War Photographer's Notebook

"beep--!"

Amidst the sharp whistle, the sailors on the deck quickly rushed towards the engine room that was emitting heavy smoke. Wei Ran looked at the sailor moose who was still loading shells, then at the main gun that was still firing, gritted his teeth, turned and ran back On the side of the shell conveyor, it helps the moose continue to supply the vital shells to the main gun.

"How's it going over there?" the moose yelled.

"I don't know!" Wei Ran stuffed the cannonball in, "It seems to be the front engine room!"

"boom!"

Before he finished speaking, another loud noise and tremor from the explosion spread along the hull to the bottom of his feet and then into his ears, almost causing him to throw out the cannonball he just picked up!
But even so, the destroyer still did not stop her pace, and the few 127mm main guns on the front and rear decks also did not stop, as if the rate of fire had increased a lot!Even Wei Ran forgot all the plans and preparations he had made before he came, and his feet seemed to have grown roots, firmly planted here, and followed the sailor moose to continue to work hard to supply the shells!

"boom!"

There was another loud noise. Amid the tremors, Wei Ran keenly noticed that one of the main cannons seemed to stop firing!

"Boom! Boom!"

Before he could react at all, two more shells hit the destroyer, but these two hits were extremely close to him, so close that he even felt himself being lifted up by the impact, and felt that he and The main gun in charge of the moose was hit by the fire and the screams of the gunner in the turret!
But immediately after, his eyes darkened and he passed out.

When he woke up again, he found that the moose was carrying him, leaning on the wall with one hand, and was struggling to move towards the stern of the ship. While walking, he even smelled the peculiar smell of burnt protein from the other party's body. the taste of!
He patted the opponent's back with difficulty, and the opponent put him down while panting heavily, but then he sat down against the wall with a "plop!"

By this time, the moose had ripped off his face mask, his body armor, and even his helmet and goggles.

This also allowed Wei Ran to see the opponent's appearance at a glance, but what surprised him was that this sailor nicknamed Moose was not the Indian soldier he was looking for at all!It can even be said that apart from his skin color, he is not even as Indian as he is!
In addition to this unexpected situation, Wei Ran also noticed the large burns and blisters on the opponent's arms and chest!
"Where are we going?!" Wei Ran came back to his senses and yelled and asked, while speaking, he also carried the other party on his shoulders.

"Stern"

The moose shouted in his thick voice, "The No. 54 main gun is still working, let's help!"

"How long have I been out? What just happened?!"

Wei Ran carried the opponent on his shoulders, and while walking towards the room at the stern, he distractedly glanced at the watch on his wrist whose dial had been smashed and stopped moving.

"Not long! About ten minutes! I don't know!"

The moose yelled back, "Gun 52 is on fire and the gunner is dead! Now our ship is stationary, the power supply is out, and the bridge seems to be destroyed! Only gun 54 is still firing now!" "

"How is your health?"

While looking at the surrounding sea conditions, Wei Ran prayed that the incoming shells could hide from him, while still caring about the other party's situation.

"It's okay! But my ankle hurts!" the moose yelled back.

"I thought you were an Indian!" Wei Ran yelled out his doubts.

"Because of the skin color?" the moose asked bluntly.

"boom!"

Before Wei Ran could respond, a shell hit the bow of the ship, and Wei Ran's feet trembled and he almost fell to the ground.

"Yes!" After regaining his footing, Wei Ran shouted in response.

"I'm a half-breed!"

The moose yelled back, "My white dad was a rapist, and my black grandfather was a rapist too! The only difference is that my grandfather was killed and my mother was thrown into a black rapist shortly after birth." orphanage.

But my dad didn't even pay alimony!And my mother personally sent me to the conscription office when I was 18 years old to serve my country! "

"It's ironic!" Wei Ran responded loudly.

"boom!"

Another shell hit the sea surface not far from the destroyer, and the splashed waves also splashed on the two people's bodies.

"Sarcasm indeed!"

