《The American Dream: An Alternate, Time-Travel Timeline》Chapter 5: The War Must Go On
Advertisement
Colonel Kim watched as the bodies of dead militiamen and Redcoats were carried away by several of the colonials. The officer's white dress hat was in his hands as he solemnly watched the departure of the fallen. The men of the First Marine Regiment stood closely behind, also removing their hats to pay their respects for the dead. Several militiamen from other colonial militias and prominent officers were in the crowd as well, among them being General Putnam, Colonel Prescott, and Colonel John Stark. Amongst the dead were ten of the original four hundred members of the regiment and their names were written down by Colonel Kim as the bodies were identified.
After the colonel read all ten names, he gave an appreciative nod to one of the militiamen carrying out the bodies of the dead. The man stared at Colonel Kim's face but returned the nod with a shadow of a smile on his face. After a few moments of silence, the Marine officer turned to the members of the regiment and spoke, "Ten brave men from our regiment died today on the battlefield, with an additional seventy brave men from other regiments killed as well. Any of us could have been laying on the cold, hard ground. Yet luckily for us and unluckily for them, we escaped death and are now hailed as heroes, while they lay lifelessly on the ground.”
"That is why we will not forget their names as we soldier on. This battle is only the first battle of this war, gentlemen. Let us not forget that. We have forced the British to flee and saved the city of Boston. But mark my words, the British will return to the colonies with a vengeance and will seek revenge for their loss on Bunker Hill. Which is why we must continue to fight the good fight and make sure that the deaths of our fellow militiamen are not in vain. More than ever, we must train and prepare to resist."
Standing in front of the members of the First Marine Regiment, he saluted the men and generously took the regiment's flag from Warren's hands, "I understand the battle is over and you all have your own lives and duties to return to. Even so, I could not have asked for any braver men for the battle. You may not be soldiers, but you showed those Redcoats hell. It was an honor fighting alongside all of you, even if it was only temporary."
The reactions from his men were mixed. Some looked surprised at the man's words, while others looked uncertain. A single voice rang true from the crowd, cutting through the colonel's words, "And who said we leaving, sir?"
Advertisement
A single individual limped up to the front of the crowd and Colonel Kim recognized him as the African American militiamen he had treated earlier. The African American militiamen earned a few curious stares and glares from the others, but the crowd was silent as he spoke up, "I thought you was going to remain our leader, sir. I don't know about the others, but I am going to follow you and fight under you till the end."
"Well, I would be honored to continue leading the regiment. But frankly, Mr..."
"Poor. Salem Poor."
"Mr. Poor, I was planning to travel to Philadelphia to receive an official commission from the Continental Congress, but until then, I will be unable to provide for any of the troops."
Even after hearing Colonel Kim's response, the injured man remained undeterred, "I left behind my wife and family to fight, sir. I knew what I was going to fight for and die for. And if you didn't choose to save me on that hill sir, I would've most likely died or been taken, prisoner. I owe you my life, and many of us here probably can say the same. With you as the leader, I'll gladly follow."
"Hear, hear!" Several of the militiamen cried out.
General Putnam cleared his throat, "I have decided that for the time being, I will assign my duties to one of my fellow officers and travel with Colonel Kim to Philadelphia. Those stubborn fools at Philadelphia will most likely try to deny him a commission, so I will go with him to convince them. Additionally, General Washington is on his way to Boston, so he will be able to take command during my absence. Those of that want to stay in the First Marine Regiment, you have my word that the regiment will become an official part of the Continental Army."
After several minutes of debate and activity, the remaining members of the regiment were officialized. Approximately 200 men of the original regiment opted to remain under Colonel Kim's command, which included men like Salem Poor and Joseph Warren, and an additional 100 men pledged their service to the First Marine Regiment. Colonel Kim caught a few names of the ones that joined and recognized a number of them. The most notable individuals of the newest regiment members were Major Andrew McClary (who was supposed to be dead) and Captain Thomas Knowlton (one of the first intelligence specialists of the Continental Army). Even though the regiment shrunk in size, it was still a decently formidable force and the men were determined due to their victory at Bunker Hill.
