Ch 1 Ruthless World

[Late July 1995 near the end of the Yugoslav wars in the outskirts of Srebrinici]

A Young Serb nicknamed of Krv sat inside a four door dark Green UAZ a few miles outside of the shithole town of Srebrinica as they drove eastward along a small side road.

The 4x4 UAZ's squeaky suspension told of it's age and heavy use, but the engine hummed as happily as it had for nearly a decade along the winding dirt road leading eastward to his batallions camp.

The young Serb was being spoken to by his Captain, an older man in the driver's seat.

But Krv's mind was elsewhere at the moment.

Krv's body and soul weighed heavily as he thought back to the hundreds of men and boys he'd singlehandedly mowed down only a handful of minutes earlier in the town.

Although Krv had committed many atrocities none were on this scale, seeing a handful of men beg for their lives was commonplace for him in the last few years.

To him they all cried in the same way....

"Please I have children"

"I'll pay you I swear it"

"You don't have to do this"

Those statements had quickly grown into nothing but chatter after a few weeks of fighting against the Bosniak animals.

Who wouldn't become desensitized to the enemy begging for their worthless lives after seeing trusted comrades lost to enemy fire, gangrene from wounds, and shrapnel from the ever present mortars and grenades....but this time it was different.....much different.

The men he'd mowed down were in the dozens...hundreds perhaps if he really thought about it...

Krv had his young face was hidden under a thick wool balaclava as the UAZ zipped along the dirt road.

Krv could feel the now cool and sticky blood on his balaclava.

Most of which had splashed onto his black mask from a prisoner who tried to run, Krv shot his legs and cracked his skull open with his butstock of his rifle before killing more than a dozen more.

But after years of bloodshed the feeling of blood on his kit was nothimg new so Krv did nothing to dry it off or clean it off...he knew soon they'd be at their temporary camp where he could wash, get a warm plate cooked by the company chef, and get a few hours of sleep in his cot...

He daydreamed of his few comforts for a while.

Then Krv snapped out of his daydreaming as he felt the heavy barrel of his Romanian Akm burning his knee through the thick camo pants he wore.

Krv quickly moved the rifle to the side and rubbed his knee for a moment.

he'd fired more than two hundred rounds back in Srebrinici and the residual heat still lingered on his rifle.

Krv wondered if the burn on his knee was a small punishment from God for the horrors he'd just committed...he hated Bosnians...but even he had a conscience.

Krv looked down at his rifle which still radiated heat and reminisced back to his first days as an Arkanovci.....how Krv wished to go back in time.

As the dark green Gaz bumped and squeaked at good speed he wondered many things.

but most of all Krv wondered if he'd gone back in time would be have accepted this rifle....

The same rifle with which he'd done the most unspeakable things....

Horrible things which not even his mother might forgive him for....

The heavy but reliable rifle had only left Krv's side when getting a rare bath or when his squad visited a church to take weight off their heavy hearts...in those few moments he was without his Akm.

At the tender age of fourteen was when Krv first laid eyes on this very rifle, a squad of Serbian volunteer corps arrived at his poor village in search of food and drink.

This young Serb remembered every enthralling tale told by the men whom he'd heard so much about for hours as the men of the town cheered them on around a bonfire.

He remembered how as the men were leaving town Krv asked his mother if he could go and fight as well, to join in the war which had only just begun.

His mother's words lived in his heart every day, something he would never forget.

"You are just like your father....I know no matter what I tell you you'll do what your heart wishes....promise me you will come back." Krv's mother had told him in the midst of a tight hug.

before long the fourteen year old Krv was handed his rifle and only days later he was hundreds of miles from home doing Gods work.

Krv never did see his mother again, upon returning home a few months later during leave he found out she'd died of illness along with a few of the others in his village....

The UAZ continued on for a few more minutes until someone knocked on his steel helmet lightly.

Krv looked beside him to spot Semniovich, an older Croatian who'd fought alongside Krv since the beginning.

"What's on your mind son? You're unusually quiet." Semniovich asked with a faint fatherly smile, he had lost a son in the early days of the war and took Krv under his wing since then.

"I just need some time to breathe uncle...it's not every day that we do something like that." Krv spoke and a younger man with a fashionable moustache who sat in the front passenger seat turned around laughing.

"Hahaha!!! What are you talking about little Krv! You're one of the most ruthless in all of the Arkanovci!!!" Tari laughed out loud, he was one of the more outgoing men in the company.

Krv took his words in for a moment and nodded solemnly.

"Its different this time Tari, usually they shoot back or try to fight....this time they just cried like children by the dozens." Krv spoke and Tari didn't seem to have a response, Krv could see that Tari's heart weighed heavily as well.

Semniovich patted Krv's shoulder and spoke. "You're right son, but those bosniak animals would have done just the same to us if given the chance....you've seen what those bastards have done before."

