at the clock that is beating 12 right now.

"Wow. Happy birthday Mila. Damn it, it doesn't feel any different, what a miracle. Ok, whether 15 or not, it's time to go to bed when Mum catches me in front of the TV again early in the morning, there's trouble," she fears.

She runs into the bathroom when she notices a voice.

"Mila.", it calls.

Mila recognizes the voice immediately and runs to the front door. She opens the door and sees a red haired girl. "Happy birthday Mila."

She has sparklers with her, with which she fidgets a little and paints a heart in the air.

"Vivi. What are you doing here?" she asks overwhelmed.

"Congratulations to you. Welcome to the 15-year-old club. "

"Thank you, my life has totally changed," laughs Mila.

The girl embraces her.

"Mila. I have a surprise for you," she whispers.

"What? Can't this wait till tomorrow? It's really late Vivi."

Mila smiles.

But Vivi takes her hand and drags her to a car.

"It's not too late. It's just the right time. The club dead tree, just opened. "

"Vivi. Club Dead tree? We're 15 and not 21. We'll never get in there," she tries to take the wind out of her friend's sails.

"My brother works there as a bouncer. He's off today, and well, I stole his back door key. "

"We can't do that. We're way too young to go out for a party, besides, I have to take care of Jason and you can't drive either. "

"1. Jason's 10 and not 5 anymore and 2. I drove here too. There's a lonely road, checked maybe once a year. And by the time your mom gets back, we'll also be back, I promise. So let's celebrate your birthday properly. You always said you wanted to go there. "

"Yes, but. . . " „

"No buts, get in. Next stop at Taxi Vivi Club dead tree. "

Mila gets in the car. Vivi's stepping on the gas.They are driving along a narrow lonely forest road.

"Say, is that a convertible?"

Vivi nods.

"Wow. Dude, where'd you get that car?" she asks.

"Never mind. Enjoy it and feel the magic. "

She's opening the roof. Mila sits up and stretches her head out. She enjoys the warm spring air.

"Vivi. That's wonderful. "

"Yeah, just you and me on the road to new adventures. "

Vivi takes her hand.

She turns on the music and the two girls start partying in the car. They drive along the forest road for a while until they stop in front of a building. It looks more like a ruin, than a club and also the area looks dead and desolate.

"What happened here?"

"One of the bombs, the forest is dead, that's why the club is called "dead tree" now," Vivi explains.

The two girls park the car and walk towards the building. But Mila gets a little uneasy again.

"Are you sure we should do this? I mean, that's housebreaking. "

"It's not, we have a key," Vivi invalidates Mila's argument and waggles the bunch of keys in front of her.

"Listen, I just want this birthday to be unforgettable for you. You watch Jason so many times, take care of the house. You're more of a second mother to him than a big sister, but now it's your turn. Let go, Jason can take care of himself, he's a smart boy. What could happen to him as he sleeps in bed?" Vivi tries to calm her down. Mila's breathing deep.

"You're right. He's not 3 anymore. Maybe I really need to let him go and not take everything from him anymore. "

"That's how I like it. Let get the party starting. " calls Vivi and runs ahead.

Mila follows her.

Present time:

"Oh, my God. What happened here," Vivi asks, sighing, looking stunned at the burning house and the devastated surroundings.

Mila doesn't think long and runs down the hills towards the house.

"Mila. Wait," Vivi tries to stop her and follows her.

"Jasoooon!" Mila screams and wants to run into the house.

Vivi stops her again.

"No, Mila, you can't run in there. "

She's looking at Vivi.

"You're gonna die, you understand?"

"Leave me alone. " she snarls at her friend.

"It's all your fault. If you hadn't coaxed me to go to your fucking club, I could have helped him. "

Vivi looks at her stunned and also a little angry.

"Dude. Did you just blame me for this? That's not fair, Mila. All I wanted was for you to have a happy birthday. No one could have known this was going to happen. "

But Mila doesn't listen to her, she runs to the house.

"Mum, Jason. " she shouts desperately.

Since she can't get into the building at the front, she wants to try the patio door at the back.

Vivi follows her incessantly and tries to talk to her, so that she doesn't put herself in danger. At some point, however, she has to realize that it doesn't make sense and that Mila will find her way into the burning house. But it doesn't come to that, because Vivi hears a horrible scream. She runs after her friend's voice and soon finds her huddled on the floor. In her arms she holds the lifeless body of a boy. It won't take Vivi long to realize it's Jason. She's shocked.

"Oh, no. " she sighs in a trembling voice.

There's a woman not even a few feet away, Mila's mother. She knows there's only one thing she can do right now. Going to stand by her friend. It's hard for her, too to resist the tears. Whether out of grief, compassion for her best friend, or bewilderment at what happened. Or maybe because of all these facts she also has to cry in the end and takes Mila in her arms.

"I'm so sorry, Mila. "

Mila's on her knees. She can barely stand, is short of collapse.

"Mila, come on, let's get out of here and let the task force handle this. You shouldn't be here any longer. "

She drags her friend a little way into the woods. It won't be long before firefighters and the police have arrived. Mila is still sitting on a wooden bench and looking into the void.

"Miss, what's your friend's name?" One of the officers turns to Vivi.

"Mila, sir. Mila Kilian. " she answers.

"And my name is Vivien Smith. What will happen to her now?" Vivi wants to know.

"Well, after she's still a minor, she'll probably be taken into custody, either in a youth facility or possibly psychiatric care, depending on how her condition develops. "

"But, I can still see her, right? She's my best friend and she needs me now."

"I think that can be arranged, but right now Miss Kilian needs some rest. "

Vivi wants to go back to her friend. She notices two of the policemen talking. She decides to listen closer, when Mila's name comes up and she does hear something like: "That's her."

One of the officers pulls out a photo out of his pocket and Vivi recognizes Mila directly on it. She knows that picture. It used to be in her mother's house. She decides to sneak a little closer to the two men. Whoever sent this photo to the officers, these people were in Mila's house and might have something to do with the murder of her family.

"What do you think? Shall we notify this Lebedew guy, who sent us the picture? According to this entry, he's supposed to be looking for her .", they discuss.

"But. She just lost her entire family. She is and will remain a child. "

"I know, but we're obligated to report her. Otherwise, we're in a lot of trouble. You know, you shouldn't mess with this mercenary crew. They're dangerous." , one of the policemen whispers.

"Yeah, you're right, maybe it's better. Lebedew probably doesn't look for her for nothing. I'm sure they know how to deal with her. "

Vivi can't believe what she's hearing. They want to extradite Mila for whatever reason.

She knows she has to get her friend out of here,fast. So she runs to her.

"Mila. I know it's a bad time. But we have to get out of here. They're looking for you. I don't know why, but the cops were just talking about it. They want to extradite you to some mercenary group. "

Vivi talks so fast, she can't breathe anymore

"What, you mean Vivi? Who's looking for me? I didn't do anything. "

"Like I said, I don't know, but you have to trust me. Come on, before they get there. "

Vivi grabs Mila's hand and they sneak into the undergrowth inconspicuously.

