Irregulaire

Shards of Glass

I caught a glimpse of the blast just before I got thrown into the ground. The concussion forced air out of my lungs. My ears were ringing due to the blast. I could’ve been dead—but somehow I’m still here, breathing heavily with blood running through my nostrils. Dirt and mud was raining down all over my face. 

I was trying to get up when I felt a sharp pain in my left side, around the ribs. A fragment from that mortar round had embedded itself into the vest where the armor plate did not reach. A similar piece scratched my left cheek. When I fully regained consciousness, another round had fallen right into Honé’s spot, killing him instantly. 

“Grace,” I said to myself, still trying to get up while pieces of dirt fell all around me. “GRACE!” I screamed as I grabbed my rifle. She laid there with Ian trying to pick off shards of glass that’s been embedded into her skin. “IS SHE OKAY?!!” 

“Yea!” 

“Let’s get her inside!” I shouted as another round fell quite close to the house “RED!” 

“Yea!?” she answered 

“Organize the guys, I’ll be right with you!” I then proceeded to help Ian lift up Grace and moved her to her bedroom. I checked on her breathing. She was in shock. “Please take care of her, I’ll be back,” I said to Ian. 

Just as I got out of the house, the first of what would be waves of charging enemy troops came. They had managed to make a hole in the southeast wall, and Frank was trying hard to stop them. Karl fired his grenades and stuff, but it was too close for the fuse to detonate. Others just climbed over the wall. I tried aiming my rifle, but there was no time. So there I was, crouching beside the pillar of the porch, trying to get a clear shot towards the enemy.. 

“Kris! Cover the top of the wall!” I said as Kris was still trying to take out those who made it in. “Dan, take Honé’s position!” I shouted as I tried to run towards Kris’ position, supporting him. Bullets flew in all directions—and shelling hadn’t stopped. It sounded like they had more than two mortars in two different calibers. That guy yesterday was a round-spotter, it turned out, and his friend did escape. Jimmy hastily got out of the tent with a bag of grenades, and then used the time fuse to his advantage. 

Grenades usually have 4-5 second delay after pulling the pin before it explodes, and right timing can create a beautiful airburst. That’s what Jimmy was trying to accomplish. He pulled the pin, waited for 3 seconds, and threw it away. It exploded head-level, and as a result, that single grenade took out five enemy troops. Red mist came out as a by-product of that explosion; it was horrific yet satisfying. We kept returning fire for a solid 10 minutes. There was nowhere to run to anyway. The enemy just kept on coming. They, too, had something they brought on to the table. 

Machine gun fire did not stop for anything except lack of targets or reloading. Suddenly, the southeastern section of the outermost wall blew up. It looked like someone fired a rocket towards the wall just to make that hole. From there, more Weasel fighters flooded in. That mortared house across the street made a good cover for those bastards. They returned fire with heavier ordnance than ours—technicals rolled in with their .50 caliber machine guns. LT shouted orders for anyone to get a bazooka. Not long after, Stevens got a hold of a LAW and neutralized them before they got a chance to pepper us with .50 caliber fire any longer. 

I kept returning fire with my M16, rocking a couple of 40-rounders I found when we picked our weapons. I did everything—double tap, hip fire, blind fire, everything. Kris’s barrel almost turned red from continuous firing. Our ears, though plugged, were still not able to withstand prolonged gunfire. Added with that RPG fire, a technical car blown up on the other side of the streets, and all, you’d most likely hear a faint ringing for three hours or something. And with me lying really close to a Minimi, which is very loud, I almost thought I’d lose hearing. 

Buck was running back and forth providing ammunition for Frank. He was about to take a few other cans of GPMG rounds as a round went through his left leg. He fell, bumping his head into the ammo cans, rendering him unconscious. “Buck!” Karl screamed, helping Buck up and laid him down on the fence. No other hole was found on his body, so he was going to live. Soko took the captured AK from the lookout last night and used it quite effectively on full auto—something the Marines have practiced for a long time now. LT then ordered a fire team from the 1st squad to guard the house close. Enemy troops kept on coming, though at a slower rate now. Shelling had also stopped. 

