Survive

Where am I?

My skin, it’s blistered...

It hurts—

The howls of the dead ring to an unseen. I can feel pain within their tone while I stumble forward on a dark path. My body—feels weak, drained of life as my eyes stay glue toward the crimson skies, giving the only sense of comfort. My skin is sizzling while I carry this weight in my arms.

It—hurts…

With the dim light cast against my peeled flesh skin, I see someone cradled in my arms: a young child. He’s gasping for air; I can see a dark substance rim his lips with sludges on his face. The closer I look, the more horrified I become; He’s lost most of his skin, charred and blackened, with part of his face missing. My nightmare has been given form.

Those empty eyes, they look at me with content… But my eyes seek redemption.

It's the same look I’ve seen so many times, the kind you get when your world gets tossed to the side. I fell to my knees, feeling my body coming undone from the weight of this hell.

God, help me…

I plead, I cried, and I look at the boy, knowing there isn’t a damn thing I can do. His body became light, breaking down in mushy clumps of flesh in my arms. He didn’t let out but a weak whimper.

What’s happening?

My arms trembled, seeing as his body lost form, becoming sludge and guts along by skinned flesh. But even as his body piled onto the floor, his eyes never left mine.

And when I tried to look at my hand, it started to fuse with the fleshy mass. Fear surged through me as I watched helplessly as it consumed my body. Before I could look up, my knees snapped from the pressure. I can only see darkness falling forward and the disgusting sounds of flesh conjoined.

I awoke to the buzzing alarm clock after having fallen off my bed. Beer bottles laid scattered, some smashed beneath me. Shit. My vision corrected, focusing on the seeping light from the shut blinds. Traffic was as lively as any other morning in Saigon. I looked around a little longer, feeling a bit more secure, albeit still rattled by the nightmare. No doubt about it, it was the dream I’ve always had.

What the hell was that?

There wasn’t much time to waste. I got ready, throwing on my uniform with little regard to what my superiors had to say. By the time I arrived at the lobby, two soldiers were already waiting for me with a Humvee outside; Those didn’t see much action yet. The soldiers were young and wary by the looks of it.

The fresh-faced one to my right was jittery as hell. His cheeks were covered in cuts and razor burns from sloppily done shaving. He looked uneasy when he looked in my direction. The innocent glint in his eye said a lot, compared to his fellow soldier whose eyes looked like dead fish. His tired eyes and gruff beard said it all. He looked like he hadn’t eaten much, either.

“Private Miller?” the young man called, clearing his throat shortly after.

“You can read the name?” I responded. “Eh—”

“Cadet Striker, sir!”

“Now, now,” the other sighed. “No need to be a smart ass. Abraham told us to get you, we’re already behind schedule.”

“Yeah, well,” I replied. “He can wait a little longer. All this is pretty last minute.”

He snickered before turning away. That shitty scowl of his, oh well. We all have a stick up our ass every now and then.

We walked out of the hotel; The humid air slammed against my grizzled face. The blaring sound of the busy streets intruded on my thoughts. A soldier manned the turret with arms so jacked he probably didn’t have to worry about recoil. The driver slung around first, alerted by the sudden pop of a car muffler. The young guy rushed toward the door, slamming it while I strolled along. Honestly, not everything goes without a hitch. I heard one story where a gunner went crazy and shot up everyone. And the only way they stopped him: another barrage of bullets.

The higher-ups really had to cover that one up.

I knew I was in for silence, and a quiet ride was exactly what I got. I looked through my window, seeing people go about their daily lives while listening to Led Zeppelin’s, “When the Levee Breaks.” Things were running smoothly. You wouldn’t think miles out in the countryside was a grueling battlefield besides the occasional rumbling. Like so many of the major cities in Vietnam, these folks didn’t have to think about it. These kids here were safe from the draft while their poorer peers were forced to fight—For freedom, they say.

They weren’t ready for war, though. We threw them out there with little training, like what my government did to ours back when they imposed the draft under the Johnson Administration. They relegated much of the war to air campaigns since decimating the north after 73’. The Viet Cong exists in pockets in the surrounding countries. But, that’s enough about that. I just want to get on with the day.

It became a bumpier ride when we left the city. Dust kicked up a trail behind us as we sped through the checkpoints. The kid grew nervous the further away we were from the relative safety of the city. And that gunner never left the turret, cool as a cucumber that one. But, I still couldn’t forget those eyes or the feeling I felt.

We eventually came to a stop at a checkpoint at a sizeable village. The soldiers looked at one another after seeing the uniformed Vietnamese soldiers. Something was off about everything since there was hardly anyone around, no NATO, no nothing

What the hell is going on?

The driver grew wary when the soldiers walked over. His hands clutched the steering wheel, having said nothing to the other. Then I saw a reflective glare in one of the second-floor houses.

Shit!

“Hey kid, haul ass!”

A single shot went off when he punched the pedal. A bone-crunching thud is all I heard as the gunner slumped against the turret. The driver panicked as he swerved around the soldiers, nearly crashing into the guard tower. I looked over my shoulder, ducking from the bullets that smashed through the rear glass. The driver swerved, whipping me against the door.

RPG!” the other soldier cried as the Humvee swung around the corner.

The rocket whizzed overhead, striking into the shoddy market stands behind us. I sat there helplessly, hoping this kid knew what the hell he was doing. We were met by more gunfire as we reached the other end of the village. A small crowd, brandishing their pitchforks and guns, blocked our path, but the driver didn’t care.

Gunfire riddled the driver's side window, killing him when a bullet blew off part of his head. Striker ducked in time, grazed, and panicked as the engine revved up. The young soldier looked on, mortified as his comrade slumped against his seat, having released the wheel.