It doesn't take long, until Lebedew and his crew arrive.

"And where's the girl?"

"This way, sir."

The policeman takes them to the bench.

"We'll take it from here.", Lebedew says in serious way.

The policemen retreat

"The G has been looking for her for years. Morgan, alias Emma Kilian, her mother, brought her out of one of their facilities back then. Apperently she lived a undercover life with her daughter here in the woods.," he explains to his unit.

But when they arrive at the bench, they are surprised.

"Damn, she's gone. You let them get away, you jerks," Lebew snarls at the officers.

"I can't explain this to myself. They were both sitting there. "

"Both of them? What do you mean with both of them?"

"Well Mila Kilian and her friend," the policeman tells him,

"A red-haired girl about the same age."

Meanwhile, the two girls in question are running through the forest.

"Mila, the Water Tower, that's where we can hide. "

"Vivi. What the hell is going on? My life is a mess. First my family gets killed and suddenly I get chased by mercenaries? It's like a bad dream. Do you think Mum and Jason were attacked because they were actually looking for me? What if it's my fault?", she fears

"Mila. Don't think that. I don't understand what's going on here either. But whatever, I'll stay with you. "

When they reach the water tower, they climb up the rotten ladder and hide behind the old rotten tank.

"What are we going to do now, Vivi?"

"Get out of here. We'll jump on the next freight train and will travel as far away as we can. So that the guys can't find us that easy"

"But. You can't do that. Your family. "

"Mila, I have no family. Only a alcoholic mother, who is only interested in herself and two criminal brothers, who treat me like shit, before they will finish up in jail. You're my family. Nothing's keeping me here."

They look deep into each others eyes.

"Vivi. . . " that's all Mila's saying.

Their faces are getting a little closer and closer. A strange feeling comes over them. A feeling of security. Suddenly they know, they belong together and that no one can separate them. They take each other by the hand. But Mila suddenly stops.

"My God, Vivi. What are we doing here? We're actually way too young for this relationshit and all, and you're my best friend. And beyond that, I just lost my entire family. I'm sorry. I can't do this. I hope you're not angry."

"No, of course not. I'm sorry, too, that was pretty disrespectful of me. It's just you're the only person I really care about and seeing you so destroyed just kills me. And I just know how you feel. When my father died, a world collapsed for me and since that day I knew I would never have a real childhood again. But I didn't have anyone to stand by me. But I want to be stand by you."

"You do I don't know what I'd do without you and what I said earlier that it's your fault. I'm so, so sorry. But I was just so...well, nevermind! Can you forgive me?"

Vivi doesn't say anything, she just takes her in her arms.

"This is for you Mila. " she whispers and ties something around her wrist. It's a bracelet with a pendant. It's part of the ying and yang symbol.

"That's beautiful," Mila says.

" Well, it's not a gold bracelet or it's worth a hell of a lot. Actually, I made it myself. But now we officially belong together. "

Vivi rolls up her jackets sleeves and another bracelet appears. The counterpart of the pendant is attached to it.

"Vivi. You have no idea how much it means to me. "

Water tower 6:00 a. m.

Vivi's shaking Mila.

"No, Mum. I don't want to go to school," Mila mumbles half asleep.

"Mila. " she whispers a little louder. Mil startles up.

"Vivi, what?" She seems confused.

For a moment she hoped that this would be an evil dream and that Vivi would be her mother who would wake her up for school. Her mood is bad, when she returns to bitter reality. In this reality, where Vivi is the only one left.

"Vivi, what the ? It's only 6 o'clock," she says a little irritated as she looks at her cell phone.

"The freight train, remember? The train arrives the old freight yard at 7:00 a.m."

"Yeah, okay. But do you think we should really go through with this? I mean to leave all this behind," Mila makes sure,

Honestly she has no idea how things are going to turn out for the two of them. Without an adult caregiver. No education, no money. . .

"Leaving behind what? You're wanted, gangstar. You remember? We can't stay here, or sooner or later they'll find us and then we'll never see each other again. "

Mila's starting to get up.

"I think you're right. But give me a minute."

"Okay, I'll check if the air's clear."

Vivi climbs down the ladder. Mila approaches the railing and looks back again. Smoke rises in the distance. This pain of her loss overcomes her again and once more she sheds some tears.

"Okay. " she sighs. "Mum, Jason. I'm sorry. But I can't stay here. I hope you're well where you are. I miss you. . . "

In her emotional outburst she doesn't notice how Vivi slowly climbs up the ladder again. But when she sees Mila, she decides to pause and grant her this moment of grief for herself. She decides to wait for her downstairs.

It won't be long until Mila climbs down. She still looks very sad.

"Are you okay?" Vivi asks her.

"Yes, let's go. " she only replies. She tries to hide her feelings. But Vivi quickly notices that she is still feeling badly, which is quite normal in her situation.

"You don't have to hide your feelings in front of me. It's okay to grieve. "

"I said I'm all right, YES," she replies irritably.

"Sure. Let's go to the car," Vivi says.

They're driving down the road. But it's not like that night, when they had fun. It's rather quiet. There's nothing to hear but the engine. They only look at each other once in a while.

Vivi smiles. Mila does it the same way, even if you notice that it's not the same smile as before. The two girls lay their hands on each other. The pendants of their bracelets touch and almost form the Ying and Yang symbol together.

Soon they'll be passing the club. Almost like on command, they both take a look.

"Vivi. Thank you. That was the best gift you could give. Just you and me together. "

Club dead tree, some hours before:

Vivi unlocks the back door to the club. In front of them lies a staircase, which they run up. They land on a kind of balcony from which they can see the whole club.

"You see. It went well. Now all we need are these."

She's pulling out two bracelets.

"Dude, these are for the adults. Let me guess, your brother lent it to you," Mila laughes..

"Yes, borrowed, exactly. Now we're going to mingle with the crowd. Party till dawn. Get ready for Team Vila," she yells.

"Dude, they never buy that we're 21. I don't think these bracelets will help."

"It's possible, but as long as nobody notices, we're having fun. "

"Yeah, I better have, cause if my mom finds out, I won't have fun anymore for the rest of my lifetime.", Mila jokes

The two run down the stairs to the dance floor where they mingle with the party people. Vivi goes straight to the music. Mila takes a while and moves back and forth a little bit restrained. But Vivi is already luring her out of her reserve.

"Man Mila, are we at your grandma's gold wedding? Come on, have fun. Whoo-hoo!" she screams into the crowd and grabs Mila's hand. She puts Mila on a pedestal.

"Man Vivi. Do we have to? Everyone can see us here."

"They're supposed to."

The two quickly fall for the music and the mood. They laugh and dance, a little awkward and not like professionals. But they do it together and that's all that matters to them right now.

What they don't realize is that they're being watched by two men. But when the two girls get off the pedestal because they are getting thirsty, the two young men stop them.

"Hey. You dance very well."

"Thank you. And you drink very well," Vivi counters.

"She's got a sense of humor, too. And to be honest. It's boring drinking with two people. Can we buy the ladies a drink?", asks one of the two men.

