{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0\deflang1033\deflangfe1033{\fonttbl{\f0\fmodern\fprq1\fcharset0 Courier New;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green128\blue0;} \viewkind4\uc1\pard\li1080\f0\fs20\par \b Fallen Angel\b0\par \par \b Chapter 1\b0\par \par \par \par \b Thanksgiving Day!\b0\par \par It was turkey day as we called it. I was doing a\par preflight on my AH-1 Super Cobra Gunship at 0600 \par hours, along with my co-pilot gunner, Lieutenant \par Calvin Griffin, whom was nicknamed 'Cal', in much \par the same token I took on the nickname 'Raven', \par because I was up most of the time. Besides, everyone \par had a nickname in the 23rd-Assault Team, of the First \par Cavalry Division.\par \par For the past six weeks, it seemed Charlie had been\par getting aggressive, attacking more often, keeping me in\par the air twelve to fourteen hours a day, seven days a\par week. It had been so long since I had a day off I was\par beginning to wonder what happened to Saturdays and\par Sundays and if I'd ever see another one. In this or\par any war, there was no such thing as a holiday or\par weekends. There were leisurely days, but not of late,\par which was beginning to take its toll on me. I felt as\par if I were coming down with something and was feeling\par weak at times, but nothing that was affecting my\par judgment.\par \par Each day was a new adventure, flying throughout \par certain sectors that were divided by grids on a map. \par My mission was threefold, reconnaissance, armed \par escort, and direct aerial fire support. While on\par reconnaissance in the area within one of these\par sectors, typically cruising at treetop level, I would\par wait for an air strike to be called in. That's when\par the fun begins. Once the strike was called in, and the\par coordinates given, I would find those coordinates\par on my map, fly in and loiter over the target, and then\par dive as my gunner would scrape the area with a chin-\par turret mounted M134 7.62mm "Minigun", or fire from\par either of the M200 19-tube, air to ground rocket\par launchers. We'd usually finished off anything possibly\par missed with a few WP's (White Phosphorus) grenades\par from the grenade launcher.\par \par Air strikes were necessary to keep the Viet Cong from\par invading, sometimes overtaking one of our LZ's \par (Landing Zones), although, if Charlie was spotted in \par an area we would be called in to sweep the area with \par any or all of our weaponry, hoping to kill as many of \par them as possible. The only way to know for sure how \par many were dead was by an actual body count. I tried \par not to act passionate about my count, but deep down \par I was proud that I scored the highest kills in the \par company with four hundred thirty confirmed kills, \par thus, Cal and I were awarded the title, 'The Don's of \par Death', which was painted on the gunship.\par \par Some pilots in the assault team would say that there is\par one drawback to this job; it was that many times\par civilians were caught in the crossfire. Hell, I didn't\par care who was on the other end of an air strike, just so\par long as it wasn't an American. These people meant\par nothing to me so what did I care if a few of them\par burned up from a phosphorous strike. To me, this \par was nothing but a country of scrounging, begging,\par vagabonds, who seemed not to appreciate us being \par here. I had over time reached the conclusion that \par this war was not about freedom, but a war that only \par served the elite, and so much more now to the point \par their pride couldn't let them admit their was no end.\par \par A sniper killed my father about 15 clicks northeast\par from here, and for what purpose did his death serve,\par nothing. He was in charge of an extraction team that\par were dropped in the middle of nowhere to recover\par the body of a South Vietnamese General whose \par chopper crashed because of a mechanical \par malfunction. To borrow a phrase, "We buy their \par books, pay for their school, and what do they do? \par They fuck the teacher." It was later determined that \par safety wire was not used to secure the bolts that held \par the rotor blades to the rotor assembly. So actually, it \par wasn't the sniper that killed my father, but the \par stupidity of some South Vietnamese novice chopper \par mechanic. I hope that bastard gets in my line of fire \par someday.\par \par I was in my second tour of duty in this god-forsaken\par country and with two months remaining, I would fly as\par many missions necessary to complete what I considered\par my sole purpose for being here, and that was to kill as\par many VC as possible.\par \par \cf1\i There was no love lost between my father and I, and I\par made him aware of the fact I didn't approve of the way\par he raised me. I called home one Friday evening to tell\par mother I wouldn't be home over the weekend \par because of midterm exams beginning on Monday, \par and I was staying in the dorm to study. He had just \par gotten home from a temporary duty assignment and \par happened to answer the phone. Hey, how's my little \par soldier," he asked. When he asked me that I flew off \par at him, Dad, that's all I have ever been to you, a little \par soldier. I'm your son, not one of the men that you \par order around all day. Did you know I played three \par sports every year since the middle grades? Where \par were you during every game, Mother was there. \par Where were you after you bought me my first bike, \par to show me how to ride it? How many times did you \par watch me playing out in the front yard with a football, \par by myself, and come out and say, you want to throw \par some? I could go on and on but it would boil down \par to the one fact, and that is your not my father, you're \par my sergeant. After I said that, he handed the phone \par to mother.\cf0\i0\par \par "Cal, are you ready to rock and roll?" I asked,\par snapping down the engine cowling.\par \par "You got two months to go and it seems like you would\par back off. Let some of these newbies pick up the\par slack," he replied, thinking since I was getting\par short, I'd be a little more careful.\par \par "Man I got a job to do. How would it look if I were to\par slack off? First thing you know they'd be sleeping in\par of a morning," I said, while laughing.\par \par "You're an ass. You know that?" He replied,\par mumbling under his breath.\par \par "Come on, I'll get you in real close today."\par \par "Hell no!" He shouted. "You're going to get our asses\par blown off."\par \par I laughed, getting into the cockpit and said, "Hey, we\par got sector 302 today!"\par \par That was always a hot area. Most days in that sector\par we returned to camp at least five times during the day\par to be re-loaded with ammo, meaning we were \par involved in that many firefights. Cal and I knew the \par proven method to get confirmed kills was to drop \par below the tree line if possible, almost seeing charlie \par face to face and then firing on him, although this was \par much more dangerous.\par \par "Raven airborne!" I said over the headset to the \par tower.\par \par "Roger, Raven is airborne," the tower replied.\par \par We flew about an hour to reach our sector, low-\par leveling about thirty feet above the Doc Tau River all \par the way, hugging the turns. If we were to come up \par on any VC along the river, we were traveling too fast \par for them to get a shot off. This wasn't our normal \par flight path to reach an area but I did it a lot of times to \par cut the boredom of flying higher and in a straight line. \par I went up to 5000 feet above the clouds that were \par thick, but I found a few holes, allowing me to see \par some ground.