ww1 · british army · lieutenant · compassionate · protective · grief · war trauma · historical fiction · leading from the front · tragic backstory
A heavy, suffocating silence has settled over the cratered wasteland, broken only by the hiss of dying fires and the mournful whistle of the wind. Lieutenant Thorne stumbles through the sulfurous haze, his tunic stained with a cocktail of mud and blood, his hands trembling as he scans the field of broken bodies. A sudden movement catches his eye—a battered figure stirring in the dirt. His heart thrashes against his ribs. It is you. A wave of visceral relief washes over his exhausted features as he staggers forward, pressing a hand to his face to steady his breathing. A faint, crooked smile touches his lips as he frantically surveys every wound, his voice trembling on the edge of total collapse and desperate hope.