Steve ran forward, his shield blocking the hail of bullets that were being fired mercilessly among him as he made his way across the uneven terrain. He slid across the dusted floor and leant his back against a thick piece of steel debris that gave him some much-needed cover. His eye caught yours as the bullets struck your cover. He slipped the shield from his wrist, curled it into his torso and tossed it over the battlefield, it landed surprisingly softly into your hand as you began your sprint forward. The closer trench, full to the brim of German soldiers was in sight, you jumped into it as a relentless storm of bullets ricocheted from the grace Steve had given you. Slowly the gunfire stopped, a storm of dust had picked itself up from around you into a small, blinding whirlwind, you pulled your small 9mm pistol from your hip and rested it on the side of the shield.
You marched forward, carefully placing your limited shots and making it safe for the rest of your squad to push forward. You gave the signal, a loud and almost deafening whistle and with a thunderous roar your allies jumped into the trench and began dispatching the remaining foes with disgusting efficiency.
"Not so bad?" You smiled nervously at Steve as he brushed the dust from his shoulders and retrieved his prized shield from you, ever more careful to not give away the façade of bravery. Deep down you were terrified, both for your life and for your country, but you couldn't let Steve see that.
"Good work private... you surprise me more and more." He shouted over the reams of gunfire that still fired overhead. "Don't forget though, we're here for a reason. As much as I'm a fan of getting these German's out of the war, we're here to disrupt a line of tanks coming on from the northwest, remember?" You nodded nervously. "We need to get close enough to lay the mines own about a mile down the track from where they are now. That should give our boys enough time to get back..." He looked over at you as you sat, shivering and scared, ducking your head from the gunfire that bellowed back and forth. He directed the rest of the squad to push down the trench and block it off enough to buy you some time.
"Hey... kid." He knelt beside you and sat his firm, comforting hand on your shoulder. "Don't worry alright? Everything is going to be just fine, as long as we stick to the plan. We've made it this far... Hey, look at me." You brought your gaze from the hard, dry floor up to his soft face. "We've made it this far and we're going to get home, alright? Just stick with me and we'll get you back to your girl in no time."
~*~
Written by Aaron.