\par \par Sometimes when I look down at the jungle below, \par and see the tops of the thick canopy of trees, I wonder \par what my father felt as he climbed down into it by rope \par ladder, from a chopper hovering fifty feet above. Did \par fear enter his mind? I doubt it.\par \par \cf1\i Dad was on his way out the door, heading for the\par airport to come here when I pulled up in the \par driveway. He and mom stood by the taxi he had \par called to take him there. He kissed mom and gave \par her a hug as I was nearing the front door.\par \par "Brian!"\par \par I turned. He was waving me to come over. I walked \par to him, not knowing what to say after our last one-\par sided discussion. Mom touched my arm as she\par walked into the house, to cry.\par \par "Brian, I don't have time now because I have a plane \par to catch. But I would like us to sit down when I get \par back and have a long, father to son talk. I've done a\par little soul searching since we last spoke. Well, we'll\par talk; I need to get to the airport. You take care of\par your mother."\par \par "Be careful over there." I replied. We shook hands\par and he left.\par \par I knew he wanted to make amends, and I wanted us \par to. I wanted him to tell me just one time that he \par loved me. I can't ever remember us saying those \par words to each other. A day didn't pass after he \par mentioned us having a talk that I didn't think about it. \par I almost counted the days. Now, because of this war, \par that was taken from me.\cf0\i0\par \par "Raven, this is Backlash. Copy?" Base was calling.\par \par "Go ahead Backlash. This is Raven, I have a copy."\par \par "On the grid, 3432, 2191, one half click south of LZ\par Cousin, copy that?"\par \par "3432, 2191, one half click south of Cousin. That's\par affirmed Backlash."\par \par "Raven, you have an eye, Ghostfinder is friendly, copy\par on 3171.9."\par \par "Backlash, Raven, copy Ghostfinder on 3171.9."\par \par "Raven, backlash, good copy. Good hunting."\par \par "All right! You ready to kick some ass, Cal?"\par \par "Ready willing and able, Raven."\par \par I tuned the channel to frequency 3171.9, to reach\par Ghostfinder, the observation plane.\par \par "Ghostfinder, this is Raven. I have a scrape at 3432,\par 2191, do you confirm?"\par \par "Raven, this is Ghostfinder. 3432, 2191, is\par affirmative. You have a detached squad of rocket\par bearers from main force. Your main target is Rocket\par Bearers. Do you Copy?"\par \par "Ghostfinder, Raven. Main target is detached rocket\par bearers, copy that."\par \par "Raven, this is Backlash. Do you copy?\par \par "What the hell does base want again? "Backlash, Raven,\par copy."\par \par "Take out secondary target when primary target is\par confirmed. Do you copy?"\par \par "Hey Cal, looks like Backlash is getting greedy today,"\par I said to him, chuckling.\par \par "That's not it. They know you'll do it anyway," he\par said, sarcastically.\par \par I laughed and then confirmed, "Backlash, Raven, I copy,\par secondary target essential."\par \par "Raven, Backlash. That's an affirmative on secondary."\par \par In eight minutes, I was 5000 feet above my primary\par target, and started a dive. Cal open fired with a\par barrage of ten rockets and at the same time opened up\par with burst from the Minigun. When I reached fifty\par meters, I rolled the gunship, turning to the secondary\par target and moved in for the kill as he opened fire,\par spraying them with four to five thousand rounds from\par the Minigun. I pulled out, my skids clipping branches\par from the treetops, and circled a last pass to observe\par the damage.\par \par Cal screamed into his mike," DAMN RAVEN, you almost\par made me shit my pants. Pull out sooner next time."\par \par I laughed, "Ghostfinder, Raven. Primary and secondary\par targets are confirmed a hit."\par \par "Raven, this is Ghostfinder. Just another 60 seconds\par in the park. You are confirmed a hit."\par \par "Backlash, Raven."\par \par "Backlash, Raven."\par \par "Ra-------lash, -----ou copy?"\par \par "Fuck! Avionics said they had it fixed," I stated,\par tapping on the radio. "Backlash, Raven. You are\par intermittent. Come back."\par \par "------------------Copy?"\par \par "What the fuck! This shit pisses me off. Backlash,\par Raven returning to base. Raven returning to base."\par \par I had tried several times on the return trip of raising\par Backlash on the radio without success. We passed\par through a thunderstorm about halfway there, making\par me a little nervous, but I wasn't one for going around\par a little weather to get where I was going. If backlash\par had another assignment, it would have to wait until\par tomorrow, not having a radio to communicate.\par \par It must be the humidity causing my sinuses to stop up.\par I was feeling worse than the day before. I sneezed\par several times feeling chills over my body.\par \par "Are you okay buddy? You sound like shit," Cal stated.\par \par "Yeah, I think this weather is dragging my butt down."\par \par "Damn, that's an excuse to see Nurse Avery. Do you\par want me to take you to the dispensary?" He asked,\par teasingly.\par \par Nurse Avery was American, nothing close to being\par beautiful by any stretch of the imagination, but she\par was the only female American in camp. She wasn't \par too much to look at without makeup, but looked \par halfway decent when she wore some, with her long \par skinny legs and that tight ass. I always noticed that \par three-inch spread between her thighs at her cunt. \par Her short brown hair was always kinky looking, I \par think mostly because of the humidity. I had heard \par through the grapevine that she was putting out for \par certain officers, and I heard a couple of them \par caught the clap from being with her.\par \par It's funny, they say a hard dick has no conscience,\par well my dick does have a conscience, and I won't let\par him poke around in something that may make him \par sick.\par \par We landed and as I went to the dispensary, Cal went \par to get avionics to straighten out the problem with the\par radio. When I entered, she was sitting at her desk\par reading.\par \par "Nurse!" I said, drawing her attention.\par \par "Yes Captain."\par \par "My sinuses are stopped up. Do you have anything to\par clear them?"\par \par "I've seen you around. Your Captain Hill, and I have\par heard a lot about you."\par \par "All bad I hope."\par \par "Some of it was good," she said, smiling.\par \par "Do you have anything , for my sinuses?"\par \par She walked back behind the shelving and came back \par with a bottle. "Take two of these twice a day for a \par week and if you're still not feeling better, well then, \par you need to see the Doctor."\par \par "Thanks nurse," I said and started to walk out.\par \par "That's Nurse Avery, and Captain, you need to sign\par this," she stated. I turned back, signing the receipt.\par "If you would like, I could come by later tonight and\par check on you," she added, courting a little smile.\par \par "The way I'm feeling, I wouldn't know you were there,"\par I replied, excusing myself from the house call. "No\par way," I thought.\par \par I stepped out into the rain that was pouring heavy at\par this time. I popped two of the pills and not having a\par poncho with me, I was soaked immediately, and drenched\par by the time I reached my hooch. I removed my clothes\par and got under the sheet, unfolded the blanket from the\par foot of the bed and pulled it over me, never having\par used it and then pulled my mosquito net over the wire\par frame. Soon I was sound asleep.\par \par "Wake up Capt'n," Burney said, tugging on my \par shoulder. "Sir, it's 0515 hours. Lieutenant Griffin \par told me to ask if you were going up this morning."\par \par "I'm up." I said, opening my eyes, seeing the face of\par an eighteen-year-old kid that always smiled. "Tell him\par I'll be down on the line shortly. Did avionics check\par out my radio?" I asked, dragging myself up to sit on\par the edge of the bed.