Valour

The dust rose, when his body hit the ground, his earth, covered with the gun shells fired all across. The last image that his conscious mind might have captured must be that of the blood dripping from his chest and his fingers holding it tight. Laying paralyzed in this thoughts, burying all his weight in the 6 feet soil he covered. A sense of completion filled up his pulse, and that chill awakened him, as he must make sure his duty was complete. Rolling across his shoulders he rose up in his feet. He stood tall, behind him the sun dripped down. It was as if the sun feared to match up to his valor. The blended odor of his blood and earth, heaved down his chest, heavy breaths, heavy steps, but yet a smile at the end of his slender lips. He walked up to the entrance of the house, the fierce cries and screams that busted out of the house during the attack stopped completely. At the entrance, he saw his fellow Jawan lying dead with his hands clenched to the National Flag which he often carried. The smile trembled down, realizing a pain deep within. The terrorists who tried to seize the house lay dead at various corners of the house.

The door banged open, and once again the screams arose from inside, the scream of the hostages. But the screams faded off as they saw the bleeding Jawan entering with his slender tough smile. He signaled to be silent till he cleared the house, and it was clear. With a deep exhale, he fell on his knees on to the wooden floor. In front of him, he saw the hostages, irrespective of any religion, cast, tribe. In fact, all the hostages in front of him compelled to one religion - Indian. Within them stood a mother with an infant hanging around her, her eyes filled with fear for her child. A moment of silence passed through him, a moment of remembrance of a mother, the fear she had when he was hurt. But yes, for this pain she must be proud. He stood up and walked towards the mother. He slowly took a look at the child in her hand who giggled up in seeing his face, which was covered up in mud and blood. and tried to catch his face. Tears rolled down over the smile.