The truck smelled. That was the first thing she noted as she climbed up into the back of the transport truck that would take her to a whole new camp. The second thing she noticed was that the sinking feeling she'd went to bed with the previous night was still with her. Something wasn't quite right about this whole situation. It wasn't just the fact that they were being sent to the front lines for medical attention even though the war was just about over. In fact, in light of the other instance, that fact was quite excusable.

No, what worried her most was that the only people being transported were fellow nurses that were known for being mutants. She lowered her eyes at the thought and studied her hands. So much power behind them. And with a very slim sense of control, it would be very easy for the wrong person to take advantage of that power.

She shook her head firmly, reminding herself that the last thing she needed at that moment in time was to put more doubts and fears into her mind. She needed to remain calm. She needed to assess the situation and list all the possible outcomes. She needed...she needed to stop sounding like a drill sergeant and think logically.

The trucks suddenly roared to life and pulled away from the hospital. She peered out the small windows located on the sides of the transports and watched as it faded out of sight slowly. The noise was horrendous, and she cursed herself for having taking the seat right above the wheels. Every bump sent a shock up pain trailing up her spine, causing an almost instant headache. Glancing about the back of the truck, she noticed that all the other passengers were equally as uncomfortable. And none of them had their luggage. She wondered what that was about. Upon reaching the truck, two uniformed men had insisted she hand over her luggage to them. She did so reluctantly, grateful that she'd changed her mind and tucked her letters from Logan in her blouse instead. At the time she'd assumed that they needed as much space as possible for the other nurses. Looking now she saw that the back was half empty, and that there would have been room for twice the amount of luggage they'd all brought.

None of this eased her apprehension any. And of course, to make matters even worse, it began to rain. Once again she cursed her luck at finding the most horrid seat in the entire area, for just above her head a tiny crack was allowing little droplets of rain to fall onto her head. Strong winds blew the truck, causing it to teeter rather violently at some points. In some ways, the swaying motion very much reminded her of the transports she'd been on on her way across the channel.

The beginning of the war seemed so very long ago. She'd been an entirely different person then. Eager to get away from her home life, and into adventure, she'd packed up her bags and signed up to become a nurse with the Red Cross. She figured since her father and three brothers were signed up with the army, she might as well do her part too. It only took two months of training before she was granted permission to travel abroad with the other qualified men and women. She'd been very narrow-minded and naive then, as well. She laughed slightly to herself, remembering her surprise to see male nurses among the female. She thought for sure every man in America was off with the army. Until her new friend Agatha explained that not all men were taken into the army. Marie'd never known then that there were just as many qualifications (if not more so) to get into the army as there were to get into the Red Cross.

She was also very unprepared for what she saw in Europe those first three weeks. True, she'd worked terribly hard, studying every known injury the medical institutes had. Dr.Henry McCoy was a fantastic teacher, and made sure her brain was filled with all the knowledge it would need. No, knowledge was not where she was unprepared. At least, not in the facts department. What it came down to was the emotional stress it'd put upon her.

Marie sighed, remembering the picture shows she'd seen back home. They were all about war right before she left, an obvious attempt to attract the attention of men. It'd worked too. They made them look like brave heroes, each and every one dying in a spotlight of glory. In reality, many died unnoticed. Only a very few died on the battle field, surrounded by friends, and even less died painlessly. Most ended up in the Red Cross hospitals, very much in pain. Some came to them asleep, thank God, but most came, screaming, clutching body parts, and calling for their mothers. Someone once said shock was good for a person. She didn't see how. For the first three weeks she'd cried herself to sleep at night. The whimpering men in the rooms adjacent to hers often filled her dreams, making them nightmares very quickly.

Feeling a slight jab in her chest, Marie was pulled from the past, back into the present. She turned to look out the window, and was surprised to see it was after dark. She must have fallen asleep somewhere along the way.

Remembering the sharp point digging into her, she quickly pulled the letters from her shirt and looked at them. It'd been so long since she'd heard from Logan. Nearly three weeks now...or was it more? After the normal week it took for her to receive a response, she'd lost track of the actual time since he'd written, but she knew it'd be a while. Of course, they were in the middle of a war, so delays were to be expected. Especially if he'd gone to the front. Still...

Hitting a bump in the road, her head jerked backward, banging hard against the wall of the truck. She frowned, rather annoyed by this whole trip. Rubbing it pointedly, she tucked the letters safely back against her chest and rebuttoned her shirt. Her fears about this trip were no less apparent, but somehow, they'd taken a momentary back seat in her mind. Now, the main concern she had was getting sleep. She'd been up the entire night before, packing away her things, and the earlier nap she'd taken wasn't enough. Though her stomach lurched with an uneasiness, she closed her eyes and rested her head on the floor, curling up slightly to get comfortable. She didn't fear putting anyone else out, or having to make them move. They each had a considerable amount of space to their name, without getting in each others way.

Closing her eyes tightly, she allowed the thoughts of Logan she'd been attempting to foster to encompass her mind, promising herself she would not sleep for long. She wanted to think through this matter, and try to put her finger on exactly what it was that was troubling her. A part of her knew that she should stay awake and think on it now, but the other part of her argued that she would get nothing accomplished if part of her was preoccupied with thoughts of rest. Deciding then that the second half of her had a better arguement, she shifted slightly against the hard floor of the truck bed, and drifted off to sleep.