1968

by Peace Keeper 2014

1968 is a collaboration between Stella Luce 333 and PeaceKeeper2014 for XaJuWriMo. Ulrich and Odd, desperate to turn things around in History class, make the call to jump back in time to 1968, where they decide to make their project authentic to true experiences in the American Vietnam War. However, they don't realize just how dangerous it is. This may be their last class project.

1. Prologue

Prologue

February 5th, 1968- 1 Day Before Times Up- 1330 Hours

Quang Tri, Vietnam

Battle of Quang Tri- Almost 96 Hours Since Assault

Smoke rose high into the blue sky as American and South Vietnamese soldiers moved down the streets, armed with rifles, machine guns, and rocket launchers to chase their enemy, located south of Quang Tri City. The streets were littered with shell casings and small bits of rubble from explosions from grenades, mortar shells, and tank shells and rockets. Some American and South Vietnamese medics carried the bodies of the dead, both Allied and Communist. Terrified, yet proud citizens cheered as their own soldiers and their allies, the Americans, went down the streets, ready to get rid of what was left of the North Vietnamese attackers. The people still had hope and they believed in their soldiers.

Standing on the side, a lone GI stood, watching the soldiers go by. He was shorter than a lot of the American soldiers and was also a little skinnier than a lot of them. His M16 A1 was slung over his shoulder, while his hands were to his side, his head hanging towards the ground as the cheers continued along with the sound of boots and vehicles rolling by. He turned around and walked into a small alleyway slowly, the soldiers still heading down the street. Overhead, Huey Bell helicopters soared, loaded with soldiers and equipment, armed for combat.

The soldier sat down near the wall, his rifle set aside while he sat still, taking off his helmet and setting it to his left side. He then took something out of his bag. It was a simple recorder, which had strips of duct tape on each side, which had the soldier's name written on it. The young soldier took a deep breath, then licking his lips.

"February 5th, 1968." the soldier began his recording. "Today, there has been light fighting to the north of Quang Tri City. However, in the city itself, no fighting has erupted. American and South Vietnamese troops are advancing southward to chase what's left of the Communist forces that invaded several days ago. Over that time, our casualties are unknown, but there's are heavy, despite the effort they put up. I'm fortunate enough to meet some of these men. Some are like brothers, protecting each other from harm. It's like family." Tears started falling down his cheeks.

"Everyone thought that these men were murderers and monsters, designed to kill." the soldier continued. "I saw what was truly in them, something no one will ever understand. This is Ulrich Stern, fighting with the 12th US Cavalry. We have 24 hours until we come back home. End recording." He clicked the button on the recorder, stopping his log. He then put the recorder back into his bag, then looking down the alleyway, the soldiers now out of sight. The cheering had died down.

Ulrich stood back up and walked back into the street, seeing the crowd of people following the troops outside of the city. Ulrich then looked behind him, seeing the small remainder of destruction left behind by fighting. After the NVA was pushed out, the soldiers had time to clean up the mess left by the North Vietnamese. The NVA terrified the citizens of Quang Tri City to a point where even after two days of fighting left them too afraid to even step out to the light.

Now that the fighting truly ended inside the city itself, it was time to end the Communist presence in the Quang Tri Province. To Ulrich, it seemed that it was a good idea to stay behind with the rest of the 12th Cavalry, which decided to help the South Vietnamese defend the city from any other assault that might occur.

Ulrich decided to visit a local restaurant and rest on a chair. He sat down and stared off into the street as people began to pass by, now safe from harm. Ulrich sighed as he relaxed, taking off his pack and setting his rifle down next to it. He then took off the pack around his waist and sat it down in front of him. The recorder had more than two weeks worth of recordings, which was mostly done by Odd and Ulrich. But, out of boredom and curiosity, he replayed a recording made almost a week or two ago.

"Testing, testing." the voice said in the recording. Ulrich knew the voice. It was Jeremy. "Go ahead, Aelita. Say something into it."

"Testing, one, two, three." Aelita said into the recorder. "Testing."

"Great, it works." Jeremy's voice replied. "Now, I've got to see if I can install a neat camera." Ulrich laughed as he continued to go through the recording, remembering the days before and during the events of the Battle of Quang Tri, 1968.