War ⇔ Cashton ✓

Pens and Paper

ASHTON

As our bodies are thrown down to the front of the plane as it free falls toward the ground, bullet holes continuing to appear all around us, all I can think is that I wasn't able to say goodbye to Calum. In my mind, my plan was to die from a gun wound, not buried under layers of debris and crushed metal. I wanted to be able to write a goodbye letter to the lonely tan boy on my death bed, so that he can pull it out after I'm six feet under the ground and know that my dying thoughts were of him. Instead, this is happening, and he will never know.

The pilot is screaming a string of profanities as he clutches the wheel, trying (and failing) to set the plane level again. I try and look around, but all I can see are the bodies of the soldiers around me, and the blurred vision of the grey walls. I finally just squeeze my eyes closed, wrapping my left hand around a plush leather seat to attempt at stabilizing myself. My right hand is embraced into another, and I don't know whose it is, but I let it happen, because there is nothing else to do in such a moment like this.

"Where are the parachutes?" a voice screams. I force my eyelids open, staring up at the shaking ceiling of the plane before pushing myself upright, scanning the back of the plane before realizing that it is completely demolished. Whatever had caused the back of the plane to explode had obviously done well, because everything is crushed and destroyed into ashes.

I cough, rolling my eyes back until they land on the lieutenant. He looks slightly scared, but he doesn't allow it to show on his face.

"Destroyed!" I yell back, and the lieutenant curses, throwing his hands over his head to protect it as he ducks slightly. My breath trembles, seeing the strong lieutenant give up and try to protect himself before we hit the ground. We are over. We are done.

The pilot lets go of the steering wheel, covering his head with his arms as he does the same as the lieutenant. I really couldn't be in a worst position, my head towards the front of the plane and my feet to the back, but it is much too late to try and get into a better position. I shut my eyes and clench my jaw, waiting for the hit, waiting for the blow.

The crash doesn't come fast enough to numb my mind, which is spiraling out of control with emotions and thoughts. It was a huge blur and I can't pinpoint any one memory that flashes through my mind, but the only name that stays still in my brain is Calum. My mum, too, but she is strong, she can handle my death when it comes. She can pick herself up and move on like she did when my siblings died, but Calum is already broken. My death will just step on his already fragmented pieces.

It gets to the point where I briefly wonder if I am falling at all, or if this is a dream, or if we have already crashed and I am imagining all this up in my head, when it happens. It happens in a split second of fury, explosions and fire and a huge, blood-curdling noise that could rattle the ghosts in their graves. All I can see is red for a split moment, one tiny moment, and I can feel excruciating pain stab the left side of my head, and then my vision goes black, and I can feel myself sinking into the abyss of insentience as the world obliterates around me.

~*~

"Ashton!"

My eyes fly open, the world fading back into view, and with it comes agonizing pain in the side of my torso. My mouth opens to scream but no sound comes out, stabs of electricity shooting through my veins, and I vaguely wonder what happened. What did happen? All I can make sense of is the piercingly blue sky, free of any clouds, but filled with grey smoke. Smoke. Why would there be smoke?

The plane.

The memories of what had happened floods back to me in clumps of information, and I roll my eyes forward to see that I am lying in the middle of a field of debris, crushed metal and pieces of fabric surrounding me. My head throbs, and I want to scream.