The Day of Black Rain

"We're not playing games with your little country," The General said as he held a frail-looking woman by the collar. He was a robust man with five o'clock shadow and a very heavy Slavic accent. She, on the other hand, was a pale looking young woman with dirty hair, and her eyes, the only thing that betrayed the filth for an underlying layer of beauty, spoke of weakness and torture, rusty chains binding her hands together. She almost couldn't stand from her starvation, the ribs barely showing through her filthy and tattered clothes, the General's hand the only thing keeping her erect.

The General laughed with a deep, full, laugh and smiled at her. He shook the poor woman, making her look up. "There they are, your little country." Upon the horizon, the line of armed forces could barely be made out. The woman looked behind her and then ahead. As the army upon the horizon advanced, she smiled. They outnumbered the army behind her by hundreds, if not yet, from what she could see, thousands.

The General, upon seeing the woman's delight at her own wishful thinking of being saved, laughed even harder. The officers around him joined in, making a few of the soldiers in the front shake off there anxiety and truly laugh. Soon, all of the troops joined in and everyone was laughing. Except for the woman. She slumped slightly but was immediately jerked up, making the handcuffs jingle.

Suddenly, a direct exchange of unintelligible words between the General and an officer was heard. With a quick salute, the officer turned and ran off. A gigantic truck was heard off to the side as it drove up towards the front. The woman turned and stared at it. It was silver with strange writing on the side and a gun mounted to the top.

The General shook the girl once more, making her look at him. He nodded his head towards the gun and a sly grin came across his face, as an almost inaudible chuckle passed his lips. He lit a cigarette and let the flame sit for a while till the end was glowing and he placed the unlit end in his mouth, letting the white smoke billow out slowly as he savored its toxins.

As the Americans marched over the slight incline, tanks rumbled behind them, followed by heavy artillery guns and hundreds of other ordinances. The soldiers noticed the strange gun upon the large silver vehicle and gathered there wits about them, wondering what destruction it could cause.

The General raised his arm, a few of the Americans in front able to see him do so, and he let it fall. Black liquid flowed from the strange gun and arched into the sky. For a moment it lingered until it fell dully to the ground in heavy, dark drops. The soldiers tasted the liquid, a strong, and rather disgusting smell following it. "Oil! They're wasting Oil!" One soldier cried out. They all stopped in their tracks, not able to see from the raining oil. It reached far beyond the footmen, and sprayed over the artillery, even far beyond upon the treeless plains. "What are they doing?!?" "They're Psychotic!!!" "We NEED this!!!" The shouts rolled on, with cursing and blasphemous words.

The General shook his head as he watched the once brown land before him turn black. He walked towards the oil gun, dragging the devastated woman behind him. The General said something to the man operating the gun and the flow of the precious elixir stopped. The air was thick and smelled awful. The General jerked up the woman and she looked up into his mocking eyes. He took his cigarette and let the smoke roll out in wisps. He tossed his cigarette into the air, igniting the fumes as it fell to the black lake beneath it. The flames flushed across the plains, growing into a huge sea of fire.

Shouts of pain and fear resounded from the flaming mass. The woman looked on in absolute horror and her throat filled with sobs, but she refused to let them out, instead letting them become tears that rolled down her cheeks, leaving paths through the grime on her skin.

"RUSSIA SHALL PREVAIL!!!" The General shouted gallantly. The men around and behind him began to shout out praise and glory. "HA Ha ha." It was all the woman could hear as she watched the flames consume thousands of innocent souls and her one, close chance at freedom.

As she stared out in front of her, her eyes became glazed over and she thought back to her younger days. She was sitting in the living room of her child hood home on the plush carpet staring up at the television as School House Rock played on the screen. She smiled at the cartoon figures and swayed to the beat of the songs.

The General jerked her up again making her come back out of her stasis. She frowned, choking to keep the sobs in her chest silent. Trying to find a way to ease the struggle within her, she sang softly, "Mother Necessity...What have you done?"

Very nice story, BZ! I like the weaponry..and pacman was a nice addition. :B

HAHAHA :B

thought the pacman wud be nice addition like badabing bada boom

and ty for the nice compliment ^^