\par \par "They replaced it and said everything checked out. \par Are you Okay Capt'n?"\par \par "Yeah, I'm fine, Barney," I answered, with a half ass\par smile as he exited, shaking his head.\par \par I reached over to the small wooden desk next to my\par bunk, grabbed the bottle of medicine, and popped \par three of them. I heard rain pounding on the tin roof \par of my hooch as I slowly stood and stepped over to\par take a flight jumper off the hanger and put it on. I \par felt weak but I was determined to go up today.\par \par "Are you going to make it today?" Cal asked as I\par reached the flight line.\par \par "I can handle it," I answered, walking around the\par chopper, inspecting it. We had our ponchos on with \par our hoods pulled over our heads to stay dry but the \par bottoms of our legs around the boots were wet.\par \par "Climb in, I've done the preflight and everything\par checks out," he urged, sensing my condition.\par \par "Thanks," I said, climbing into the cockpit, and taking\par off my poncho.\par \par Cal climbed in and thirty minutes later we were well\par en-route for another day of work. We were flying in\par sector 804 today, one I had been in months back, \par along the Cambodian border, east of the Da Fu River. \par This was an area where Charlie was known to be \par entering the country time and again, but not spotted \par because of his craftiness in covering his tracks. We \par flew two and a half hours reaching it.\par \par Our refueling point for the day was twenty kilometers\par east of the river, at 'Firebase Beaver', an artillery\par compound on top of 'Hill 32', in the middle of \par nowhere. It was placed there to guard a large portion \par of the border but was sometime ineffective because of \par the sneaky way Charlie was entering. He never used \par the same route each time, and never moved all the \par convoys at once, only small amounts of troops and \par supplies here and there.\par \par Reaching the sector, I flew at 7,000 feet, flying a\par little recon, trying to spot an obvious point that\par Charlie could cross the Da Fu River that divided the\par two countries. At this altitude, trails and roads were\par obvious, if you knew what to look for.\par \par I spotted what looked like tire ruts just on the other\par side of the border. We weren't authorized to enter\par Cambodia however I figured a quick look, in and out,\par would go unnoticed. Swooping down to 150 feet, I\par skimmed the treetops and then banked, following the\par river for about two miles until I was near the area I\par had spotted the tracks, and then turned west crossing\par into the forbidden zone.\par \par I crossed over the exact spot, finding what looked like\par tire ruts recently made. I figured these were made\par within the last three hours, not having time to fill\par with rainwater. Quickly rolling, I turned and headed\par back across the river, guesstimating where I might find\par signs where they had entered.\par \par "Spot anything Cal?" I asked, searching left to right.\par \par "Look at two o'clock. That area of trees looks as if\par they have been recently uprooted. Over there, along\par the river bank," he replied, pointing.\par \par "I see it. Let's have a look!" I stated, turning\par south in that direction. I low leveled along the\par river, about twenty feet. Bang! Bang! Bang! I heard\par the sound of machine-gun fire. Reactively, I climbed\par and banked; turning back toward the gunfire as Cal\par instinctively began spraying the area with fire from\par the Minigun. It was raining lightly, but not enough to\par keep us from seeing tracer rounds. That gave us a fix\par on their position and I circled around once more,\par coming in from a thousand feet, allowing him to get off\par a few rockets.\par \par Experience dictated there was no more than a squad \par from the gunfire we received. After the two passes, I \par knew we had taken them out, however there would \par not be a body count this incident. We were in an \par area scarcely patrolled by our troops and within \par hours, the bodies would be removed, hiding all traces \par that a firefight had taken place. Along this area of the \par river was a primary source for entering the country \par and the VC would cover all their tracks if possible.\par \par "Backlash, Raven."\par \par "Raven, this is Backlash."\par \par "Backlash, Raven, I have unconfirmed kills at 8513,\par 3131, do you copy?"\par \par "Raven, backlash, unconfirmed kills at 8513, 3131,\par copy. What's the estimate Raven?"\par \par "Backlash, Raven, I have eight unconfirmed."\par \par "Raven, backlash, eight unconfirmed, copy that."\par \par "Backlash, Raven, continuing recon."\par \par "Raven, Backlash, copy."\par \par I climbed to 5,000 feet and cruised, viewing the area,\par and spotting a CH-47 transport chopper up at about\par eleven o'clock. I moved in close enough to recognize\par the tail number.\par \par "055, this is Raven. Where are you headed buddy?"\par \par "Raven! Where the hell you been? I haven't seen your\par ass in six months."\par \par "I've been busy, hunting Charlie. Where ya headed?"\par \par "Dropping troops at Firebase Beaver."\par \par "Need an escort? I want to top off my fuel tank."\par \par "Wouldn't hurt, I took fire three times last week\par coming off that damn hill. It seems Charlie doesn't\par want to give up trying to take that Firebase."\par \par "It may not be long before he makes a big push to\par overrun it. A while ago, I caught a handful crossing\par the Da Fu River and that may only be the tip of the\par iceberg," I said, flying up beside them.\par \par "You're getting short, aren't you Raven." 055 asked.\par \par "Less than two months!" I replied, excitedly.\par \par "What are you going to do then?"\par \par "I'm taking an early out after the two tours, and \par then going back to civilian life."\par \par "Going back to that girl of yours?"\par \par "Na, she couldn't handle my second tour. She went \par on to greener pastures."\par \par "Sorry about that Raven. She'll change her mind \par when she sees you."\par \par "It's too late for that. I've forgotten all about\par her."\par \par "Firebase Beaver, this is 055 approaching with an\par escort from the east at three clicks out."\par \par "We have you in sight 055, land on the southeast side\par at the green smoke."\par \par "Roger, on the green smoke."\par \par He landed and dropped of the troops and pulled out,\par waving as he went by.\par \par "Thanks Raven, we'll see you again."\par \par "You too, good luck 055, Raven out."\par \par I shut down near the fuel truck, and we got out\par stretching our legs. I saw that they might be\par expecting another fight with Charlie because they were\par scurrying to fill sandbags. The barbed wire was\par doubled around the perimeter and a couple of men \par were putting out extra claymores (mines) for added \par security. I had seen this many times and usually it was \par for good reason.\par \par "Cal, I'm going to see if there is a hot meal in the\par mess hall. I'll be back in a minute," I stated,\par walking toward the bunker.\par \par "I'll get the tanks topped off," he replied.\par \par "What do you have on the stove guys?" I asked,\par entering the bunker.\par \par "Hot c-rations Captain," one of the men answered.\par \par "Damn, I thought you guys had it better than that! I\par was expecting you to have a couple of extra steaks on\par the grill," I said, jokingly.\par \par "We had that yesterday," he replied, smiling. "But \par you're welcome to a hot can of eggs and ham."\par \par "Maybe next time," I said, walking out.