Relatable photos on Flickr

St Mary the Virgin, Goudhurst, Kent by Jelltex

For the best part of the last year, I have been posting shots of Kent churches on Twitter, to break up the torrent of horrible news relating to COVID, Brexit and our Dear Leader, and in doing so, I have discovered many churches I visited at the start of the project, needed to redone.

Goudhurst, is, apparently, the highest point in Kent, or so Jools tells me. I will just check that with Wikki: Hmm, it seems not. That is Betsom's Hill north of the M25 near to the border with London. Goudhurst is not even in the top ten.

I can confirm we approached the village along a long hill from a river valley, finally climbing up the narrow high street, getting round the parked cars and finding a space nearly big enough for the car near to the church.

On the other side of the road from the church, a series of very Kent houses and buildings, all decorated with pegtiles, in the Kent fashion, and to the south, the imposing structure of The Star and Eagle Hotel.

The church sits in it's large graveyard, pretty as a picture on a sunny summer's afternoon as on my first visit, but on a grey, late autumn afternoon, just as the light fades, it loses some of its charm.

The church itself is resplendent with it's honey-coloured stone, squat tower and spreading aisles on both sides.

There is a welcome notice on the door in the west end of the tower stating that the church is always open and all are indeed, welcome.

Its a fine touch.

Inside, it is light and spacious, so spacious to have to grand leather sofas in the nave, not sure if this is for glamping, or for some other reason, but they're doing no harm.

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Seen from afar Goudhurst is Kent's answer to Rye - a small hilltop village over which broods the lovely church. Its west tower, dating from the seventeenth century, is rather low, but the honey-coloured sandstone is particularly beautiful here. We enter the church through the tower, and are impressed by the way in which the width and height of the nave and its aisles combine to make such a noble structure. There are two remarkably fine wooden effigies dating from the sixteenth century, carved and painted and set into a purpose-built bay window. Nearby, in the south chapel, the walls are crammed with monuments and there are three brasses, one of which is covered by a stone canopy - not particularly grand but unexpected and functional.

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Goudhurst

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GOUDHURST

LIES the next parish southward from Marden. The northern part of it, as far southward as the stream formerly called Risebridge river, which flows from Bedgebury to Hope mill, and a smaller part likewise on the other side of it, adjoining to the rivulet called the Bewle westward, is in the hundred of Marden, and lower division of the lath of Scray; the rest of the parish southward of the first-mentioned stream, is in the hundred of West, alias Little Barnefield, and lath of Aylesford, comprehending the whole of that hundred. So much of this parish as is within the borough of Faircrouch, is in the hundred of Cranbrook; as much as is in the boroughs of Pattenden, Lilsden, Combwell, and Chingley or Bromley, is in the same hundred of West, alias Little Barnefield; and the residue is in the hundred of Marden. It lies wholly within the district of the Weald, and in the division of West Kent.

The borsholders of the boroughs of Highamden, Pattenden, and Hilsden, in this parish, are chosen at the court-leet holden for the manor of East Farleigh, and the inhabitants owe no service but to that manor; only a constable for the hundred of West Barnefield may be chosen out of such parts of them as lay within it for that hundred. The manor of Maidstone likewise extends into this parish, over lands as far southward as Rise-bridge.