The Marines in-between our position, who we were supposed to replace, managed to score some hits with indirect grenade launchers. I had no idea how that came to them. They just pointed their weapon up, fired, and grenades fell right on top of the enemy. Karl should try that, I guess. I then continue to fire my weapon—shot after shot, magazine after magazine. I was afraid that I was running out of ammo and out of the action, but then it came to a halt. Gunpowder smoke filled the air as it mixed with the stench of burnt gun lubes. Everyone started talking to each other. But still, they wanted to make sure that none of the Weasels were left alive. Dan, Jimmy, and I went up across the street into the mortared house, weapons reloaded. 

There were still people in there trying to set us up. They tried firing their weapon but then were silenced quickly by Dan’s automatic fire. I circled the house and managed to take out two more guys trying to sneak up. When we searched the house, there were two teenagers wanting to surrender hiding in one of the bedrooms. Their dead comrade laid down by their feet. Soko, who followed us close behind, stripped them and sent them away. No prisoners allowed anymore. 

Ryan fired that last shot of the skirmish. Just when everything started to seem calm, some enemy troops had been playing dead and planned to throw grenades towards us. Ryan saw it and took action. I joined in and let off a few rounds. After that continuous fire, my weapon was smoking again. I didn’t feel it at first, but it turned out enemy fire had grazed my left earlobe. 

Red seemed to be hit—it was caught by her armor plate, however, and she managed to get back up. Mark’s ears were bleeding after a grenade blew near him while his hearing protection was off. He had almost totally lost his left hearing, while his right ear was still on. 

“Is the Major okay?” LT asked the fire team. I was checking on Buck. 

“I think so, sir,” said a Marine. 

“Lieutenant, I’ll be checking in on the Major,” I intervened. 

“Go ahead,” he said 

I strolled down to the house, rifle in my right hand. I then slung my rifle to my back so that it goes across, muzzle pointing to my right. Red then joined in on me as her guys checked on Mark. 

“Dude, are you okay? I saw you thrown back by that first shell,” she said. 

“I’m okay. Just a piece of fragment to one of my ribs. It’s good, I think. How about you, you okay? Weren’t you hit?” 

“Armor caught the bullet. I’m still breathing, though it felt like being punched in the gut,” 

“Good to hear that, man,” I let out a sigh. “Grace was hit by a mortar,” 

“Wanna check on her?” she asked. Of course, I did.

We entered the now shattered living room and looked for where Grace’s room was. There she sat, seemingly still in shock, with Ian by her side, cleaning up her wounds. The Major stood by, caressed her. She grunted and groaned a little. It wasn’t that bad, her injuries. 

“Sir, the lieutenant is worrying about you,” I told him. 

“I know. Gimme a second,” 

I then crouched near the edge of Grace’s bed, trying to catch her attention. And there she was. 

“How do you feel?” 

“It hurts, dummy …Ow!” she grunted. 

“Is your hearing fine?” 

“Yes, it is. Is that blood on your ears?” 

“That’s why I asked,” I said to her, getting closer. “You hang in there, okay? You’re going to be alright. I’ll see you later. Stay away from the window,” I added, as I turn to her father, “Lieutenant Larkwell is still looking for you, Major,” 

Just as I walked outside, I saw Ian coming in with a tub of medical supplies; sulfa, morphine, bandages, etc. I actually wanted him to take care of this shrapnel and at least clean it, but he was still busy with his girlfriend. Red’s face then turned. She started to seem a bit more panicked. I guess the adrenalin wore off after several minutes. She tried to wipe her face off with her red flannel, stained by the soil kicked up by explosions and ricochets. 