\par \par The tanks were topped off, Cal was setting in the\par gunship eating spaghetti, and meatballs from a SP-Pack\par one of the men had given him. He handed me a bag \par but I suddenly felt sick, refusing it. I tried not letting\par it show but he noticed and didn't say anything. I\par climbed in and buckled up, starting the engine.\par \par "Firebase Beaver, Raven ready for departure, thanks for\par the fuel."\par \par "You're welcome Raven. You're cleared."\par \par We lifted off, heading east and climbing to 7,000 feet,\par just above the roof of the clouds. The ceiling was\par varying in this hilly terrain, from nothing to 300 feet\par in lower valleys so I stayed on top for now. We flew\par for another two hours in a zigzag pattern over our\par area, waiting for a call and flying reconnaissance.\par \par "Raven, Backlash."\par \par "Backlash, Raven."\par \par "Raven, we have Charlie on the grid at 9702, 3148.\par Possible sighting by an Air Force fighter on passover,\par do a recon and report, do you copy?"\par \par I copy Backlash, possible sighting at 9702, 3148,\par verify and report."\par \par "That is affirmative Raven, Backlash out.\par \par I checked on the map and it was about sixty miles \par north from where we were earlier this morning on \par the Cambodian border.\par \par "I heard the orders too Raven, recon and report!" Cal\par stated, over the headset.\par \par "What!"\par \par "Don't do anything until we report in." He continued.\par \par "Who me?"\par \par We continued on that heading until we came within 5\par clicks of the designated area.\par \par "Cal, it seems we have a little smoke in our avionics."\par I said, waiting for his reply.\par \par "Cal, do you copy me up there?" I said again, and then\par tapped him on the helmet. He turned, looking at me,\par shrugging his shoulders, smelling and noticing the\par smoke.\par \par "Turn to base!" He shouted, pointing south.\par \par I took his advice and turned south toward base. The\par smoke was getting thicker so I opened my vent, allowing\par some of the smoke to be sucked out. I tried several\par times raising base but to no avail. I saw the smoke\par coming from the opposite side from the radio, probably\par from the wiring harness, letting me know that the radio\par was never the problem. I was traveling at 160 kph,\par keeping the Da Fu River to my right, now that most of\par my instruments were on the blink. I had maintained an\par altitude of 5,000 feet in case of an engine failure,\par giving me time to search for a spot to land.\par \par Suddenly, the engine light began flashing, sounding an\par alarm. I knew it was time to find that spot. I turned\par the ear piercing alarm off, allowing me to think more\par clearly. I had practiced auto-rotating many times, but\par never actually landing, knowing the landing could be\par rough, even fatal. I knew I was about to lose the\par engine so my mind raced; thinking of the most obvious\par place to land that could be spotted by our own\par choppers.\par \par Then it happened. The engine failed and I \par immediately set the pitch on the blades and began \par auto-rotating. I was dropping at a fast rate, but \par maintaining control. I quickly decided to land at the \par river's edge, in the trees, but not far enough in that I \par couldn't be spotted by our own people.\par \par I dropped through an opening in the clouds, the\par controls were heavy, but I managed to steer in the\par direction I wanted. I had about forty-five seconds to\par get positioned along the river, finally picking my\par spot. I fought with both hands maintaining control,\par managing until the very last second, and then pulled on\par the pitch trying to stall out. It banked, turning over\par slightly and we plunged into the trees at such force\par the blades smashed the trees, blades and branches\par flying in every direction. I felt death as we plunged\par deeper, crashing into a large tree trunk, knocking me\par semi-conscious, finally coming to rest, about fifteen\par feet above the ground. I remained dazed for some \par time, and then realizing what had happened.\par \par "Cal!" I grunted, feeling as if the breath was knocked\par out of me.\par \par "Cal, are you okay? Cal, Cal!" I shouted as loud as I\par could manage, but received no response. I leaned\par forward putting my hand on his neck and felt \par something protruding from the side of it. I tried turning \par his head, then leaned forward and saw a limb had \par pierced through the metal frame and was lodged \par through his neck.\par \par Each second brought excruciating pain as I struggled to\par free myself from the harness restraining me. I could\par only use my right arm; it was too painful using the\par other. The Plexiglas windshield had been ripped out,\par allowing the rain to come in, soaking me. I nudged my\par body around enough to release the harness and I\par dropped, jamming me to the down side of the aircraft,\par perched on its side. I knew I could wriggle my way out\par but the fifteen feet I would have to fall worried me.\par \par I reached under the right side of my seat pulling the\par emergency pack from underneath it and let it fall to\par the ground, knowing I would have to jump sooner or\par later, later sounded better but maybe not the wisest.\par A puddle of water lay below me, meaning there was mud\par that might make for a softer landing. I was becoming\par faint, thinking I might die if I remained lodged in the\par aircraft.\par \par I pulled myself to the edge of the opening where the\par Plexiglas once was, grabbed the rim just above me, and\par worked my lower body until I was ready to drop my \par feet and let go. Letting my feet slip, I released myself,\par falling feet first into the puddle, crushing my whole\par body into the ground. I lay still for a few minutes,\par recovering from the pain caused from the jump that\par jolted my body, knocking the breath out of me. Then\par trying, but unable to move, I felt myself slipping into\par darkness.\par \par \b Week 2-Day1!\b0\par \par I awoke, but couldn't tell when or how long afterwards,\par all I saw was darkness and just that quick I passed out\par again. Again, unaware of time or how long I had been\par here, my eyes opened, my face felt rain splashing\par against it, and my body was cold, I was feverish, and\par darkness came over me again.\par \par \cf1\i Cal and I were throwing the football, just having eaten\par chow. He and I were the same height at six foot, he at\par one seventy and I was one eighty-five. During high\par school, he played defensive end where he attended\par Carter High school in Daton, Illinois, and I\par quarterbacked, at Shelby High in Belton, South\par Carolina.\par \par "Go long!" I shouted.\par \par He split left and took off down the center of the\par company compound. He had gone about thirty yards \par and looked back while on a dead run, the ball fell right\par into his hands as he reached up, ran five more yards\par and spiked the ball.\par \par Walking back he commented, "That was a perfect \par catch."\par \par "Bullshit, that was a perfect throw," I countered him.\par \par "You never give an inch, do you?" He stated, with a\par big grin.\par \par I looked at him with a similar expression, "Never."\par \par Reaching in his back pocket, he pulled out his\par billfold, "I want to show you something. What do you\par think, does she look like me?" He asked, excitedly,\par showing me a picture of his wife and six month old\par daughter.\par \par "Na, she looks more like your daughter," I joked.\par \par "Asshole, you know what I meant," he said, throwing \par his elbow into my side.\par \par "She's got your wife's black hair."\par \par "Like mine."\par \par "Your wife's beautiful complexion."\par \par "Like mine," he remarked. I quickly gave him an odd\par look, and examined the photo further.\par \par "Beautiful dark eyes like her mother."