Adam woke up with a horrifying sound of an explosion that shook the building with it.

Lilith and he jumped out of the bed, she got to the window to see what was going on and Adam wore his clothes and quickly grabbed his sword the last reminder of his parents.

"it's happening" Lilith said as she turned around looking at Adam with wide-open eyes and chalk pale skin as if she saw the death itself outside from the windows.

"they are here" her voice was shaken.

"let's go, just get in your clothes and do not let go of my hand when we got out of this room ok" Adam said and she nodded vigorously.

The next explosion was closer than the first which made everyone to lose their calm and move around like headless chickens trying to grab what they treasure and run for their lives.

The next explosion destroyed the Riches hall east wall and shattered all the windows' glasses. Adam saw a man with his face covered in blood and broken glasses screaming for help moving around like a blind man but no one gave a damn about him.

As they got down the stairs they saw the chandelier on the maid roof that could shine like diamonds and brighten the whole place in the darkest nights, fall off on a woman who was running around, she was buried in the chandelier broken crystals, her hand was still out of it but it was lifeless.

Adam tightly grabbing Lilith's hand and the sword trying to get out of the building through the destroyed wall.

The next three explosions hit the hall directly and turned their world upside down. The screams and cries muted and Adam's ears started ringing. He remembered for a second he was in the middle of the air then everything moved around so quickly around him and hitting the ground at the end. dirt covering his body with pain waving in his body from head to toe. his sword still in his hand but Lilith, he couldn't feel her hand in his hand. He lost her he wasn't strong enough to hold her.

Adam coughed dirt and blood and with all the power he had left, forced himself to get up and look around for Lilith.

Dust and dirt greyed his whole body and he felt everything was spinning around him.

"Lilith, Lilith" he yelled but wasn't sure how strongly he had yelled with his ears still ringing so he shouted her name again and again.

"Lilith… Lilith"

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For a brief moment he looked at the city outside of the hall, Vina was burning and turning into a pile of rubbles and ashes. The black flags with white sharp teeth on them danced around every corner of the city. Gorgans were here.

Adam saw the last chance of a civilized life fragment burn before his eyes and he could do nothing but to watch.

he wanted to give up and stay until the next shell hit him and turn him into chunks of meat. Deep inside he believed that explosions had defiantly killed Lilith 'but what if he was wrong? what if she had managed to flee the city? what if she was looking for him outside of the walls have he really tried to find her then?'

these thoughts made him put himself together and run for it and he ran like a rabbit chased by hunting hounds.

_ _ _

"come on FASTER we are losing them" Gorgans' warbands were hunting and capturing the remaining people who were running out of Vina.

"try not to kill the poor fucks alright, we need slaves too" Koy the High raider of the raiders ordered others while he was driving his off-road vehicle.

Koy and his raiders captured almost everyone even in the middle of the night. His raiders could find the people as if they could smell their fear in the air "one of them is still running, what do you say, Koy, can we have some fun with this one" one of the raiders suggested Koy with excitement and a wide-open devilish smile.

"ok boys, tonight you captured enough slaves so I reward you with this one. do what you want with him just don't kill the poor fuck quickly who knows when you get another practice target again" Koy said and his raiders showed their appreciation with sheering and shouting his name then started their bikes to hunt the last man who was running away. the raiders were like a pack of hungry wolves.

"poor guy became tonight's sacrificing lamb for my wolves" Koy said as he was preparing to return to Vina or what was left of it and deliver the slaves.

After an hour of beating and shooting and dragging the poor man on the road, the raiders got tired of him and left the man's half-dead body on the road to become a feast for ravens "who the fuck carries a sword now? The stupid guy thought he could beat us with his sword" one of the raiders said and laughed as they were leaving Adam, he didn't run fast enough and so he had to pay the price by dying for the fun of Gorgans' raiders.

At dawn in the cold, a girl in simple rags found Adam's body still holding his sword in his hands tightly covered in blood and dust and bullets in his body but still alive and breathing. the girl with all of her strength carried Adam to the Papertower a tower built by all the books in the world a true wonder of the aftermath and a mystery for those who didn't know about it.

it was miles away from Vina and the girl was there to find out if there were any books left in that city instead she bumped into a burned city and a beaten body, but alife was a life and she had to save him as long as he could breath.

Adam never succeeded to find Lilith and didn't want to accept it. As he was getting carried between life and death he wished for his death hundreds of times yet his heart kept beating. He had seen enough of war and pain and was tired of it all as he closed his eyes he remembered the smell of perfume on Lilith's hair, her shining green eyes, and her smile he wanted to go back to her arms and make the time to stop so he can be with her forever and ever.

'fuck my life' he thought and kept breathing raggedly.