Flashbacks of the wicked and cruel

[Greywall]

The darkness ate everything around him, only the slight illuminations of lightning scorching across the sky would reveal what lay before. Rain pelted everything beneath the dark and unforgiving sky, thumping against the mud of the makeshift trench flooding it slightly, but it didn't move the men inside who were soaked from balmoral to kilt their rifles pointing to the tree line still as timber connected to tree. The man and his eyes held a cruel and hateful look, one earned from the deeds done in the time he had experienced in the last year. 

It was Hawaii 1908, the Gaelic expedition force was sent to enforce Hawaiian independence against the growing Kumo empire but they were now stranded their mighty green armada shattered and leaving them fighting to the death till help came. The Emerald Empire was facing a foe that shook its hold on Ouhiri politics to the core, but the men of the UKUG army were not easily beaten like the overconfident admirals who betrayed their nation by being complacent and not taking their new enemy seriously. For a year Kumo was sending in troops to seize the islands and destroy the Gaelic forces, they were met with fierce resistance. 

"Here" he said, and with a flash of lighting stood several tall armed figures creeping toward them in the dark. "FLARES!" several loud pops sent red angry balls of light that lit up hundreds of spider bodied creatures before the Gaelics, they shielded their eyes as bullets ripped from the trenches and into them. He pulled the bolt back as fast as he could to unleash another round of hate into his enemy as they fired wildly into the dark hitting mud, tree and sometimes man. Their strange screams and language were alien to him and in the chaos the first string were wiped out, "Reload lads! Reload!" he obeyed slipping individual rounds into his Model 4 rifle until he had a full six a loud angry voice came from the tree line a Kumo commander and following it came the scurrying of hundreds of small feet and screams of fierce women charging at them. "FIRE AT WILL!" the voice behind him yelled and he began firing at anything his sights met, after he fired his six rounds he went to stripper clips and quickly fed it back into his rifle but it was too late as they reached the trench. They couldn't fight them up close, too large but a bayonet is a bayonet and he stuck it into the demon that was close to killing him over the top of the trench her now dead weight forcing him under the water that had filled the trench. He would've panicked before, maybe drowned but he was far too baptized in this hell its black waters of blood and mud marinating the very soul. He pulled himself up with rifle and saw his comrades desperately trying to fight off their larger opponents but failing, one Kumo skewered a man and another sank her fangs into the neck of another she simply picked up like a rag doll. He pulled bolt back and began popping rounds off killing them from the flank he had gained on them, he didn't hear the one coming behind as it shot a round into his shoulder putting him down and she leaped for the chance to get a kill. He quickly took his hands to stop the rifle no the bayonet, it sliced his fingers and warm blood dripped over his face. Grunts came from his struggle, laughs came from her gaining the bayonet deeper and deeper toward her desired point of entry carving a slow and gruesome scar over his face making him yell in fury and anger. She curled a satisfied smile that quickly disappeared with the sound of a loud pop, in the dark she didn't see him go to right leather and pull his revolver and putting a slug from its shotgun chamber right into her abdomen. The pain sent her reeling and he regain pulling the trigger into her three times before turning revolver to her comrades, out of bullets he went to rifle again it had been seeped in mud and now his bloodied hands as he pulled the trigger and bolt like a man possessed. 

A line of fire formed around behind him as the Gaelics began regaining composure and the Kumo in their shock received death and despair. He roared at them, fighting the pain his body was reminding him, the burning bullet, the scar and his hands that begged him to stop as mud and metal aggravated their freshly opened tears. They slowly marched at them returning the lost trench some dropping from returned fire the Kumo fled to the tree line using it for cover as angered voices shouted at them "EMPTY THE CLIP! EMPTY THE GODDAMN CLIP! NOT A SINGLE ONE LEFT!" anger like a virus swept the Gaelics as they mercilessly slaughtered their foes shooting them in back. "HOLD! IN THE TRENCH BOYS!" they flopped down into the muddied and flooded trench as bullets tore at them dropping soldiers in the trench dead or to drown as their comrades were too busy trying to avoid being shot or return fire. Fire exchanges went back and forth for a solid hour before it died off, the rain had stopped, and the man was staring down his sights once again as the eyes of the Kumo watched them from afar in anger at their fallen comrades. Something broke the silence though, coughing, but not from a human. He turned his gaze to a Kumo woman trying to remain silent her fear overtaking her senses, her comrades now noticing her predicament behind enemy lines began mummering to themselves. He pulled the bolt back, she began crying out to him seeing what he was doing, "NO! she's unarmed and injured!" cried a fellow Gaelic, "They want her to cross back, honor dictates that we do so." another said. Round in chamber, "FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE RICHARD DON'T!" down sight "Ask the dead about honor." a single round into her neck, he could have done her justice with a swift death and chose not to. As she struggled for air with blood flooding her airways and lost consciousness she was left to die a slow miserable death as her comrades yelled in anguish and hatred, their foreign language cursing the Gaelics.  "You'll be court marshalled Richard" said one man in disgust, Richard looked at him with those cold eyes and said "No I won't." 


