Shun

Dan and I stood outside of the infirmary tent, both of us in a dead silence. Last month during a defense against Confederate troops trying to take back Chattanooga, Joe had been injured during the battle. The wounds had been rather severe-looking, and I worried that there wouldn't be much that our field doctor could do for our friend.

But Joe had lasted longer than I thought he would have; I was sure he would have died due to injuries or infection a couple of days after the battle. And from what the field doctor had been telling us, our friend was doing pretty well on his recovery.

Although, nobody was allowed in the infirmary tent, mainly due to the fact that the severely injured were inside, and the medics needed all the room and space that they could get their hands on. Whenever somebody from that tent was healed enough to no longer be considered critical, he was sent into another infirmary tent, or back to his own quarters, whichever the medic decided was best for the patient.

As Dan and I sat outside of the infirmary tent waiting to speak with the field doctor and ask how Joe was doing for the day, the brunette ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "This is still all my fault. I promised him that we'd keep him safe. God, now I know why you kept getting on my case about promising something like that," he said guiltily.

I felt bad for Dan. He had made that promise with all the best intentions, and he meant to keep it. But as I had told him when he first made that promise, there was no way we could control the tides of battle; we were at its mercy, it was not at ours.

Dan hadn't seemed to understand the concept of that when he told Joe that we'd make sure he returned home in one piece, and I had been angry and surprised at my friend for saying such a thing. But as the battles drug on, and as we kept surviving them with little to no injuries, I had also fallen into the allusion that we could not be hurt, that we would all return home safe and sound.

Joe's injuries had been a rude awakening for me. They reminded me how unpredictable and ruthless the battlefield could be; all of my time loitering about the Union camps and making it out of battles unscathed had made me forget that vital piece of information.

I knew now that my future battles would always remind me that our fights were dangerous and deadly as ever. Nothing had changed. Things were still the same, and it took the near-death of one of our friends to remind us of that. Suddenly, the field doctor walked out of the tent.

Dan jumped up and stepped in front of the doctor's path. "Hey, we just wanted to know how our friend was doing today," the brunette said in a rushed voice, as if he was afraid that he'd lose sight of the doctor forever. This medic no longer had to ask us who our friend was; we had been here nearly every day since Joe's fall in battle, and the doctor now had our faces memorized.

He pointed over to the tents of the less severely injured and told us, "Your friend was doing well enough that we sent him over to those tents earlier this morning. You're both more than welcome to see him now and get out of my hair so I can continue to do my job."

He waved his hand to try and shoo us away, then walked off towards another tent to check on his other patients. Dan didn't even hesitate to go to that tent after the doctor told us that. I hurried after the brunette before he left me behind and I lost sight of him.

We both stepped into the tent, seeing that there was a decent amount of people inside. Some of them had minor injuries that required nothing but stitches, while others were recovering from broken bones and other minor wounds. Joe was laying on a cot towards the back.

Dan and I maneuvered through the maze of infirmary cots, making sure not to step on the feet of the other injured soldiers that were sitting around. Joe saw us approaching him, and he used his hands to push himself up into a sitting position. He smiled and said, "Hey, guys. They finally let you see me?"

I nodded, knowing that Dan was still a bit too guilt-stricken to think clearly; this had been a person who he had promised a human life to, and nearly lost it. My eyes caught sight of Joe's injured leg. It was wrapped tightly with bandages and propped up on a pillow. I asked him, "So, how bad are the injuries?"

Joe glanced down at his wounded limb and frowned. "The doc said that it wasn't bad enough to amputate….Thank heavens for that….But he said that odds are I won't be able to walk on that leg again…." I could see the hurt in Joe's eyes, and hear it in his voice as well.

The war had taken something from him, but at least he was optimistic about it not taking everything from him. I was sure that the dirty-blonde was thankful for being alive, even if it meant that he'd have to be on crutches for the rest of his life. Joe then shot a smile up at Dan and I and said, "But, hey, the good news is that I'm no longer considered fit for combat. I get to go home on honorable discharge and go back to Chan."

His eyes, which had been dark and cast down with the thought of his injury, were now lit up and filled with happiness. Chan, Joe's fiancée, had been all our friend could think of and talk about since the war started. He had been torn away from her, forced to enter the war through the means of a draft, like me.

Except I hadn't left behind something as dear as a future wife, but I had left behind my only remaining family member; I didn't even bother to tell the old man, but he eventually found out. Dan smiled sadly and said to Joe, "Hey, I told you that Shun and I would make sure you returned back to her in one piece."

Joe laughed and added, "Yeah, but I'm cutting it a bit close on the one piece thing, aren't I?" He motioned towards his injured leg for added emphasis, but he still wore a smile. I asked, "So, when are they sending you home?" Joe's smile only grew wider.

"They're sending me back just in time for Christmas. That's going to surprise Chan, for sure." I found myself smiling when I told him, "I bet so." In a way, I kind of envied Joe for being able to return home, but I was also glad for him.

His biggest fear had been never returning home to his fiancée, but now that fear could be quieted, once and for all. So what if I was unable to go home until the end of the war? I'd just continue to push through it as I had done thus far, and revel in the wonderful day when it all came to an end.

Klaus

I sat around the camp. Things had been anything but quiet after our humiliating defeat at Gettysburg. And none had taken that defeat worse than General Lee. Our commander had spent several days after the battle, ranting out-loud and asking up to the heavens where he had gone wrong and been defeated.

But thankfully, Lee's tyrant had come to an end, but I could still see in his face that it was still bothering him that the Union had beaten him in battle. The camp, quiet for the what felt like the first time in months, was disrupted by the sound of a young soldier running up to the common area of the camp, a letter of some sorts in his hands.

