Running From The Prince

When she had retired to her camp that night, amidst the booming sound of gunfire from the distance and the smell of gun powder and ash thick in the air, Alice knew she wouldn't be able to sleep The General had assured everyone in the camp that the enemies wouldn't dare to lay an ambush that night. An agreement had been made between the US military and the Germans to spare a couple of days for the soldiers to recuperate Alice couldn't deny the fright she felt at having to go back into the battleground in three days. She had known what she was getting into when she had enrolled in the military Her mother especially had been against the idea but Alex was determined. This was what she saw herself doing, what her grandfather had done, and then what her father had died doing. There was no changing her mind about it, she feared death like any man would but even death was not going to stand in her way of achieving her dreams It was the very first time she had been on the battlefield. The very first time she had seen the ground dyed in a pool of blood, the air filled with the smell of death, and bodies dropping like flies. It was the first time Alex had watched the life slip out of a man's eyes The young man who had been standing next to her. The one she had developed a deep friendship with through the years of their training in the military A single missed bullet that should have hit her had him crumbling to the cold ground. Their eyes were blown wide open as the blood seeped through his lungs where the bullet had met him. He barely lasted a couple of seconds before he was a motionless body amidst the many on the ground dyed with blood Alex took in a deep breath as she slowly stripped out of her military uniform. She was traumatized and scared beyond belief, but she had survived. She didn't have a fatal wound like some unfortunate soldiers did, apart from the small bruises from constantly tumbling on the rocky ground to avoid getting shot, Alex felt fine, for now that is In three days, that might not be the case anymore. She might end up like Steven, laying in a pool of her blood as the life drained from her body. She shook off the feeling of fright, this was her job, this was what she had worked hard for wasn't it? Alex made to strip off her boots when the doors of her tent were suddenly pulled open and an elderly woman stepped in " Officer Alexandra " " Sergeant" Alex straightened herself and gave a salute to her senior as was demanded. She refused the urge to flinch as the woman's eyes ran down her worn-out body, maybe trying to locate an injury that might be fatal to her life Sergeant Georgia was her mother's best friend and mentor. The older woman had thought her all the skills she knew and had always kept an eye out for her Alex had grown up aspiring to be just like her father and the sergeant herself. But Alex sometimes got uncomfortable around her presence especially when she was feeling down and worn out, she knew that Georgia would no doubt report back home to her mother about it. The least she wanted at the moment was to have her mother worried to death about her, even though she did have a right to be " At ease soldier." The woman waved her formalities off with a smile " Am happy to see you are doing alright. It was a tough battle we had today huh?" " yes sergeant, thank you for your worry" " Anyways, this is not the only reason I came to find you. There's a fresh batch of victims that were rescued from the village just down the mountain. The war might affect them so we are going to relocate them somewhere safe" " Yes sergeant " " They're some children with them. I want you to take them to the nursery and make sure they are fed and well taken care of" " I understand Sergeant " Georgia nodded at her and then proceeded to tell her the location where the refugees were being kept. After she left, Alex hurried up to put back her uniform and boots. She was glad more than anything that she didn't have too much blood on herself, she didn't want to scare the children any more than they already were She made her way out of the old tent and stepped into the cool evening air. The barracks were bursting with activities, she would see that some new shipment of supplies had arrived. It had rained earlier that morning so the ground was muddy and slippery Thankfully, the corpses of the fallen had already been shipped back home so the stench of death and blood wasn't that nauseating anymore Alex pulled her coat closer to he body as she made her way towards the far end of the camp where she could see a crowd of women and children huddled together, the frightened look on the faces of the children and women reminded her of the hardship they must have gone through. War was such a horrible thing. A terrible disease that sucked out the joy and radiance of life until there were nothing more but dark ashes and the stench of death " Hey Alex " Emily, one of the girls she had gone through military school with waved at her. Unlike her, Emily was more expert in medicine so the girl rarely ever left the camp. Maybe it was the reason why she still carried that cheerful air around her because she hadn't seen nearly half of the things Alex had " Hey Emily, are you assigned to care for the kids too?" " Not, am only checking them for injuries and infections, it's good that they're all healthy though" " Is this all of them" " I don't think so" Emily glanced over at the refugees, worry and sadness present in her eyes "They were the few we were able to rescue" " You left the camp?" " Yeah, I was assigned to the rescue team this morning. You should have seen their village Lex, it was horrible " " I can only imagine" Emily flashed her a fond smile, she gave Alex a friendly pat on the back " How can I forget you're our military lady? You more knowledgeable than poor old me" " I wouldn't say that" Alex huffed back a laugh " I have to get this assignment down before sergeant Georgia comes back" " I'll leave you to it. See you later tonight Lex" " Yeah, see ya" Emily turned away and walked toward the health center. Alex turned her attention toward the refugees once more. She could see that the children had been separated from their mothers. They were wrapped in warm blankets and fed with some snacks, unfortunately, the supplies couldn't go all around to the adult. Food would only be available later tonight when the new shipment would be opened Alex plastered on the brightest smile she could muster as she approached the little children. She wasn't that good with kids but she would do her very best to make them comfortable " Hello" She gave them a friendly wave. They were about nine of them in total, six girls and three boys. They glanced up at her with their bright eyes, still filled with innocence and untainted by the bloody war that was happening just a few miles away from them. " My name is Alexandra but you can all call me Alex. I'll be taking you to your rooms now so you can get some much-needed rest" One of the young girls raised her hand, she didn't look older than seven and her hair and clothes were grim with mud and dirt. Alex made her mind to give them all a warm bath before bed " Yes?" " Can mummy come too?" She said motioning over to a woman nestled close to a far s distance away " Am sorry honey, mummy will come to visit you later on okay?" She swallowed the painful feeling in her chest and the way the girl's features visibly saddened "Okey" " come on then, get up and follow me closely" The kids were very obedient as they all rose from their sitting position and followed closely behind her. The nursery wasn't that far off from where they had been sitting. It was maybe the biggest tent on the camp and was divided into different sections Alex made sure to count the children once more to make sure she hadn't left anyone behind. When she was about to enter, a small tug on her sleeves had her turning her attention to the little girl she had spoken to earlier " Um...I forgot my teddy back there, can I go get it?" Alex looked back towards the muddy grounds of the camp and how crowded it was. She was sure the little girl would get lost for sure if she went there alone " You know what, why don't you go inside, I'll go get your teddy for you " " Really? Thank you so much" " Your welcome honey" Alex planted a soft kiss on her forehead causing the girl to giggle slightly. She showed the girl inside and made her way back towards the position close to the wall where the children had been sitting before She shuffled closer and looked around in search of a teddy bear. When she spotted it, it was far away from where the children had been sitting, and instead, it was nestled into the bushes where the protective fence cracked slightly giving a view of the world outside the camp Alex suddenly felt a feeling of wariness as she crunched down to pick up the teddy bear. It took her a couple of seconds of looking around her before she noticed where the feeling was coming from A pair of stormy grey eyes were staring at her through the c***k on the fence. She was momentarily frozen as her breath stuck in her throat The person looking down at her blinked slightly, his eyes roaming her body, a wide grin that sent a shiver down her spine crept across his handsome face " Bye Sweetheart" His deep voice murmured to her in false sympathy She only caught a small glimpse of his German military uniform before he turned away and left, not without dropping off a small metal right in front of her bent form When she registered what it was, it was already too late. She held her breath as the grenade exploded, giving her the most painful death she would have ever thought she would get Only one thought ran across her mind as her life slipped away from her. She hoped her mother wouldn't be too sad with her gone