The girls think about the offer for a while.

"Do you think that's a good idea. We don't know these guys," whispers Mila in Vivi's ear as far as the music allows it.

"Yes, I know. But it's just a drink. We sit down with them for a moment, then we have to go to the toilet and disappear," Vivi suggests.

"If we don't say yes now, we'll have them on our cheek all night," she adds.

Mila agrees. What's the big deal? As Vivi said before. It's just a drink!

The guys lead them into a separate area. It's quite comfortably furnished. Almost like a hotel room. A couch, a big TV, an aquarium, even an own bar.

"Not bad!," Vivi is amazed.

"It has it's advantages when you're friends with the owner, welcome to the VIP lounge."

One of the men gets the drinks while the other starts talking to them.

"How old are you. You still look pretty young?"

Vivi shows him the bracelet for adult people.

"That may have been a compliment, but as a gentleman you should know that you don't ask ladies their age," she tells him.

"Yes, of course, clumsy me! Do you come here often? I've never seen you before. "

Mila's starting to stammer a little.

"Um. . . " She looks to her friend for help, as she has the looser mouth.

"No, the first time. We are not from here," she answers.

"And where do you come from and what brings you here? I mean in this bombed forest," he continues, while his hand wanders on Vivi's thigh. She feels uncomfortable but still tries to find an excuse while pushing his hands away.

Mila is totally overwhelmed with the situation.

"Looks like someone here is very shy.I didn't notice it when you were dancing, but I like that. Young and innocent. "

He gets closer and closer to Vivi and tries to kiss her cheek. She gives him a push to keep him at distance.

"God damn it, what's wrong with you? Leave your grabbers with you," she hisses.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing? You think I invited you just to "talk"" , he replied which shows his real face and intentions.

"You scruff!"

Mila jumps up. Vivi does it the same way.

"How many women have you harassed like this before? Come on, Mila. Let's go. "

The two of them run to the door. But he's holding Mila by the arm.

"Not like this. You're not going anywhere. "

"Mila!" calls Vivi and wants to help her when he suddenly looks painfully distorted at his hand.

"You broke my fucking finger, you little bitch!"

He wants to pounce on her, but Mila kicks him in the stomach so that he is distracted. Mila takes the opportunity and kicks him into the aquarium, which breaks into pieces.

Vivi can't believe what's going on.

According Mila's surprised face, she neither do.

"Mila. What the. . . Never mind. We need to get out of here. "

They leave the club as they came in through the back door.

"Get in the car. I want to get out of here," Vivi makes clear.

Some time later they stop on a hill next to a big lake.

Mila sits down on the bench and breathes deeply. She still doesn't understand what happened and where she suddenly got this incredible ability from.

Vivi comes along and hands her a bottle.

"Here Kung Fu Girl. Your first truly deserved beer."

Then she sits with her.

"Oh, my God. I have goose bumps all over my body. You just break his finger and beat him up like he's nothing. When were you gonna tell me you had the black belt?"

Mila opens the bottle. She might as well use this to get down.

Vivi lights a cigarette.

"Vivi. I don't have a black belt. I've never had anything to do with martial arts except on television. The fact is, these guys wanted us. . . " she doesn't finish her sentence.

"Yeah, when I think about it, it gives me more goose bumps. But you know what, sometimes people say that mothers develop psychic powers when it comes to saving their children. Maybe that's what happened to you, too."

"I'm not your mother Vivi. That's ridiculous. "

"Yes, but my best friend. You wanted to protect us."

"It was so weird. Like a bolt of lightning in front of my eyes, as if I had learned to fight somewhere before, but I never have. Like a program that was installed somewhere in the system and called up at the right moment. I know this sounds stupid, and I probably just imagined it...Just forget what I said. I'm full of shit. Don't hold it against me, Vivi. But I'd like to go home. The whole thing has been a bit too much. "

"Yes, I understand. That's not how your evening was supposed to be. "

"Well, you know, maybe it's right that young people, more teenagers like us, shouldn't be in a place like this." Mila deduces from that.

G-Corp HQ, Tokio :

"What do you mean, the girl hasn't been there?" he asks outraged.

A black-haired, smartly dressed middle-aged man. He leans back on his chair.

"I don't know. Lebedew said they found Morgan, now her name is Emma Kilian according to her ID papers. Looks like she's hiding there in that forest. She has a son too, maybe she was or is married as well."

"Married, kids, a cottage in the woods. . . Did she really think she could run away from reality like that? Is she dead?" he asks.

"Yes, she resisted too much, so Lebedew and his unit were forced to shoot her for their own protection, unfortunately the boy got shot, too. "

"Idiots! We could have used him as a decoy for the girl."

"Yes, Lebedew says, it wasn't intentional. Not to mention, we wouldn't even have a clue where the girl is. Even Morgan didn't seem to know. But we put out an APB. The only thing we know is that she was travelling with a red-haired girl who introduced herself to the officials as Vivien Smith and seems to be Mila's "best friend."

"Mila, that's what she called her, right?"

"Yes, Mila Kilian. This is also the name with which she is registered in the school and in the database. This is a picture Lebedew found in Morgan's house. He was able to find out from some notes in the papers that she is now 15 years old. According to her papers, about 1. 58m tall, blonde, shoulder-length hair, delicate physique. "

The soldier throws the photo of Mila on the screen in front of the man.

"I last saw her just beforeMorgan or Emma as she calls herself now, took off with her, when she was maybe 6 months old. Morgan seemed to be the optimal candidate for this project. But apparently even a cold-blooded mercenary like her can develop mother feelings. We should have separated the child and her right after birth. OK, show me the other girl. "

He nods and downloads Vivis' data.

"Vivien Smith also 15 years. According to the register entry about 1. 68m tall, reddish brown hair, southern type, normally built, as the offiicer described her. Has two brothers who've already made a criminal appearance. Father committed suicide 10 years ago, mother severely depressed and alcohol addicted. "

"Perfect company," the man comments

"Okay, I think Lebdew has everything he needs. Tell him to track them down and arrest them. If they resist, he'll kill them. They can't be that far away. "

"Understood, Mr Mishima. I'll tell him."

"Mr. Mishima, excuse me, but the two girls were sighted tonight by a guest at the dead tree club near Morgan's residence. Apparently there was an argument between the girls and a buddy of the owner. A bartender wants to watch how one of the fugitives even beat the guy up. "

"I put my company on the fact that it was Mila who beat him up, which means she is aware of her abilities. Tell Lebedew to be careful. They're still there somewhere. "

Goods station 6:45 a. m.

The two girls decide to wait a little longer in the car. But gradually they have to get ready. Vivi still packs everything she finds in the car. She opens the trunk and pulls out a backpack, almost as if she had guessed something similar. She opens the bag. "Let's see what's inside. " She's digging around in it a little.

