Chapter 8. Paint it, Green.
Four people quietly walked beneath the jungle, where the darkness was gradually falling. If there was no place like the magnetic field confusion zone that had to pass a few days ago, they just had to keep following this compass down south. Kim, as himself, thought his head seemed to stop of the thinking progress. Everyone knew that this place is not a safe area at all, but he only moved his legs mechanically and could not think or think of anything. Paul and Joseph quietly followed Kim, but Vincent was different. He began to grumbling nonstop.
"For God's sake, How, at... How can we... Oh, for fucks..."
Kim walked silently listening to his grumbles and eventually turn around.
"Hey, Vincent. You mind if you could shut up just for a second? It starts to slowly fucking with my patience."
Vincent began to respond to Kim, very differently than usual times.
"Is there any problem, sarge? I'm not even yelling, what's so loud about this? Why do you think this would be the problem, SAR-GE?"
Kim stopped his step and stared at Vincent.
"Sorry, the fuck did you just say?"
Vincent also stared at Kim without losing a single tension.
"Do you have hearing problems now? Why do you keep making me to say everything again?"
Kim stride up and stand close in front of Vincent.
"Hey, you crazy-ass son of bitch. Say that shit one more fucking time, I dare you. You're really gone crazy now."
"Yeah, I'm crazy, yes! I am definitely crazy enough to fight against you! All the shit going through this ridiculous thing, so yeah, no wonder I'm going crazy right now! Fuck it!"
Some spit drops popped out of Vincent's mouth and stick it in Kim's face. At the moment Kim raised his fist, Paul and Joseph blocked the between the two.
"Sarge, Vincent, stop it! Calm down!"
At least Joseph, who was higher than Paul, blocked Kim. Kim shouted, with shaking his fist.
"You pile of vomit! Come back here! You're really going out of your mind. Come here, I'll whack you like a Charlie's Brain! You motherfu...!"
"Yeah, come on then! I have a Question, too! Why the fuck did you accept this mission in the first place and let it happen! We do suffer fucking enough to shit on our own pants, and all we got is a bitterness of failure, risking our own life, and the heads of those goddamn zombies!"
"What, then, you have a problem with that? Then you take charge of the platoon leader, you shithead! I'm already sick of it, and I don't wanna do it anymore either! Fuck!"
"Fine! Then give that to me! I can't take your goddamn command anymore!"
As their altercation reverberated loudly in the jungle, Joseph and Paul tried to calm them down somehow.
"Calm down, both of you! It won't help if we fight among ourselves here!"
Vincent and Kim gazed at each other with a huff. Then Kim yelled at the sky.
"Ahhhhaahhhhaa! The fucking, fuck of the, fuck, fucks of the fucker fucking of fuck!"
After Kim yells a various kind of fuck-related curses in the sky, then he dropped his shoulders. Vincent also turned around and huffing for a time. After a while, Kim straight his back again and sighed. Then he started walking straight south, again. The platoon members followed. Of course, Vincent did, too.
For a while, there was only a heavy silence on the platoon's path. Vincent also expressed his antipathy to Kim, but he stops complaining and followed quietly.
"By the way, are you serious, Vincent?"
Joseph whispered to Vincent.
"Serious about what?"
"Are you really not going to listen to Sarge Kim's word anymore?"
"You crazy? Even though, he is our platoon leader from the start."
An awkward silence ensued for a moment. It was Vincent who broke it.
"But why at this moment?"
"Don't you remember Sgt. Michael Rogers of the right next company? Honestly, every time I saw similar things like that moment ago, including Cpl. Turner yesterday, I thought something similarly bad could happen again."
Sgt. Michael Rogers incident in the 2nd Infantry Division. In early 1986, an incident occurred during a small battle in the Lo Coi, near the Plei Doch area, where the 17th Combat Battalion was located. Captain Michelle, the commander of the 2nd Company, was said to have had a lot of discord with the soldiers under her command at the time. It was definitely not just because of 'She', well, some parts of her personality were a little rough and sharp, but it was also because many people said that the number of casualties was excessive under her operation conducting, without much experience in battle command. As a result, all the company members were dissatisfied with Her. At that day, shortly after occupying the highlands, strongholds were established with heavy weapons, including M2 heavy machine guns, to stop the Viet Cong's offense, still today, nobody knows what Sergeant Michael was thinking at that moment, but he turned the machine gun's direction and fires to the temporary dugout where Captain Michelle was standing.
Captain Michelle's upper body was shattered like an explosion by a .50 cal bullet, and the poor platoon leaders standing right next to her, had to be covered by her shredded flesh. What was truly remarkable was that Sergeant Michael's shooting skill was so accurate that no one was killed, except Captain Michellle. Well, nobody can't tell if it was lucky or unfortunate, but two of the platoon leaders, that covered by the fleshes, were hospitalized in a psychiatric ward and never able to return to the front line.
Sergeant Michael was sent to the mainland and put on court-martial, and in June of that year, it was reported that he got executed. Although everyone was sorry for the fact that the incident itself happened, but there was a vague atmosphere that most of the company members thought Sergeant Michael as a kind of righteous man. Fragging has been frequently reported in the Vietnam front line since the 1970s, but everyone was quite shocked because this was the first time that happens in the Allied Forces in the Plei Doch. Personally, Kim also never saw someone as annoyed as Captain Michele. However, he had not been able to do anything, even make eye contact with the Sparrow 2 platoon members and the rest of the soldiers for some time since he was briefed on the incident, and fears about the same thing could be happened to him. But, also rather, the platoon members and other soldiers who were close to him gathered to Kim first, and defended him as a military demonstration to get rid of those who tried to kill him, and thanks for that, he was the first NCO who could be able to return to his position.