THE PARISH OF GOUDHURST is very pleasantly situated, being interspersed on every side with frequent hill and dale. The trees in it are oak, of a large size, and in great plenty throughout it, as well in the woods, as broad hedge-rows and shaves round the fields. The lands are in general very fertile; the soil, like the adjoining parishes, is mostly a deep stiff clay; being heavy tillage land, but it has the advantage of a great deal of rich marle at different places, and in some few parts sand, with which the roads are in general covered; and in the grounds near Finchcocks, there is a gravel-pit, which is the only one, I believe, in this part of the county. There is much more pasture than arable land in it, the former being mostly fatting lands, bullocks fatted on them weighing in general from 120 to 130 stone. It is well watered with several streams in different parts of it, all which uniting with the Teis, flow in one channel, along the western side of this parish, towards the Medway. The eastern and southern parts of it are much covered with thick coppice wood, mostly of oak. The turnpike road from Maidstone over Cocksheath through Marden, leads through the upper part of this parish southward, dividing into two branches at Winchethill; that to the left goes on to Comborne, and leaving the town of Goudhurst a little to the right, joins the Cranbrooke road a little beyond it. That to the right, having taken into it a branch of the Woodgate road from Tunbridge, near Broadford-bridge, goes on to the town of Goudhurst, and thence eastward to Cranbrooke and Tenterden; and the great high road from Lamberhurst through Stonecrouch to Hawkhurst, and into Sussex, south-east, goes along the southern bounds of this parish.

The parish is about eight miles long and four broad. There are about three hundred houses in it, and somewhat more than five inhabitants to a house. It is very healthy; sixty years of age being esteemed, if not the prime, at least the middle age of life; the inhabitants of these parts being in great measure untainted with the vices and dissipation too frequently practised above the hill.

There are two heaths or commons here; the one called Pyles-health, and the other Killdown, in West Barnefield hundred.

THE TOWN, or village of Goudhurst, stands in the hundred of Marden, about half a mile within the lower or southern bounds of it, on an hill, commanding an extensive view of the country all around it. It is not paved, but is built on the sides of five different roads which unite at a large pond in the middle of it. The houses are mostly large, antient and well-timbered, like the rest of those in this neighbourhood, one of them, called Brickwall, belongs to the Rev. Mr. Thomas Bathurst. Within memory there were many clothiers here, but there are none now. There is some little of the woolstapling business yet carried on.

On the summit of the hill, on which the town stands, is the church, a conspicuous object to the neighbouring country, and near it was the marketplace, which was pulled down about the year 1650, and the present small one built lower down, at the broad place in the town near the pond. The market was held on a Wednesday weekly, for cattle, provisions, &c. till within memory; it is now entirely disused, there is a fair held yearly in the town, upon the day of the assumption of our lady, being August 26, for cattle, hardware, toys, &c. This market and fair were granted in the year of king Richard II. to Joane, widow of Roger de Bedgebury, the possessors of which estate claim at this time the privilege of holding them, by a yearly rent to the manor of Marden.

At the hamlet of Stonecrouch is a post-office of very considerable account, its district extending to Goudhurst, Cranbrooke, Tenterden, Winchelsea, Rye, and Hastings, and all the intermediate and adjoining places, to which letters are directed by this Stonecrouch bag.

ALMOST adjoining to the town eastward, on the road leading to Tenterden, there is A HAMLET, called LITTLE GOUDHURST, in which there is an antient seat, called TAYWELL, which for many generations was possessed by a family of the name of Lake, who bore for their arms, Sable, a bend between six crosscroslets, fitchee, argent. In the north isle of this church, under which is a vault, in which this family lie buried, there is a marble, on which is a descent of them. The last of them, Thomas Lake, esq. barrister-at-law, resided here, but dying without issue male, his daughters and coheirs became possessed of it; one of whom married Maximilian Gott, esq. and the other Thomas Hussey, esq. whose son Edward Hussey, esq. of Scotney, now possesses the entire see of this estate, which is demised for a long term of years to Mr. Olive, who has almost rebuilt it, and resides in it.

AT A SMALL DISTANCE southward from the abovementioned seat, is another, called TRIGGS, which was for several descents the residence of the Stringers, a family of good account in the different parts of this county. John Stringer, esq. son of Edward Stringer, of Biddenden, by Phillis his wife, daughter of George Holland, gent. resided here in king Charles I.'s reign, and married Susanna, daughter of Stephen Streeter, of Goudhurst, by whom he had Stephen, of Goudhurst; John, gent. of Ashford, who left a daughter and heir Mary, married to Anthony Irby, esq. Edward and Thomas, both of Goudhurst; the latter left two sons. Thomas and Edward, and a daughter Catherine, who married William Belcher, M. D. by whom the had Stringer Belcher, and other children. The Stringers bore for their arms, Per chevron, or, and sable, in chief two eagles displayed of the second, in the base a fleur de lis of the first.