\par \par "And, like mine."\par \par "Her nose is a little crooked."\par \par "Hey, quit making fun of my nose. If I had played\par quarterback instead of defensive end, it wouldn't be\par crooked.\par \par "She's beautiful Cal."\par \par "Thanks Brian."\par \par "I was talking about Cynthia!"\par \par "Asshole! He shot back quickly and then seemed to fall\par into a light trance. "God I love that girl. When I\par get home, we're going to start working on three more.\par That's how many we both want. Can you see me \par walking around the house with four rug rats hanging \par onto my legs?"\cf0\i0\par \par I heard a voice but couldn't open my eyes to see who \par it might be. Maybe I was being rescued, but it felt as \par if I was being dragged. I saw a glimmer of a person's\par silhouette, blocking the sun from my face. A young\par beautiful girl, maybe an Angel, I thought, hearing the\par voice of a girl speaking a language I couldn't \par understand. I passed out again.\par \par I heard that voice again, however, I felt warmer than\par before, and my sense of smell was playing tricks,\par smelling the musky odor of my Grand parents \par basement, and then in the next moment the sweet \par scent of a woman's body permeated my nostrils. \par My sight was blurred as they squinted open, only \par enough to see an angel lying next to me. I felt the \par warmth of its body pressing to mine, comforting\par me, but then fading away.\par \par Each time I awoke, it was as if years passed, with the\par pain never leaving. My eyes played tricks on me, with\par the face of the angel changing each time I saw her, but\par the warmth remained the same and the more aware I\par became, I felt the gentle caressing of my naked body.\par \par This time when my eyes opened, the angels face had\par changed, and the face of an elderly angel appeared.\par The look was mature however not hard or cold, but \par one of caring. Somehow, I managed a smile and she \par returned it with a warm tender smile, pressing her \par palm to my forehead as she did. Just that quick, my \par eyes closed, sending my mind back into a restless state, \par my whole world now spinning out of control. This \par continued what seemed an eternity.\par \par \par \cf1\i "Brian, have you seen this morning paper?" Mother\par asked as I ran down the stairway into the kitchen.\par \par "Nobody reads that rag mother," I replied, sitting down\par in front of a bowl of Cheerios. Since I can remember,\par mother had always placed a bowl of Cheerios for me \par on the breakfast table. I poured milk over the top and\par started crunching.\par \par "Carter High School Wins First State Title." "Carter\par High School for its first time ever goes 13-0, winning\par the state title in the AAAA Division. With four\par seconds remaining, down 21-17, Carter's all time\par leading passer, Brian Hill, throws a sixty yard\par touchdown pass to receiver William Donovan to take \par the state title."\par \par "Really, I thought we were at that game last night,\par mother," I said, jokingly.\par \par "Got anything special planned today?"\par \par "Let's see, the Malibu needs new brake pads .Oh, \par Mom, Ricks' coming over to help me and he's bringing \par Hannah with him .\par \par "There's plenty of bread and chips in the cupboard, the\par ham and cola's in the refrigerator. I swear, that boy\par eats more than any child I know."\par \par "That two hundred forty pound child saved my butt \par last night, Mom. You saw it, that number 67 had me, \par and Rick came out of nowhere and laid him out. Let \par me know if you read that in that rag."\par \par "Is he coming over for breakfast?"\par \par "No, they'll be here in about an hour, why?"\par \par "I don't have but one pound of bacon in the frig."\par \par "You just wait mom, I'm going to tell him you said\par that," I remarked, laughing.\par \par Continuing to wash dishes, she looked at me with a\par smile, knowing Rick thought of her as his second mom,\par and was always joking with him about his eating.\par \par I'll be back shortly. I've got to go to the parts\par house and pick up the pads. If they get here before I\par get back, just give him a sandwich or something to \par keep him occupied," I joked.\par \par When I pulled back up in the driveway, Rick's car was\par here. I walked in the side door and into the kitchen\par and there they were, sitting at the table. Rick was\par eating a bologna sandwich, Hanna was sitting next to\par him, talking to mother and on the other side of the\par table was the most beautiful girl I have ever seen.\par \par "Hi Brian," Hannah said. Rick couldn't say anything\par because his mouth was full, but he did hold up his\par hand.\par \par "Hello," I replied, but kept my eyes on the golden\par blonde, revealing her perfect teeth.\par \par "Oh, Brian, this is Carol Baker, my new next door\par neighbor. Carol, this is Brian," Hannah said,\par introducing us.\par \par "Hello," I said, putting the box of brake pads on the\par counter, not taking my eyes off of her.\par \par "Hello Brian," she replied, with our eyes locked.\par \par "She's the one I told you about, remember," Rick\par stated.\par \par "No, I don't remember you saying anything about her."\par \par "Sure I did."\par \par "No, you said her next door neighbor was just cute," I\par teased, embarrassing her, as Rick and Hannah \par laughed.\par \par "I went with Hannah to your game last night! You had \par us so nervous until that last play," Carol said, bringing\par my heart rate up a notch.\par \par In a later discussion, we admitted to one another\par that, in less than five minutes, we had fallen in love.\par Before that championship game, I probably could \par have had my pick of any girl, after that game, they \par were throwing themselves at me. However, there was \par Carol, sitting at my kitchen table with eyes so blue, the\par quintessence of class, with her golden blonde hair, not\par quite to her shoulders, curled under, displaying her\par beautiful white teeth through bright red lips.\par \par It wasn't until June 14, seven months later that we\par missed our first day of being with one another. I\par moved in a dorm at Georgia Tech and she began \par Harvard Medical School.\par \cf0\i0\par \b Week 3-Day 2-My Recovery!\b0\par \par I awoke, opening my eyes, seeing one of the beautiful\par angels I had envisioned while in my delirious state of\par mind. I felt no pain, no dizziness, and my vision was\par normal once again. I looked about the very small,\par shadowy, cubical that I was housed. The dim flame \par of a candle was all the light used, and all the light\par necessary to see that I was in some sort of a makeshift\par box, and the musky odor of dampness remained \par pungent to my sense of smell.\par \par "Who are you?" I asked the angel.\par \par I received no answer but was accorded a beautiful\par smile, as if she was happy that I was here.\par \par "Do you have a name?" I asked again, receiving an \par even larger smile.\par \par I coughed, bringing a different expression to her face,\par one of concern. Immediately, she leaned forward,\par sliding under the tattered blanket with me, placing her\par arms over my body, and pulling herself against me. I\par then recognized that scent of the woman I had smelled\par previously. Feeling nervous, I wondered what was I to\par do now. What if Papasan were to enter, catching us\par lying together? I dosed off again.