[Val Verde]

[November 9th, 2009]

—

[oom]

[eeeee]

[ooom]

[tatata]

[aaaaaahhhh]

I blinked as I tried to get up. My spirit was willing, but my flesh was a little less enthusiastic. Did I try to eat sand or something? My mouth was gritty.

[Waaaaahhh!]

It was the sobs that I heard nearby. I focused on them, and slow the world started to make sense.

I stared at the remains of our Sergeant. All I had left of him was an arm on my shoulders. The rest of the body slid off me as I moved.

My body complained, and I groaned as I got up. Somehow, I wasn't dead.

The man's arm fell back from my shoulders as I pushed off the ditch I had landed in. I half recalled that I was lending him my shoulder. I was helping him move back. Away from the front lines.

Something about a stray bullet?

Right. I remember that now. We had found a enemy fireteam. A scouting party for the US.

Then we got caught up in a strafing fire from a US fighter jet. A Hydra jet crashed and exploded, sending us reeling.

Dick. The arm, and body, belong a Sergeant Dick. A prophetic name since the man was indeed an asshole.

Bullet holes dotted his body and I was glad he was my human shield. Those holes looked painful. I could have done without waking up to the severed arm around my shoulders though.

The only people I cared about was…

I looked around, and there Candice was. Kneeling and hunched over someone. She was the one crying. She was still crying.

My throat constricted as I saw her. Her usually pristine uniform now had blood splattered all over it. Her concise, regulation bun was gone, letting her hair hang loose across her shoulders.

Why was her mask off? She was also only rocking back and forth. She was not giving first aid we were all trained for.

I tried not to look down. I knew who it was on the ground already. His tall body, and broad shoulders. I didn’t want to admit it.

Instead I moved around the new war scene. Of the squad, only the two of us were up and about. Sorta.

Seven survivors got further reduced into two people. I couldn’t even find that guy… who I never got the name of. Nor my Cheryl. And whoever the other girl was.

I walked back and pulled Dick’s dog tags. I added them to my pile from when we were in the third line. Wherever that was now.

So many people I knew. I hoped that some of them made it back.

By habit, I checked my gun. Magazine was full, and chamber was clean. Safety off.

We needed to leave. The third line had fallen, and we would die if we loitered around. There was no point in trusting in blind surrender to the enemy.

Not after we entered the second day of fighting. Both sides were now full of desires for revenge. I know I was willing to kill.

I am sure a lot of squads encountered ‘hostile’ forces. The reports would show the ambush, or the ensuing fierce firefight. The enemy would die, and the military would glaze over everything.

I moved up to my commanding officer. With Dick dead, she was in charge now.

I shook her, and she didn’t notice. I gave her shoulder a solid tap, and she pushed me away.

[Slap!]

Candice reeled at the hit to her cheek. Her eyes stared at me, but they didn’t see me. She saw something else. Or rather someone else.

I tugged off my mask. The broken eye lenses wouldn’t have offered anything more. When we got back, I could get a new mask.

“We. Need. To. Go!” I screamed at her as I pulled her up. Harvey’s stiff body thumped back onto the ground. The sounds of jet fighters were still in the air. US and Hydra air fighters dueled in the skies.

The artillery barrage was also creeping closer at a steady rate and pace. If we did not leave, then we were not going to make it.

In the distance, I could see plumes of earth now. They were distant whistles hours ago. Or was it days? I had lost track.

I reached under Harvey’s mask and pulled off his dog tags. He didn’t need them no more.

“Stop. Those are Harvey’s!” Candice whispered as she grabbed onto my hands. Her eyes were wide as she clung onto me for support.

“Lance-Corporal Brown. As acting Sergeant, I order you to move with me,” I barked out. I wasn’t a Sergeant. Yet I needed her to move.

“I… Yes Sergeant,” Candice replied. She collapsed into her training. I outranked her, or so she thought, and thus I made decisions. She followed orders.

It was a harder game of primary’s 'Monkey See, Monkey Do'. Or secondary’s 'Ranks and Ladders'.

