Spent casings

The fire raged at their backs
a golden orange shroud of dismay
Warmth brushing their shoulders

Still
the darkness within their hearts tampered
the flames
No warmth for those who walked away
only the cold reality of what they've done

Though they move with swiftness
their minds made things move in a shuttered stillness
Flashes of faces, of torn bodies, blood spatter
infusing their every thoughts

The cold
washes them
Clearing any joy away in icy waves

Too real were the faces
too vivid were the screams
the pleas
the cries for help

One couldn't breathe
couldn't blot out the blood that dripped into his eyes
the sorrow infesting his soul
So he did what came natural
He gave into the darkness
a soft smile on his face
as he pulled the trigger a final time