The moose pointed to the man who was directing the battle in the distance and said, "And only the great chief is willing to take me in, and he even allows me to stay on this boat as an Indian!"

"Medical soldier! Come and help!" Before Wei Ran could respond, a sailor shouted and waved to him.

"Go and help! I can go there by myself!" The moose patted Wei Ran on the back and motioned to put himself down.

"Your foot hurts?" Wei Ran asked after putting him down.

"right!"

Before the moose finished speaking, he found that Wei Ran was clamping his calf with his legs, and he hugged his soles with both hands and pulled it hard.

In a crisp sound that was covered by the sound of waves and artillery, the sailor moose's eyes widened in an instant.

But before he was born screaming because of the pain just now, Wei Ran took off the jug full of beer at his waist and handed it to the other party, "This is left for me by my partner, and I gave it to you, just treat it as yours." Thanks for reciting me. Also, your feet should be fine."

"Thank you!"

The moose subconsciously took the kettle, watched Wei Ran take out a small camera from his bag and pressed the shutter on himself, then ran to the wounded not far away.

Subconsciously, he moved his ankle, which didn't use any strength, and the moose showed surprise on its face.

Soon, he stood up against the wall, hung the water bottle that Wei Ran gave him on his waist, and then looked at Captain Evans who was still directing the battle in the distance.After a little hesitation, the moose gritted its teeth, turned and ran towards the bow of the ship.

At the same time, after helping a wounded man to heal the wound, Wei Ran also took the opportunity to take out the camera and, amidst the heavy artillery fire, gave Captain Evans in the distance and the deputy captain, Captain Sterling beside him. Each took a photo.

At this time, he was not even in a hurry to rescue the wounded, and even more ignored the shells fired by the beasts around him who seemed to be hunting. Instead, he ventured to a higher position, using the wide-angle lens to see the wounded at the stern of the ship. I took a group photo with the busy sailors and the No. 54 battery that was still firing.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Almost as soon as he returned to the deck, the only remaining No. 54 main gun was completely quiet in the explosion. This brave destroyer also began to tilt from the bow position, but at this time, the sailors on board had no A weapon that can fight back.

Finally, with a whistle, Captain Evans gave the order to abandon the ship in a hoarse voice in the distance, and the living sailors around them also lowered the life rafts and traffic boats at the fastest speed while cursing. Those injured sailors, with the help of everyone, followed the tradition of the Navy and enjoyed the absolute priority of boarding the life raft.

In the orderly busyness, life rafts were thrown onto the sea one by one, and the wounded climbed onto the life rafts safely with the help of everyone.

Soon, a transportation boat enough to carry 25 crew members was also released, and more sailors also began to leave the destroyer that had completed its combat mission.

However, as the hull tilted more and more, another traffic boat on the side of the front chimney got stuck on the hanger due to an angle problem, and several sailors were busy trying to find a way to lower that traffic boat.

On the stern deck, there were only the captain and deputy captain, a handsome gunner who was only slightly injured, and Wei Ran who was holding the camera all the time.

A little further away on the sea, a devil warship with a meatball flag also approached cautiously.Get up close and observe the warship that is about to sink.

"Medical soldier, why don't you go down?" Evans, who had been staring at the battle flag on the bridge just now, turned his head to look at Wei Ran.

"The wounded have absolute priority in life rafts"

Wei Ran pointed to the other party's hastily bandaged left hand while speaking, "I am a medical soldier, so you can either board the life raft now, or let me help you treat the wound on your hand."

Captain Evans with a mustache showed a gentle smile, then looked at the handsome gunnery chief, "Hagen, go down and lead everyone away first. Captain Sterling, we Shall we go down last?"

"Yes!"

The deputy captain and the gunnery chief who hesitated to speak straightened their chests and responded with a shout. The latter looked at Captain Evans with a complicated expression, turned around and ran not far away, still trying to put down The sailors of the traffic boat greeted them and left the destroyer along the rope ladder net hanging down into the sea.

