//------------------------------// // The oh-so metallic taste... // Story: Purple Hearts // by ShadowMere25 //------------------------------// "Amidst the eternal waves of time, From a ripple of change shall the storm rise, Out of the abyss peer the eyes of a demon, Behold the Oscerahn, its wings of black sheath!" Focus. Control. Conviction. Resolve. A true warrior lacks none of these attributes. Nothing can deter you from the task at hand except your own fears. This is your territory. I was cold, hurt and exhausted. I placed a hand over the laceration on my shoulder. It wasn't deep, so it should clot up soon...Didn't change the fact that it hurt like hell. I kept a steady eye on my surroundings, watching the trees. Damn rebels could anywhere, I had no reason to let my guard down for anything. Each step sent a sharp sting up my leg. The explosions had long since run dormant, occasional gunshots would still be heard. I must have been trudging through for at least an hour now. I had to find my way to the river, from there I could leg it on to town. I hoped that my friends survived the ambush, and that I'll see them once I get back. We were Blackjacks, we were trained for this. I wasn't overly concerned, they knew how to handle themselves. I was more worried about the rest of our guys...poor bastards... I had enough to worry about at the moment. I felt vulnerable without my rifle, and this handgun wasn't much. A couple of mags will only do so much, even with a steady hand. The river was just up ahead and if I stay out of sight I'll be fine. I only take one more step until— "FUCK!" I grab my left thigh hard before losing balance and falling over. I knew I shouldn't have ignored it...I pull up my tattered pants to reveal a nasty gash on my lower leg. A piece of bark was jammed deep into the flesh and it wasn't coming out easy. It was a gruesome sight and it's going to get infected if I don't do something about it. I crawled on over to a birch tree and set myself against it. I bit down on my collar and put my side-arm down. Reaching down my other leg until I felt the familiar grip of my combat knife, I retracted the knife from its sheath to the reveal the eleven inch blade, glistening in the sunlight. I bit down on my collar hard and moved the knife towards the bark and used to pull back the edge of the wound so I could get the leverage I needed. To say it hurt would be understatement of the year... A small bit blood spurted when I flicked the blade upwards. It was already trickling down freely and my socks were covered in red. I let go of my collar and took deep breaths. The bark had finally released its grip on my flesh and it came out the rest of the way by hand. Now for 'part two' I opened a pouch on my vest and fished out a small white case with the signature red cross on it. A standard Army issue first-aid kit, equipped with a needle and thread, a roll of bandages, sterile gauze pads, a morphine auto-injector and a small vial of anti-septic; just what I needed. Part of my special forces training called for learning basic first aid. I had taken an additional medical course to help me or my buddies even further should the situation call for it. I was glad that I did. Had I tried to pull that bark out by hand right then, I would've yanked out a good chunk of my leg with it. Now wouldn't THAT have been a bitch? I rummaged through the case for the needle and undid the knot that held the small bit of thread together. I carefully inserted the thread through the hole and tied it on. I sighed, The other option sucks a fuck-ton more so be glad you don't have to do THAT. Yeah, I know, it still fucking sucks though. "Welp, here goes..." I brought my foot up and rested it on my knee, thankfully the wound was at the right side of my leg so I won't have to get into an awkward position for this. I slowly let the small needle slide into my skin, wincing slightly at the sting. I pushed it through all the way out on the other 'flap' of the gash. Doing the surgeon's knot, I bit down on my collar hard as the pain of the gash closing set in. I repeated the painful yet somewhat easy process five more times until I was fairly sure the wound was closed. Satisfied with my work I cut the thread off with my knife. My suturing skills were far from perfect but this would have to do. One last bit left and I'll leave you alone collar. There wasn't enough anti-septic to go around but I spread it out as much as I could. I swear I could hear my flesh 'fizzing' on contact over the sound of my yelling. Oh nature, if I only you were a person so I could punch that smug look off your face... I swallowed the searing pain and used my shaky hand to wrap the bandages up around my leg. That was going to leave one hell of a scar but I ain't complaining...chicks dig 'em...or at least that was what Mike would say, that smartass. I arched my head back—taking a long, needed breather. My hands were covered in blood, and was actually mine for once. My thoughts drifted back into the events of the day. That ambush was set up pretty damn well, they went through a lot of trouble for to take down one small convoy. Either that or you're REALLY starting to get popular. Fuck off, that name died a long time ago. I'm no fucking hero... Heroes...do they even happen anymore? I remember when they made that stupid campaign to show us off to the public. The Blackjacks...Our knights in not-so-shiny armor. Those damn slogans always made me cringe. I did my duty, as did everyone else. I didn't need no damn parade but admittedly it felt kinda good. To get my mind off shit. To feel a little special. There was nothing to feel special for. That bloody civil war was nothing but one of deception and propaganda with a whole lot of people getting killed for nothing. I look back and aimlessly ponder about whether or not I did the right thing by enlisting...To this day I still don't remember exactly what was going through my mind whilst I was standing in that line. A fresh young boy, indistinguishable from the man I had become now. Of course, I had forgotten where I was...My thoughts immediately faded out at the gut-wrenching sound of a twig snap...sound...twig