We had been shipped back out to Vietnam. Back in the fire. This time, greeted with new faces. Eddie James was the one who stuck out to me the most and I'm not sure why. He was a black man, but I respected him as much as I did the others. He was funny, he often told funny stories about his brother who is in the Air Force, stationed just south of where we were.
He hadn't seen his brother since his deployment, and I know how he felt. I hadn't seen the one girl I loved, and I never got the chance to tell her before I left. He missed his brother, alot.
We awoke with the sound of sirens, announcing close VC presence. I lifted myself out of bed and grabbed my clothes, sliding them on as fast as possible. buckling my helmet as I walked out the door and I lifted my rifle up onto my shoulder.
Eddie and a few other soldiers were bent over a table, assessing the battle plan.
"David, Eddie, Kyle, and Tanner are going to provide suppressing fire from the hill on to the east," says SSGT. Redding.
"Roger that, sir," we all say, trotting over to the eastern gate.
We take up positions on the hill, waiting for the VC to arrive. Ten or more VC emerge from the bushes, firing their AK-47's rapidly towards us and the camp. Ten more, and ten more emerge from the bushes. A VC tank bursts through the trees, firing shells at the towers.
One VC soldier comes up from behind us, spinning me around, prepared to stab his bayonet into my head. I grab the barrel of his rifle and move it just enough so the bayonet misses me. Grabbing my pistol, I fight him off. My gun is ready and in my hand, I just need to fight him off to get a shot. I reach with my left hand to a rock nearby and slam it into his skull making a sickening crack and leaving a small dent. I raise my pistol to his head and fire a single bullet, sending blood everywhere.
I kick the soldier back down the hill and turn to continue firing. By now, the VC tank has breached the walls. I realize the VC soldier has an RPG on his back and I run down the hill to retrieve it. I raise it to my shoulder and fire a rocket at the VC tank, effectively disabling its tracks.
A soldier runs up and lifts the lid on the tank, dropping a grenade inside. He dives off behind a few pieces of the collapsed wall as the tank explodes, setting all things around it aflame. Kyle preps his grenade launcher and fires it into a crowd of running VC, sending dismembered limbs flying across the battlefield.
"Woohoo!" yells Kyle.
I turn around to see another VC behind me, a knife in his hand. I punch the knife out of his grip and slam my right fist hard into his stomach. I retrieve my pistol from its holster again and aim it. The VC raises up and lunges forward, digging his nails into my throat. We tumble down the hill, his fingers staying locked around my throat. I throw multiple punches as hard as I can, but they seem to just bounce off of the larger than average VC soldier. I risk it and remove one of my hands to reach for the knife in my boot. He realizes what I'm doing and turns the knife around and pushes it towards my face. It hangs just inches from my head. I bring my knee up between his legs, sending him howling, holding his crotch. I grab the knife from his hands and stab him multiple times in his neck, spilling blood on my hands and the grass.
I attempt to wipe the blood from my face, only to realize that the blood on my hands had just spread it around and added more.
The fighting ceases and I see our base has been taken. Whatever soldiers are left are burning documents or attempting pointlessly to hold off the VC.
Kyle, Tanner, Eddie and I retreat into the forest, turning back shortly to watch the roaring flames consume the camp where we slept the night before.
It was then we realized that we had to regroup with whoever else was in the area.
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Orders: A Vietnam Story
Short StoryFollow David White through his battles in Vietnam, both emotionally and physically, he pushes himself to his limits, proving that not all men, are born soldiers. They are built as soldiers.