Stephen Stringer, the eldest son of John, resided at Triggs in the reign of king Charles II. and was succeeded in it by his second son Stephen Stringer, esq. who kept his shrievalty here in the 6th year of queen Anne. He died without male issue, leaving by Jane his wife, daughter of John Austen, esq. of Broadford, four daughters his coheirs, Jane, married to Thomas Weston, of Cranbrooke; Hannah to William Monk, of Buckingham. in Sussex, whose eldest daughter and coheir married Thomas Knight, esq. of Godmersham; Elizabeth married Edward Bathurst, esq. of Finchcocks, and Anne married John Kirril, esq. of Sevenoke. (fn. 1) This seat was afterwards alienated to Francis Austen, esq. of Sevenoke, whose son Francis Mottley Austen, esq. of Sevenoke, is the present owner of it.

THE MANOR OF MARDEN claims over the greatest part of this parish; part of it, being the dens beforementioned, are within the manor of East Farleigh, and the remaining part, called Wincehurst-den, is within the manor of Gillingham, near Chatham. Although that part of this parish which lies within the hundred of West Barnefield, being the most southern part of it, contains those places which are of, by far, the greatest note in it, yet, for the sake of regularity in my description, I shall begin with those in the hundred of Marden, partly already described, and having finished that, proceed next to the hundred of West Barnefield, and the matters worthy of notice in it.

BOKINFOLD is a manor of large extent, situated in the hundred of Marden, having formerly a large park and demesnes belonging to it, which extended into the parishes of Brenchley, Horsemonden, Yalding, Marden, and Goudhurst, the house of it being situated in that of Yalding, in the description of which parish the reader will find an ample account of the former state and possessors of it. (fn. 2) It will, therefore, be sufficient to mention here, in addition to it, that the whole of this manor coming at length into the possession of Sir Alexander Colepeper. He in the 3d year of queen Elizabeth levied a fine of it, and three years afterwards alienated that part of this manor, and all the demesnes of it which lay in Brenchley, Horsemonden, Yalding, and Marden, to Roger Revell, as has been mentioned under the parish of Yalding, and THE REMAINDER OF IT in this parish, held of the manor of Marden, to Sharpeigh, whose descendant Stephen Sharpeigh passed that part of it away in 1582, to Richard Reynolds, whose son and heir John Reynolds, about the 41st year of queen Elizabeth, conveyed it to Richard Eliot, and he, about the year 1601, alienated it to Thomas Girdler, who the next year sold it to John Reynolds, and he, in the 5th year of king James, transmitted it to John Beale, who, about 1609, passed it away to John Harleston, of Ickham, and he settled it by will on Richard Harleston, who in like manner devised it to his kinsman Richard Bishop, and he, soon after the death of king Charles I. sold it to Mr. Stephen Stringer, of Triggs, in Goudhurst, whose son, of the same name, was sheriff anno 6 queen Anne, and left five daughters his coheirs, of whom Elizabeth, the third, married Edward Bathurst, esq. of Finchcocks, and on the division of their inheritance, he, in her right, became possessed of this manor. He died in 1772, upon which this estate came to his son, the Rev. Thomas Bathurst, rector of Welwyn, in Hertfordshire, the present owner of it. A court baron is regularly held for this manor.

In 1641 the archbishop collated Richard Amhurst, clerk, to the free chapels of Bockinfold and Newsted annexed, in the archdeaconry of Canterbury, then vacant and of his patronage. (fn. 3)

COMBORNE is an estate, situated in the northernmost part of this parish, adjoining to Winchet-hill, in the hundred of Marden likewise; which place of Winchet-hill was antiently the original seat in this county, of the family of Roberts, of Glassenbury.

