𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕊𝕙𝕒𝕕𝕠𝕨𝕤 𝕠𝕗 𝕆𝕦𝕣 ℍ𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕥𝕤: 𝓕𝓪𝓽𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓦𝓲𝓷𝔁 𝓢𝓪𝓰𝓪

Gods and Monsters

𝐵𝓊𝓇𝓃𝑒𝒹 𝒪𝓃𝑒 𝒫𝒪𝒱

I am alive.

Or at least I think I am.

It's hard to tell these days.

It's hard to feel these days.

*** Observation ***

Horses die horrifically

It's the truth really. Men die, women die, children die. No one truly considers the horses. They wither and they wail and they flail in the mud. Bodies falling, bodies still, bodies cold. No flag to lay them to rest. People don't like considering the horses. I think it's because they did nothing wrong. They just did as they were told.

Forgive me, I should give an introduction.

- A beginning.

Though I doubt it will make a difference.

In the beginning there was Adam and there was God. Life was horrifically boring for Adam because he never could beat God at any of his little games. I could tell you a thousand names with a thousand different backstories; would it change your opinion? Afterall, all the Gods are dead now except the God of War.

My story isn't dark, or maybe it is to you but it wasn't to me. If you were in my shoes you would have done the same - but you don't like to consider that. It was a warm day when the posters went up. The paper was bright and bold, crowds flocked to them and the newspapers soon caught on.The black and red flags carried high - the white barely visible behind the swastika. Arms raised, shirts pressed, eyes bright. We marched in rows, movements in sync and rifles loaded. Warriors of the damned, the protectors of the innocent, that's who we are. Were. Perhaps you saw us. Perhaps you ran. Perhaps we caught you as you fell, waited for you while you stumbled. I remember a girl. Poppy. Her eyes were bright and her soul was joyful. Her rosy cheeks were red and chubby with youth. I guess it doesn't matter now. Her eyes are glazed now. My eyes are cold now.

*** Second Observation ***

We are all going to die here

I don't believe there is any need to sugar coat such a fact. After all it is just a fact. Many find it troublesome to comprehend what I am saying. They don't like that I acknowledge it. That death is the only victor in war. Believe me, I will be scared when death comes for me. I will be terrified and desperate. But I don't want to live that way. By now, I should consider death an old friend.

Did that startle you?

I beg you—don't be scared

It's going to happen either way.

If we are going to die I want you to know something. I want you to understand something. In the end, Man destroyed the heavens and the earth. Now the earth is formless and empty, darkness blanketed seas of dust and deserts of fire and the spirit of God was lost to our memories.

Winter came too quickly; orange and brown littered the carpet of snow. Rubies of red splashed against the banks. It's funny how fast time went, how fast things changed. The blood red flag branded with the black swastika still boldly swayed in the wind. Yet the white circle was covered in dust and mud. The once bone dry, sandy trenches were filled with mud and sludge. Fires were lit and rations hoarded. Bodies frozen and piled. The horses were limping and cold. Trails of haggard creatures walked through the countryside, seeking refuge. We welcomed as many as we could, greeting them with open arms as we took them to new communities. Communities filled with their friends and families, our flag raised - the red stark in the sky, with walls barbed and high to keep them safe. To keep them untouched and children pure, to preserve their innocence. That's where Poppy went.

I kept her safe.

I helped her learn.

We helped them all.

We saved them from themselves.

*** A Small Theory ***

From here, you could watch the whole world and never have to be part of it. Here is not a physical place rather a mindset. I should tell you that much. There is very little these days that can be considered real and tangible. It's a beautiful thing when you remove yourself from the chaos, the grotesque and mundane aspects of life. From here, you could watch the whole world be blanketed in flames and never be burned. We burned the snakes and scorched their lands but did not kill them. No. It was not us that delivered the killing blow. It was not us that poisoned the water. It was not us that polluted the skies. That is what we told ourselves. That is what we believed.

How do you save someone from themselves?

I ask myself that often. How will I save Poppy? How will she learn? It's a hard task to bear but we did. Because who else was going to do it. Who else was going to save them? Who else would help us do so? No, the burden fell to us. You cannot fault us for trying to save them. What happened after was not our fault. We had to teach them somehow.

The air tasted of people.

Thick, choking.

It was deathly sweet.

The monsters are here.

They were here. Over the fields. They dug their trenches and raised their flags and loaded their guns. They were prepared to kill. They wanted to kill. The butchers. The murderers. The impure and monstrous. The days were long then, the shrill screams of shells pierced the air. Do you hear the choirs, I do. They're still singing. Honouring our sacrifices.Taking the burdens we carry.

Listen to me. Please, don't think us naive. We understand more than you think. We accept more than you know.

Don't make our mistakes.

I beg you - save them.

For we could not.

We awoke to the rapid rattle of rifles and slept to the screams of the damned. It drove us mad. I think I live there now - I think we all do. In that place. The one above all the carnage. The one that allows me freedom. Because how can this be me? How is this what I have become? When did I know the rifles better than I know Poppy?

I am going to die.

I know I am.

It's hard to live these days.

It's hard to love these days.

There aren't many days left.

It's a soldier's fate after all.

Did you listen?

A/N: I was in a angsty mood and I wrote this as a submission for one of my exams. So I though I would share my take on a soldier's point of view as they face the fact they might be in the wrong. 

I also felt like it matched the soldier's under Rosalind's command. What are your thoughts?