This is War [ONC 2021] // Honourable Mention

Chapter Seventeen - Daniel

"I don't think I'm going to be dry until at least August," George said, poking his head out of the dugout to watch the rain.

"We'll be lucky if we dry off at all. This rain hasn't let up in three days," Henry added.

"I think my boot is mostly water at this point."

Daniel shook his head and continued to scribble away at his letter. The men had confined themselves to the dugout after several days of torrential rain which had flooded the entire trench. No one wanted to go on patrols and many of the men were starting to complain of problems with their feet due to the amount of water that had crept into their boots. Daniel had spent the time in the dugout writing home and going over battle drills for the next time they were called into battle. Everyone else spent the time complaining.

After finishing the letter, Daniel waited in the dugout for the rain to change into a slight drizzle, and when it did, he left the others behind. The boards that acted as protection from the mud had sunk into the ground and mud had started to seep over the top. Daniel moved through the trench, treading on the boards and passing the men on patrol, many of whom were soaked after standing out in the rain for so long.

Daniel moved through the trenches until he reached another dugout, there he handed over his letter to be sent home at the nearest opportunity. He left the dugout and headed out in search of coffee, something that was becoming harder to get hold of even though the war had only been going on four months. Many men were burrowed in their dugouts, coats drawn over their necks to try and keep warm, some smoking to see if that made a difference.

"Daniel! Daniel!" someone called. Daniel turned to watch Philip moving through the trench, rounding a corner and joining him.

"What's going on?"

"They found Arthur," Philip said.

"Found? I thought he had been relieved for four days. That's what he told us, anyway."

"He wasn't supposed to go. His relief is the same as yours. Captain Brooks found him wandering around behind the lines dressed in civilian clothing. They're accusing him of desertion."

"What are they going to do with him?"

"He's been court-martialed. Captain Brooks thinks he'll be shot."

A thousand different thoughts sped through Daniel's mind as he tried to make sense of what Philip had told him. Everyone knew something had been a little off about Arthur since they found out Tommy was missing, presumed dead, but they never thought he might go as far as to wander away from an active line. They had heard rumours of people being shot for walking away from the line, a nineteen-year-old had been shot back in September, but they never thought someone in their own Battalion would do the same.

They thought they knew everything about Arthur after those months in training with each other. He had signed up for the same reason as Henry, to defend his country and to return home a hero. Never did they have him labelled as a deserter, someone who would betray his fellow men and his country. Daniel had been willing to put his life on the line to protect the man standing next to him and he had walked away the moment he realised just what war would be about.

Each one of them knew what to expect the moment they arrived in the trenches. They heard the stories from those who had fought in previous battles and saw the battle-weary soldiers that sat pressed against the side of the trench with a cigarette held between shaking fingers. All of them had expected the war to be a walk in the park, one battle and it would all be over and they would go home as heroes for Christmas. It had not gone that way. Still, desertion was a big step.

Daniel made his way back through the trench and to the dugout where George and Henry sat with their coats pulled up to their necks to try and protect them from the cold.

"Where were you? I thought you just went to send a letter," Henry said.

"I ran into Philip. They found Arthur wandering around behind the lines in civilian clothing. He's being court-martialed for desertion."

George sat up and swung his legs over the side of his bed. "Arthur? Desertion? The man who hit the centre of his target during training even though he's never lifted a rifle before?"

"Yes. Most of those who get court-martialed for desertion get shot."

"First Tommy, now Arthur? Our group just gets smaller and smaller."

"Arthur is the person I would least expect to be court-martialed for desertion."

Although he wouldn't say it to any of the others, he knew that they all had to be thinking the same thing. When he had first reached training, Daniel considered deserting but he knew he wouldn't make it far enough and would be caught and shot, just like Arthur will be. Since that first battle, the idea of deserting hadn't crossed his mind. He felt better on the front line like he had a piece of himself he had been missing for nineteen years.

When that first shot had been fired, when he first climbed over the top, Daniel felt alive, free. Others might have run at the first sign of trouble or struggled in the aftermath of a battle, but Daniel felt better than ever since the battle. Any fears or thoughts he had about deserting disappeared, as though he was always supposed to go into battle.

Daniel didn't think Arthur to be a coward because of the choice he made, in fact, he thought of Arthur as one of the bravest men he had ever met. Not everyone could deal with the reality of a warzone, the brutality of a battlefield. Arthur knew what would happen if he left the line, he knew his fate when he chose to walk away. For that, he wasn't a coward.

They may not have known the reality of war when they signed up, but they came to know their limits pretty quickly.

~~~

First Published - February 25th, 2021