The sound of a train whistle broke O'Donnell out of the stare he had held for what seemed like an eternity, Edinburgh 1930, on his way to another meeting with Field Marshalls then an assembly of Parliament. He stood up in his personal rail car and made his way to a restroom to relive himself, as he cleaned his hands he looked into the mirror at the same scar he looked at for over 20 years. His eyes had dark circles under them, those piercing grey eyes staring back at him reminding of his dark life. He then went to a small wardrobe as a knock rapped his door, "Taoiseach, we're approaching the station. Our escort will be ready when we step off." The train a 812 0-3-0 that had one job, transporting high ranking officials within Ulster-Gaelia was rather inconspicuous, it shone with the dark blue adorned with all Alban locomotives. As it slowed into the station, O'Donnell put on a long black trench coat, at the top was Mordeau Bear Fur, the rarest fur in Ulster-Gaelia from the famed 12 foot bear of Northern Alba. He wore military boots still, black pants, a black button up shirt and gloves that hid his scarred hands. Various medals he earned in his life in the military adorned the left side of the trench coat as he closed it up around himself and walked over to the door knocking at it. Two Black Cloaks opened it and they in a single motion began walking to the mid car and awaited for the train to stop, the guards armed with Model 4 rifles caught O'Donnell's eye making him think of the memory he just had as they stepped onto the platform following the train stopping and walked to a restricted area that took them outside and to a motorcade. A long black car puffing orange smoke awaited in the middle with armored cars in front and back, he stepped into the car with the door closing behind him. "Off with ya" he said and the motorcade took off into the city of Edinburgh. 

[Greywall]

Hawaii 1907, the sounds of waves and men shouting disturbed what would otherwise be a moment of paradise on the island of Kauai. "Private Haldane, against the beach wall" said a corporal who trekked down the long row of anxious men lining up into the makeshift entrenchment. Machine gun nests were being rapidly set up while motor guns and field guns were being dragged out, pulled by rope and bare hand. Haldane nervously leaned himself into the piled-up sand with his rifle overlooking the beach and at what many of his fellow Gaelics were observing, pillars of smoke from a distance and Kumo warships letting small rafts and boats full of soldiers prepare to land. 

"Where's the fleet? They weren't supposed to get this close." muttered a soldier nearby, "I heard the entire fleet has been smashed, bloody spiders crushed the task force." replied another, "that's not possible! We have the best fleet in Ouhiri!" they were hushed by an officer jogging behind the line. Haldane looked at what was certain doom, "load yer rifles! Fix bayonets!" all in a single motion they began loading their rifles, Haldane's hand shook with fear barely able to push the row of six bullets into his rifle. "Aim down field, do not shoot until given the order!" the rifles like a wave of wood and steel peered from the sand at the water as the boats and rafts began their approach. "It's not just us, they're attacking at Maui and Hawaii too. We've already lost the smaller islands." a voice came but was quickly hushed, Haldane could only hear his hard to control breathing and what felt like the loudest heartbeat on the island being his own. 