Candice hugged her gun.

You never ditched your gun unless you surrendered, or you found something better. This habit got drilled into us since secondary school.

Candice double checked her weapon as I had. Cool and professional now that she had focus.

I moved away from the sounds of the US artillery. Theirs whistles sounded different. Higher pitch then ours. We also had bigger booms.

We only moved a few meters when I found them.

Cheryl. And beside her was the missing girl.

They had propped themselves onto the base of a tree. Dark red stained everything here.

I moved up to them. My boots became slick, and sticky as I crouched before them.

Black hair. Oriental. She had bled out from a severed leg. Her dog tags said her names was Stacy. I ignored her tear stains as I closed her dull, brown eyes.

Cheryl’s eyes stared straight out. Her prized blond hair was messy. I combed at it with my dirty hands.

They came back to me with blood stains. It trailed down her back, and on the tree trunk. She was also missing her entire lower body.

Funny how I didn't notice that right away.

Her last moments had her green staring up into the cloudy skies. A single tear track and I wondered what her final thoughts held? I hoped it was positive thoughts.

She had always wished she had wings. To move as free as a bird. Our faith did touch on heaven and hell, so I prayed that she had flown her way into heaven.

She was a good girl that often thought about other people’s feelings.

I squatted and closed her eyes. I hoped that in the next life… she would be born a bird. A falcon like the one she always wished she could raise.

I took a deep breath, and held it. I felt Candice's hands on my shoulders. She slid down to hug me from behind.

Soldier first. Mission second. Human third.

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I let the breath go, and reached out to my girl’s neckline.

I pulled her dog tags, and added them to the pouch that felt as it had been a solid block of lead. It was heavy on my hips. The weight doubled as I added my girlfriend.

Candice helped me rise. I was thankful as my legs felt weak.

“Alright. Now we mo…” I started and then stopped. I saw movement.

A bush rustled and a person popped out. They came out in measured steps. They wore the camouflage of US soldiers.

It was a fireteam of 4.

They didn’t see us yet.

How in the world? The US was still firing off artillery. How were these guys out here? How was that first squad here?

The US army... crazy bastards.

I made some hand gestures. We crouch, and then unload.

She frowned and nodded.

We played with air rifles in secondary school. Then live weapons during first service. For six months we had also practiced with live rounds.

We were as ready as we would ever be.

Candice did well in her scores. A marksmen, with a steady hand, and steady mind. She became our class’s Lance-Corporal because she worked hard.

Candice crouched down. She fell onto one knee and steadied her rifle. Her breaths became slow and measured. I did the same.

Our rifles broke the silence. Between their panic, and our calm demeanor, they died.

Two got taken out in an instant. The other two fired in the wrong direction before they also got killed.

We both reloaded, but Candice then emptied her new clip into the closest soldier’s body. Some of her shots even hit the dead man.

I grabbed her by the shoulder as her gun clicked dry.

“Enough. We need to move. We need to regroup with the next line. Or at the very least, another squad. Then we can kill them with proper support,” I half explained, half ordered.

Candice looked at me as she shoved in her third clip. She looked like I had told her that if she listened, magic would follow.

She nodded and we began to walk our way back.

—

We moved and I lost count on how long we had to travel.

The afternoon gave way to the evening. Without the communication guy, we could only travel without guidance.

Where was the back line? Had the invaders broken through again?

“Freeze!” a gruff voice called out. Candice and I stopped and stared as bright flashlights blinded us. Since they didn’t shoot first, I held up my hands. Candice saw me and mirrored my actions.

This deep into the forest, towards the Morning Mountains, I had a good idea of who had found us.

“Drop your weapons, and then move back!”

Candice and I disarmed. Rifles. Pistols. Knives.

The lights flicked off and soldiers came up with their guns raised. The skull like green masks of Hydra’s infantry. Our visions cleared and I noted that they had fanned out.

Someone moved up, grabbed our weapons, and moved back.

“Sergeant Johnny Rico. Thirteenth Reserve Corps. I am here to report that the 3rd line has broken,” I said as I snapped a salute.

