I ran out onto the field just like everyone else. Oh wait, sorry not run, I fast walked is the right word. I remember from our training we were told not to run or you’ll trip over the bodies. I’m glad I paid attention during training, because the field was littered with bodies, mostly allied but the farther up the field was the most dead body ridden part of land, a mix of allied and central powers soldiers, British, American, German, and Austrian bodies. The ground covered in a thick layer of mostly dried up blood, and mangled body parts. When we got halfway across, some soldiers were confused.
“we’ve never made it this far, why aren’t they shooting us?” I heard Gavin say somewhere in the crowd.
hope started to well up in me, maybe the enemy sentries had fallen asleep, or they were out of ammo, but as soon as the thought entered my mind, a U.S. soldier right next to me, collapsed to the ground, followed by the sound of a gunshot. It was like a warning of what was to come because right after that, the sounds of millions of rifle shots mixed with machine gun fire washed over me and soldiers were falling left and right. My training kicked in and I dropped to the ground and laid prone in a small crater created by artillery fire, I peeked the barrel of my rifle and my head over the edge of the crater and fired. I caught a glimpse of a German soldier collapsing before ducking down into my crater again and reloaded my rifle, but then I caught a glimpse of something on the field that paralyzed me with fear and shock. Just 20 feet from where I laid. there was Tyler, laying face down, staring coldly at me, with a bullet in his head.
“C’mon J,” Jason yelled somewhere through all the gunfire.
I looked around trying to see him, and off to my left I see Jason and Andy laying prone, using bodies as cover.
“Get up and shoo-” and a machine gun riddles them with bullets. I sit for what feels like an hour. to scared to peek up and try to shoot. I sit just listening to the gunfire, but I hear some foot steps behind me, and I turn around to see Adam and Gavin running towards me then jump in my crate with me.
“They waited for us to get closer, so they had a better chance to kill all of us. trying to take out our main force,” Adam yelled over the booming of artillery.
“Hey J are you OK?” Gavin asked
I don’t respond I’m to scared and angry, then suddenly a plan forms in my head.
“Guys do what I do.” I say grabbing a grenade from my belt. then pulled the pin, waited 2 seconds, then threw it towards the closest machine gun, and as soon as it hit the ground next to the mount it blew up, killing the gunner and wrecking the machine gun. Gavin and Adam got the idea and helped me take out 4 more machine guns. Which left only rifle fire defending the trench, and I guess other Allied soldiers saw this because suddenly a huge wave of infantry charged the trench, so Adam, Gavin, and I slipped in the big charge firing at the enemy, forcing the defenders to retreat, but they were to slow, and the ones who didn’t die surrendered. after that it’s kind of a blur, my 2 surviving friends tell the general about how my plan took out the main defense which got us a medal for our quick thinking and bravery, but I don’t care. I don’t care about the award, it’s not worth the nightmares I get almost every night of Tyler with a bullet hole between his cold dead eye’s staring at me. It’s not worth the nightmares of watching Jason and Andy die while I watch helplessly from the sidelines, over and over again. People call me a hero, but I don’t see myself as one, and when I wake up every night in a cold sweat, I wonder why God gave mankind such destructive and terrifying powers.
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