April 14, 1945, Afternoon, Philippines
A short man of five feet and three inches, wearing a brown hat and tannish fatigues, battered by the elements stood behind a tree within the jungles of northern Luzon.
Wielding an M1 carbine in both hands he panted in exhaustion while bullets struck all around his position. Sweating, he pulled out the empty clip, tossing it asside and putting in an fresh one into his weapon from the ammo belt.
(Dammit, these bastards never quit!)
Benjie Delfino exclaimed quietly in Tagalog, his native tongue as metal projectiles, fired from bolt action rifles whizzed past him. Gathering his wits, Benjie took a deep breath before releasing it. Hearing something brushing the bushes close by on the right side, the Filipino guerilla fighter swiftly brought up the carbine, aimed at the moving shadow and fired few rounds toward its direction.
With a cry of damnation, a figure, wearing the uniform of the Imperial Japanese army dropped face down several feet away. They're trying to rush him he concluded, reloading the gun once more. He rushed for the edge of the foliage, in an attempt to find a better position
When the guerrilla fighter made it past the tropical forest, he was greeted with a steep cliff in front of him. Stopping dead in his tracks, Benjie spare a moment glance down, seeing shape rocks down below and turned away from the sight.
Terrific, stuck between a nasty fall and the enemy.
Benjie thought disgruntly. Shaking his head in resignation, the twenty eight year old fully intended to take as many of the foes with him. With one knee down in an defenvise posture toward the jungle, he muttered a prayer.
(BANZAI!)
Almost a dozen voices shouted in Japanese, making it clear that they were about to charge. The Imperial soldiers rushed through the green, yelling at the top of their lungs and brandishing bayonets. Benjie stared back at them in utter hatred before firing three shots in the center, downing one hostile and repeated the process, wounding and killing a few more until emptied again.
Just as he desperately reloaded more rounds, a grenade was tossed by one of the remaining attackers and it rolled on the left, a few feet away. Eyes widen in alarm, Benjie tried to grab for it in order to toss the metal object back. Instead the small bomb detonated a moment later. The sheer force knocked the Filipino off the cliffside.
As gravity drugged him violently down hundreds and hundreds of feet, Benjie couldn't help but think.
Is this how it all ends?
As Benjie looks up at the cliff from which he has just fallen, he suddenly sees nothing and feels nothing besides the sensation of falling, the kind when one is in a dream and falling. He sees endless darkness, and then gradually he feels himself slow down. Moments before his vision fills with a clear blue sky, and he hits the ground with the force of only having fallen a couple feet at most.
Rising to his feet, he sees that he has fallen into a temperate deciduous forest. The smell of pine is strong all around. Looking to sky, he will determine that it is the afternoon. Or early morning? The sky is similar in appearance but looking for any other indications of direction for the sun, he sees nothing else familiar. It could be late morning or early afternoon.
Off in one direction over the treetops, he sees the smoke from fires. Several. The indication of an encampment.
Looking at these newfound surroundings frantically for half a minute, Benjie just shook his head, mystified by it all. The resistance fighter couldn't help but think.
What the hell?! Is this a dream, or am I already...dead?
For a moment, he considered this is heaven but quickly dimiss that notion since it was noting like his old parish priest talked about. Neither did seem like hell, either this is purgatory or some kind of dream-like state, Benjie considered. Suddenly the short man remembered his gun, looking around the ground for it. Moment later Benjie snatch the carbine on the left side and there was his own hat right next to it. Covering his baldish head, and checking the gun for any damage, there was none, before looking back at the direction of the smoke.
(Whatever this place is, it's not Luzon. Maybe I will get answers from whoever living over there.)
Sergeant Benjie Delfino said out loud to no one particular and proceeded to advance in that direction, cautiously. He decided to make the approach for the encampment through the trees, for better cover as he scout out the area.