It was no surprise when Demo pulled out two other cylinders of dynamite and fuse right out of his pocket. Viktor was sitting in the passenger's seat and tapping his feet nervously against the rubber mat on the van floor. He swallowed thickly and felt a familiar skinny hand on his thigh. He looked at Liam. He had a comforting smile hanging on his unshaved face.

"How do you think this will end?" Viktor whispered, looking into Liam's eyes. The dynamite felt like the most desperate thing they could do. Liam blinked owlishly, still looking into Viktor's face and caressed the thigh he was touching.

"I think it won't end badly. We're nearly there, all we have to do is open the gate." Viktor nodded quietly.

"What is the worst thing that could happen?" Liam asked, but he didn't wait for an answer.

"We could die. Sure that sucks…but it ain't that bad." He said and looked at Demo's swift moves around the main gate, placing the dynamites and connecting them with a fuse. Viktor's brows crinkled.

"Ain't zhat bad? Are you crazy?" He spit out and Liam tilted his head in question. Viktor was searching for words.

"I don't want to die. Not now and not like zhis." Viktor said sternly. Liam was scanning his face with his eyes.

"You know, it really doesn't feel half bad," Viktor was frowning and looking at Liam from under his brows, "when I was lying there, on yer table…I felt it coming. I remember it." It was like he was trying to comfort Viktor, but he wasn't buying it.

"I felt it too, you know," Viktor said angrily, "under zhe bridge, five months ago." Liam raised his glance and looked at Viktor in question.

"And?"

"I promised myself zhat I will not feel it, unless I'm old and wrinkly with my best years long gone." Liam looked like he wanted to ask more, but he was interrupted.

"To cut a long story short, I'm not dying tonight. Full stop." And he crossed his hands across his chest. Liam sighed and looked at the gate. Demo was coming closer to them and then knocked on Liam's window. He opened it and Demo spoke up.

"Allright guys, it's set. But you should drive away a bit, so the shrapnels won't break ye car." Liam nodded and started the engine. The van jumped and the motor started to purr.

The action began.

They drove few metres away from the gate. Viktor looked at the passengers in the back of the van. They were both sitting on the bed, pressed tightly at each other, eyes closed and jaws clenched. Demo gestured them to go further away and so they did. When he was satisfied with their position he himself stepped away, dragging the fuse wire carefully behind him. He cut the wire and it shrunk away a few metres. It still held a spiral shape and it was shrinking back. Demo ran to catch it and dragged it back to the prior place. The wire was maybe too delicate for his rough hands and it kept slipping. He checked the placement of the explosives for the last time, tugged the wire two or three times to see if the cylinders were attached tightly. They were. His hand dug into his pocket and fished out matches. Or, good ol-matches, as he himself would say. There was a small spark seen in the dark and then Demo carefully put the flame under the fuse wire. It took a while until it set itself on fire, but when it did, the little orange sparks were running quickly towards the explosives. Demo let go of the wire and ran to the van. Their nervous eyes were watching the tongues of the fire licking the wire and going closer and closer to gate. When the little flame divided into three, they covered their ears and waited a little more. The explosion made tha air around tremble and they felt the strength of it as the van jumped. The ground vibrated and big pieces of metal and bricks flew through air. Few weeds around the gate were burning lowly and smoking heavily. Those were the only source of light, but not for long. Windows on both bases lit up and fighters were waking up. It's time. The engine roared as Liam stomped on the gas pedal. The wheels made few turns and let out clouds of dust before the whole machine moved forward and closer to freedom. Two cones of white light were hitting the dry burned ground and soon drowned in light the wrecks of the gate. But then…

"STOP!" Mike yelled and Liam hit the break pedal. The car stopped right before the collision. The gate was firmer than it looked. There was still a big piece of metal right in the middle, blocking their way out.

"FUCK!" Liam yelled and reversed few metres. They needed more dynamite, but they didn't have the time. The bases started to buzz like beehives, fighters inside running from room to room, trying to get more information about what happened and why did all the walls trembled and plaster dust fell from them. The RED base was without their soldier and BLU one was healing, wasn't he? Demo trotted to the gate and tried to attach one more dynamite on the remaining piece of gate. The speakers on both buildings rustled.