At the same time, Wei Ran also opened the medical kit, but before he could take out the few remaining medicines, the deputy captain asked loudly, "Soldier, what's your name?"

"Victor!" Wei Ran loudly responded to the other party's inquiry.

"Help us take another group photo!"

The deputy captain, Captain Sterling, walked to the edge of the severely sloping deck while speaking, and together with Captain Evans, they headed towards the life rafts on the sea, towards the wounded, towards the approaching enemy ship, and finally went A military salute.

And behind them, Wei Ran also pressed the shutter towards them while sighing.

"Soldier, you should leave."

After Captain Evans finished speaking, he and his deputy captain walked along the sloping deck towards the bridge that was about to sink into the water.

"Great Chief!" Wei Ran shouted out the opponent's nickname.

"What's wrong?" Captain Evans responded with a smile.

"Where's your Indian axe?!" Wei Ran grabbed the handrail on the edge of the deck and asked loudly.

"I'm going to find it now!"

Evans waved his uninjured right hand towards Wei Ran, and was blocked by the turret that was still smoking.

At this moment, the destroyer made a frightening creaking noise, and the stern of the ship suddenly lifted up, and then began to roll over.

camera!

Wei Ran panicked, and wrapped his hands and feet around the handrail on the edge of the deck, then took out the camera bag and stuffed the camera that had already completed today's task into it, and then immediately put it back in the metal book.

Difficult to climb over the handrail, Wei Ran glanced at the floating oily sea, took off the heavy bulletproof suit as quickly as possible and threw it down.Before the body armor fell to the ground, he jumped down with the gas mask bag containing the basketball!

"Pfft!"

The heavy body armor smashed white waves on the sea first, but before Wei Ran touched the sea, the enemy ship that was close to observe in the distance opened fire again!

Amidst the rumbling gunfire, huge breaches were blasted one after another at the bow and middle waterline of the destroyer Johnston, and the turbulent sea water poured into the cabin along the breaches.And Wei Ran also jumped into the sea at the same time.

"Whoa!"

Thanks to the buoyancy provided by the basketball in the bag, Wei Ran finally emerged from the sea again, saw the enemy ship sailing away in the distance, and saw the John who was struggling to row the life raft away from the sinking Sailors of the destroyer USS Ston.

However, he was ignored because of the artillery fire from the devil's warship, or in other words, no one noticed him at all!
Finally, looking back at the destroyer Johnston, which was still sinking slowly, Wei Ran couldn't care about anything else, hugged the basketball in his bag, and tried his best to stay away from Johnston with the poor buoyancy destroyer, so as not to be swallowed into the bottomless sea.

As for what kind of captain, what kind of Indian axe, in contrast, he just wants to survive now!

At this time, on the sea outside Samar Island, dark clouds drew the curtain on the naval battle that had ended.The surface of the oil-sprayed sea gradually shattered under the beating of raindrops, and then turned into churning waves.

In the puff of smoke that has not dissipated, under the watchful eyes of a Japanese destroyer, the Johnston was gradually swallowed by the deep blue sea.All around it, survivors on life rafts paddled through the rain with all their helmets included, trying to stay as far away from the whirlpool behind them as possible.

Wei Ran, who was closer to the Johnston than these life rafts, had lost his helmet at this time, and was also confessing his greed.

If he hadn't filled those three oil barrels with enough hot cocoa and fresh water, with the buoyancy provided by the three oil barrels and the basketball he packed in his satchel in advance, he wouldn't have to worry about being swallowed by the waves at all.

But now, the only thing he can count on is a ball!

If I had known that I would have boarded the life raft first, who would have thought that the two captains really planned to bury the Johnston with them!

While muttering cursingly, Wei Ran took out the gravity knife and cut off a medical kit strap that had no medicine left. behind.

