4. Unforgettable tragedy

In front of Akmal's house.

Akmal is seen observing the area to confirm the situation. As far as the eye could see, he saw no sign of soldiers coming to the place. This is because Akmal's house, which is across the river, is isolated from the other residents' houses.

"I don't think the soldiers know this place. I don't see any sign of them came." Akmal said, sneaking over to Dara who was hiding in the river. "Let's take Shiro inside. He must quickly get treatment." he added, trying to carry Shiro on his shoulder.

As soon as they brought Shiro into the house, Akmal rushed to get all the medical equipment they could use.

"I... I think we need to take him to the hospital." said Dara, a little nervous. Even though her hands kept shaking because she was so scared to see blood gushing from Shiro's wounds, she strengthened herself to be able to clean Shiro's body.

"The closest hospital is only in the city of atlas. Did you not see the explosion earlier?! Most likely it came from the city of atlas!" Akmal said, putting all the medical equipment he had on the table. "We'll just do what we can do!" he added, rushing to get clean water.

"B-But.. I've never had any medical surgery before!" said Dara, getting nervous seeing the blood that kept flowing out of Shiro's body.

"Right now Shiro's life depends on us!!" Akmal exclaimed, hurriedly placing a bucket of water next to Dara. He then grabbed Dara's shoulder and said, "I've lived alone since I was a kid! I consider Shiro and aunt as my own family! And now aunt is dead, I don't want to lose my family again!" Akmal said, trying to persuade Dara to brave herself.

"A-Alright.. I'll try it." said Dara who then took a breath to calm herself down.

At 13:10, the operation began with makeshift equipment. They both fight to save Shiro's life all night long. And right at 4 am, the operation is finally over.

"Are we doing right?" asked Dara.

"I don't know. At least we tried. How many bullets did we take out?" asked Akmal.

"6, 7.. 8." Dara replied, counting the bullets that were scattered on the table.

For a moment they were pensive. The atmosphere was so calm. The drizzle and the singing of frogs intertwined with each other made the tiredness and sleepiness they felt even heavier.

"There is no other choice, we can only wait. You better rest. I'm sure Shiro will soon recover from his coma." Akmal said, trying to comfort Dara who looked so lethargic.

"Well, Akmal... Why does Shiro-kun seem to hate Crowz so much?" asked Dara, staring at Shiro's face.

"Hate, huh?" Akmal said softly. "To me, he just looks jealous." he added.

"Jealous? Of what?" asked Dara curiously.

Akmal sighed and then began to tell the reason why Shiro hates anything related to Crowz.

"Well.. His father was a Crowz commander. Since Shiro was a kid, he had been abandoned by his father. Shiro blamed his father for leaving his wife and children to suffer. But for us, Shiro's father is a figure of a hero that we respected. Every time Shiro's father came home, he always brought an abundance of wealth and food to share with the citizens. Until then, our village was known as the most prosperous village in Java because of it. Until 10 years ago, September 14, 1999. Imperial troops came to this city to arrest Shiro's father. Even though the imperial army was ten times the number of the rebel army, Shiro's father and his subordinates fought them bravely."

For a moment Akmal looked at Shiro's face and was pensive.

"On that chaotic night, Shiro and his brother who had been in the refugee camp went to the city to find his father. And a few hours later after they left, there was a calamity that we will never forget. The sky that had been pitch black became bright because of a giant fireball that suddenly appeared and was getting bigger and bigger. Due to the size of the fireball, I and the other townspeople thought that it was the sun. Everyone looks desperate to see the sun which is getting bigger and bigger. They realized that that day was the last day of their life. However, when the residents were very resigned to the fate that would befall them, a miracle happened. From a distance that might have come from the border of the city, there was a darkness that devoured the sun. And as if nothing had happened, the sky was pitch black again. The residents cheered with gratitude for the miracle that had happened. But the horror of that night did not end there. Only a few minutes later, from the west of the city, a tsunami wave as high as 50 meters was seen getting closer."

Akmal lowered his head and strengthened his palm.

"On that day, the island of Java lost almost 70% of its population. On that day.. Both of my parents died. A few weeks after it all ended, the survivors of the disaster went to find their families. I found the bodies of my parents in a state of rot in a rubble. On the same day, Cindy's father who had not been home for a long time suddenly appeared, carrying Shiro who was unconscious and also his brother's right arm. From Cindy's father, we also learned about Shiro's father, who was reported to have died with one arm missing. That is why Shiro hates his father, a Crowz commander who he thinks is the cause of the disaster that happened 10 years ago. And exactly 10 years later from the disaster, on the same date on his birthday, Shiro also lost his mother."

Akmal smiled faintly remembering the past memories where Shiro and his siblings always acted like their father, a figure they admired.

"At least, that's what I know why Shiro hates anything about Crowz. Because he feels jealous, the father he admires prefers Crowz more over his own family." Akmal said softly, closing his story.

Dara, who had been carefully listening to Akmal's story, was sobbing with tears. She couldn't imagine the pain the two of them had been through all this time. In her heart, Dara promised to herself that when Shiro woke up later, she would do anything to make him happy and excited to live his life.