He was flailing the parchment above his head to gather the attention of the soldiers around him. A small crowd, including me, gathered around him. On the other side, I caught a glimpse of Jones in the crowd. He had betrayed the Union and joined the Confederacy's side in the war, and he had proven to be very useful in battle.

But some of the troops were still unsure about the brute, but I was not. I saw that he was a skilled fighter in battle, one that was ruthless towards his fellow man. That was what was needed at times during the war. I tore my attention from the ex-Union soldier and back to the man that was waving the letter around.

Somebody shouted to him, "Well, stop your funny business and read the damn thing already!" The young soldier nodded and unfolded the paper.

He then began to read, " It has come to the Union President's attention that this war has gone on far longer than many people expected. He knows that many on both sides want it to end and for things to fall back into a state of normality. So, to achieve this goal of ending the war, President Lincoln has created the Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction. Included in this Proclamation is a pardon for any Southerner that has participated in the rebellion against the Union. Anyone, this includes traitors to the Union but excludes those that rank higher than Colonel or Lieutenant, will be pardoned, their property, minus slaves, given back, and their rights as Union citizens returned if the interested party takes a prescribed oath to the Union."

The young soldier was about to continue his reading when Lee approached our crowd. He said in a booming and commanding voice, "If you desire to turn your back on your homeland and disgrace what should rightfully be yours, then go ahead. I care not, but remember that it will be your fault it this great Confederacy crumbles."

With that, the General turned on his heels and went back to his tent. Silence befell over the crowd, then whispers began to erupt into loud conversations. Some soldiers were debating the thought of getting out of the war, and some were awed with the promise of being forgiven and excluded from punishment of war crimes.

But others were unsure about what they should do. Some wanted to leave the war, but didn't want to turn their backs on the Confederacy and be responsible for its decay. I found myself glancing back at Jones again. This Proclamation would also pardon him if he wanted, seeing as he was a traitor to the Union.

Was he thinking about taking President Lincoln up on his offer? Just as if Jones had heard my thoughts, he answered my silent questions. "Like hell I'm going to take the pity of the Union! What arrogance! I left and joined the Confederacy to try and put and end to their holier-than-thou mindset! And the Confederacy will have to fall before I even consider going back to the Union!"

A roar of applause and agreements erupted from the crowd of gathered soldiers. Jones' words had quelled any doubts that were forming in most of the soldiers' minds. Although, I had a feeling several might take the President's pardon, there wouldn't be many to amount to anything.

Quite frankly, I also had no desire to leave this war. I could have cared less about returning to the Union; I had my own reasons for entering the war, and when those reasons came to truth, then I would leave if possible.

But until that Yankee that took everything away from me paid for his actions, I would remain in this war. That was my reason for fighting, and I would adhere to them with pride.

Shun

Dan and I stood on the train platform, each of us holding a luggage bag. Ahead of us, was Joe. He was to go home today, and we had promised to help get his belongings onto the train. Our friend used his crutches to turn himself around and face us. "I can't believe I'm really going home," he said in a dreamlike way.

Dan set down the duffle-bag he was carrying and told Joe, "If anyone deserves to go back, it's you. And I say that with all of the utmost respect." Joe thanked the brunette and the train blared its whistle to announce that it would be leaving soon.

Our friend never tore his gaze from the train when he said, "It's actually coming to an end for me. At long last." Dan walked up behind the dirty-blonde and patted his back, nearly causing Joe to lose his balance on his crutches. Dan muttered an apology then said, "Sure is, buddy."

As I stood there, I found it amusing how Dan had gone from disliking Joe at the beginning, to becoming a close friend. It was funny how the war actually had something good come out of it. The train blew its whistle another time, and a conductor announced that it would be departing soon.

Other soldiers with injuries that prevented them from fighting, climbed onto the train. Joe said to us, "Well, looks like it's time for me to leave. I'll keep in touch. And stay safe out there. Don't want anyone else ending up like me." Dan and I nodded and watched as Joe walked on his crutches and boarded the train.

Soon, the massive engineering creation began to move and rolled out of the station, leaving Dan and I behind. I said to my friend, "Well, we best be getting back to camp." The brunette nodded and we began to short walk back. As we walked, I could hear the sounds of gunfire and mortars tearing into the earth out in the distance.

I flinched a couple of times at the thundering noise, still in a bit of a shellshock from the previous battle. Dan looked out towards where the sounds of battle were. I found myself hoping that this battle would not require our assistance, for I was in no condition to go into another fight yet.

With that in mind, we hurried back to the camp, somewhat fearing that the fighting might migrate over to our location. Once we were in the confines of the Union stronghold, I saw that things were resuming as if nothing was happening out in the distance.

I walked up to a soldier and asked him, "What's all the commotion over that way?" He looked out towards the location of the obvious battle taking place and told me, "Word is that some rebel division led by James Longstreet is trying to take Knoxville. The men there could have probably held there own there, but Grant didn't want to take any chances and lose some of this Tennessee territory, so he sent Sherman as back-up. I'm sure the fighting will be over with before nightfall."

I had never heard of the name Longstreet, so I assumed he wasn't much of a threat to our hold on Tennessee. No longer worrying about being thrown back into battle, I retreated to my tent for the evening. And as I laid on my cot with my eyes closed as I tried to get in a few extra hours of sleep, I heard the fighting cease right at nightfall, just as that soldier had said.

aw. no reviews for the past couple of chapters? i kind of feel hurt. -does sad face- well, on a brighter note, the world didnt end, so the stories will continue! woo! vote on my poll if you have not! read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~