HOME FRONT:

(WARNING): TRIGGER WARNING, this story contains the topic and details of war. This is your first and final warning in the case that you are not comfortable with stories involving war or brutal conflict. This is merely a fictional story being told, the events in this story did not occur in real life.

Home Front: Where Bravery Saves Lives

Chapter I: Origin

The journey of conflict and war is one that entails honor, bravery, and sacrifice, but in the end, all of the roads that are traveled lead our heroes home. In the heat of battle and difficulty, some heroes must take the long road home, because battles are won by the might and will of people. Here, I live to tell the story of one brave soldier, who did all to protect his brothers and sisters in the battlefield. Although, this story isn’t just about him, because his sacrifice is followed by his brothers-in-arms. This lone brave soldier is a young man by the name of Marcus Wraith, who stands by telling the honest truth, who believes in having one of the strongest bonds with his family, and who strongly believes in violence as a last resort, because it is not the solution to everything.

Ever since Marcus was a boy, he has always been a kind-hearted and soft-spoken individual. His father, Duncan Wraith was a hardworking and considerate man, the only downfall was that he was hardened by the traumatic experiences of war. Nevertheless, despite all that Duncan had gone through, it enabled him and his wife, Anna Wraith to raise their son Marcus. Marcus was a tall boy, about 6.0 - 6.1 with brown hair and aqua-marine colored eyes, in terms of his wardrobe, he was a simple man who didn’t overdress, he wore formal clothes but not a full suit and tie. His wardrobe consisted of what his father may wear. At 18 years of age, Marcus attempted to enlist in the military, but he was denied by the upstanding General Griffiths. General Lukas Griffiths is a strong-willed and hot-headed individual, who doesn’t take orders from anyone besides himself and holds high standards for his army. When it came to Marcus enlisting in the military, General Griffiths didn’t hold back any punches,

For he told Marcus,

“Due to your belief in limited to no violence being involved under any circumstances, I believe that it is best that you do not serve under my command, for you will not survive. Therefore you are being denied enlistment unless you take your belief under consideration.”

Chapter II: Recruited

As time went on and two years had passed for the war, Marcus and his soon-to-be fiancé Lara Wraith were living quite a quiet and simple life. Marcus and Lara spent a lot of time with his family, one reason was because his home was located in the countryside and it was peaceful there. An interesting fact about Marcus is that he carries with him, a beaded cross necklace that was given to him by his Grandmother. It has been with him since her passing and he holds it very dear to his heart and in a way, it’s something that he believes has protected him from the cruelness of the world that we live in. There’s a journal made with fine leather that Marcus takes with him, everywhere he goes, it was gifted to him by his dearest love, Lara and it contains a photograph of her. This photograph of Lara is what helps Marcus get through tough times, or even times when he’s feeling insecure when he’s away because he misses her immensely. Nevertheless, Lara means more than anything else in this world to Marcus, and he would do anything for her with or without cause. There was a day during the evening when the family was putting together dinner, they were visited by an unwanted and unexpected guest. The individual that arrived at their doorstep was General Griffiths himself, alongside Sergeant Kip Boseman, who was born and raised in a military family just like Marcus. The only difference about Sergeant Boseman is that he was known for his cocky mentality, excessive booze drinking, and his bad dad jokes. When Marcus answered the door, he was shocked to see the face of the General who has previously denied him enlistment, but times were different now and the world was at war with Raiders in the Middle East.

After each of them introduced themselves, Griffiths confronted Marcus about the mission,

“What brings you all the way out here, General? I thought I was denied enlistment,” Marcus said.

And with a quick response, the General fired back,

“You were, but times have changed and the world is on fire. And we need all the soldiers that we can find.”

“I thought I wasn’t good enough?” Marcus replied.

“No one said you weren’t good enough at the given time, but now we need someone with your mindset,” Griffiths said.

“Alright, what’s the play? You’re sending a team into war against Raiders of the Middle East. What do they have?” Marcus asked.

