Here it is! Ch. 1 Plz R&R and i'll post Ch. 2 as soon as possible :)

Chapter 1

Pvt. Reid's Report

Ia Drang...I'll never forget it. We landed around noon at LZ X-Ray northwest of Plei Me. We were given orders to scout west of the area and eliminate any insurgents we encountered. When we pursued the Vietcong into the jungle, we were cutoff from the rest of the battalion. It was barely our first major battle and we lost over a hundred.

Ia Drang Valley, South Vietnam

November 14th, 1965

Pvt. Tom Reid, 1st Battalion, 7th Calvary, Alpha Company

Battle of Ia Drang

Pvt. Reid walked slowly and quietly through the tall grass, careful not to snap any sticks. He rubbed some sweat off his forehead, it was hot...and humid. Some other soldiers were several yards ahead of him drinking from their canteens. It was a sunny day in the jungle with only a few passing clouds and a slight breeze, but it would all turn to horror sooner or later. Reid had heard that Bravo Company had captured an insurgent who had told them that the North Vietnamese were camped up on Chu Pong Mountain to the southwest of the LZ. Estimates were around 1,600 North Vietnamese soldiers, all of them well equipped for battle.

His company was given orders to pursue and engage a Vietcong regiment that was waiting for reinforcements. He had been very scared when he heard the slightest sound coming from the bushes or in the trees, but his lieutenant insisted it was only a boar or a gibbon. Reid was also worried about land mines. He had been told that all land mines used by the French during the First Indochina War had been removed, but he was a little skeptical to believe that. Why are we here? Reid thought. This isn't our war. The conflict had started in 1946 when the Viet Minh had declared Vietnam's independence from France, but they disagreed and the First Indochina War began.

Finally in 1954, France surrendered, Vietnam was split, game over...or so they thought. Reid was told little about how the conflict had begun, so he decided to figure it out himself. He had heard the U.S. was in Vietnam even before the war, especially 2 years ago when the insurgency had increased. Then just last summer, the USS Maddox had taken fire from North Vietnam's Navy, and through some bullshit and politics, he along with other soldiers were sent to this hell of a place. Reid sat on a dry spot of grass next to his friend, Pvt. Sanders. Sanders had been his friend since they shipped out. Although he was slow in terms of cognition, he was still a good and humorous buddy.

''Hey Sanders.'' Reid said. Sanders turned, putting his canteen down. ''How you doin?'' he replied. Reid smiled, ''Do you think the platoon should return to the LZ?'' Sanders suddenly looked surprised. ''Why should we return? There hasn't been any shots fired all this morning.'' Sanders said. Reid looked down, ''I know but...I don't feel safe far from the LZ, especially in this secluded area.'' Sanders sighed, taking a drink and putting his helmet on a small rock. ''Maybe your right, maybe we should- ''AHHHHH!!!!''

Sanders and Reid frantically turned to see one of their soldiers on the ground with a spike-like object stuck in one of his boots. ''My foot! Take it out!'' Reid suddenly got up. ''Somebody get a fucking medic over here!'' Reid yelled. A medic came over and opened his bag. He pulled out some gauze bandages and some Paracetamol and ran over to the wounded soldier.

Suddenly the bushes around them came to life as the Vietcong slowly rose, their tattered clothes covered in leaves, their white helmets gleaming in the sun. Reid watched them lift their SKS carbines, but what caught his attention was their bayonets. They yelled and charged at the U.S. soldiers, already stabbing 9, and a few others shot their AK-47s, almost mowing down the soldiers. ''FUUUUCKKK!!'' the sergeant yelled, as he was shot in the leg. Reid ran over to a young Vietnamese insurgent pulling his bayonet out of a soldier's torso, and thrusted his knife into the man's neck. The guerrilla made a small yelp, but slowly collapsed onto the ground, blood pouring from his neck into the wet grass.

''Where the hell's our reinforcements?!'' a corporal yelled, quickly jumping behind a tree as some Vietcong shot at him. Reid couldn't believe his eyes, about a dozen soldiers were lying on the ground dead or dying. The last of the Vietcong retreated into the seclude of the jungle. Reid almost fell of shock as he saw his men crying out in pain, saying they didn't want to die. Reid noticed that only 4 of the 13 Vietcong he saw were lying dead on the ground. ''Where's the medic?!'' the sergeant yelled, blood seeping from his bullet wound. Reid saw the medic, still by the wounded soldier, but...he was dead, gone, a bullet hole in his helmet.

''He's dead sir...he's fucking dead!'' Reid said in agony. ''Where's our field radio?'' the sergeant said, limping towards a rock to sit on. A soldier carrying a backpack PRC 9 field radio ran over to the sergeant. The sergeant contacted base, and after a few minutes, he silently turned it off. ''So is help coming?''Sanders asked. The sergeant was quiet. ''The rest of the companies are pinned down at the LZ....they can't get to us.'' he said. Sanders suddenly went cold. ''W-what, what do you mean they can't get to us?'' Sanders said in a shaky voice. ''There's no help coming...we'll have to stick it out until the rest of the battalion lands safely.'' Sanders dropped his M16 in shock. ''Don't tell me that!'' Sanders said. ''Don't even fucking tell me we're stuck only 50 meters from the fucking LZ, and Beta Company can't even get to us!!'' Sanders yelled.

The sergeant suddenly got up on one leg, and grabbed Sander by his M65 jacket, and held him up close. ''You listen to me son,'' The sergeant said in a serious tone, ''We are gonna try and turn towards the creek bed, and you are gonna shape up right now, or your gonna get stabbed just like the rest of em'!'' the sergeant yelled, pointing at the dead soldiers. ''Do I make myself clear private?'' the sergeants said. ''Yes sir.'' Sanders said reluctantly. The sergeant let go of Sanders and sat again. ''There's a dried creek bed about 20 meters west of here.'' the sergeant said to the remaining soldiers. ''We can meet up with Lieutenant Taft's platoon and provide support fire.''

Reid got up and moved with the rest of the soldiers into the jungle. He looked back at the dead bodies of his fallen comrades. The sergeant took notice of him. ''We'll retrieve them later.'' the sergeant whispered. Reid nodded and followed his soldiers into the jungle, still grief-stricken.