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.Nulli Secundus -
'Second to None'
by Terence Cardwell
Chapter
Twenty Nine - A sea of gray
They had been told they were going to attack at
ten-thirty a.m., and the artillery began firing on the
British lines. The noise was deafening and the soldiers
sat with their hands over their ears, nervously waiting
for the signal to attack.
‘No one could possibly survive that,’ Klaus Mueller
shouted.
‘I hope not. Save us getting shot at,’ Dieter shouted
back.
The artillery continued firing, but was now receiving
incoming shells from the British. Many were finding
their mark, and the soldiers noticed the decrease in
German shelling as their guns were knocked out one by
one.
The artillery ceased firing as suddenly as it had
started, leaving a strange silence that made the
soldiers nervous. Some were eager to go over the top and
crouched ready; others were a little more reluctant, not
sure of what would happen.
A shrill whistle blew and was repeated all down the line
of soldiers. The penetrating, nerve-grating sound would
be remembered for a long time.
‘This is it, let’s go,’ Corporal Hemmler said, jumping
up. ‘And remember to keep low to minimise the target.’
They ran forward, bent over, carrying their rifles at
waist height, ready to lift up and fire as they had been
taught.
Max Hemmler looked to both sides of him and saw a solid
wall of grey uniforms moving forward at a trot.
‘There must be thousands of us,’ he thought, and the
sight gave him the courage to stumble forward. He waited
for the British to open fire but there was no sound,
just the rustle of jackets as his comrades rushed
forward.
He was in the third row from the front, content to let
the eager ones lead, keeping pace with them.
‘Maybe the Englanders have run away. Maybe they’re
cowards and know the power of our army,’ he thought.
Suddenly there was a multitude of rapid small explosions
running almost continuously and the soldiers in front of
him and around him started falling. Some screamed,
others moaned and lay on the ground.
As he ran past the fallen soldiers he saw some were
bleeding profusely, blood covering the front of their
coats. Others lay with open eyes, looks of surprise on
their faces.
Each was unmarked except for a red hole in the middle of
his forehead or on another part of his face.
Max kept running, waiting at any moment for a bullet to
hit him. The number of soldiers had substantially
diminished and he saw great gaps in the line.
Someone yelled, ‘Down!’ and the soldiers threw
themselves to the ground.
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