A stretched out hand

"SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECCCHHHHH"

Alarm sounds were blaring all throughout the camp.

Soldiers were falling out of bunk beds and I could hear shouting.

Captains started urging the soldiers to "Hurry the fuck up!".

But there was no need to urge us…. we all knew what those blaring sirens meant.

I had not slept so I was one of the first to start gearing up.

That meant I didn't have to participate in the shoving match the other soldiers were in.

I went with the other early soldiers running towards the heart of the camp.

Some soldiers looked like they wanted to run away but the militia wasn't so lax as to let them consider deserting.

Otherwise I would've run away already.

I could see Leonas standing in the center already.

How Leonas had been so fast was a mystery to me, the alarm couldn't have been planned and the other captains weren't there either.

We waited for some time and Milo and a squadmate I had never seen before arrived.

The squadmate had red hair tied up in a ponytail and a really pretty face.

He had high cheekbones and he looked as if he was looking down on us.

He was a head taller than me coupled with his arrogant attitude I doubted I'd get along with him.

"Hey Leo, do you know what's going on?"

He asked.

Probably being yesterday's missing squadmate.

And judging by the way he talked to Leonas he was on good terms with him, or just too comfortable for his own good.

"We should prepare for the worst…. command doesn't know what's happening, we only know we are being attacked."

Said our captain.

That was basically the bare minimum of information and meant we had no effing clue what was going on.

Alarm bells were ringing in my head.

Something about this was fishy.

"Arrgh"

My head started hurting again.

Knowledge was seeping in.

Knowledge of warfare and the brutal mentality needed to survive.

But instead of making me anxious.

This made me feel more calm and composed.

There was no place for panic on the battlefield.

I saw too many die at the hands of rage or panic.

"What do you mean captain? There weren't supposed to be any battles for another month."

Said Milo.

Our captain kept silent, but the message was understood.

Don't ask unnecessary questions because we won't be getting any answers…..

Well everyone understood except for Brock… who was strolling towards us yawning not caring about the sirens or the bleak atmosphere.

–/////////////////////–

It was still night, the sun wouldn't rise for another hour.

The military vehicles were filled to the brim with soldiers driving towards the frontlines.

But these vehicles wouldn't get us all the way to the trenches as command judged them too valuable to be lost on the frontlines.

It was amazing how careful the higher ups were about resources but how little they cared about human life.

Maybe it was just to show how little our lives mattered.

There had been no grand words spoken and no complicated orders, we were only meant to go back to the frontline.

Not many soldiers kept guard, as command had judged there to be no further battle for another month.

A horrible misjudgement that would cost the Esthanian army dearly.

….

We went over the hills and past the abandoned village into the trenches when the bombardement started.

Exhausted from the long march we had to endure after getting dumped by the military vehicles, you could hear groans and moans.

But at the sound of explosions everyone ran towards shelter without complaint.

The officers and captains were shouting at us to get moving.

But honestly none of us needed to be told what to do.

More and more explosions were going off.

The sound of hundreds of explosions put the living fear of God into us.

One after another jumped into shelter.

Until my whole team was inside.

But it wasn't long till we understood that waiting inside these shelters was no better than standing outside waiting for death.

The sound of explosions that constantly kept you on your toes.

The damp smell of sweat and mud.

And the claustrophobia inducing small space…

A horrible place to be in….especially for someone like Brock who barely squeezed into the shelter.

No one liked these conditions.

Neither us nor the captains.

But the only thing we could do was wait and pray.

So that's what we did… 

…for hours.

Maybe if this was a movie scene the soldiers would've bonded inside the shelter and talked about their family, friends and goals, but no one in here had enough leeway to think about that.

Every time a mortar bomb hit our shelter, the wooden beams holding it up creaked a little and dirt fell down from the ceiling.

Milo was shaking and nervously looking around.

The new guy was leaning on his rifle, with the muzzle of the gun pointed at the ground, a stupid idea, risking making your gun jam in battle.

The captain didn't even change his expression, the only difference I could perceive was that he looked around checking on the soldiers periodically.

Was he worried for them? Or maybe looking for any signs of someone breaking?

I had heard of soldiers losing their mind in situations like these and now I could understand them. 

The feeling of being powerless, unable to fight while patiently waiting for your death was excruciating.

Time just seemed to slow down, and with every explosion going off and every creaking of the wooden beams, the thought of dying…. buried here under the mud…. became all the more prevalent.

Unexpectedly…. Brock , the one who should be in the worst situation due to his size seemed calm…..almost as if he was asleep…. 

..

…wait, was he asleep?

What a maniac….

But not everyone was as strong as Leonas or as crazy as brock.

One of the soldiers from a different squad seemed to be getting shell shocked.

Leonas looked at him.

And somehow the soldier kept it together for a little longer.

Until he started acting up again.

The silent look of Leonas couldn't hold him back anymore and he sprinted outside looking up towards the sky in what can only be described as a stupid attempt at defying his fate.

And just as his eyes widened and another soldier was about to run up to him…. a mortar bomb obliterated him.

Luckily almost none of his remains, well… remained so the sight of his mangled body wouldn't spoil our mood any further.

While this was going on I was trying to remember what was going to happen in this battle.

And with every hit of the mortar and every creak, gulp, and squeaking of a rat, my memories become clearer.

I knew one thing: this was just the start of this battle and not even the worst part.

I remembered why I was so desperate to find out what was going to happen.

For about 20 minutes now, our captain had been on the radio, communicating with headquarters.

I could hear the back and forth.

When suddenly our captain got off the radio.

"Aerial support is about to arrive, once they do we need to prepare our mortars and fire back!"

Then he paused for a second and looked around.

"Otherwise… we stand no chance of winning…..."

We all knew what losing meant.

Even Brock looked serious….well not serious….but a bit more focused.

It didn't take long till the promised aerial support arrived.

And as if they had planned it, the sun started shining.

Making the squadron of planes look like glorious angels of death.

"GO GO GO"

Shouted our captain.

We had gotten our aerial support but the bombardment hadn't stopped.

While I hesitated for a moment, my squad was already moving.

We would have to stake our lives on this chance.

After all we weren't the only ones that took this chance.

Out of all the other shelters soldiers ran, some scared for their lives, some stoic with a hint of bloodlust.

Although most soldiers just looked desperate, with their teeth clenched and eyes wide open.

I must have looked the same.

Some of them went straight to the mortars, and a few were just running around in panic.

My squad ran to one of the stationary machine guns.

I could already hear the earth shaking due to the footsteps of the advancing army.

Getting to the machine guns was easier said than done, with mortars still firing on us and soldiers running towards us, we were like sitting ducks ready to be slaughtered.

As we ran towards the machine gun a mortar bomb landed right next to me, throwing me against the walls of the trenches and killing whoever ran next to me.

Leonas was at the forefront looking like a charging bull.

Behind him the unfamiliar new squadmate, me, Brock and Milo in tow.

Milo looked back at me.

Just as I tried standing up I noticed some shrapnel had pierced my right arm.

(Fuck) 

I tried using my other arm but before I could get up a hand stretched out towards me.

Looking at the other end of the arm I saw Milo.

He looked at me with eyes that seemed to almost sparkle.

Dirt on his face and wet hair, his eyes looked out of place and because he was the only one standing still in this place of carnage it felt like time stood still.

I don't know if it was because of its practicality or whether I was taken aback, but I grabbed his hand.

And he pulled me up flashing a big smile at me.

And maybe if not for my confusion I might've seen Brock and Leonas stand still and look at me as well.