An ancestor of this family, William Rookherst, a gentleman of Scotland, left his native country, and came into England in the 3d year of king Henry I. and had afterwards the surname of Roberts, having purchased lands at Winchet-hill, on which he built himself a mansion, calling it Rookherst, after himself. This place came afterwards to be called Ladiesden Rokehurst, alias Curtesden, and continued the residence of this family till the reign of king Richard II. when Stephen Roberts, alias Rookherst, marrying Joane, the daughter and heir of William Tilley, of Glassenbury, removed thither, and the remains of their residence here are so totally effaced, as to be known only by the family evidences, and the report of the neighbourhood.

But their estate at Winchet-hill continued several generations afterwards in their descendants, till it was at length alienated to one of the family of Maplesden, of Marden, in whose descendants this estate, together with that of Comborne adjoining, continued down to Edward Maplesden; esq. of the Middle Temple, who died in 1755, s. p. and intestate. Upon which they descended to Alexander Courthope, esq. of Horsemonden, the son of his sister Catherine, and to Charles Booth, esq. the grandson of his sister Anne, as his coheirs in gavelkind, and on a partition of those estates between them, Winchet-hill was allotted to Charles Booth, esq. afterwards Sir Charles Booth, of Harrietsham-place, who died possessed of it, s. p. in 1795, and his devisees, for the purposes of his will, are now in the possession of it; but Comborne was allotted to Alexander Courthope, esq. since deceased, whose nephew John Cole, esq. now possesses it.

FINCHCOCKS is a feat in this parish, situated within the hundred of Marden, in that angle of it which extends south-westward below Hope mill, and is likewise within that manor. It was formerly of note for being the mansion of a family of the same surname, who were possessed of it as early as the 40th year of Henry III. They were succeeded in it by the family of Horden, of Horden, who became proprietors of it by purchase in the beginning of king Henry VI.'s reign, one of whom was Edward Horden, esq. clerk of the green cloth to king Edward VI. queen Mary, and queen Elizabeth, who had, for some considerable service to the crown, the augmentation of a regal diadem, added to his paternal coat by queen Elizabeth. He left two daughters his coheirs, Elizabeth, married to Mr. Paul Bathurst, of Bathurst-street, in Nordiam, and Mary to Mr. Delves, of Fletchings, who had Horden for his share of the inheritance, as the other had this of Finchcocks. He was descended from Laurence Bathurst, of Canterbury, who held lands there and in Cranbrooke, whose son of the same name, left three sons, of whom Edward, the eldest, was of Staplehurst, and was ancestor of the Bathursts, of Franks, in this county, now extinct, (fn. 4) of the earls Bathurst, and those of Clarenden-park, in Wiltshire, and Lydney, in Gloucestershire; Robert Bathurst, the second, was of Horsemonden; and John, the third son, was ancestor of the Bathursts, of Ockham, in Hampshire. Robert Bathurst, of Horsemonden above-mentioned, by his first wife had John, from whom came the Bathursts, of Lechlade, in Gloucestershire, and baronets; and Paul, who was of Nordiam, and afterwards possessor of Finchcocks, from whose great-grandson William, who was a merchant in London, descended the Bathursts, of Edmonton, in Middlesex. By his second wife he had John, who was of Goudhurst, ancestor of the Bathursts, of Richmond, in Yorkshire. In the descendants of Paul Bathurst before-mentioned, this seat continued down to Thomas Bathurst, esq. who by his will devised this seat and estate to his nephew Edward, only son of his younger brother William, of Wilmington, who leaving his residence there on having this seat devised to him, removed hither, and rebuilt this seat, at a great expence, in a most stately manner. He resided here till his death in 1772, having been twice married, and leaving several children by each of his wives. By his first wife Elizabeth, third daughter and coheir of Stephen Stringer, esq. of Triggs, he had three sons, Edward, who left a daughter Dorothy, now unmarried, and John and Thomas, both fellows of All Souls college, in Oxford, the latter of whom is now rector of Welwyn, in Hertfordshire. Before his death he conveyed this seat and estate by sale to his son by his second wife, Mr. Charles Bathurst, who on his decease in 1767, s. p. devised it by will to his brother, the Rev. Mr. Richard Bathurst, now of Rochester, the present possessor of it. This branch of the family of Bathurst. bore for their arms the same coat as those of Franks, in this county, and those of Cirencester, Lydney, and Clarendon, viz. Sable, two bars, ermine, in chief three crosses pattee, or, with a crescent for difference; but with a different crest, viz. Party per fess, and pale, a demi wolf argent, and sable, holding a regal crown, or; which I take to be that borne by Edward Horden, whose heir Paul Bathurst, their ancestor, married, and whose coat of arms they likewise quartered with their own.

