Chapter 1
Once again, I sat, mouth full of sand and ears ringing, with my back against a rock. The area had the smell of human waste blowing around. The days on end. In what I could remember, I’d slowly had my friends and allies whittled away by these men called my enemies. Head pounding, I looked around. Clenching my teeth, as I locked eyes with a now empty shell one of my team leaders had been inhabitting. Seeing that I barely had 7 men including myself left - all rugged of breath and being beat to to hell by this infernal heat - I finally felt lost. This was to be my last tour, the end of my contract, a way out of this shit-hole of an existence of licking boots for promotions and being screwed over because I wouldn’t throw my men under the bus.
“I’m done.” I said to myself
Hearing their leader speak one of the men gave me a curious gaze to which I answered by taking out a cigarette and lighting it, passing the few left in the pack to him.
“Well boys, it’s my job to either get you out alive, or make the cost of your life hurt so high they regret taking it, so here’s what we’re going to do.”
The men, though calling 18-21 year old boys men is a laughable matter, listened intently to their leaders voice, all ending up smoking and sighing, as if it lit the only ember of humanity they had left away. They would be suppressing the enemy with their uncared for, near empty weapons, pushing until they could turn tail and hopefully not take a round to the back. Myself though? I would be staying, laying fire until I was empty, hoping it gave them time to leave.
As we finished discussing the plan a whistling sound was heard overhead, and our eyes widened.
“INDIRECT TAKE COVER!”
The now meaningless words echoed among us, I laughed to myself, aren't we already in the only cover we have? The explosion was resounding and large, ripping shards of rock and billowing bursts of sand into the air, bruising and blinding us in a painful silence after. I felt a painful stab in my legs as shards hit me and I feared my face was torn to shreds, as pain and wetness spread across it. The silence only lasted seconds though, as we could hear screaming from one of my men. As the swirling sand cleared I swallowed bile back down my throat, and wiped my friends remains off my face.
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Fuck Fuck Fuck Fuck they weren’t supposed to have indirect what the fuck! Coughing up my lungs I crawled on my hands and knees, hands scrabbling for my weapon. Feeling my fingers bump into something I grabbed it, but… it was soft… and wet… oh my. Seeing the dismembered leg in my hand i tossed it aside coughing more, well he won’t be able to put that back on with how much is shattered off even if the man lives. My own leg was starting to throb, looking down I understood where the rest of the man’s leg had gone. I ground my teeth pulling my friends bone shard out of my own leg. Putting a tourniquet on, I heard a language I didn't understand, and desperately kept searching for my weapon.
Finally finding it I rolled over in time to catch my men being slaughtered, the one caring for the now 3 limbed man had a round explode through his face, ending in the other man's arm. 2 limbed man now. My best friend was shooting the one who had just helped our man of the issue of ever having to think again. Trying to protect him I shot the one coming up behind him before he could shoot, fuck this wasn’t supposed to end like this.
Kerchunk.
No, nonononono not not you son of a bitch not now. He had no more ammo. Standing I saw my friend fall, multiple new breathing holes gracing his chest. Swearing vengeance that i would haunt these men even if i had to become a monster, i would devour their hopes and dreams, and crush anything they held dear. There was nothing left, nothing, as more men poured in, aiming their rifles at me, i wouldn’t surrender, i wouldn’t bow my head to any man with such a shameful display. So i grinned, i laughed, as if today was the greatest of days, as if a great seal had broken within me, i dropped my weapon and blew great gusts of laughter as these men stares at me probably thinking i had snapped, but they didn’t understand, they didn’t know that when i dropped my weapon i had pulled the fragmentation grenade attached to my chest.
I saw their fingers tighten as they prepared to squeeze their weapons and empty my body of its rather vital and for the last moment functional parts. Until the world became heat, pain and silence. I felt light and free, i could smell gunpowder and rock dust. Still smiling even as i felt a tear fall down my face. I was still a coward who would rather kill myself then risk fighting fair. Why is the world spinning so much… oh. I saw my own remains and with a rather panicking thought full of the most animalistest terror known to man, i know my head, and my body, were no longer in a happy physical relationship. These were my last thought as everything i saw turned black and empty.