Facing the Firing Squad

Without anything to lose, I faced the firing squad. I faced them with the same fear and valor as Colonel Aureliano. There was no way out, there was nowhere to run. The one I had put all my trust in had been the one who shackled my hands and feet and lead me to them. Now, unshackled and standing before them I felt exposed, as though I had been stripped of all my pride. I looked past the firing squad and saw him walking away without looking back. He carried on his shoulders the shackles I once wore, and I could see then how heavy they were. I no longer had to carry those shackles, and even though I was now exposed I was free. Free of the shackles that had confined me. How had I lived with them for so long? 
In the midst of my newly discovered liberation, I remembered the firing squad in front of me. I squeezed shut my eyes, knowing their rifles were ready, I embraced myself for their torrent. I waited. I heard the first shot, followed by a second. I opened my eyes to see the firing squad had turned their guns on my captor as he ran into the flat, empty desert, never releasing my shackles from his shoulders. Then I heard more shots and my eyes filled with tears as I saw the firing squad had lifted their rifles as a salute. And just as it was for Colonel Aureliano, standing in front of the firing squad is far from the end for me.