Introduction
“Rattattattattat!”
Danny looked up at the plane. It thrummed down toward the sandy beach. The
Japanese pilot was heading right for him. For a moment Danny looked into the
pilot’s eyes, and the pilot stared straight into his. The red circle on the
pilot’s headband seems to gaze at Danny, taunting him. The pilot, yellowed
teeth gritting and gnawing, narrowed his eyes and yelled “Korimashu!” The
fighter flared its intimidating cannons. Danny understood in an instant. The
pilot wasn’t looking to kill more sailors or destroy more of the proud American
battleships, he was looking to kill... Danny! Danny dropped his clothes and
sprinted. “Rattattat!” Billowing, grainy sand flew up all around him getting
into his nostrils as the bullets missed their marks. “Kuso!” Shouted the Japanese.
One cannon was jammed, but the other was still operational. “What would my
brother do?” Danny pondered. If he could just make that line of palm trees…
Story
December 6, 1941. 6:00 PM.
“Danny! Danny! Buy
some fruit punch!” 11-year old Danny Chase stared up into the fiery, bright
sun. A pair of brown-headed twins tumbled down a hill. Danny was obliged to
accept the offer. There was no way he could say no to the Decker-Nogura twins.
Danny’s brother, Tom Chase, had gone to high school with Nathan Decker-Nogura
and became best friends. After graduating from high school, they both enlisted
in the Navy. Both Tom and Nathan now worked and lived on USS Pennsylvania. The
Decker-Noguras were a family of Japanese descent and Ms. and Mr. Decker-Nogura
lead a relatively simple life as sugar farmers on Oahu. Ever since they joined
the Navy, Danny was worried sick. Tom could be shot, kidnapped, killed, tied up
by enemies… and Tom didn’t even care.
“It is my duty to
serve the country.” Tom had stated bravely.
“But what if you
get killed?” Asked Danny.
“Nah, that won’t
happen.” Replied Tom stately.
“But anything can
happen in the military,” Danny responded stubbornly. That shut Tom up. Ever
since Tom had joined, Danny hadn’t seen him. Tom was busy training for any
conflicts that could flare up.
Danny accepted the
sweet, warm-ish fruit punch. The sweetness stang at the back of his throat, as
he gulped the liquid out of the small Dixie cup.
“Delicious,” said
Danny as he smacked his lips. The Decker-Nogura girls beamed, their front teeth
glinting in the sun. After finishing the fruit punch, Danny raced home. There
was Tom, pinned down by enemy gunfire. There was Tom, bombs falling all around.
There was Tom, trussed up and gagged while the enemies whipped him in the rear.
Danny sprinted faster and faster away from the invisible monster that tormented
him. The world was a blur and Danny suddenly found himself face-planted right
in the door of his own home. He uncertainly reached for the doorknob. The door
squeaked open. His mother, wearing her pink satin dress, greeted him.
“Honey! What took
you so long?” Questioned Danny’s mother, Louisa Chase.
“Oh yeah. I went
to get some pineapples and sugar cane.” Muttered Danny
“Ah, I see!”
Squeaked Louisa. Danny went inside to the living room, filled to the brim with
antique furniture.
“Danny, Shelly,
news from your brother.” Boomed Danny’s father, David. Both Danny and her
little sister, Shelly, crowded around their father. The letter wrote, “Dear
Family, I am so sorry that I have not written to you in a long time, but we
have been going through rigorous drills. Tensions between the Americans and
Japanese are rising, and the Navy fears of escalation into war. The military
and our commanders all say we should better be safe than sorry. We haven’t been
given a moment of free time. You know that I work on USS Pennsylvania. Come
visit me tomorrow. I will be having a break as tomorrow is Sunday.”
“Aww. I can’t go
see Tom. I have to tutor some students.” Whined Louisa sadly.
“And I have to go
inspect the aircraft at Hickham Airfield.” Grunted David.
“I must go help
get groceries. Looks like you’ll be going, Danny.” Complained Shelly. Danny
jumped up and down with excitement, brimming with anticipation. Finally, he
would get to see Tom in what felt like years.
“Okay then. I guess I’ll get some sleep so that I can get an early start then.” Said Danny, barely able to contain his exhilaration. He bounced up the stairs, took off his shirt and pants (he liked to sleep with just his underwear on), and went immediately to bed. For one night, he wasn’t haunted with dreams of his brother’s demise.
December 7, 1941. 7:00 AM.
Golden morning
sunlight streamed through the beautiful glass window, as Danny woke up from his
slumber. He grinned from ear to ear, thinking about the wonderful day ahead.
Bouncing out of bed, Danny almost forgot to dress.
“Ok.
Step by step.” Danny told himself. He put on his jeans, shirt, and socks. He
tore out the door and ran to the top of the lookout. The palm tree groves which
formed forests gently swayed in the wind, and the tranquil surf crashed on the
beach. The sun shone, as radiant and valiant as always, beaming down at the
world. Battleship Row out in the distance formed an impenetrable wall. The
hulking battleships in Pearl Harbor, sturdy and metallic, seemed almost
unsinkable. Further away, the sea stretched for miles around as far as the eye
could see.