"Hm, my idiot neighbor is still good for something. There's stuff in there we can use, maybe he's got a trip planned. Water, something to eat, a blanket. "

"Then the car belongs to your neighbor. "

"Oh damn, I think I've betrayed myself. But it's his own fault if he gets into the car so drunk that he leaves the key in it and falls asleep in front of the garage. But we'll take the backpack with us. Hey look, even a knife in it. Maybe we should take the first aid stuff with us. What do you think, Mila?. . . Um, Mila. "

But she is deepened in thought and stares into emptiness.

"It's so odd, Vivi, a few hours ago everything was still normal and immediately we will go and may never come back again. I'll tell you ones again, you don't have to do this. Maybe it's better if you just go and I run away alone. I don't want you to get in any trouble. "

"Mila, I already am. And you can suggest that 200 more times. That won't change anything about my decision. Actually, you can put a wedding ring on my finger right now. "

She lifts the backpack onto her shoulder. Mila has to smile somehow about her sentence with the wedding ring.

"Ready? The train should be coming in any minute. "

Mila nods.

They sneak up to the platform and hide. It doesn't take long until the train stops and the workers start loading the wagons with sand. The two girls are looking at the situation.

"Vivi. Over there. The wagon is open," Mila whispers to her friend.

She gives her a sign and the two girls scurry off as they feel unobserved. They climb into the open wagon and hide behind a crate for the time being. As long as the workers walk past the train, they keep quiet. Only when the train has set itself in motion, they feel safe enough to come out.

"We made it. " whispers Vivi.

They settle down and dangle their legs downwards at the edge of the wagon. The wind is blowing around their noses. They take another look back and see how both the station and the water tower move further and further away and finally are nothing more than an indefinable silhouette in the light of dawn.

"I guess that's it. " mumbles Mila.

"From now on, life as we know it is over. Now we're on the run, and we don't even know why "

"Yeah. You're right, but it's kinda cool somehow, we're like Bonnie and Clyde. Don't you think?"

Mila looks down a little depressed. She knows that Vivi is just trying to cheer her up somehow, but she doesn't feel right to laugh.

"Pretty cold here in the door. Let's go inside," Mila suggests, distracting from the subject.

"Okay, maybe we should rest a little. "

Vivi pulls out the blanket and puts it over herself and Mila. The two girls lie next to each other on the wooden floor.

"Vivi. " whispers Mila. "I'm so glad you're here. "

"I know. They're not gonna get us while we're together. You and me against the world? How does that sound?" she asks.

"Pretty good, I guess. If it were a script, it would have deserved an Oscar," Mila replies half asleep, because she's actually still quite tired. After all, they hadn't really slept yet.

They fall asleep pretty quickly. They don't know how long they stepped away when Mila gets woken up by a noise. It sounds like a convoy of vehicles approaching the train. Slowly and still a little tired she crawls out from under the blanket and creeps to the open door of the wagon. The train stopped. She looks around the corner for a second. From a distance she sees some soldiers boarding the train. "I'm sorry, sir. Alexander Lebedew. Commander of the Special Unit of HAWKS. We have to enter the train for a while. We suspect you have two stowaways on board. Two fugitive teenagers. Did you or the other employees notice anything,", Mila hears one of the soldiers questioning the train driver and the staff.

The train driver seems to agree and lets the uniformed men board before the train departs again.

"Uh-oh. Damn!"

She runs to her friend.

"Vivi. Wake up. Quick," she says excitedly, shaking Vivi until she wakes up.

"Mila. What's the matter?"

"They're here. They got on the train. I don't know how they found us, but they made it somehow," she tells her friend hysterically.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, man. I've been watching it. We have to get off this train. "

"Calm down for now. We'll find a solution. But we can't jump now. We won't survive this. Maybe we can stop the train somehow or at least reduce the speed. "

"But how?"

"Well, we'll have to go to the control room and apply the emergency brake and then jump off," Vivi suggests.

Mila is not enthusiastic about the idea at all.

"That means, we must run directly to them. "

Vivi nods.

"We don't have a choice. We have nowhere to go. They'll get us here soon. "

"Yes, but we can't just run into them," Mila protests.

Vivi looks at a hatch in the ceiling.

"Well. I've got an idea how they're not gonna discover us that fast. "

"Oh, no. We're not getting on the roof of a moving train. This isn't an action movie or a game. This is real. If we lose balance, we're dead. "

"Do you have a better idea?"

Mila has to pass.

They come under even more pressure, when they recognice some voices in the distance.

"I don't think anyone's here. Keep looking. " , the voices say.

"Fuck. They're right here. Come on Mila, I'll make you a robber ladder, you climb on the roof and pull me up from the crate pile. "

"Okay. We don't have a choice. "

"And Mila, don't look down. ", Vivi added.

Mila doesn't answer, but concentrates on climbing. She pulls herself up the roof with Vivis' help. When she gets to the top, she sees nothing but chaos. Destroyed forests and villages that fell victim to the bombs.

"The war has raged pretty hard here. Everything is destroyed. I can't believe what the two organizations have done to this world."

"MILA!" Vivi's voice rips her from her mind.

Mila tries to stand up and has to concentrate on keeping the balance on the rounded roof. She turns to the hatch and holds out her hand to Vivi, who is waiting for her on the pile of crates.

"Come on. I'll pull you up. "

Vivi just disappeared on the roof when the soldiers were already crashing through the door. The two girls squat down and behave very quietly on the roof. It won't be long before they discover the blanket and the backpack.

"Looks like some kind of camp. There's somebody here or there was somebody here. "

"So Lebedew was right that they were on this train. "

"Well, we found the car at the station. Apparently the owner turned out to be a neighbour of the redhead. Then we just put one and one together. "

"So that's how they found us," Vivi says. "This damn car," she hisses, before the two of them balance along the roof towards the control wagon.

The soldiers keep searching the wagon.

"Damn it. They can't have melted into thin air. "

Frustrated, one of the men kicks a box.

"Look. The roof hatch is open. "

"You're right. How much that they're on the roof?"

One of the men climbs onto the pile of crates and pulls himself up a little so that he can see over the edge. In the distance he sees the two girls jumping over the gap to the next wagon.

"They're on the roof of wagon 4. Looks like they're going to the front end of the train. Cut them off," he speaks into his head set.

"You see, Mila, it's not that bad. It's okay," Vivi tries to calm down herself and her friend.

"No, not at all. Could become my hobby to balance on train roofs," Mila replies ironically.

"Come, take my hand. When you fall, I hold you and you hold me. "

The two girls are holding hands, but have to run one after the other, as the straight stripe on the rounded roof is quite narrow. But another problem is already in sight. The train's approaching a pretty narrow tunnel.

"Oh, no. What do we do now?" asks Mila.

"Get down!"

The two crouch down, as the roof hatch opens in front of them and one of the pursuers climbs onto the roof.

"Gotcha. " he shouts confidently and wants to let his colleagues know.

"Really. I'd turn around if I were you, asshole," Vivi replies.

Slowly, he's looking back.

"Shit. " he curses.

But the wall of the tunnel will be the last thing he sees, because he collides with it shortly afterwards, falls off the train and gets between the wheels. You can only hear it crack and a small blood stain remains on the wall of the tunnel. The two girls close their eyes.

