//------------------------------//
// Chapter Five - Welcome To The Trenches 
// Story: Greed and Power 
// by TheStoryMaker 
//------------------------------//

“This day is set upon the mighty endeavor. Souls will be shaken by the violence of war, in this hour of great sacrifice. We shall prevail!”

I took a big breathe in and letting out an unsteady paste, breathing like I was out of air. “Now what?” I asked in desperation. The soldiers that came with us to Northen France now all look at me when they notice that blood can even be shed before we arrived at the frontlines. When I woke up the doctors patched me up, I looked at myself in the mirror showing a spot on my forehead that had round bruise spot with blood on the center. They cleared the blood but the bruise was still visible and lied there first making a huge red stop then finally setting in with the ‘blue, purple’ colors it goes to.

I turn off my radio as I saw the shore to Normandy, the smell of the sea was enough to have a gut feeling to where I can taste the seafood, shrimp, etc.

As we got there something turned up as hundreds of wounded United States soldiers came back with the iconic ‘Red Cross’ sign meaning that I was medical. I looked around as we got off the ship packing our bags and headed to Saarland, Germany. I walked and walked through people shaking and sparking up stories that made no sense. Others soldier came in wheelchairs and missing legs, broken bones, and dried blood on their clothes. Really a hell hole to be in. “Have you seen them, they now take over Saarbrucken!”

“They used this magic, to left us, and throw us! I once saw a tank got thrown to French soldiers who had gotten crushed by the damn thing!”

“They flew taking out our planes and everything! I don’t know about you but I think now the SPAD S.XIII is now useless I saw them go from the back and kill the pilots now we have to use the A.E.F 2-A2!”

“No, shit?” I saw one soldier talk as we walked by them slowly listening as others were talking among themselves. “The last damn thing I ever wanted was a to hit the bar, now we are fighting against these creatures.”

“Do you think it is from Greek Mythology?”

“God knows what. All I know is that we are fighting these things for our freedom. I'm too scared going into that, that portal.”

I couldn't hear anything more as other wounded soldiers walking in front of the view as well as going to the tents for medical help. ‘Oh god, this is not going to be good!’ I exclaimed in my head walking to a truck with a fabric wet, top to cover us from the rain if we had to. All of us got on Terrence got on another on as the truck drove from Normandy to Saarland, pray for me mother pray for the United States of America



We got there.

It took a while but we did eventually.

Saarbrücken was a hard and dark place, the ponies took over the capital of the state. Damn, this is why Luxembourg joined the war. It was affecting them, it was so close too. I guess it is the same reason with Switzerland too. It is so much of what a war can handle. Just by the stories of the ‘Great War’ none of those countries were in it, but now they were.

We got off the truck we used it as transport, going through France, we were now in Germany. “Holy shit,” I got off seeing the downtown destroyed. “They really took over this town did they?” I saw skyscrapers with holes maybe with broken glass too. We were far away so I couldn’t really get the details, but the most intriguing to me was that the second tallest skyscraper was leaning in with the tallest. It looked like it was going to fall right into their territory.

On the other hand, the front line trenches were for us were getting pushed back more and more, making it impossible for us to take them straight on.

It was starting to get late out, it was evening and just for us, we soldiers were getting ready to experience close-quarters combat.

The ponies took over downtown and about ten miles of an almost crooked circumference of territory. It was only time before they could take over the world. 

"LINE UP!!!" A sergeant called to us, I grabbed my Standard Issue Springfield 1903, and my M1911 then only to line up with a bunch of other soldiers too. "Now all of you dough-boys," His voice calmed down as because I could know it, we were fighting creatures only to us we thought were harmless. "This is war, the only thing all of you damn boys need to do is help the Germans and the French." He talked as he was walking back and forth to us, standing straight holding the stock of the bolt-action rifle. "All of you may, not make it out. But you will be remembered." It looked like in my depiction, he was sending us soldiers to die. And for what? "Yes, sir?" He looked at all of us, in sorrow.

"YES, SIR!!!" All of us yelled as the trucks we came in left back to where it came from, as other trucks came from the other side. This time damaged and with dried mud on the wheels and bottom of the truck.

