War Intro

James looked at Ashley who sat in the corner of the room. She was a nice girl who lasted only a week before lost her maidenhood to him. It meant the world to him at the time and he even brought a ring to tell Ashley that he had enjoyed her to the limit - however something pulled him back and he threw the ring into the trash. What had stopped him from giving Ashley the ring? War, it was on the rise and he was needed to perform as one of the troops. James groaned as he thought about war and all its blood and hate - he had seen the movies on war a dozen time and he knew what it was, pitiful!

James wiped his hands on his pants and then he smiled. Ashley wasn't in the mood to look up from her book and James lost the smile fast. James wished Ashley was more in tune with the world, but she was lost like a ghost on a ship that sailed across the middle of the ocean; he didn't like it because he couldn't charm Ashley with old fashioned romance, he needed to talk and when he did talk it was with a needle on his tongue.

“What are you doing there?” he asked to break the silence that caused barbed wire to rake against his skin.

“Reading;” muttered Ashley who was unable to look up from her book.

“What are you reading?” asked James as he narrowed his eyes.

“Just some silly romance;” told Ashley in half-grumble.

“Why is it silly?” asked James as he lingered on his spot where he could feel the warmth from the light-globe the best.

“It's sappy and dull;” told Ashley as she shrugged.

“Then read another book;” told James as he shrugged.

“No, I would rather just finish this one;” told Ashley as she bit on a strand of hair.

James gave up on trying to be the interest and he shrugged.

“I'm going to war;” he told Ashley as he felt his heart dip.

“What do you know?” muttered Ashley as she turned a page.

James felt angered, but no tempered. He knew Ashley was aware of the war and the enlisting, but not of the fact that he had been enlisted.

“You couldn't be sympathetic?” he asked as he narrowed his eyes.

Ashley finally looked up and met James angry face as he glared at her like a stick with a head that was filled with hot fire and anger.

“They are recruiting girls, maybe I will meet you there;” told Ashley with a grim smile on her face.

James shrugged and then he picked up a bag and pretended to pack. Ashley glared at James and he felt his skin crawl as she eyed him. She laughed at him under her face, she knew there was something more when a person was enlisted and she laughed at him with a cackle that threw him off. James stopped the pretend and packed for real - sure he didn't need to be at the station for two days but he wanted to get away sooner then expected. Ashley stopped her laugh and watched as James continued to pack, and he didn't stop until his shoes were out of the door.

James got drunk at a local pub and picked a fight. He ended up in the gutter with his head rashed with blood. James didn't want to care and he groaned for a full half an hour before a bouncer told him to take it to the park. James picked up his bag and moved to the park, and there he laid himself on the dewy grass and slept.

In the morning James was woken by a bird and he spent the day with his eyes on the trees before night fell. James walked the lone shadows that were long and tall, and he made it to the train station where he would catch a train. He had only one more day to wait and sweat was on his spine. James could feel the tension and so he walked to another pub and got drunk. James spent the night drinking and then he picked a fight - he ended up outside of the train-station and he was carried onto the train by a soldier who noticed his tightly packed bag.

James woke and looked out of the train window - his eyes were red, his head was sore, and he felt glum. A train service attendant offered James ice-tea and James took the drink with pleasure. He felt distorted inside and the ice-tea only stung his brain. James didn't want to think any more, he was in the army and he was doomed.

2

Ashley looked up from her book as a deep knock pounded on her door. She wanted to shrink to the shadows - she had heard that people were being enlisted by the independent army men who knocked on doors, and she didn't want to go there. However the knock continued on and on, and Ashley gulped as she finally pushed her book to the side.

Ashley crept to her door and opened it a crack, and then she sighed as she met the face of Greg - James sweet brother.

“Hello there;” told Ashley before she opened the door.

Greg streamed inside and there he chose a table to sit on as Ashley closed and locked the door. Ashley turned and met Greg who looked like a soldier in full uniform. He glared at her and waved.

“Sorry my mouth is dry;” he muttered in a dry drawl.

“Why is it dry?” asked Ashley as she narrowed her eyes and folded her arms. “Were you on the sprint?” she asked.

“No;” told Greg as he shrugged. “I took a drug;” he added in a quiet tone.

“Should I get you some water?” asked Ashley who grew immediately angered that Greg had taken a drug and visited her apartment.

“Sure;” told Greg as he shrugged. “That would be good;” he added as though unsure.

“I sure will;” told Ashley before she moved to the sink to get Greg some water.

Greg took the offered cup and then he drank the water in one gulp. Ashley smiled a little as he coughed, and then she glared at Greg as he pushed the cup away.

“So why did you visit?” asked Ashley as she smiled.

Greg looked to Ashley and then he shrugged as he shifted his feet on the floor.

“Nothing, I was just walking by;” he added as he blinked.

“Oh;” muttered Ashley as she also blinked. “Well James left for the army two weeks ago;” he told.

“I know he wrote me a letter;” told Greg as he smiled. “He told me to send him some cookies the canteen didn't serve sweets of any kind;” he told.

“What hell;” told Ashley as she began to pout over the fact that she wanted to send him cookies but had no address to write to.

“The hell of it is that when I sent cookies I accidentally enlisted myself into the army” told Greg as he rolled his eyes. “The soldiers visited me and told me I looked strong. Once they discovered I was a police man in a past life they gave me these clothes and told me to pack my bag I was going to be the big man on campus - whatever that means;” he added in a shy tone.

