War and Thunder

August needs to get away from this muggy rain. He is out of ammo and cannot trace his way back. The best thing to do now is hide. The clouds look possessed. The sky lights up in the morning and then the sun never shines through. That’s how it stays throughout the day, dimly-lit and ominous. Like the green has been drained from the trees and the blue from the skies. Then, the rain started.

The rain is making it very difficult for August to see. His steps are cautious as he steps out of the cover of the trees, towards the old barn. Maybe he can hide there for the night, or at least till the storm passes.

The barn door opens with a loud creak as August pushes his way in, but the thunder cracking is even louder. He crouches with his knife raised, just in case, and his spine creaks like the old door. Bending down just a little bit hurts his back like hell. His flesh is tender all over his body. Sleeping on sticks and stones for weeks will do that to you.

The rain is bleeding through the barn roof. August wonders if this place will even hold up through the night! He notices another body on the floor leaning against the wall, barely moving. He stops in his tracks.

Same uniform, thank God.

August doesn’t get too close though. Ever cautious. Vigilant. But the body moves and the soldier looks up at him. August can tell he is badly injured and can barely lift his head. He looks like he is dying, slowly.

“Sorry I don’t have any supplies with me,” explains August.

As if a dying man really cares.

“That’s alright. I don’t think they would do me much good at this point.”

“I’m August.”

“Kai.”

“How long have you been here?”

“Two days I think. I’ve been in and out of it, can’t be sure. Anyone on your tail?”

“No. I think people are just hiding from the rain right now. No one will come looking for us here until it stops.”

“How much ammo do you have left?”

“I’m out.”

“Me too.”

Rolling thunder outside. It seems to be getting closer and closer.

August can smell Kai. They are at least 10 ft. apart, but he can smell Kai’s blood and sweat. Maybe even his punctured flesh. He doesn’t get any closer, worried that he might throw up his last few bites of jerky. Instead, he collapses on the floor across from Kai, exhausted.

“So, what happened to you Kai?”

“We attacked a base about 4 clicks away. Just across the little hill to the West. But we weren’t prepared. Our intel was wrong. These are not the farmers with pitchforks and knives we came to fight.”

“Yeah we’ve faced a lot more guns and grenades than we thought we would.”

“But we outnumbered them. Won at the end.”

“You won? Doesn’t look like it.”

The cracks are so loud now that it feels like lightning is striking the barn itself. Like jockeys whipping their horses. As if the storm is trying to get one last rise out of the dying barn.

“I’m the last man standing from my unit, no one’s left on the other side. So yes, we won. At least this battle, if not the war. If I don’t make it, maybe you will live to speak of my victory. 131st MP company. Don’t forget that name.”

“I won’t. How did you survive?”

“Survive? Barely. Just luck of draw I guess. I thought I could make it back but I lost too much blood. I couldn’t walk anymore.”

“Smart man. Wait it out. I can help you up when this storm passes.”

“A smart man wouldn’t be here in the first place.”

Being indoor isn’t helping all that much. Too much rain is getting in. He can barely see. The thunderclaps seem to get closer and closer, as if it’s working its way down the valley, looking for August. Coming to get him.

August takes off his vest and his shirt. They are soaked through anyway and not doing him any good.

“I thought of running away. Take whatever we could and find a small town up North. Change our names,” Kai stutters.

“You would never live in peace. Never have another night of good sleep. Live the rest of your life waiting to be arrested.”

“But I would be alive. I would see my daughter grow up. Now, I am dying not even knowing why.”

“We are soldiers, my friend. All that matters to us is who we have to kill. Not why.”

“All I know is every single brother I trained with for the last 3 years is dead. Every single one. Not knowing why doesn’t help.”

“What were you before all this? Before the draft?”

“I was a baker. A pastry chef.”

“A baker? No shit! A big guy like yourself? I could have sworn you were born a war pig.”

“I was a good chef. I had my own shop too. Made the best banana bread and blueberry muffins in town.”

“Oh man. I would do anything for a fresh piece of cake right about now.”

Kai coughs hard. It almost kills him. August tries to get up to comfort him, but he realizes he is a lot more worn out than he thought he was. Like Kai, he can barely move. His head spins a little. His arms and legs feel like iron barbells, getting heavier by the minute.

“I’ve never spent a day in the kitchen. I was always a soldier. Like my father before me.”

“A professional. Maybe that’s why you’ll make it out of here.”

“Soldiers are the hands of God, my father used to say.”

“Not too sure about that one brother.”

August knows Kai is likely to survive if he keeps talking. So, he keeps the conversation alive.

“Let’s think of a better time. Tell me more about your shop.”

“Oh man, it feels like a lifetime away now. I used to start every morning mixing butter, eggs and flour together. I used to bake right there in the back of the shop, with vents going around to the front so that the smell of bread and cake filled the street.”

August’s mouth fills with saliva. He could almost taste it. He closes his eyes and digs his toes into the wet mud under his feet. It feels like gooey buttery batter.

“If I get out of here, maybe I will visit your shop. Is it still open?”

“Yeah. My daughter and my mom are still there. Baking everyday. They don’t make all the same stuff I used to, but people love the shop. We sell out everyday.”

“Sounds like a little piece of heaven.”

“I didn’t get to send the last letter I wrote to them. It’s in my vest. Will you take it with you?”

“I will. I will get your letter out. I promise.”

August hears thunder crack the barn roof open as a whip cracks his back. His muscles wake up and tighten as he feels ropes around his neck and arms. Mind numbing pain rushes through his body and floods his mind. He can’t tell what hurts more, the bleeding wounds on his back or the blisters on his wrists and neck where the prickly fibers of rope are digging in. He can see the dim sky and smell the wet mud under his feet. Mud just feels like mud now. The roof and the walls of the barn are gone.

Kai is 10 ft. from him, dirty, smelly and bloody. He is tied up against a post as well. August cannot tell if Kai is still breathing. There isn’t a drop of water in sight. August realizes that he could only hear the crack of thunder all this time, but there was no sound of rain. He could only feel the rain. Muggy and disgusting. The warm rain of heavy sweat dripping from his body and warm blood seeping into his eyes.