Trenched

A soldiers last moments in the trenches before he goes over the top into No Man's Land.

Sitting in the trenches, all he could think about was his family. If he was gone, what would happen to his wife and baby girl? What would happen when they got the news? His wife would have to support the family by herself, no man to bring in money. His daughter would grow up, never knowing her father. They would struggle to get by. Women could barely get a job. They would be dirt poor.

                Clutching to his rifle, he noticed his hands were in pain from gripping it so hard. Waiting for the call was terrifying. It was certain death.  If he would have known this was what he was signing up for, he would have never even considered it. But he was here now and nothing could change that. He had to defend his great country. His only motivation was all of his friends and family at home.

                A large, gray rat ran over his boot. Watching it trot away, he thought, “You won’t be here much longer. None of us will. This war means death for us all. It’ll never end. We never get anywhere.”

                From the sky above came a deafening roar, followed by explosion after explosion. It was hard telling whose plane it was, but what did it matter? Nothing mattered when you were in the trench.

                Looking to his left, then to his right, he saw countless men, all sitting in a line, holding their guns, just like him. Many were young men. Hell, not even men, just children. Boys. Every single one of them had families at home, whether it be a wife and kid or parents. Some of them nervously fiddled with things; pins on their uniforms, pieces on their guns.

                Standing in front of the line of soldiers, a general paced back and forth, just waiting for the moment  to release ‘em. Waiting to send yet another line of men to their deaths.

This war had no meaning anymore. It was just a meaningless slaughter.

A silver can bounced over the wall into the trench and quickly and man jumped up and threw it back over the top. It popped off, releasing the gas that men feared so much. They had nothing to worry about. The wind was blowing straight down the middle of No Man’s Land. It wouldn’t blow their way.

A sigh of relief swept down the line of men. But there still was tension and nervousness. That was to be expected.

                The general put his whistle in his mouth and didn’t take his eyes off of his watch.  The line of men stood up. It was almost time.

                The men stood nervously, glancing around at each other, out of the trenches, to the sky. Some prayed, some just stared.

                The whistle blew, and out came the cries of soldiers as they went over the top.

                Then, in that moment, the world seemed to go red.