The Rush of Battle

Magnus ran out into the battlefield followed by 39 other shouting soldiers. Magnus felt the rush of battle for the first time in his life, so he shouted too. They all sprinted, their heavy packs swinging on the backs, hitting their arms as they went as fast as they could before death ensued.

A soldier next to Magnus hit the deck. It was the squad captain from last night. Magnus looked at the squad captain as he him who was now on the ground. Magnus knew not whether he was injured or lying down, but assumed it was the latter, because he not yet heard any gunshots.

Magnus kept running and running. All was silent. He was half way to the other trenches.

Suddenly, a flare went up.

Fear filled Magnus' mind as he was reminded of last night. Among the 37 shouts of, "FLARE!", Magnus' shout was heard. Magnus immediately hit the deck. Laying on top of his gun, Magnus rolled over to pick up his rifle.

Getting situated after some trouble rolling back over onto his stomach, Magnus heard several shouts in some foreign language.

"They know we're here. They know we're here! They know we're here!!!"

That is what ran through Magnus' mind as he prepared his rifle to shoot.

Magnus got turned his safety off, completely walling off his thoughts of fear, and aimed to shoot. With all the adrenaline now running through his body, Magnus couldn't make heads or tails of the sounds of the machine guns moving down his comrades.

Magnus saw a grey uniform. Now involuntarily recalling the look on the soldier's face from last night, he fired at the head of the grey-clad stranger. Magnus couldn't see exactly what happened, but he knew from far-off shouts that he made his mark.

Magnus searched the line for other grey bodies to shoot. Magnus found one. He cocked the rifle, the hot casing flying away from his right side. Magnus shot again. He heard the chink of metal on metal, but the lack of shouts.

"It bounced off the helmet?!", Magnus thought? "Maybe those helmets can be useful."

His quarry having vanished behind the safety of sandbags, Magnus thoroughly searched for another target to train his sights on. The rush of battle now completely taken him over, Magnus got up after failing to find more grey rabbits to slaughter, for Magnus was now a olive-clad wolf, determined to let no more sacrifices escape him.

Magnus charged. He could still hear the rapidity of machine-gun fire, but payed no heed to it, consumed only by his thirst for blood.

"Oh, if you only could see me now!", Magnus thought on this new plane of existence he had just discovered. Magnus was often teased by his older siblings for not being social enough. This had created a lasting scar on Magnus' heart.

"Is this social enough for you? Huh? I can't hear you!"

Magnus was caught in a state of either delirium or blood-lust as he darted over to the Deutschland trenches. Magnus spotted another grey-clad man, this one with an officer's hat.

Magnus immediately hit the deck, sliding to a halt, splashing the mud. Magnus aimed at the little grey mouse scurrying along to safer quarters. Magnus took his aim...

Magnus' rifle's pop was followed by a much larger one. Magnus had no idea what that was, but it would probably make for a good hunt. Magnus decided he would search for that terrifying thud after he had cleared out this part of the Deutschland trenches.

Magnus crawled up to the sandbags. He pulled out both of his grenades and threw one to each side of the opening. Once they blew, Magnus vaulted the sacks filled with grains of the beach. He then looked to both sides. The first, empty, but with a body on the ground. That man had died honorably, being killed by a concussion from a bullet that had hit his helmet, but not penetrated it.

The second contained a big, turreted machine gun. This machine gun was being used by another little rabbit helplessly trying to fend off the waves of olive wolves coming for him. Too bad for the grey rabbit, it didn't see the shadowy figure behind himself.

Magnus slit the Deutschlandian soldier's throat with one swift movement. Feeling the dead body collapse under the pressure of the blade torn through the neck of the soldier, Magnus was reminded of his job at the barber shop. He was reminded with how carefully he handled those sharp objects so as not to hurt anyone. Magnus then remembered his family, and most importantly the girl he was engaged to.

In that moment of remembrance, Magnus hesitated, and lost the rush of the battle. Magnus then clearly heard what was going on around him, those sounds no longer being blotted out by the throbs of the blood coursing through his veins. Magnus now could hear all the screams of pain, all the shouts of men battling for their lives to serve what they thought was a noble cause.

Magnus then heard the sound of treads tossing up loose dirt getting nearer to him. He looked over the trench wall to see the unknown lands that lay before him. As soon as he stuck his head up over the wall of dirt, he saw that larger quarry that made his gun sound like a pea-shooter.