Shock and Awe
The Aftermath
Gunfire rattled through the air as we clambered aboard the Chopper again having aided the advance team. I fired several bursts from my M4 to cover the last man as he leapt up the ramp and took his seat, and then we were airborne.
We glided over the city's rooftops, down below I saw columns of Abram's making their way into the heart of the city, followed by groups of infantry. I turned from the doorway to see Vasquez up the volume of the Communications. A voice crackled out just loud enough for us to hear, or so I thought, all I could hear were jumbled words and phrases mentioning something about engineer teams discovering…something, then more about a blast radius and us not having a lot of time to clear it. Vasquez sighed and rubbed his temples with his thumb and forefinger.
The Chopper suddenly shook with strong force as a nearby Cobra exploded and spiralled downwards, crashing in a street below. Our Chopper circled the wreckage as I and a second soldier fired down at the enemy soldiers making for the wreckage. Over the commotion I could hear Vasquez bellowing at us about having mere seconds to save the one surviving pilot of the Cobra before, whatever he said I didn't hear as the Chopper sank slowly down to the ground. The last thing I heard before touching the ground was Vasquez barking at me to get in, and out with the pilot.
I ran, ran like I never had before, the cascade of gunfire around me was like nothing I'd ever experienced, soldiers from both sides all around me, screaming orders and commands, I closed in on the Cobra, slowing only to let rip with a volley from my M4, on a couple of enemies in front of me, their bodies shuddered with the impact before slumping to the ground. I slung my rifle over my shoulder as I stooped down to the pilot, she was struggling with the restraints on the seat as one had become jammed, I pulled out my pistol and fired twice into the connector on the seat, there was a shout from beside me so I spun round a fired off the rest of my clip into the chest of an enemy soldier before throwing the now useless weapon aside. I scooped the pilot up in my arms then set off as fast as I could back to the Chopper.
The rest of the squad were slowly backing onto the ramp, covering each other in a fighting retreat as we boarded the Chopper. I stepped up the ramp and sat the pilot on one of the seats before turning back to the ramp; I fired several volleys, allowing the rest of the squad to board safely. The Chopper began to rise again and we left the area. As we rose the Communications crackled into life again, the voice was urgent this time, more clear, engineer teams had located what was apparently a nuclear device in the city and were attempting to disarm it, then the voice stopped, I looked out behind us, we had linked up with other Choppers leaving the city, but then something happened, a bright light grew suddenly in the distance, everything went white, then faded again...then the shockwave came.
An enormous dust cloud, exploded outwards, absorbing anything in its way, buildings, cars, soldiers, tanks, Choppers…and us. All around us Helicopters were swept away like nothing, into the ground, buildings and each other. The shockwave caught up with us in what must have been only seconds since the radio stopped, but it felt timeless. The Chopper shook violently, the man next to me was pulled suddenly from the Chopper by the force of the impact, there was a sound like screeching cars and tearing metal as the Chopper spun out of control and the ground erupted beneath us.
The first thing I feel is pain, blinding, searing pain…everywhere, my vision is clouded, I see a mixture of red and black all around me, I shift, then stop as I realise a jutting piece of metal was jammed through my leg. With more pain than I have ever known I raise my leg off of the metal shard, as my eyes adjust more I see around me the remains of the Chopper, the body is cracked wide open through the middle, I feel around with my arms for something to support me, I find something, I painfully pull myself to a sitting position to inspect it, my eyes widen as I see the outline of a body, I reel back and cry out in pain as I collapse under the pressure on one arm. As I sit up again I hear the Communications crackle suddenly, there's a voice, but I can't make it out, I don't event try to as I see the hunched form of Vasquez beside the machine, wires and cables spewed out of its front, like some form of mutilated corpse. Vasquez doesn't move, nothing does for a time, I couldn't tell how long.
Finally I force myself to a hunched standing position, my hands rest upon a discarded rifle, and I lean on it and take several slow steps towards the break in the middle of the Chopper. My eyes widen as I behold the spectacle before me. The sky is red, dark crimson clouds hung above and a merciless wind filled with ash and debris flows from nowhere, yet finds every hole, nook and crevasse. Buildings are nothing but shattered skeletons, those that still stood one floor above ground level anyway. There is carnage and destruction everywhere buses, cars, tanks, helicopters, homes, shops, schools, hospitals…and the bodies. I turn to the sky in anguish, what had we done, what had we provoked? Was this was supposed to happen, innocents, opposition, hundreds of U.S. soldiers, lives ended in an instant. No more fighting…no more living, no more anything in the city.
Tears slide down my face, I don't try to stop them, I limp n a few more paces before turning round to gaze at the remains of the Chopper, leaving behind my life, my squad, soldiers, comrades and friends. I turn away from my past, and stumble onwards, my steps become heavier and my hold on the rifle weakens, my hand slips for a moment and I almost collapse but I quickly right myself. I look to the sky again, feeling something inside me, I let out a sudden primal scream, there is no reason for it, I just do it. Slowly something dawns on me, I realise that I have been losing blood for quite some time now, my vision becomes hazier, more clouded. I let the rifle drop to the floor beside, and I stop walking. I can hardly keep my eyes open now, and my strength finally fails as I fall to my knees, I gaze round once more before allowing my self to succumb to the wounds sustained in the crash. My eyes close fully as I cease to feel and I enter the endless sleep.