Thom Boat

The Crucible

Our new Sargent, Cyril Harris, lead our platoon through the town and out into the countryside. The land was so fertile. Deep grass and fat robust trees everywhere. It was by all accounts, a pleasant walk, broken only in its spell by the vibration of distant artillery. Then a few miles on and the country began to dry up. Great clouds of dust framed the horizon ahead of us. And suddenly the earth changed. A pale blistered chalk ground now lay beneath the engine of war.Dug roads stretching out, parallel to what was a thick-walled mass of trenches. The transport lines that were made by Chinese soldiers, liberated from German Asian provinces, were carrying ambulances. Gun mounted trucks, horse drawn canon, and supply wagons. It sounded like the discordant preparation of an orchestra. About to enter the rousing measure of a symphony. Cook houses, ammunition dumps, water pipes, and telephoneswere everywhere. It was its own strange world.We were quickly given our orders which were divided between century duty and trench digging. In my mind I was trying to piece together why there were no great plains rendering the prospect of an open pitched battle. But with what I was hearing and seeing already falling past and on us, the comfort of a prepared defensive position grew upon me with immense indebtedness. Every day I'd look through the trench scope into no mans land. All I ever saw was the tall grass moving in formation, guided by the wind. As if God himself was brushing lines in the fields with his finger.I didn't know how to pray or even to whom I should be praying. But the obvious question of mortality that seemed to blanket the sky caused me to reach for an imperceptible branch for safety. It was on everyone's mind. Jack was noticeably quieter these days. He was still the same Jack. But the boy was relinquishing his title to the man that was with each passing day growing in strength and leadership.A week in to the digging and the 24th of June gave way to our disclosure of arrival. A solid week of an artillery barrage convinced us all that our assault would be a walk over. Nothing could possibly survive what we were hearing. The noise was so inconceivably overwhelming that all we could do was to spend our time following each-others hand signals and attempting to sleep. As if your head was resting on a railway sleeper, shouldering a never-ending train. The boys were all in good spirits though. I guess after so long, we were all ready to be useful for the cause.Jack kept everyone's spirits high as well. He seemed to like the sound of the canons. He said that the raw spirit of power gave him heart. He would take his photograph of Kate from his breast pocket every night at sunset and kiss it. Then look at me with that crazy fire behind his eyes and wink. I loved Jack for more reasons than I could count. But the thing I loved the most about him was the fact that whoever you were, he always made you feel special. His good- morning was always sincere, and his goodnight made you feel safe.On the 31st of June we were all intact in our trenches as a heavy rain set in while we waited. The dugouts were almost overflowing with as much equipment as men. Heavy tools, sandbags, caged carrier pigeons, barbed wire, and even fence posts. It appeared as if nothing was going to prevent us taking ground. Then the rain stopped. And the ease of conditions settled us inside. Any injured were moved with haste from the front lines to prevent the weakening of moral as all became deathly quiet. There was no room to dwell on our mortality now. But my blood was thick under my skin. Running wild with the anticipation of daybreak painting the light of no mans land.Our objective was 750 yards of field to what was names mash valley. Directly in front of the town of Oliveres. 6am July 1st. Jack was writing home to Kate. He wrote, "I pledge my honour to my parents, my duty to my country, and my heart to you. Take care my love". What words can you find when they possibly to be your last? it was a thought that perplexed me. Cause the only possible last words I would be sharing would be with my only friend who was standing right beside me with undoubtedly the same fate. "Stay close to me Thom. So if one of us is to fall, we won't be alone" jack said in a concerned tone. "of course Jack" I replied. We were ordered to stay quiet as we entered no mans land. And to walk, conserving our energy until we came in sight of the enemy lines. The guns fell silent as the last echoes of war faded and escaped into the dawn.7:30am, and the sound of the platoon Captains whistles screeched as the cut through the morning air. Almost without a sound we each in turn climbed the trench ladders and started to walk. Jack was 10 yards to my left, looking over to me every few steps as the soft grass elegantly brushed past our legs. 10 yards and then 10 more. Just as we'd been trained. Sporadic gun fire was loose to begin with. 7:35, and 400 yards into the field. When just like a curtain, the machine guns and artillery opened