“This is really high…”


Soldier leaned over the fracture in the bridge, watching the wind stir up dust beneath the cracked asphalt. This had once been a highway, a lifeline connecting the city to the outside world. Now it was nothing more than broken slabs of concrete and twisted metal rebar, jutting from the void like the shattered bones of a dead giant.


Somewhere far below, a deep emptiness yawned. He dropped a small stone from the edge, and it took far too long before he heard the faint clatter of impact.


No, he didn’t like this at all.


Meanwhile, Civilian stretched as if warming up before a jog and gave him a smug glance.

“Scared of heights?”


Soldier shot him a dark look.

“No,” he lied.


“Sure,” Civilian snorted and turned toward the broken guardrails. “Don’t worry, I’ll catch you if that army-grade grace of yours fails you.”


Soldier clenched his jaw. He hated people like that. People who didn’t seem to carry even a trace of fear. Or maybe they did, but managed to bury it under layers of recklessness and cocky humor.


Civilian took a few steps back, slapped his hands against his knees, adjusted his backpack, and glanced across the gap.


“Don’t forget… you only live once, might as well make it count!”


He ran.


Soldier stood stiffly as the kid sprinted forward, boots pounding against the broken concrete, charging straight toward the edge. He didn’t hesitate. Launched himself with full force.


One clean motion...a precise leap. No sign of doubt. He knew exactly what he was doing.


He landed on the far side with surprising ease, skidding a bit on the dusty surface but rising to his feet in a heartbeat. As if it were nothing. Just part of the routine.


He turned and grinned.

“See? Piece of cake!”


Soldier narrowed his eyes.


Piece of cake, huh?


He glanced down at his own backpack.


Heavy. Too heavy. No one had packed it with the idea of leaping across gaps.Maybe if he dropped some gear, he’d have a better chance. But losing anything? Not an option. He stepped back a few paces, gauging the distance. Visualized the jump.


How many parachute drops had he done? How many times had he jumped from building to building? From transports into mud? Probably more than he could count.


And still, this felt off.


No safety net.


No second try.


If he missed the landing, or landed wrong, it would be the end of the mission. One bad jump and that was it.


“This is the worst trek I’ve ever been on,” he muttered to himself.


Civilian still heard him.

“Oh, we’re just getting started!”


Soldier closed his eyes to focus. Then took a deep breath, backed up a few more steps, and measured the distance one last time. He ran.When his feet left the ground, he felt the wind hit his face. He was airborne. But he was too heavy. He knew it wasn’t a clean jump. His boots slammed onto the far side of the bridge and in that same second, Civilian’s hand grabbed him hard, pulling him in.


“Got you,” Civilian grinned and yanked him ungracefully away from the edge.


“Though for a second there, I thought you were really going down.”


“So did I,” Soldier exhaled.


Sweat ran down his back and his hands were shaking.

“I hope the next leg is a little more normal.”


“It is,” Civilian assured him.


“We’re almost at the gate. Once we’re through, it’s a straight shot.”


“I’ll hold you to that,” said Soldier, casting one last look behind him. What they’d just done was utter madness. And somehow, it had worked.