[ WP ] An American world war 2 veteran finds himself going back in time , but he 's now in the body of a Japanese soldier , saying goodbye to his family ... on his way to attack peril harbor .

Sitting in his armchair, the man parlayed over the medals on the table. The metal had seen better days, but the valiant glow still remained. He was silent, lost in the recollection of his days of war. Sure, there were causes worth dying for, but no causes truly worth killing had he faced in his time. 
 
 
 A mild, numbing pain began to echo throughout his mind. A migraine. Old age was not the loyal friend he had envisioned. This pain, however, was changing. It became more acute, more painful, a burning iron pressed against his head. He blinked, trying to stay alert, but soon plunged into an uncomfortable darkness. 
 
 
 * * * 
 
 Colour and light flashed before him. 
 
 Dazed and confused, he surveyed the sight before him. Tired, green farmland was encircled by a coast lined with jutting, volcanic rocks. He clenched his fists, searching for a sign that this was a mere hallucination. As he felt his fingers against his palms, his ruddy ageing skin was now pale and young. Amidst his confusion, he noise of shouting voices filled his ears. Ahead stood a woman and two children, asiatic in appearance. The woman was crying. A boy and girl either side of her shouted at him amidst tears, frantically running towards him. Their words he did not know, but his mouth somehow formed a reply equally unknown in meaning to him. As they hugged him, a rugged hand was slapped down on his shoulder blade. He turned around to see a tall, thin man dressed in a worn, brown uniform. Shouting some sort of orders, the man violently pulled him away from the woman and children; nervously, he followed the man, making his way down the harsh, rocky slope. At the water's edge stood a large group of these uniformed men, waiting aside a fleet of ships and submarines. Above them, an unmistakable mark. 
 
 
 The flag of the rising sun. 
 
 
 Slowly realising his situation, he began to panic. The uniformed men began to enter the ships and submarines, trudging along the shore like mindless drones. Having thought he had escaped it for good, the returned milieu of war was sickening.He frantically looked around at the Japanese soldiers, eyes with a glimmer of fear despite their orderly assembly of the vehicle crews. One climbed into a dark, shiny midget submarine, with a marking in white paint on the metal catching the veteran's eye. 
 
 
 *I-24* 
 
 
 The veteran, despite his years, remembered the name. This fleet, this group of men doomed to throw away their lives for the purported glory of their nation, was headed to America. 
 
 
 He felt sick. Shaking as he wiped his brow, he attempted to formulate a plan. He had to help his nation, but options were few and outcomes were not ideal. Take out as many Japanese soldiers as he could? Enter a submarine and eliminate his crew after setting off? An officer shouted something at him, briefly drawing his attention to the submarines. He was just one man; escape from his situation was near impossible.Perhaps, he could simply play out his role; fight for those who surrounded him. What he was now was a Japanese soldier; perhaps the man he once was would not be any more. It was insane, but in a state of oblivion, sane did not exist. Trapped in thought, two soldiers approached him, as they stared concernedly into his eyes. Theirs were bloodshot, filled with the fear of men on their final days. Looking at these poor souls, the veteran came to a realisation. He could not fight. He had lived his life fighting one too many wars. He may have been in the body of a young soldier, but his mind was old and weary. 
 
 
 He simply could n't take away the life of another. He had seen his 85 years; these kids looked barely 18. 
 
 
 Taking the rifle from his back, the screams of fellow soldiers were but a distant whisper from the walls of his mind. Bayonet extended, he gulped, and plunged the blade into his chest. An immense, searing pain rushed through his body as blood spurted from his torso. Falling into unconsciousness, he drew in his last breath. 
 