Ashley blinked. She wished James had been given that option - but no, he was given runner and front-line servant, he was expected to die.

“I am sure you will do well;” told Ashley unable to tell Greg how much her spine sweated as she heard footsteps down the hall.

“Will I?” asked Greg as he blinked. “I don't know, you can give it your best that is all;” he added as he shrugged. “No one is supposed to win these wars, it's just made for cock fighting;” he added. “To harm everyone in it;” he added.

“I see;” told Ashley as she glared at Greg as though she were unable to be reached.

“So when those men told me I was going to be the big man, I just assumed it meant that I was going to be the big phoney who walked like they were important and were then grilled on a secret mission which ensure my non-survival;” he added.

“Well you are tall, maybe they just liked your size;” told Ashley as she smiled.

“Maybe;” told Greg as he shrugged. “But the point is that I am going to war;” he added. “I knew James wasn't here but I was thinking that if I go to war I will not come back;” he told before he cleared his voice. “So maybe you can get pregnant with my kid?” he asked in a slow and exaggerated manner.

“They have sluts on the board;” told Ashley as she felt the instinct to slap Greg on the face. “You can marry one and have a family before you die;” she added.

“I know;” told Greg. “But those freaks are made for human experimentation and they will never exit the army;” he whispered. “You are not in the army, give me a kid;” he added. “Please;”

“No!” gasped Ashley as she grew disgusted. “Get the hell out of this apartment!” she screamed.

Greg shrivelled his gut and withdrew.

“Okay;” he added before he picked up his hat. “It was just a question;” he declared. “Screw you, I will never fight for you;” he added before he picked up his feet and left the apartment. “I'll tell the warden there's a female listing;” he added as he reached the door. “Front line nurse;” he added before he slammed the door behind him.

Ashley threw a hand over her mouth. She wanted to vomit, but she didn't know how. She moved to the toilet and threw her wait over it - but nothing came out, only tears rolled down her face.

“I hate this war!” she declared as she began to cry. “Everything is disgusting;” she added before she sunk to the floor.

3

James march the forest and found something to shoot. He shot and shot a target and then he shot something else that fell from the trees.

“Was that a bird?” asked the trainer named Jim.

“I don't know;” muttered James as he blinked at the tall grass that held the thing he had shot.

“I think it was;” told Jim as he wrote down something on his board. “Mind the wildlife;” he added. “Please;” he declared. “Or you eat the next one;” he finished before he walked away.

James blinked, he knew he wanted to feel bad but he had been put in army mode and his heart was dead. James didn't want to care about what he had done, but there was a stick inside that wanted to break. James walked on and he shot at something else. It had a human voice and as soon as he had let a bullet fly a whistle blew.

Chaos erupted as all the trainees flooded to the grass until they found the person James had shot. He had shot a cleaner and he was escorted away from the premises.

“Detention;” muttered Jim as he carried the cleaner away. “Now!” he shouted.

James wanted to scream - he hadn't meant to shoot a person, but it was training and the cleaner wasn't supposed to be there. James bent his head low - it didn't matter what he was supposed to have done all he knew was that he was not going to get to sleep that night and he as going to live through hell.

Ashley looked at the door. She had heard a knock that had been faint and she was afraid of the person on the other side. Ashley gulped, she wanted to ignore the knock but it didn't seem menacing and so she walked up to the door and opened it.

Outside was a soldier and he smiled at Ashley who shivered under her skin as she met his full uniform.

“Hey there Ashley I am Harry;” told the soldier.

“Hi there;” muttered Ashley as she shivered under her skin.

The soldier looked okay but his eyes were strange blue and were like a Nazi's eyes. He could have been from one of the Nazi leaders that had graced the German stage ten short years before. Ashley wanted to run away but she kept her feet in one spot as she waited for the militant to say something.

“I intercepted your recent course test;” told the soldier as he grinned. “The campus would have liked to have seen you there;” he added. “Smart A student;' he added. “With good writing skills;” he pointed out.

“Thanks;” told Ashley as she carefully took the folder that the soldier readily handed to her.

“Why were you studying the course?” asked the soldier. “Do you want to be a teacher?” he asked.

“I was paying for rent;” told Ashley as she rolled her eyes. “I have no support now;” she added. “Everyone has gone to war;” she finished.

“That's no good;” told the soldier. “With your smarts you could be first choice for special services;” he added with enthuse.

“No, I don't think the army is for me;” muttered Ashley as she felt a quiver.

“It's not the army;” told the soldier. “It's Government work;” he added. “You get to work with a small team;” he declared. “Like a board meeting;” he coaxed.

“I see;” muttered Ashley as she narrowed her eyes. “So I don't have to do lawn runs?” she asked.

“No!” gasped the soldier. “That's more military, what you do is think, make reports, voice your opinion;” he declared. “You'll get forty-thousand grand per year;” he added.

Ashley began to melt. She had heard of private jobs but she never thought she was capable of obtaining one - James would have been so jealous if he could watch her at that moment, she smiled at the thought.

“Will there be a contract?” asked Ashley as she shrugged.

“Yes I do;” told James as he picked up his suitcase and laid it on a table. “Let me get it out;” he added before he took out a tranquilliser gun and shot.

Ashley felt a prick of pain before she stumbled to the floor. She didn't know what happened during a trek into the blank zone, but when she woke she was in a car that was locked tight and there was no way she was going to escape.