Belfast, Northern Ireland, 1971
Amy stood near the cobbled road that led to the school. She wiped away her long, black hair with her left hand; she wore a grey skirt, red socks, and black shoes on her feet; she wandered above the bomb site. British soldiers armed with air rifles in their cold hands, were called 'The Invaders'. Because of the Blitz during World War II in the late 1930's, and mid-1940's, the West German SS soldiers had been the enemy since Adolf Hitler came to power. By the 1950's, the Communist threat savaged America. By the 1960's, the air of power shifted when President John F. Kennedy, and Senator Robert Kennedy were assassinated. Overseas, in Ireland, Amy knew that England was forcing their weight in the country of her birth. Damon, her brother, begun to throw rocks at the soldiers, and they fired back.
And the beginning of the Troubles had started.
***
Aemon Duller stood near the Pub. He smoked a cigarette. The fiery embers burned his right, middle finger. 'Damn!', he yelled. The flames irritated his skin. He poured fresh water on the burn. He called 999, and waited for an Ambulance. Two Irish ambulancemen arrived.
'Nasty, that is'.
'I should stop smoking'.
'Good idea'.
He got into the Ambulance, and knew that death was inevitable if he didn't change his ways.
***
'I hate the bombing, Damon'.
'Yes, it is rather awful'.
'We have to do something about the English'.
'What can we do?'.
'Get rid of them...by force'.
Amy nodded, and knew that that was the only course of action.
***
'There's the bomb site', Damon said.
'We can't go there because of the barbed wire. Mother got cut a long time ago', Amy said.
Four British soldiers watched them.
'Get away from here', one of the soldiers yelled.
'But, this is our home', Amy said.
'Mine, too', Damon said.
'This is British territory'.
'You're on Irish land', Damon said.
'We have orders from the Prime Minister to make sure Ireland knows not to bomb London'.
'We're not bombing anyone', Damon said.
'We are fighting for Independence'.
Then the bombing returned, and the screaming started.
***
The Irish man looked at the dead bodies of his friends. He cried. He hadn't imagined that something would happen in Belfast, Dublin, and other cities; he was thinking about his wife, and five children. He focused on the blood on the cobbled road. He backed away, and prayed to God to end the misery.
***
'Go! Go! Go!', Simon Grieve yelled.
He watched the man who wore a balaclava hood over his head. He wore a coat, since it was cold in Belfast; he wore a purple skivvy, black jeans, a black belt, red socks, and grey boots on his feet. In their eyes, the British soldiers didn't belong in the city; soldiers were armed because the British Prime Minister, Lord Harold French, was paranoid over the bombings in London. Such terrorist acts on UK soil was scaring everyone, and depleting faith in the populace. Consequently, violence led to political outrages, and was spread in the newspapers. Simon fired at two British soldiers. They backed away, and died on the cobbled road. Written on the crumbling grey walls were the words: IRA RULES IRELAND-GO AWAY BRITISH SOLDIERS! The mural said.
The terrorists begun shooting out the windows of stores.
Glass shattered as panic set in.
***
The Loud War, (as it was called), continued.
Amy looked at the color television.
She listened intently.
'In breaking news, Paddy Krane, the Leader of the IRA, denied any involvement in the deaths of five British soldiers. Krane, who was born in Kent, England, grew up in Ireland with his parents when he was six. After he left school in 1952, Krane joined the Cause in 1965, six years' ago. Krane was known for his bad temper. Because there wasn't any evidence of violence, he went underground. From 1967 to 1970, MI5 Agents with the help of Scotland Yard, made sure there were photos of the terrorist; from Christmas of 1970, Krane used bombs to shatter bars, cafes, and Restaurants as a financier. Krane is not to be approached...'.
Amy shivered, and knew that darkness had come to Ireland.
***
Damon grabbed the burned cigarette.
He glanced at the house, and coughed.
'Yuck!', he said.
He vowed not to smoke.
He saw his sister, Amy.
'We have to leave', he said.
'Where can we go?', she asked him.
'To the barracks. The British invaders won't find us there. Mother and Father won't be around; they'll never be around for us', Damon answered. The smell of fire was filling their eyes with soot. Fire engines blared loudly. 'Let's go!', Damon answered. Amy nodded, and knew they must be strong before the war went on into another year.
***
Amy heard the gunfire.
She ducked her head.
'Go down, Amy!', Damon yelled.
As she did, the British soldiers screamed as Irish terrorists cried out in triumph.
***
The darkness came.
Bombs exploded.
Bodies fell onto the grey stone rubble.
The way towards the cemetery was full of hearses for the funerals. Women, especially Irish wives, mourned in black clothes. Their veils covered their faces, as their eyes were teary. 'Margaret, are you okay?', John Fletcher asked her. Margaret Fletcher didn't want the anger to spread. Her children, Molly and Greg, were throwing rocks at the British invaders. They knew that the rise of the IRA had meant that the political divide would be closer over the decade. Molly gazed at the burned-out cars that was aflame.
Black tires were ripped.
'We have to leave, Molly'.
'Where to?', she asked him.
'Dublin. Mother and Father will want...', Molly answered.
'We live in Belfast, Molly. Not Dublin'.
'I know that, Greg', Molly said.
'Greg! Molly! Come inside'.
'Okay, Mum', they said.
And both of them ran before the bombs destroyed businesses in Ireland.
***
Amy looked at the burned wood.
She backed away, as she coughed.
'It's alright, Amy', Damon said.
She nodded, as the bombing was intense.
***
It was six o'clock.
The soldier watched the dead bodies.
He smoked a cigarette.
The fiery embers burned his left hand.
'Ouch', he yelled.
And then the darkness came.
***
Molly watched the train.
She focused on Platform 4. She looked at the Station Master. In her mind, she was thinking about the SS soldiers of the 1930's, and 1940's; she knew the Fuhrer, Adolf Hitler, was dead in his bunker with his wife Eva Braun. By the 1950's and 1960's, the World had changed. The Communist threat, and the Russians, were 'The Enemy'. In the United Kingdom the British Prime Minister resigned today due to loss of popularity. There wasn't a scandal like the 1960's; there was an increase of political violence across Europe. In short, the bitterness between England and Ireland created a chasm that wouldn't be negated by time itself.
'It's time to go, Molly'.
'Am I afraid?', she asked Peter Ford, her new boyfriend.
'Should you be?', Molly answered.
'Yes'.
'What can we do about the invaders?'.
'Kill them', Peter said.
And she nodded.
***
The radio was on.
'In breaking news, Daniel Frey, the Deputy Head of the IRA, was arrested by Scotland Yard detectives. Frey, a radical terrorist, was denied bail by Lord Justice Alfred H. Klein. Klein looked at the killer of twenty people at the and said: "I sentence you to death for your crimes". Frey didn't say anything, and knew his time was short...'. Amy heard the broadcast, before she turned it off.
***
It was late.
'Amy, are you asleep?', Damon asked his sister.
'Yes', she answered.
'Good. Afterwards, we can have breakfast tomorrow'.
'Fine'.
And he smiled.
***
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