Niemand Zurückgelassen

[3] Ein Märzmorgen

I opened up my eyes and was met with the greyish-blue of my uniform. I lifted my head up in a sleepy daze. My neck ached and my helmet was slumped down over my face. I reached back and pulled my helmet off and rubbed my hand over the nape of my neck. I looked up and could see Albert on the parapet across from me, dozing off with his mouth wide open and his face turned to the sky. I couldn't help but laugh at the goofy expression on his face. I scanned the trench and could spot all five of my buddies. They were all sprawled out on the dirty parapets in a deep sleep. I stretched out my arms and legs and let out a long, exaggerated yawn.
The sun beat down on the muddy trench, making it look far more pleasant than it truly was. Rays of light danced around the gloomy image that lay before me. The sky was a light blue and the clouds looked like cotton balls that peacefully floated overhead. It was rather quiet, a little too quiet. Silence was very rare, there was almost always the sound of constant shelling and gunfire. Whenever silence was here there was always the constant lingering of an eerie feeling.
I gently leaned my head against the side of the trench and looked off into the distance of the sky. How I longed to be as free as the clouds. To walk among them without a single care in the world. To let my soul roam free with the birds and the sun above.
I sighed heavily and closed my eyes, taking in the warm sun light that gently beat down on my face. My peace was soon interrupted by Captain Bäunmann. He was a burly man and a good leader, but he was often very grumpy.
"Get up. General Ziegel needs you." He barked at my group of sleeping men.
"All five of us?" I questioned, a bit suspicious.
"Yes. Each one of you. Follow me."
I shook Leon, who was next to me, awake. He swatted his hand around in the air before he sat up and rubbed his eyes. The others woke up when they heard the commotion. We were like a group of undead men.
The captain turned and we all exchanged glances of suspicion. We reluctantly followed behind him, whispering amongst ourselves as we went. 
"Why the hell would he need the five of us?"
Hissed Leon.
"Who knows. But it must be important since it's from the colonel, no?" Daniel pointed out, adjusting his helmet.
"Do you think we're going over the top?" Asked Albert, a sense of dread lingered in his voice. I looked at him and shook my head.
"No, Al. He won't make the five of us go over the top. I mean, that doesn't even make any sense. What are the five of us going to do?"
He pondered for a bit before shrugging.
We reached the Generals dugout after a good amount of walking. Captain Baünmann stopped at the entrance of the dugout and turned to us.
"I'm sure you've guessed that this is pretty serious business, yes?" His eyes glazed over each one of us.
We all nodded.
"Right then, go on," he said, ushering us inside with a wave of his hand.
The dugout was dark and quiet. A desk was sat in the middle of the room and another was laid against a wall with a small candle on top. Two sergeants sat in chairs in one of the corners. They were stern and payed us no attention. General Ziegel was bent over the center table before he noticed us. We saluted him with great enthusiasm.
"At ease, gentlemen," he raised his hand.
"You lot are to deliver a message." he said very vaguely.
"What message, sir?" Leon asked.
The colonel looked up at him, the dim light of the candle casted an eerie shadow over his face.
"A message to the 64th reserve," he began. "Colonel Heinzen thinks highly of himself. He  believes that the attack he is planning for Friday morning will crush the French. He is terribly mistaken. The French will not only kill and capture his men, but him as well. Even though Heinzen is snobbish he is a great commander and I can't afford to lose him."
The five of us looked at one another, astonished.
"Sir," I spoke up, "why us? Isn't five a lot?"
The general looked at me.
"The five of you have delivered messages before. I trust that you boys won't let me down. You have two days to alert the 64th. Understood?" His eyes met each one of ours.
"Yes, sir," we said in unison.
He handed us a letter. I stuffed it into the breast pocket of my coat.
"Make your way to the front trench and Lieutenant Zürn will take care of you. Captain," the colonel motioned for Baünmann to escort us out.
"Yes, Herr General." Baünmann saluted and we all followed his lead before turning around and leaving the dark, candlelit dugout.
Nobody said a thing, we just looked forward and kept walking. The clouds began to darken and blot out the sun. Rain drops began pouring down on us, soaking our uniforms. The wind began to pick up and howl as it went. It created an unpleasant feeling of suspense.
We reached Zürn as the rain poured down harder. Lieutenant Zürn was propped up against the side of the trench with his eyes closed. His helmet hung half way off his head. Captain Baünmann gave his shin a little kick and Zürn jumped awake. The lieutenant noticed us standing over him and he scrambled to his feet and put his helmet on crooked.
"Come with me," he said as he motioned for us to follow him. He lit and cigarette and led us to a dead end in the trench.
"What you'll do is climb up to the top. This doesn't lead to No Mans Land, but rather a cheery little meadow." He paused to take a drag of his cigarette.
"You'll see the remains of a town off in the distance. Go there and head North until you've reached Ornes. Here's a map in case you chaps should need it, which I'm sure you will."
I took the map and handed it over to Albert. I knew how organized he was. If anyone should be trusted with having it then Albert was the man for the job. He folded it and neatly placed it in his breast pocket. The lieutenant gave us a salute before disappearing in the rain. The five of us climbed up to the little meadow that sat just beyond the muddy ruins of the trenches. It was a very nice and pleasant contrast from our previous living conditions, though it was raining. I turned around and reached out my hand to help pull the others to the top. Once we were all over the top and situated, I looked at each of them.
They displayed looks of confusion and a bit of fear. I knew they feared the unknown, I feared it just as much as my comrades. Who knows just what we would encounter.
I observed the area for the town that lay in ruins. The rain was getting so heavy that a small fog was now settling over the ground.
"Albert, could you hand me the map?" I asked.
Albert reached in his pocket and pulled out the neatly folded paper. He handed to me and I ducked under the cover of my helmet as to not get the map wet and ruin it. The map displayed the area where we were huddled together and only one town. I put two and two together and figured this was the one we were to go to. The map instructed us to head West and then, as Zürn had said, North to Ornes.
I looked up from the map and noticed that Leon was staring at something behind me.
"Are you alright?" I asked him.
He didn't say a word, but I knew something was wrong. I slowly began to turn around in the direction that he was looking.
"Do you see what I'm seeing, Peter?" He inquired, his voice trembling with fear.
I squinted my eyes in hopes to find what he was seeing. It was so foggy out that I couldn't even see the sun anymore. I leaned forward and saw the silhouette of a man. No, two men. Wait, no, three.
They were marching straight for us while wielding their rifles. It didn't take a genius to figure out that they were seeing if we were the enemy or not. I quickly shoved the map into Albert's pocket and grabbed my gun. The closer the figures approached, the more I could see they were a threat.
The shape of the flat helmets and the slight beige of the uniforms told me that they were in fact English.
*PING* *PING*
The three men began to open fire on us.
"Get back!!" I cried to my friends.
We all ducked for cover and began to fire back at them.
*PING* *PING*
The gunfire did not stop, it was just like in the trenches. They constantly shelled and attacked us. They never gave up. It was enough to drive a sane man mad. I kneeled and took aim at one man standing by a tree. He fell instantly. Albert, who was to my left, was firing on the man in the middle. I saw a crimson hole suddenly form on the Englishman's forehead as he went down. The last of the men was taken down fairly quickly. The five of us were breathing heavily and I could feel their nervousness as well as my own.
"Off to a great start," Karl said in his typical sarcastic tone. We all chuckled and took small steps forward. Small steps towards the town of Ornes.