\par \par Gunfire! I thought, awakening. I heard gunfire in the\par distance. I jumped up, searching for something to\par cover myself, having nothing on. There was no light as\par I fumbled around, searching the small cubical for a\par source of light and finding none. Crawling on all\par fours, I found my way to a narrow crack, allowing a\par small amount of light to creep through. I pressed\par against the wooden slates, forcing a small door to fall\par forward. The light was blinding as I covered my face\par with my hands. Incrementally, I moved my palms,\par allowing my eyes to adjust to the sensitive rays,\par finally able to remove my hands completely. I was in\par the jungle, filled with green foliage, the sound of\par running water rumbled in the distance.\par \par What was that? I asked myself. It was the\par unmistakable sound of gunfire, I concluded. I crawled\par out of the small hole and stood in the nude, looking\par about for some sign of human life. I also imagined\par hearing faint sounds of someone screaming, but \par remained unsure.\par \par Leaving the small camouflaged door lying forward, I\par crawled back into the cubical and searched for anything\par to cover my nakedness, finding only the tattered\par blanket that had covered me. I wrapped myself in it\par instinctively to cover myself. I sat waiting for the\par angel to reappear, and waited for hours until I heard\par the rustling of leaves draw closer. I peered out,\par seeing a young, smiling Vietnamese girl approach and I\par lay back against the dirt wall, waiting for her to\par enter. As she slithered in, her demeanour changed to\par one of a vicious serpent, as she began saying things to\par me in a way that I felt as if she were scolding me. I\par didn't understand until she began pointing at the door.\par I realized then that she was angry because I had left\par the door open.\par \par "Okay, okay," I said, holding my arms out, waving \par them, to suppress her scolding. She got one last word \par in as she pointed her finger in my face. I hadn't felt \par that low since my mother scolded me for using bleach \par while washing colored clothes. Of course, they all \par ended up with white spots on them. She immediately \par calmed down, assuming her angelic appearance, and \par said something in Vietnamese. I didn't understand any \par of the Vietnamese language except for the few foul \par words commonly used between GI's.\par \par I knew she couldn't understand me either so I thought\par to make it into a game.\par \par "Are you an angel? Did you know you appeared to \par me with four different faces?" I asked. She looked\par curiously at me with those beautiful dark eyes. Her\par face was one of perfection with silky black hair\par flowing over her shoulders, reaching to her waist.\par \par She fell forward on her knees before me, placing her\par warm hands to my cheeks checking my fever. I looked\par into her eyes, bringing a smile of shyness to her face.\par I smiled in return, wanting to kiss her, but held back\par afraid of losing the trust she seemed to have. Her\par hands slid over my body, checking my condition to \par see if I remained feverish.\par \par She spoke again and smiled, putting her hand to my\par cheek and along my side. I thought I understood what\par she meant, that I was getting well.\par \par There was warmth about her that seemed to cradle me.\par Her eyes returned to my face, stopped, and stared, as\par was mine. I was intact, having recovered all my\par faculties, but somehow I felt beside myself, absent\par from all that had guided my course to this moment. \par Her smile was soft with caring eyes and in this brief\par moment, I felt different.\par \par "You are an angel and I want to kiss you." I said,\par inching my face slowly toward hers. She remained\par motionless as I felt her breath against my face. I\par held my lips within a fraction of hers, testing her,\par wanting to know if it would be acceptable to her if I\par was to kiss her. Her face seemed empty of expression,\par causing me to wonder if she was aware of what I \par wanted to do. I placed the tips of my fingers to her \par lips and cheek caressing them and her face \par responding to my touch by slightly turning to it. \par Seeing this, I lightly press my lips to hers, causing her \par to pull back and take a deep breath. A second passed, \par and again, I pressed our lips together, but now placing \par my hand behind her neck, holding us gently together.\par \par After a brief moment we pulled apart, our breathing \par was sporadic. Nervously, with closed eyes, she smiled \par and leaned her face toward me, slightly puckering her \par lips. Irresistible to her, I gently kissed her again, this\par time, placing my tongue lightly to her lips, gliding it\par over them. She flinched at my touch, but didn't\par resist. I gently pressed it between hers, prying them\par apart, hesitantly at first she held rigid, and then\par relaxed allowing me to penetrate her mouth touching \par her teeth.\par \par From the void expression on her face and her \par reactions, I sensed she had never been kissed in this \par way. As I felt more as ease, I searched her mouth \par finding her tongue and sucked it until I had it in my \par mouth. She placed her hands to the sides of my face, \par now holding me to her and lunged her tongue into \par my mouth searching for my tongue as I began playing \par and hid it from her.\par \par She grunted, while lapping inside my mouth to find it,\par and then giving in to her I allowed her to catch it as\par she now sucked mine, drawing it into her mouth.\par \par The sound of leaves ruffling caught our attention,\par causing us to hold still and listen as the sound came\par closer each second. The door opened, brightly lighting\par up the cubical until it was closed. A match was lit to\par light the candle and I saw one of the other angels\par looking at me with a smile on her face.\par \par They began speaking to one another in Vietnamese. \par The one that came in first began explaining something \par to the other one and when she pointed to the door, I\par realized she was telling her that I had left the door\par open.\par \par Their tone changed and as they talked, each of them\par began giggling and looking at me. I shrugged as if to\par say, 'Don't pay me any attention'. After a moment of\par continuous giggling, the one that had just came in\par moved in front of me, perching herself on her knees \par and leaned forward, puckering her lips. I then \par realized what their discussion was about.\par \par I was going to be just as gentle and careful with this\par one as the other. However, I burst out laughing,\par seeing the expression on her face, with her lips\par puckered, waiting for me to kiss her. I looked at the\par first one and she made a gesture to me, signaling me \par to go ahead, show her. I turned my attention back \par and looked into her soft dark eyes. In her own right, \par she was as beautiful as the other, having her own \par beautiful features, but her hair, a shade lighter, a tint \par of brown, also flowed to her waist.\par \par I leaned over, softly kissing her, and immediately she\par put her tongue to my lips. I quickly moved my head\par back, avoiding her tongue and placed a finger on her\par lips to let her know to slow down. Again, I moved\par forward, kissing her softly for a few moments and then\par I pressed my tongue to her lips, sliding it lengthwise.\par When I saw she was being patient, I pressed it deeper\par into her mouth, but then, I took her by the wrist and\par placed them around my neck, holding them there for a\par few seconds before releasing them.\par \par I placed my hands to the back of her neck, caressing\par her as I began sucking her tongue into my mouth. On\par cue, she slowly slipped her tongue into my mouth and\par began searching my mouth. As I did previously, I\par pulled my tongue away toying with her. She played\par along for a moment and then bit my lip, being angry\par that I held it from her too long. I jerked back\par laughing as she tried pulling our mouths together\par again. I was not as stupid this time, letting her find\par my tongue quickly.