At this moment, Griffiths referred to Sergeant Boseman to retrieve the map layout of the mission, where Boseman explained to Marcus that the enemy had stolen ammunition and infiltrated a highly guarded military base in the Middle East.

“Your mission is clear. Reclaim our base, eliminate the enemy, and come home. Chances of survival are close to none. Good Luck,” Griffiths ordered.

The General and Sergeant departed and headed towards their Humvee, as Marcus followed trying to get the attention of the General,

“Sir, you don’t understand. I cannot do this mission, because I have a family who needs me,” Marcus said.

“We all have family, some that are still a part of this earth and some that aren’t. You have 32 hours to report to base. That’s an order,” Griffiths demanded.

Marcus was left on his doorstep with concerns for his family, which led him to run to his lover. Marcus didn’t have a choice in this decision, so he urgently packed his bag, while Lara expressed how she felt about the mission and him leaving.

“You can’t just up and go,” Lara said.

“I have to go fight. I don’t have a choice. I’ll be back before you know it,” Marcus replied.

“But you could die. What then?

If you’re gonna go, you had better come home to me,” Lara demanded.

“I’m gonna make you a promise. I’m coming home,” Marcus said.

Marcus made his way to the vehicle while preparing to leave his final words to his dearest love were:

“I’ll always love you, no matter where I am. And I’m coming back,” Marcus said to Lara.

Chapter III: Border Base

Marcus proceeded on his journey to his first destination at the Border Base, where the team was currently being stationed. Upon Marcus’ arrival at the base, he was greeted by one of the quickest marksman, his name was John Wagner, who was known for pulling a fast trigger. Alongside Wagner, was Rich (Gunner) Hikeman who is the Top Weapons Specialist for their team’s division. After their brief introduction, Marcus marched his way to the control center, where he met up with General Griffiths and the members of the crew that Marcus would be operating the mission with. General Griffiths gave a tour of the base to Marcus to make him aware of where everything was located in the campsite. Griffiths then instructed Hikeman to show Marcus to his living quarters for the night, and informed Marcus that the crew will be leaving at dawn. The crew would consist of soldiers by the names of Cole, Mack, Spitz, Captain Xavier, Drake, Cooper, Ezekiel, Andrew, Alex, Francis, Charlie, and George Bateman who is the team’s explosives expert. Soon after, Marcus was all situated in his quarters with his worries weighing heavy upon his shoulders, but to help with his stress that he was experiencing, he took out his journal and began writing notes and thoughts down for his love in the case that he didn’t make it home.

Chapter IV: Base Attack

As the calm of the night came upon the base camp, suddenly there was a sharp whistle and booming noise in the distance. Marcus’ attention was quickly drawn to the disturbances that were occurring at the base, which made it apparent that the incoming threat had already surrounded the base. In just a few moments, explosions began to rattle the base breaching the border defenses surrounding the soldiers. A band of Raiders had made their way to the center point of the base, which was the control center. The Raiders disabled the base defenses and soon, the control center burst into flames and explosions, which left the crew scrambling for their commander. Amidst the explosions, Marcus was able to find his way to half of his crew, which consisted of George Bateman, Alex, Gunner, Drake, and Spitz that had been thrown across the base due to oncoming debris. Tensions were high, Marcus was panicked and set on finding his commander, but in order to do so, he needed to bring his crew together.

“Alex, can you stand?! We’ve gotta find the commander! We can’t stay here, we’ve gotta move!” Marcus demanded.

Shots were being fired overhead, Marcus was pulling his team to safety, while the crew attempted to get Alex to stand after taking shrapnel to his right hip.

“Don’t stop, we’ve gotta keep moving! COME ON!,” Marcus yelled to his crew.

As they were making their way out of the base, Alex decided that it was better that the crew would leave him behind, because he was only slowing them down from getting to safety.

“Leave me and get everyone to safety,” Alex ordered Marcus.

“No, you’re coming with us. I’m not leaving you,” Marcus replied.

“I’m only slowing you down. Just go,” Alex said.

“No, we have a mission. We’ve gotta stick to it,” Marcus said.

