Lucas opened his eyes. The sun had come up while he’d been unconscious. He remembered everything – the battle, Jonah’s drunkenness, Sorokin bandaging him…He turned his head to the side, saw the body of Dusty lying there. The blood had dried in a black ring around Dusty’s throat. Lucas closed his eyes for a moment. How many more men had they lost last night? He poked his head up to see a heap of bodies over by the cliff. Their numbers were dwindling. At this rate, they wouldn’t even make it to Brimhaven, or if they did, have near enough men to take the colony.
His stomach ached, and so did his older wounds. He longed for the comfort of a warm bed with Justine at his side. Why had he come to this place Why had he ever agreed to join the army, to leave home, to leave Justine and risk his life? All he wanted was to go home. He would have traded the lives of all the men in this company if it meant he could return. The thought shamed him, and he forced himself to get on his feet and look for Sorokin.
The medic stood by the dead bodies, conferring with Jonah. Lucas supposed they might be trying to decide what to do with the dead. He limped over there, and eventually Sorokin noticed him and ran to support him.
“Hey there,” he said, slipping an arm under Lucas’ shoulders. “You should be resting, man.”
“How can I help?” The camp bustled with the remaining men tending their wounds and packing their things. Lucas wasn’t about to lay about uselessly – if they could get to work, so could he.
“We’ll dispose of them in the ocean,” Jonah announced.
“You’re sure there’s nowhere to bury them?”
“No time,” Jonah snapped. “We have a long way to go today.”
“I’ll grab Dusty and the other last ones,” Sorokin offered. “Lucas…start pushing.”
16-Aug-2012 21:25:14