CHAPTER 4:
"Cpl. Holt! Cpl. Holt!" Lieutenant Matt Baker screamed at the man beside him. "We need to take this village so our tanks can go through and help out the fourth battalion in the next town over. So get your head out of your ass, and follow me! Hughes, Williams, and Harris, go with Captain Martin. We'll all meet up around the other side!"
"Yes, sir." Everyone said in unison. They all went off in different directions. Cpl. Holt ran after Lt. Baker. As soon as they were a block away, they ran right into an enemy unit. They took cover as the first shot was fired along with a wind full of desert sand.
"Damn, I had no idea that we were going to face resistance this early!" Baker shouted over the fierce gun fire and wind. "Well, Holt, do something already!"
"Like what?" Cpl. Holt asked.
"Paint a picture. Shoot back dammit!" Cpl. Holt pulled out his sniper rifle, and aimed at the first Taliban he saw. BANG. He dropped like a sack of potatoes.
"I got him, I got him!" Cpl. Holt exclaimed.
"Great kid, don't get ballsy on me!" Lt. Baker said. "It's clear, move up." As they went around the main building, they saw the rest of their unit was pinned down by heavy machine gun fire.
"Nice to see you finally join the fucking party!" Cpt. Martin yelled over the machine gun. Holt looked around the wall he was hiding behind. It was a machine gun nest, surrounded by about three other Taliban.
"Okay, here's the situation; we need to get rid of that machine gun. We will lay down suppressing fire. Holt, get to cover and take out that gunner." Lt. Baker ordered.
Cpl. Holt nodded, and began his run around the gun, dodging bullets and other obstacles. As soon as he got to a safe location in an old apartment building, he aimed at the gunner, and easily dispatched of him.
"Down you go." James whispered.
"Holt!" Pvt. Harris barked. "Get over here now! Lt. Baker is down!" James broke out in a mad sprint back to where Baker and the rest of his squad was, ducking stray bullets from remaining Taliban. He saw Baker, blood spiting from his chest wound. As he approached Lt. Baker...
James sprung up, panting, clutching his own chest. He looked around in the pitch black darkness.
"James!" Jennifer yelled in his ear. He jumped up to his feet to see her standing behind him.
"Ahh! What's happening?" James shouted, still looking around the room in a shaky panic. Jen slowly walked over so that they stood next to each other.
"Are you all right? You were talking in your sleep, rather loudly." She said with concerned look on her face. She knew he had been a Marine, and she knew he had been to Iraq; maybe he was dreaming about something that happened then, war memories that would never leave him. Jen knew guys like that who were permanently mentally scarred.
"I'm fine. I'm fine." He lied, rubbing his stubbly face. Jen gave him a small doubtful smile, shaking her head, gently patting his shoulder. He finally happened to notice she was wearing nothing but a bra and underwear and he couldn't help but stare at the amount of her bare skin that was showing. Jen stayed silent for another moment before returning to her bed. James wasn't quite sure if he had dreamt that she was actually being nice to him, but with that thought and nice picture in his mind, he laid back down and quickly fell back asleep.