Before You Start A War

Chapter Twenty-Nine

A few days later, the group finally came within mere miles of the brigade. Niall's injury obviously slowed them down since he was unable to walk for long by himself. Every hour or so, the men would have to switch who was walking with Niall, since as much as Harry wanted to be his permanent crutch, doing so just slowed them down more.

The walks were boring and uneventful. Every now and then Liam would swear he could hear people so they'd all rush to hide among the trees, but they never came across anyone. The nights were even more uneventful, but the biting cold of winter seemed to finally be letting up, signifying their movement into spring. Harry assumes it's sometime in February or March.

When they come up on the brigade, barely anyone even notices them. Since all four of them are wearing dirty uniforms, Liam expected someone to come rushing forward to figure out what's going on, but everyone is too focused on packing up everything to pay attention.

"What do you think is going on?" Harry asks, hauling his bag further over his shoulder. They've been walking for several hours already today and all he wants to do is fall into a soft cot with Niall and sleep the rest of this war away.

"Seems they're going somewhere..." Louis comments, then reaches out toward one of the men rushing by. "Hey, what's going on?"

"What d'ya mean? We gotta go!" The man side-steps Louis and continues walking. Louis looks back at Liam, who is currently walking with Niall near the back. Liam just shrugs.

"Why would they be leaving? I thought this was a permanent base?" Louis trails off with more questions, seemingly preparing to ask another man before Harry reels him back.

"Let's just go find the colonel. They should know." Harry offers. They all look between each other before nodding.

The brigade is huge, composed of hundreds of tents and multiple acres. They walk for a few minutes before Harry clears his throat, motioning to a wooden cabin with his head. They make their way over slowly, Liam nearly dragging Niall who can barely lift his feet.

Normally there's soldiers posted outside the colonel's quarters, but there isn't. Louis pokes his head in for a moment, looking around, before motioning the rest of them inside. The hallway is silent. Voices can be heard conversing inside the room at the end of the hall. Liam hands Niall off to Harry, who can feel Niall sagging against him immediately. He can tell just how much Niall needs to rest too.

Liam knocks on the door. The voices inside don't waver. Liam knocks again, louder. The voices deaden slightly, before picking up again.

Liam knocks one last time before the door is pulled open.

"What is it, soldier? You should be packing." The man tells him, going to shut the door again.

Liam places his hand against it, holding it open. "Sir?" He motions back at the other three. The man looks around him, furrowing his eyebrows. "We need help."

"Go to the medical tent."

Liam shakes his head. "We don't know where it is. We're from another company, about 100 miles southwest of here."

"You got the message already?" The man asks, pulling the door open and motioning them in. Harry and Niall hobble in together, Louis behind them. There are three more men inside, sitting around a desk with a map spread over it.

"No, sir. We're not sure what's going on. There was a... skirmish." Liam pauses, motioning at Niall. He's trying his best to keep it vague.

"Men," the oldest man in the room calls out. Everyone's eyes land on him. "Leave us. Make sure the soldiers are working diligently."