A child's war IC

[Rookentava]

1930

A usual day for John, he was in school and learning about things he would never use in later life. He like school though, but some of the lessons he thought were pointless. John had a good life, he lived alone and although only 16 he had a steady job and a good house. He had no remaining family, as far as he knew he was the last of them.

The teacher droned on about the poetic techniques used by Shakespeare in his Sonnet 18, it bored the life out of John. "So John, tell me what technique Shakespeare has used in the second last line?" said his teacher.

John had been caught unaware, he was about to reply when a short fat man bust in through the door. He entered the classroom and began to speak.

"Boys and girls, I have some regretting news to tell you. Our country has been invaded by our enemies in the South, as you all well know our armed forces are not high in strength. Therefore your country is calling on you to fight, by "you" I mean all boys aged 15-18 in this school. Usually to serve in the armed forces you need to be 18, but as we are at war the government has lowed the serving age. All boys aged 15-18 stand up!. "

John stood up, he had read the newspapers and knew that an invasion was imminent.

"Follow me!" the man said.

The boys were led to the front yard where crates of weapons and uniforms lay. Each boy was issued with a Kar98k bolt action rifle, a helmet, a khaki uniform, boots and pouches of ammunition. Briefly they were told how to use the rifle and that was it. They were soldiers now. No training, no tactics. They were all expected to try and even die for their country.

The commanding office spoke up "We will allow each of you 1o minutes to return to the school to do what ever you want, we recommend that you use this time to phone your parents to let them know where you are going!"

John did'nt need to worry about phoning parents, he returned to the school and wondered where he could go and what he could collect.

[20 Dragon Riders]

Anthony called his parents and wxplained the situation, after he was done, his mom said,"Oh Anthony, i'm so proud of you fighting for our country, make sure u come home alive!" nthony's mom said as she sobbed. "Don't worry mom, i'll come home, love you, and tell dad the same." Anthony reassured his mother. When he was done on the phone he got his weapons and his army uniform, he went into a bathroom to change from his school uniform to his army uniform, came out, and went back to class. "Well, i sure hope i comeback" Anthony said to himself as he saw John, "Yo, John, u going 2 war as well?" Anthony asked John as he was running twoards him.

[Rookentava]

John seen Anthony as he was running about.

"Hey, yeah I'm going to war aswell, look at us eh in the army, just as we used to pretend as kids. I'll catch you later I'm heading up to the Religious Studies department, need to get myself a Bible."

John rushed to the religious studies and collected a Bible, he was never a religious person, but he felt that now was a better time than ever to start believing. He walked past some teacher and they nodded at him, most of them hugged him and some even shed a few tiers.

John was one of the first boys back in tot he front courtyard, he waited for the rest of the soldiers to return.

[20 Dragon Riders]

OOC: do you mind if i name a teacher?

Anthony nodded and went back to his classroom,"Ms.Palms, where do i need to go after i get my stuff?" Anthony asked.

[Rookentava]

OoC: Yeah sure, go ahead.

John waited in the courtyard, a few other boys had joined him, but still there was no sign of Anthony. Had he backed out? No, Anthony was always up for crazy ideas, even in his younger days. John looked at his rifle, an old Kar98k, it was a german rifle, he had never even held a gun before. But now he knew how to fire, reload and maintain one.

More minutes passed and the commanding officer was only waiting on a few more boys to return, Anthony was one of them. The commanding officer told the boys to line up in two columns side by side. John was standing there in his school yard ready to march to his first taste of war.

[20 Dragon Riders]

Anthony finally returned to the courtyard, he saw John and a lot of the other boys, he tran over to John and said, srry i'm late, got sidetracked." Then he waited for other soldiers, Anthony then said to John while he was cocking HIS Kar98k, "I hope we come back."

[Sjovenia]

Sašo Golub was called to the administrative office. He thought he had gotten in trouble but no...his nation was at war. He quickly grabbed his rifle and was briefly explained what to do. He put on his uniform and his issued field cap as well as his stalhelm (nazi style helmet). He put on the cap and was instructed to go to the courtyard. As he did so he remembered his training with his dad. His dad was in the military so he knew how to shoot and knew the mosin nagant pretty well. As he exited he heard a voice calling him. He turned around and it was his girlfriend Rianne. She spoke "where are you going?" he looked into her eyes and said "war...our nation has called upon the youth to help fight. I have to go. I will send letters and hopefully we can meet up a little later. Tell my parents i said good bye and i love them." He kissed her and then jogged further down before waving good bye. He then turned the corner and saw a few more boys standing around. (You could just write Sasho instead of Sašo since its pronounced the same)

[Baylor world]

when Baylor Jonz was called up he stood at attention. The officer issuing the military items noticed and said "ahh some military training huh?" he remained at attention until the officer said at was and issued him his stuff. Baylor was the quiet type but still had friends and talked sometimes. He changed and ran out the door grabbing his stuff and moving to the courtyard. Baylor had been in a civil war in his home nation before him and his parents moved. He knew how to handle a shot gun and how to make some makeshift bombs but he never fired a rifle. Once he was at the courtyard he sat on a bench and looked at the phone across the way. He walked up and went to it. Dialed his parents number and explained the situation (wwII style phone of course). After wards he returned to his seat and watched as a few others talked and another boy had said goodbye to his loved one. He had many lovers but they weren't his type. So it didn't matter if he made it out of this war or not. He had three brothers and two sisters so he could be easily replaced.