up as the ground seemed to rain gravel towards the sky in slow motion. I turned to see Jack through the smoke, walking steadfast into the storm. I was so overwhelmed by what caught my eyes.Then, just as if the earth had ruptured. Our silence was broken by the cries of my dear brothers falling around me. It seemed almost surreal that we should be walking into the mouth of death. Jack found a shell crater and fell safely into it. Upon seeing this, I quickly moved to the hole to join him. There lying next to Jack was Billy Tavington. Dazed and moaning aimlessly with concussion as he lay with his left hand lifeless in the dirt. It had almost been completely lacerated by shrapnel fire. Jack continued to shoot over the mound as I attempted to settle Billy. Looking at his hand that was almost unrecognisable in shape and composition. With the bone in his wrist shattered, sinews were barely holding the hand to his arm. "I think we're closer than half way" said Jack jokingly. The machine guns and shelling had stopped us from being able to now even lift our heads above the crater. And Billy was going into shock. "We need to get Billy out of here Jack". "We're not going anywhere right now mate". Jack was right. The sun was disappearing deep behind the clouds of smoke. And the frenzy of explosions around us left both of us looking at each other in exhaustive disbelief.The shelling eventually softened just long enough for us to gain our senses. I took out my bandage and called for Jacks attention as he began to rally his senses back into battle. "what!" he said, agitated from his adrenaline. "I need you to hold Billy down while I wrap up his hand. "Awe come on Thom. It's hardly even attached". "you're right" I replied. "Knock him out". "why?" said Jack, confused. "cause I'm going to chop it off. "what!" exclaimed Jack. "just do it Jack. His hand is gone, and I can't bandage it properly with it still attached." Right there in the midst of battle, Jacks animated character rose up as he simply shrugged his shoulders in beaten acceptance. And with lightning speed he rendered Billy unconscious. Then with one hard swing above my head, I brought my bayonet down like an axe and severed Billy's wrist almost effortlessly. Billy still lay Unconscious. Jack stared at the bloodied stump, catatonic. He shook his head as if to shake off his stupor and resumed shooting. As now the action had once again picked up around us.A second wave was moving past our point and falling at our sides as a boot was thrown from an explosion, hitting my helmet. And then a soldier attempted to hide in our crater before his chest was opened up by a melee of machine gun fire. By now I'd bandaged Billy's stump as tight as I could. "we can't stay here Jack". There was so much smoke that I could hardly see in front of the hole. "Right!" yelled Jack. "You drag Billy back to the trenches and get back here as quick as you can. 26And we'll both start moving ahead. Ok? "Yeah Yeah" I said. I dragged Billy by his right arm out of the hole, keeping as low to the ground as I could. It was 10 minutes of stopping and starting. Dodging gun fire, covering my face from shrapnel, and negotiating my way through the dead and dying.I was not myself. No one can be in the heat of battle. You just become a mechanism, with no sense of remorse or regard for anything but your primary task. I reached the front line and lowered Billy into the trench, watching him slide over the dried mud before reaching the bottom. I didn't even think to yell for a medic. All I could focus on was getting back to Jack. I was on my feet now but keeping low. It was a good 5 minutes until I found myself at what appeared to be our crater. But there was no jack. I immediately started to panic. Then I heard in a booming voice, "Thom! you're in the wrong bloody hole". I picked myself up and almost flew 10 yards to my left, landing at Jacks feet. "this is pointless Thom. We've got to move forward". Just then a new wave of troops reached our point, moving forward. We joined them, as in one brave effort we left the crater, moving towards mash valley.We must have pushed forward another 30 yards before I turned to find Jack. He was nowhere. I stopped in my tracks as I stood straight up with complete disregard for the danger around me. Dumb with panic I began to walk back through the smoke until 10 yards on I found Jack laying on his back with his torso propped up by his elbows. "Jack No!" I cried. "I'm ok Thom. I just need to rest here a minute. I think it's my leg" he said running short of breath. "there's got to be a better way. Right Thom?" he said laughing nervously. "I'll get you out of here Jack". "No Thom. I'm not leaving on my back". I propped him up in my arms as his strength began to leave him. His head fell against my chest and we stayed there without another word. Then just as if the great man had learned to finally whisper, I heard. "Kate, Kate, Kate". Jack then sank lifelessly into me. I collapsed in exhaustion, cradling my best friend as I effortlessly fell asleep.