Sentry
The following is a 100-word story challenge from Velvet Verbosity. The prompt was “Drowsy.”
The rifle in his hands and the helmet on his head each carried its own significant weight, as did the parameters of the mission that had placed him in this guard tower this night, yet none weighed more heavily on him than the weariness that threatened to overcome him with every passing moment.
No matter how much he tried, how hard he struggled, he could not keep the inevitable sable of sleep from settling down upon his shoulders and enveloping him in its warm embrace.
He never heard the shot that pierced the night and ended his tour of duty.
The Book of Jacob: There Are No Last Words 
Wow. Tough read, especially right before Memorial Day. This will definitely stick with me!
sable of sleep is a beautiful turn of phrase. Your last line is a heartbreaker.
Well done. A little on the formal side. I say this because this piece is asking for more “gritty” (that’s how it spoke to me). Actually, upon a second reading, I think it’s just that second paragraph that needs more grit, more heaviness.
As it is, though, it’s beautiful.