The calm that had settled over the place was nothing more than an illusion... a veil before the storm.
Inside Mustafa’s house no longer the refuge it once was the survivors sat among rubble and bloodstains, breathing heavily. Dust and wounds marked their faces, while their eyes remained fixed on Mohamed, who sat in silence, lost in deep thought.
Jeros’s words still echoed in every mind:
“The leader of the Last Silence is planning to attack all sectors... and seize everything.”
Ryan glanced at Mohamed with concern.
Ryan:
“Do... do you think he meant it? The leader of the Last Silence? We do not even know whether he is some entity... or a monster.”
Mohamed spoke faintly, almost as if talking to himself.
Mohamed:
“He is not merely an entity... he is a curse. I thought I had escaped my past, but it seems the past has chosen to hunt me to the very end.”
Omar slammed his fist down angrily.
Omar:
“Then let us go to him! End this before it begins! There is no time to wait!”
Mustafa placed a steady hand on Omar’s shoulder.
Mustafa:
“We are not ready yet. We know nothing of his size or his strength. If we attack now... we all die.”
Sarah, holding Adam’s hand tightly, spoke with urgency.
Sarah:
“We have no other choice. If we do not prepare... he will come for us.”
Adam stood by the window, staring into the dark horizon.
Adam:
“Look... smoke is rising from Sector Zayed-7. It has already begun. War is coming.”
Mohamed rose slowly, leaning on his sword as he looked at his comrades.
Mohamed:
“If this is my fate... I will not run from it. We will fight... and we will resist... until the end.”
Far away, within the shadows of the Tunnel of Silence, someone was watching them.
A head covered in bone masks.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8zBLYpa36I
Eyes unlike any human eyes.
The leader of the Last Silence slowly raised a cold hand, and the tunnel walls themselves whispered in his voice:
“Time is running out... Let them prepare... for hell is coming.”
Deep beneath the earth, behind a stone gate that opened only with blood, lay the Tunnel of the Last Silence.
This was no ordinary tunnel.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeLSVnYgvkU
Its walls breathed, releasing muffled groans from time to time.
The air was thick with the smell of mold and ash, as though the souls lost there had never truly been buried.
The ground was covered in black moss that pulsed now and then as if alive.
Shadows moved for no reason at all, as though the tunnel watched those who entered...14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzfZ2mlFZLl
or swallowed them whole.
And at the center of that terrible abyss...14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIatqEqVbm8
dwelt him.
The leader of the Last Silence.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbRXljmAOhq
They called him...14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtzZD9vSv6d
The Scarred One.
His body was massive and twisted.
His head resembled fused human skulls, and a jagged scar crossed his forehead like lightning carved into flesh.
His eyes were dark red14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH6A6RubeVT
but one of them was not his own.
It was a real human eye, once taken from an old enemy...14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjR7GXweH8A
Mohamed.
His voice was never heard.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTX7TWtwyd5
It was felt.
His words entered directly into the minds of those around him, as if they were not spoken...14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡugZD9LQouq
but remembered.
His home was a palace of bone, built from the remains of the dead.
Its pillars were towers of skulls.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5dfOpOlVML
Its floors were paved with polished bones.
And yet inside...14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡknyqYjy3OB
there was something strange.
The smell of food.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm39GIcYAIj
At a long stone table, the Scarred One sat in a torn gray cloak, quietly eating his evening meal.
Before him stood a bowl of dark soup that steamed with green vapor.
Beside him sat two children... and a little girl.
His wife, Nadia, was a beautiful woman with wide eyes and gentle features shadowed by sorrow. She wore a simple white dress that concealed a long history of pain.
Nadia watched the children softly.
Nadia:
“Eat slowly, my loves... then off to bed. Your father has grave matters tonight.”
The little girl looked up sweetly.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDp5KOZhQHV
Little Girl:
“Will you tell me the story about the mosque, Father?”
Something flickered across the Scarred One’s harsh features.
His voice entered her mind.
Scarred One:
“Tomorrow... if this world survives its own foolishness.”
After supper, the children kissed their father and left, leaving him alone with Nadia in suffocating silence.
Candles flickered around them.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpp3UrjGSVb
Their breaths were heavy.
The Scarred One lowered his head.
Scarred One:
“Do you know, Nadia... Mohamed still lives. It is as though his shadow has pursued me ever since his betrayal.”
Nadia answered quietly without looking at him.
Nadia:
“No... it is your own shadow. The truth you ran from.”
The Scarred One’s inner voice cracked.
Scarred One:
“He betrayed me. He forgot who we were... those we prayed beside... those we woke for Fajr...”
Tears filled Nadia’s eyes.
