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Description
My name is Ted Bishop. I had been drafted into this war, if I had known then what I know now I would have fought to stay. My commanding officer was a man named Harry. On the outside, he looked like this gruff war hardened guy who would eat you up and spit you out but, that was far from what he really was. Harry was…well different. One minute he would be yelling and smacking people on the backs of their heads, the next he was your pal. I never got the chance to really figure him out. It would’ve been fun to finally see what made him tick.
When we had all just finally settled in, we were sent to check out a portion of the jungles. It would have been a great walk if the sun would’ve just came out. The whole trip was filled with promising talk of winning the war and what we would come home to. I didn’t believe any of it. It seemed far too easy, far too simple for a war. Something was bound to go wrong.
A slight mist began to fall around us and the clouds darkened. Harry told us to get behind some trees. Something in the air wasn’t right. I could’ve sworn I saw heads peaking out of the trees ahead of us. I pulled my gun off my shoulder and awaited orders. Everyone tensed up, half expecting the trees to come alive around them and start slaughtering them. For a bit, I did too.
“We’re gonna stick here for a bit.” Harry ordered quietly. “Ted, put the gun back up on your shoulder boy. We don’t need you shootin’ anybody.”
I only nodded and follow his command. “What do you see Harry?” I whispered from my tree. Still keeping an eye on the area ahead, still searching for the heads I could’ve sworn I saw.
I could see a frown darken his face even further. “We’ve got company. Maybe they’ll over look us. You all just keep quiet now.”
A few grunts nodded their heads in agreement; afraid that even a breath could alert them to our position. One didn’t even nod. I could see his trembling hands go to his rifle strap. That’s when I realized my hands were shaking too.
That’s when it happened. A grenade landed in the center of our area, forcing us to abandon all cover. I heard men yell obscenities as they leapt. Two were already dead, slaughtered by the sudden explosion. I kept a look out for Harry and found him crouched in a ditch he had found, already returning fire.
“Shoot, Shoot, Shoot!” I heard him yell. The rest of us quickly fell behind trees, bushes, and any other cover and started shooting. How could everything go so wrong in such a short amount of time?
A man behind the tree to my left let out a cry, his gun dropped and his hand quickly went to his leg. “Pick up that gun!” I yelled. “You’re not dead yet! You want to go home don’t you?” I could hardly hear myself over the rapid burst of bullets flying everywhere. I ran to a nearby ditch and started shooting again.

Another burst of rifle fire went off by my head. Bullet filled bodies fell to the ground beside me. Each man calling for their mothers, girlfriends, or wives they had back home. The sky had a dense cloud cover…that is if you can see it through the mist of blood and rain. Even then dirt from constant grenades blocked any sun, if there was any. I wanted nothing more then to be someplace else. When the gunfire finally died down, I moved to a new ditch with the rest of my fellow soldiers.
“Get down!” I heard someone call as bullets once again flew over head. I knew then that I was in hell.
A disoriented man some how wandered into the middle of the crossfire. I knew him. I played cards with him the other night and won 30 bucks. “Neil!” I called but it was too late. One of their bullets went right through his helmet, dropping him to the jungle floor. “What do you say we do now Harry?”
“We need to take out those damn snipers is what we got to do. Jay! Ted! I want you two to get over to the other side of this wood and find who is shooting our men. Don’t show any mercy for you better not hope for any in return. Get moving!”
I lifted my gun over my shoulder and started running. I figured the faster I ran the harder of a target I was. Bullets sprayed dirt as they hit the ground by my feet. The other grunt, Jay, who had been sent with me, had already made it. I heard Harry yelling orders as I ran. It felt like hours before I finally hit the desired area.
“I’ll take the left you take the right.” He said to me. Those were the last words I heard from him. I watched as he ran, almost afraid for him. Almost.

