Toward the Battlefield (1)

I was sitting there, in the middle of a field of flowers. I was all alone in this peaceful place, and the refreshing wind was brushing my hair.

Well, I was not really alone, but I chose to ignore them. Today, I only wanted to look at these flowers all around me, without thinking about anything else, about all the complicated stuff.

The sun was illuminating my face, and the sky was a pure blue sky, without any clouds in the horizon. It was quite suitable for a summer day, and even more for such an important day.

The chirping of the birds flying in the sky came to my ears with a beautiful sound, or at least, that was what I imagined as I was enjoying this peace of mind.

I moved my hand toward a flower that was still near me, and picked it up. I ignored everything else to focus only on this beautiful blue flower, even though I could only guess for the blue part.

I was sitting there, alone, with a smile on my face.

Year 567 of the Harley Dynasty, 4th month, 12th day.

There was something fascinating at the fact that humans were never free. It was even more so when your Emperor decided that, for whatever reason, he wanted to wage war with his neighbors.

You could be who you wanted to be, having a wife, maybe children, having the job of your life, but the moment armed soldiers began to go everywhere to drag every single citizen into war, you couldn't do anything.

So you follow the flow, and you become a soldier who will fight for the greatness of your country. Country certainly not better than another one, but it just happened that you were lucky enough to be born in this one.

"Corporal?"

"Hmm?" I turned my face toward the one who was calling me. It was a good guy, with short blond hair and green eyes. He was young, maybe even the youngest of my team, he was also the only one to still be 2nd Class since he joined us later. "What do you want Jimmy?"

"Well, Corporal, for how many hours do we still need to march? I thought it was only for an hour or two, but it's definitely more than ten hours now since the captain has decided to move."

*sigh*

He was right. This morning, our company had received orders to meet with our regiment a little further away, and now, we were still marching in the ranks, towards the horizon as the sun was setting.

So here we were, a hundred soldiers walking with armor, weapons, and a fucking bag you just want to throw away, and all that under the heat of a sunly day.

To increase my happy mood, the wonderful captain of the 5th Company, Captain Howl, was sitting his ass on a horse along with the other officers at the front of our cohort, while my feet would probably never be presentable anymore.

"I don't know, Jimmy." Seriously, how should I know about that? I didn't even know where we were at the moment. "Maybe they don't know how to read a map."

My men laughed when they heard my joke. That was fine for them, increasing the mood was also my job after all, but, I wasn't so sure myself if it was truly a joke or not.

The march continued like that for a few more hours, and before the sun disappeared entirely, finally, the long awaited camp could be seen a few hundreds meters away.

Sighs could be heard around me as the mood suddenly exploded: just a few minutes and they would be able to lie down for the night.

Well, that was what we had expected. Once inside the camp of the 11th Infantry Regiment, where four hundred soldiers were lying on their tents or playing with cards or whatever, there wasn't a place for this new company to sleep. What did it mean? That we would not sleep that early.

Standing there like vegetables ready to be harvested, we were waiting for the orders when the sergeant of my squad, Sergeant Lamy, was approaching along with the other sergeants. Each of them was going to give orders to their squad.

"Okay, corporals, listen to my orders." I didn't like his nasal voice. I didn't like his rat face either. Nor his petty personality. In fact, I didn't like this guy at all. You could also say that I hated him.

""Yes sergeant!""

"You two, lead each of your team, Menguy to the south, and you to the east. Your goal is to dig a latrine for the company on these two sides. Any questions?"

"Yes sergeant, what about our tents?" I really wanted to just ask 'why us', but I knew the answer would not appeal to me.

"You'll do it later, the other squads will keep an area for you anyway." Now I wanted to punch this face, but a second time would put me in a world of shit, so I restrained myself to ask who the hell could have such a brilliant idea.

"Yes sergeant." I turned around, before walking toward the four guys that were under my direct command, my team.

In a squad, there were two teams each composed of five men. Four of them were just soldiers while the last one was the leader, a corporal.

I was the leader of the 1st Team, while the leader of the 2nd Team was an asshole of the name of Menguy. The sergeant Lamy was also an asshole, but at least he knew it himself.

Certainly not because I said it to him when he refused to let my guys eat because they were too 'slow', not at all. Well, maybe because I punched him in the liver that day.

With the fondation like that, a company was thus composed of ten squads, separated in two platoons each leading by a lieutenant. Mine was the lieutenant Barnes, lieutenant of the 2nd platoon. He was one of the only officers that I wouldn't call an asshole, and that was saying a lot. Then, leading the company, was a captain, seconded by two adjutants.

Now, our company, the 5th one, was a bit special.

In the 11th infantry Regiment, led by Colonel Spencer, there were five companies. The first and the second ones were companies of swordsmen, the third one was a company of spearmen and the fourth one was a company of bowmen.

Then what about the fifth? Even us ourselves didn't really know, so we just say that we are a mixed company.

The initial goal was to make a company self-sufficient ready to wage any wars in any circumstances, and so there was a rule: you had to have a sword at your hip, but you had to have another weapon at your side.

So at the end, we were just a group not better than any mercenaries' one that was pretty much forgotten by the generals. In my opinion, that was because they suddenly remembered that a company of one hundred soldiers 'self-sufficient', was absolutely useless in a great war with thousands of soldiers dying every day.

"Corporal?"

"Hmm?" I raised my head from the hole I was digging, and looked toward my left, where a shadow in contrast with the night sky could be distinguished.

It was so dark that even though he was only a meter away from me, I had difficulties seeing the one who had called me. I immediately knew who it was though, with his deep voice and the imposant stature of his shadow. "What do you want, Dereck?"

"Why are we digging?"

"What do you mean, why? I've already told you why." I resumed my digging while waiting for his answer. The sooner we will finish, the sooner in bed. Or the later, I wasn't sure anymore.

"But the other companies already have their own latrine, and probably even a common one, right?" Suddenly the strength in my arms disappeared as if I was just a child who couldn't even lift a spoon. God, why did he have to tell me that?

But the worst part was that he was probably right, and for at least the thousandth time during those two years I was a soldier, I was planning a desertion in my head.

"Dereck, tell me, what is a good soldier?" It was almost a year and a half since he was under my command, and it wasn't the first time he had heard of this question. I could see his shadow bulging his chest before yelling as if he was waiting for this question since the beginning.

"Corporal, a good soldier is a soldier who never asks questions!" The shout echoed in the night, as muffled laughter came from the other three digging our hole.

A smile was beginning to rise in my face. These guys, seriously.

"Stop laughing, and dig this hole, guys. I want to hear the noise of the earth being hit by shovels with all your strength!"

""Yes corporal!""