War and Peace

By

Jacquimac

Part One

As usual for the twentieth century we were once again embroiled in a war thousands of miles from home, losses were very low within the taskforce and nil in our unit.

I was a Sergeant in Dressing station at the time and we were in the process of evacuating our casualties when a local woman from one of the nearby settlements asked for medical help for one of they`re people.

I was given the task of going with the woman and dealing with the situation and hopefully get back before the next influx of wounded.

I grabbed a medical kit and off we went, the settlement was a couple of miles away and the going was slow with the thick mud and raid but we eventually arrived almost an hour later.

although the settlement was behind our lines the only access road went through ground that the enemy held in force, so the road was out, the helicopters were being used to move our casualties to the hospital ship.

I discovered the patient to be a young woman in labour with her second child, there was no doctor or nurse on call at these settlements and they usually relied on a flying doctor service, which had been stopped due to the fighting.

I examined the woman and could see it was going to be a difficult birth from which neither the mother or child might not survive, I was out of contact with my unit so I couldn`t ask for advice from one the Medical Officers, I was on my own and a life and death condition was evident.

The Child was the wrong way round and had the umbilical cord round it`s neck, a caesarian would be needed with this birth, and although I had seen the proceedure several times didn`t have enough IV solution .

I had tried to free the cord and turn the child but failed, the mother lapsed into unconsciousnessand was bleeing badly, I spoke to the settlement elders and told then of the situation.

I could perform the caesarian and save the child but the mother would die, or do nothing and they would both die.

The elders told me to do what I could to save the child. I gave the woman a sedative and opened the skin to gain access to the womb,It didn`t take long but I managed to save the child but sadly the mother died.

Before I left the settlement I dealt with about a dozen minor injuries from other women and left the rest of medical supplies I had brought with them.

I was being led back to my unit when we spotted a large force of soldiers skylined ahead of us, I dragged my guide down into the meagre cover available and waited, it didn`t take long to discover that they were the enemy.

Luck would have it they didn`t spot us in the growing darkness and after a while we headed back to the settlement, our lines had been over run and my unit would certainly have been captured.

We went back to the settlement and told them the situation of course they offered to hide me but as I told them that could cause problems if I was discovered.

Other women arrived and informed us that the enemy soldiers were all around the area and that the Dressing station as I feared was now under enemy control.

Medics have an unofficial motto " in with troops and last out" the Geneva Conventions would protect the Dressing Station and the casualties. I could have given myself up, but rejected that idea. I had to try and get back to our lines where ever they are now.

When the enemy had invaded all the menfolk had been rounded up and those that weren`t killed due to resisting were now in camps.

If I was discovered hiding in the settlement the enemy troops would no doubt punish the women and children, We hadn`t heard of any reprisals against any of the settlements but I didn`t want to risk it.

The council of elders had held a meeting while I scouted the terrain around the settlement, when I returned they politely told me I had three options,

1) Give myself up.
2) Try and survive on my own and with winter upon us I wouldn`t last more than a couple of days in Arctic conditions
3) Do as they say and eventually get back to our lines.

It would seem I didn`t have much of a choice, I would have to do what they wanted,

We doubted that enemy patrols would stay away from the settlement until at least first light and luck was with us this night.

The paln was revealed I would have to dress in civilian clothing and my uniform amd gun buried, I would have to appear as one of the occupants of the settlement.

I pointed out that all the remaining people were women and I was a man and they said "So what ?"

I was taken to the house were my patient had died and the women proceeded to dress me as one of them, once they had finished and I saw myself in a mirror I was astonished, this might just work.

The body had been removed and laid out in the church with the funeral taking place the next day, I was to take the poor woman`s identity, her home and all her possessions for the duration of my stay.

I was shown a photograph of the woman and was amazed at how much alike we looked.

I didn`t mind having to dress as a woman but when I had to play mother to her children I started to panic, I was told that the other women would help and the baby would live with another woman who was breast feeding her own new born child.

That still left me stuck with a two year old boy and I had no experience with children, never mind how to be a mother.