A flash of forked lightning and a great clap of thunder came close upon each other. The roars of the thunder were deafening to the ears and loud wails of babies could be heard all around. Kris gripped his rifle tighter and tried to calm himself down. He had always hated rainy days, especially those with treacherous lightning and thunder bolting through the skies. Looking around the city that he was currently stationed to, Kris adjusted his helmet and slung his rifle over his shoulder. He stood up abruptly from his position and brushed off the dust on his pants as a command from the higher authorities came through from his walkie-talkie.
“All soldiers! Assemble now!” Kris boomed with his deep voice using a megaphone.
Surely enough, in less than roughly three minutes, soldiers came rushing to Kris’s position, their heavy boots banging on the uneven ground as they proceeded to stand in an orderly manner. With a stern look plastered on his face, Kris asked the second lieutenant “Is everyone here?”
Quickly the second lieutenant scanned the sea of faces and replied while saluting Kris, “Tao is missing, sir!”
Kris frowned at the mention of his best friend’s name and nodded his head slowly. He would find Tao later; he could not waste any time in giving the instructions from the higher authorities to his soldiers, especially in times of a war.
After giving out his orders and instructions carefully, Kris dismissed the soldiers and scurried off himself, wondering where Tao had gone off to. Surely he had not been taken captive by the Chinese, right? They had been guarding the whole area for days and there were no signs of any Chinese soldiers in the area. Did they miss anything out?
Kris brushed his negative thoughts aside and continued walking ahead aimlessly not knowing where Tao could have possibly run off to.
Suddenly, Kris heard a loud thud and immediately, his attention focused to where the loud thud came from. Gripping his rifle and loading it, he brought it up to his chest and put a finger on the trigger. Walking stealthily, Kris moved to the alley where the loud thud had sounded. Even though Kris’s heart was thumping loudly in his chest and his palms started sweating, he continued moving. If that loud thud had come from an enemy, he had to stay strong – for the citizens of the United States of America, his soldiers as well as his family. He had a big responsibility to fulfill; he had to keep calm.
As Kris neared the alley, his eyes widened in shock and there was a surge of blood flowing through his veins. Tao was trying to climb the fence, and outside of the fence were none other than the Chinese; their enemy. Without intending to, Kris gave away his cover and shot a bullet on the box that Tao was standing on as he tried to climb the fence.
Yelping in surprise, Tao lost his grip on the fence and fell to the ground. The Chinese soldiers backed away at the sight of Kris and Kris heard Tao mumbling something in Mandarin, making the soldiers scurry away hurriedly.
“What were you doing?” Kris asked suspiciously, not letting his guard down.
“What do you mean? I wasn’t doing anything.” Tao replied hesitantly, standing up from his position. “Besides, why are you pointing your rifle towards me? Put it down, I’m your friend.” He continued.
Kris shook his head in disbelief. “You were helping the Chinese. You aren’t loyal to this country, are you?” Kris stated after a few grueling seconds of silence.
“It’s nothing like that-“ Tao started to say before being interrupted by Kris.
“Anyone who is not loyal to the United States of America is to be punished,” Kris recited, remembering the soldier’s creed of pledge.
With shaking hands, Kris tightened his hold on his rifle. The soldier’s creed of pledge keeps ringing in his ears, but he cannot find it in him to pull the trigger. Memories of him and Tao flood his brain and Kris could almost feel the happiness again as he pictured them together from before the war started. Kris missed the laughter, the freedom and the happiness that they shared together before all of this happened. He could not possibly pull the trigger; he could not possibly kill his own best friend. Then, Kris thought of the country. He thought of all the innocent people in America. He thought of his family, his soldiers and the consequences should he let his best friend run away unscathed. With another soldier (one that is carrying valuable information about the enemy), the Chinese would surely have an advantage. They would carry on killing many more innocent citizens in the war. Kris then thought of his position – the badges that were pinned proudly on his uniform. He was a lieutenant; a lieutenant had big responsibilities, responsibilities that needed to be carried out.
Kris’s mind was in a swirl and he stared into Tao’s coy-like eyes. With a heavy heart, he pulled the trigger, and a thud was heard on the cold hard ground that was then filled with a pool of crimson red.
