For themuseswithin
1. In your time of need who will you turn to?
Written on a request by fatherartist
Replaced. Todd stared up at the ship he’d fallen from as it receded from his sight. Already he’d been walking where he saw the people. Replaced. How could he be replaced? His mind replayed missions, hundreds of missions and not one had he failed. He had battles and merits, awards and medals. Where had he failed? He couldn’t understand why he needed to be replaced. He was a soldier. Soldiers died but they were not replaced. He remembered Church’s confidence in him. He’d always had the man’s respect from the time he was a boy.
Church was the only man who praised Todd outside of official business. The man was the closest that Todd could place as a family, a father. In his mind he saw the other man. He had never seen him before. He came with young soldiers. Todd’s replacements. Colonel Mekum meant nothing. He was not in command.
Todd froze; hand on the ropes as an image flashed in his mind. A man with mangled eye. Todd remembered his hand ripping those gashes in the face. Todd had not been replaced. Then why was he here? He worried about his command. It was worry that was not originating in emotion but discipline. Keep the command. If he was here where was his command? Where was Church? Todd didn’t have an answer so he continued to follow the ropes. Maybe the people he had seen would know.
Discipline, keep command, obedience. Todd went on because he had to find out what he was here to do. Todd remembered what he was here for. Waste disposal. The last thing he had seen was an emotion in Church’s expression. Todd had never seen it before or if he had there were no words for it. Then he heard those words. Waste Disposal. Mekum had seen them as nothing more than trash. He was dead but not. Trash but still useful. Todd had no training to analyze the position he was now in. One man command did not make sense to Todd but that was what the soldier was now. He was commander, soldier and replaced. In essence, he was as he’d never been, totally alone.
Written on a request by fatherartist
Replaced. Todd stared up at the ship he’d fallen from as it receded from his sight. Already he’d been walking where he saw the people. Replaced. How could he be replaced? His mind replayed missions, hundreds of missions and not one had he failed. He had battles and merits, awards and medals. Where had he failed? He couldn’t understand why he needed to be replaced. He was a soldier. Soldiers died but they were not replaced. He remembered Church’s confidence in him. He’d always had the man’s respect from the time he was a boy.
Church was the only man who praised Todd outside of official business. The man was the closest that Todd could place as a family, a father. In his mind he saw the other man. He had never seen him before. He came with young soldiers. Todd’s replacements. Colonel Mekum meant nothing. He was not in command.
Todd froze; hand on the ropes as an image flashed in his mind. A man with mangled eye. Todd remembered his hand ripping those gashes in the face. Todd had not been replaced. Then why was he here? He worried about his command. It was worry that was not originating in emotion but discipline. Keep the command. If he was here where was his command? Where was Church? Todd didn’t have an answer so he continued to follow the ropes. Maybe the people he had seen would know.
Discipline, keep command, obedience. Todd went on because he had to find out what he was here to do. Todd remembered what he was here for. Waste disposal. The last thing he had seen was an emotion in Church’s expression. Todd had never seen it before or if he had there were no words for it. Then he heard those words. Waste Disposal. Mekum had seen them as nothing more than trash. He was dead but not. Trash but still useful. Todd had no training to analyze the position he was now in. One man command did not make sense to Todd but that was what the soldier was now. He was commander, soldier and replaced. In essence, he was as he’d never been, totally alone.