[Rookentava]

That was it, everyone was in the courtyard. It was a weird experience for John, going to war with people he had grown up with. They were a make-shift battalion, every boy had a different helmet and a different rifle. But although they were different they were expected to fight as one. John seen that a few other boys were on the verge of crying, he walked over and reasurred them. Then the commanding offficer spoke up

"Battalion forward march!"

With that the boys marched forward, they exited the school yard and were greeted with teachers waving at them and wishing them good luck. Most of the boys waved back or took off their helemet and waved it in the air. The boys were on their way to a defencive line that streached over 50 miles, it was called the "Lionburg Line", as it started in the small town of Lionburg. The line had been made in a hurry only 6 months ago, although it had some formidable defences, such as barbed wire, bunkers, trenches and dug-outs. The boys had been tasked with defending the line and not to let the enemy gain any more ground.

The boys would also be stationed near the front of the line, in one of the many trench systems. There they would get their first taste of battle.

[20 Dragon Riders]

Anthony said to John,"It's just like when we were kids eh?"

[Sjovenia]

Sašo heard the commanding officer call fall in and everybody grabbed their bags and got in formation. At that he made sure they were well aligned before calling forward harch! They marched forward in unison towards what he thought he heard was lionsburg. Sašo saw Rianne and he waved as he did to some of the faculty at the school. Once they got to lionsburg he would switch out his field cap for his stalhelm. SInce that was where the battle was suppose to take place. Sašo was an okay shooter so he could snipe. But he preferred to be in a bunker then a trench. It was safer, provided cover from the rain, and it was easier to shoot out and harder to shoot in. He could only hope he got orders to a bunker rather than a trench.

[Rookentava]

The boys had arrived in the Lionsburg Line, the rain had started and the weather matched their mood. The Command started to speak,

"Alright boys listen up, we have been ordered to hold this line, as the enemy is pushing forward as we speak. So I suggest you make yourself at home in your trench. Remember no falling back, give the enemy all you've got!" "There's also a bunker next to the trench system that you'll be in so I need a few people to man the machine gun in the bunker."

The Commander looked around.

"You'll do, Saso and John you man the bunker!" The Commander pointed to a few other boys awell. 5 of them in total were tasked to man the bunker and its machine gun.

John was glad he was with Saso, he was also glad to be out of the rain inside the bunker. According to intel the enemy would be arriving in 1 or 2 days time.

[Sjovenia]

Sašo met up with john and a couple as they walked over to the bunker. It was rainy hard with a slight chilly wind. Fog could be seen in the distance. Luckily we were on a hill and it was nothing but field ahead. They would be having trouble getting through us he thought. He asked john "You want to man the machine gun or help with ammo? we can switch shifts every now and then. If there is a third person we need a radio operator." Sašo sort of knew how a bunker worked. His dad had shown him the one he was stationed. A radio operator to yell out enemy position and maintain contact with the other bunkers, trenches and any other troops. As well as an MG personnel and a person to help load the ammo and help feed it. He looked inside and took in the sights. There were enough beds for all the boys who came from his battalion...but on duty working there was only room for 3 and that was in the front. In the back was the steel bolt door and the whole thing was lit by two lights that was sure to go out after taking every artillery hit. He didn't mind as long as it could withstand the barrage.

[Rookentava]

John made himself at home in the bunker, he shut the massive door to keep the rain out. He turned to Saso and said,

"Ok, You can fire the machine gun if you want, I would prefer to feed the gun with the bullets."

After saying this John flipped open his Bible, after reading it for a few minutes he came to the scene where God gave Moses the ten commandments. A commandment said "Thou shall not kill". John repeated that phrase in his mind over and over again. Would it be right to kill a man? Of course he was defending his homeland, but would he be accepted in to heaven? That was a thought for another time, now he had to prepare for the coming battle. He familiarised himself with the workings of the machine gun, now he was ready.

There was only 5 boys in the bunker. Saso was on the gun, John was feeding the gun, another was on the radio and the other two would just be spotting and firing their rifles.

1 day until the enemy comes, would the have tanks? Would they have artillery? Only time would tell.