Vincent thoughts same. The earlier altercation was unavoidable. Everyone's emotions were heated up by the things that had happened, and even if Jesus was here, he must have some serious problem to control this situation, either. Well, Cpl. Turner frequently have argued with Sarge Kim, but didn't they always resolve it peacefully and get through it well every time? The enemy would have no better prey if we only focused on each other's thoughts and fought here. Vincent therefore believed that the conflict with Kim should be resolved.
"Um, Sarge."
"What."
Kim looked back weakly. Vincent could look into his eyes. What a look in his eyes, just a moment before collapsing because of fatigue. He thought his eyes would be no different.
"Well, I need to tell you something, sarge."
"What, because of that earlier?"
"... Yes, sarge."
Kim sighed once and tapped Vincent on the shoulder.
"It's okay. Well, when you make throughout the life, you could be turned on to your superiors once or whatever it is."
"I'm sorry, sarge."
Kim paused his step for a moment. Then he grabbed Vincent by the shoulder and whispered quietly.
"But Vincent, I'm not just asking you for a favor, I'm giving you just a small piece of advice, and no matter what, never again, turn on to your superiors, again. Honestly, we did see almost everything between us, and we're not just a simple platoon, y'know. But there's no guarantee that anyone other than me will react the same way as I do, isn't it?"
Paul and Joseph sensed the unusual atmosphere and stepped back a few feet away, so they couldn't hear what was being said between them. Kim always called out the person alone and spoke quietly, when he had to admonish someone. This was because sometimes this method is more effective than shouting and screaming.
Vincent cannot make the eye contact with Kim and dropped his gaze on the ground. Kim patted Vincent on the shoulder again.
"No more sorry to me, my boy. If you're really sorry that much, then let's do well from now on."
Kim smiled at Vincent even though he was exhausted. Kim also thoroughly divide the works between the public and the personal sector in the first place, but he was not a person who keeps the rage to someone, who put and secure each other's life more than being close to each other. This is because he had learned firsthand that most arguments are caused by minor misunderstandings and differences of understanding, unless it's a really unfit person. Rolling on the battlefield for a long time with Vincent, he also understood what kind of thoughts and what kind of personality he was, and thought that no one could think and move normally in the previous situation.
"So, now we're going to Corporal Turner and Brian?"
"Although it's gone vain to go up there to call a helicopter, but that is not the main goal of our operation. Our goal is the front line of the Kon Tum River, where the former 3rd Airborne Brigade stayed. We can finally go home if we take care of that only one thing in there. Well, we'll have to walk a little longer to where the helicopter is coming."
"Oh, right. The landing sites."
"Who knows. They might not just send a helicopter, but a backup platoon with. If they really come, I hope we don't go crisscross each other in the jungle."
Vincent shrugged his shoulders. Then he said.
"No matter how it ends, when we all live out together, our story will probably remain the fiercest story and the most memorable one of our lives, sarge. There's nothing gonna be like talking this over with a cold beer."
"Fine then, I'll buy that beer."
"You say that recklessly, even you know how much I can drink? I'm not gonna care even if I empty your whole wallet."
Kim laughed and opened the compass. The needle kept pointing south. Just keep going like this.
"Come on, Joseph. Let's get our paces. Hurry up and let's play with those two who will be waiting us within bored across the river."
Vincent overtook Kim's step and spoke as he walked quickly. Joseph agreed, narrowing with his steps. In fact, think about it, the current situation wasn't too bad. Of course, it wouldn't have been good news for the two guys waiting across the river, calling the helicopter right in front of here failed, and all four of us were almost got killed by the bombing of the NV Air Force and zombies, and they used not less ammunition. Still, all four of them were not hurt and survived. Kim doesn't know what words he should say in tribute to the three platoon members who left first, but if they go back, lived together, then he might be able to tell the rest of the world how brave they were even the moment just before they died.
"By the way, sarge."
"Why, Paul."
"The bombing back in there. Where on earth do you think the NV air force suddenly appeared and bombed?"
Kim pondered. The possibility that the sounds of ground alarms or gunshots could even be heard by fighter jets flying in the distance would be near zero, and the muzzle flashes would also not able to shown in broad daylight, whether it was in the afternoon. The conversation between Soviet and Vietnamese, which was mixed up with the H.Q's radio, was another clue. It was communication between North Vietnamese Air Force pilots. No one else would have access to the radio from the ground station except them in the first place. Were there no more living Vietn Congs or Vietnamese troops other than the option of dying or turn into a zombie?
"It's my guess, but maybe the only possibility is that my radio has flowed in."
"You mean, the confusion?"
"Yeah. I'm not a communication specialty either, but I heard that the frequency of ground-to-air communication is completely different. The problem is, I still don't know how it's possible. But when I had a radio conversation with the H.Q. earlier, I heard a mix of Soviet and Vietnamese in addition to the headquarters' radio."
"Then, was that a NV Pilots'..."
"That must be. Probably the radio was placed in the control tower, so it should be possible to communicate with Fighter Jets floating in the air, too. By the way, did they able to transmit the two frequencies at the same time?"
"The more I see it, the more ridiculous this battlefield is, sarge."
"Sure, it does. I just hope there will be not anymore."