I took another look around before starting. The leaf littered ground made running almost impossible because of hidden roots, a few traps had been set around the area as well. I almost fell into a cleverly covered pit, probably lined with some sharp objects on the bottom. “Don’t slip Ted.” I told myself as I recovered my balanced on the edge. Further along the trail I spotted more holes that had been sloppily covered up by netting and a few leaves. Finally, I came up on my target. Little did I know that the animal who had been sniping my friends had pictures of his wife and kids stuck into the band on his helmet. I remembered what Harry had said before we left and raised my gun. I made sure he felt nothing but the wind of my bullet approaching.

I took extreme caution as I went back. Somebody could have heard my gun shot. I walked around a few more ditches and a couple of makeshift bombs before I saw my platoon again. The gunfire had died down to a few bursts every minute but the tension didn’t seem to ease. I went to Harry and filled him in on everything, the traps, the sniper, and that I hadn’t seen Jay. Later it would be found that he had tried to reason with the sniper but ended up having a combat knife shoved into his gut. The lieutenant was right.
“Why don’t you go set up camp Ted?” He asked me. “There should be a good patch of land a little west of here.”
“Yes sir Lt. Harry.” I replied. I looked down at some of the fallen men. Most were dead, some were still screaming. “Do you think we’ll ever make it home?”
I watched as he lifted his helmet and wiped his brow. “Couldn’t tell you if I tried son. Men are shooting themselves in the leg and arm just to get out of this place. I think it’s a coward’s way out but if you have someone to go home too…see no evil, hear no evil boy. Now get!”
I went to the patch of land Harry had pointed out and found some supplies. I set up everything and waited for them to return. Nobody did though. I looked at the pistol that I had placed at my side earlier that day. “A coward’s way out.” I whispered to myself. Another gunshot echoed in the wood that day and the next I found myself in a medical tent with a bandage on my arm.

“Where’s Harry?” I asked the nearest nurse. All I received was a frown and a shake of her head. Turns out that somebody was indeed following me and stumbled across my platoon, reinforcements were brought in and there was nothing anybody could do after that point. In the bed next to me were the remains of one of the men. Bloodied bandages covered him from head to toe. A stained dog tag fell along his neck. I almost missed it because the stain was about as crimson as the rest bandages. A soft groan startled me. I half expected this man to be dead. He let out a loud yell as the nurse tended his wounds. Long gashes and numerous holes littered the poor grunt’s body. In the other room I heard doctors placing bets on when he would die.

“That man won’t last the night.” I heard one of them say.

“He’s a fighter. I give him two days. What do you say Greg?”

“Three hours, maybe four if he’s lucky.” The man I assumed to be Greg, answered.

“What’s your name?” I asked, somewhat hoping that the man was too doped up to answer. “What happened to you out there?”

The man let out what I assumed to be a laugh. “The name’s Jerry. I don’t really remember what happened. There was a lot of shooting and a lot of pain. Supposedly I’m not going to last the night. What about you?”

“Ted. I was told to go set up camp and when nobody came I lost all hope and shot myself in my arm here. Coward’s way out of the war I guess.” I answered.

“I recognize that saying. You wouldn’t happen to have known Harry?” I went still but answered him.

“Yes.” I murmured unsure of what Jerry was getting too. “If you’re gonna blame me then do it all ready.” I added boldly.

The sick sound of laughter filled my ears again. “It’s a bit late for blaming you now isn’t it.” More laughter filled the room and it soon turned into a hacking. The white bandage around Jerry’s mouth went red. His body still.

“Good going Greg.” I heard from the room to my left. I couldn’t wait to be home in my own bed then, away from these doctors away from this hell.

When I got home I was met with jeers and insults. I must’ve been called “baby killer” 30 times before I even reached my front door. I didn’t kill any babies. I only killed the man with the photographs stuck into his headband and maybe a piece myself in the process. A year later I found myself in a mental home with some of my fellow soldiers. I can still smell the wet dirt and blood in the air sometimes. The punishment I must bare for killing a man with a family, for killing my fellow men, and for taking the coward’s way out.