\par \par The first one, who appeared a little older, maybe\par nineteen, put her hands between us to pry us apart.\par She then pushed the other one away seeming jealous and\par wanting another turn. I smiled, obliging her but this\par time gently kissing her neck and up to her ear, causing\par her to giggle and squirm.\par \par The one behind tapped the one I was with on the\par shoulder and said something to her. They began talking\par to one another again and the one I was kissing said\par something to me, pointing outside. I understood that\par she was telling me they had to leave. I shook my head\par yes, indicating I understood.\par \par "Hey, where are my clothes?" I asked, shaking the\par blanket and then reaching to her and pinching her \par black silky blouse, shaking it. "My clothes," I repeated,\par making hand gestures. By her own hand gestures, I\par understood her to mean that she would bring them \par when she came back.\par \par They both turned and headed toward the door but the\par second one stopped in front of me and tried kissing me,\par I let her. She smiled and crawled out leaving me alone\par for I didn't know how long.\par \par After a while, I became curious, and moved to the small\par door, with no hinges and cracked it open, peering out\par to see the sunlight. I sat for hours waiting for their\par return, but then it began to darken outside. I assumed\par then that it would be tomorrow before any of them\par returned.\par \par Suddenly I began to wonder what was happening to me. I\par felt ashamed of my feelings. Why was I feeling anxious\par for her return, it wasn't sitting right with my normal\par thinking. I felt a battle begin to rage within my mind\par between what I was feeling now and what I was supposed\par to feel. What was it within me that I could now want\par something I had despised for so long? She was nothing\par to me and soon I would be home, away from all of this.\par I crawled over and lay on the crate, designed as a bed\par and fell asleep.\par \par \cf1\i My mind and body were pulsating as Carol and I sat in the\par parking lot of the Best Western Motel on Highway 32 \par at 8:15 pm, Sunday night. The night before we left to\par begin at different schools. Less than an hour ago, we\par were kissing outside of Dyers Cafeteria, a local diner,\par wondering how we were going to spend our last \par evening together, for a while. Jokingly I said, "At the \par Best Western," and she quickly responded, "That's \par sounds good to me, and after a few minutes of \par passionate kissing, I drove us here. I kissed her, \par got out of the car and returned in about ten minutes \par with a key to our room.\par \par I drove around to Room 176 and parked, sitting for a\par moment, contemplating my first move. I got out of the\par car and walked around, opening her door. As I had \par seen on TV many times of movie starlets, wearing \par miniskirts, Carol opened her legs getting out of the car, \par giving me a view that was impregnated into my mind \par forever. Her skirt had already slid up nearly to her \par pelvic area and all I saw was panties, and a gentle smile \par from her.\par \par I took her hand, and we walked to the door and stood\par as I fumbled getting the key to open the door. She\par seemed calm but my stomach was in knots, never \par having been with a girl in this way. Finally, unlocking \par the door, I took her hand and we stepped in. I turned \par the light on in the room, as we looked around, smiled,\par agreeing that it met with our approval. She walked\par forward to the end of the bed, still holding my hand\par and we embraced, kissing for several minutes.\par \par I reached up and began unbuttoning her blouse and \par she began unbuttoning my shirt. Within two minutes, \par we were standing nude, embracing with our mouths \par locked. I had no romantic fantasies other than kissing \par and doing it. I stepped back and gazed upon her \par breasts, placing my hands over them, almost \par concealing them, and feeling her nipples pressing \par firmly against my palms and lowered them down her \par body feeling one of a goddess, perfectly formed with \par every curve having the softness of velvet.\par \par I took her hand and walked to the side of the bed,\par pulling the blanket and sheet down, and then getting in\par at the same time. She lay on her back as I lay on my\par side with, and arm and a leg over her and my hard prick\par against her side. We kissed as my hand roamed her\par body, feeling parts of her I had only dreamed of. I\par pulled myself from her lips and looked at her breasts\par as I gently caressed them. This was my first time\par looking at breasts other than in magazines. My heart\par was pounding so fast my face felt flush.\par \par Slowly I moved my hand down until it reached her \par pubic hair that matched the color on her head. It was \par the most awesome sight I had ever beheld. My hand\par instinctively moved over it and my finger began\par creeping inside her slit until it found the tight hole it \par searched for.\par \par After I had fingered her for a minute, I moved over her\par and was about to thrust it in when she stopped me.\par \par "Brian," she spoke softly, seeming embarrassed. "Be\par gentle with me."\par \par I hesitated from ramming it in and slowly forced it in,\par feeling her tightness, understanding why she said that.\par Her face squinched and she moaned as the head \par entered.\par \par "Wait Brian, you're too big, please be more gentle."\par \par "I hesitated another second and began forcing it in,\par hearing her whimpering. I couldn't stop now; I thrust\par it in bumping her cervix; causing a light scream from\par her.\par \par "Damn, you're an animal!" Her remark was \par spontaneous and her hands quickly covered her face \par when she realized her words.\par \par I held my prick deep into her and stopped. "I'm sorry,\par I couldn't help myself," I said feeling ashamed.\par \par Her head was slightly turned as she whimpered, biting\par down on her finger, enduring the pain. I held still,\par waiting for her to recover or say something. Her body\par relaxed and she turned facing me seeming to be all\par right, but I held back, looking for another sign\par assuring me that she was okay.\par \par She looked at the expression on my face and began\par giggling.\par \par "You look like a scared little boy."\par \par I wasn't concerned now; my conscience was cleared by\par that smile and those words. I began pushing slowly,\par changing her smile to one of mild shock, and then\par suddenly changing to one of fulfillment. I was allured\par to her hard breasts, barely stirring and lowered my\par mouth until I had her right one in my mouth, and \par sucked it profusely. She pulled my head, pressing my \par mouth firmly to her while uttering sounds of pleasure,\par stirring sensations within me. I continued thrusting\par until my mind and body became rigid, and the feeling \par of bliss began shooting throughout my body, beyond \par my imagination. Afterwards, as we lay prone, I \par envisioned us together forever.\par \cf0\i0\par I awoke hearing the door being removed and looked \par up and didn't see light from outside. The elder of the\par three young ones had returned with a candle and lit it.\par She brought a bag, handing it to me. I smiled at her,\par opened it, pulling out my flight-suit, my 38-pistol\par with holster along with my boots, watch, and the\par emergency pack I had dropped from the gunship. I\par leaned over, kissed her on the cheek, and said, "Thank\par you."\par \par I looked at my watch and it was running. I turned it\par toward the light, viewing it and read 2306 hours.\par \par "What are you doing out this late?" I asked, knowing\par she didn't understand. She replied but I didn't\par understand her either.