“Grab the fucking wheel, kid!”

Thank god, he didn’t hesitate. With the dead man’s weight, his feet on the pedal as the vehicle plowed through the crowd. Screams and anger are all we heard as we swerved forward, knocking everything in its path. The bullets kept pelting us after reaching a distance. We heard people caught beneath us, agonized by their tearing flesh from the uneven road and tires. The wheels locked, sending us careening against the trees before we reached a corner leading to the bridge.

Somehow, we didn’t flip over, but we were in a world of hurt.

I couldn’t tell how long it was since we were here. The cadet was first to exit through his side, weeping and trembling. Pained with each movement, I managed to kick my door open. I can’t believe I got dragged out here in this shit. Striker vomited against a tree and an awful stench filled my nose.

Hell.

The engine was done, smashed in, but I was surprised he came out unscathed. Perhaps the adrenaline dulled his body aches. There were body parts scattered from the downhill crash, meshed while some torsos remained intact. A fucking nightmare, as I saw the look in their wide-open eyes. The road didn’t look any better with a trail of blood and guts stretching the distance when I peeked over. The kid wouldn’t stop weeping, even after trying to get him to focus.

“Hey,” I called over the fuming engine. “C’mon, we gotta get going before the rest of the villagers catch up.”

“Dear God, why?” he whimpered. “Why did this have to happen?”

“This is war. Shit happens… Now get it together!”

I grabbed him by his shoulders, shaking him to get him back into the zone. Looking over my shoulder, we could hear the mob approach, and we didn’t have the firepower to hold them off.

“Alright, we need to get going,” I felt my heart swell.

“W—where?” he questioned with his eyes cast away from the blood-drenched wheels.

“Into the jungle, where else?”

“No, it might be a trap.”

“So, you’d rather die here?”

The mob drowned out his silence. I grit my teeth, looking at his embroidered name.

“Striker,” I said his name, drawing his attention. “This ain’t a way to go.”

After meeting his nod, I went toward the open door, grabbing the assault rifles. One clip carried 20 bullets, 40 altogether between us. I tossed it toward him before I carefully went up the incline. As expected, shots were fired from the dozens that fast approached us, pelting against the tree and broken down Humvee.

Dammit.

The only way out was by climbing along the ridge, otherwise, it was a steep fall if we slipped. I pressed my body against the ground, inching over to see the enemy combatants. So far, so good. With a clear visual, I guided my iron sights at my first target: a young woman who hugged along the tree line. She limped forward, clutching her assault rifle. Many of her male counterparts were harder to hit.

Oh well.

Striker hung back, watching over me. The kid probably pissed himself, but I was too focused on keeping track. There had to be dozens hanging back, with some teenagers charging along. I was surprised they hadn’t noticed me, but they’d know soon enough. With my finger on the trigger, I traced her movements. The poor thing barely seemed like she knew what she was doing.

Playing soldier against soldiers, well—

A round burst through her chest after I pulled the trigger. She collapsed onto the dirt with a blood-curdled gasp after having flung her weapon. The echo lingered before the area ruptured into gunfire and battle cries. I held my position, watching some poke their heads from cover, I fired off hitting them with precision. Yeah, I was in the zone, grinning while the bodies dropped.

“Sir, we have company!” Striker shouted over my gunfire.

I sunk back into cover, listening to a low hum in the distance under the enemy’s suppressing fire. Striker looked at me with a mix of relief and horror. We quickly hid behind the tree line, hearing the gunfire redirecting toward the sky. The low rumbling of vehicles came from the bridge I hoped to escape on. The cutting blades were immediately recognizable as they came near.

“A—Apaches, here?” I muttered aloud.

A barrage of rockets quickly followed, lunging toward their targets by the road. The earth shook, followed by the raging flames quickly engulfing their screams. Another barrage followed, straying further down, lighting up the area in hellfire. Striker was first to climb the hill as the convoy arrived. He raised his hands to make sure they didn’t get trigger happy. As I climbed up, one of the flatbeds stopped.

“Miller,” a familiar voice called as I got my bearings. “We found you.”

“Abraham?” I responded, standing before him. “What the hell is going on?”

“Another mini-Tet Offensive, it seems. We lost contact with this checkpoint, so I was obliged to check.”

I didn’t question why he was with them when I was supposed to meet him up at base. A smile crawled along his face, seeing my sweaty face. He looked toward Miller who was processing the hellish sight. The flame spread quickly throughout since the area was considerably dry.

“So, I see you’ve made acquaintance with Miller,” he said. “He’ll be joining you on this mission as well.”

“What?”

Me and the kid looked at each other. Somehow, he seemed equally surprised. Wait—Why is he sending someone with no experience at all? Before I could ask, the enigmatic man proceeded to the young woman’s body. I followed him with the question at the tip of my tongue.

“What the hell is—” I said before meeting his icy gaze.

My lips tightened as he gently nudged the body over. Her neck was nearly severed from the bullet’s impact and her eyes were wide open, gazing at the clear sky. I shuddered, thinking of the nightmare I had. Abraham pointed at her, specifically at the bump on her stomach. My mouth gaped, taking a few steps back after realizing what I had done. Abraham’s eyes said it all as he closed her eyes, a strange sorrow.

Her eyes looked just like theirs.

Hi hi!
I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I still have my qualms about it, but it's a little better than the initial concept. There's a lot going on here, piece it apart if you like! ;3
Feel free to leave a comment and a like.
If you enjoy where the story and its potential, I recommend my current Honeyfeed x MAL entry, By The Shores of Time since they both deal with similar concepts. Both of them are heavily inspired by the Silent Hill series and elements of cosmic horror.