Description
My name is Ted Bishop. I had been drafted into this war, if I had known then what I know now I would have fought to stay. My commanding officer was a man named Harry. On the outside, he looked like this gruff war hardened guy who would eat you up and spit you out but, that was far from what he really was. Harry was…well different. One minute he would be yelling and smacking people on the backs of their heads, the next he was your pal. I never got the chance to really figure him out. It would’ve been fun to finally see what made him tick.
When we had all just finally settled in, we were sent to check out a portion of the jungles. It would have been a great walk if the sun would’ve just came out. The whole trip was filled with promising talk of winning the war and what we would come home to. I didn’t believe any of it. It seemed far too easy, far too simple for a war. Something was bound to go wrong.
A slight mist began to fall around us and the clouds darkened. Harry told us to get behind some trees. Something in the air wasn’t right. I could’ve sworn I saw heads peaking out of the trees ahead of us. I pulled my gun off my shoulder and awaited orders. Everyone tensed up, half expecting the trees to come alive around them and start slaughtering them. For a bit, I did too.
“We’re gonna stick here for a bit.” Harry ordered quietly. “Ted, put the gun back up on your shoulder boy. We don’t need you shootin’ anybody.”
I only nodded and follow his command. “What do you see Harry?” I whispered from my tree. Still keeping an eye on the area ahead, still searching for the heads I could’ve sworn I saw.
I could see a frown darken his face even further. “We’ve got company. Maybe they’ll over look us. You all just keep quiet now.”
A few grunts nodded their heads in agreement; afraid that even a breath could alert them to our position. One didn’t even nod. I could see his trembling hands go to his rifle strap. That’s when I realized my hands were shaking too.
That’s when it happened. A grenade landed in the center of our area, forcing us to abandon all cover. I heard men yell obscenities as they leapt. Two were already dead, slaughtered by the sudden explosion. I kept a look out for Harry and found him crouched in a ditch he had found, already returning fire.
“Shoot, Shoot, Shoot!” I heard him yell. The rest of us quickly fell behind trees, bushes, and any other cover and started shooting. How could everything go so wrong in such a short amount of time?
A man behind the tree to my left let out a cry, his gun dropped and his hand quickly went to his leg. “Pick up that gun!” I yelled. “You’re not dead yet! You want to go home don’t you?” I could hardly hear myself over the rapid burst of bullets flying everywhere. I ran to a nearby ditch and started shooting again.

Another burst of rifle fire went off by my head. Bullet filled bodies fell to the ground beside me. Each man calling for their mothers, girlfriends, or wives they had back home. The sky had a dense cloud cover…that is if you can see it through the mist of blood and rain. Even then dirt from constant grenades blocked any sun, if there was any. I wanted nothing more then to be someplace else. When the gunfire finally died down, I moved to a new ditch with the rest of my fellow soldiers.
“Get down!” I heard someone call as bullets once again flew over head. I knew then that I was in hell.
A disoriented man some how wandered into the middle of the crossfire. I knew him. I played cards with him the other night and won 30 bucks. “Neil!” I called but it was too late. One of their bullets went right through his helmet, dropping him to the jungle floor. “What do you say we do now Harry?”
“We need to take out those damn snipers is what we got to do. Jay! Ted! I want you two to get over to the other side of this wood and find who is shooting our men. Don’t show any mercy for you better not hope for any in return. Get moving!”
I lifted my gun over my shoulder and started running. I figured the faster I ran the harder of a target I was. Bullets sprayed dirt as they hit the ground by my feet. The other grunt, Jay, who had been sent with me, had already made it. I heard Harry yelling orders as I ran. It felt like hours before I finally hit the desired area.
“I’ll take the left you take the right.” He said to me. Those were the last words I heard from him. I watched as he ran, almost afraid for him. Almost.

