"I… I never put one there, sir."
"I didn't check the truck after the warehouse…"
Night wind slipped through the helicopter's frame, blending with the roar of the rotors. Thin fog veiled the sky. Snow fell heavily over the pine forest, standing like ancient guardians beside the ravine. The highlands felt distant and unreal. The smell of fuel and frozen air pressed heavily against every chest.
Levan stared downward through the drifting snow. The dark green truck kept moving, shrinking among the swaying black trees. Its tire tracks carved deep scars into the white ground—like wounds in the body of the earth.
"Damn it… After this, I want full reports. Every single one," he muttered, his eyes burning cold.
From the pilot's seat, a soldier turned. "Sir, three kilometers ahead is a steep descent and a deep gorge. If they keep going…"
"They'll fall," Levan finished quietly. "And he doesn't even know what's waiting."
Inside the truck, Elara stiffened. The air in the cabin was as cold as the outside, their breath turning to mist.
Her eyes widened at the sharp slope and the faint shimmer of a fog-covered abyss.
"Kaivan! There's a cliff ahead!" she cried, grabbing the dashboard.
Kaivan said nothing.
His gaze stayed fixed forward, pupils trembling. He gripped the steering wheel as if defying fate itself.
Above them, the helicopter dived sharply. Its vibration tore through the air, creating a spiral of snow that swallowed the road. In a swift, precise maneuver, it surged ahead, cutting across the truck's path with deadly speed.
At the cabin's edge, Levan stood firm. Wind battered his tactical jacket, his hair whipping wildly. He pulled a tube-shaped weapon from the helicopter's rack—an RPG-7.
His movements were calm, as if he had done this a thousand times.
"Give me that RPG," he ordered.
An officer handed over the launcher. Levan took it without hesitation and stepped toward the open door, leaning into the raging snowstorm. With practiced ease, he loaded the projectile.
"Kaivan… my salary is definitely getting cut for this," he murmured, a thin smile forming on his frozen face.
He raised the launcher and aimed at the cliff ahead of the truck.
The rocket fired.
A streak of orange tore through the night. The explosion shook the snowy valley. The cliff shattered—rocks and snow collapsed like the wrath of a god.
A wall of white and debris crashed down, sealing the truck's path.
Behind the windshield, Kaivan's eyes widened. There was no time to think—only to act. He glanced at Elara, frozen in the passenger seat.
"Hold on tight!" he shouted, pulling her seatbelt and locking it in place.
Elara nodded silently, her body trembling with adrenaline.
Kaivan slammed the steering wheel to the left. The tires lost their grip. The truck slid down the icy slope, spinning wildly like a bullet that had lost its direction.
The truck rolled.
Once. Twice.
Metal screamed. Glass shattered. Tires tore through the snow. Elara screamed. Kaivan clenched his teeth. His body was thrown violently against the seatbelt, but his hands never left the wheel.
Time seemed to stop.
Inside his racing mind, everything slowed. The truck spun in midair. Shards of glass scattered like snow. In the middle of the chaos, he saw it— A chance.
With unnatural speed, he released his seatbelt. His body was thrown into unstable gravity.
The moment the truck's roof slammed into the ground, Kaivan grabbed Elara's belt and pulled her into his arms.
They were lifted into the air. Time slowed. Behind them, the truck tumbled like a falling iron giant.
"Kaivan!" Elara cried, her voice swallowed by the roaring wind.
He didn't answer. His eyes were fixed on the snow below— The place where they would fall. And maybe… survive.
Their bodies crashed into thick snow with a heavy thud. White fragments burst into the air.
Behind them, the truck slammed into the valley floor and stopped roughly— Not destroyed, but crushed and twisted.
Kaivan and Elara lay in the snow. Heavy. Broken.
But alive.
Night spread its silence across the endless white field. The pale moon hung in the sky, staring down with cold eyes. The air bit into their bones, slipping through every gap in their clothes.
Then— The roar of a helicopter shattered the stillness, Like the echo of death descending from the heavens.
A military helicopter dove sharply, Like a steel eagle hunting its prey.
Its blades spun violently, stirring the snow into white spirals. The engine roared, shaking the frozen air.
Below it lay two bodies, Their breaths mixing with pale mist drifting between falling snowflakes.
Elara coughed weakly, shivering. Her long hair was tangled, clinging to her bruised and scraped face.
Beside her, Kaivan slowly lifted his head. His vision was blurred. He stared at the red glow of the helicopter lights spinning in the sky.
His breathing was short. His chest rose and fell in a chaotic rhythm— Between pain and determination.
The helicopter door opened with a metallic crash.
A commanding figure stepped out. Levan.
He jumped down without hesitation. His shadow stretched beneath the searchlight.
His boots touched the snow without a sound, As if the earth itself was holding its breath.
His white coat fluttered in the snowstorm. He stood tall, sharp eyes cutting through the cold night.
Slow applause echoed from his black gloves, Mocking the silence.
"Impressive," he said flatly, his voice heavy. "You're more dangerous than I expected, Kaivan."
Kaivan tried to stand. His body swayed. Blood dripped from his temple, staining the snow deep red.