“Save yourself and go,” Alex replied.

“NO!,” Marcus demanded.

“Get the hell out of here and go! Go! I’ll buy you some time,” Alex ordered.

The crew grabbed Marcus and forced him to come with them and leave Alex, as they were leaving, Alex pulled out his semi-automatic rifle and fired back at the enemy. Explosions rolled through the base, and Alex was overwhelmed with oncoming fire piercing through his chest. The remaining crew members consisted of Cole, Mack, John Wagner, Sergeant Kip Boseman, Captain Xavier, Cooper, Ezekiel, Andrew, Francis, and Charlie. As the remaining half of the crew made their way out of the base, while in pursuit of the enemy, General Griffiths was riddled with ammo rounds losing his life for the team.

Chapter V: Camp/Town Attack

The enemy vanished from the base and made their way back to the military base that they infiltrated, while the crew of soldiers were not too far behind. After the Raiders reached the military camp, shots were fired from the soldiers, and the soldiers ran into the camp lighting the enemy ablaze. For a while, rounds were exchanged and explosions shook the ground. Raiders fell and the soldiers pushed the enemy back till what it looked as if they were retreating. As the enemies ran, they quickly changed the dynamic of the battle, as a tank had entered the battlefield. Marcus quickly gathered his men,

“Move! We need to move! FALL BACK!!!,” Marcus urgently ordered.

The tank fired a round of shots sending the soldiers scattered across the battlefield.

“Regroup! Men, regroup!

Where’s the General?!,” Marcus said.

“The General is gone, we have no commander. And we can’t stand a chance against them,” Sergeant Boseman said.

“We have to! We’re not giving up, okay?!,” Marcus demanded.

The soldiers regrouped and returned fire to the enemy. One-shot, Two shots, Three, Four, Five, and Six rounds were rapidly being shot by Marcus at the tank. As his shots quickened and were more precise, he managed to time his shot enough to ignite the round in the cannon before it could leave the barrier, which caused the cannon to explode and obliterate the tank completely.

“Now is our chance, move!” Marcus ordered the team as they pushed forward, they managed to reclaim the camp and chase the enemy out.

Chapter VI: Plan of Coming Home

The dust had settled from the battle, the crew had set up camp at the military base, and gathered around a fire while gathering up supplies and ammunition left by the Raiders. Marcus was sitting by a stone wall, struggling to write in his journal to his lover, but Captain Xavier came over and tried to comfort Marcus and see what was going on with him.

“Whatcha writing there, Marcus?,” Xavier asked.

“Writing a letter to my lover, but I’m struggling,” Marcus replied.

“Tell her how you feel now because we both know that if you don’t make it to see the end,

Then that’ll be a letter that you’ll regret not writing to the one that you love,” Xavier said.

With that being said, Marcus began writing a letter to his loved one expressing how he truly felt about her. When he was finished, Marcus stood up and devised a plan to finish off the enemy with hellfire and a line of defense. He confronted Captain Xavier and explained his situation to him,

“I’m only human, and we’re about to go up against an army that we are significantly outnumbered by. This may not end in the way that we hope, but I made her a promise and I’m coming home,” Marcus said.

“You haven’t learned, have you, Marcus? You can’t make promises that you know you can’t keep,” Xavier replied.

“She’s home to me and there’s no place that I’d rather be,” Marcus said.

Chapter VII: Final Battle/Call Home

The team gathered their supplies and as dawn approached, they made their way to the enemy line. Upon their arrival, they dispersed into their defense and attack positions, waiting for the start of the battle. In the matter of a few moments, the crew heard a sharp whistle soaring through the sky, then a rain of hellfire came bursting through the clouds striking the landscape, which resembled the terrain of a No Man’s Land. As the hellfire came down, the enemy sparked a trench in front of the soldiers, which created a ring of fire around the soldiers' defenses.

“Incoming! Lookout!,” Marcus yelled.

“Move Fast!,” Xavier shouted.