I took another look around before starting. The leaf littered ground made running almost impossible because of hidden roots, a few traps had been set around the area as well. I almost fell into a cleverly covered pit, probably lined with some sharp objects on the bottom. “Don’t slip Ted.” I told myself as I recovered my balanced on the edge. Further along the trail I spotted more holes that had been sloppily covered up by netting and a few leaves. Finally, I came up on my target. Little did I know that the animal who had been sniping my friends had pictures of his wife and kids stuck into the band on his helmet. I remembered what Harry had said before we left and raised my gun. I made sure he felt nothing but the wind of my bullet approaching.

I took extreme caution as I went back. Somebody could have heard my gun shot. I walked around a few more ditches and a couple of makeshift bombs before I saw my platoon again. The gunfire had died down to a few bursts every minute but the tension didn’t seem to ease. I went to Harry and filled him in on everything, the traps, the sniper, and that I hadn’t seen Jay. Later it would be found that he had tried to reason with the sniper but ended up having a combat knife shoved into his gut. The lieutenant was right.
“Why don’t you go set up camp Ted?” He asked me. “There should be a good patch of land a little west of here.”
“Yes sir Lt. Harry.” I replied. I looked down at some of the fallen men. Most were dead, some were still screaming. “Do you think we’ll ever make it home?”
I watched as he lifted his helmet and wiped his brow. “Couldn’t tell you if I tried son. Men are shooting themselves in the leg and arm just to get out of this place. I think it’s a coward’s way out but if you have someone to go home too…see no evil, hear no evil boy. Now get!”
I went to the patch of land Harry had pointed out and found some supplies. I set up everything and waited for them to return. Nobody did though. I looked at the pistol that I had placed at my side earlier that day. “A coward’s way out.” I whispered to myself. Another gunshot echoed in the wood that day and the next I found myself in a medical tent with a bandage on my arm.

“Where’s Harry?” I asked the nearest nurse. All I received was a frown and a shake of her head. Turns out that somebody was indeed following me and stumbled across my platoon, reinforcements were brought in and there was nothing anybody could do after that point. In the bed next to me were the remains of one of the men. Bloodied bandages covered him from head to toe. A stained dog tag fell along his neck. I almost missed it because the stain was about as crimson as the rest bandages. A soft groan startled me. I half expected this man to be dead. He let out a loud yell as the nurse tended his wounds. Long gashes and numerous holes littered the poor grunt’s body. In the other room I heard doctors placing bets on when he would die.

“That man won’t last the night.” I heard one of them say.

“He’s a fighter. I give him two days. What do you say Greg?”

“Three hours, maybe four if he’s lucky.” The man I assumed to be Greg, answered.

“What’s your name?” I asked, somewhat hoping that the man was too doped up to answer. “What happened to you out there?”

The man let out what I assumed to be a laugh. “The name’s Jerry. I don’t really remember what happened. There was a lot of shooting and a lot of pain. Supposedly I’m not going to last the night. What about you?”

“Ted. I was told to go set up camp and when nobody came I lost all hope and shot myself in my arm here. Coward’s way out of the war I guess.” I answered.

“I recognize that saying. You wouldn’t happen to have known Harry?” I went still but answered him.

“Yes.” I murmured unsure of what Jerry was getting too. “If you’re gonna blame me then do it all ready.” I added boldly.

The sick sound of laughter filled my ears again. “It’s a bit late for blaming you now isn’t it.” More laughter filled the room and it soon turned into a hacking. The white bandage around Jerry’s mouth went red. His body still.

“Good going Greg.” I heard from the room to my left. I couldn’t wait to be home in my own bed then, away from these doctors away from this hell.

When I got home I was met with jeers and insults. I must’ve been called “baby killer” 30 times before I even reached my front door. I didn’t kill any babies. I only killed the man with the photographs stuck into his headband and maybe a piece myself in the process. A year later I found myself in a mental home with some of my fellow soldiers. I can still smell the wet dirt and blood in the air sometimes. The punishment I must bare for killing a man with a family, for killing my fellow men, and for taking the coward’s way out.