“That was intense,” she said. She slowly went back and forth on the porch with me squatting near the door. “I thought we were gonna die,” she was breathing heavily. 

“I know, right. That mortar though,” 

She kept moving back and forth. “This is bullshit,” she said, shaking her head. 

I then stood up and got closer to her. “Hey,” I said as I grabbed her upper arms, near the shoulders, “You’re okay. Okay? We’re gonna be okay,” I said, trying to calm her down. She nodded. 

“I think I need a smoke,” she said, stepping off after letting out a sigh. 

“Can I have one of those?” I asked her as she unpacks her Luckies from her pocket. 

“Yeah, yeah. Need a light?” 

“Yea, thanks,” I leaned towards her to get that light. I then dragged a deep inhale, enjoying it. It calms me down, I tell you. It seemed to calm her down too. 

“I want a casualty assessment right now, and LT, you take a squad, go beyond that fence for a click and clear out any remaining bogies, do it now,” The Major suddenly burst out of the front door. “What are you doing here, Mike?” 

“Enjoying a smoke, sir,” 

“Well, yeah. Okay. After that, I want you to take your squad back to your original positions,” 

“The MG team is taking care of their commander, sir, but the rest of us haven’t moved a bit,” Red replied. 

“Tell your MG team to get back immediately, this whole place could be surrounded,” He stormed back into the house. He probably got paranoid after his daughter got peppered all over her face. 

“Relax, Red. You deserve a little time-out,” 

“Thanks, Sergeant,” she let out a little chuckle. But seriously, this attack earlier had been the biggest each of us ever encountered. 

“Hey, Red,” 

“Yea?” 

“Are you really okay with us calling you Red?” 

“Well, aside from that one drill instructor that started it, I’m… fine with it. Why?" She seemed confused.

“I mean we’ve known you for years, we know your real name,”

“It’s alright. The last time I heard any of you call me Anne was before basic, so… I’m used to it now,” 

“Well, Anne,” I teased her, “do you have a light?”

“Fuck you, Mickey Mouse,” she laughed. I followed. “Here,”

“Thanks,” I responded as I took the lighter, “hu-ha,”

“No, no, don’t try to be funny with me, now,” she laughed. Mickey Mouse, I thought to myself as I lit one up. I never would’ve thought that nickname would make a comeback.

“You know, it’s gonna be quite ironic for you to be called a mouse,”

“Yeah, I can see that,” I exhaled the smoke. “Are they settling down?” I looked around, “I think I’ll look for Ian, see what he can do about this,” I stood up, pointing to the little scratch on my waist.

I went inside to have my wounds looked at with the only Doctor in the house, Ian. The guy was still running back and forth trying to deliver medication to those who needed them. I had to wait for several more minutes before he finally came up to me. 

“Alright, what do you want?” 

“I just need this wound checked out, think you have the time?” 

“Yes. One moment. Have a seat,” 

I sat on the couch in the Major’s living room. It was tattered from the explosions and darkened from accumulated soot. He then came back with a box of kits, wearing latex gloves. I put my head back on the couch’s headrest and pulled my shirt up.

“It doesn’t look too bad,” Ian said. “ I don’t have to cut you open, I just need to take it out. Are you ready?”

Mind you, I was fully awake. Yet, I didn’t feel as much as a sting to that area where Ian is working. I felt like he had jabbed me in the leg before, though. Morphine, probably? I could hear the clattering he made while rummaging through his medical kit. Red and Dan came to see me as Ian was tending to my wound. 

“There she is,” he showed me the fragment. “You’re good to go. Just make sure you don’t move too much,”

“Really? in a combat zone?” I quipped. He chuckled as he was dressing my wound. Dan kept asking me if I was okay. Moments later you could hear us talking about how we came across a hornet’s nest while hiking in the woods a few years ago. The drug wore off over time, and the wound became painful as I tried to sit up straight. But the wound did get patched up. Thanks, doc.