"God, that was disgusting. I guess I have to puke." Mila says disgusted.

"Yes, but one-to-zero for us. "

"One to zero for the wall you mean, he would have killed us if the tunnel hadn't been there," Mila replies pessimistically.

For the time being, the two have to stay in a crouched position, because the tunnel is really very narrow.

"We should get back on the train, because it's too dangerous in this tunnel. Now they know where we are anyway. "

Mila thinks the idea is good because she feels much more insecure on the roof than on the train. So they crawl to the roof hatch, through which the soldier came and climb back into the train. They have landed in the workers' sleeping wagon, but the workers don't seem to be there right now. That's why they decide to hide first. All the beds offer a good opportunity to do so.

"I've lost contact with him," they hear a voice coming closer.

"They were last spotted on the fourth wagon. I'll check the situation," he says into his microfone and looks through the open hatch of the sleeping wagon.

"Negative! Neither Logan nor the teenagers are to be seen. But according to the statement, they were on their way to the front side of the train. We should hold our positions and watch the roof. "

He leaves the wagon and puts his gun down for a moment.

The two girls breathe a sigh of relief.

"That was close. We should steal his gun somehow," Vivi suggests.

"We can't do that, we don't even know how to handle a thing like that," Mila says.

"But we have to defend ourselves against them. "

"Yeah, okay, you're right, but. . . "

But Vivi sneaks into the next wagon like a ballerina, at least until she can grab the gun. The man is not far away, but still engrossed in the conversation and he turns his back to the two girls which are hiding behind some boxes.

"Okay, how this is working?"

Vivi's looking at the gun.

Mila's watching the man.

"Vivi, hurry," Mila pushes and looks at Vivi fiddling with the rifle.

Suddenly this lightning appears before her eyes again. And again she feels like she's learned something about guns before.

"Try this. " suggests Mila

She's reloading the thing like she never did anything else.

"Damn it, Mila, what's going on with you? First you beat the guy up and say you have no idea about martial arts and now you use that thing as if you could shoot with it at every market stall. You're scaring me. "

"Believe me, so I do."

The soldier has meanwhile finished his conversation and fishes his gun with his hand, at least he tries.

"What the fuck? Where's my rifle?"

He seems confused.

"Where did I put the damn thing?"

He's looking around.

"Hey, douche. " Vivi calls and points his gun at him.

"Fuck. Girl, put that gun away, you'll kill yourself and your friend with that thing. "

"Not until you pick up your phone and tell them to stop the train."

"Okay, easy. I'll let them know, but you'll put down th gun."

The man keeps his word. The reactions on the phone are correspondingly astonished.

"Stop the damn train or I'll die. " he yells into his head set.

Both girls are relieved when they hear the brake squeal.

"Have a nice day. "

Vivi uses the rifle to knock him out, so that he can't follow them when they leave the train. Then she throws the rifle on the ground, because it is much too heavy and would prevent her from escape.

The train is now so slow that they can jump out onto the sleeper. They're standing in the middle of a bridge. In the distance you can see a city that looks a bit devastated.

"Vivi, there's a town. That's where we can hide. "

But they won't get off that easy .

"Hey, there they are. "

The men resume their persecution.

Mila and Vivi run away. The men send bullets after them. However, another disaster is coming from the front. There's another train approaching. The brake squeals already, but the train is still too fast. The two girls are trapped.

But the pursuers ,too.

"Step aside, folks. " the commander yells and the men jump into the water. Also the conductor and the workers leave the train and jump in their panic into the water.

"What now?"

"Well, we jump, too," Vivi says.

"At three?" asks Mila tense.

"Ok 3," the red headed girl screams, takes Mila's hand and pulls her down with herself, just in time, above them on the bridge the approaching train rams the freight train.

The water hits them painfully in the face as they emerge on the surface. Exhausted, they both show up. They're drifting a bit by the flow.

"We have to be careful. These guys are around here somewhere. "

Mila manages to grab a branch that protrudes into the water. Then they slowly pull themselves out of the water. First Mila, then Vivi. They're both sitting on the shore soaking wet. In the distance they can see the burning trains.

"Boahh. We were almost in there," Vivi says a little exhausted.

"Man, what I wouldn't give to not be here. How I'd love to be home today on my birthday, eat cake and watch a movie with Mum and Jason. "

"An action movie?" Vivi sarcastically asks,

"No, we had enough action for today. "

"Okay. Come on. We should get to town. Maybe we'll be there by noon and can find something to eat somewhere or maybe even new clothes. "

"From what money?"

"Mila. Look around , this town just got bombed. Why shouldn't we take advantage of that?"

"You want to plunder?"

"Maybe. And I promise you, you'll get your birthday cake. "

Then she runs off towards the city.

G Corp HQ, Tokio:

"They escaped again?" , he askes angry

"Lebedew has reported that there has been a train accident and the lives of his men had toppriority for him. But well, the two girls got away in the chaos. But he says, that they can't be far. "

The person addressed clashes his hands over his head.

"My goodness. Tell Lebedew, I hope for his sake. And if he and his people let two teenagers escape again, I really don't know if he's right for the job anymore. "

A bombed town somewhere in the USA

"Come one Mila. Run! Quick, through here,"

Vivi calls her friend and the two girls flee from the department store with some goods they could find.

"And where are we going now?"

"There's a harbor up ahead, maybe we can nest somewhere, looks pretty deserted. "

Mila agrees and the two girls make their way to the nearby harbour. And indeed. It's more like a ship's graveyard than a port. Looks like there's been some bomb attacks, too.

"Whoa. I wouldn't be surprised if a zombie came around the corner somewhere," Vivi fears.

"Yeah, really creepy. But the port cafe' there still looks quite decent. "

Mila points to a building that must have served as a restaurant.

The two of them enter the building. It is a bit burnt out and some tables and chairs are scattered. But that can be fixed quickly. They're heading for the back rooms. An office space appears to them perfectly as a place to sleep and they are also not directly discovered from the outside.

"Well, at least there's carpet here and we don't have to sleep on the hard tiles," Vivi says. Then they start to collect some cushions from the benches and chairs of the restaurant and carry them to the office. But Vivi finds something even more interesting. She suddenly stands in front of Mila. She is holding an instant camera in her hand.

"Look what I found. Probably one of the tourists left it here. Come here, Mila," she says.

"What are you up to?"

"Selfietime. "

She holds the camera diagonally over herself and Mila.

"Smile. " she says and pulls the trigger. The camera takes a picture. It takes a while until the two girls are recognizable.

"You gotta shake it," Mila says.

Vivi begins to swing the picture back and forth and actually slowly but surely they appear in the photo.

"So cool. " Vivi says

"Yes, and so retro. But my smile looks like I'm planning Batman's murder," Mila adds.

"Well, Batman should get himself ready to die then," Vivi replies to her comment.

"Okay, let's get on with it. "

Vivi agrees. Soon they have set up a cosy retreat for themselves.

"And in the end the most important thing," Vivi says and hangs the picture she took on the wall. They settle down and unpack their loot.