\par \par I rummaged through the emergency bag, finding a hunting\par knife, needle nose pliers with side cutters, a\par flashlight that was so dim, it was useless, a box of\par waterproof matches, assorted fishhooks, a bar of soap,\par five packs of dried food, insect repellent sticks,\par water purification pills and a compass. I turned the\par flashlight on, aiming it around the cubical, testing it\par again, but unable to see anything clearly.\par \par I took the candle and held it up to her face, she was\par not pure Vietnamese, but had what looked like American\par blood in her. I calculated her age and determined that\par she had French blood, because during the time of her\par birth France occupied this region. I knew this was bad\par for her because mixed blood was considered bad, to the\par point they were exiled from the mainstream population.\par \par She watched with curiosity as I tinkered with all the\par things in the bag she brought in. I looked at her and\par smiled, thanking her again. She threw me a quick smile\par and spoke; however, I still didn't understand.\par \par "Shouldn't you be getting back to your village?" I\par asked, pointing toward the door. She shrugged her\par shoulders, seeming to understand what I was saying.\par "It's eleven o'clock, do your parents know where you\par are?" I asked, jokingly. Again, she shrugged her\par shoulders, smiling in return. "I guess not." I said,\par and wondered about her family.\par \par I put all the things back in the small pack and snapped\par it closed. I noticed she was watching my every move,\par affecting the way I was beginning to look at her. We\par looked at one another, staring, causing me to wonder \par if she was thinking to stay with me tonight. The \par thought of that began to arouse me, changing my \par heart rate. I knew if I kissed her, she would like that \par but could I take it further, if I was to touch her, would \par that go beyond the bounds of trust?\par \par Suddenly, again, my mind thought of home, my \par mother, my family, my friends, and even those I \par worked with here, in this country. What would they \par think of me, desiring a Vietnamese girl, a half-breed at \par that? I would be ostracized as she probably is. My \par upbringing was such that something such as this \par wouldn't be allowed. I would be looked down upon \par and snickered at in dark corners. My friends would \par speak to me but in their thoughts, I would be less than \par them.\par \par The hate I had carried in my heart for these people \par was balancing on this one girl. However, who would \par know? I was here alone, with no one to judge me, \par whatever I did would remain here if I was able to \par return to civilization.\par \par My attention returned to her. "What is your name?\par Brian," I said, placing my hand on my chest. "Name?"\par I asked pointing at her and then back toward me.\par "Brian," I said again, pointing to myself.\par \par "Lin Le," she spoke, placing her hands on her chest.\par \par "Lin Le, Brian," I said, pointing at her then me.\par \par "Brine," she said, as if asking.\par \par "Bri-an, Brian," I repeated.\par \par "Brian."\par \par "That's right, Brian. Lin," I said excitedly, leaning\par over and hugging her.\par \par When I sat back, she looked at me, puckering her lips.\par I smiled and said, "Kiss! Say it, Kiss!"\par \par "Kiss," she said, curiously.\par \par I leaned over and kissed her on the lips. "Kiss," I\par said again.\par \par She smiled and said, "Kiss!" She then leaned over and\par kissed me on the lips. I smiled shaking my head yes.\par \par She was on her knees before me with her hands \par clasped between her legs. We stared into the others \par eyes; the dim light from the candle cast a shadow to \par the right side of her face, allowing me to see only half \par of her face and half of a smile. I reached to her, \par taking the top tie on her blouse and began untying it. \par The smile remained in her face as I lowered my fingers \par down, undoing each until I had them all untied. She \par remained motionless, allowing me to pull it back over \par her shoulders, and then she positioned her arms to \par where I slid it down her back and off. Her breasts \par were small, perfectly round and full; her nipples were \par tiny, encircled by a dark, nickel size areola.\par \par She raised her body until she stood on her feet,\par leaning forward because of the height of the ceiling,\par but looking down at me. She loosened the drawstring \par on her black silk pants, letting them fall to the floor \par and stepped out of them. Her dark patch of hair \par stood out against her cream-colored skin. I removed \par the blanket covering the lower part of my body and \par reached out, taking both of her hands and laid back, \par pulling her on top of me.\par \par It had been two years since feeling a woman's body \par next to mine. Her smooth and warm skin felt like \par heaven. My hands roamed her back, up and down, \par touching every part of her I could reach. Her tiny, \par perfectly shaped ass felt like none I had ever touched \par before, sending a feeling through my body that I had \par forgotten existed.\par \par I wanted her now, this second. I turned us until I was\par over her and between her legs. I reached down, \par cupping her pelvic area in my hand, and then pressing \par my middle finger into her slit and pressing it further \par into her vagina. This caused my hard-on to ache and \par throb. Her juices lubricated my finger and I rubbed it \par around, moistening the area and then taking my prick \par in my hand, sliding it in, forcing it in all the way. I held\par myself up with my left hand as I took her breasts and\par kneaded each one of them.\par \par Slowly, as I moved my prick in and out of her I leaned\par over and kissed her, pressing my tongue into her \par mouth. Just as I was doing, her tongue lashed back, \par forcing its way into my mouth, lapping my tongue. Our \par saliva smeared over our mouths as our passion \par heightened. I began thrusting feverishly, continuing as \par we sucked each other's tongue. I felt the excitement \par building in my body; the sensation in my prick was \par overwhelming as I pushed faster. All at once, my \par body swelled as the sensation overcame me, \par repeatedly the sensations exploded within my body \par as my mind was numbed in ecstasy, until finally \par subsiding. I lay turned on my side with my hand \par cupping her right breast, panting heavily, collecting \par my mind and strength. She lay silent, apparently \par thinking, of what, I didn't know.\par \par After a few minutes, my mind had turned to planning\par what I was going to do about getting back to base.\par While I was scouting around tomorrow, I would see \par what kinds of weapons, along with provisions I could \par come up with for the journey. I wanted to go back to \par the gunship, get Cal's body down, get his dog tags and \par bury him, not knowing for sure how long he had been \par up there.\par \par \b Week 3-Day 3\b0\par \par I awoke before dawn and found Lin gone. I wasn't\par surprised, maybe a little disappointed, but I knew she\par had to return to her village. I put my flight suit on\par but left the top half at my waist, and then put my\par boots on. I crawled out and carefully walked a few\par yards and urinated. Afterwards I realized I should\par have gone further out, not wanting to leave any odors\par that close to where I was hiding. The moon was out but\par blocked mostly by the clouds. Carefully I walked back\par and crawled into the cubical pulling the door closed\par behind me. It was pitch black so I lit the candle to\par see, knowing I couldn't go back to sleep. Looking at\par my watch it was 0448 hours.\par }