All of us got on trucks as they came straight to the front lines of Saarbrucken, through I can't say what was in front of us due to a fabric roof over us. The back view began to hit the mud, water, and smoke to my surprise. It kept hitting bumps on the road and also too, some launched mud inside of our little 'shelter'. Once it stopped all of us got off, carrying our Springfields and M1911 which was already in our holsters. All of us went inside a smoky cloud as some of us started coughing, and get stuck in the dense mud. As I went seeing blue soldiers crying, weeping, and some corpses of soldiers the smell reeked. But to be the most shocked I could rarely see German soldiers but when I did, they looked like they were in worse shape than the French. The smoke seemed like forever as we continued to walk into the front lines.

"Hey," As a hand touched my shoulder startled me, making me jump due to my focus on the two armies. I almost immediately looked back, seeing my long lasting friend.

Terrence.

"God, you scared me," I said, looking at him. He was with us during our way to Saarbrucken but I never got a chance to talk to him. "Where did you come from?"

"Oh, you know, from the World."

"Right," I looked back to the front around me other soldiers looked in shock as to see more and more French dead soldiers as only for the smoke it was only about a good three feet of visibility. "God, I can't anything in my view."

"Where do you think it's from?" I looked back for an 'I dunno' answer.

"I dunno, for all I know it can be a smoke-," I looked front of me seeing to what is the last thing I expected in this war. "Holy shit," I said. I can hear other soldiers stare in the view of the front trenches which we weren't that far. Just only about a good walk to really get to the front trenches. We were on a hill which seemed trench warfare really went back. 

The 'view' if you can recall it was the most horrific sight anybody can see. At first, we saw nothing but arrows and large wooden spears stuck on the muddy ground with bodies stuck stabbed in the center of their chest, the arrow having their body leaning back. In other words, they were not advance in warfare than I thought or the rest of us dough-boys thought of.
So much for 'Magic' 

It was hard to depict what was in 'No Man's Land' but swords, regular arrows, large sphere stones were all stuck in the mud. With some steam coming from the ground, which seemed odd due it not hot outside. Besides, it was Fall. And of course, there were the regular things to be expected in the trenches such as barbed wire, sandbags, wooden planks to hold and to open their trenches, thin metal sheets, dead trees, huge wooden square logs in the trenches to support the mud we might drown in, Maxim's machine guns in the front lines, lamps for light, a little hospital with a red cross on a green tent with cots and wounded German and French soldiers, a shitton of Czech hedgehogs with barbed wire lined up to make the line into the trenches and area of where the artillery shells, creates etc. From exported foods and weapons too.

Remember we are at the back of the actual trenches, there were piles of artillery shells, artillery cannons, creates of food, weapons, uniform, helmets, etc. Almost everything needed in the war to try to get the upper hand. They were all stored in little wooden beams with wooden planks on the top to protect it from the rain, and wooden logs to hold against the mud to act a little trench 'walls' around the area of where we were at only to be surrounded by Czech hedgehogs. There were also some sandbags and acted to help organize the walls as well too.

The only thing connected to us and from the real trenches was a small trench-ditch, of course, it had Czech hedgehogs on the top on the real ground level but it had small wooden planks to help with the mud. All of us walked over it hearing the mud and rotten wooden planks ready to break on us and to be swallowed up by mud. It took a turn to the right but it wasn't sharp though so it leads to an open area leading to more of an open area. It looked like it was destroyed by artillery shells with more huge wooden arrows leading to where they landed at. It looked like there were trenches there but only the remains of it now.... It had some more Czech hedgehogs securing the area of where the real battlefield and really so no thieves could get in our base. There was nothing but mud more of the French and German soldiers seemed to be at the frontlines. There were dead leaf-less trees that were above on the ground and not in the trench. The whole center place we were at seemed to mostly to destroyed instead of the trenches on the right side of the little area we had and the left side as well, therefore leading more wooden arrows that seemed to land there so long ago.

We walked up closer to the right side of the trench maze, I guess they had to improvise with the destroyed trenches as there was a path of small planks that would go off like little paths into the frontline. 

