Post by Christopher J. D'Dario on Feb 17, 2009 11:30:30 GMT
Days, weeks, months. Time meant nothing in the desert. To those trapped in the wind blown sands under a merciless heat every minute felt like a day, a day like a week. Even at night there was no release from the torment of the wind blowing ice-cold, hard sand over every bit of uncovered flesh. Three weeks it had taken D’dairo and his squad to traverse the vast expanse of the empty desert to find the Oasis. In those three weeks five of his squad had died, two from dehydration, one froze to death, and the last two died fighting each other for the last canteen of water, D’dario could only watch stunned as both men stabbed each other to death. D’dario could do nothing more then to collect the Erkennungsmarke from his fallen comrades and move on.
On the last day of the third week D’dario reached his objective. At first he had taken it for a mirage, he had seen so many water holes and trees that he almost ignored it. But as he walked closer he had realized that the trees where not disappearing, the green on the horizon was real and with renewed energy he had charged into the shade of the palm trees. Thrown himself onto the moist ground and cried with relief. For half an hour he lay there sobbing, clutching the fallen leafs from the palms, greedily inhaling the scent of life in the trees and moisture in the air. An hour later he had refilled his canteen from the small pool of water and was feasting on coconuts before falling asleep under the shade of the trees. Two hours later he woke looking around, thrilled that the oasis was still there. He washed his face with the cool water and got to his feet. He was standing roughly in the center of a clustered ring of coconut palms, roughly forty feet in diameter the clearing could easily hide a small communications base. His mission had been to reach the oasis and secure it for a short period of time until the engineers arrived to construct the communications base. If the area could not be used they would radio in and return to their drop off point for extraction. The area was of use, all D’dario could do was secure the oasis as best he could and wait.
Three days passed and D’dario had set up a sniper nest in one of the tallest palms, his guile suit threaded with palm leafs, when he sat still he was all but invisible in the tree tops. He only came down to refill his canteen and collect coconuts. Another week passed and there was still no sign of the engineers, or anyone for that matter. A week and a half alone in the desert, even in an oasis, would take a toll on anyone. More then once D’dario had lifted his rifle, aiming at a squad of allied soldiers only to watch them fade away in the wind. Due to a lack of company he had started talking to himself, reciting poems and quotes from he could remember from books he read in school, he even composed a few himself.
“Tutte le cose buone a coloro che aspettare...
Ma non aspettare troppo a lungo o se si passerà da...
come due navi che passano nella notte...
mai a tornare di nuovo...”
He could do nothing else but wait….
Translations:
Erkennungsmarke = Dog Tags
Tutte le cose buone a coloro che aspettare ...
Ma non aspettare troppo a lungo o se si passerà da ...
come due navi che passano nella notte ...
mai a tornare di nuovo ... =
All good things come to those who wait...
But do not wait too long or they will pass you by...
like two ships that pass in the night...
never to return again...
On the last day of the third week D’dario reached his objective. At first he had taken it for a mirage, he had seen so many water holes and trees that he almost ignored it. But as he walked closer he had realized that the trees where not disappearing, the green on the horizon was real and with renewed energy he had charged into the shade of the palm trees. Thrown himself onto the moist ground and cried with relief. For half an hour he lay there sobbing, clutching the fallen leafs from the palms, greedily inhaling the scent of life in the trees and moisture in the air. An hour later he had refilled his canteen from the small pool of water and was feasting on coconuts before falling asleep under the shade of the trees. Two hours later he woke looking around, thrilled that the oasis was still there. He washed his face with the cool water and got to his feet. He was standing roughly in the center of a clustered ring of coconut palms, roughly forty feet in diameter the clearing could easily hide a small communications base. His mission had been to reach the oasis and secure it for a short period of time until the engineers arrived to construct the communications base. If the area could not be used they would radio in and return to their drop off point for extraction. The area was of use, all D’dario could do was secure the oasis as best he could and wait.
Three days passed and D’dario had set up a sniper nest in one of the tallest palms, his guile suit threaded with palm leafs, when he sat still he was all but invisible in the tree tops. He only came down to refill his canteen and collect coconuts. Another week passed and there was still no sign of the engineers, or anyone for that matter. A week and a half alone in the desert, even in an oasis, would take a toll on anyone. More then once D’dario had lifted his rifle, aiming at a squad of allied soldiers only to watch them fade away in the wind. Due to a lack of company he had started talking to himself, reciting poems and quotes from he could remember from books he read in school, he even composed a few himself.
“Tutte le cose buone a coloro che aspettare...
Ma non aspettare troppo a lungo o se si passerà da...
come due navi che passano nella notte...
mai a tornare di nuovo...”
He could do nothing else but wait….
Translations:
Erkennungsmarke = Dog Tags
Tutte le cose buone a coloro che aspettare ...
Ma non aspettare troppo a lungo o se si passerà da ...
come due navi che passano nella notte ...
mai a tornare di nuovo ... =
All good things come to those who wait...
But do not wait too long or they will pass you by...
like two ships that pass in the night...
never to return again...
