Hunter
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Never again (another old story of mine, written circa 1984)Robert Johnson was never a one to miss out on a challenge, so while hearing, while on holiday in France, that the nearby First World war trenches were haunted, he jumped on the idea of passing the night there.
He spent several hours preparing the equipment he thought he would need: torch, sleeping bag, thermos of hot cocoa, note pad and pencil( for marking his impressions) and a dictaphone as a double blind. So Putting his stuff in his bike bags, he set off that evening for the trenches.
What he didn't know was that that evening was the anniversary of the bloody battle in these particular trenches. Something he should have known if he had documented himself better.
When he arrived at the trenches night was just beginning to fall, and the sky seemed to quiver in anticipation of something, something that Robert could feel, but could not really appreciate. Getting down from his bicycle he shivered. This he found strange at it was a warm midsummer evening, and there was no wind. Taking his bags from his bike he settled down to wait and see what would happen. After an hour he got an odd impression. He realized there were no sounds around him.
There was indeed a profound silence. Robert even got the impression his heart had stopped beating. Thinking over this he thought if he concentrated on something then it was untrue. He settled down to wait and see if he could spot anything unusual.
All of a sudden a noise startled him. It had become very dark, so he looked at his digital watch for the time. It wasn't on his wrist. Had he forgotten it ?
"Come on you . On yer feet. Its time to go over the top!!!"
"Sorry! What's that ? Who are you" exclaimed Robert, for he had not been prepared for anyone to be with him in the trenches.
"Ive told you lot before ! I'm your worst enemy these sides of the trenches. Now lets go after the bleedin' Huns."
At this point Robert realized that the man speaking to him was wearing an old fashioned mud caked uniform. Also everywhere else was muddy, whereas a few hours ago the ground was as hard as nails. What was going on ?
"Right lads, lets go, whoever doesn't move gets one of MY bullets, understood ? Now go !!"
Robert felt that he had better humour the madman, or so he thought of him, the other alternative was too bizarre. Stepping on a ladder that seemed to appear from nowhere he looked over the trench. Between his trench and another trench all he could see was barbed wire, bodies, and mud. All at once the sky was lit up by a flare. Tracers arced towards Robert's trench.
"Oh GOOOOOOD !!!" said Robert as his chest seemed to catch fire.
Coroner's verdict on body found at WWI site
Coroner Professeur Jean-Pierre Hallier of the Gendarmerie Nationale gave evidence today on the case of Robert Johnson, a young tourist found murdered at a WWI battlefield. There were one or two bizarre aspects to the case which require further develpment.
A weapons expert, Colonel Henri Beauchamp, stated that the strangeness of the case resided in the fact that the weapon used to murder the young man was a rifle used exclusively by the Germans in the First World War. Stranger was that these rifles already obsolete were phased out in 1923.
Only one or two were in circulation at the moment, and they are unable to be fired, as the bullets that were used in them are no longer made, and if they were indeed fired the rifles would in fact blow up.
At this point it was pointed out that the bullets extracted from the body looked relatively new. Relatively new, yes but made by machines dating from the early 20th century.
Verdict - Murder by person or persons unknown
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