Man at War – Excerpt No. 224

22 April 2026

Marc did not need to enlighten his second, but also knew that doing so would ensure they followed through… even in the event of my death…

The man of war paused for three seconds before realising that he missed something.

“I’ll also signal for Charlie to come in and relieve you,” Marc said.

Murphy had taken Apples and Butter with him, which meant there was a fresh team to ease the pressure. Given that this operation was winding down it made sense.

a surreal and vibrant cinematic photo of a fresh batch of soldiers wearing 1915 No Man's Land attire including worn leather boots and tattered uniforms with picks and lanterns in hand heading into a dimly lit underground mine at night while tired troops with exhausted facial expressions and worn clothing leave the mine in the background with a mixture of relief and fatigue on their faces the scene is set against a dark muted color palette with flashes of warm golden light emanating from the lanterns and a sense of eerie mist surrounding the soldiers the photography style is photorealistic with a film grain texture giving it a nostalgic and haunting feel.

Disclaimer: This novel is an work in progress and readers may encounter grammatical errors and inconsistencies. Please view this a draft and not a published work.