King of Swords - Flash Fiction/Short story collection

A Dream I Had One Night

We reached the checkpoint, only to find that the city was under siege. Our forces were holding back the enemy as best as they could, defending the line. The train came to a crawl. The smoke and ash was thick and clung to our lungs. We could see the city in the distance. The orange glow of the flames seemed to be the only source of light. The constant rattle of gunfire and pounding of shells filled our ears.

As we pulled in, people started to panic. They scrambled to the train doors, clunky bags and suitcases in tow. They yelled and screamed.

They crammed every possession they had into any free space.

They climbed on the roof and clung to the railings on the side.

They were the lucky ones.

In the midst of all this madness, I tried to bring calm. My friends and I helped people on. We had strict orders and as to who could get on. Sifting through them as they pushed up against the train like a raging herd of cattle, I struggled to stand my ground.

'Women and children!', we yell, 'Elderly and sick! No one else!', as if our own lives were of less value. The fighting inches closer.

The station is makeshift, basic. A slab of concrete underneath a highway underpass. The actual station was abandoned; a burnout black husk, with cracked floors and twisted rails. The concrete barely holds up the hundreds of people here, swarming for the train. The few guards struggle to control the frenzied crowd. The battalion lower down the embankment is on high alert as the battle approaches us. The remaining passengers are shoved inside like sardines, and sealed tight. Some windows are boarded, whilst the remaining are glass-less, providing what little air they can.

The rest of the crowd cram on freight trucks and flatbeds. And the ones like us? Well, they march behind the train and try to stay alive. I doubt many would make it.

The soldiers that can be spared join us in defending the train and loading up the last of the supplies. We had around fifteen miles to cross, dangerously near enemy territory. If that wasn't enough, the train had limited fuel reserves and couldn't go ahead of us at the rate

It was then when I spotted him amongst the torn grey uniforms.

'James? James!' I cried.

He turned, and on seeing me, ran in my direction, with a dumbfounded look on his face. He brought me into an embrace and I felt myself melt. We held each other and wept.

'What are you doing here?', he sniffed, wiping salty tears ferociously from his face.

'Fighting a war! And you?'

'Trying to win it, I guess' he laughed quietly. I never thought I'd hear that sound again.

'When did you join all this?'

'Well, I didn't technically. I'm not part of the actual army. More like a subsection, a volunteer corps. We do the shitty jobs that you precious soldiers are sheltered from'

He chuckled, but I could hear a touch of sadness in his tone. They must have been through hell and back again.

'Hey,' I said, cupping my hands around his face, 'we're going to win, maybe not here, but I know we will'

'But at what cost? I mean we've been at this war for so long it almost feels unnatural when there's peace. I've gotten used to the idea of death, I mean for so long I thought— I thought you were dead'

'You thought I was dead? Figures. You never did have faith in me'

He smiled.

I let my hands slip down to meet his. I held on tight, letting our palms linger perpetually close while our fingers laced together. He tilted his head down so his forehead touched mine.

'I thought I lost you'

His voice quivered as spoke.

'But you didn't,' I replied, 'you found me'

He ducked his head lower, away from me, as I heard him catch his breath. He didn't want me to see him like this, but I didn't give a damn. I pulled him into a hug. I felt his tension leave him as he buried his head into my shoulder. I smoothed his dark brown hair out.

My mother used to do that to me when I was upset. She always had the best remedies.

'Let's not lose each other again, okay?' I whispered.

'Okay'

'Moving out! Alright!', the driver yelled from the front. The engines purred slowly as it pulled out of the station. The two engines, one electric and the other a diesel, trundled at a steady pace; fast enough to get away and slow enough to keep up with.

'I'd better go,' I said, still holding onto his shoulders.

'I don't want you to go, please,' he begged, 'please stay with me. I- I think I love you, Rani'

'I- I know'

I touched his face with my hand, catching a tear with my thumb, before pulling him into a kiss. Shocked, he hesitated, but gave in.

And so there we were, absorbed in each other, and completely devoid of the world collapsing behind us.

Danger was our lover..

'James,' I said, softly, 'this is bigger than us. We don't really matter. What matters is our country, our people, our future; not us'

He looked longingly at my lips. I felt his pain. So long we had been apart, and now again, we were faced with the prospect of separation, or much worse.