Explosions shook the ground and debris flew, this allowed for the enemy to make an advance towards the soldiers' line of defense. The soldiers were surrounded and outnumbered by the enemy, and just as the time came, when all hope had seemed lost. A barrage of shots were fired towards the soldiers' barracks, soon with a moment of defining courage, the soldiers rose from their defenses and returned fire to the enemy. Explosions continued to echo throughout the battleground, transforming the terrain into a barren wasteland. Debris and shrapnel flew through the air sending the soldiers scattered across the wasteland. The soldiers didn’t give up though, because they kept getting back up to continue the fight, as they pushed the enemy back further and further, little by little.

“CHARGE!,” Marcus shouted as he took the lead into battle.

Soon, the soldiers were face-to-face with the enemies barracks, when Sergeant Boseman and Captain Xavier lost their lives to flying debris and shrapnel, as they approached the Raiders' defenses. The soldiers crawled through the rubble from the battle, closer and closer to the enemy line, when they were eventually gunned down and pinned to their location, that was only a few yards away from the enemy. The battle was on the rise, but the soldiers were in desperate need of backup or air support. With the rise of the battle, Marcus radioed urgently to command to request backup.

“We’re surrounded! We can’t hold this position! We need reinforcements! Target range is Alpha nine two-two-twelve o’clock!” Marcus demanded.

“Roger that. Air support is en route, Marcus,” Command replied.

Soon, hellfire was returned to the enemy side by the soldiers, allowing them the advantage of advancing in battle. Laying in the midst of battle, Marcus radioed to command to send a message to his loved one,

“Command, I beg you to relay this message to my loved one, in the case that I don’t get through this battle, please know that I love you and that you are my world. And I’m coming home b (static),” Marcus said.

Command was able to patch a connection and relay the message to his loved one, before the static came through. The static caused Lara distress and shock due to the ending of the transmission cutting out. The battle continued, round after round, Gunner was killed by ongoing fire and his decisive act to protect Marcus. His sacrifice allowed Marcus to regroup his team and charge ahead with guns blazing. Round after round, magazine after magazine, they eliminated the Raiders on the battlefield.

“Move! We’ve gotta go!” Marcus ordered.

Marcus performed quick action firing at the enemies to help his team move forward, as shots were being fired, Spitz was shot multiple rounds in the left leg causing him to fall.

“Spitz! You’ve got to get up! Come on, I’m not losing any more men today!” Marcus said.

“We’re so close, finish this Marcus,” Spitz replied.

“I’m getting you home, come on!” Marcus said.

Then Marcus drug Spitz behind rubble to protect him from oncoming fire and ran into battle. After moving Spitz to safety, Marcus stood up firing rounds.

“Victory is in our sights! Keep moving!” Marcus said.

Just as Marcus was about to take the lead and make the first move, a group of grenades that were bound together, were thrown to where Marcus was standing next to Spitz. The grenades erupted with fire, sending Marcus across the battlefield and killing Spitz. The explosion went off right in front of Marcus leaving him critically injured, and soon to have died in the midst of battle amongst the rubble. The war continued as Marcus closed his eyes and told himself that he loved his lover forever, after then he closed his eyes, never to open them again. With the witness of Marcus’ death, John Wagner radioed to command for a bombing raid. All was lost for the Raiders, for the bombing echoed through the ground, collapsing every structure and killing the last Raiders. The dust settles and the war was mostly won, and the heroes who fought bravely began their journey home.

Chapter VIII: Soldier Comes Home

At the Wraith family home, John Wagner and Ezekiel paid a visit to Lara Wraith, who was now an unexpected widow. They told her of Marcus’ heroic acts and how he overcame his fears of violence, and became the greatest hero out of them all. The entire Wraith family mourned the loss of a future husband, a friend, a brother in arms, and most importantly, a son to Anna and Duncan Wraith. Marcus’ heroic and most defining acts will not be forgotten or go unnoticed, because he was a hero that the world needed and deserved. Those that survived can live with knowing that they fought for what they believed in, and made a difference in the war. In some ways, shape, or form, a soldier always comes home.

The End