Before the Battle
Summary: The thoughts of an unnamed infantry soldier before the very beginning of the siege of Minas Tirith.
Word-count: 485
Note: Hugs and kiss to cairistiona7, my beta-reader.
The day has finally arrived. The day we have awaited for a long time. The siege of the city begins. We are in position. Babbling and shouting echoes around. We stand together, ready.
Am I scared? I will not admit it to any of my comrades, but... yes, a little bit. Because one can die in war, and I wouldn't want to die. I am young, and I would like to live longer.
I am excited. This is the day when the biggest battle of this war begins; everything that has happened so far, all the campaigns and skirmishes, has been only a prelude, a mere introduction to this moment. We've been told that this will be the biggest battle of all the wars so far. The biggest? Of all of them? Impressive. And how many have been? I have no idea. I don't know much history, and neither do those around me. We haven't paid much attention to it. All that has mattered was sword-training: to be the best warrior possible, each one of us, to defeat our enemies. And that's what I have done. I've been practicing for years, and I have become very good. As for history, I know only the basic things I've heard from our superiors: that our realm had been much bigger long ago, and that our enemies had pushed us within present boundaries, to today’s territory. "They took away what was ours," they have been telling us.
And that's why I hate them. They are evil. I want to kill as many as possible. My comrades feel the same way. I see determination in their eyes, tension in their postures, readiness to move. We yearn for the sign. Many of us will be slain... I probably as well. And no one will remember me afterwards. Yes, I would like to live; who wouldn't? But if I kill several enemies, if I give my contribution, I'll be content. It will be my small share in the matter, in achieving our common final goal.
I observe the walls of the obnoxious city of men that we must conquer. They look high, massive and impenetrable, and it will be very difficult. But our army is huge - there are so many more of us than men inside, and we also have trolls, wargs and human allies from the south and east on our side. All nine of our supreme commanders are here, too, with their huge flying beasts. Being near them is scary even for us, and our enemies are terrified by their mere presence. In the battle ahead, they will certainly slay many.
And for all those reasons, I firmly believe in our victory. I probably won't live to enjoy it... but I'll give my best. I want to, and I have to. So that we defeat our evil enemies, reclaim what is ours, conquer the whole world. For our Master.
End-note:
*giggles* So, did I fool you?
Word-count: 485
Note: Hugs and kiss to cairistiona7, my beta-reader.
The day has finally arrived. The day we have awaited for a long time. The siege of the city begins. We are in position. Babbling and shouting echoes around. We stand together, ready.
Am I scared? I will not admit it to any of my comrades, but... yes, a little bit. Because one can die in war, and I wouldn't want to die. I am young, and I would like to live longer.
I am excited. This is the day when the biggest battle of this war begins; everything that has happened so far, all the campaigns and skirmishes, has been only a prelude, a mere introduction to this moment. We've been told that this will be the biggest battle of all the wars so far. The biggest? Of all of them? Impressive. And how many have been? I have no idea. I don't know much history, and neither do those around me. We haven't paid much attention to it. All that has mattered was sword-training: to be the best warrior possible, each one of us, to defeat our enemies. And that's what I have done. I've been practicing for years, and I have become very good. As for history, I know only the basic things I've heard from our superiors: that our realm had been much bigger long ago, and that our enemies had pushed us within present boundaries, to today’s territory. "They took away what was ours," they have been telling us.
And that's why I hate them. They are evil. I want to kill as many as possible. My comrades feel the same way. I see determination in their eyes, tension in their postures, readiness to move. We yearn for the sign. Many of us will be slain... I probably as well. And no one will remember me afterwards. Yes, I would like to live; who wouldn't? But if I kill several enemies, if I give my contribution, I'll be content. It will be my small share in the matter, in achieving our common final goal.
I observe the walls of the obnoxious city of men that we must conquer. They look high, massive and impenetrable, and it will be very difficult. But our army is huge - there are so many more of us than men inside, and we also have trolls, wargs and human allies from the south and east on our side. All nine of our supreme commanders are here, too, with their huge flying beasts. Being near them is scary even for us, and our enemies are terrified by their mere presence. In the battle ahead, they will certainly slay many.
And for all those reasons, I firmly believe in our victory. I probably won't live to enjoy it... but I'll give my best. I want to, and I have to. So that we defeat our evil enemies, reclaim what is ours, conquer the whole world. For our Master.
End-note:
*giggles* So, did I fool you?