Bloody Trench
By Troy R. Walker
Bloody Trench
Troy R. Walker
Copyright 2011 by Troy R. Walker
Smashwords Edition
When I jumped off the truck and jogged down the trench into the earthen bunker, I smelled
gunpowder. Everywhere I looked, there was a soldier, every one of them wearing muddy
uniforms and sitting against the sod walls. Daylight shone through the doorways and everything was dead silent when they saw me walk in. I walked over to the commander and extended my hand with the order laid across my palm. He dusted the mud of off his hands on to his own dirty uniform, and took the paper. He was a gray haired man with wrinkles on his face. Experienced. He skim read it, and looked at my uniform, still as clean as a plate in the store.
“Reinforcement?” he said.
“Yes sir, would you like me to head to the trenches, sir?”
“Not yet.” he said wearily.
As I took the Mauser off my shoulder and inserted some ammo, a thought contemplated in my
mind, I would be an exact copy of the other troops when I stepped out into the trench. The
rattling of machine guns began erupting constantly. A Corporal screwed his canteen cap shut,
yelled heck with it, grabbed his rifle and walked outside. He turned the corner and climbed the
ladder. Immediately I heard him yell, and saw a uniformed German fall into the trench losing his helmet and dropping his rifle on the way down. The commander shook his head and said “move out”.
I thought I would vomit when he said “you too, reinie.”
Reinie is what they called all the new reinforcements like me. I gripped my rifle and fell into the
line. When I began into the trench, there were helmets, rifles, casings, canteens, and bodies lying on the walking boards. Outside the rattling of the machine guns could be heard more rapidly than inside the building. A man in front looked back down the line and glanced at me. “5 hours for the reinie?”
The Sergeant behind him turned, faced me, and merely said “four at best”
We turned the corner climbed the ladder; I couldn’t believe what we were doing especially after
stepping over the corporal’s body to get up the latter. If I screwed up, I would be lying next to
him.
Now, out in the open with my new squad, we began to rush the machine gun that toke the
corporal. An American’s excellent shot narrowly missed my head and knocked-off my spike
helmet. I hit the dirt and shot at the American lines until I found the sniper and zeroed in on him. But the American was out of ammo and only 6 yards away, so he went for his knife. I pulled out my bayonet, snapped it on and stood up to meet him, as he ran towards me. He tripped and dropped his knife, scrambled to his feet punched me square in the face as he pushed down my rifle. He tried for my revolver but I threw it so he couldn’t get it. I managed to get his knife and I stabbed him in the chest. He fell to ground and when I looked at him, his face turned pale as he grabbed at his chest, once he did so, a picture fell out of his pocket; it was a woman and a child. His family. I just killed someone’s father. Right there I felt the lord speaking to me. Through all of the chaos, killing, and fighting, the lord told me to save that American’s life. I pulled the knife out of his chest, put my rifle on my shoulder and carried the American up to a US medic. As I sat him down, the medic looked at me in awe and began working on the man. But of course, doing the right thing always comes at a cost. An American Sergeant stuck a revolver in my back “You speak English Kraut?” he asked.
“Yes”, I replied.
“Well I recommend that you set that pretty German rifle on the ground and get your hands in
plain sight.”
I dropped my rifle and turned to face him. BANG! An artillery shell hit only a few feet away. Both Americans were dead. The man I stabbed was gone. Machine guns opened up and I hit the dirt again. My squad was in sight. I had to reach them. So I crawled. Crawled through the mud, trough the blood, over the bodies. The helmets and bayonets. I reached my squad. They were lying very still. A machine gun ripped down the whole line strapping every man. No screams. Dead. I stood and ran for the bunker. I jumped down the ladder and ran past the corporal. I leaped into the bunker and fell on my head. Everything went black.
“Hello Private, how was war? Was it everything you thought it was? Was it glory? Honor? No! it wasn’t was it? You should have stayed, but you didn’t, now for all you know you’re dead, but I know for certain that I am.”
I stood up and looked around. I was in the bunker that night and the American I tried to save was standing over me. “I’m sorry, I tried to save you I...”
“Oh shut up private, you knew what you did when you sent that knife through my chest. You did your job. I would have done the same; I hope Joe gets along fine without his dad. Look, I’m
sorry I made you feel bad, the big man just wanted me to tell you that you should pray.”
“The big man?”
“God private, God.”
The American walked right through me and disappeared. I stood up, put my rifle down and
began walking away from that place. Far away from the blood and fighting, and down the road
home. Just as a group of reinies came into the bunker.
“I guess you’re in charge now private, here are the orders.”
I noticed that the reinies were no ranks and I was higher than all of them. I read the orders.
Charge the machine gun. “Gentlemen, do you have families?”
“Yes Private we do, well accept one.”
“Pray for them, pray for us, and pray for Germany”
The 6 men removed their helmets and bowed their heads and I bowed mine and we prayed hard.
“Shall we move out now?” asked one of the men.
“What time is it?” I asked.
“2300 hours Private”
“I have been unconscious for over six hours and haven’t eaten in 8; we will send for some food,
sleep and move out at 300 hours. One of you go find a field baker” I ordered.
“Yes Private, Bergof go find a baker, bring us flour, and a frying pan. We will eat flour cakes for
supper.”
Bergof did as he was told and scrambled out of the bunker as he ran down the road. I looked
around the room for anything that could help me construct a plan. I noticed a map on the wall,