From here on out I am going to introduce a story character, Jonney Heath, who I plan to follow his life during the war and after it to add some more depth, hope you injoy
*
O, I wish I was in Dixie!
Hooray! Hooray!
In Dixie Land I'll take my stand
To live and die in Dixie
Away, away,
Away down south in Dixie!
Old Missus marry Will, the weaver,
William was a gay deceiver
Look away! Look away!
Look away! Dixie Land.
But when he put his arm around her
He smiled as fierce as a forty pounder
Look away! Look away!
Look away! Dixie Land.
*
The chorse was sang over and over as the soldiers sailed with high spirits acrossed the Potomac river. The small transport boats were packed full, each man had little to no room to move but the crampt corders could not hinder there spirtis. On the horizen sat necsseled in the corner of the Potomac river and its eastern branch was the Union captial of Washington itself. The roar of cannons soon errupted over the singing, flying high over head before slaming into the city docks where they were headed.
“Its almost time Jonney!” Gerald Harrison said, nudging Jonney with the end of his rifle. Jonney didn’t want to think of it, unlike most of the men in his boat, Jonney was more scared than excited though he tried not to show it.
“Sure is Harrison, about time too, I can’t wait to teach these Yankee’s a lesson.” He lied, putting on a fake grin. In fact it was the last thing he wanted to do right now. Jonney was a simple farm boy from North Carolina, just barely turning eighteen when the Conscription Act was passed and he was drafted into the Army of Northern Virginia for Operation ARK. He had golden blond hair, was about 5’5 and an even tan that was the resault of the hard farming lifestyle as well as eyes as blue as the ocean. All Jonney wanted to do was return home and live out his life in peace, he supported the Confederacy of cource, his father was an avid succesionist, believing that the Union had become corrupt and tyrannical, but Jonney was never in to politics and simply followed what he thought to be right. At that moment he began to dought if all this was worth it, all the bloodshead, the betrayel of family members and brothers, the war, it all seemed to come at an all to expensivie price…the battles at Staunton and Manassas proved that to him in his eyes.
“Alright men! Were nearing the shore, when we hit the docks expect to take heavy fire, the yankee’s are dug in deep and will fight tooth and nail for the city! Our inteligence tells us they have set up a blockade into the city and are making there stand there, its our job as the first wave to secure the docks to make way for the rest of the army, look sharp men, its our time to shine!” the grizzled company commander shouted to the men over the cannon fire. The singing had stoped as the air became thick with smoke and tension, what had once been confidence and anticipation became fear and horror as the boat fell silent.
Boom, boom, boom, was all that could be heard as the boat came closer and closer to the docks. With every inch the boat got closer to the enemy the tigher Jonneys grip got on the gun, his palms began to sweat something fearce as his hear raced with with every cannon shot.
“Don’t worry Jonney, we’ll make it through this, and then we can go home and I’ll buy you drink on me.” Harrison said, trying to lift his spirts and calm his nerves. The 5’4 boy had brown hair and was tanned, both he and Jonney worked together on Jonney’s fathers farm and grew up together as best friends, thick as theives, the two boys did everything together.
Jonney looked over to Harrison, who was standing to his left and grined. “Don’t think I won’t take you up on that when we get out of here Harrison.” His grip on the gun eased up a little bit while trying to force himself to calm down, it seemed to be finaly working…a bit. The trolly soon came to an abrupt stop, jarring the small garrison of men as the gate in front of them let down.
“Here we go boy!” shouted the commander as he drew his saber and charged out, the men yelled and followed after but several stoped just as they left the boat, something happened, they acted as if they had ran strait into a wall, knocking them back on the ground in a cloud of blood. The bullets from a union volley riped through the front ranks, bullets flew into the iron trolly, rickashading off the walls and into the men. Closing his eyes Jonney charged out over the dead bodies, triping over his fallen commander and hiting the ground with a thud, the top of his head catching the edge of a shattered stone.
Cringing he rolled over and looked around, his vison blurred as tears came to his eyes and gash in his head seemed to bleed freely. Ripping the sleave off his of his shirt he tied it around his head, trying to stop the bleading. “Jonney! Over here!” he heard someone shout, looking around he could see Harrison and several other men from his company crouched down behind a bunch of splintered crates.
“Hold on Harrison! Stay there!” he shouted, his hands sweating more perfusely now, in fact, his whole body seemed to drenched in sweat. Antoher volley fired, bullets flew over head as several more men fell from another company, looking behind him he could see more men pouring out of the trollies, making there way up into the docks.
“Dear god if you can hear me now, give me winged feet.” Jonney said to himself, pulling out a rossery he carried with him around his neck and kissing it. Scrambling to his feet he charged out towards where Harrison and the others were. For that moment it seemed like every Union sniper turned to target him as shot after shot was fired, missing him only by inch’s, dirt and rock flew up from where the shot hit the ground near his heals, a piece of shraptnel even flew up and his him in lower arm. Wincing in pain he began to stumble and fell to the ground, sliding on the rough stone docks and barely making it behind the crates.
“My god Jonney, your hurt!” Harrison exclaimed in concern for his friend, the two had always looked out for each other, they were like brothers.
“Its fine, I’m fine, don’t worry about it.” He said, tearing the other sleave off and wraping it around his arm, tieing it tight. The pain was immence, but suprising he flet little of it at the moment, the adrinaline pumping numbed the pain and allowed him to continue on, which normal circumstances would not have allowed.
“They have us pinned down Jonney, Pete and George tried to make a run for it but they were gunned down faster than they had time to run. Charles, Wray and I stayed put, but heck, everythime we stick even the tip of our guns out we get shot at!” he continued on, the boddies of the two men he spoke lay not far from the group in a pool of blood.
“Gerald.” Jonney hardly ever called Harrison by his first name, only when they were serious did he ever use his first name. “Gerald..” he repeated, looking down at his gun and then back up. “We have to make a run for it, look, if we can make it to the men in the left flank we can at least put up a decent fight.” Nodded toward the far left where the 8th and 7th companies were gaining a foothold.
“If we stay here were done for, that’s all there is to it...” he was interupted by another pullet slambing into the wooden crates, sending splinters of wood flying everywere, the men, covering there eyes continued to listin.
“If we wait until they fire another volley we can make a run for it, we have to worry about the snipers, but I reffuse to set here like a coward, are you with me?” he asked, looking at the three men for awhile before Harrison spoke.
“God you know I’m no coward Jonney…give the word when its time to go.” Harrison said, followed by agreement from Pete and George. The four men crept down and waited, and sure enough another volly was fired. “GO!” Jonney shouted as he lept from his hiding spot and charged forward. Following came Harrison and then Pete, George soon fell to the ground, taking a shot to the chest which sent him flying into the ground. The ground around them seemed to explode as shot after shot was fired, a cloud of dirt and rock sprung up, covering them as they ran.
The next thing he knew he was thrown through the air, his hearing seemed to be gone and his vison once again blurred. Not realizing what had happened unti he hit the ground and two men came and dragged him to cover, looking up at them they began to speak to him, their lips moved but no words seemed to come out. Looking around he saw what appeared to be a crater, and to the left and right of it was two burned and mangled boddies. His eyes widend as he realized that neither Pete or Harrison was with him, his eyes latched to the bodies as a lump swelled up in his throat and he let out in a horse voice.
“Harrison..” his eyes watered and spoke his name again before falling back and passing out.
