Chapter 7. Black hole sun

Finns ears were ringing from the sound of the constant

artillery barrages and nearby explosions. He lent over

the unconscious officer to shelter him from the rain of

mud and dirt that was falling on them.

"I'm not sure where we are." Winston said.

Finn looked around. "Our luck is going to run out if we

stay out in the open much longer."

Winston pointed behind them. "We'll get into that trench

line and find a way back."

Finn grimaced. It would give them cover, but walking a

a loaded stretcher back through the tight corners of the

trench was going to be hard going.

With the stretchered soldier between them, Finn and

Winston slid down a large shell crater into the trench.

"How big was the explosion that breeched this?" Finn said.

Winston changed his grip on the stretcher handles.

"I don't want to find out."

From the safety of the empty trench Finn heard the artillery

barrages getting heavier. They walked in cold ankle deep

water till their calves ached, then put the stretcher on a dry

fire step in the trench wall.

Winston stretched. "It's a good thing that old mate here

isn't one of those fat bastard officer types."

Finn laughed

"I reckon we're still an hour out." Winston said.

"Swap ends, I'll go first for awhile."

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The abandoned trench was part of a larger system. When

they got to a junction, Winston stopped and looked around

the corner to see if it was clear. "Fuck me."

Ashen faced he turned to Finn. "There's a problem up ahead

and we can't go back the way we came."

Finn angled the stretcher around the corner and saw what

Winston was looking at.

The trench was blocked wall to wall with the bodies of dead

soldiers. Most were still standing upright, wedged together.

The closest were crouched over lying on top of each other.

"We have to go over the top of them." Winston said.

Holding the stretcher with his back to Finn, Winston began

to climb. Finn felt flesh sliding away from bones as he

stepped on the bodies.

He heard rib cages and small bones breaking as he

followed Winston. At the top Winston stumbled and pulled

Finn forward. Finn fell to his knees amongst the dead soldiers.

He pushed off a rotting blackened face to regain his feet.

When they cleared the trench and were walking on flat ground

Winston turned, "Are you alright?"

''That was complete shit." Finn said.

They walked on carrying the stretcher in silence.

*

"Did you hear that?"

Winston stopped. "I thought I was imagining it."

"Someone's singing the Psalms out there." Finn said.

As they put the stretcher down, the wounded officer started

to stir and groan. Finn checked his splinted leg and bandages.

"Sounds like he might be in those shell craters over there.

Go have a look Finn, but call out before you get there."

The Captain regained consciousness. ''What's going on."

''We're looking for a lad."

"Leave him." the Captain said.

"What?" Finn said.

"I said leave him."

"Why would we do that." Winston said.

"Because I'm telling you to, that's why."

Winston said nothing.

"Did you hear me? I'm giving you a direct order. Leave

whoever is out there and get me back to the lines."

Winston looked at Finn. "Go look for our Psalm singer,

this'll be on me."

Finn made his way towards the cluster of shell craters.

"It's going to be on both of you." the Captain said.

Winston stared at him. "I volunteered to fight in this War.

I worked in a coal mine before I enlisted. The same coal

mine that my Father and Uncles are still working in to

support the War effort."

"Is that the defence your going to use at your Court Martial."

the Captain sneered. "That your poor and uneducated."

Winston resisted the urge to kick him in the face.

"What someone like you will never understand, is what it feels

like to be a commoner, and have to depend on the other common

people around you."

The Captain started to unholster his service pistol.

"I couldn't care less about whatever working class shit hole you

crawled out of. The penalty for the wilful defiance of military

authority in the face of the enemy, is death."

"I agree," said Winston, "but that would depend on who you

think the enemy is."

*

Finn reached the first shell crater and found it empty

when he heard the gunshot.

Sleep deprived and anxious about the possibility of surprise

attacks, sentries and soldiers on both sides immediately

returned fire at an imagined threat.

Finn slid lower in the crater for cover as the air above him

became a storm of undirected gunfire. Bullets splashed and

sizzled on the muddy rim of the crater. After a few minutes

the gunfire slowed, then stopped just as quickly as it had began.

Finn called out to Winston and got no reply.

Keeping low he crawled out of the crater and started to run.

He could see that the Captain was off the stretcher and lying

face down in the muddy water of a wheel rut. Winston had his

knee on the back of his head.

The Captain had a gun in his outstretched hand.

Finn called out again. Winston didn't look up or answer.

When he got closer Finn saw there was blood on the side of

Winston's face and in is hair, and there was at least one wound

in his back that was starting to bleed.

"Hang on Winston."

*