Not allowing himself to cry, Kris lowered his rifle and staggered away while muttering softly with a quivering voice, “I did the right thing. Having loyalty to the country… that is what’s most important.”
“All soldiers! Assemble now!” Kris boomed with his deep voice using a megaphone.
Surely enough, in less than roughly three minutes, soldiers came rushing to Kris’s position, their heavy boots banging on the uneven ground as they proceeded to stand in an orderly manner. With a stern look plastered on his face, Kris asked the second lieutenant “Is everyone here?”
Quickly the second lieutenant scanned the sea of faces and replied while saluting Kris, “Tao is missing, sir!”
Kris frowned at the mention of his best friend’s name and nodded his head slowly. He would find Tao later; he could not waste any time in giving the instructions from the higher authorities to his soldiers, especially in times of a war.
After giving out his orders and instructions carefully, Kris dismissed the soldiers and scurried off himself, wondering where Tao had gone off to. Surely he had not been taken captive by the Chinese, right? They had been guarding the whole area for days and there were no signs of any Chinese soldiers in the area. Did they miss anything out?
Kris brushed his negative thoughts aside and continued walking ahead aimlessly not knowing where Tao could have possibly run off to.
Suddenly, Kris heard a loud thud and immediately, his attention focused to where the loud thud came from. Gripping his rifle and loading it, he brought it up to his chest and put a finger on the trigger. Walking stealthily, Kris moved to the alley where the loud thud had sounded. Even though Kris’s heart was thumping loudly in his chest and his palms started sweating, he continued moving. If that loud thud had come from an enemy, he had to stay strong – for the citizens of the United States of America, his soldiers as well as his family. He had a big responsibility to fulfill; he had to keep calm.
As Kris neared the alley, his eyes widened in shock and there was a surge of blood flowing through his veins. Tao was trying to climb the fence, and outside of the fence were none other than the Chinese; their enemy. Without intending to, Kris gave away his cover and shot a bullet on the box that Tao was standing on as he tried to climb the fence.
Yelping in surprise, Tao lost his grip on the fence and fell to the ground. The Chinese soldiers backed away at the sight of Kris and Kris heard Tao mumbling something in Mandarin, making the soldiers scurry away hurriedly.
“What were you doing?” Kris asked suspiciously, not letting his guard down.
“What do you mean? I wasn’t doing anything.” Tao replied hesitantly, standing up from his position. “Besides, why are you pointing your rifle towards me? Put it down, I’m your friend.” He continued.
Kris shook his head in disbelief. “You were helping the Chinese. You aren’t loyal to this country, are you?” Kris stated after a few grueling seconds of silence.
“It’s nothing like that-“ Tao started to say before being interrupted by Kris.
“Anyone who is not loyal to the United States of America is to be punished,” Kris recited, remembering the soldier’s creed of pledge.
With shaking hands, Kris tightened his hold on his rifle. The soldier’s creed of pledge keeps ringing in his ears, but he cannot find it in him to pull the trigger. Memories of him and Tao flood his brain and Kris could almost feel the happiness again as he pictured them together from before the war started. Kris missed the laughter, the freedom and the happiness that they shared together before all of this happened. He could not possibly pull the trigger; he could not possibly kill his own best friend. Then, Kris thought of the country. He thought of all the innocent people in America. He thought of his family, his soldiers and the consequences should he let his best friend run away unscathed. With another soldier (one that is carrying valuable information about the enemy), the Chinese would surely have an advantage. They would carry on killing many more innocent citizens in the war. Kris then thought of his position – the badges that were pinned proudly on his uniform. He was a lieutenant; a lieutenant had big responsibilities, responsibilities that needed to be carried out.
Kris’s mind was in a swirl and he stared into Tao’s coy-like eyes. With a heavy heart, he pulled the trigger, and a thud was heard on the cold hard ground that was then filled with a pool of crimson red.
Not allowing himself to cry, Kris lowered his rifle and staggered away while muttering softly with a quivering voice, “I did the right thing. Having loyalty to the country… that is what’s most important.”
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