In the midst of the clamor of war, on any given day in the life of a soldier, a lonely soldier searched for the meaning of his existence in the trenches of an endless conflict. His name was Cael, and his story was a testimony of the struggle in the darkest times of humanity, the war between like and like, the war between human beings.
Born in a small town and from a humble family, dedicated to the cultivation of the land, Cael dreamed of becoming a great doctor one day, but the arrival of the war changed his dreams forever.
Called up to join his country’s military units, Cael had spent the last months of his recently turned twenty years old in a trench, on any current battlefield on the planet, accompanied by many others like him, surrounded by the deafening noise. from the artillery and the smoke that enveloped him like a shroud.
Watching time pass slowly, slowly, cradled by constant fear, the weeks and months faded in his memory, he no longer remembered very well how long ago he had arrived, a time that seemed like an eternity. The war had erased the memories of his previous life, leaving one mission, one goal: to survive.
The cold and dark mornings greeted him when at dawn he woke up in his trench, firmly clinging to his rifle, which had become his inseparable companion, his crutch, his support and, above all, his the only tool that could perhaps help him maintain his life, even if it were at the expense of others. He stood up carefully, trying not to make noise so as not to alert nearby enemies, straightened his uniform, and checked and cleaned his weapon, preparing for another day of fighting.
Cael left the trench and joined his fellow soldiers. After a frugal breakfast, the captain gave them their orders for the day: patrol the area and look for any signs of enemy activity. Everyone was tired and hungry, but they knew that they had to move forward and comply with the orders received, protecting his life and that of his companions.
A few minutes later, the group set off, moving slowly over the rough terrain. The soldier was on maximum alert, listening carefully to any sound that could indicate the presence of the enemy, nervous and vigilant, scanning the surroundings continuously and frantically, fearful of any slightest sign of danger. They moved slowly, checking where they placed their feet before each step for fear that the enemy had placed land mines, which would cause them to jump into the air if they were careless. Suddenly, he heard a noise behind him, he turned quickly and pointed his gun, but there was nothing, for a few minutes he turned in different directions, almost without moving from the spot, scanning his surroundings carefully, looking for the slightest hint of danger, however, it seems that this time, it was just his imagination.
After several hours of patrolling, the group returned to the trench to rest and eat something. Cael sat on the floor and took out his ration of food, a can of corned beef and a ration of water, but he knew it was better than nothing. During the meal, surrounded by some companions, he remembered his home, his family, his friends. , his life before these monotonous and gloomy days, where fear was his companion and the fight for survival his objective. How would they be? Would they think of him? Would they also be somewhere on the front?
In the afternoon, after a short rest after lunch, the captain ordered the change of guards, it was necessary to relieve some of the soldiers from their positions so that they could eat and rest for a few minutes, as and as they had done. Cael was one of the chosen ones. He picked up his gun and went to the assigned surveillance post, where, once the area was controlled, he removed the last letter received from his mother from his shirt pocket.
It was a well-known letter, reread countless times, with a well-known and longed-for handwriting. A letter whose simple fact of having in his hands, even though he had almost memorized its content, produced an increase in his heartbeat, strong, vigorous and fast, as if he had finished a speed race a few minutes earlier.
As she reread her mother’s words for the umpteenth time, they flowed like a balm to her tired soul. The simple story of life in the town, the anecdotes of his younger brothers, the tireless work of his father, and above all the bitterness emanating from his lyrics, in which he reflected the concern and love for his son, produced in each reading dewdrops in his dirty eyes. The news from his former friends informed him of his various destinations, scattered throughout the country’s geography, on missions similar or even more dangerous than his own.
The last words of the letter were a constant song, where a mother’s love brought out all its intensity, “take good care of yourself, don’t get cold, be careful with the enemy, don’t let them hurt you…”, a song that ended with a I love you son, which was set in Cael’s heart like the largest diamond that has ever existed in the most luxurious chain that exists. However, the words that he always remembered were those written with tenderness and pain that asked him to “come home healthy, my son.” Finally, and after drying his tears, he folded the letter carefully and put it in the pocket of his shirt, close to his heart.
After several hours, Cael was revealed from his position, and was given thirty minutes of leave, or rest. Suddenly, an explosion shook the trench, he quickly stood up and grabbed his gun, it seemed that the enemies had launched a surprise attack. Cael ran towards the front line, shooting at anything that moved, however, there was no one at the front, only smoke and a deafening noise caused by the screams of his own companions. Minutes later, he returned to silence and visibility, a sepulchral silence in which not even the animals, the birds, or the insects dared to make the slightest movement. The enemy had fired a projectile that had landed nearby, but had caused no damage. They were looking for them, or causing a mistake on their part to start a war offensive. The captain ordered silence and vigilance, and so the next two hours passed, heading into the darkness of the night.
The nights were even worse, when the silence was broken by the distant echo of cannon shots, or by some noise produced by some moving animal, which prevented or made it even more difficult to fall into elusive sleep. Sometimes, the tension of the day caused sleep, which was frequently interrupted by the restlessness and constant nervousness caused by the situation. Thus huddled in the trench, Cael and his companions tried to withstand the cold and stay warm, always alert for the possible arrival of the enemy.
In those hours, Cael felt the temptation to leave everything behind and return home, but the feeling of obligation, guilt at abandonment, reprisals from his superiors and society, Loyalty to his comrades and fellow fighters, as well as belief in the cause they fought for, kept him in his place.
In the midst of the war, Cael had found an unexpected companion in another soldier from his same military unit, named Miguel, with whom, despite their differences, he shared stories, laughter, and offered mutual support to help them cope with the hardships of life. life in the trenches. Miguel told Cael about his newborn daughter and his promise to return home, while Cael listened empathetically, sharing his own story of inner struggle.
Miguel and Cael carried out night watches together, no more than two hundred meters from each other, each one in his position, they shared rations and protected each other with the aim of staying alive. Friendship in adversity had become a light in the midst of the darkness of war, where both had seen friends and enemies fall, had felt the anguish of death nearby, and every day they woke up with the determination to move forward.
They had spent a sleepless night, since the shots and explosions, although distant, had not stopped at any time. Cael feared that at any moment those sounds would approach his position, revealing the approach of the enemy and increasing the real possibilities of having to take up their weapons to kill or wound young people, who, like him, had had to forget their dreams and abandon everything they had known until that moment, to enter into an unforgettable adventure that would mark them for life.
Sometimes, he daydreamed about the arrival of soldiers at his trench, exhausted and wounded, but furious, with an expression sometimes of hatred, sometimes of resignation and many other times even of hope, perhaps hope in finally finding rest and abandoning a struggle unintelligible to their hearts. He dreamed that he had been shot in the arm, and that he knew that he could not afford to rest, that he had to keep fighting. Other times he dreamed that he sat on the floor and began to heal his wound, painful, but without complaint, except for the signs expressed by his face. And sometimes, very rarely, he dreamed of his house, of his friends, of his studies, of his parents and siblings, sometimes he recalled in dreams situations he had already experienced, in which his life was a complete and happy life, with a promising future, in which perhaps someone could have their own family.
The life of a soldier in war is a story of struggle, sacrifice and survival. Daniel found friendship, loyalty and determination in the midst of adversity, but he also found the desire to seek inner peace. With the passage of time, Daniel still does not understand how it is possible that human beings are not capable of keeping the forgotten war in the most distant part of their hearts, however, with the days, months and even years, he strives for leaving behind the horrors of war, seeking to heal the psychic wounds left by the terrible experiences lived, through an endless journey towards redemption and healing, which is just beginning.
