The last two days left a putrid smell in the houses. The blood from Northern and Southern nationalities formed one unified stream through the streets. How ironic. A war of brothers turned against one another for petty views of what a human is allowed to do or have. Let me tell you that the trade of being a small town doctor doesn't prepare you for flesh being torn apart by minie balls in front of your eyes.
The fields were littered with the kids from Virginia, or Massachusetts, or Pennsylvania, or Georgia and so on and so on. George Meade himself asked me to help his boys out in the field. I had little supplies left over from the constant in and out of soldiers. I could see that their momma’s wouldn’t ever be able to talk to them again. Regret filled their child soldier eyes. some couple thousand have been in and out of these doors with about 80% having limbs amputated. I don’t know how they did this, these kids -16, 17 years old. I Jeremy Hodgson, am a 27 year old doctor and I want to lay down in purgatory every time another soul is lost. It’s incredulous,this constant scene of soul loss, it’s something you don’t get used to. Ever.
Jeremy was resting in his house. After all he had been doing his best God impersonation trying to save lives over the last two days. That gets pretty exhausting. THere was a knock on the door. He got up off his couch that he had been resting on for the last several hours in his living room. The need to sleep was almost too much too handle at this point. When he opened the door a Northern Corpsman was standing before him.
“Good morning sir” said the soldier

“Whatta you want soldier?” asked jeremy shaking his head trying to wake up

“We have a Medical tent over at Cemetery ridge. General Doubleday asked me to come find you. We fear there is going to be some major bloodshed and we would be forever in your debt if you would lend your services to the union for today.” said the soldier.
Jeremy felt as if the soldier was almost begging. He wondered how much worse it could actually get.

“Eh, fine just give me some time to get some supplies and i’ll meet the General up there as soon as possible” said Jeremy trying to show some sympathy for the soldier


The soldier did an about face and sprinted through the alley next to his house. It was relatively quiet near downtown at the time even though you could hear the cannon’s boom in the distance. Jeremy felt like it was thunder. Thunder always seemed to soothe Jeremy’s tension. It was odd that something so deadly made Jeremy be able to bear the day a tad bit more.

The fog that fell over the town was the result of the smoke that burst from the muzzles of the rifles. It took jeremy about an hour to get up to the medical quarters that was set up over Cemetery ridge. It only took him that long because he wasn’t about to be a civilian casualty. He would hate to be a statistic.


“Top of the day to you mr. Hodgson i could not be happier to see you,” Shouted Doubleday with a large grin from across the medical room.

Doubleday and some of his advisors seemed to be conferencing about the rumored attack. Jeremy couldn’t help but to have feelings of fleeing to just go and sleep in his bed and wait the battle out.
“Likewise General Doubleday.”


“ You’re lucky for now Mr. Hodgson. The battle hasn’t reached this point in the town yet, but we fear deeply that there is going to be a large attack, a sige that’s going to try and push us back and perhaps make us surrender.” said Doubleday with a blank expression


“Why do you believe this General?”


“There are reports of the rebels receding back as if they were regrouping, As of right now we have no idea how large their remaining force is. As for us it’s about 3,500 strong. Yet, it shouldn’t matter we are much more supplied than the “Johnny Rebs” and have the hill advantage. If they were to siege us they would be mowed down with a hailstorm of minie balls hahaha.” exclaimed doubleday with a sudden flash of life in his face


“Confidence can be dangerous General, Just mind that if they were to be successful with some sort of charge, the battle would be lost.”


Doubleday’s face turned almost white, sweat started to bead out of reality. An expression of terror.


Jeremy left the wooden station that he was standing in with the general. It was around 11:30 in the morning at the time and Jeremy could barely keep his eyes open and body was near to the point where he would just pass out, besides it’s not like he wanted to see the angel of death taking lives in the distance. So he decided he would lay down on the top of the ridge for the time being before any real attack happened. He closed his eyes. Billy awoke from his nap from an extremely loud bang. He looked down past his feet and a cannonball not even five inches from his legs was sitting there blatantly staring Jeremy down.


“Mr. Hodgson! Get over here now we need you!” yelled Doubleday


disoriented he stood up and saw an unforgiving sight. A sea of confederates sprinting towards Jeremy and the ridgeline that was being guarded by the 3,500 Union soldiers. Jeremy estimated it to be almost 12,000 men nearly quadruple what the union forces had and behind them the boisterous and odd Confederate General George Pickett was riding around on his horse urging his men on. Jeremy Rushed to the medical center and he felt as if he were already knee high in union blood.

Amputation after bandaging after amputation after bandaging. In fifteen minutes, 300 soldiers died in his arms or so Jeremy assumed. He couldn’t take it anymore
“I’m done!” yelled Jeremy

Those two words were the words of a broken man. He pushed his way through the nurses operating on their own bloodied projects. As soon as he pushed the door open a confederate muzzle and bayonet was aimed at his face. Billy looked around and all he could see were dead and wounded union soldiers screaming for their mothers and sanctuary, and above them were the confederates cheering over them.

Pickett’s charge succeeded.
“No no no no, this isn’t it was supposed to be..” Jeremy whispered choked up

2 years later
Jeremy walked through doors of the hospital named after the president. Jefferson Davis. He went to his normal work station in the hospital and there he saw a familiar face, General Abner Doubleday. He had been checked in earlier that Sunday morning. The nurses said that he’s suffering from some sort of heart disorder and that he was so psychotic that he just talks about the past or what could have been.
“Jeremy Hodgson?”

“Hello mr. Doubleday”

“Well, s*** just a reminder of Gettysburg aren't ya?”

“ I could say the same to you” said Jeremy struck with a negative form of nostalgia

“Didn’t you hear? Jefferson Davis finally acquitted Abraham Lincoln of all charges, isn’t that great?”

“I suppose” said Jeremy with a slight grin on the right side of his face. the half grin was fake.

There was a pause

“Wow i didn’t even have the privilege of becoming a martyr, everything we fought for. gone.”

“Look Gener-”

“We are not the CSA! slavery should not be a focal point of this economy, I am not a criminal of war. After Gettysburg they chased us into the north and they invaded and took over everything. The capital, Philly, Hartford, Trenton, Boston. And why the hell are we buddy buddy with the French?!” Yelled Doubleday at the top his lungs


Some of Jeremy’s coworkers started looking in their direction. Jeremy didn’t know what to say. He was caught off guard and nothing came out of his mouth.


“Jeremy can’t you see what we’ve become? A cog in the Confederate machine?” asked Doubleday

It was true.
“ We’ve become the very thing we had feared in the first place. A nation of natural right’s suppressors. We fought for freedom against the british and now we don’t even give freedom to everybody who deserves it. I have never seen a nation more divided and, yes I’m saying more than the Civil War itself. You just watch within the next couple of years there’ll be a revolution! Another Civil war. Hell just look at what's going on..”
Doubleday started coughing profusely.
“Sorry bout that, but just look at what’s going on now. Because we’re such close allies with French we are getting pulled into another war against the British! The God forsaken napoleonic wars they’re calling it! Another god for saken draft is starting up! This would never have happened with Lincoln at the helm.
Doubleday paused for a second. a tear trickled down his cheek and all at once the life was sucked from his body.

“ Jeremy just-”

Doubleday’s voice was cracked and choked up and he went into convulsions. Jeremy did nothing to stop it. Abner Doubleday was pronounced dead 15 minutes later. Heart attack was the official cause of death.
A Nation divided is what they used to call the United States. But what the public or media or anyone for that matter failed to realize is that the division was a result of the war.