snap. Holy shit... What happened to the gunshots? The explosions? Fuck... Sure as hell, it had become eerily silent asides from your usual sounds of forest fauna. I began to see water dripping off the leaves above me. It looked up at the dark clouds forming up...I didn't mind rain but now isn't really the best time. The nip in the air only grew all the more harsh within the hour. Only a little colder and I would begin to see my breath. It was already noticeably darker. I clutched my pistol and scanned the surrounding area. If I could no longer hear the sounds of battle, that could only mean one of two possibilities. One, the situation is FUBAR and everyone got killed or captured. Two, they managed to stave off the ambush and went on without me. Please let it be two... I just hope Mike and Eddie made it. I don't want to have break it their folks...heaven knows I've done that enough. I didn't see anyone. If it IS them then I would be dead by now. They have no reason to hold back...I'm alone, hurt and only got a hand-gun on me. I placed a hand on the tree at my back to support myself as I stood back up. My leg still kills, so I won't be going anywhere fast. The ground was lit up in a bright almost blinding flash of lightning followed by a screaming 'crack'. Hey buddy...It's okay, see? There's nothing to be afraid of. It's just a little...thunder... What happened next...no-one could of saw it coming. Bastards hid like snakes in grass. Only mere seconds after I had regained my composure did I find myself standing there in the midst of that forest clearing dumbfounded. A dark red stain was near that birch tree where I had patched myself up and the familiar tang of blood in my mouth. I had bit my lip looking at it. Standing in front of me...in that gods-forsaken forest...was a man. In that man's arms was the Kalash—it's barrel looking at me right in the eyes. But what really got me...was the man's face. The 'man' in question looked like anything but. He...He was just a kid. Couldn't have been any older seventeen or eighteen. There were drips of water on his forehead and I could feel myself getting damp by the second. He was wearing a filthy grey hoodie and some blue jeans; things you'd buy for any pocket change you had at a flea market. He was shaking. He looked at me and muttered a few words. I couldn't hear what he said but what I could hear was the rustling of leaves coming from behind me. He wasn't alone...of course, why would he be? "What?" I blathered out like a fucking idiot. "GET THE FUCK ON THE GROUND! NOW! D-Do it! I-I mean it...I'll...I'll shoot! I'm n-not afraid of you mother-fucker. I've killed plenty of ass-holes like you!" His eyes shifted over to the piece in my right hand and he motioned for me to drop it. Seeing no other option...I complied. The kid seemed a little less tense now that I was completely defenseless. They must be pretty damn desperate to let this spineless little shit into their fold. However through the hollowed glare I gave at the kid, I still felt a slight bit of pity for the kid. A burning sensation washed over my leg as I knelt down. Oh yeah. That...Why do I keep forgetting about that? I held my bloodied hands at chest level—trying to make it clear that I wasn't going to try anything. That same dreadful feeling washed over me once more. I wasn't a stranger to being taken prisoner...only last time I wasn't alone. They could shoot me here and now and none of it would even matter. It wouldn't be hard to cover it up. They could make it look like I was killed in action or just dump my body into the river. Damn it...there's no getting out of this one. I'm fucked. "So what're you waiting for kid?" I don't know why I said that. "Go ahead...Do it" The kid seem to only tense up further now. His lips were quivering. "But know this...I'm un-armed. So to kill me now would be considered a war-crime. When the Victorian Military rolls through...better armed, armored, and trained than you...All of you will either be dead or taken prisoner where you'll rot in a damn hole...With nothing but all the time in the world to think about what you've done." "Shut up..." This kid was scared shit-less. The nerve of those cowards. Sending a kid out to confront me for crying out loud. I could imagine the look on their smug faces. I may be looking at the kid, but I'm talking to those scum-bags skulking around in the shadows. "Don't worry about that though...a trial and jailhouse will be the least of your worries by the end today." I gave him the coldest glare I could muster. If his face was anything to go by, I'm pretty sure there was dark stains on the back of his pants now... "When my friends find out...and they WILL find out..." I gave a low chuckle. "I guess you could say that they'll be pissed. I won't tell you what they'll do because honestly I don't even know. I do hope you assholes behind me can hear me right now." I heard heavy footsteps trudge through leaf and mud advance towards me. Looks like they've heard enough. It was worth a shot I guess. "It won't be death that's for sure...no, for them...death would be too...merciful. I was thinking something more along the lines of..." Before I could finish, one last lightning flash revealed two distinctly shaped shadows looming over from behind me. Shit, guess these guys mean business huh? I can't die now...I'm way too under-dressed for hell. Maybe I could ask them if they'd let me borrow a suit or something? I continued to wait there on my knees, taking one last look at the kid in front of me. The damn rain was chilling me to the bone. The shadows were still there. For a moment they looked like death's icy hands coming to greet me...but it never came...Instead of what I thought would be the end, instead it came down on me like a brick wall. A nice solid SMACK on the back of my head, sending me face first into the dirt. The last thing I heard before I drifted into unconsciousness was their voices... "Damn, you got him good there." "Fucker talks too much...A mouthful of dirt outta help with that slack tongue of his. Hey! Kid! Get over here and help us pick 'im up!" I never really fully noticed how nice it is this time of year...