But who knows, the Fates are truly desperate sometimes. Why the things always happen if someone just put out the words? Kim could see flames rising up from beneath the feet of Joseph and Vincent, who were walking ahead excitedly. Every scene passed slowly, as if he watches a slow-motion show. It was a moment when Kim couldn't even think of alphabet 'D' from the word, Dammit. Soon after, a pile of dirt could be seen bouncing into the air. Kim and Paul fell backward due to the shock waves coming from the front. A terrifying explosion rang out in the darkening jungle.
Kim realized that he was falling down and being hit by the dirt rain on his face. He tried to get up immediately, but his whole body felt as if it had turned into a jelly. Paul was fell down right next to him. His bulletproof helmet flew away and sit on the grass. He turned his head and looked at where Joseph and Vincent were. Piles of dirt and other wood were still falling from the sky.
No, it can't be. It can't be like this again.
Kim somehow managed to lift his disobedient leg and stumble along. Please, both of you, don't die. Do not lose a single limb. Do not get hurt. Please, do not die so that we can all get out alive.
Vincent was seen lying in the grass. Kim runs toward him and stopped immediately, as he found out something he never wants. Vincent's knee was not attached to his body. Vincent's leg bones were revealed broken under the disappearing sunlight, putting out muscle pieces and other tendons mixed together, and blood could be clearly seen flowing out like a fountain. Kim stumbled closer and raise up Vincent's head. Vincent's final expression still stood on his face, the expression of surprise that he felt at the moment of death. The focus of the eye was slowly fading out. He put his finger on Vincent's neck. He can't feel any heartbeat.
Now we lost Vincent.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
In the background, Kim could hear the screams of twisting the body, cannot even bear the pain. It must have been Joseph. However, Kim cannot see anything but Vincent's body right now. The Shirts and some of the remaining bottoms of his Uniform were covered in dirt and torn apart, and the heavy machine gun he was carrying, was smashed as a heat shield piece, bullet belts, and that all pieces of gun body, were scattered everywhere.
A mine. A fucking land mines. It was a situation that he must to suspect enough. Why didn't even think about it? Knew so well about that if something goes too easily, then there are always suspicious things hidden in the middle of route. Why didn't I stop him when he started to get ahead of the Platoon? Now there is nothing but despair. Even the Vincent has gone beyond.
"SARGE!"
Kim's mind returned as Paul's neck bursting yell. He looked back. Joseph was holding Paul's top and crying, and Paul was opening the First Aid Kit Bag to take out the contents. But he didn't seem to know what to do with it. Kim carefully put down Vincent's head and ran toward them.
"Paul!"
"Sarge, the first, we need to do a first aid...!"
"Please, anyone! Whatever it is, please do something!"
Joseph was holding on to Paul and crying. Joseph was fine compared to Vincent, but always, rather than him. Some of his left boots had been blown away, and smoke was rising from there. Kim bent his left leg. Joseph screamed almost as his throats are torn away. Blood streamed out from the boots.
"Paul! Pressure Bandage! Hurry up!"
Paul took out the pressure bandage and handed it to him. Kim began to tie Joseph's left leg calf tightly. Joseph also not stops screaming.
"Joseph! Please Hold! I have to do this to not let you die here!"
"Argh! Just kill me then! Please! Ahhhhah, my leg!"
Kim thought it would be better to remove the boots and bandage the wound directly, but the priority was to prevent bleeding by pressing the fine parts and stop the bleeding rather than pushing ahead the situation since he has no idea that how much his feet had been broken in there.
"Sarge, the Vincent, how about the Vincent...?"
Paul asked. Kim shook his head silently.
"No..."
Paul plumped down. Kim, after finishing a compression bandage for Joseph's hemostasis, opened his first aid kit and took out a single use morphine syringe. Then he inserted it into Joseph's neck. His breathing became softer.
"Joseph, can you her me now?"
"S, sarge Kim. Wha, what happened... M, my leg. My leg..."
"Don't look. It's still attached, but it's not looking good, tho."
"M...me, uh, am I... going to... die? Not yet, not yet. What I left behind..."
"Don't talk that shit, Joseph Vance! I'd rather die here all together than let you die here! Paul, go get Vincent's Tag!"
"H…. how about his gun..."
"It's broken already! There's nothing we can take! Hurry up! Before we lose Joseph, too!"
"Sarge, the Vincent, Specialist Vincent..."
"Sorry, Joseph. But Vincent is gone."
Paul broke the military tag line hanging in Vincent's neck and brought the tag plate. Kim lifted Joseph behind his back.
"Paul! You take the front cover. Hurry! Let's go before it's too late!"
Paul pointed the gun forward and ran at a fast pace. Kim followed.
"Wait, wait, wait, wait! How about Vincent? Who take cares that poor Vincent? Vincent! Specialist Vincent! Please wake up and follow us, Vincent! Please!"
Joseph got carried by Kim on his back and yelled Vincent's name. Kim's eyes were blurred with tears. Paul was also running with sobbing as well as tears flowing around his eyes. Specialist Vincent Fitzgerald, a cowboy from Texas, now got buried in a nameless side of that cursed jungle.
Kim was heartbroken enough by Vincent's death, but something kept rolls up in his head. This was North Vietnam's territory until 1983. They would not be just put landmines in their own backyard unless they were gone crazy. In other words, it was highly likely that the landmines are "officially" buried here after the North Vietnamese Forces withdrew. He doesn't know how many more scouting parties came here informally, but officially, Sparrow 2 is the fourth visitors. more than that, they were the only ones who made up in this far up, unlike the first three visitors. The Ottawa 3 team had all died alongside of the river. In other words, this mine meant that 'someone who was after them' had been placed here very recently. Even if zombies could shoot and actively fight, it looks impossible to they do that.
