THE MESSENGER
The sky was dark.The clouds covered up the smiling face of the sun. The enviroment was drop dead quiet. The smell of blood filled up the air, coming from the blood-stained letter in my right pocket. It was once owned by my buddy, the proud and fearless Archie.Was...now, he lays in the mud-filled, barren land of Vietnam. His eyes open, staring into the sky with aimless thoughts. His legs were two metres away from him, the result of an operation gone horribly wrong. After some time, a huge, long vehicle came into sight. The bus stopped infront of me, welcoming me to join it. The automatic door opens for me as if I was a king. I entered the transport. With the exception of a middle-aged man in the driver seat, nothing else could be seen except rows of empty seats.Awkwardly, my feet scooted all the way to the back. The door closed, and the wheels started to roll. I looked into the window, hoping to forget everything, especially Archie. The land was barren...Just like Vietnam...Green... Uniforms...I was holding an M-16, so was he. Sounds of gunshots were everywhere. It was just me and him. The rest of the squad were nowhere to be found. An enemy tank was approaching, slowly but steady. Soon enough, the mass weapon of destruction was going to come upon us. The operation was doomed, I knew but stupid Archie didn't. That bastard was full of hope. He smiled at me, like a puppy wanting get back a smile from it's master. Archie was stupid, but brave. He pulled an M-16, got out of cover, and continuously fired against enemy lines. I shouted at him to stop, but he wouldn't listen.
The sky was dark.The clouds covered up the smiling face of the sun. The enviroment was drop dead quiet. The smell of blood filled up the air, coming from the blood-stained letter in my right pocket. It was once owned by my buddy, the proud and fearless Archie.Was...now, he lays in the mud-filled, barren land of Vietnam. His eyes open, staring into the sky with aimless thoughts. His legs were two metres away from him, the result of an operation gone horribly wrong. After some time, a huge, long vehicle came into sight. The bus stopped infront of me, welcoming me to join it. The automatic door opens for me as if I was a king. I entered the transport. With the exception of a middle-aged man in the driver seat, nothing else could be seen except rows of empty seats.Awkwardly, my feet scooted all the way to the back. The door closed, and the wheels started to roll. I looked into the window, hoping to forget everything, especially Archie. The land was barren...Just like Vietnam...Green... Uniforms...I was holding an M-16, so was he. Sounds of gunshots were everywhere. It was just me and him. The rest of the squad were nowhere to be found. An enemy tank was approaching, slowly but steady. Soon enough, the mass weapon of destruction was going to come upon us. The operation was doomed, I knew but stupid Archie didn't. That bastard was full of hope. He smiled at me, like a puppy wanting get back a smile from it's master. Archie was stupid, but brave. He pulled an M-16, got out of cover, and continuously fired against enemy lines. I shouted at him to stop, but he wouldn't listen.
"You're going to be the cause of your own death!"
"So be it, no better way to die than to go out with a bang!"
I knew he had to stop. He was attracting too much attention. Before I could do anything, Archie jerked back in a sudden motion. Blood poured our from his mouth. I examined his body, to find that a bullet had entered his guts. Reaching for a letter, he coughed out blood unstoppably.
"Let me do it."
"Give...(cough)this to(cough)my wife...."
"Give...(cough)this to(cough)my wife...."
My eyes opened. The bus had stopped. This was my stop. I gave a sad smile to the bus driver, handed him some worthless green papers and got out. I saw her, Mrs Hicox standing at the door, like a puppy its master to return. I walked towards her. She looked at me, visible tears starting to form in her eyes.
"NO!It can't be!He promised!"
"Here you go mam, he said he wanted you to have this."
I handed her the letter. I put my arms around her, comforting her and myself.
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