1 November, Year 2975

Location: Troy-Arcadia Joint Hospital

"Well. I really can't feel the difference. This mecha arm is working as good as the real arm."

Bruno was chuckling from his bed in the hospital. Ayesha listened with a smile.

Suddenly a bot came.

"Zz..Patient Musa came back to sense...Perhaps, would you like to meet him, miss Ayesha?"

"Ah sure."

The bot led Ayesha to another nearby room. Musa was lying on a bed. Almost his whole body was plastered.

Seeing Ayesha he smiled

"Ayo, captain. We won?"

Ayesha sat beside him, forced a smile

"We won."

Musa looked outside. The scenery outside was aesthetic. Hills and cherry blossoms.

Musa suddenly murmured

"You have heard, right?"

Ayesha was silent. She knew what he was talking about.

"Well, I have no regrets. I have done my job. Now I retire, retire from this war."

Ayesha said in a low tone, "Well, it's not like you can't use your cosmium anymore. Just don't overdo it."

Musa looked toward Ayesha now. His cheeks were wet with tears.

Ayesha could hardly hold her tears as well.

Musa continued

"Well, I am kinda grateful. After so many years I saw mom again."

Ayesha stared, "Uh..how?"

"Well, when my vision of the present blurred my vision of the past got clear. My family was nomads of Adan. We lived in the sand dynasty. With my mom and my little sister. My dad died way ago. Killed by the nightingales. I kept no grudge, my family didn't either. He was a rebel afterall. But society didn't accept us. We were not criminals but not civilians as well. The sand was never merciful. We crossed land after land, dune after dune. My mom could bend silicon.

We lived on by selling those silicons. Everything was fine. But the sand never showed kindness. That night, in that night the sandstorm rose. Our tent flew away.

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My mother was holding me and my sister as tightly as possible. A tree trunk flew toward us. My body moved on my own. The only thing that worked in my head was

I HAD TO SAVE THEM. I punched the trunk, and cosmium energy exploded, for the first time. The tree trunk was torn apart. But...but...."

Musa's face got heavy. His eyes were teary

"The torn pieces struck mom. The velocity of the torn wood struck her body like spears. On entered her eye, shattered her eyeballs and struck her brain. The sandstorm rose. I blacked out from the shock. The next thing I knew that I am in a transporter, saved by some rescuers. I screamed and cried for the whole night. I blamed them. Why didn't they come early? I blamed myself. Why I couldn't save them despite I got the right power at right time? But there was no condolence, there was no answer. I was submitted to one of the orphanages. Turned out I was sharper than anyone there and could use cosmium better than anyone. HAHAHA...what is the use of that cosmium if I couldn't save my loved ones?

My orphanage enrolled me at Troy Academia. I was chosen.

I wasn't appreciated. But you people kept holding me. So, I had to protect you.

At any cost"

The expression on Musa's face can't be described in word

He was crying, he was laughing, he was regretting, he was cheering.

But at the end of all, he was one of the heroes who won't be able to fight in the real war anymore. His name won't be written in golden letters.

How cruel anyone might think of it

Time, tide, or anything won't hold back for laggers despite how much the lagger sacrificed, and how much the lagger kept struggling.

ITS REALITY

NONE GETS MERCY IN THIS WORLD