Nadia:
“You are the one who forgot. You were the imam... the man of the mosque... the one who cared for the poor. And now? You kill in the name of Silence? In the name of revenge?”
The Scarred One stared at his deformed hand.
Scarred One:
“I am no longer that man, Nadia... not since I entered that place. Not since the gate closed behind me. Not since I saw what Mohamed did to us...”
Nadia whispered:
“But you are still a father... You can still forgive... if you choose.”
The Scarred One rose slowly, his presence shaking the room.
Scarred One:
“I will give them one final chance... Mohamed first. If he refuses... there will be nothing left to forgive.”
At once, every candle went out.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfzeUKBQcRO
The echo of his footsteps thundered through the tunnel walls, heralding the flood to come.
Back in Mustafa’s house, a heavy silence filled the rooms, broken only by the uneven breathing of those who slept.
Comrades were scattered throughout the house.
Some lay curled beneath thin blankets.
Others leaned against walls in uneasy slumber.
In one corner, Omar had surrendered to his usual chaotic sleep one leg hanging from the couch, one arm thrown over his eyes as though even in dreams he was still fighting.
Near the dying embers of the fireplace, Mustafa sat on the floor, leaning against Sarah, who rested against him in return.
Their fingers were loosely intertwined.
Her head rested upon his shoulder.
The faint firelight traced their tired faces, and for one fleeting moment, the wars outside no longer existed.
Sarah whispered, brushing her thumb across his knuckles.
Sarah:
“Do you remember when we first met? You were so serious you would not even look me in the eye.”
Mustafa smirked faintly.
Mustafa:
“You stole my dagger and called me a stone-faced statue. I only stayed near you to get it back.”
She laughed softly against his chest.
He lifted a hand and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
Mustafa spoke in a low voice.
Mustafa:
“If time were turned back... I would do it a thousand times over.”
Sarah teased him gently.
Sarah:
“Even knowing you would drag me into a brutal war?”
Mustafa turned to meet her gaze.
Mustafa:
“Especially then. You fight dirtier than I do.”
A loud, exaggerated gag shattered the quiet.
Omar had rolled onto his side, grinning.
Omar:
“By the Masks of Silence... save the romance for the grave. I am trying to sleep, not vomit.”
Mustafa raised a hand at him without looking.
Sarah only smirked.
Then, in one swift motion, Mustafa cupped her face and kissed her slowly, as though pouring years of love and regret into a single moment.
When he pulled away, his voice was rough.
Mustafa:
“I still love you. But my family comes first. That is why I sacrificed everything.”
Her smile faltered, but she nodded.
Mustafa stood and helped her to her feet before heading toward his room.
At the doorway, he paused and glanced back.
Mustafa:
“Let us leave that kiss here...”
Then he looked at Omar.
Mustafa:
“If my brother hears of this, I will have to kill you.”
Omar grinned lazily.
Omar:
“Worth it.”
As Mustafa’s door closed, Sarah remained standing there until Omar broke her trance.
Omar:
“Bad idea, Sarah. Do not even think about it.”
Sarah snapped back.
Sarah:
“Shut up. You are not my father.”
Omar raised both hands.
Omar:
“Fine. But if my father finds out, we are all dead. Me and Mustafa first... then the rest of you. No witnesses, right?”
Sarah rolled her eyes, though a half-smile touched her lips.
Sarah:
“What is it worth to you to stay quiet?”
Omar’s grin widened.
Omar:
“Introduce me to your sister. I heard she is... persuasive.”
Sarah scoffed, then after a moment extended her hand.
Sarah:
“Deal. But if you breathe a word, I will cut out your tongue before Mohamed kills you.”
Omar shook her hand.
Omar:
“Romance is not dead after all.”
Sarah slipped quietly into Mustafa’s room.
He lay on the narrow bed staring at the ceiling, but sat up when the door opened.
Without a word, she began unbuttoning her shirt, letting it slide from her shoulders.
Sarah spoke softly.
Sarah:
“Let me take care of you tonight.”
Mustafa gave a bitter smile.
Mustafa:
“You know we may die tomorrow. Probably by my brother’s hand.”
Sarah stepped closer, smiling faintly.
Sarah:
“I know. So let us enjoy this moment.”
Her trousers slipped to the floor.14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHTx6W16tXf
Mustafa caught his breath as she climbed onto the bed beside him, her fingers tracing the scars across his chest.
Outside, the wind howled like the coming storm.
But tonight, there was only this her lips upon his,14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtT0FITvJ6C
his hands in her hair,14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsCD1hGtwaO
and the unspoken truth:
some fires burn brightest just before the storm puts them out.
14Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7WIjKQ9FAz
and then Add to home screen.