He was running. Faster and faster. Screams. All around him. His breath was fading, but still he could not stop. He staggered and fell. He lay there trying to catch every drop of air he could.
His sides ached, and sharp pains ran up his legs. Maybe he would just lay here for a moment. Just rest. Just a minute. No longer. But he could not.
The screams were closer, and a massive explosion rocked the earth. He had to move. He struggled to his feet and looked around. He could see shadows moving towards him and he knew he had not lost them. At least the darkness could help him a little.
He could not see his men. They had scattered after the escape. He had to leave now. As he ran through the thickened forest he ran into Todd. Todd had been the leader on this mission.
They had shared a cell, if you could call it that. “This way, this way.” His voice was frantic. Did he dare follow Todd again? After all their mission had been doomed from the start.
So quickly they had been captured. They had known the small patrol were coming to rescue their men. The tables had been turned.
Many years he had spent in the prison deep in the heart of the jungle. No, he was finally out. He would not go back again. Too many harsh memories, too much death, torture.
He did not follow Todd, and it was perhaps a good thing. He saw Todd trip over something then an explosion. Pieces of human flesh flew through the air landing in the jungle vegetation.
Screams and more screams. He covered his ears. Make it stop. God, please make it stop.
Gunfire, explosions, screams, over and over. And the world was on fire. Hot dry tinder caught fire and the flames nipped at his heels.
And once again he was running, faster and faster until he felt the barrel of a gun against the back of his neck. The enemy soldier lay in wait.
He felt the cold steel and heard the click. A sigh of relief. The gun was empty. He turned. Hand to hand he would defeat this enemy. As he turned he felt the knife as it was thrust into his chest, just inches from his heart.
As he was falling he watched as his enemy’s head tumbled to the ground and rolled towards him. Sightless eyes. Staring. Before he could thank the unknown hero, another massive explosion rocked the earth. The hero had fallen, and the flames had taken his body. He felt the heat, he felt the fire. He felt the pain, the heart break. Death was coming for him.
His soul felt empty.
A heart-wrenching scream escaped his throat and he shivered. He looked around. It took him a few minutes to untangle the webs from his mind.
He was all alone, on his little piece of the sidewalk. He had been asleep, and the nightmare had come. Late. So late. No one was out and about.
The city was quiet. No one heard his screams.
© Cynthia Clark