Belgium: 1916
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Warning: Does contain blood and chunks of human meat554Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT2nch5PBlN
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My name is Arthur Wallace. I was born in Birmingham in 1898. I'm crouched in the trench side by side with my comrades. The one to my left trembles as he holds his rifle. His breathing quick and inconsistent. The one to my right leans over and spews his stomach lining into the muddy water that we're all shin deep in. He's not sick. Just frightened. Both of them are.
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I know neither of their names.
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I grip my rifle so tight that my knuckles go white. My bayonet is attached to the front of barrel.
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The piercing sound of a whistle is heard among our trench. And with that we all begin to climb over the top of it.
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As soon as we peak our heads we hear gunshots coming from the Germans.
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There's no choice but to continue on. If we hide away or run we'll be shot by our own men.
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So we begin to charge forward with our bayonets sticking out. My hearing is drowned out by the battle cries of all the men among me who charge along side me.
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It hurts to run. I haven't eaten in 3 days.
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An artillery shell explodes about 20 feet to my right. Obliterating the 2 men standing close.
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I'm pelted with chunks of dirt and gore.
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A second artillery shell explodes to my left. About 10 feet from me this time.
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The force knocks me down and sends me rolling to the right.
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Hurt and winded I clamber back to my feet and continue running just as a man to my right is dropped by a German sniper causing me to jerk my head and let out a frightened yell.
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I run ahead and a bit to the left where there's a small hill. As I run up it I encounter two German soldiers. I take aim and fire at one of them. He clutches his chest and falls to the ground. The other German aims his rifle at me. I don't have time to load another round.
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An artillery shell explodes closely to our right causing me to be launched into the air and to the left.
Disorientated and scared I spin around while air born before falling into a shallow pool of muddy water that just barely protects me from the fall.
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The adrenaline allows me to quickly stand up in the crotch height water without feeling too much pain. I wipe the mud away from my eyes just to see the same German soldier who was about to shoot me standing in front of me.
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It is then that I notice that we have fallen into a large crater caused by an artillery shell.
I notice secondly that I lost my rifle in the fall.
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I stare at the German dumbfounded and scared. Watching as he too comes to the realisation that his rifle has been lost.
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The German reaches behind his back and retrieves a spiked club of sorts. Upon seeing this I unsheathe my knife.
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He begins to wade through the water towards me while letting out a battle cry. I do the same. When we come within swinging distance he swings his club downwards upon me. I grab the wooden shaft of his weapon and slash him across the chest. He retaliates by punching me in the face with his free hand. The stun from the blow causes me to lose my footing. I fall backwards with him following me down and landing on top of me. My head submerges underwater. I hold onto his club as tightly as I can while desperately slashing and poking at him with my knife. He responds by grabbing my wrist and pinning it by my head. While keeping one of his boots pressed against my chest.
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I begin to violently thrash under him as I run out of air. In a last ditch attempt for survival I bend my knee inwards and kick the German. He releases me and falls backwards.
I sit up coughing up water and gasping for air. I look back at him and see him cupping his crotch with his hands.
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"Meine verdammten Eier!" He shouts.
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I stand up and charge into him. Pushing him down slightly against the slanted edge of the crater. I begin to push the blade of my knife towards his throat. He grabs my wrist and attempts to keep my knife at bay.
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"Hör auf! Warte einfach!" He shouts desperately.
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I slam my free hand against the the back of the knife. Causing the blade to jolt forward and stab him through the throat. I hit it again to push the blade further in. The German gargles as blood begins to spill from his mouth. He looks into my eyes. As I watch the life leave his.
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I feel his grip on my arms weaken. I pull the blade from his throat and step to the side and watch as his lifeless body falls face first into the water.
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His blood begins to mix with the brown water. Turning it to a dark crimson.
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I turn away from the sight and dig my fingers into the edge of the crater and begin to drag myself out.
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I finally pull myself out of it and roll onto my back. Looking into the cloudy sky as the sound of gunfire and screaming can be heard all around. I pant heavily and close my eyes.
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