The man sat, panting, against a bullet-ridden tree. His helmet and other gear weighed him down in the heat.
And regardless of it being nighttime, there were no peaceful sounds.
No, the only serenade was of the cracks, bangs, whistles and yells that so often plagued the soldier's dreams.
He rested his rifle next to him and wiped his forehead with a gloved hand. He was grateful for this small reprieve. The young man had been fighting on the front line since the night before.
Needless to say, he was exhausted. Not just physically, but emotionally as well.
Half of his squad, his brothers in this war, was either dead or missing. Merely another few casualties in a never-ending spiral.
The man laughed sourly. He had only joined on to serve his country in hopes of seeing the world. Now, he realized, he'd be lucky to see his little sister again.
A branch from the dilapidated tree behind him finally broke loose and fell to the ground, bringing the man out of his reverie. He cast a glance around the grove of trees he was in; making sure his position was still secure.
Catching sight of a shape on a far-off branch, the soldier jumped up, aiming his loaded gun at it.
The dark figure glided out of the tree, towards the armed man. His eyes widened and he chanced a shot at the oncoming target.
The blob flapped its abnormally large wings and rolled to the side, avoiding the bullet!
The soldier backed up against another tree and started looking for the...creature.
It was unlike any bird the man had ever seen. But, it wasn't human. Instead, it seemed a cross between the two.
Taking aim at two yellow glows in the distance, he fired another round. The orbs disappeared.
Sinking down to the ground, the soldier began doing something the was uncharacteristic of him.
He began to panic.
No, the monster he was trying to kill was not a normal creature.
The rustle in the treetops grabbed to man's attention. He frantically fumbled with his rifle, only to have it knocked from his grasp. It clattered to the ground and slid into the dark woods.
The soldier's presumptions were correct. The thing that hovered around his form could only be described as a monster.
A cap and goggles obscured the creature's glowing eyes, giving them a hazy texture. Its bat-like red wings flapped in a steady beat while its dark blue arms and legs hung lazily. At the end of those longer-than-normal arms were sets of deep red claws that were at least four inches in length.
The soldier's fear was compounded and he let out a strangled cry. The beanie-clad monstrosity lunged.
After a few seconds of mind-numbing fear and an almost unbearable pain in his chest, the soldier collapsed on his side. His vision blurred and he hoped beyond hope that someone would come across him and help him before he bled out.
Two Weeks Later
In a small room at the back of a house thousands of miles away, a young girl sat, wrapped in her parents' arms. The show of affection was missing a person that night.
The son who had gone off to war would never return. The three survivors were weeping openly, having just heard of their loss.
All three would cry themselves out tonight and every subsequent night for the following month. During the day, they would attempt to pursue their normal lives, but when the street was quiet and the house was dark, they would become each other's crutch.
For this time, though, they did not think of what was to come. They were engulfed in their unplanned misery, all wishing for a final chance to say good-bye.
A chance, they secretly knew, they would never get.