It was as crisp as I could get it. The two of us felt exhausted. Tired and hungry. We had no real rations as we had gotten deployed to the front lines. We dropped out bags, and then got carted out.

“We will verify it back at base,” The lead man said. He then spoke softly into a communicator. I couldn't hear him, or the replies he received.

“Sorry to hear, but the third, and fourth line are gone. An escort is only a minute out," he said as he relaxed. The others kept their distance, but at least we were not looking into the barrels anymore.

I nodded and squatted. Candice did the same, and we leaned against each other.

We were finally safe.

—

“Thanks for the lift!” I yelled as I slapped the side of the jeep.

The driver honked and drove off. The smell of diesel wafted to my nose and I watched the jeep shrink as it returned to the main staging area.

Candice stared at the large numbers denoting our squad’s barrack. The simple, green field tent was silent as we pulled up the four layer tarp.

We stepped into the shelter and I had to moved my hand around until I found the power switch.

With a flick, the simple ceiling lights it revealed the pristine condition we left it in. No one had actually been able to use it, since we dropped off our bags and then hurried off earlier this morning.

From reserve to active duty… active duty to… heroes I guess… the cynical thought ran through me.

I used my hands to guide Candice out. We went then moved around to the back. Where a different set of small shelters stood. The unit’s basic hygiene shelters.

Here we could finally wash away the grim and blood. We were sticky with god knows what… and gods knows who.

I was eager to wash away Dick’s blood. I now recalled him telling me to shoot down the jet fighter strafing us. With a man leaning against me, and only my off arm to fire.

Yes Sir! Its like fifty-fifty odds right?

I undressed. The dirty, and stained jumpsuit fell onto the mat. I stood there, naked as I noted that Candice still hadn’t moved.

“Rico says strip,” I ordered.

Candice moved like a robot. She disrobed and then stopped.

I stepped out of my mess of a uniform. Good thing there was extras back in our backpacks.

“Rico says get in the shower,” I said with a sigh. This was not going well.

Candice dragged her feet and tripped.

It was only the fact that I was beside her that kept her from face planting on the shower mat. I held her close, and together we got her uniform off.

With slow pacing, I moved Candice into the shower stall. A simple plastic bin, with cheap dividers between units, and a basic shower head.

“Thank the greater good,” I whispered and moaned. The warm water flowed over the both of us. I took this moment to begin rubbing Candice down.

In the back of my head I knew Harvey would either be trying to murder me… or giving me thumbs up. The man was weird like that.

My hands glided over her soft skin. I found no issues after a few minutes, and I relaxed as I hugged her from behind. She leaned into me.

The water drizzled over us.

After the checkpoint, we got verified by the military systems. It was nerve wracking as several guards stood over us.

If we were not identified, we would have received a spy's welcome.

Then, at the base proper, we saw doctors. They had used a hand scanner to check us. A simple minute long scan as they used some sorta stick wand thing.

With a few beeps and boops, they pronounced us in good condition and discharged.

Normally, I would have balked at such a simple assessment. Yet the fact that there was a literal line of people waiting, kept my mouth shut.

Many were soldiers like me. Missing limbs, and the cries of pain, loss, and grief emanated from many shelters. It was a haunting sound.

I got out as fast as I could.

I used the built in dispenser. Soap. Shampoo. Conditioner.

I Shampooed Candice. I worked through her hair. Then I stared as I pulled out a twig. There was even a leaf still attached.

I threw it out and onto the mat. It skidded to the side, before I went back to work.

My fingers found nothing else interesting. So I washed my own hair.

Then there was conditioner. Her hair. My hair.

Finally, I began with the body soap. I did mine first as I knew that Candice was going to be unhelpful.

Minutes later, I began to work on her.

The usually proud, and strict girl I trained with was so alien today. I knew why. It made me sad.

From head to toes, I took care to washed her. I was becoming a touch frantic as I wanted her back. I wanted someone to talk to.

An idea hatched. It was naughty, and perverted. Two things I had come to love as I grew older.

