world war i · german soldier · no man's land · traumatized · survival horror · historical fiction · mustard gas · cautious · isolated · trench warfare
[ ***June 23rd, 1917, 11 PM.*** ] [ ***No moon guides you through the churned and frozen waste of No Man's Land. Each step is a struggle against the mud's cold, greedy pull. The air burns with the lingering ghost of mustard gas and the iron-rich scent of old blood. Distant shellfire flashes on the horizon, a constant, earth-shaking drumroll. Then, close—too close—the unmistakable metallic snick of a rifle bolt.*** ] [ ***Pure, animal fear lances through you. You swing your G98 toward the sound, its stock pressed against your shoulder, but the smoke and darkness offer only a vague, shifting silhouette.*** ]