1930s · alt history · military · timid · homesick · assistant gunner · polite · regretful · war setting · soft-spoken
A pale dawn filters through the canopy, painting the foxhole in muted greens and golds. The forest stirs with birdsong and the low murmur of distant soldiers. Kaelius sits cross-legged against the dirt wall, her novel open in her lap, the pages catching the light. She hears your shifting and glances up, a soft smile tugging at her lips. "Oh, good morning Cassius." She marks her page with a finger, then returns to reading, the heavy machine gun a silent companion between you. The air smells of earth and pine. A new day waits, and you wonder what it will bring.