Then the only one answer left. There will be at least one North Vietnamese Troopers or Viet Congs are here, even "Alive Well". They must be after us, and probably they are looking for the moment when they could exterminate us in nearby. Although we lost Vincent and Joseph was injured almost before his death, they couldn't even dream of stop for a while and settle the situation.
[Bang!]
A gunshot rang out from far behind. Just as expected. Paul looked back.
"Paul, eyes on the front! And move your feet! They're onto us!"
Kim shouted at Paul. Because the Joseph was heavy enough, the Kim's legs are shaking as crazy and the strength didn't go in properly. Then Kim could hear someone is shouting and talking in the Cong's language in the distance. He also could feel Joseph twisting his body around behind his back.
"Joseph! What are you doing? Stay still!"
"You son of bitches! Come and get me!"
Joseph aimed his rifle that Kim had brought together, and started shooting backwards. Kim don't know if he's shooting in right way, but no matters with that, loud gunfire filled the entire jungle.
"Hey! Save the bullets! What are you going to do when we're out of 'em?"
They just ran blindly. There might could be something worst, just like as blown away the Joseph's feet, but now they couldn't afford a time to find a place to step on, and considering it. Either they all died here or got out alive. They run like crazy. They just run, with passing through the jungle where four of them had walked in peacefully. Bodies of bizarre looks and bushes quickly passed by.
Suddenly, in front of them, ruined barbed wire and wooden fence appeared. Sandbags that burst in places were stacked against the wall. It was the front-line trench of the North Vietnam army, where that Turner and Brian had earlier passing by. There was nothing they could see on the other side of the river, where the sun had completely set and became dark.
"Where should we go now, sarge?!"
Kim hurriedly closed Paul's mouth. Then he raised his finger and show a sign to be quiet. He quickly looked around. Then he finds out a cave that was used as a bomb shelter among the dark, vague trenches because of no light source. It was smashed once by a mortar shell or something, but now it would be okay as they would only hide themselves for a while, as it's not for a hiding from bombing now.
"Over Here, quick!"
Kim pushed Paul into the bomb shelter first. Then, Joseph, who was on his back, was handed over to Paul.
"Joseph, I understand you hurts now, but keep your mouth shut for a moment!"
Kim whispered quietly. Joseph barely nodded. He came out of the bomb shelter again. The footsteps of the pursuers chasing them got close. Kim took out a grenade, pulled out a pin, and threw it as far as possible into the western sides of the trench. Then he came back into the bomb shelter. The footsteps stopped close by. The incomprehensible conversation howled. Perhaps it's about finding us. The sound of the grenade thrown by Kim went off loudly in the distance. The conversation again, and the sound of footsteps drifted away. Everyone waited with bated breath. Even in the pitch-black darkness, Paul couldn't relax and couldn't get his gun down. Kim looked out, with aiming his gun out. It seemed that they all went away.
"Let's go, now's our chance!"
Kim carried Joseph around again. Joseph also grabbed his rifle and pointed it at Kim's blind spot, as if he was more stable than before.
"By the way, sarge. How long does it take to get to Ho Chi Minh Bridge from here?"
Paul ran ahead and asked Kim.
"I don't know exactly. But, do you remember the Victory Bridge that we crossed yesterday? It's about 4 miles west from Ho Chi Minh Bridge. I don't know exactly where we came out of the riverfront. But now, I just assume it's about 2 miles! Come on, guys! If we succeed to cross that goddamn bridge, there will be two more people who can protect us."
Kim and Paul run forwards as they're gasping around. The ground was covered in mud and puddles of water, coupled with the already disastrous trench and the Damn Vietnam's climate. Paul and Kim had to go through a series of crises where they almost stuck their faces in the mud because they couldn't see the way properly because of the dark. Moreover, Kim had more difficulties about keep checking whether Joseph is still breathing or not.
"Joseph! You're still with us, right?"
"Just run, sarge. I'm dizzy as hell, oh god."
Joseph spoke in a weak voice. Kim has never been cheekier and more worried to Joseph than at this moment. Yes, it must be hard because one of his legs is almost before losing, and he is about to die, but isn't Kim himself that having a hard time running through this muddy trench filled with all kinds of junk? You little punk. Let's see what you got if we get out alive.
In front of them, who were running hard, came the place where the part of the trench wall had collapsed. It looked the same sticky, but at least it seemed like they could get out of the trench. Kim stopped in front of there for a while. Paul also stopped on his way, knowing that Kim is not following. Kim looked outside the trench. Route 12 passes right in front of the North Vietnam trench, according to the map. Of course, obstacles would have been placed by N.V.s to prevent charges and trench breaks by our side in 1983, but at least it would be easier to run than to a place where the mud keep slows down the feet. Kim looked at Paul. Paul seemed to recognize his idea, even though he didn't say anything. Both of them jump out from the trench, regardless of what anyone said.
A road that looked a little narrower than Route 14 stretched straight along the river. Yes, it was straight, but as Kim expected, it was in very bad condition. The asphalt was broken by mortar shells everywhere, and the entire area was filled with broken wood and fence debris. If one of them fell down while running careless, Kim thought they would have some seriously injuries, more than unable to run.
"From here, we're moving on fast walk only. I know we can't see properly, but we have to be as careful as we can!"
Kim emphasized to Paul. Then, he fixed the position of Joseph, who kept trying to fall off his back.
"Do you think there will be no more landmines, Sarge?"