Semniovich spoke reassuringly and Krv nodded solemnly as he thought back to the years of horrors he'd seen the bosniak dogs commit.

Then Tari jumped in to cheer the young lad up.

"Oh cheer up little Krv, Commander Pelević said we will take leave in Timisoara for a month when this mission is done!!! Come on I'll take you to the whorehouse in the southern district like I've always told you...there's this one redhead you've got to meet." Tari spoke with his usual charming smile.

Krv smiled at Tari's antics, it seemed the man only cared for womanizing and shooting people in the knees but he only meant to help his solemn comrade.

"Thanks but I'll spend my leave back home, I need to make sure my parents graves are clean and that my cousins have been maintaining the farm." Krv spoke and Tari sighed in defeat, he knew Krv never changed his mind.

Krv had been invited whoring many times by many in the Arkanovci but always refused, he'd also had the opportunity to rape women hundreds of times....in this war there were no rules after all.

But each time Krv denied them, he wished for a relationship once this war was truly over....Krv had seen too many young pretty girls raped and shot by both his comrades and the enemy.

the thought that one of them could be a girl he might love frightened him enough to stay away.

'Once we have peace I'll find a good woman to raise my children'

Krv thought to himself as the UAZ zipped along the winding bumpy road.

After a few long minutes, as the other men in the truck smoked and chatted, Krv leaned back in his seat in exhaustion.

Before long the thrumm of the engine pulled him into a deep sleep, Krv hadn't slept peacefully in years but it seemed today he would for a little while at least.

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[Some time later]

BOOM!!!!!

*SPLAT!!!

A spray of blood and gore sprayed onto Krv's sleeping face, his Balaclava was entirely soaked in the bright crimson liquid which he'd become so accustomed to.

Krv's eyes opened in panic but immediately shut as hit blood poured into his eyes momentarily blinding him.

Simultaneously the entire UAZ which had been moving at 50kmph lifted off the ground by two feet and spun uncontrollably off the dirt road and into the woodline.

Before long the right side of the UAZ where Semniovich was sitting hit a large sturdy pine.

*CRASH

Krv's head hit the rear glass window of the truck hard, and at the same time he was hit by a somebody's helmet in the nose as it tumbled around in the truck then onto the floor.

It was only a few seconds later that Krv who was still blinded by blood and struggling to breathe through the wet balaclava opened the Gaz door and spilled out of the truck onto the soft green grass.

It was nearly impossible to breathe so he clawed at his face to remove the bloodsoaked balaclava from his young face.

As soon as the mask came off he took long deep breaths and wiped his face with his coat.

Eventually Krv looked down at his torso....he knew something was wrong.

He felt the hot fresh blood which poured from his abdomen onto his field jacket.

Immediately Krv reached into his webbing to retrieve a compress as he called out to the other men.

"TARI!!!....UNCLE SEMNIOVICH!!!....CAPTAIN ULAGAR!!!"

Krv yelled out desperately for help but no response came....

And no response would come.

Krv looked back into the truck's open door and immediately felt a chill run down his spine.

Tari's helmet and half of his skull was on the floor of Krv's seat...it was what had hit him in the face.

Semniovich was slumped forward as blood dripped steadily from his nose and mouth onto the floorboards.

Captain Ulagar who sat in the driver's seat had flown halfway out of the truck through the windshield, from the little Krv could see the Captains body was broken beyond recognition.

Before long Krv felt the searing pain coming from his stomach as the numbness from adrenaline wore off.

He knew what came next....Krv had seen it countless times and knew there was no getting out of this as he began to feel a terrible cold course through his body and a thirst which seemed unquenchable.

"So...So cold...." Krv whispered to himself as he dragged himself against the ever reliable truck and reached to his side for his green canteen.

The same green canteen he'd taken from a dead united nations trooper last year.

With the last of his strength Krv unscrewed the cap and brought the canteen to his lips.

The sweet water rushed in and Krv thought it was the most delicious thing he'd had in his whole life...

After three sips a terrible pain began in his stomach once again and he groaned loudly.

"ARGHGH...."

But by now Krv was far more relaxed, he didn't think death would be so peaceful....it hurt more than he thought but his mind was calm and collected.

With every moment that passed his breathing slowed down, and his dark brown eyes began to close as his lifeblood continued to seep out from his belly.

With the last of his consciousness the pain faded and Krv's could see his mother's face right in front of him as she reached out to hug him in his last moments.

Before long Krv stopped breathing and remained slumped against the UAZ's side with a faint smile on his face..

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[Many hours later]

A squad of Arkanovci in a flatbed Gaz stopped mere feet away from Krv's corpse and his comrades.

*SLAM

*SLAM

The doors of the flatbed Gaz shut hard as the two men dismounted and walked towards the broken down truck.

