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The Sidewinder Tales by Jojojen
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The Sidewinder Tales
Date: 6 March 2004, 4:03 AM
As the sun rose up from the side of the canyon, our hero, Dick Payne, peered from the red base. His red armor shined brightly from reflecting the sunlight. He stood tall with pistol in hand knowing that today was the day. The day that was planned to attack the blue base on the other side of the canyon; the day that would determine the war's outcome; the fight for the most strategic spot on the planet, Sidewinder.
For those of you who do not know of this place, Sidewinder is a "U-shaped" canyon that stays under temperatures of 10 degrees Fahrenheit. It consists of some rough terrain, some abandoned man-made caverns, and two bases owned by the reds and the blues. Yes, it is obvious that you are thinking that there are so many better spots that you could choose from. What was so special about this canyon, however, was it was undetectable. Weapons of mass destruction had been fired at enemies before when the reds and the blues were united, and the enemy could never pick up the signal of where it came from: the canyon was too low and too cold to pick up anything. How did the reds and the blues break from unity? That's another story.
Dick sighed. He knew that this fight would also determine his future, as well. He immediately knelt down on one knee, lowered his head, and began to pray. He prayed silently, and as he prayed, he thought about his wife and twelve year old daughter back at his home. He prayed that they would be safe and he prayed that God would give him the perseverance to fight for his family. They were all he had left. His friend, Private Rhett Liechty walked up.
He saw that Dick was praying, so he respectively remained silent until Dick would finish. Dick heard his footsteps and knew it was time to go, but he continued kneeling, to scared to lose everything that had been given to him. He stood up courageously. It was time.
"Well, Dick," Rhett said quietly, "We better get going. You know Sarge gets cranky when we show up late."
"Yeah," Dick responded. After a second or two, he held out his hand to Rhett. Rhett shook his hand then headed for the ladder that lead to the lower floor of the base.
"Rhett," Dick nervously spoke. Rhett turned around slowly.
"Yeah," Rhett answered with a quiver in his voice, and his hand shaking rapidly.
Dick was going to ask Rhett about his family and see if he could gain some courage, but from the quiver of Rhett's voice, Dick knew this was no time for personal conversation. They had a mission that was to be achieved.
"Let's do this," Dick blurted out with toughness in his voice. He then loaded his gun. Rhett suddenly forgot all his fears and was couraged by the sight of Dick ready for battle.
"Alright," he bursted loudly with excitement, "Let's do this."
They both headed down the ladder to the lower floor. Sarge and eight other red soldiers stood around loading their guns and talking with one another. Dick peered around and could see that some were scared and feared the idea of dying, but Dick remembered the words his wife spoke to him years ago. He could just picture himself and his lovely wife in their backyard at home talking about this matter. He never forgot a word she spoke. She had said, "Therefore, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, Romans 8:1." These words comforted Dick tremendously. He felt different already. He felt a sudden urge of strength in his heart and knew he was ready for what was about to become, but the others, he was not sure.
Dick continued to pondered the words his wife said as he walked up to Sarge. He then spoke to himself quietly saying, "Jesus, please be with me..."
"And may Jesus be with the rest of us," Sarge interrupted and turned around ready to give Dick his orders, "Private Dick."
"Yes, sir, Sergeant Pugh," Dick responded standing at attention. Dick awaited his orders.
Sergeant Daniel Pugh could see that Dick was trying brave and ready for duty. Pugh took a step over and peered at the other troops who were still getting ready for battle. He sensed their fear, but saw no fear in Dick. He turned to his map and looked at the plans, on the table, he had made in preparation of this attack on the blues. He had something in store for Dick that he felt only Dick could handle.
"Dick, how long have you been in the army," Pugh asked still facing the laid out plans.
It took Dick a second to think about it. "I have spent ten years in the army, sir: seven at Blood Gulch and three here at Sidewinder."
"Dick," Pugh said silently, "I sense in you a courage that none of the soldiers have ever had," he turned around and faced Dick, "On the field and off, you have a trust in something that seems to just keep you going. How long have you been under my command?"
"I have been under you command every since I was tranferred here, sir," Dick responded. Dick felt that Pugh had something he wanted to tell him.
"Yes," Pugh whispered, "I have been observed you so long. I feel I can trust you for this assignment." He tilted his head forward, "Dick, I have an offer for you."
End of Episode 1
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