"For Christ! Don't keep saying ominous things and go! There must be only one answer, no matter what it would be. Step on it and got killed all together, or get out of here luckily!"
"Don't keep talking about landmines. I'm hanging right back here."
"Oh, hell. I'm sorry, Joseph."
As soon as the two pair of legs and one on their back were out of the mud field, they had to pass through the barbed wires. However, it didn't take long for a problem to emerge. While Paul and Kim were crawling hard, something tangled in the barbed wire began to scream. Kim briefly turned on the flashlight. A Vietnamese man with a mop of skin, not only his clothes, was trying to reach a hand to them in the barbed wire. This dude is already changed as one of them 'zombies', rather than alive. Poor bastard. Not just endure everything being trapped in there and not get killed, also got affected.
"Should we put him out of his misery?"
Joseph asked weakly. Paul was already aiming down a gun.
"You all crazy now? It was only a few minutes ago that taken Charlie off from our back, and you're already trying to advertise our location?"
Kim spoke bluntly and touched the barbed wire once with his foot.
"But let's hurry, especially at night, and if this fucker keeps doing this without his mouth shut, they'll know we are here, too. Damn it!"
Anyway, they run again and again, leaving the half dead body just screaming. Soon, they came to a forked road where thick wooden fence and barbed wire wreckage were intertwined. Now everything is certain. Roads stretching into rivers. Thick barriers. The bodies that appeared to have died trying to cross over from the other side. The Ho Chi Minh Bridge.
"Finally, the Ho Chi Minh Bridge! We can live if we cross this!"
"But how can we break through this, such a horrible boundary?"
"Brian, Turner, if both of 'em hadn't been that mush of a problem, these two would have crossed successfully, so let's find a way they could have been used!"
Kim turned on the flashlight and quickly scanned the barbed wire. Sure enough, one side of the barbed wire was open enough for a single person to barely pass through. Somehow, the wires being managed to fixed well with an old-fashioned bolt-action rifle that appears to have been abandoned without an owner. At least Brian was the only one that Kim knows who can perform the skills. Kim thought this is an exact sign of proof about their safe passage and able for them to pass through, too.
At that moment, another shot rang out not far away from. Paul was surprised and thought about it for a moment, and then said.
"Isn't that place, is there? The place where a zombie screaming at us, as entangled in a barbed wire."
"Fuck! I guess you're right. Looks like our disturbance plan wasn't very successful enough!"
Kim stopped as he's trying to pass through the barbed wire.
"Paul, from here, you take Joseph! This time, I'll cover you."
"Yes, sarge!"
"Hey, Paul. Don't scratch me to the barbed wire... I'm already hurts like hell..."
Joseph said, turning over behind Paul's back. Looking as tiny Paul is carrying Joseph on his back. Damn. Kim was dumbfounded, even though he ordered it.
"Wait! Joseph, give me one of your grenades."
"It's on my waist. Take it out. But what are you going to do...?"
"Just trying to give them a present. Paul, get over there, hurry!"
Paul leaned down carefully and got up and disappeared into the dark with Joseph. Kim fumbled, looking for something among the barbed wires. Bingo. A wire ropes. He hangs it up on a safety pin of a grenade. Then he hangs the handle on another barbed wire right next to him. Now that they were screwed us a lot of times by their booby traps, now we need to return some repayment to them.
After finishing the work, Kim turned around and began to move forward, carefully so as not to be caught by the barbed wire. The pounding footsteps slowly came closer. If Kim himself taunts them too much from the start, there is a possibility that they will look at the barbed wire more carefully before they cross to suspect something. For now, it should be good to move forward quietly.
Not that much of the far Kim made it out, there was a thunder sound behind his back and the whole bridge's top were shaking. Kim did not fall down on the floor, even though he stumbled, and ran in the direction Paul and Joseph were waiting for. There was no barbed wire from here.
"Sarge?"
Paul's voice was heard in the dark.
"Yes, it's me! Run! They won't catch up for a while!"
"Oh, Brilliant, that explosion, man, what a sound. But Is there any chance that the bridge will collapse?"
"Let's not worry about nothing we had to do, Paul! We're not military engineers, y'know? Even so, I think it's not gonna be possible to collapse down a bridge with just a grenade... Watch Out!"
Kim stopped Paul when he didn't find out and almost fell under the Gigantic open Hole. They couldn't see anything in the dark, but they could hear a few stones falling into the Kon Tum River that must be flowing down there.
"The fuck, what did they do to this goddamn Bridge?"
Judging from the size of the hole, it looked like it had been properly hit by a mortar shell. Well, since it was a battleground, it would be quite a few amounts about exchange bombs as well as bullets on both sides, like the Victory Bridge earlier. No, wait, but how easy can a bridge top go down, as made of reinforced concrete? Hell, the hole was even more bizarre because it looked like a monster's mouth was open while waiting for its prey.
"Sarge, can you feel this, too?"
Joseph, who was on Paul's back, said.
"Stay still, Joseph. You must be out of your mind now because of your injury."
"Uh, Sarge. I don't know why, but I do feel something different."
At Paul's words, Kim looked back. There was still nothing in sight but darkness. But the bridge under the feet were ringing for a while. Something doesn't feel right.
From a distance, they could hear the sound of rebars are twisting. Kim tried to use his head as fast as possible. There would have been no problem because the bridge was built with rebar. In order to break this down, not only the explosives of the engineering squad's using is needed, but also the technology to plant explosives in the right angle and position.
