‘Come on!’ They began struggling across the ruined ground. A whine, a shriek: they flung themselves face-down in the mud as a fountain of fire and dirt burst from the ground nearby.
They battled on again, slipping and falling. The din was so dreadful that Edmund thought he would be deaf forever. This was terrible. This was as bad as the Field Punishment – almost.
Two of the bearers crouched over a shape on the ground. ‘Chum!’ One of them pulled at the figure’s arm. ‘Hey, chum! Can you hear us?’ No sound, no movement. The bearers looked at each other and shook their heads. They stumbled on, bent almost double. A machine-gun rattled nearby. Distant yells and shots sounded in front. The noise never stopped.
Edmund half-slithered into a shell-hole. He grabbed a log sticking out from the sid
