The first time he saw the blood on the snow, Ajax was ten years old. He had a lot of snow this winter and the village children had fallen close to the river to make a snowball fight with those near the village. One of his countrymen, could not remember exactly who had packed a snowball with a content over the ice and had shot straight on the nose of Biagio, the butcher's son. He had never gone to the place of everything.
The boys of his own country if they decamped to their heels, while Blaise was bleeding and screaming like a pig, holding his nose. Ajax had been a moment more, staring fascinated with the blood dripping on the snow. Remember feeling a sense of unreality. It looked fake, too red, with shades of pink, too bright, as if someone had accidentally spilled land of grenadine syrup.
Even now that the blood was his, Ajax could not shake off that feeling of unreality. On his knees in the snow, while the great drops that fell off from her chin to fall on the white blanket smoking. Either dig a small hollow in the snow with its heat. Drip ... Drip ...
time seems frozen, like everything else on the plateau. Ajax did not feel pain, although it was vaguely aware that he had, seemed strangely muffled and sounds as if he had cotton in his ears, but could see everything very clearly and equity.
His buddy Sergio turned towards him in slow motion, eyes wide, and shouted something but did not catch, then a shell exploded a short distance, casting a shower of splinters and sharp around the world returned to normal speed. Sounds
comeback to flood his perception, the thunder of big guns, the loud sound of bullets whistling and smaller cut through the air, the screams and curses of the wounded.
Ajax and his fellow platoon ran like crazy through no man's land, scattering on the ground to avoid being hit all at once from a possible grenade holes and climbing over barbed wire. Every time I stopped, crouched in the muddy snow, the machine gunners unleashed a storm of bullets on the enemy. Once in a few tens of meters from the enemy trenches (They were so close that they saw the whites of the eyes of Kaiserjaeger when they protruded from the trench to fire), and took the safe to hand grenades, firecrackers Thevenot, and rushed into the Austrian trenches.
The boys of his own country if they decamped to their heels, while Blaise was bleeding and screaming like a pig, holding his nose. Ajax had been a moment more, staring fascinated with the blood dripping on the snow. Remember feeling a sense of unreality. It looked fake, too red, with shades of pink, too bright, as if someone had accidentally spilled land of grenadine syrup.
Even now that the blood was his, Ajax could not shake off that feeling of unreality. On his knees in the snow, while the great drops that fell off from her chin to fall on the white blanket smoking. Either dig a small hollow in the snow with its heat. Drip ... Drip ...
time seems frozen, like everything else on the plateau. Ajax did not feel pain, although it was vaguely aware that he had, seemed strangely muffled and sounds as if he had cotton in his ears, but could see everything very clearly and equity.
His buddy Sergio turned towards him in slow motion, eyes wide, and shouted something but did not catch, then a shell exploded a short distance, casting a shower of splinters and sharp around the world returned to normal speed. Sounds
comeback to flood his perception, the thunder of big guns, the loud sound of bullets whistling and smaller cut through the air, the screams and curses of the wounded.
Ajax and his fellow platoon ran like crazy through no man's land, scattering on the ground to avoid being hit all at once from a possible grenade holes and climbing over barbed wire. Every time I stopped, crouched in the muddy snow, the machine gunners unleashed a storm of bullets on the enemy. Once in a few tens of meters from the enemy trenches (They were so close that they saw the whites of the eyes of Kaiserjaeger when they protruded from the trench to fire), and took the safe to hand grenades, firecrackers Thevenot, and rushed into the Austrian trenches.
The left side of his face was encrusted with something sticky, but he took no notice.
The enemy soldiers were earthen and Ajax seemed to be kids and knew that his hand was like that: they were tired, half frozen, hungry and terrified. Without training, they could only hope to get by and have a fear of crowds and all-pervasive. The war was a scam for all sides.
When he volunteered, he never imagined it would end like this. He thought the war would not last long, at most up to Christmas, and would bring positive changes for the people. Instead, three after birth, the very people died in the trenches, while the usual enriched themselves with the military orders and individual freedoms were suppressed in the name of the Fatherland.
And he was stuck in that carnage, they can only choose whether to fear or become what others were afraid. The faces of too young Austrian soldier he understood what had been his choice.
grenades, the Arditi spear guns, the dear old Villar Perosa nicknamed "fart", and jumped into the enemy trench with daggers between their teeth.
What happened next was a confused memory for Ajax with blood, screams and gunshots. At one point, a hissing sound, like the breath of a dragon with asthma, and the smell of kerosene had announced the arrival of the platoon with the flamethrower and the screams had risen in tone.
But in the end the trench had been conquered. They reached the infantry to occupy the position of his platoon and the guys started to relax Arditi, posing as a pack of cigarettes. It was only then, when a recruit who was not yet eighteen years have stopped to stare aghast, Ajax that he realized he had lost his ear and began to feel pain.
And he was stuck in that carnage, they can only choose whether to fear or become what others were afraid. The faces of too young Austrian soldier he understood what had been his choice.
grenades, the Arditi spear guns, the dear old Villar Perosa nicknamed "fart", and jumped into the enemy trench with daggers between their teeth.
What happened next was a confused memory for Ajax with blood, screams and gunshots. At one point, a hissing sound, like the breath of a dragon with asthma, and the smell of kerosene had announced the arrival of the platoon with the flamethrower and the screams had risen in tone.
But in the end the trench had been conquered. They reached the infantry to occupy the position of his platoon and the guys started to relax Arditi, posing as a pack of cigarettes. It was only then, when a recruit who was not yet eighteen years have stopped to stare aghast, Ajax that he realized he had lost his ear and began to feel pain.