I spent a very long time washing her breasts. The full feeling in my hands moved with my fingers. I had to get soap twice as I did my very best.

Candice was both smaller, yet much firmer then Cheryl. I noted the fact as I used science to squeeze and weigh.

To my disappointment, Candice stood there.

She did not return to the stern girl I had grown to know. To the girl who disliked public displays of affection, and even decked Harvey once for the slap to her butt.

Near the end of the shower, as I had rinsed us both off, and the only sound was of me humming. Of me enjoying the last of the water. It was cool now, and I found it relaxing.

The stress of the day was still there. Though it was now muted as we were clean. Clean and safe.

Candice moved.

My eyes lit up. She was coming back out. With either violence, or tears, I would be here for her.

The two of us were the last of the squad. We had to stick together.

Candice turned around and hugged me. Her arms squeezing me in a tight hug as the water fell. Her head snuggled onto my shoulder as she stilled once more.

Even when it became a torrent of cold water, we stood there.

Together.

—

I tucked Candice into her bed. The fact that she had refused to put on anything made me frown. The old Candice was not coming back anytime soon.

Yet rest was more important. So I ordered her to sleep. Which was for the best as she closed her eyes, and fell unconscious. The way she slumped as I stood up, told me of her weariness.

I moved to my own cheap bed. It was several units away.

I dragged my pack and plopped it onto the floor. From inside my pack, I pulled out my prized phone. It took a few agonizing minutes to power on, and then another tense minute to checked my emails.

The last email from my parents was generic. They wished me well, and reminded me to stay safe. They were hard at work, and we would all see each other soon.

I knew that they were in a radar installation. It was situated behind the lines, and away from the Morning Mountains. Their station was closer to a secondary Hydra air base. Which should be well manned, and well protected.

From Carmen, there was nothing new. Her last email was wishing me luck, and praying that I would stay safe.

I sent her a new email. Saying that the new day was… interesting, but I was indeed safe. I felt myself chock up as I faced reality. Out of our full squad of 14… there was only two survivors.

I hoped that there was more survivors. That maybe they were just in the medical field where so many others were laid up.

Yet right now… I stared at Candice’s sleeping form. Her soft breathing was inaudible and only the slow rise of her blanket let me know that she was still alive.

I prayed that those civilian bunkers were well made. There was little chance that they would be touched. The US and the Avengers had no reason to target cities.

I prayed that mom and dad were well outside of danger. The secondary airbase was a target, but not a priority.

There was only so many planes to go around anyways. Hydra had also set up several secondary fields to support them. In case the forward bases got destroyed.

The air was stifling as I reread my sister’s last email. I read it a third time. A fourth.

“Stay safe!” she had written at the end.

With a ragged exhale, I stood up. I could panic tomorrow.

I turned off the lights. My phone became a flashlight as I navigated back to my simple bed. It was a cheap field thing. The frame creaked as I crawled onto it.

The pillow was thin enough that I wasn't sure if it was there in the dark. My blanket felt as if it was only filled with three sheets of newspaper.

It took a few minutes as I lay still in my canvas bed. I stared at the dark. Then everything caught up to me, and I knew no more.

—

The shuffle of another person woke me. I reacted as I tried to get up. To struggle and fight.

A killer! That fighter jet won't get me!

Then the arms went for my throat. I clenched a fist. I knew where their body was!

The sobs is what stopped me. My mind snapped back to where I was. The body blow I prepped froze as I took in deep breaths.

Candice snuggled in, laying on top of me as her sobs became a low wail into my chest.

Like I did for Carmen so long ago, when she had nightmares. I hummed a night song. I used soft touches to let her know I was here.

I held her. Her soft skin felt silky as I ran my hands over her bare back. To confirm my support.

Her tears brought forth my own.

Harvey. Cheryl. Simon. Sunny. Drew… the list went on as my friends were not coming back. They were not even going to get a proper burial as I knew the critters of the night would feast well this week.

We fell asleep, arms around each other. It was warm. It was safe.

A stronghold in this chaotic and senseless world.

————

Chapter 02: The Morning Mountains