¶AT NO GREAT DISTANCE from Finchcocks, in the same hundred, lies a capital messuage, called RISEDEN, alias GATEHOUSE, which formerly belonged to a family named Sabbe, one of whom, Simon Sabbe, sold it, before the middle of the last century, to Mr. Robert Bathurst, from whom it descended down, with an adjoining estate, called TRILLINGHERST, to another Robert Bathurst, who died in 1731, and lies buried in this church, whose daughter Mary sold them both to Sir Horace Mann, bart. the present possessor of them.

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol7/pp64-73

Punisher Vol 1 #1 Home [Application] by The_Lego_Guy

39 26

Frank Castle's War Journal

Entry 53

25th of October, 1971

War is not pretty. It's filthy and disgusting. And yet unavoidable. Every generation goes through one. My grandfather fought in the first world war, my father in the second. My mother called it the 'Castiglione curse', and in a way, I suppose she's right. My grandfather fought because he had moved to America just two years prior and he thought it was his duty to defend the country that had taken him in and accepted him. My father because...Well, because his father pushed him into it, I suppose. I am now on my third tour here in Vietnam, so the real question is why I am fighting this war? My father didn't push me into it, I haven't spoken to him in years. Maybe I felt some kind of duty? To continue what my grandfather started. Perhaps that was the reason why I enlisted, try to make my grandfather 'proud.'

In the end, it doesn't really matter why I'm here, fact is I am. And if there's one thing I've learned on my three tours it's that you can't focus on the past. If your mind isn't in the present, you will die.

On my first tour, I was assigned to a squadron with two other men I trained with. Joshua and Dirk. The day prior to deployment, Joshua's kid was born. On the flight, he had a photo of the baby and his wife. It was all he could look at. I could relate to him, as just a few weeks before, me and Maria got married. I understood that he missed her and I felt sorry for him. Two days after arriving in Vietnam we were sent on our first mission, help to stop the enemy from taking a strategic outpost near the Cambodian border. It was one of the toughest missions I've ever been one. We lost over half of the troops. And the first one to go? Joshua. That's how I learned if you don't keep your mind trained on the present, you won't last longer than two minutes. I've seen a lot of my brothers in arms die, many because of that reason, others because they underestimated the enemy. But I won't ever forget Joshua. If it weren't for him, who knows how long I would have lasted. If you want to survive, keep your mind trained on the present. And this takes us to today.

Twenty minutes ago, two Huey's dropped twenty of us four miles from the base. We've received reports of enemy troops advancing on the base. We're the last US outpost watching the Cambodian border, sooner or later Charlie would try to make a play. But luckily we have our trusty camp commander, Colonel Ennis along with us. Ennis insisted the Helis drop us off four miles from the base. Why? Because he was too tired to walk the distance. He's the perfect example of an incompetent leader. There's a running joke in camp that the only reason he was assigned here was that he married some General's daughter. Frankly, I don't care if that's the case or not. He spends most of the time in his hut, high on marijuana which means I'm the one that ends up making sure Charlie doesn't overrun us. But a lot of Saigon's eyes are on us for this mission, so he didn't have much of a choice but to join us.

