Prisoner in Time (Time travel) (28 page)

As they jogged at a slow run, Pvt. Jacobs noted the obvious.

“The shelling’s stopped.”

Pvt. Corso looked back once more. Turning his attention to the skirmish line, he said, “I sure hope the general gave them boys a good tarring. My guess is he did. I don’t see anyone moving up there.”

“Maybe he missed. Maybe they’re just hiding and waiting for us,” Pvt. Jacob’s said in fearful tone.

He stared at his friend, waiting for an answer.

“I’m sure he got ‘em,” Pvt. Corso responded confidently. He raised his hand up under the visor on his cap and squinted. With an exaggerated stared, he said, “Yup, he got ‘em for sure.”

Looking back to his friend, Pvt. Corso’s eyes betrayed his words. Deep and intense, his worry radiated out from them. Instantly, Pvt. Jacobs face fell flush.

“This could be it,” he said solemnly.

Pvt. Corso glared at his friend. His words felt insulting.

“Don’t say that… don’t even think that. We’ve come this far. We’ll be just fine. I promise,” he said resolutely.

Pvt. Jacobs nodded reluctantly, then forced a smile.

As his friend turned away, he blessed himself with the sign of the cross and began to pray under his breath.

Suddenly, Pvt. Jacobs’ chest exploded. Blood and tissue burst from the gaping wound in a shower of brilliant red. He let out a guttural moan even before he heard the shot. A split second later, the sound from a quarter mile away, rang out across the open field.

As Pvt. Jacobs collapsed to the ground, five more shots echoed across the field. In that instant, five more fell dead.

Pvt. Corso turned and stared at his fallen friend. Shock and disbelief caused him momentary paralysis. As other soldiers rushed past him, he fell to the ground to comfort his fallen friend.

“Andrew… Andrew!” Pvt. Corso moaned loudly.

He rolled his friend over onto his back. The sight of the gaping wound made him sick, but he swallowed hard and forced the bile back. Staring at Pvt. Jacobs, his mind was consumed with sadness. He looked into his eyes and they were already glassy and distant. His friend was gone.

Pvt. Corso leapt to his feet. Seething anger raged within him. His mind had gone mad. He bent down, grabbed his rifle and sprinted off toward the skirmish line. As the tears dried to his cheeks, he quickly caught up to his comrades. In an instant, he rushed past them. Out in the lead and closing in on the enemy, he brought his rifle up to the ready.

Nearing the low section in the wall, he spotted a man kneeling. With his body half exposed, he made himself a conspicuous target. He quickly came to a stop, cocked the hammer on his rifle, aimed at the soldier in blue and pulled the trigger.

Instantly, Pvt. Corso felt the bullet smash through his ribcage and explode out his back. He dropped his weapon and clutched his chest in reflex. As he gasped for air, there was none to be had. His knees buckled and he fell forward.

Less than a hundred yards ahead, a blue coated soldier lay on the ground, blood pouring from his throat, while one brave man rushed to save him.

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Just moments before:

“Y’all take aim,” Sgt. Cooper shouted.

The company of men held their rifles steady. Staring down the barrel’s sights, their fingers curled around their triggers as they waited on the sergeant’s command. Nervous sweat saturated their clothes. With each step of the soldiers in blue, the Confederates grew more inpatient.

Loud reports from the sharp shooters rifles echoed across the valley. Staring at the line of humanity marching toward them, they watched with morbid fascination as men began to fall.

“Steady boys,” Sgt. Cooper shouted.

Staring down his sights, David watched a crazed Union soldier break out in a run. Sprinting hard, he could see the young man arm’s pumping wildly. Far out in front of his comrades, his suicidal charge did not go unnoticed.

Inspired into action, the remaining Union soldier’s broke out in a sprint. Covering ground quickly, they were now less than two hundred yards away and closing fast on the Rebel lines. Several raised their weapons, taking aim on the run.

“FIRE!” Sgt. Cooper shouted his command.

Simultaneously, the entire company pulled their triggers and unleashed a volley of horrific death on the Union soldiers. Nearly thirty men fell as lead minie-balls tore through tissue and bone, creating gaping wounds and leaving them dead or dying.

Instantly, the enemy came to a stop, aimed and fired. Their bullets race across the land. Most smashed into the breastworks and stopped. A few continued on. Cries of agony sounded out down the skirmish line as some bullets found their mark.

David rolled on his back, and laid his rifle across his chest. His hands shook while he tried to reload. Panic raced through him as he watched the soldiers race closer. With powder and ball loaded into the barrel, he rolled back onto his stomach and took aim.

Looking down the end of his barrel, he spotted his target: the crazed Union soldier. He cocked his hammer and tried to fire, but his nervous shaking made aiming impossible. With his mind racing, he took a deep breath and exhaled. He refocused once more and fired.

