The War Within

Prologue

I met him in town on a day out with Mom. The poor aged man had his hands lodged in dirty old wool worn socks. He was trying to keep them out of the cold relentless advances of the winter wind. His feet were encased in a clear plastic concealment that waved through the air in a dance of weightlessness. His ragged, decrepit U.S. veteran's jacket was hardly managing to retain the heat from his worn out body. He looked old, and gray, and broken. He had nothing to lose but everything to gain. He was frowning in a sorrowful way as his melancholy gaze followed the passerbys as they out rightly overlooked him and his obvious affliction. A normal individual in this situation would go with the horde folk and would go forth with the ignorant bliss, but I was not ordinary neither was I one to follow the crowd.

I, bearing no mind of others, walked up to the down-and-out vet and conveyed him a smile. Ignoring those who did not show the poor soul the kindness he was looking for, he looked up at me and smiled back.

"Hello," I said.

"Heller, young one," He replied.

I looked down at his jacket. I guess the sun had faded it to a whitish tan color. There were stains covering the places around the armpits. The aroma wafting up from it was unbearable. The strong stench of body odor and stale deodorant was filling my senses.

"May I join you?"

He smiled brightly at me.

"Of course you may, young one."

I sat down beside him on the dirty street corner and made myself as comfortable as possible.

"If it is not too much to ask", I said, "can you please tell me your name and your story?"

Shivering from the cold air whipping around us, he replies, "My name is Lutinute coronal David Emerson. I was once a young kid like you. I was young and innocent, ignorant to the ways of war. I spent most of my early years in a two room house sharing one bed with my eight other siblings. My nights were spent reading by firelight because we couldn't pay for electricity...."