“A
perfect day to spend a day with Tom on the beach,” Danny shouted, telling
himself that everything would be fine. Danny walked up to an ice cream shop and
bought a cone for himself first. The cold, chilly refreshment calmed him down
and made his little stomach content. Danny then started on the path to the
beach.
The
dirt and stone path, crunching under his feet, soon gave way to the soft,
shifting sand of the beach. Danny took off his shirt, jeans, and socks until he
was only wearing his briefs. Leaping around in the wet, soft sand, Danny
enjoyed himself as a child. “I can’t wait to see Tom!” Shouted Danny.
30 Minutes Later…
Danny
was still waiting for Tom to wake up. In the meantime. Danny was diving,
swimming, and drying himself out. Suddenly, Danny heard the roaring of plane
engines. The beach wasn’t as peaceful as when he arrived. Danny thought he saw
squadrons of planes flying overhead. “A drill on a Sunday?” Danny pondered. But
as he looked closer, he saw that the planes were not Americans, they were
Japanese! What were they doing in peaceful Pearl Harbor? That was when the
first bomb plummeted right into the deck of USS Utah.
“Boom
Boom BOOM!” Torpedo bombers dropped in and released their deadly salvos. Sirens
wailed, as Danny saw sailors rushing to their battle stations. “Boom BOOM!” The
sky exploded with American flak, but the guns were not fast enough for the
Japanese aircraft. “BOOM!” USS Oklahoma was hit, and she started tilting to her
side. And as for the biggest, most horrendous explosion, “BOOM… BOOM BOOM
BOOM!” USS Arizona was hit and exploded into a million pieces. As he watched,
the Arizona broke into two pieces, sinking like a rock. Plumes of thick, black
smoke ascended through the air as the seawater soon began filling with sticky
oil and blood. A new sense of dread rose up in Danny’s thoughts. Would Tom be
okay on USS Pennsylvania? Would Tom survive? The battleships were all bonfires,
burning away and sinking. USS Nevada was making a break for it. Danny tried to
run. But he was completely petrified. Danny couldn’t move. A piece of shrapnel
from Arizona now fell on Danny, slitting his arm. Time to call it a day.
As Danny watched
the terrible plight of hundreds of sailors, a Japanese Zero pilot spotted him.
The fighter plane swooped down straight at Danny. “Rattattattattat!” Danny
looked up at the plane. It thrummed down toward the sandy beach. For a moment
Danny looked into the pilot’s eyes, and the pilot stared straight into his. The
red circle on the pilot’s headband seems to gaze at Danny, taunting him. The
pilot, yellowed teeth gritting and gnawing, narrowed his eyes and yelled
“Korimashu!” The fighter flared its intimidating cannons and fired. Danny
understood in an instant. The pilot wasn’t looking to kill more sailors or
destroy more of the proud American battleships, he was looking to kill...
Danny! Danny dropped his clothes and sprinted in just his underwear.
“Rattattat!” Billowing, grainy sand flew up all around him getting into his
nostrils as the bullets missed their marks. “Kuso! To To To! Shuto Shuto
Shuto!” Shouted the Japanese. One cannon was jammed, but the other was still
operational. “What would my brother do?” Danny pondered. If he could just make
that line of palm trees. Danny flew toward the palm grove as fast as his legs
could take him. Heart beating, legs pumping, Danny dove into the palms and
shrubs at the edge of the beach.
Danny breathed heavily. He had made it. The fighter plane roared like an angry beast and went to join its squadron. Danny inspected himself. If not for the shrapnel cut, he would not have been hurt. His underwear was grazed and ripped open at some points. But he had survived. Or had he spoken too soon? The thrumming of a plane’s engine filled his ears. The palm trees were suddenly set ablaze, and everything became dark. Absolutely dark.
Time: Unspecified
Danny
woke up in a hospital. A doctor and a few nurses were treating his burns and
cut. The doctor explained how he was found in the burning grove, underwear set
ablaze. His dad and mom paced nervously, but once they saw that Danny had
survived, they cheered ecstatically with joy. Shelly screamed “He’s alive! He’s
alive!” Later after his burns were treated, Danny learned that Tom was
extremely lucky. He survived the attack, and the Pennslyvania was only slightly
damaged. Nathan was lucky too, as he had survived. But now life was tough for
him. His family was sent to camps along the West Coast, and Nathan was usually
beaten up. He also had to brave interrogation and being tied up in
Pennsylvania’s brig. Danny learned that he had survived Roosevelt’s “day of
infamy” and that the US had declared war on Japan and its allies. For the next
four years, the Allies and Axis would be fighting a brutal war. But all Danny
was thankful for was surviving.
No comments:
Post a Comment