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Hey guys! Sorry I went missing last month. I never expected classes to start too soon. It was difficult adapting to classes after seven months of inactivity, that too, at a higher level- college. And the fact that I shifted to business from a science background only added to the hassle. Now that things have cooled down a bit, and I am somewhat accustomed to the system, I deemed it safe to continue writing.

I am going back to publishing two chapters a day, with a chance of publishing extras on Tuesdays and Mondays.

Once again, I apologise for the sudden hiatus, and thank you for your patience.

Stay tuned! Enjoy!

******

I forgot how to breath. That time, I had no control over the fire or earth, wind or water, lightning or light. The musket that was drenched from my palm\'s sweat was all I had.

I pushed the round helmet I wore further down. In seconds, this place would be covered with bullets.

The battle wouldn\'t last for long as the \'laws\' required the armies to cease fire when the sun set. But we were still a few hours away from that point. And those few hours… would turn out to be costly.

I was in a daze as the Imperial army charged at us, blowing out an avalanche of sands as they charged down the high grounds.

Those soldiers were crazy. In those battles, the right thing to do was to hold positions at high grounds. But they didn\'t care at all. Of course they didn\'t need to care.

The imperial army outnumbered us by having an army three times the size. They could afford to play such tactics.

A blunt shock to the back of my helmet woke me up. I took in a breath and looked behind. It was the same bald Lieutenant who recruited and trained me, except that now, a helmet covered that baldness.

"Get it together!" He shouted, his voice piercing through the din caused by the charging enemies.

I nodded and turned to the North. With Lieutenant Chambers behind my back, I was a little less nervous than before, but anxious nonetheless. However, with his order, I crouched and aimed Northwards.

High ground gave different types of advantages to different types of units, but for us musketeers, the greatest of perks was the increased range.

The invaders were dressed in red, standing out like sore thumbs on the green plains.

I was confident in my eyesight. I could spot a coin on the ground from dozens of meters away. However, I could not make a clear outline of the faces of the enemies charging at me. Maybe I was scared… of not being able to pull the trigger if I clearly identify them as a human.

I set my sights on the tallest of the red capped enemies charging at us. If I were to fell him, the biggest of the enemies, who knew… this battle might end a second earlier. Besides, I had another fear in mind.

I took in a deep breath and exhaled a bit. I held my breath and aligned the sights of the musket to my charging target. I was waiting for the muzzle to become steady, but my hands would not stop shaking.

Nevertheless, it became steady soon enough, and just in time before the order.

"Fire!"

I pulled the trigger in an instant. And so did the others. Tens of enemies collapsed one after the other.

But that did not matter. What matter was whether my target fell or not.

He did.

It hit. But I did not rejoiced, for that was the first time I ever killed a human.

\'The day you kill a human, you stop being one,\' they said.

That day… that moment… I stopped being a human, I lost my humanity.

But I did not have the time to grieve either. The adrenaline was surging too mightily in my body for me think of things other than my own safety.

I reloaded the musket as fast as I could. Weirdly enough, my hands stopped shaking and my focus was at an all time high. I was done reloading and in no time, I was in position to shoot again.

The previous volley did not hinder the imperialists\' charge by any means. If anything, it made them even crazier. They yelled even louder as they closed the gap. Soon, they were close enough for us to be in their range. They aimed their firearms at us.

But we were ready. I luckily spotted an imperialist who aimed at me. I aimed back and did not wait for the officer\'s order. I pulled the trigger, downing him.

My stray shot caused a domino effect. My comrades released their shots as well, without awaiting the superior\'s order.

Many hit their marks, many missed. And those misses… came at a cost.

The remaining enemies shot their volley. Painful screams surrounded me, followed by thumping sound of bodies falling into the ground. But that did not silence the hiss of a bullet that flew past my right ear.

However, I cared little about everything and did my best to quicken the reloading process—pouring the gunpowder into the muzzle, pressing them in, putting in a bullet and realigning the mechanism.

"Disperse!" The lieutenant ordered.

The ones alive beside me, most of whom were in their very first battle, ran towards any natural covers they could find close by—be it trees, boulders, or high grounds.

My musket was reloaded. It would be a waste not to empty it soon. I held my breath and aimed at a red uniformed enemy, who was busy reloading and shot him in the elbow.

He didn\'t die, but he would never hold a firearm ever again.

The enemies were ready again with their shots, but I sprinted to an elevated position close by and took cover.

The Sun was on the verge of setting, testing the waters of the western horizon.

The battle would ensue for a couple of hours at least, and it did.

The cannons and artilleries joined the fray, making the battlefield messier than it already was. But it had nothing to do with me. I cooped up behind the covers. I had done my part.

I had never joined the war to be a war hero, or make name for myself. The moment I joined the war instead of Simon, I had fulfilled my objective. At that moment, all I wanted was to survive through the war.

The battle raged on. Gunshots sounded akin to rainfall, and soon, cannons joined the fray, adding thunders to the already noisy scene.

Though I had my minds on not firing another shot, my eyes were peeled open. Making sure nobody of the imperial army got too close.

Though as the underdogs, I expected us to barely hold on, I realised soon after that I underestimated our general too much.

\'General Atkinson\'—it was his name. Even though there was a rumour in the camps—among the soldiers—that he was a legendary figure, winning every battles—no matter the odds—and losing none, it never affected my morale.

General Atkinson\'—it was his name. Even though there was a rumour in the camps—among the soldiers—that he was a legendary figure, winning every battles—no matter the odds—and losing none, it never affected my morale.

General Atkinson\'—it was his name. Even though there was a rumour in the camps—among the soldiers—that he was a legendary figure, winning every battles—no matter the odds—and losing none, it never affected my morale.

\'Don\'t trust anyone\' is a lesson I learned too early in my life.

Nevertheless, there was no smoke without fire. Our supreme commander was competent indeed, even maybe as good as the rumours portrayed.

Even though we were the weaker side, being outnumbered three to one, and ranks filled with newbies, we were not only \'not losing\' the battle, we had the upper hand.

After a couple of hours that seemed as long as eternity, the prayers of all the racing hearts of both sides came true—the sun set all the way down. And sure enough, they kept their promises.

Loud horns sounded from both sides of the battlefield. And in seconds, the gunshots died down to a nil.

I heaved a sigh of relief, but did not dare to leave the safe zone. After finally assuring that nobody was in the vicinity, I crawled out.

As soon as I reached back to the camp, I, along with other recruits, were tasked with salvaging the bodies of our comrades.

I had no right to refuse. Moreover, seeing dozens of my brothers-in-arm bloodied, covered in dirt and sweat, dead tired—I felt guilty.

I took a torch and rushed back to the battlefield with the detachment. Once I reached the spot where we first opened fire, a thought suddenly struck my head.

I was curious—of who was the first person I killed. I knew that it was not the right thing to check, but I believed that it was my responsibility to know.

And to this day, I still regret answering to that thought.

I walked to that place with soft steps, avoiding the carcass and burnt shells. The body was still there, lying flat—face down.

The blood and the body was not warm anymore. Hours had already passed.

For the first time since the battle started, I panicked. It\'s not that I was superstitious. I just had no idea what to do. Apologising seemed the most foolish thing to do, but I did it anyway.

I knelt down and turned the body over.