"Attention. Fighters escaping, fighters escaping." The voice of mature woman announced into the fresh night air. The red cylinder finally held itself properly on the metal gate. Liam drove away from the gate, accompanied by Mike's flow of swears, Miguel's whimpers and Viktor's deep breaths. And yet another explosion shook the ground.

"What the-" Mike squeaked. Demo's dynamite was still on its place, the gate wreck untouched. Flames licked left side of the van and the white paint on it shrunk down. Small and muscular person was walking heavily towards the van with a rocket launcher on his shoulder. Liam's eyes widened with fear and sudden realization. It was BLU Soldier, stuffing another rocket into the barrel of the gun.

"How the hell is HE still here? I thought that he is gettin' healed!" Liam screamed as he started to drive away and making sharp turns to make it as hardest as possible for Soldier to aim on him.

"I don't know, I thought that too!" Viktor yelled back, clenching the front desk maniacally.

"He's the typical bad guy, he never dies!" Mike shouted from the back.

"Mike, do us all a favor and shut the fuck up!" Liam growled, drifting on the dusty ground in a 360 turn. Viktor's eyes were darting from side to side, trying to calm himself and think rationally. When he realized, he hit the desk angrily.

"Of course he wasn't in his base, he was in front of our base when you woke up, trying to get in!" Liam threw his head back, annoyed.

"How come that we always miss something like this?" Viktor hid his forehead in his hands and gritted his teeth, but he quickly repositioned his hands to grip the handle of the door to keep himself still. The van was running wide circles and curves, trying to avoid being aimed on. Another explosion crashed loudly, close to the van's windshield. The whole vehicle jumped and the front glass cracked. Liam cursed and reversed to miss the newly-made crater in front of them. Soldier was reloading the rocket launcher. And where were Demo and Heavy? Viktor and Liam leaned forward to have better view on their surroundings. Demo was lying on the ground, unconscious, Liam spotted him first. But there was no sign of Heavy. Did he run away? Maybe he did, maybe he didn't want to get into trouble for helping the deserters. Liam stopped the van and Viktor ran out with the speed of light, grabbing Demo and carrying him inside. In the meantime Soldier managed to load the rocket launcher and aim for the van. The wheels roared again and the car moved. It was crazy. Adrenaline was rushing through their veins and Liam's knuckles were white on the steering wheel. Liam was frowning.

"I have an idea." He said and shifted the gear. The van accelerated, running in big loop from the gate and behind the bases. The night air was whipping the vehicle's sides and the crack on the glass was making navigation harder. They made a quick stop at the back of RED base.

"Vhat are you doing?!" Viktor screeched, clenching the unconscious Demo in his arms. His ears were bleeding, dark blood running down his cheekbones. The rocket explosion must have been too close to him, sending him flying and crashing down on the beaten ground.

"I'm leaving him here." He said, quickly opening the door on passenger's seat and snatching Demo out of Viktor's arms and laying him down on the base's threshold. Then he hopped to the van swiftly and hit the gas again.

"But we will need him for zhe detonation!" Viktor was startled and on the end of his powers. This day has been too much for him.

"No we won't. I have alternative." The loop was closing slowly, the van coming out from behind the base. Liam knew that Soldier would be waiting for them to come out, so he accelerated even more on the curve, making all the passengers fly to the right. Rocket exploded right behind them, tearing off the backlights. Liam was gritting his teeth harder and harder, vein on his jaw and forehead jumping, pulsing. Soldier was reloading again. Mike and Miguel were holding each other tightly in the back, Viktor was clenching the seat and Liam would look perfectly calm if it weren't for his white knuckles, clenched jaw and sweat droplets running down his forehead. He slowed down as they were approaching the gate and turned his head left to look at Soldier standing some thirty metres from them. The car slowed down even more, Liam's hands gripping the wheel even tighter.

