Band of Brothers - Sunshine Solider

chapter 19: d-day

" Stand up!" he called, everyone bustling to their feet quickly.

" Hook up!" he called, as Charlotte clipped her clip onto the wire. Charlotte was right in front of Gene and she knew he could feel the nerves radiating off her like a radio signal. She was looking at Winters, a blank, serious expression on her usually bright features.

" Equipment check!" Winters yelled. She felt Gene begin tightening her straps, and every once and a while giving her a pat on the back to calm her nerves. She checked her satchel and med band quickly, and adjusted her helmet strap as well.

" Sound off for equipment check!" Winters yelled. She heard the yells come from behind her yelling the numbers.

" Three ok!" she heard Gene yell before patting her shoulder.

" Two ok!" she yelled, her voice raw and raspy from spite, and it surprised even herself.

" One ok!" yelled Winters, nodding to Charlotte. Men were jumping from their planes but Plane 67 had yet to get their go signal. All the sudden the plane shook with such force, it sent Charlotte flying forward, and almost to the ground if Winters wasn't there. The plane bustled through the sky, rattling and shuttering at every explosion that rattled the plane. But then all the sudden the jump light turned green.

" Let's go!" yelled Winters. Winters jumped out and it was Charlotte's turn. She felt Gene pat her back and she was jumping. She felt the wind blowing against her face in a mad fashion and the sound of explosions exploding everywhere sent her heart racing faster than it already was. Her canopy provided that slight sense of comfort that she was still alive and that she was still a paratrooper.

It brought the reality back for her.

 She was falling into an open field from what she could see. The explosions in the sky rocked the canopy, as it waved back and forth and made her slightly sick to her stomach. Fires were in multiple parts of the open field and in the trees where paratroopers had been taken down by gunfire, or where planes had been taken down and exploded into flames. She saw the forest edge nearby and noticed a town on fire which seemed to be a few miles from where she was at the moment. 

The ground came faster and faster toward her, and she braced herself. She landed roughly on the ground in a heap and felt the bruises already forming. She let out a groan, rolling in the muddy ground and grimaced when she tangled the parachute even more. She sat up, pushing up from the muddy pit she had landed in, and reached down unclipping the chute and rolling it into a ball. She threw her helmet off her head and began undressing all the equipment from herself. She pulled the life vest from her body and removed the webbing as well. 

She grabbed her medic bag and adjusted it quickly before doing the same to her medic band. Her braids had some dirt and mud crusted into them from what she could feel. She felt the grease from what felt like ages ago drying hard on her face and the mud of France mixing with it as well. She threw her helmet back onto her head and looked up from her crouched position on the ground. There was no noise except distant explosions and the rustle of the breeze against the grass. 

She stayed low in the tall grass, sucking in a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. She didn't stand fully up but she moved to where the tree edge was. No one had landed near here. She thought Gene or Winters had to be close, but there was no sign of a parachute or body nearby. Fear pulsed through her veins and the feeling grew worse. The pit in her stomach dropped further and further into darkness and fear. 

Nothing could've happened to them, right? 

Her pulse quickened and she knew she needed to find cover. She kept her crouched position until she reached the forest and nestled herself into a bush. She needed to calm down. Her breathing rate was quick, almost wheezing and the dizziness wasn't helping either. Her mind was a mess and there was not a single paratrooper near her. She stayed in the bush, trying to control her breathing.