Of course, that would be the case if the bridge was builds normally. Even if the bridge that was hit by bombs three years ago while fighting each other violently hasn't collapsed yet, is it really okay still now? In addition, it was left here alone, abandoned in a humid climate in Vietnam for three years without repair, and will the strength of the reinforcement be maintained? More of it, what is the possibility that these guys faked on some concretes in the first place?
"Fucking hell of Christ! Run! At full speed!"
Kim pushed behind Paul and said. The top plate kept ringing with the sound of something as collapsing in the distance.
There was nothing wrong with just running. However, the key was that on the bridge they were running, is covered by so many odd things thrown around. Kim, Paul, and Joseph, who were carried on the Paul's back, had to cross the bridge while performing various acrobatics even though they didn't mean it.
"This goddamn bridge! Why there is no end!"
"The river is one-and-a-half miles wide! There must be a reason why this bridge is goddamn so long! If you have the strength to speak, shut up and run!"
Frankly, there was out of breath moment and didn't have time to think, but Kim couldn't resist the rising irritation. Why he would come to this Totally-Damned operation, that should have passed it on to others, as Lt. Col. Carlson said. How much did he have to pay for not giving up his morality and conscience? All the things he did was walking, running, shooting, complaining, and almost died all day. Is he alone? Of course not. Jordan was affected by something damned in the water and, neither dead nor alive, had to lose his life by Kim's hand, Albert and Berk were got flushed away where they even don't know by the zombie sniper, a landmine blew Vincent's lower body off and now Joseph lost one of his feet. What a fucking great is this! What a good look of Paul, running next to him right now? This poor fella should be holding a girl's hand in college, not worth struggling in this humid jungle! Kim just wishes Turner and Brian, who would be waiting for us across the river, were fine.
After a long obstacle track and field competition, a familiar structure loomed in the dark. A large iron trusses. The structure, which everyone called 'Reagan's Arc de Triomphe' because of its shape, just like the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France. The crazy Arc de Triomphe that someone had put Paintings of Ho Chi Minh's face with devil horns on it, as an entertainment for a life risking. The only difference from Kim's memory is that they could see the back part, not the face of the devil Ho Chi Minh.
Finally arrived. Goddamn target point. Front line of the 3rd Airborne Brigade in 1982. Where is that cursed white container located.
The place was filled with obstacles, just as the North Vietnamese side they had left earlier. Barbed wire and concrete barriers, and burnt out trucks and drum barrels that can no longer be used. Kim remembered memories of four years ago, along with other soldiers, placed a tripwire and a grenade detonator woven together that connected in a Claymore, and installed it everywhere. Is it just Claymore? If they're unlucky enough, a hidden landmine could be tripped.
First, he looked at the overall obstacles. Under the dim flashlight, he could see the obstacles that remained intact. Some of the Barbed wires were also visible that were spaced apart from each other to allow a single person to pass through. The fact that things that should have been tightly closed like that would surely mean the Turner and Brian made it here safely, and that they did not even get caught by our boovy traps, given that there were no cracks or human limbs rolling around.
"I wish at least these boys cleaned out the road well. Let's go, Paul."
Kim strode through the barbed wire.
"You sure it's safer here? I can't tell if I could do more of this."
"You don't need to worry about under our feet anymore once we get through this hurdle-zone. By the way, four years ago, I laid out some claymores around here, and if you see any strange wires, don't touch them."
"Claymore?! No, wait a minute, what do you mean, you laid it?"
Oops. Kim didn't tell anyone that he was here except Berk and Turner. Hell, there would be no easy ways to solve this.
"Come over for now. I'll explain to you when things are settled down."
Kim was not looking back, but he definitely could feel that Paul's stinging eyes were sticking in the back of his head. It was fortunate that Joseph was out of his mind right now. Otherwise, he would have had to be asked twice as much.
Suddenly, the front grounds are gone, and Kim fell to the ground and hit his face down. Fortunately, he was able to secure his face parts without breaking some face bones, thanks to the helmets touching the ground first. But the pain was pain, and he felts shitty enough.
"Sarge!"
Kim turned to answer Paul's call and saw a wall, made out of sandbags, in front of him. On the wall, Paul could be seen looking down on him with carrying Joseph. Kim looked to the side and discovered that he had fallen into the Kennedy post. This guard dugout, right in front of the Ho Chi Minh Bridge, was given such a sweet name because the sentry men's head was frequently blown away by an enemy sniper. In any case, thanks to this familiar place, Kim was confident that he had arrived at the exact spot. All he had to do was go through the communication trench and go to the middle area, then searching for a white container will be easy as a cakewalk. Kim searched the way by shining the dim lights of his flashlight.
"This way!"
Kim and Paul quickly passed the communication trench. There was one thing that Kim was looking for. A temporary bomb shelter, called as a dugout.
"There was definitely one around here. Oh, there it is. Let's go see the Joseph's injury over there for a second."
Kim and Paul entered the temporary bomb shelter, which seemed to be still fine. Nothing changed compared to four years ago. The environment was terrible, no different from the North Vietnamese place across the street, but at least there were no bodies rolling around in it. Paul put Joseph down with a hard sound. Joseph made a painful groan. Thanks to morphine, he did not struggle like before, but if they continue to leave it like this, it's more likely to this friend take ends here. Kim shined Joseph's foot with a flashlight. The amount of blood came out significantly less than before, but it did not seem to have stopped completely.
"Now, what should I do about this?"
"Can't you just take off his boots and check the condition inside, sarge?"