"Why are you slowing down?" Mike whispered with tears forming in corners of his eyes.

"Just wait…" Liam said with tight voice. He was looking at Soldier's silhouette, at his fingers gripping the trigger tightly, but not tight enough to set off the rocket. The van still slowing down. Viktor wiped the sweat away from his eyebrows and breathed shallowly, not even trying to calm himself down. His mind was bordering hysteria. It's too much, it's just too much. The thick finger came closer to the trigger as Soldier finally aimed precisely on the van. There's no turning back now. Liam's eyes were glued to Soldier's fingers. He can't lose it now. He loved when his sniping senses came to game. Everything seemed slowed down and clear like water. He knew exactly what to do. As he saw the muscle on Soldier's right index finger twitch, he accelerated again. The roared for millionth time that night and moved the van forward with a jerk. He was lucky that the machine made it. The rocket has been launched, flying through the darkness and leaving a trail of smoke behind itself. But the body of the rocket never touched the van. The van was just too quick, and the rocket missed it by inch, flying further and hitting the metal gate with the dynamite. The explosion was strong and shook everything. The push of air was very strong and it nearly flipped the van to the side. Fighters from both bases were locked down inside of them by the Administrator. She herself was rather curious about this situation. She didn't care that much about them escaping. Soldier just stood there in awe, launcher hanging loosely by his side. Did he just break the remaining part of the gate?

"Haa!" Liam exclaimed, turning the van around and heading for the new exit. Viktor fainted for a short while. Miguel pressed a little kiss on Mike's cheek and Mike himself was pissed. He fished out his favourite metal baseball bat out of his bag and stood up.

"Stop right now!" He barked at Liam, clenching his bat. Liam looked at him and when he saw the god of vengeance and anger himself, he stopped obediently. Mike kicked out the back door and looked at Soldier, still standing in the middle of a battlefield, he ran out of the wan. He made the distance between them.

"I'm tired of your SHIT!" He screamed as he hit the dumbly-standing soldier in the solar. He let out a muffled "oomph", his knees weakened and he kneeled.

"I'm a guy of a good nerve. I'm willing to put up with DAMN lots of things but NOT. FUCKING. THIS." He pronounced the last words with a punch. But then he thought that it is very weak from him, hitting a kneeling man. It didn't bring him such satisfaction.

"And stand fuckin tall when I'm talking to you!" He yelled and stomped. Sweat from his forehead already dried away from the hot air warmed by the explosions. Adrenaline in his veins was fading away but the thrill was still there, he was still pissed with his heart in his throat. They all nearly lost their nerves. Mike spat on the ground, frowned and walked away. Soldier didn't even flinch. He responded to nothing. He was just kneeling there, thinking about this being the very first mission he has ever failed. Mike stopped after few steps and looked at him. The whole van crew looked at the soldier. His mind couldn't accept that.

"Poor fella, he looks broken." Miguel whispered. They could only agree. Bittersweet compassion filled them. This man has been making them trouble and planning on killing them since god knows when. Hell, he launched rockets at them, he shot a hole in Viktor's foot but they felt for him anyway. And sure, it was pissing them off. It would be much easier if they ran away with him chasing them in anger so they would never have to put up with the other side of Soldier. Now he finally showed some feelings and they could see that he himself is a man like them, not any demon.

Mike turned his back on him and walked back into the van.

"Now you can drive." He muttered and the vehicle finally moved and drove out of the broken gate. Viktor looked back and saw the battlefield. Two buildings standing against each other, one concrete and the other wooden. A bridge between them, crossing the sewer canals. The ground was still dusty and dry. The whole battlefield was closed by a high concrete wall that now had a hole inside it with burnt edges. Their way to freedom. They are leaving the place where they fought for the last half a year and they never want to get back. And never wanted to look back. Viktor turned his head away from the battlefield and looked through the broken glass on the desert everywhere around them.

"So, where are we going?" Mike asked. Viktor looked at Liam.

"Home." Liam said and pushed the gas pedal even more.