Status: Comments?
Coming Home
3/3
“You’ll come home, won’t you daddy?.”
*
Corporal John Sans sat in the back of the utility vehicle with his platoon.
They were on patrol, their utility racing across the harsh barren landscape.
“Where we goin’, sir?” a young solider piped up from across the utility.
“There was a report of a car bomb. We’re heading into the city,” John looked at the private, his eyes hard, his voice soft.
Not another sound was heard as the platoon made its way to the danger zone.
*
Screaming and running, panic and chaos. Even John couldn’t maintain order and control, not in a situation like this.
Dark smoke filled the air, the residue from the bombs already gone off.
Complete, utter, chaos.
“Sir, there’s another bomb! We have to get out of the area!” John whipped around as one of his troops informed him of the danger.
“Men, clear out!” John called, waving with his hand for his soldiers to move away from the threat.
A small cry echoed out of the space that the soldiers just recently evacuated. The cry of a young girl. John froze, memories of his own daughter back home flooding to the front of his mind. The girl cried again, begging for help. John couldn’t help himself, turning back around.
His dark eyes quickly scanned the area, trying to locate the girl. He spotted her, trapped under a fallen stand just inside what was going to be the blast radius.
“Sir! We have to move!” one of his men yelled out, noticing the thirty two year olds hesitation.
John made his decision and sprinted towards the girl. He knew he didn’t have long, the bomb was set to go off at any second. But he couldn’t leave the girl there. He couldn’t leave her to die like that.
He fumbled slightly as he lifted the stall high enough for the girl to crawl out. Once she was free, he dropped it and grabbed her hand, running back to the safe area.
John pushed the girl with all his might, sending her sprawling clear of the blast radius as the ticking became more frequent.
The explosion was loud, causing John’s eardrums to burst.
The heat was extreme, pushing against his back, setting his uniform instantly ablaze.
The force was intense, sending his body flying across the deserted courtyard.
John Sans was dead before he hit the ground.
*
The casket, shrouded in the country’s flag. Back home at last.
*
The grave, back home,
Corporal John Sans
Born 58-06-1978
Died 12-02-2010
Loving father;
A heroic digger
*
“You’ll come home, won’t you daddy?.”
*
Corporal John Sans sat in the back of the utility vehicle with his platoon.
They were on patrol, their utility racing across the harsh barren landscape.
“Where we goin’, sir?” a young solider piped up from across the utility.
“There was a report of a car bomb. We’re heading into the city,” John looked at the private, his eyes hard, his voice soft.
Not another sound was heard as the platoon made its way to the danger zone.
*
Screaming and running, panic and chaos. Even John couldn’t maintain order and control, not in a situation like this.
Dark smoke filled the air, the residue from the bombs already gone off.
Complete, utter, chaos.
“Sir, there’s another bomb! We have to get out of the area!” John whipped around as one of his troops informed him of the danger.
“Men, clear out!” John called, waving with his hand for his soldiers to move away from the threat.
A small cry echoed out of the space that the soldiers just recently evacuated. The cry of a young girl. John froze, memories of his own daughter back home flooding to the front of his mind. The girl cried again, begging for help. John couldn’t help himself, turning back around.
His dark eyes quickly scanned the area, trying to locate the girl. He spotted her, trapped under a fallen stand just inside what was going to be the blast radius.
“Sir! We have to move!” one of his men yelled out, noticing the thirty two year olds hesitation.
John made his decision and sprinted towards the girl. He knew he didn’t have long, the bomb was set to go off at any second. But he couldn’t leave the girl there. He couldn’t leave her to die like that.
He fumbled slightly as he lifted the stall high enough for the girl to crawl out. Once she was free, he dropped it and grabbed her hand, running back to the safe area.
John pushed the girl with all his might, sending her sprawling clear of the blast radius as the ticking became more frequent.
The explosion was loud, causing John’s eardrums to burst.
The heat was extreme, pushing against his back, setting his uniform instantly ablaze.
The force was intense, sending his body flying across the deserted courtyard.
John Sans was dead before he hit the ground.
*
The casket, shrouded in the country’s flag. Back home at last.
*
The grave, back home,
Corporal John Sans
Born 58-06-1978
Died 12-02-2010
Loving father;
A heroic digger
*
“You’ll come home, won’t you daddy?.”