I notice four men coming out of the woodwork up ahead. I tighten the grip on my rifle but recognise that they're friendlies. The four scouts we had sent ahead an hour earlier. Sergeant Cooper signals us to halt while he talks with the scouts. A few minutes pass before he signals me and Ennis to come over.

"Sir scouts reporting enemy camp over in Valley Lotus. That's about a mile East from here."

"What kind of numbers are we talking about here?"

"They're not sure, reckon most of them are still asleep. Maybe twenty to thirty men. They got four on look-out, taking those out shouldn't be much of a problem since we have the element of surprise on our side."

Sounds too good to be true to my ears, but Ennis seems to think we've finally caught a break. "Sounds like shooting fish in a barrel. How do we get there?"

"If we continue on South we'll reach a clearing, that's maybe a twenty-minute walk from here. Then continue on East and we'll reach the site, that's maybe another eight or ten-minute walk. Or we can head south-west, move around the valley. Ambush them from the West. However, this could take at least 45 extra minutes, as this route will force us to head through the more overgrown part of the jungle." The Colonel doesn't even take a few minutes to consider both options, instead opting for the former. "Sir, if I may? I think we should take the latter, the first route sounds too easy, they might have a trap set up in the clearing. And they won't expect us coming from behind."

"You're giving Charlie too much credit here, Castle, they wouldn't have the brains to think up a proper trap. Besides, we've covered enough jungle for one day, I don't fancy another fifty minutes fighting our way through thorns. And besides, they're probably all asleep, they won't see an ambush, wherever it's coming from." He turns to Cooper. "Tell the men to get ready, we're moving out in two minutes."

Despite my protests, we continue on South. After a twenty minute walk, we reach the clearing Cooper told us about. Ennis slings the rifle over his back and takes out his canteen. "Alright, let's take a short break. Give the men a minute to catch their breath, get something to drink--" A gunshot echoes through the clearing, and Ennis falls to the ground. As I suspected, a trap. Suddenly from all sides gunfire bursts through the green. I can see the men are trying to catch their bearings, but we were all caught off guard. Two more bodies fall to the ground. Everyone's panicking, trying to see where the gunshots are coming from. We've gotta stick together, or they'll pick us off one by one. "FORM A CIRCLE!" I scream "FORM A CIRCLE! STAY TOGETHER!" My voice barely travels over the sound of gunfire but luckily Cooper hears me and passes it on. We manage to fight our way back to where we entered the clearing and build up somewhat of a defence.

"THERE ARE TOO MANY OF THEM!" Cooper screams. He's right, we don't stand a chance. Charlies got the advantage here, they were obviously lying in wait, knowing we would come this way. I look at Copper. "Go. Get the men out of here, call in the Hueys and head back to the LZ!" He looks confused for a moment. "If we run now they'll slaughter us like dogs! And what about the Colonel?" I look back to Ennis' body. He's moving, meaning he's still alive.

"I'll be staying back, give you cover. Hopefully, I can buy you a minute or two." I half expect him to fight back but he doesn't, instead he gives me a thankful nod before signalling the men to fall back while I proceed to fire my assault rifle into the bushes, in hopes it will give them as much cover as possible.

There were at least twenty men in the ambush, but ten of them split up, undoubtedly trying to cut off Cooper and what's left of the group. This means I'm facing around eight or seven. I might be able to survive this.

Something small and dark falls from the sky, landing a few inches from me feet. Recognising what it is, I quickly grab it and lob it back into the bushes. An explosion erupts and three trees surrounding the area where I threw the grenade catch on fire. I see four men stumble out of the green, desperately trying to douse their flaming clothes. I pick up my assault rifle and fire off four quick shots at each of them before I hear the hollow clicking of an empty mag. However, before I get a chance to reload, someone jumps down from a tree a few feet away from me. He falls on top of me, causing me to tumble to the ground. I barely have time to catch my breath, because next thing I know there's a knife a few inches away from my face. I grab his arm and with as much force as I can muster up, push him away. We struggle for a little until I finally manage to twist his arm with one hand while grabbing his throat with the other. There's a crack as his arm breaks. He tries to yell out, but his scream is lost somewhere in his throat. There's one final struggle until finally, his lifeless body falls on me. I push him off, but only to be greeted by the end of a rifle not six centimetres from my face. Without hesitating, I quick grab it and pull it away. The gun goes off but luckily manages to miss me.