David heard a cry of agony. Instantly, he looked to his right and saw a kneeling man clutching his throat. Blood poured through his fingers. With shock and disbelief registering in his eyes, he wavered in his stance, then fell forward.

“Oh my God!” David shouted in fear.

He grabbed the young private and pulled him off the log. Rolling him onto his back, he tried to examine the wound. Suddenly, bullets smashed into the log near him. He flinched instinctively, then dropped to his stomach. Looking over to the wounded man, he placed his hand on his neck and checked his carotid artery.

“No pulse,” he huffed frantically.

Quickly, he placed his hands on the soldier’s chest and attempted compressions in desperation.

“Come on buddy, stay with me,” David shouted.

High on the bluff, Geoff caught the dramatic scene unfolding below. He stared in amazement as David risked his life to save another.

“Holy shit!” he shouted. “Dude, get down man,” he added helplessly.

Down on the breastworks, several feet away, Sgt. Cooper glanced over to David in disbelief. Instantly, he shouted out in anger:

“Get down you damn fool! Leave ‘im be and get to fightin’,” he ordered, enraged by the scene.

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Geoff looked down from the bluff at David with fear. He could see the log in front of him erupt into splinters as bullets impacted the nearly non-existent wall.

“Get down, get down,” he whispered over and over under his breath. As angst raged, he shouted out loudly, “David! Get down!”

Suddenly, he saw Sgt. Cooper shout something in anger. Instantly, David dropped back to his stomach, retrieved his rifle and continued firing. Although the sound of gunfire was deafening and the exchange between David and Sgt. Cooper could not be heard, Geoff knew exactly the words the sergeant used.

“Yeah man, stay down,” he said, concurring with his commander.

He heard several bullets stream by his head and realized his exposure. Jumping down to his knees, he lowered his body behind the hastily assembled wall. A shiver ran up his spine as he thought about how close to death he had almost come.

Kneeling in a crouched stance, he reloaded his weapon swiftly and efficiently. Fifteen seconds later, as he watched the enemy advancing, he took quick aim and fired. Far out in the field, a man in blue uniform dropped to his knees. Reloading again, his heart raced and he hyperventilated. Scared and confused, he discharged his rifle.

As he watched more men fall, guilt and anxiety tormented his thoughts. He had now killed many human beings and the thought of it caused him great sadness. Tears welled in his eyes.

Suddenly, he heard a guttural sound from behind him. He turned in time to see the sharp shooter at the end collapse to the ground. Geoff stared in shock as the man lay dead across a single log.

“Keep shooting,” Pvt. Holley shouted. “Fight like you’re going to live.”

The words registered in his mind and gave him strength. He lifted his rifle and quickly reloaded. Wiping a tear from his eye, he sighted the weapon and pulled the trigger. He held his stare down the barrel and watched a distant man drop. In seconds, he repeated the action. Over and over, he fired with determination to live.

Nearly an hour of repeated attacks and withdrawals, the union advance was now sustaining heavy casualties. Inspired by their weakening strength, Rebel soldiers increased their effort. Geoff watched dozens of men fall in a hail of lead. Screams of agony could be heard between lulls in the actions. As he stared down upon the dead and the injured, the horrific scene stunned him. Never before had he seen such suffering and for a moment, it was too much for him to stand. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he wished for it all to go away. He closed his eyes in desperation, but the nightmare was still there, loud and frightening.

Suddenly, his mind flashed to the one person he counted on for strength: Bobby. He smiled at his brother’s image and for a moment, he felt comforted.

“Keep shooting boy. Don’t give up. Fight like you’re going to live,” the voice shouted from behind.

Startled with a jolt, Geoff’s eyes popped open. He snapped his head around to see Pvt. Holley glaring at him. Once again, the private’s words inspired him. He nodded in determination, then fired.

-----*-----*-----*-----

Sgt. Cooper scanned the field as he reloaded his rifle. Seconds later, he discharged his weapon at an approaching enemy. As he continued to reload, he watched the wounded man fall, only to be replaced by two more. Quickly, he squeezed off another round. Watching his shot hit its mark, he soon realized two more men had replaced the next fallen soldier. Within seconds, the enemy to his front began to swell. Large numbers of men charged closer to the breastworks.

Instantly, he scanned the activities of his men further down the line. Halfway toward the end, his men had concentrated their fire at the Union’s left flank, thereby reducing the firepower on the opposite side. The lack of strength suddenly allowed the Union’s right flank to grow and now threatened to overrun the Rebel line.

Sgt. Cooper burst from his stance and hurried up the line.

“Concentrate y’alls fire on the left,” he shouted as he ran.