"Well we can life from it for a while.. And wait, close your eyes, I have something very special for you. "

"Oh man, now I'm really excited," Mila answers.

Vivi fetches a small cake from the backpack and a candle, which she places on it and lights. Then she tells Mila to look.

"Happy birthday Mila. I promised you I'd give you your birthday cake."

Mila is overwhelmed by the gesture.

"Thank you. " she just brings out very touched.

But unfortunately her memories of Jason and her mother also come back. No matter how much she likes Vivi and how happy she is to have her with her, she misses her family. Vivi finds some glasses in the kitchen and pours the two something to drink.

"Mila, I know it's probably a very inopportune time, but what about your mother? I mean, what did she do because she was always out all night? Now without wanting to be curious. Fact is, we or you're being chaesd, your mom and brother were killed by these guys. There has to be a connection between her and the guys and we have to find out which one to understand what's going on here. "

"It's okay. The truth, however, is. . . "

She puts her cake plate on the floor.

"I don't know myself. Mum never talked to Jason or me about it. She always said she'd tell me when I was old enough to understand. Maybe she would have done it now if she hadn't. . . "

"Ok. But why did she make such a big secret out of it. And your stepfather, too. Why did he leave?"

"Mum and Dad. They had a huge fight back then. I don't know what it was about. I was just too young. That was just before Jason was born. He still visited my father regularly, but he doesn't want to contact me. Maybe he can't accept me as his daughter and that's the reason why he left us. "

"Man, he's an ass. You're perfect. But don't you know your real father?"

"No. Mum said. He died just before I was born. I've never seen pictures either. "

The more she tells her friend, the more confusing it gets in her eyes. What's wrong here? A stepfather who suddenly cut her out of his life.

A father whom she never met and of whom neither photos nor any other documents exist, apparently not even a grave at which she could lay down a bouquet of flowers for him.

A family slaughtered by some soldiers for no apparent reason. A mother who hasn't talked much about her past or her present, as if she wanted to erase any chapter that way. Vivi's right. None of this is a coincidence anymore.

"Man Vivi, it's so surreal. For 15 years, I was always Mila Kilian, went to high school, read good night stories to my little brother, hang out with my best friend. And suddenly from one day to the next, I don't know what's true and what isn't. Who I am. What if everything was a lie?"

"A lie, Mila. What was supposed to be a lie.?"

"The whole life that me and my family seemed to live. What if there's something wrong with me and my stepfather ran away because of it?"

Mila's upset. Vivi puts her hand on the shoulder of her friend.

"Mila. You're the best, nicest and most real person I've ever met in my life. Nothing is worng with you."

"The incident at the bar, where I suddenly got those powers. What if there's something inside me that makes me dangerous?"

"Hey, Mila. Sure, it was pretty weird in the bar, but there's probably a more logical explanation than you being a sleeping mutant or something. It's not a comic book. This is reality. "

"And what about the incident on the train when I screwed that gun together like I never did anything else? Just a coincidence? And then there was this message on Mum's cell phone from some guy named Gianni or something. "

"A message, what message?"

"It wasn't even a message. He recited some code or something, totally strange, like a secret message. Did I even know my mother properly? My whole life just collapses. "

"Well. Maybe we can find him. This Gianni. He may know something. "

"How are we supposed to find him? His number was such a throw-away number and I don't have a last name from him either. And even if I had, the cell phone must have burned up with the rest of the house. "

"Yes, ok you're right. But we need a clue. How can we defeat our enemy if we don't even know who he is and what he wants?"

Vivi looks thoughtfully at the ceiling.

"Mila. . . "

But she doesn't get an answer. Then she looks at her friend. She lay down and fell asleep. Whether she really sleeps or simply wants to avoid the topic this way remains to be seen. Vivi accepts it, smiles briefly and puts her jacket over her body.

"Good night, Mila. " she whispers and lays herself next to her.

The next morning:

When Mila opens her eyes, Vivi is gone. Only her jacket that's over her is still there. She rubs her sleepy eyes. "Vivi. " she calls.

She's leaving the harbor bar where they settled. Outside it is still a little fresh, so she crosses her arms and tries to heat up her hands by friction. Then she calls her again. She has already left the port when she finally gets an answer from Vivi.

"Mila, I'm up here. "

Mila's looking at a bombed-out building. On the roof she can see Vivi, who apparently enjoys the view a little.

"What are you doing up there?" Mila wants to know.

"Come up to me, then you'll see. "

Mila agrees and makes her way up to the roof by using a fireladder . She runs towards the edge of the roof and is overwhelmed by the view.

"Wow," she is amazed only when she looks into the distance where the light of the morning sun breaks in the window fronts of the buildings, even in the destroyed ones. She settles down next to Vivi.

"Man. How can a sight be so beautiful and so depressing in the same way?"

"Yes, it's frightening to see what the war has done. Our Area didn't get it that bad," Vivi replies.

"How long do you think it'll take to rebuild something that's in ruins," Mila asks. Her emphasis is so profound that Vivi knows almost exactly what she wants to hear.

"I don't know. But not so long if you have a helping hand. "

Then she takes Mila's hand. She smiles. It seems to her as if nobody could separate them and she knows that Vivi will always be with her no matter where her path leads her.

They'll be sitting on the edge of the roof for a while. Why should they go? They have all the time in the world. However, the two are torn from their thoughts when a helicopter almost flies over their heads. "Boahh. Oh, shit. That was close," Vivi says.

How can they also suspect that the helicopter will turn out to be a great threat in the next minute?

The two decide to leave the roof, because the helicopter thing was a little too close and it is probably too risky to stay in the eye of the storm. But they won't get far. When their pursuers show up and block their way. They come from all sides.

"Well, it looks like you didn't quite understand the principle of being on the run and staying hidden," says one of the men.

"I'm Alexander Lebedew, commander of the HAWKS, a special mercenary unit,commissiond by the G, to extradite you. And you two are nailed. You can try to resist, but in this case we have to pull the trigger directly. "

"Damn it. What do you want from me? I haven't done anything to you," she sighs. "And neither does my family. Why did you kill them?"

"Listen. I don't give a shit what trouble Mishima had with your mother. We just had the job of eliminating her when she gets rebellious, and we did. Your brother getting into this wasn't supposed to happen. But it did happen. But since you've seen that there's little point in resisting, you and your friend will hopefully be a little smarter. " He's raising Mila's chin a little.

"Hey. Don't touch her," Vivi interferes.

"What do you want, little brat?" he replies angrily and gives her a punch, so that she falls to the ground.

"Vivi! You're all right?," she asks anxiously.

"You fucking assholes. If you want to arrest me, okay, I'll come with you, but please leave Vivi alone. You said you weren't planning on killing my brother. So don't involve any more innocent people in this. Because whatever you have to do with my family, with me or my mother. She has nothing to do with this. " sighs Mila

"Mila. Please don't do this," pleads Vivi.

The men consult.

"I don't have a choice. " Mila says, sighing.

