The stench of decay hung thick in the air, mingling with the scent of wet earth and rotting foliage. Sergeant Ethan Cole crouched low, his eyes scanning the dense jungle ahead. Every muscle in his body was tense, every nerve on edge. It had been three weeks since the ambush, three weeks since the world he knew had crumbled into a nightmare. His body was worn down by exhaustion, but his mind was sharp, fueled by a relentless need for answers.
He had buried them himself, his brothers-in-arms. One by one, he had dug shallow graves in the unforgiving soil, his hands trembling with a mixture of grief and fury. Captain Harris, a man who had taught him everything he knew about leadership; Daniels, the joker of the group who had always managed to keep their spirits up; and Thompson, who had been like a brother to him since basic training. Now, they were gone, their lives snuffed out in a hail of bullets that should never have been fired. And Ethan was left alone, surrounded by the ghosts of his past.
The radio silence had been the first sign that something was wrong. They were supposed to be on a simple extraction mission—get in, get the target, get out. But the enemy had been waiting for them, fully armed and ready. It was as if they had known exactly where the team would be. As the gunfire erupted, Ethan's instincts kicked in, and he fought with everything he had. But there were too many of them, and within minutes, his team had been wiped out.
When the smoke cleared, Ethan stood among the bodies, his heart pounding in his chest. He waited for the evac chopper, for the familiar thump of helicopter blades to signal their rescue. But it never came. He tried the radio, calling for extraction, for backup, for anything—but all he got was static. The realization hit him like a punch to the gut: they had been left behind.
Days passed, and Ethan moved deeper into the jungle, evading enemy patrols and surviving on whatever he could scavenge. His thoughts were a whirlwind of confusion and rage. Why hadn't the extraction team come? Why had they been left to die? The questions gnawed at him, but the jungle offered no answers.
On the thirteenth day, he stumbled upon a remote village, its inhabitants wary but willing to trade food for the few supplies he had left. There, he managed to catch a transmission on an old, battered radio. The voice on the other end was speaking English—American English—and Ethan's heart leaped with hope. He listened intently, trying to make out the message through the static.
"... Sergeant Ethan Cole ... believed to have betrayed his unit ... responsible for the deaths of his team ... wanted for treason."
Ethan's blood ran cold. Treason. The word echoed in his mind, carrying with it a weight that threatened to crush him. How could they accuse him of treason? He had done everything by the book, followed orders to the letter. He had fought for his team, for his country. And now, the same country was calling him a traitor.
He smashed the radio in a fit of rage, the old device shattering into pieces at his feet. For a moment, he stood there, breathing heavily, his hands shaking. Then, as the anger began to subside, a new resolve took its place. He wasn't going to let them do this to him. He wasn't going to let his team's deaths be in vain. He would find out who was behind this—who had sold them out, and why. And he would make them pay.
Ethan made his way to the edge of the village, slipping silently into the shadows of the trees. The jungle had become his ally, concealing him from those who hunted him. But he knew he couldn't stay here forever. He needed to find a way back to the States, to confront the people who had betrayed him. He needed answers, and he would stop at nothing to get them.
As he moved through the jungle, his thoughts returned to his team. They had trusted him with their lives, and he had let them down. But he wouldn't fail them again. He would clear his name, and he would make sure that those responsible were brought to justice.
The path ahead was uncertain, filled with danger and deception. But Ethan Cole was no stranger to adversity. He had been trained to survive, to adapt, to overcome. And now, with everything he held dear on the line, he was ready to fight—no matter the cost.
Ethan looked up at the canopy above, the dense leaves blocking out the sun. Somewhere beyond this jungle lay the truth, buried deep in a web of lies and betrayal. He would find it. He would find the ones who had left him and his team to die. And when he did, there would be hell to pay.
He was Ethan Cole, the forgotten soldier, and his mission was far from over.