Man at War – Excerpt No. 9

A battlefield at night could be quiet as a tomb, doubly so when the wind died down. While there were night time artillery barrages, tonight was mercifully free of action.

Still, there was a bizarre noise in the distance. It sounded very much like a dog gnawing on a bone, but both of the men knew that man’s best friend knew better than to venture into a land that the Lord himself had forsaken. Snipers aren’t fussy.

Murphy made a series of hand motions which Roy acknowledged. Once more the corporal took a peek and froze in place. Murphy could even see the young soldier’s jaw hanging loosely as though no one was home.

a cinematic black and white photo of a mangy dog with matted fur and visible ribs looking for scraps of food in No Man's Land during the Great War, set against a backdrop of destroyed trenches and barbed wire, with the fog rolling in to partially obscure the devastated landscape, shot at night with only the faint moonlight illuminating the scene, the dog's eyes glowing with a mix of fear and desperation as it scavenges for food, the photography style is gritty and documentary-like, capturing the harsh realities of war.

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.