"No, you always have a choice," Vivi replies and suddenly pulls the knife she found in her neighbor's backpack. She's attacking the man who's blocking their way from the front.

"Go, Mila run!"

Vivi sets herself in motion and jumps on the roof under them.

Mila follows her.

"That's not possible. They escape again," they hear the men swearing before some bullets are already flying behind them. "Shit, they're shooting at us. They're sick," Mila says hysterically.

"Come on, what are you waiting for, after them!" orders Lebedew and the unit take up pursuit.

From the roof, the two girls run into the stairwell of the building, which was also damaged.

"We must hide somewhere. " Vivi gasps

"There's a hole in the wall," Mila suggests.

The two climb through and entrench themselves in the half-destructed apartment of the destroyed building.

"Why did you do that? Now they'll kill us for sure! You're so stupid," whispers Mila.

"Well, then, I guess we're both stupid, Mila. You were gonna let them take you. Who knows what they'll do to you. I couldn't let you turn yourself in for me. "

"There's no point in that. We can't run away forever. "

"Maybe not forever, but for a while, and they won't separate us. We are gonna make it this guys as hard as possible. They want war? Okay, they will get it. All we need are a few guns and we'll finish them off. Alexander asshole Lebedew and his men," Vivi tells her resolutely.

Mila doesn't seem so convinced.

The two are interrupted as they perceive footsteps that seem to come out of the stairwell.

"Mila, quiet. " Vivi whispers

"You take this floor, we'll take care of the others," Lebedew splits up his unit.

The two girls push each other close to the wall and don't make a sound. The only thing you can hear are the man's footsteps echoing through the corridor. It could have gone so well if Vivi hadn't accidentally thrown down a vase standing next to her on a small table. The man becomes aware and follows the clang.

"There you are." He's running towards the hole in the wall. Mila gets nervous and doesn't know what she and Vivi should do when suddenly this feeling comes up in her again. Without hesitation, she grabs the knife from Vivi's belt.

"Mila, what are you doing?" Vivi wants to know.

Mila gets ready and as soon as he reaches into the hole, she attacks the man and rams the knife into his head. The blood drips over the edge of the wall opening and the man remains lifeless kneeling and lying with his head on the edge. Vivi can't believe her eyes.

"Mila, you killed him," she says stunned.

"Yes, I. . . " Mila's in shock and drops the knife.

Vivi does not hesitate long, picks up the knife and drags her half apathetic friend back to the roof.

"What have I done?" sighs Mila.

"It's all right. It was self-defense. They left us no choice," she tries to reassure her friend. It gets even weirder when Mila suddenly starts mumbling. It sounds strange and frightening, almost like some kind of code she suddenly recites over and over again. "Mila, are you all right?" Vivi wants to know. Suddenly Vivi remembers: Mila told her about a message on her mother's cell phone and the code that this ominous Gianni recited. Is there a connection?

They are trapped, she notices at the latest when her friend collapses and lands on the ground. "Oh, my God. Mila. What's the matter, wake up, please."

Mila perceives everything around her only bluntly. She feels trapped. She only hears her friend's voice distorted.

"Vivi. I'm here. " she calls. But no sound escapes from her lips. She feels like a prisoner. Locked up in her own consciousness. And she's powerless.

It's starting to rain. Vivi tries to leave the building with Mila via the fireladder. She won't get that far. When she perceives the threatening sound of reloading a weapon behind her, she knows what that means.

"Freeze. ",she hears a warning voice.

"You think you can get away with killing one of my men?" Lebedew yells.

"Put Kilian on the floor and your hands on your head and turn around. "

She decides to follow the men's instructions.

"I'm sorry, Mila. " she whispers.

A shot's fired. In front of Mila's eyes, a crack forms that seems to come out of nowhere. Mila knows what that means. "Vivi. " she screams into space. "No. I gotta get out of here, I gotta help her. "

She starts to hit the site of the crack. She's screaming. With all her might, she's trying to find a way out of her prison. She feels a power she's never felt before. Also the lightning returns, but stronger than before. She feels like she's standing in the middle of a power plant.

Consciousness, something you can't see. You only know it is there, shaped by your experiences, memories, fears and pain. Was she nothing but a prisoner of her own the whole time? But at this moment it seems to her as if she is breaking out, her weakness, her fears, to leave everything behind and focus on only one goal. to save your friend.

"Secondary target on the ground. "

"Okay, now grab Kilian and let's get the hell out of here. The two brats have wasted enough of our time."

Lebedew turns around and walks towards the stairwell. The two remaining men follow him. One of them lifting Mila up. What he doesn't notice is that Mila has regained consciousness and inconspicuously reaches for his combat knife, which is in a pocket on his belt. When he notices it, it's too late, Mila attacks him with it and cuts his carotid artery. His cronies wonder when he apparently stays behind.

One's going back to look for him.

"Hey, where are you?" he asks when he finds him lifeless in a pool of blood.

"Man on the ground," he screams before he even has a bullet from a shotgun in his chest that Mila stole from his dead mate. Lebedew knows immediately what that means when the contact breaks off.

"Fuck. Die you little beast," he screams and throws a grenade into the stairwell leading to the roof. It explodes and ignites a fire in the building. But Mila doesn't even think about leaving. She returns to Vivi, who lays shot down on the floor in a pool of blood.

"Vivi. Hang in there. "

"Mila. You gotta get out of here," she mumbles.

"No way. I'm not leaving without you. "

She helps her friend to get up and supports her while walking.

"There, we have to get to the fireladder," says Mila.

Vivi doesn't make any sound.

"Please, don't leave me. " begs Mila as she carries Vivi down the stairs. Unfortunately, luck is not on her side at all when there is an explosion one floor down that destroys the fireladder.

"No. " Mila curses and has to turn around.

She has no choice, she has to go through the burning building to escape and hope that she can somehow make her way through the flames. When they arrived the stairwell, it gets stuffy and hot. The flames blaze over them.

"Vivi, you gotta hang in there, okay?"

But she's still not moving. In front of them, a beam crashes down the ceiling. "Okay, I need to find a way around it for me and Vivi. She can't climb in her condition," she reflects.

So first she drops Vivi off on a broken wall.

"I'll be right back. " she says frantically.

"Mila. " Vivi's voice stops her. Mila runs back to her.

"Please Vivi, you don't have to say anything. Save your power. "

"Mila." Repeats Vivi strained. "There is no more power. You know that, and I know that. But you can survive," she gasps.

"Vivi, stop saying that, that's not true. You hear me? We'll both get out of here," Mila sighs , close to tears.

"No, Mila. The reality is we're both gonna die in here. If you don't get out of here! "

"No, I'll find a way out. For you and me."

She wants to go back to find a way. But Vivi takes her hand.

"You're the best person I've ever met. "

Mila's tears flow from her cheek.

"No, no, no, Vivi. don't give up now," she implores in a trembling voice, while Vivi slowly touches her cheek.

"You won't give up to find a way to save me, even if you're also going to die right?" Vivi says powerless.

Mila nods.

„Yes. And you can't persuade me. Not this time.", she sighs and tries to smile a little.