Stopping at one of his corporal’s, he shouted over the thunderous sound, “The Yanks are flanking our left. Concentrate y’alls fire on our left.”

Without waiting for a response, he rushed off to continue his message, reloading while he ran. Several yards up the line, he stopped, fired and shouted his message again.

“Concentrate y’alls fire on the left!”

Looking up and down the wall, he monitored the activity. With orders now in place, he hurried back down the line to the far side of the
skirmish line.

“Steady, don’t get rattled. Hold the line!” he shouted in quick succession.

Nearing the left end, just before the incline to the bluff, he watched in horror as the Union right flank broke through and climbed over the skirmish line. His mouth dried and his stomach churned as he realized the gravity of their situation. Rushing in to help, he loaded on the run. Thirty yards away, he observed as several of his men engaged in hand to hand combat. He fired his rifle at an enemy soldier, killing him as he leaped across the wall. Instantly, he sprinted into action.

David fired his weapon into the stomach of a Union soldier. The soldier’s eyes bulged as they instantly registered his pain. He let out a guttural cry and fell forward. David leaped to his feet. With no time to reload, he rammed his bayonet into the stomach of another man charging forward. He pulled it out and tried to stab another as the man stepped over the low wall. As the blade contacted the Union private’s heavy woolen coat, the man stepped sideways, causing the bayonet to snap off under the heavy force.

The soldier thrust his bayonet toward David. Instantly, David blocked it with the butt of his rifle, then grabbed the barrel and swung it like a club. The heavy stock of his gun contacted the Union soldier, crushing his skull and knocking him to the ground. David spun around with the barrel once more, instinctively sensing an enemy behind him. Even before his eyes made contact, his rifle butt made contact first. Blood and teeth exploded from a Union man’s mouth, knocking him unconscious.

Sgt. Cooper rushed into the fight. Pulling his long knife from his sheath, he blocked a bayonet charge, then wildly slashed across a soldier’s throat, nearly decapitating the man from the initial blow. As more charged in, he kicked one man in the groin, while blocking another’s bayonet. Spinning around, he slashed at the two charging men, then thrust his blade deep into them. He pulled his bloody blade from the man’s stomach and searched for another attacker.

Geoff glanced down to check on David. Instantly, his mind raced as he watched him violently swinging his rifle. He knew he was in real trouble and needed help as more Union men poured over the shallow wall. Too far away to run to his aide, he elected to fire down upon the melee and hope his aim missed his comrades.

David dropped his rifle and picked up another with a functioning bayonet. Standing quickly, his mouth dropped open as he stared into the barrel of an enemy rifle. As the Union man pulled back the hammer, he quickly tried to squeeze the trigger.

Horrific and violent, the Union soldier’s face erupted in blood as a bullet tore through tissue and bone. Falling to the side, David grabbed his loaded weapon. He spun it around, lined it up on the enemy and fired. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught movement. He turned his head and saw a Union soldier about to bayonet him. Even before he could move, the top of the man’s head exploded. David stepped back quickly and allowed the man to fall forward.

Suddenly, the reality of the shot registered in his mind. He quickly glanced up to the bluff in time to see Geoff fire down into the crowded conflict once again. Just in front of him, another enemy soldier fell. For a moment, the two made eye contact, smiled, then continued to fight.

Sgt. Cooper sidestepped a lunging bayonet charge. In reflex, he thrust his knife into the soldier’s chest, then withdrew. Before the man could fall, another stepped up and pointed his weapon. Sgt. Cooper was trapped. The falling man blocked his path, preventing him from defending himself against the loaded weapon. As he watched the Union soldier pull back the hammer, he stared bravely into his eyes and waited his fate.

Suddenly, the Union man’s chest tore open. As the bullet passed through, his back exploded in a shower of blood, tissue and fabric, covering the man behind him. Sgt. Cooper leaped over the two falling soldiers and thrust his knife into the blood spattered man. Surprise swept the soldier’s face. As he fell backward, Sgt. Cooper checked the trajectory of the shot. Looking up to the bluff, he watched in astonishment as Geoff skillfully picked off another Union soldier. For a brief moment, the two caught each other’s stare. Sgt. Cooper, in uncharacteristic appreciation, raised his hand and saluted. As Geoff smiled back, his focus became distracted, but then quickly reloaded. Seconds later, another soldier fell.

As the majority of his men concentrated their fire on the overrunning enemy, their efforts began to pay off. Withering fire pushed back the Union advance and now the Rebels had them on the run. Over the next two hours, volleys from both sides surged and abated, but with the greater loss of Union men, their lacking strength was not enough to turn the tide of the battle. Reluctantly, the Union commanders sounded a retreat.

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