Through I can't say for certain.

We as we started walking to the right slowly sandbags were on the real ground next to Czech hedgehogs with thin metal sheets on the right side of the now starting trench, with creates of 'God knows what' as we came a German soldier then to our surprise, came out of nowhere trembling putting his hand on the right side of the trench, he was at the corner of the trench which led the open area we were in. He was coughing and dropped his MP-18, his hand slipped then making his body bang to the thin metal sheet, he picked up his MP-18 again and walked toward us. In which all of us moved to make way his path. "Poor guy,"  One of us said. It looked like he was heading to the hospital tent as we saw him go through the corner to the small ditch to follow by the area we once at.

All of us once again walked in the small narrow trenches turning to the left then seeing a small staircase then almost immediately led to the right. As we turned to the right, there was like a little small camp as two German soldiers talked about whatever they talked in their language. The wall had shelves filled with artillery shells, two chairs with a tent fabric roof over them with a map nailed against a wooden wall with the ground filled with mud and small wooden planks. They had a fire, with wooden roofs being held by beams of wood with sandbags against the wooden wall next to the fire. One German soldier was leaning against one followed by one sitting crouching toward the fire on the mud. "Glaubst du, sie werden uns glauben, wenn wir nach Berlin zurückkommen?"

The other German had lowered his eyesbrows, "Sind Sie im Ernst? Über "Magie" und wie sie "die Dinge aufheben" Gott, glaubst du, dass sie glauben, "Fliegende Ponys'? Das ist wie zu überzeugen, dass es ein Märchen ist!"

The other German looked at the sky then looked down said, Ouais, peu importe. Personne ne va croire n'importe quoi jusqu'à ce qu'ils le voient, je suppose."

We continued walked as the trench took a turn to the right, it wasn't a sharp turn but a curve turn. We went walked through on the planks on the mud, as the walls had the wooden planks it always had. It yet again had another staircase the curve this time square logs on the mud instead of being directly next to each other. At the end of the 'staircase' next to it, had step carved into the trench walls providing a view only for scouting. Or just viewing. As we walked we yet again hit another camp where this time, it had a little rectangle small area on the right it had another trench path but blocked by a Czech hedgehog with barb wire. The center had a little 'room' if you would recall. In this case had a cot inside with the roof being wooden planks and sandbags acting as the perimeter of the 'room'. Inside only a lamp and a fire next to it. The rectangle area had crates and more path trenches to go through about three of them.

There was a path, up some 'stairs' at the same level as the 'room'. It was at the right, but not the direct right only to be block or enclosed. It was straight ahead of to I hope 'No Man's Land'. I walked up some soldiers who didn't know where they were going followed me. And of course Terrence too.

As we went up a little roof of two wood planks held small logs onto the trench, "Probably a bridge for the tanks," A soldier called out as barbed wire was covering the damn thing. We continued as everything seemed like 'Deja Vu' seeing, well the same crap as all of us are seeing getting lost in this damn maze.

"We gotta make a map of this place," Terrence said at the back. He was probably scared too about this whole place as well.

"You got any paper or a pencil?" One soldier asked in the back.

"Nope," Terrence replied while I was in front leading them to only where the trench took me.

"Hey, that's a good idea," One recalled at the back, "Or just try to memorize it."

"Do you believe the things they said?" One asked. We had three guys with us so they started their own conversation.

"About this damn place?" He looked at the Czech hedgehogs one the ground level. "Now, I don't know what to believe in anymore."

"Isn't the same for all of us?" I said, looking back. "Taking footage would be the hardest thing yet."

"Yeah but," Terrence then looked around. "I pray to God we will survive."

"Yeah, don't all of us want to live to see another day?" As I continued back on the trail to the front lines.

I continued as took a turn to the left directly across me was the mud going up to the ground and left was a lookout area as a step in carved to again view on the land and see across the maze of trenches and sandbags were used then followed by wooden planks over them. On the right, showed another really small trench that made another square camp area. The trench that connected to the trench system and the camp was really, really small like five steps and you were in the camp. It had hollow creates and a fire with German soldiers quiet as an Alley Cat. Just staring at the fire. It had a small trench made bench, sandbags were used to pile up then wooden planks over it to create something to rest on.