"What if there's an amputation inside? What if it's a complex fracture and flesh bursts barely hangs on it? What if it comes out together when the boots are taken off? I haven't looked into it myself, either, so I can't tell you well, but I think that the boots are holding the wound so it doesn't get wider."
"Whether it's gotten wider or not... the bloods... I think it has to be stop..."
"Sorry, Joseph. Hang in there."
Joseph was breathing heavily. Kim opened Joseph's military backpack and took out a pair of socks.
"Is this new?"
"I've never... I didn't wear them since I washed them."
"Okay. It could hurt, so, uh, Paul, hold Joseph. Tight."
Kim crumpled his socks as tightly as possible through the torn open boot. Joseph seemed to be trying to put up with the pain, but his groan stuck out through his teeth. Paul somehow managed to hold onto Joseph's body, even with his poor physique. Kim somehow managed to crumple his socks well and then wrapped a compression band over the boot. In fact, he wondered if this would be helpful even if he was doing this trick himself. However, it was better to try something than not doing anything and leaving it unattended when there was no professional medic around.
"That's it for now. Nice patience, Joseph. And, um, sorry."
Kim patted Joseph on the cheek lightly. Joseph drooped as if he had lost all his strength. Paul moved away from Joseph's body.
"Pau... Paul, can I get some water...? Get my canteen out..."
Paul took out Joseph's canteen and spilled water little by little into his mouth. Kim also flopped on a chair made of sandbags. Everyone went through too much in a short time. He also took out his canteen and wet his lips.
"So, Sarge, what's the truth?"
"What truth?"
"What do I mean is, what do you mean, that Claymores are installed by you? You say it's your first time here. But how there could be a booby trap exists that planted by you, even on where everyone withdrew four years ago, sarge?"
Kim looked at Paul and sighed. Then he swept his face once, and took a cigarette out of the cigarette pack stuck in his helmet and asked.
"You want one?"
"... Please hand me one."
Kim put a cigarette in Joseph's mouth and lit it up. Paul was staring at Kim in doubt. Kim took a sip and spat out smoke.
"I didn't tell you and everyone about that I was never here before, I just never brought up that story."
"Then why you didn't?"
Kim starts to talk while he was looking at his boot's tip.
"Yeah. Why didn't I tell you? The fact that we had to come here anyway wouldn't be changed, and the things that we had to see and experience, all of that terrible things here was going to happen anyway."
Paul was still looking at Kim with an expression of dissatisfaction. Joseph often only emitted cigarette smoke and did not say anything.
"Maybe my greed was too much. I just wanted to get here quickly and do what we had to do and go out A.S.A.P, because I know this area to a certain extent. No one needs to hurt or dies, needless to say. But, now I've lost so much of our crews now, and my excuse is can't be even an excuse. I'm sorry, Paul."
Kim threw a cigarette butt to the ground. Then he opened his mouth and began to talk. As he told Berk and Turner first about everything that had happened since 1982, but because time was urgent, he summarized it as much as possible. Paul listened with a firm look on his face, and Joseph was, well, he was still a little unconsciousness after all. When Paul heard everything of Kim's story, he remained silent for a moment and opened his mouth.
"It would be enough if you just told us, just, just to a brief level, sarge, whatever how much confidential that was. I don't think any of us should be solely responsible as four of our platoon members died, but at least it wasn't some story you can't say to us. Didn't you know best that we're not just a guy that only been seen each other just a one day, and none of our platoon members has been making such a fuss?"
"I'm sorry, Paul. I cannot even lift a face about this."
Paul's words fly out and stuck on Kim's conscience like a dagger. There were nothing wrong things in Paul's word. No matter how important operational confidentiality was, at least it shouldn't have hindered between the trust of the platoon members. Even if he had told you in advance, he doubts that even if everyone could have been properly prepared for these crazy variables, but at least, they had a right to know. Then, Paul stands up.
"Why don't we put a pepper to our steps now?"
"Excuse me?"
"So, you're going to sit here and just chewing on the facts that what's already gone now? Although you, sarge, had done something that would have adversely affected our trust relationship, but you did not worse on your conduct. I felt little disappoint to you, though, but I can tell this one fact exactly. We didn't lose four people because of you, sarge. But we were able to save five, thanks to you. And honestly speaking of the fact that you hid from us, it seems that there are not that much of important parts. Now that we're just hissing to each other for nothing."
"Paul, man."
"Also, Private Joseph is on the verge of dying, and he ain't gonna be naturally healed by just teasing our teeth here, is there? I think it's better to quickly find Corporal Turner and Specialist Brian and achieve that stupid goal, then get the fuck out of this stupid place."
Paul picked up Kim's rifle and handed it over.
"At least I can swear this one thing, I'm not gonna be the one who shoots you in the back!"
"Paul, you little son of...!"
It surely that Paul has certainly grown up a little more. He doesn't let go of each other's feuds, but he knows when to solve them and when to pay attention to more urgent things. Kim said, as he waved Paul's helmet.
"Paul, man, I will not just let this go, I promise. If we get out of here, I'll pay as the way that everyone will be satisfied with."
"Then buy me a beer first, sarge. I'm thirsty."
Kim carried Joseph back on his back. Although he was almost out of energy, but he still had his life attached to him as Kim saw him firmly hold onto Kim's shoulder.
"Forward, then, let's go! The goal is right in front of us!"