My ears are ringing from the gunshot, but I try not to pay any attention to it, instead I proceed to punch my assailant. He doubles down and tries to push me to the ground. Quickly I pull out my combat knife and slice his throat in one flawless motion. All of a sudden, his body jerks forward and blood explodes over my chest. I'm not sure whether it's his or my own. Standing behind him is the last man that was part of the ambush. Upon seeing he didn't hit me but rather the dead body of his former brother in arms, he decides to give it another go. It seems though I have more than luck on my side today, as miraculously his gun jams. AK-47s never were very reliable, and right now I'm thankful for that. But instead of fumbling for another mag like most would do, he pulls out a bayonet and attaches it to the end of his rifle. His mouth motions a scream and next thing I know he charges at me with the bayonet. I stand my ground until the last second when I dive to the left. He runs straight past me and drives the bayonet into a thick tree trunk. I quickly get back on my feet while he desperately tries to remove it. Upon seeing me run at him with a knife, he leaves the AK and instead goes for a handgun tucked in his pants. However before he manages to pull it out, I'm already there, combat knife in hand. He tries to scream for help, but I quickly cover his mouth with my hand and slice his throat open with my knife. An explosion of blood errupts over my face and he gives one last struggle before his lifeless body falls to the ground. I wipe the knife clean on his clothes before putting it back in its sheath.

My hearing seems to be coming back, as a groan diverts my attention back to Captain Ennis, who is still lying in the same spot where he was shot just minutes earlier.

"C-Castle..." He coughs up blood and is obviously having a lot of problems breathing. "Y-You...lucky fuck...c'mon...help me up and..let's get out of here." I stare at him for a little while. His shirt is soaked in blood, I'm sure he's got a few bullet holes in his chest and stomach. Maybe if he gets medical attention within the next half hour he might have a fighting chance of survival. Maybe.

"I warned you."

"Y-You...what?"

"I warned you not to go into the clearing. Told you it was sure to be a trap." I walk over to one of the dead bodies and pick up a bayonet. "But you just wouldn't listen. And now..." I crouch beside him. "...Four good, honest...Brave men are dead." I glance at Kody, Dean, James and Christopher's dead bodies. "All because you wouldn't listen to reason." I position the bayonet over his heart.

"What are you-- ARGH!" Will all the force I have left in my arms, I thrust the bayonet into his chest.

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to do this. But you're a liability." I twist the blade, silencing Captain Ennis once and for all. I stand over his body for a few minutes contemplating what it was that made me do this. Did he deserve to die? Perhaps, but not like this. He was out of his depth, he never should have signed up in the first place and he definitely never should have been assigned Colonel. Maybe he thought he'd spend most of his time in Saigon as some kind of reserve.

I asked myself earlier why it is that I'm fighting this war. I didn't realise until now that I always knew the answer, I just never wanted to accept it. This is where I belong.

This is my Home

~~~

Here's something to get y'all in a festive spirit, MURDER! :P

I'd like to apologise for this rather poor build, jungle builds are not my forté, mainly due to me having very little plants. And 80% of the few I do have are currently packed away in boxes. So I hope the story makes up for that, I rewrote it 5 or 6 times. :P

Anyway, this is a role I've been meaning to write for a good few months now. I noticed very few Punisher stories here on Flickr focus on his time in 'Nam and since that is a subject I've been very fascinated by I figured why not combine the two. Anywho, I hope you guys enjoyed it and Merry Christmas/Happy Hanukkah/Merry Atheist Day, whatever you celebrate I hope you're having a great time!