Putting away the gravity knife, he wrapped the gas mask with the basketball around his neck twice, took out the canning bottle containing shredded tobacco from another medical bag, tied the mouth of the bottle tightly with gauze, and then Press into the water and tie it diagonally under the left armpit.

After gaining a little bit of buoyancy that was better than nothing, he didn't dare to stop at all, but took off his shoes as quickly as possible and stuffed them into the mask bag containing the basketball, and then took off the water bottle on his waist and poured it into it I didn't even have time to take a sip of Coke.It was fastened under the armpit on the right hand side with a belt as in the same way.

This was not over yet, and then he took off his trousers again, turned them over, let them absorb the fuel oil floating on the sea surface, and then tied the two trouser legs with a sock, and then relied on the red flag Lin Chang was chased by rubber bullets and jumped out of the swimming pool. He stepped on the water fiercely to make the upper body of the judge surface out of the water. Tie it down firmly.

Wrapping the two air-filled trouser legs around the neck and fastening them with backpack straps, Wei Ran only had time to take a quick look at the USS Johnston, whose stern was still above the water. Treading water endlessly, keeping as much distance between the two as possible.

Thanks to the buoyancy created out of thin air, although he has never been able to open the distance between the destroyer Johnston, he has not shortened the distance between the two, and he has not been dragged into the icy water by the suction generated by the sinking ship. seabed.

Before he could decide whether to take out the camera bag from the metal book, and then take out the pistol inside, and use the gunshots to attract the attention of the life rafts, a wave that was only one meter high pushed over from the side, engulfing His body was covered with all kinds of odds and ends of Wei Ran, and he floated in a further direction like a duckling in a bathtub.

In the thicker and thicker rain, he only had time to vaguely see something floating on the other side of the USS Johnston, which was getting farther and farther away.Immediately afterwards, he was pushed below the surface of the sea by the next wave.

When he floated to the surface of the sea again with the basketball in his chest, another wave had already hit him. The only thing he could do was to take a quick breath, and then he was pushed down again.

In this way, one wave after another, he was pushed into the water time and time again and tried to come out with the buoyancy he created.

Wei Ran himself can't remember how many times he was about to give up, let alone how much he choked.But he knew that those life rafts were getting farther and farther away from him, and the devil destroyer that was approaching to observe the sunken ship was getting farther and farther away from him, and even in the end, he couldn't see the other party's silhouette in the rain .

To survive first, to survive first.

Wei Ran forced himself to calm down, stretched his hands out of the water, and took out the flyback watch and the British compass fixed with it.

When he was trying to keep the level bubble inside the compass centered between two waves, the pointer that was shaking from side to side also helped him point out the direction of north and south.

To the west is land!
Wei Ran put away the compass and flyback watch, made up his mind, tried to keep his straight line pointing towards the west, adjusted his body as much as possible, and made his back pointing at the constantly pushing waves. Legs curled up.

Then, he unbuttoned a pair of trouser legs, trying to blow in every breath he exhaled, trying to keep the trouser legs swollen.

1 minute, 10 minutes, half an hour, after he repeatedly blew air on his trouser legs and persisted again and again, he finally saw a floating object. An insulated bucket of hot cocoa!

"Your uncle"

Wei Ran twitched the corners of his mouth, stretched his body, and fought against the waves one after another with his hands and feet, trying to narrow the distance between him and the thermos.

Fortunately, after more than ten minutes of hard work, he finally hugged this life-saving thermos!

Wei Ran didn't dare to open the fastened lid at all. Wei Ran just tried to keep the lid facing upwards, and then reached out to check the faucet under the insulation to make sure it wasn't turned on, and then he was slightly relieved.

But immediately after, a wave of evil fire burst out of him. After several hours of busy work, he didn't see the ax or the canvas hammock.He didn't even see the sailor's whistle!
I'm afraid I'm going to lose my life here this time, right?
Wei Ran, who didn't dare to let go of the thermos while holding the thermos, muttered worriedly, and at the same time secretly looked forward to the turning point that would appear when he didn't know when.