On directly the other side of where we came from had stairs that led up to the right then curved to the left that led to ground level. The logs were together so I can create a real staircase instead of a muddy one. Sandbags were stacked upon each other and again Czech hedgehogs covered the sides of the staircase. It led up to a concrete house for machine gunning as a Maxim Machine Gun was connected to three small windows in it with a spotlight over it just in case if there was a 'Pegasus' coming to fly by to gather information. The house was a tiny room the walls to the entrance was extended into the trenches due to it being secure from barb wire and Czech hedgehogs. We went inside the concrete house providing crates and more sandbags it had three little windows, we looked through it seeing the overview of the trenches and even more Czech hedgehogs on the mud with dead trees scattered around the area. I saw another concrete house with a spotlight on the direct left of us. "We're not gonna survive this damn war," One said. "Not skill or anything like that, just luck."

"Said who?" One recalled as he looked at him with disbelieve.

"Nobody, of course. Just the dark thoughts of death and, well whatever happened to those guys." Said another one as he pointed to the spears at the frontlines with dead bodies hanged on them.

"What do you think happened to 'em?" Terrence asked looking at the distant decaying bodies.

"They probably used spears or something." He paused then continued. "They maybe tried to capture the trenches on the other side but just as they were running," He used his hands as gestures to recreate what must have happened to them. "Wham!" He then used a finger on one hand and used the other hand to show and spear going through the body. "Just like that. Got 'em."

"Not helping!" I called out, not even looking at him as we went back from where we came from down the stairs and past the camp with the two German soldiers.

"We could just ask them." Said one.

"Why?"

"Because we are gonna believe it when we see it anyway."

I looked to the right seeing the broken wall that collapsed followed with mud and a huge wooden spear stabbed on the ground leading out of the trenches to ground level.

I wasn't gonna go through there and get killed. I walked to that way then seeing as the real trench to the turn to the right then to the left.  I went to where the trench went off glancing to the left of the broken trench wall seeing the other concrete house and an artillery crator. I still continued with the trench now leading to the right or to the left. The right leading up to staircases as to the left lead to still more trench. I continued to the right as it was the right way to the frontlines.

I went right seeing as the wooden plank walls were now sandbag walls with thin metal sheets on the right side of the trench wall. It then took a turn to the right again so I took the turn to the right seeing a small pathway of trench then taking a turn to the left. As soon as I took the turn it showed the real frontlines, such as ladders, a barrel, little shelter rooms side to side, more French soldiers than German soldiers, us American soldiers, heavy Czech hedgehogs, small trench-made benches, and rats, and my personal favorite, soldiers hanged by the spears used by the ponies.

The quintet of us went and sat on the trench-made bench squeezing each other shoulder to shoulder, we just talked. I tried to start a conversation as there was nothing to do here. "Hey man." One called out as right before I started a talk. I looked at him, well all of us looked at him to see who he was talking to. He was talking to me.

"What?" I asked.

"What's your name?" He asked, it seemed he wanted to know all of our names since all of us would be living in this dump.

"Nathan," I answered, as he took out a hand for a handshake.

"Nice to meet you, Nathan," He then looked to all of the rest of three guys, who were lost in thought of whatever it was. "What about all of ya? Huh?" He then snapped his fingers jumping Terrence and the other two guys.

"What?" One asked.

"What's your name?"

"Oh, Xavier," He looked to the right facing the rest of us as we were to the right, he was next to him.

"Yours?" He pointed to the man next to Xavier.

"Elijah, that's my name." Elijah looked to Terrence who sat next to me.

"Terrence," Terrence then gave him a handshake, which kinda came to my surprise.

"How about you?" I asked the person next to Xavier.

"Sebastian,"

"Nice to meet you, Sebastian," I looked at him first then looked at the others. "I guess we our own little squad." I looked leaning against the wooden wall staring into the sky. "Now what?"