Some say it didn’t have to be this way. Some say history could have taken a different turn. If the Soviet Union had collapsed back in ‘91 when it was on the ropes. If the Gang of Eight military coup against Gorbachev had failed, the world would have looked very different today. Some say. I think it’s bullshit. This storm was always coming, sooner or later. It doesn’t matter anymore, anyway. Now, all that matters is to survive each day. It’s all up to us now. Our squad. Jonesy. Diaz, manning the M113. That Polish girl Kasia. The men and women around me. No one else will come to our rescue. The final words from division HQ, before they signed off for good, left little doubt. “You’re on your own now.”