Chapter 5: The Choices
They were still walking through the Madi forest, having passed the halfway point toward the Marin River. "Can I carry the sack?" John asked Mark.
Mark smiled and handed it to him.
John tugged the sack behind him. "I'm sorry," he muttered, "for staying silent last time."
"It's okay," Mark replied. John hesitated. "Actually, my father died in that battle too."
Mark's face tightened. He thought of his own father. “I'm sorry... how did he die? Those monsters killed him?”
“No.” John shook his head quietly.
“Then what killed him?”
“Blindness.”
“Blindness?”
“What does a life worth, Mark?” John sounded like a priest.
“No,” John shook his head, “do you think other believe that. They believe it just worth a bullet or a swing of the sword. Life means nothing when you slay one after another without seeking the truth.”
Mark was stunned. John was talking just opposite of what Mark believed he was. “Then you didn’t kill Patrick?”
“No. That was a suicide.”
Mark asked straight. “Then what about Maria.”
“Maria, Frank, and me - we were friends.”
“And you killed her.”
John stared at the ground, shocking his head. “Sometimes you have to dig your hands in blood to clean the dirt.”
“What you’re saying is just dodging out of my head.”
John stared at Mark for a while, and words came out of his mouth, “So you want to hear the truth? Do you have the guts for it?”
Mark was scared. He hesitated. “Maybe.”
“The IFA isn’t what you think it is. It’s corrupt.”
Mark stopped, his eyes narrowed with confusion.
“What do you think? That we’ll all be fine when we reach headquarters?” John said without hesitation. “They won’t come.”
“ How can you assure that? ”
“I know them.” John dropped the sack to the ground. “This food won’t be enough for us. I can see the future clearly. Either from starving or from the consequences of the IFA, we’re going to die, Mark. At least one of us.”
Mark was quiet, then took a long breath. “Even if they don’t come, we’ll have enough food to at least reach headquarters.”
John smirked. “How do you know we’re going to headquarters?” He exhaled.
Mark froze. “Who is the unlucky one?”
“That depends,” John said slowly.
“On?”
“On you. On what you choose.”
“Choose between what?”
“What will you do, Mark? Protect one or kill one?”
Mark said confidently. “I’ll always protect.”
“But you have to kill one to protect the other.” Mark stopped, unable to think. He whirled his head around the ground and later looked at John with confusion.
“Whatever you do, the consequence is inevitable.”
Mark stared at John. “What would you choose when you would be in that situation?”
John tugged the sack behind him and moved ahead. “I already did and you knew what I chose.”
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