Then like thunder ripping through the blue clear sky a sound broke the tension followed by a high pitch scream and loud explosion, "HIT THE DECK!" naval rounds began to pulverize the beach kicking up sand and creating craters within the beach. Some rounds were followed by horrid screams of men dying or being mortally wounded, Haldane was curled up as sand poured all over him wincing at the orchestra of death conducted around him and softly begging it to end. The explosions ceased and the sounds of sand falling filled the otherwise silent void, he began to move when he heard officers yelling, "GET UP YOU SORRY SHITS THEY'RE LANDING!" Haldane looked over and saw something that he wasn't prepared for, seeing actual Kumo. Most Gaelics never saw the Kumosenkan, to see a battalion of more of them made it hard to comprehend "SHOOT YOU FUCKERS OPEN FIRE!" gun fire drowned the mental break and brought back Haldane as he pointed and shot at the spiders. Whatever machine gun nests that survived began unloading onto the beach cutting down several as the rifles picked off the rest, shouts of a language Haldane didn't understand came as the Kumo quickly moved to seek cover in the makeshift craters and returned fire killing several Gaelics foolish to not duck deep enough behind the sand. More rafts and boats kept coming bringing more and more spiders, "Shit!" Haldane lost count of what he had in his rifle and stumbled to put another clip in, he wasn't the only one as others struggled as well allowing the Kumo to advance closer. Only the fire from the machine gun nests kept them from overtaking the trench but they began to run low on ammo, "LOAD YOU MAGGOTS LOAD AND FIRE" a frustrated colonel shouted as he opened fire with his revolver the sheer number of the enemy now becoming too much. "OH SHI- RUN LADS RUN!" as if they were waiting for a reason the Gaelics bolted out and ran for the tree line, Haldane stumbled but ran keeping pace with his fellow soldiers who were being picked off by gun fire from the Kumo. Machine gun nests were utterly abandoned, the Gaelics fell back to the field guns that couldn't fire because they were all running right into the line of fire. "HURRY THE FUCK UP GO!" Haldane ran into the trees and felt the sensation of weightlessness as he fell straight into the dug out trench knocking the wind out of him, "you dumb fuck" said a nearby soldier manning a machine gun. Haldane stood up with labored breathing and got to the wall in time to hear "FIRE FIRE FIRE YOU STUPID FUCKS FIRE" he peered out with his rifle and saw the Kumo attempting to move up, using the dug in sand as cover and firing into the tree line hitting either flesh or wood. 

They were at risk of being overrun again when a bullet fairly ripped into the head of the machine gunner that mocked Haldane sending his lifeless body backwards, "MAN THAT GUN SOLDIER!" shouted the colonel desperately trying to load his revolver his own hand shaking, Haldane moved with his head lowered and bullets pouring at him killing others and tearing the wooden structure of the trench. He went to grab the machine gun but hesitated he saw blood on it "FUCKING WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!" the colonel shouted this time fear overtaking his voice, Haldane took the machine gun and aimed seeing the Kumo nearly on top of them all and unloaded into them. Though he fired wildly he still collected several kills and the consistent fire from the trench help push the Kumo back, "THAT'S IT!" the colonel now had some newfound courage as he fired off at the Kumo falling back. Haldane kept firing until they disappeared back behind the sand and his gun ran dry, light cheers came from the trench and the colonel walked over to him "Good fucking shooting lad, I bet they-" he stopped as the sound of thunder started again sending a cold chill down Haldane and absolute fear into the eyes of the colonel "HIT TH-" it was too late as the shell smashed right into the colonel sending Haldane flying, he lost consciousness for a moment but woke up to hear the shells hitting all around him and his hearing gone replaced with dead silence and a consistent ring. He realized he was covered in blood and patted himself thinking shrapnel had entered him, it wasn't his blood, he began to panic whimpering and entered a section right under the firestep and the naval barrage destroyed the trench and killed the men around him he began to yell losing his mind until his hearing came back and the shelling stopped. He began to breathe deeply trying to access what had happened but he froze in cold fear when he saw them, Kumo entering the trench with ease and grabbing bodies. Anyone found alive was taken prisoner and tossed over the trench. Haldane covered his mouth to mask the sounds of his breathing as they searched speaking in their alien language and not understanding what they were conversing about. One walked right over to where he was at, his heart began to pound and he could feel every cell in his body freeze as he begged to not be found, she turned on and grabbed a body that was nearby and walked to exit the trench. A hot tear seared down his cheek as more and more Kumo crossed the trench and deeper into the island, he laid their unfound hoping they would never see him.

By sheer luck night fell and they hadn't found him, exhaustion took over but he could still hear them talking and walking about nearby. He finally began to look at his surroundings and noticed below his feet was more dug out earth, he slowly and as quietly as possible scooted himself into the portion that was behind the wood planks of the firing step until he was more hidden. He decided to try and get some sleep and then try to see if he could get away, he closed his eyes and suddenly opened them to the face of a Kumo staring at him the eyes burning bright red and several long thin teeth filling her mouth. 

He woke up screaming and covered in sweat, he as back in his home in York, his labored breathing making his struggle to get composure in his own bed. He lowered his head into his hands and began to weep, Haldane left Hawaii almost 20 years ago but he was still there in the trench every night or he was trying to survive in the jungle and make it back to friendlies. He leaned to the side of his bed and made his way to the kitchen to get a drink of water, his hand shook violently as he tried to come down from the nightmare. He filled it with water from the sink and drank it, tears slowly falling down his face as he tried to understand what was happening to him. He went back to bed but decided to turn on his bedside lamp which sat on a nearby table and read into his book anything to make him forget.