Advertisement
However, before he could speak to his reformed regiment, he felt a familiar burning sensation in his pocket. The colonel pulled out the "messenger sheet," as he called it, and read the content of the paper, "Go to the Cemetery near Charlestown and locate the structure that is out of place. You will find supplies there."
The Korean American officer's eyes widened as he read the message and he pulled General Putnam to the side to show him the message. The general read it carefully and grinned slyly, "You are truly blessed by the Lord himself. Let us go with the men, colonel, and see what the "benefactor" has to offer."
"We should do our best to prevent the others from knowing my secret, with the exception of certain individuals. If word gets out that I am from the future..."
"Then you will be a walking dead man. Do not worry, I have already warned Colonel Prescott and my own lips are sealed."
With that reassurance, the colonel called for his regiment to gather and led them towards the cemetery near Charlestown. Upon arriving at the cemetery, the members of the First Marine Regiment discovered a large barn in front of the dozens of graves. Strangely, it seemed as though the other colonials in the area were simply overlooking the barn or unaware of the barn at all.
Colonel Kim took a deep breath and pushed open the doors of the barn. When he walked inside, he came face to face with an unbelievable amount of supplies for his regiment.
Clean uniforms and caps that looked similar to his own were stacked by the hundreds on the side of the barn, along with boxes of various insignias. On the opposite end of the barn were rows and rows of backpacks, not too different than the military backpacks he used in the battlefield, but definitely styled to look more like colonial packs. When he looked inside of them, he found food items, spare clothes, flasks, rain gear, flint and stone, toiletries, supplements, blankets, and even additional ammunition. An entrenching tool and bayonet also hung off the sides of each pack. He gulped as he realized that the sheer quality and amount of supplies in this barn would make his regiment the best equipped and best-prepared regiment in the entire Continental Army.
"We will assign ranks later on, but for now, grab a uniform, a hat, and a pack. They will be yours to keep and maintain from now on, so take good care of them. These were given to us by... my benefactor. There are enough supplies for us to march to Philadelphia, so we will begin our trek once we are ready to depart."
The men eagerly seized up on the chance to grab their gear. While the men were busy grabbing their own equipment, Colonel Kim took note of some supplies that he didn't spot beforehand.
On the wall farthest from the barn door was an array of modern pieces of equipment. He found ten more frag grenades, twenty additional clips of ammunition (he had expended fifteen clips during the Battle of Bunker Hill), additional rounds for the flare gun, a hydro flask with water filters, three field medkits, several smoke grenades, a variety of blueprints, and a backpack that was similar to the ones issued for the other marines. In addition to this, he also found a small pouch next on the side. It was seemingly empty at first, but a note materialized within when the colonel stuck his hand in it. He pulled out the note and read the words on the paper.
"This pouch will be directly connected to the US Gold Reserve in Fort Knox from the future. Every time you reach into this pouch, you will be able to pull out one troy ounce of gold. Currently, Fort Knox has 147.34 million troy ounces of gold. You do the math. With the amount of gold you are able to pull from this pouch, you can severely devalue the price of gold around the entire world. The only limitation of this pouch is that you can only pull three hundred ounces from this pouch per day. Regardless, I am sure you (and only you will be able to utilize this pouch) will be able to use the pouch wisely. After all, while your knowledge and skills are important, I'm sure some of the leaders of the Continental Congress will be... much more flexible to negotiations if you have a seemingly large amount of money. And you will need money to maintain your regiment's standards as well.
So carry on, Colonel Kim. Let us see how history will remember you."
In the future, Colonel Kim would deny allegations that he suddenly collapsed onto the ground while his men were getting ready, despite his men's insistence. However, only one thought ran through his mind after he finished reading the message:
What in the God damn hell.
Advertisement
- In Serial54 Chapters
Erden : Tale of a Land Forgotten
Magic, monsters, and mystery— Fate uses the unexpected meeting of two children to spark a wave of change upon the land. Comic Adaptation: https://tapas.io/episode/2299612 What to expect : 3rd Person, 800-1400 word chapters, Slow-burn A rewrite of Land of Erden. Weekly updates on Friday!The plot stays the same as the original work, with just a few tweaks. I've decided to write in a way to further display each character's individuality as well. (I hope it shows.) Feel free to point out mistakes, or roast me if things become a bit hard to read because of confusing prose.
