Once Trautman was out of the hospital he got his breath back again.
That day the sun was shining high over the base.
The colonel hesitated for a second when for some reason he shivered.
Don't do it – he thought.
Just let it go.
Instead of listening to that inner voice however, he found himself walking hurriedly towards the base’s entrance gate.
Are you losing your mind? - He asked himself.
Once he reached the crossing, the two guards saluted him, albeit puzzled by the sight of him. No one would ever walk around Dak To wearing a full uniform and sporting badges.
“Sir?” said one of the two guards, but Trautman disregarded him and maintained his quick pace towards the city.
Once past the main gate the true sense of what he was doing became apparent and Trautman asked himself for the second time what the devil he was doing.
Leaving the Dak To base was like stepping into no man's land. If however you weren’t actually out on the town but had decided to sport your stripes like Trautman was that evening, well, that was attempted suicide.
In effect, the colonel was out of his mind by then.
He looked straight ahead, almost aiming at an enemy target that only existed in his head, and made his way through the city streets.