[Sjovenia]

Sašo put his stuff next to his bed. He got the bottom bunk bed and began putting up the picture of Rianne as well as a small one he put in his helmet. He set out a journal, a small bible, and a picture of him his parents and his sister who was only a year younger. "well..this is our home for a while...might as well fancy it up. Got any posters or pictures might as well make these barren walls look homey." he said before he went back outside wearing his issued trench coat to go help some of the others with their luggage. He grabbed baylors as he was too busy taking in the scenery. He out his stuff in the bunk next to his.

[Baylor world]

Baylor quickly followed Sasho inside and looked around. He noticed Sashos things set up so he did the same. A small knife, some chewing gum, and a picture of his family. After wards he walked around the corner and saw the workspace. Decent size with radio and map, storage, and a machine gun as well as some parts and an extra machine gun. He looked out into the field and stared. He wondered when the attack was surely to begin? Not until tomorrow atleast. The commander said atleast two free days....maybe less. Oh well. Just hope we get through this.

[Rookentava]

John had also made himself at home in the bunker aswell, he claimed the top bunk. He jumped up on it and started to read his Bible, after a while he put it down and decided to have a look through the binoculars. The bunker had an opening in the wall, which allowed the machine gun to fire out of it. John looked through the binoculars, he seen field after field, they were on a hill so at least when the enemy came to attack John and the other boys had a slight advantage. He got bored of looking out so John retired to his top bunk bed once again. He closed his eyes and slowly drifted in to sleep.

John was awoken by the cold, it was still the same day but it was now 9.00pm and the temperature had dropped significantly. He put on his trench coat and paced up and down the bunker trying to warm himself up. John seen a flash in the corner of his eye, then he heard the loud bang which came with it. The source if the light had to have been a few miles away. Then he knew. Artillery.

John cryed to the other boys including Saso and Baylor, "Artillery! They've fired!"

John crawled under his bed for some protection. This was it. He knew what was happening, just as he had learned in History. The enemy was bombarding their position to try to soften them up so it would be easier for the infantry when they advanced. But how long would the bombardment last for? A night? A day? Who knew, only the enemy commanders knew.

John stayed under the bunk bed for hours, but still the artillery shells rained down. He heard a few cries of pain outside, but he nor any of the other boys dared to go through the massive door and out in to, what was now, a battlefield.

[Saint Francis]

David walked to the ruins of the confused city. The rubbles were everywhere, debris invaded the streets, the bodies of citizens and soldiers were scattered everywhere. And he ran, looking back, deafened by the rumble of artillery fire. What had happened?

He remembered only one shot close. Then everything had turned white, and he found himself lying on the ground next to the corpse of a soldier. He had taken his rifle and started running through the streets of the city devastated. What was happening? And where were the others?

Where were Sašo and John? He had to find them before the enemies of the would find nation him.

[Rookentava]

Three hours had pasted since John and the others had taken cover in their bunker. He was wondering when the barrage would stop, just as the thought left his head. The noise ceased. It was over. They had survived the atillery strikes. But John knew that when the atrillery stopped the infantry would advance. He heard ordered being shouted out by his commander, he already knew that the enemy was comming, although much sooner than first expected.

John crawled out fron under the bunk bed and picked up his rifle. He was shaking. The boys outside were reading themselves, as they had just recieved the order to fix bayonets. John seen Saso rush to the machine gun and he quickly followed. Baylor ran over to the radio. Now they were ready as they were ever going to be. John took his hands off of the belt of bullets which he would be feeding in to the machine gun and picked up the binoculars. He peered through them and in the distance he seen what must have been at least 5,000 troops coming through a ruined town which was damaged in the artillery shelling. They were out of range, but soon the guns would fire and John would get his first taste of action.

John mentally prepared himself, he thought it would be a good time to speak to God, especially if he might die. John quietly said,

"Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever and ever.

Amen."

As John said this he shook the hands of all the boys in the bunker. Now he was ready to fight and even die.

[20 Dragon Riders]

Anthony saw sme enemy soliers and told the othes that were in the trench wth him," I see an enemy soldier, and he looks hevily armed AND bloodied, what should i do?"

[Sjovenia]

Sašo laid on the ground next to his bunk until the artillery stopped. He quickly got on the MG42 and saw thousands of troops coming towards him. He began firing round after round as body after body fell as well as the other machine guns and soldiers in the trenches fired. He heard baylor tapping out a message. As well as the shouts of soldiers. He told John to ready another can because the bullets were almost finished.

[20 Dragon Riders]

At the firing by Saso, Anthony started firinat that heavily armed, bloodied man, "TAKE THIS!!" he yeaaled as he started firing.

[Baylor world]

Baylor began receiving messages of enemy tanks....he looked around for panzerfausts before he took off the head phones and yelled for some people to get some and begin firing from the trenches.