8 167 - In Serial46 Chapters
The Forsaken
The story begins in the kingdom of Ferro. Five anti-heroes each with a different story, and a unique purpose set out on an epic journey. Leading their paths to cross as they unwillingly/willingly fall in political schemes and a war between kingdoms all while, unknownst to them, being pawns in a power struggle of ancient powerful beings. Note: The first five chapters will introduce each of the five main characters and the start of their journey.
8 170 - In Serial63 Chapters
Street Girl
Eighteen-year-old hockey prodigy Elliot Wexler has three goals for senior year. One: somehow graduate with a 3.5 GPA. Two: hide his bipolar disorder from his peers. And three: make it into the NHL with no scandals. Piece of cake.What he doesn't expect is to find Lucy, a homeless girl, hiding from the winter frost in his dad's shed.Elliot's busy, complicated life doesn't permit room for error, and falling in love with a girl from a totally different world sounds like the opposite of a good idea. But Elliot can't help but be drawn to Lucy and her elusive ways--even when she seems to vanish from his life non-stop, each time leaving him with a bigger hole in his heart. But Elliot is determined to break down Lucy's barriers. And when he does, he discovers that her life is more complicated--and dangerous--than he could have imagined. With drafting season approaching, and Elliot's fragile mental health deteriorating, he's forced to face a difficult question: Is first love supposed to hurt so much?***PLEASE DO NOT ADD THIS STORY TO GOODREADS.
8 522 - In Serial13 Chapters
The Choice
‘Should we be loyal to an unjust ruler?’ This is the dilemma before the citizens of Magadha . They ask themselves - ‘Is it safe to be a fence sitter?’ ‘Is it prudent to emigrate?’ ‘Is it time to rise in revolt?’ No citizen is immune, each must make a choice! Disclaimer: All events, people and some places in this novel are fictitious. Though the novel is set in 5th Century AD , India, the life presented is an amalgamation of different eras and imagination. Infact , much of the understanding of the society at that point of time has been gained from Kautilya’s Arthashastra which was first written seven centuries earlier.
8 83 - In Serial40 Chapters
Dungeon Incursions
For Lance, the Incursion of monsters and a magical Shop isn't as much of an apocalypse as an inconvenience. Together with the rest of his archery club, there's a whole new world order to navigate as humanity deals with portals to a new world spawning monsters and a magical shop that provides upgrades for those clearing the Incursions. Dungeon Incursions is a slow-moving apocalypse, where the system doesn't lead to societal collapse but changes in civilisation itself. Not solo OP MC but team-based dynamics.
8 149 - In Serial34 Chapters
Ferrian's Winter
Ferrian has been running his whole life. Running, because he has no choice. Wherever he goes, Winter follows. Wherever he sleeps, frost creeps at his door. From town to town he hastens, frightened, tired; forever trying to keep one step ahead of the cold, the snow and the devastating storms. It is a kind of curse, and Ferrian has no idea what it means. Only someone with a knowledge of magic might be able to to help him, but sorcerers are nearly extinct in the world. Two brothers remain, however; the last of their once-noble kind, holed up in a secluded valley, waging their own private and very personal war. Ferrian, captured by the local law enforcers, finds himself unexpectedly amongst friends sympathetic to his cause, and together they set out on an adventure-filled quest to find the last sorcerers. * * * * * This is a completed, self-published novel, over two volumes, that I am serialising for Royal Road. It is available on Amazon and Smashwords in both ebook and physical formats. I appreciate reviews and comments! Please don't be afraid to share your thoughts -- your feedback is valuable to me! This story is updated once a week, on Mondays. * * * * * 'Traumatising Content': This refers to characters with suicidal thoughts/inclinations, and death of characters. There is no gore, profanity, sex, sexual violence or romance in this story.
8 216

