Re-Orientation

Re-Orientation

Crawling prone in flowing water
dark - night - raining - rainy season
Crawling - why? - shot? - shot at?
Crawling - dark
Stop - listen - no shots - no footsteps
Look forward - no hostiles
Kneel, one leg in water, shallow, six inches
Look back - no hostiles.

Listen - Look
Concrete storm culvert, sloping sides, seven feet.
Stand up slowly, looking, listening.
Uniform - wet - combat fatigues - tropical combat boots.
Where? What?

Crawl up slope - quick peek - duck back down
scene - lighted building - 150 yards open space
from current position - hostile?

Target destination - West South West - mental map
Culvert direction - West
Crouching run - stay in darkest shadow - partway up South culvert wall.
Once the target is due South, any open space should be less than the current 150 yards. That will minimize exposure to light.

Mission - mission - get there to .... what?
Message? Yes, that's it .... but what?
Remember - remember - no - nothing.

Stop - check pockets - nothing - empty
Courier pouch? Where's my pouch? Did I drop it?
When? Where? Nothing.

Looking back the way I came;
Something happened back there; something bad - deadly.
Must have dropped my gear. Helmet? Gun? Pouch? Don't know.
Go back and search.
Unknown danger; unremembered danger.

Go slowly - listen - look
slowly - slowly - stay in darkest shadow.
Road ahead crossing over culvert - bridge.
Just out of the water - hat - familiar - my hat.

Something in the water - current disturbed - glasses - my glasses.
What is that? - bicycle - looks like - mine?
Bicycle - road - bridge - hat - glasses.
Think - Was I riding my bicycle?

Glasses on - hat on - pick up bike
running start up the side of the culvert
drop down close to top - look - listen
crawl the rest of the way, pulling bike up.

Quiet - no one in sight - up and down road.
On the bridge - guard rail - four feet high
Road two feet thick - culvert seven feet deep.

Did I hit that rail? Fast enough to catapult over, bike and all?
Two feet to clear the rail, plus four, plus two, plus seven.
15 foot drop at 35 mph forward velocity - damn!

Better get off the road, over there by that tree, less rain.
Okay, figure this out. On base, friendly territory. No danger. Relax.
I was going to the shop. That way. Know the way.
Don't feel like going there any more.
Want to go home. Road over there doesn't look familiar.
Forked - try one - then the other.

Get on bicycle, front wheel not too bent to spin.
Headlights coming - don't panic - not dangerous.
Car stops twenty feet away - Security Police.
Headlight on me. Waiting. Doors open.

"Hey! You been fighting tonight?"

"Not that I remember. Why?"

"All that blood running down your face. From your head looks like."

Run my hand down my left temple and cheek, look at it, yeah, lots of blood.
Knee bends, fall over with the bike, head on ground,
Watch as flash lights turn on, waving as feet approach, crunching on the gravel. They stop 6 feet away.
"Can you stand?"

"I think so ... Yeah"

"Pick up your bicycle and follow me to the car.
Bill, open the trunk. We better take this guy to the hospital.
Don't let him fall asleep."

a reply to: pthena

I like it, friend. Though I think periods or em dashes would be a better choice than all the hyphens.

Hyphen -
Em Dash —

a reply to: TheSteppenwolf

Thank you.

Em Dash —

I would have definitely preferred that dash, but I don't know how to do it.
-_--
-
nope. don't know how to.
ù

U+2014
—
html code works.— Yaaay

originally posted by: pthena
a reply to: TheSteppenwolf

Thank you.

Em Dash —

I would have definitely preferred that dash, but I don't know how to do it.
-_--
-
nope. don't know how to.

On my keyboard it's option + shift + hyphen = m-dash.

That's on a Mac. For an iphone, just hold down the hyphen and other options will pop up. Android or Windows I have no clue. But many word processors automatically create an m-dash when you use 2 hyphens in a row --.

There is also an "en-dash" Option + hyphen = en-dash. An en-dash is best when used to represent a span of time ie. Jan – March