SakshiTaking A Stand
The family soon had their rude awakening when a nation-shaking terrorist activity took place back on September 11, 2001. And within the two weeks of the heinous act on September 19, Jessica headed to Fort Jackson, South Carolina to get her Basic Training in the Army. Even though the entire nation had struck by the ever recorded terrible act Jesica still thought that a war would never occur. For her usage of combats was an otherworldly thing and believed that though she was undergoing the training, she would never put her skills to use at that time would never come. She also thought that the war is impossible in a world like this where the stress was more on joining hands and going forward. She had no inkling that her thoughts were going to be changed very soon and not only her thought would change, but her life too.
Life Of A Soldier
She was very excited. She started her training soon after reaching the place. With her hard work and determination, she quickly finished her basic training and jumped to the advanced procedure. She did not take much time to finish her Advanced Individual Training for Military Occupational Speciality. It is also known as AIT. Its training duration varies with the specialization taken by the soldier. The Advanced Individual Training can span from 4 weeks to a full year. As the training of Jessica completed she took up the job of a unit supply specialist. She finished her advanced training in the Quartermaster Corps in Fort Lee, Virginia. Till then she was unaware of her future and the storm that her life was going to be struck with. It is to see how much her training would help her out there or would she give up on the problems without even trying?
Next Step
Those who are driven by determination are unstoppable. Despite the fact that Jessica was new admission to the Army, she got placed in Fort Bliss, Texas as a supply clerk. It was indeed a very big achievement for a naive soldier like her. In case if you don’t know why Fort Bliss is so important than let me tell you it is America’s second-largest military station. What makes it more vital is the fact that this station is used to test artilleries and missile. It was obvious that the place was going to teach a lot to Jessica about business and commerce. And those learning was going to help her not only in serving as a military personnel but also after retiring from it. However, she still was unaware of the war in the offing. In December 2002, Jessica extended her term of service with the Army by signing a four-year extension contract. Till then she had no idea that the US and Iraq war was just around the corner and that her life was going to take an unexpected turn.
Time For Iraq
With the turn of the year, a turn was going to come in the life of Jessica. The March of 2003 marked the war between Iraq and the U.S. And this war was going to change the face of Jessica’s future. Unaware of the coming event she set in to help her nation by participating in the historical war. To serve the nation’s interest she was sent to Iraq with 507th Maintainance Company. She went there as a Private First Class and was all set to fight for her country. The battle in question is one of the most talked about wars of history. Jessica was going to be a part of an event that shook middle east completely. It was confirmed that war was going to bring lots of trouble but Jessica had no idea that the day would come so soon.
A Twist In The Tale
It was on March 23, 2003, Jessica as a supply clerk was traveling with her group in a Humvee. They were not familiar with the paths and were taking help of navigational equipment. Things took an ugly turn when due to a fault in navigational equipment, the convoy strayed away from the actual path. They drove towards an unfamiliar setting known as Nasiriyah. The convoy soon realized that they have entered a strange territory. The convoy was led by Captain Troy King who himself was a supply officer and had no training in fighting. Things worsened when they crossed a checkpoint in the vicinity to Euphrates river. They felt themselves being followed by some vehicles. The convoy was in for a big shock! It was Iraqi vehicles! It was the most unwanted situation of their life. But now as they had fallen in this big trouble they needed to find a way out. But what were they going to deal with it as they were completely unprepared both mentally and physically?
In The Shadows
Captain King decided to turn around but it was too late. There was no turning back. They had been waylaid by Iraqi force. No doubt they were going to pay a big amount for taking a wrong turn. The question was how big? The convoy was contemplating on turning back when suddenly they heard bullet firings coming their way. It was clear now that they were under attack. The whole of the convoy was under fire and there was no way to escape it. Another problem was that it was difficult to determine from where exactly the attack was made as the assailants were still lurking. No need to say that the assailants took full advantage of convoy inability and fired at them as much as possible. The enemies had got this opportunity by chance and were in no mood to miss out on it. They kept on firing at Jessica’s convoy. Whereas the assailants had made their plans clear to the American soldiers it was still a mystery how Jessica and her team was going to handle this unexpected attack.