Slowly but surely, Vivi's grip loosens.

"Then I hope you can forgive me for what I'm about to do. I'm not gonna let you get killed because of me," Vivi gasps.

Mila is so lost in despair that she doesn't realize that Vivi is getting closer and closer to the edge of the destroyed wall.

"I love you Mila," Vivi says quietly, turns a last time around to Mila. She smiles slightly while she collects all her remaining strenghs and jumps backwards into the depths.

"Vivi. What are you doing, ? No. Nooo. " Mila screams in tears.

She makes a jump forward and tries to grab Vivi's hand. But she can only get her bracelet, which tear to pieces. Some beads fall with Vivi into the depth.

"Viviiii!"

She looks shocked and desperate after her. Pictures of her last hours appear in front of her eyes.

"Vivi. That's wonderful. " "Yeah, just you and me on the road to new adventures. " Vivi takes her hand.

"Dude. Did you just blame me for this? That's not fair, Mila. All I wanted was for you to have a happy birthday. No one could have guessed that would happen. "

"Mila. Don't think that. I don't understand what's going on here either. But whatever, I'll stay with you. "

"You're my family. Nothing's keeping me here. "

"My God, Vivi. What are we doing here? We're actually way too young for this relationshit and you're my best friend. "

"They won't get us while we're together. You and me against the world? How does it sound?"

"I love you Mila.. "

It seems to her as if everything moves in slow motion around her, as Vivi falls towards the road together with sparks and ashes. But she doesn't take her eyes off Mila and smiles.

Just to say her, "I'm free and it's okay. What happens. "

Vivi used to say"There is always an option."

And her only option close to her end was to jump, so that Mila had a chance to survive.

She's holding the broken bracelet in her hand.

"Well, it's not a gold bracelet, or it's worth a hell of a lot. Actually, I made them myself. But now we officially belong together. "

Next thing she perceives is a car alarm from the van Vivi crashed into. People are gathering around them. Some are hysterical. Others are silent and frozen in terror.

Mila doesn't know what to do. She's going to loose her mind, She just wants to get out of the building and run to her friend. In tears she climbs over the beam. She can barely see because of the salty liquid in her eyes. She fights her way up to the floor below. From there she can escape to the still intact half of the fireladder and flee from the building.

She runs along the streets torwards the crowd. She doesn't show consideration, pushes the onlookers aside. Some of them pulled out their smartphones. She's running towards the car her friend chrashed on. There she lies motionless, covered in blood. She climbs onto the roof of the vehicle and takes her in her arms. She burst into tears.

"No, please don't leave me alone. You promised you'd always be with me. YOU HAVE PROMISSED," she roars and cries bitterly.

She buries her face into her friend's dead body. The rain pours down on them and mixes with her tears, which crash onto the floor together with some of the blood drops.

The passers-by are overhelmed. Some cry.

Mila slowly raises her head. The rain and the smoke of the burning building cloud her sight. But away from the crowd, she can swear to see familiar faces. Lebdew and the last survivor of his group, standing near an alley and watching from a distance.

There they stand, so confident. Probably proud to have accomplished their mission. Mila gets angry. She gets up and jumps off the car. She's pushing her way past the crowd. While walking, she seizes a gun that one of the passers-by carries with him. The guy is stunned and tries to stop her. But Mila's too nimble to catch her in the crowd. People keep silent, some whisper, some seem to be afraid, because she holds a gun.

Her pace becomes faster and faster the closer she gets to the alley.

"They want war? Okay, they'll get it. "

Vivi's words cross her mind.

"Lebedew. " she screams.

He and his mate turn around. Mila shoots some bullets in their direction and Lebedew's ally falls dead and bleeding to the ground After that she runs at Lebedew and tries to shoot him as well. But the man tries to escape. He takes revenge with a load of lead from his machine gun.

It doesn't take a long, until the people around them gets into a panic.

Lebedew flees to the alley. Mila follows him and shoots at him ever and ever again. A bullet hits his arm, whereupon he also pulls the trigger in the reflex. A shot grazes Mila's leg. She falls to the ground. Lebedew holds his arm and staggers away stricken.

"It's not over, Kilian, I swear to you. I'll come back and kill you with my bare fucking hands" he hisses.

Police sirens sound in the distance. Mila knows she has to go. So she gets up and limps through the alleys to her hiding place at the harbour.

WOUNDED TEENAGER JUMPS OUT OF BURNING AND UNOCCUPIED BUILDING. PRESUMED FRIEND, OPENS FIRE ON TWO SOLDIERS

Mila just sits there and crying while she patches her leg. But she doesn't feel pain. The pain about Vivis' loss is just too heavy. She's been holding the photo of her and Vivi tight. Now, at this minute of silence, she does understand what has actually happened.

IN THE CASE OF A BADLY INJURED YOUNG GIRL WHO JUMPED OUT OF A BUILDING, EVERYTHING POINTS TO PREVIOUS CONFLICTS, BODIES OF SOME UNIFORMED MEN WERE FOUND IN THE STAIRWELL. . . FRIEND OF THE MURDERED GIRL SHOOTS A FURTHER SOLDIER ON OPEN STREET.

She still can't believe this is all real. She doesn't know how much longer she will be able to hold on. And for what? If nothing's left to fight for. She has no strength left anymore. She lays down on the floor and screams. No one will hear her, no one will come to comfort her, as Vivi did after her family died. She's alone. Alone with a insane guy, who swore to kill her.

Topic today: Nobody knows who they are and where they came from. But the case of the killed girl and her friend, who had a shootout with 2 soldiers on open street in front of the crowd, is the best proof that all the conflicts do not stop at our children anymore. . . May God have mercy on their souls and punish those who are responsible for this . . ", it sounds from the car radio. Then he turns it off. . .

---

Epilouge Chapter 1:

The man at the wheel, a young dark-haired man in a biker leather jacket, looks thoughtfully into the distance and lets the impressions have an effect on him.

"Well, does anyone feel addressed?" The voice of his co-driver brings him down to earth. Nobody needs to tell him that the world is sunk into chaos. But in his opinion, it already was before. Everyone only sees what they want to see. So either they think he's dead, what he should have been or they think he's the only one who's responsible for all this. He won't deny he's guilty, he knows that. Sometimes, however, he asks himself whether the people around him, with all the hatred against him, don't forget about the real enemy.

"Did you save me just to holding that against me? It's going to be boring," he answers meagrely.

"Oh, so the topic, "you sent this world to hell" is boring, huh? And you know why? Because you're all about you. When you fought Azazel, it wasn't about saving the world. You only wanted to save yourself. And you stopped at nothing for this," his blond co-driver accuses him of. "And this is what it has become. A damn massacre in which children are already forced to take up arms and jumps out of skyscrapers in their despair and in fear of being killed. And you have nothing better to do than say." The topic is boring". All over the world, apart from your father's, there's no face that pisses me off like yours," it breaks out of the blonde guy.

"Well, it looks like my face is gonna keep pissing you off a little longer, at least until I've put an end to all this," he replies and steps on the gas.