It was 2018, in Afghanistan.

I've just been pick in unit Alpha 3. This was my first time serving in the army, I thought I was serving for the right side... now I realize, everything was just an opinion with the media tries to manipulate each mind into thinking we are on the right side. Well, there is no right side. My name is Javier Thompson and i'm a marine.

It was 4 years ago. Me and my partners were entering the battle zone for the first time. Jones, the squad leader is a kind of a douchebag but you gotta admit he cares about everyone's lives. "Alright people, as you can see from here, Enemies base is just 2 miles away. What I need are 2 units to set a trap using the 3 proximity mine and a mute grenade" Jones picks up a small crate with the proximity mine and the grenade. "Remember, it's still a prototype and might not work and also one last objective for you guys, plant 2 c4 on the base and the mine on the road will you"

"Sir, yes sir"

"Alright, any questions, no... let's go" with adrenaline rush inside my body, we walked for two and a half mile then suddenly a cargo truck was seen in the distance "Everyone get down!" Jones and the others quickly got down. "Tim" he whispered at Tim "shoot the tires, that'll slow these fuckers down."

"Alright boss" Tim aimed at the truck for 10 seconds then takes the shot with its full metal jacket bullets. A perfect hit right under the tires. "Do we take them down?" Says one of our guys "Nah, let them see the fireworks, let's move people". For the rest of the journey, the whole surrounding was just a desert, nothing but sands.

Finally, we arrived at the small town. "Unit 1 go to the church and cover our asses, unit 2 you'll plant the bomb on the road and the base and unit 3 go to the alleyway and take a bird's nest if you could, now move it" Jones ordered

I was with unit 2, we move down the dawn of the day. With our AR and our silencer, this is going to be a silent operation as if nobody was ever there. Tim gives a fist for us to stop "I see two visuals, take them out silently, Jango and Alpha, take the lead" I went near the guy on the right. Alpha was giving me a signal to execute them. With my blade ready, alpha signaled me, within seconds both of the enemy's throat were sliced and you could say it was obviously EKIA. I gave Tim the signal to move. When we finally got near to the base, we look to our right to see Unit 3 has been in the bird's nest and covering the base. Unit 1 also gave a signal. "Javier, plant the c4 near the window" Tim ordered. I followed his order and plant the c4 but there is one thing that bothers me when I was planting the c4, the enemies were having some sort of family greeting, there were women and children. I wanted to stop but orders are orders, I went back to Tim "There are women and children inside there"

"Shit, well there's nothing we could do, lets just hope they get a quick death" His eyes were blank in emotion. He doesn't know either to be a pity of them or glad this is happening. We rendezvous with Jones 20 yards away from the small town. Two trucks were coming "I see visuals of the truck"

"Javier, you love explosive don't you, The mine and the c4 hasn't been activated, so I want you to turn it on by exploding them" Jones gave me a trigger "Sir, there's women and children"

"I don't care, Javier, that's a direct order"

I looked from the distance. It seems like a family reunion. A child runs up to one of the drivers and hugged him, I assume he was his father. My heart sank deeply and I am left with a choice of no turning back. I looked back and pressed the button. In a fraction of a second, the whole place was a hell's gate, fires everywhere

"You did good, lets just hope the children died when the explosion goes on"

We went back to the raging fire to see any visual of any survivor, none, not even wounded flesh, I bet they all could smell their own flesh burnt before they die. For 3 days I can't sleep normally. I always dream about seeing the father and son's painful death. I felt guilty for a whole year.

Fast-forward to 2 years later, It was a search and destroy mission. Our target is one of the high officers of the terrorist. "Listen up, this is a search and destroy mission. This mansion is filled with maze-like garden for our advantage so here are the orders, unit 1 is going to blaze the front door but don't forget the knock to give a signal for unit 2 and 3. Unit 2 you guys take the maze on the left side of the building and unit 3 will go on the right side. Our mission is to flank the bastard and give him his death wish"

"You mean we execute him?" I asked

"Yes and make sure, no survivors this time cause the last time we did, 5 of our men died. Alright, I think that's enough, any questions... Alright let's go"

We stormed the gate with gun blazing glory. Bullets flies everywhere and it seems that we have our advantage. We went into the right maze and cleared all the bastards with a bloodbath. Every one of the enemies has to be shot in the head, not once but twice. We went inside the kitchen floor and shoot our way through the kitchen. We finally got into the living room where we rendezvous. "Alright, let's grant this asshole his death wish. Unit 1 and 2, you check the left side where our target is. Unit 3 you go to the right side, see what you can find. I think I made myself clear" Jones ordered. We went upstairs, waiting for Jones order "1,2 and 3" we storm in to find The Officer holding his child and putting his hands up in surrender with his wife. "We're clear," Jones said on the radio. "We're also clear" one of the unit 3 members

"Please, I surrender, just don't hurt my child and my wife just take me"

"I know that..." jones was interrupted by a women's scream. I and jones went to investigate and saw some Unit 3 members were raping some women "What in the fuck is going on here, let these poor devils go" Immediately all the soldiers come into a marching line "You may be filled with lust but why are you losing your lust to them, Forcefully!, there is one thing I hate more than these bastards, it's rapist, you want to get that title in your head!, do your orders now"

"What's the order?" One of the men said

"No survivors, kill them all," he said it with no emotion. I and Jones went out with sounds of screams and gunshots being heard. I can't bear to hear their sounds of pain. Finally, we went back to the high officers "Please, take me?"

He continued to beg

"I'm afraid I can't do that officer" Jones shot the Officers wife. The men who just lost his wife falls into his knees while his son runs into his mother's dead body "Officer Ibrani, you have been charged with murder and assists of active terrorism and for that, you sentence you to death" he then looks back to the Officer's son. "Give me the boy" Tim grabs the boy and gives him into the arms of Jones. Jones grabs the boy by his shoulder and grabs his handguns, unload all the bullet except one. Jones put the gun into the boy's hand and use the boy's body to shoot his own father. The boy tries so hard to resist "Say goodbye to your Papa boy." Jones put the kid's hand on the trigger and pull it. Bang!

The Officer went down, the boy falls to his knees. "You did good kid"

"Mission accomplished, leave the child. He has no use for us anymore". We all left the building with pity on the boy.

Jones died 4 years later then killed by the boy's brother. I was sent off duty because my legs got shot and got permanently paralyzed. But it stills feels good to be home. One thing I've learned from my experience is that we are all monsters, not saviors. We followed orders without knowing the consequences because we think we are on the right side. We are marines who follows orders to serve the right side only to find out that we are the monsters in our own world.