This is their last mission of the day.
They are almost making it.
Elli crouches behind the fortification, his fingers trembling as usual as he clasps the rifle. Every now and then, the ground is blasted, showering their bodies with smuts and blood. The momentum of each shoot shoves Elli backwards. He tries to steady himself but the weight of his equipment holds him down. With a mindless slip, he sprains his ankle and staggers to his right, almost bumping into Shaan. Shaan holds Elli's arm firmly, keeping him from the fall. Elli smiles bashfully and gets back to his feet before he starts shooting again. Shaan is preoccupied with the grenades and mini-bombs their squad has prepared. He is the best handler of IEDs on the team. He gestures for his comrades to bend down and cover their ears as he pulls out the pins from a few grenades and tosses them out onto the field. The grenades explode in a second and the ground quakes massively. Ren, the best sniper on their side, seizes the chance to take down a few of their enemies, shooting each through the head or the neck or the chest. Shaan and Ren repeat their actions a few more times, taking turns to detonate grenades, causing enough explosions to panic their opponents before shooting them down. Kaiden is inside one of the tanks, manoeuvring the titanic machine through the field and firing the cannons simultaneously.
Elli hides behind the fortification, lost. He doesn't fit in anywhere. He watches back and forth as Shaan hurls the grenades out to the field and Ren pulls the trigger once every second, the cannons firing non-stop from Kaiden's tank, flattening half of the woods on the other side. And here he is, squatting behind the ditch, face covered with soot and scratches, skin burning and almost dropping his rifle.
Every mission can be his last, but his comrades never stop shielding him, keeping a watch on him as he trips and shoots the wrong person, almost steps onto a mime or falls on their own grenade by accident.
'Don't close your eyes, Elli!' shouts Shaan, sliding to his side. He has put aside the grenades and crawled to Elli's back. Wrapping his arms around Elli from behind and guiding his hands back on the rifle, he helps pull the trigger and shoot down a few soldiers on the field.
'If you close your eyes, you'll only get more frightened,' whispers Shaan into his right ear, his own index finger pressing hard on Elli's inside the trigger guard.
'I...can't –' stammers Elli, his hands shivering.
'Yes, you can,' assures Shaan, steering the rifle to another side and firing multiple times. A few shadows collapse immediately. 'Believe me, you can.'
Shaan lets go of Elli and returns to his position. He picks up a grenade and bites the pin off, flinging it towards an enemy's tank. Elli cringes as another explosion rings in their ears. This time, he keeps his eyes wide open and stares at the field ahead, at the dashing, advancing figures, the accelerating tanks and artillery, the bullets flying in his way. His finger laces around the trigger tightly and he fires. Shaan glimpses him with a grin.
A couple of minutes later, their enemies start retreating back into the woods, vanishing slowly from the field. Elli sits on the ground, exhausted. Shaan, satisfied with his own performance, wipes his hands on his pants and walks over to Elli, holding out his hand.
'Come on, we're getting back,' says Shaan.
Elli, still barely able to move, takes Shaan's hand and struggles to stand up.
'Stop being such a weakling,' teases Ren, giving Elli a hard pat on his back. Elli only stumbles forward. Shaan shoots Ren a disapproving glare before taking Elli's rifle and rucksack.
'Stop spoiling him,' says Ren. 'What's he going to do without you?'
Elli sighs and stares at the ground.
'Ignore him,' says Shaan. 'We'll be back in no time. Endure a little bit more, okay?'
Elli nods and follows Shaan and the other comrades into the woods. The original path they came from has been blasted during the fight, now blocked by fallen trees and a battered tank. They decide to take the short-cut and walk along a very narrow trail that cuts through the woods, shaded by towering pines, thorny bushes and thick ferns on both sides. The trail leads to a shallow swamp. The water reaches up to their knees and the sticky mud makes walking more strenuous than ever. They stride through the swamp and climb back onto a dry sandy road. That's when Shaan notices something fishy.
'Wait, don't go any further –'
BOOM!
They tumble backwards upon the tremendous impact. Most of them fall on their bottoms, including Shaan and Elli, who are walking in the front. Ren's dismembered torso flashes across them, falling flat a meter away, his detached two legs scattered nearby.
'There're mines!' yells Shaan, startling everyone on the spot. They cease moving and stare at their mutilated comrades who have stepped on the anti-personnel mines and got blown into pieces.
'Oh God,' cries Shaan as he races to Ren, holding his blasted body. 'Elli, how far is it until we're back to the camp?'
Elli doesn't reply. He can't stop shaking as he takes in the sight of Ren's bleeding, almost unrecognisable torso. One of their comrades takes out a GPS and answers for Shaan. They're meters away from the camp and if they cut through the bushes and sedges, they'll still make it.
They take out a mine detector and scan the areas surrounding the trail. After confirming that they're clean, they decide to abandon the trail and walk into the thickets.
'Elli, please, come help me!'
Shaan's hands are soaked with Ren's blood. In his arms, Ren squirms and moans, blood squirting incessantly from his wounds. Elli, tearing up already, kneels down next to Shaan and injects Ren's body with morphine, putting him into a temporary state of unconsciousness. He then takes the rucksacks from Shaan and helps steady Ren's torso on Shaan's back.
'Where's it? Where's it?' asks Elli, desperately scanning the ground for Ren's missing limbs, but their comrades keep hollering for them to leave immediately.
'We have to get back NOW!' urges Shaan. Elli, sobbing, nods and runs after Shaan. Their comrades lead the way into the dense trees and thorny shrubs, the vines lacerating their legs as they force their way through the deepest, unwalkable part of the woods. Blood keeps cascading down Ren's ripped flesh, drenching Shaan's pants and boots. Elli watches from behind in horror, resisting the urge to puke and faint. They manage to break free from the woods and walk for another fifteen minutes before reaching their unit. Shaan races to the medical tent, alongside two other comrades who are carrying their bombed counterparts on their backs.
Ren has regained his consciousness when they lay him on the bed. He keeps turning his head to peek at his missing legs. Shaan forbids him to shift around and forces him to focus on his face, not the pain.
It doesn't help.
The sheets are tainted red, blood overflowing from his open wounds with the bones sticking out, the tendons and nerves a gory visible mess. Shaan holds one of Ren's hand tight but the other boy feels nothing. Elli stands behind Shaan, covering his mouth and weeping.
'It's okay,' reassures Shaan, tightening his grasp. 'You'll live.'
'Doctor!' yells Elli the second time. The tent, as usual, is crowded with the injured and dying comrades. Doctors and nurses are rushing here and there with limited apparatuses and tools. Ren shakes his head slightly with a faint smile. He coughs up some more blood before clenching Shaan's hand. Elli leaves to call for a doctor, but the doctor is treating another comrade with a torn left arm.
'Trust me, it'll be fine.'
'No,' mumbles Ren, his face completely black from the soot. His glimmering eyes remain the only prominent facial feature. The pain is searing, shooting up every single one of his nerves. Even if he lives, he will have to spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair.
'You think...she'll be proud of me?'
'Yes, yes, of course,' says Shaan, nodding repeatedly.
'Good,' murmurs Ren, his smile fading. His lids drop slowly. 'Hey... you've been a very good brother to me. Watch over Elli. He is...still a weakling.'
'Don't close your eyes,' says Shaan, shaking Ren agitatedly. Ren shuts his eyes, the voices getting fainter around him. The pain ebbs away and he sees nothing but her dark brown orbs blinking back at him, a proud smile plastered over her pale, beautiful face.
He has done his part. It's time to go.