They came out back to the communication trench. As they slowly walked out of the dark trench, Kim could see more and more familiar places to him. Mortar and Howitzer Positions, where there were no chances for ears to remain intact. Outdoor Toilets, where some dumbasses tripped and fell down there frequently. A Bunker named 'Congress House' because of the looks of field commanders gathered and had a meeting looked like a meeting between the Senate and the House of Representatives, and a Field Hospital, where the screams and groans of the battle buddies never stops. However, the shape was not the exact same as four years ago. Everywhere was burned, smashed and scorched, and the shape remained only enough to barely recognize what it looked like in the past. Come to think of it, it was understandable. After that terrible disaster happened that even the superiors couldn't cope with, and after they all withdrew, but couldn't just leave this place untouched. Whether it was napalm or a high explosive bomb, they must use something here.
"Is there gonna be anything that left intact? I'd have a better nightmare than this."
Before Kim could answer Paul's comment, he could see another rotting body rolling around in front of him. It wasn't even a surprising event anymore. Kim paused for a moment and looked at the body. If it's the mark of the 3rd Airborne Brigade in his left arm. Precisely, this guy was here with me in 1982. Seeing that his face was in a mess, this friend can't be died peacefully. By the way, his neck has been neatly got cut, and Kim still could see the vivid blood vessels and muscles underneath the skin that had already mummified. Given that the fact that cut's surface is not dry yet, that does mean it has not been that much longer since it was got cut. As far as Kim knows, Turner will be the only one who can perform this cutting skill. Based on this, then, Brian and Turner definitely arrived here. But, where are they?
"By the way, where do you think Corporal Turner and Specialist Brian will be?"
"Looking at this dude died out here, I'm sure they arrived safely. But I think they hid themselves too well. Shit, I should have told with them in advance where we would meet."
Suddenly, the trench ended. It was too dark, so none of them couldn't see the whole thing, but they surely came out into the wide-open space. Even though it was ruined, the field clinic has passed, so it is clear that the section of support trench has crossed. Then this must be a Rear Support Base from here. Slowly, objects that had been buried in the dark began to be seen.
It was a very familiar scene. It was the exact the Place when the disaster occurred in 1982, where everyone was constantly killing each other. It seemed that the bodies had been dispersed or lost due to napalm and other bombings. Only grasses were growing everywhere. A field command post made of sand, a makeshift barracks, and a few trucks and other equipment were still standing there, just like four years ago. An empty spot was visible among the rows of trucks. Kim wasn't very happy to see that again. That place was the place which the truck he drove was standing on the day of April 1982. The tragedy of that day, which he had managed to forget little by little, gradually came back to life. Kim could feel the groundless fear that the crazy zombies of 4 years ago might have risen again and run towards them among the lush grasslands.
Paul seemed to have kicked something wrong while he was following Kim. The sound of the empty can resonate inside the quiet front line support base.
"For God's sake, Watch your step!"
Even Paul couldn't respond yet, a gunshot rang out and a bullet could be heard passing by Kim's ear. Without anyone saying anything, Paul and Kim threw themselves to the floor. Joseph screamed because of the sudden pain from his legs. Someone was rapidly throwing a bullet from beyond the grass. A 3-round burst fire? Hmm. There will be only one gun exists now in Vietnam, which can perform a Burst fire. The M16A2, it is. unless the Vietnamese got trained to shoot their rifles with their finger controlled well, though. And Turner uses M16A2. That means, it will be more likely Turner who is throwing bullets over there. Sure enough, the gunshot paused and Turner's loud voice was heard screaming viciously.
"You won't be able to take me, you damn-fuckin' zombies! Just raise your head one more fucking time! Come on! Do it!"
Kim shouted after checking the locations of Paul and Joseph.
"Hold Fire! Hold Fire! Friendlies! Turner! Hold Fire!"
"Don't speak English, you cocksuckers! I'm not gonna be fooled more than twice! If you don't want to die around here, stay away from me!"
Bullets were flying randomly. However, it wasn't surely a targeted shot since no bullet flew near their location and only the sound was loud. In addition, it seemed that he is just randomly shooting everywhere as he could, judging by the sound of a gunshot like that, even it is a burst fire. Something definitely went wrong. Even if Turner had some easy temperament, it wasn't that much of a bad. Besides, what's Brian doing without stopping him.
"Turner Westwood, this is an order! Hold fire now!"
The gunfire flew far away and produced an echo. The echo of the gunshot rang out in the jungle, and slowly faded away. Turner's voice was could be heard again during a moment of silence.
"Kim? Sarge Kim? Is that you, sarge?"
"Yes, it's me. I'm back. I've brought Paul and Joseph with me, too. Knock that shit out of your crack-head nonsense and lower the barrel."
"Huh, prove it then, prove it! Prove it's our sarge Kim then! I have nothing more to lose now!"
Kim raised up his body. Over the light of the flashlight, Turner could be seen shivering about 30 feet away. Kim showed his face after removing the flashlight from his shoulder strap.
"It's me. You happy now? Now, please, lower your weapons."
Turner lowered the gun. But not just lowered, he even dropped the gun on the ground. Kim didn't tell him to throw away the weapon. Turner stumbled through the grass, while Kim was dumbfounded. Paul gets up with supporting Joseph, too. Kim grabbed Turner's arm as he approached. Turner's face was ridiculous. Tears welled up in his eyes, not to mention the muddy all around, and his expression seemed to contain some indescribable emotion.
"Turner, what the hell is this all about? Where's Brian?"
"Sarge... S... Sarge... Please... Help me. I want to live. Please help me…."
"Turner, Turner! Man, keep it together. What is this? What happened?"
Kim shook Turner and said. Paul's face turned into despair. The luminous clock on Kim's wrist was telling that it had just past midnight.