Artillery flies over the heads of soldiers huddling in the trenches as they steel themselves for what is to come. These men have fought countless similar actions over the past few years, each time hoping to pierce the enemy’s lines and bring the war to an end. But each time their hopes are dashed: they make only incremental progress at great cost in blood, and the enemy always manages to fall back on even stronger positions. Lulled by the sounds of their guns pounding the enemy’s positions, the soldiers’ reveries are interrupted by the sergeant’s whistle. With a shout, they leap as one over the top and charge across open ground. Many are cut down in the hail of fire that greets them, but most make it to the enemy trenches. Their firearms become melee weapons as they stab, shove, and club the defenders, cries in English, French, and German rising above the din.