One man had a long unkempt beard and an SKS slung over his shoulder, he also possessed kind eyes which would not be expected among a memeber of Arkans Tigers.

The other man wore a balaclava similarly to Krv, his steely blue eyes seemed a stark contrast compared to the kind man beside him.

The bearded man stopped before the UAZ and pulled a cross from his shirt.

"God above bless their souls, see these four men safely into your kingdom of heaven, Amen." The bearded man spoke while holding onto a small cross which sat around his neck.

"Taryv stop praying, come on and help me, we need to get them back home before the sun goes down." The man beside Taryv spoke.

. . .

Soon enough they had white cotton sheets laid out on the soft grass for each of the deceased men.

They walked to Krv's body first and carefully lifted it up and toward the sheet as gently as possible.

Taryv Walked back to the truck and grabbed Krv's Akm which had taken shrapnel into the receiver.

"What are you doing with that?" The steely eyed man asked coldly as Taryv laid the heavy rifle on Krv's corpse before closing the sheet and tying carefully.

Taryv spoke as he finished tying the body sheet.

"I knew the boy well, he'd have wanted to be buried with his rifle and it's useless after that damage."

Taryv spoke softly then said a prayer over the dead young man.

"Aye...it's the Christian thing to do.....did you notice that smile on his face though, I've never seen that before." The steely eyed man spoke as he helped Taryv lift Krv's covered body and move it onto the truck.

"He was awake for a while after hitting the mine, the boy even tried to stop the bleeding with a compress....I think he accepted his fate and headed towards the light in the end....that's how I wish to go when God decides it is my time..." Taryv spoke softly as they laid Krv's corpse on the flatbed.

. . . . . ..

Thirty minutes later all of the bodies were loaded onto the flatbed as it drove slowly towards camp.

the few mines on the dirt path had been cleared a few hours earlier and the saboteur shot like a dog.

but they still drove slowly just In case they might spot anything out of the ordinary.

In the back of the truck were four wrapped corpses jostled gently as the Gaz hummed along further into Serbian Land.

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[Unknown time later]

Krv's soul meandered down a bright white river of souls.

On the banks of the river were various enormous gates at set intervals.

each more different than the last.

Some made of pure engraved gold

others of giant bones and skulls

one gate made of pure light

another of pure darkness

some gates open and others closed.

The numerous souls seemed to be taken into the gates at random by the dozens.

some screamed in horror as they were taken away from the endless river while other souls seemed to thrum in bliss.

For what seemed like a thousand miles Krv's soul meandered slowly along the river of light.

Yet it seemed as if the stream of souls never ended, for every dozen which appeared, another dozen seemed to replace them.

Eventually Krv was sure he would never be taken into any gate, some seemed to be a heaven, some purgatory, others hell, and everything in-between.

"God!!! Please I am a believer!!! Christ I am here!!!" Krv's soul buzzed out loudly....

Krv waited for a few long moments but to no avail.

"I believe O' Lord, I confess that thou are truly the Christ...The Son of God, Who camest into the world to save sinners..."

Krv continued to repeat all the prayers he knew by heart for what seemed like eternity.....

but alas the slow meandering river of light continued to carry his soul along.

Eventually Krv lost his resolve, his soul seemingly deflated simply continued on down the river.

Thoughts of all kinds entered his mind and each terrified him more than the last....would he be trapped here forever?

He'd prefer to be dragged into one of the hellish gates instead of suffering even one more moment in the river of souls.

Looking into each gate his heart grew envious of the countless others who were arriving and leaving moment by moment yet he remained....

Eventually he broke down and yelled out.

"IF THERE IS ANY GOD OUT THERE WHO WILL TAKE ME!!! I SWEAR UPON MY SOUL THAT I WILL BE FAITHFUL!!!" Krv's soul thrummed with power as it unleashed a booming call.

Everything seemed to go silent as Krv looked around wearily, he continued to pass gate after gate for a few more minutes.

His soul passed One made of iron and skulls....another made of the purest crystal and diamonds.

A gate of flowers and another of thorns....

Krv almost lost all hope...

Until...

He flowed past a huge closed gate made of two beautiful arching trees, it's bark was unkempt and moss covered.

The massive double doors had engravings of an unknown language which seemed to faintly glow golden for a moment before the huge gates began to creak open.

If Krv had a heart it would have fallen out of his chest when he felt his soul be slowly lifted out of the river of light.

His soul thrummed happily as he had seen so many countless others do.

Krv's soul was slowly moved towards the opening gates.

But a blinding flash of light and energy hit his soul just as his vision was about to see what lay beyond the huge wooden gates.

*BOOM

Everything went dark.

"HaHa~"

Krv heard a beautiful giggle, clean and bright like a ringing bell before losing consciousness.

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Good to see everyone. I have been in jail(case dismissed with prejudice, I'm doing fine, my time inside was easy so don't worry, I'm just glad to be out)