“There were swathes of them in that field. Young men of all kinds, dressed in both the rebel’s red coats and loyalist’s blue coats, and their corpses gave a clashing color of blues and reds to the green fields. I have always wondered why. This was our war, was it not? A war for our rights to bear magic. Why then are our brothers the ones dying the most in it? Yes, on the other side, I would understand. But on our side…I do not understand.”
- Journal of Countess Flora Wittfield, 1721.
+++
West Orland
County of Wittfield
City of Eutstadt
There was much commotion when the trains arrived at the station, as young men from the frontlines, the first rotation to allow them some time for reprieve, arrived. Amelie decided to accompany Nia secretly today at the train station, as she had heard that her younger brother was arriving at the station. Amelie herself was overjoyed at seeing Nia’s relief at hearing that her brother was alive. Not that she received any further news about his condition though.
Still, Nia was waiting for him. She indeed hoped that he was not just alive, but well. Well rested, uninjured, and of good mind. William, who accompanied them as well, had a bit of a different disposition for her expectations, but he smartly kept his tongue in check as the trains stopped, merely looking to the side while letting out a sigh into the air.
“They’re here,” said Nia. “I wonder where Josef is.”
“He’s probably just out there,” Amelie said. “Seems like the men are being unloaded at last.”
Amelie watched as one by one, soldiers, mostly still in their uniform, left the trains. Most of them had their caps on, carrying bags with them on their backs. Many were greeted by their mothers, sisters, or wives, but Amelie could see a growing line of young men who had nothing, merely walking on the wayside with lowered heads, disappearing from sight on the station.
No, in fact, it was most of them. The Army really only chose Eutstadt as a temporary site for many of these men to take some time off due to how peaceful it was. While many in the city council voted against it, it simply was already starting to look morally depraved to even deny these people who were literally dying for their Kingdom a little treat of some peace and quiet.
I still had to pull some strings though. Amelie complained in her mind. At least the Prime Minister knew some people. Hah…Jacqueline, without you, this entire thing would be an absolute pain.
But, things were the way they were regardless. Amelie wouldn’t be able to do much about that. All she could do was try to change it, and this was one of her decisions of change that should help. The mental load of the war for those on the frontlines was simply extreme. She knew that governments usually kept them there for way too much of extended periods of time back during the Great War, especially when the frontlines were overseas.
And all that did, as this Civil War showed, was drive these men’s sanity down even further. She didn’t want the same thing to befall them again. And thus, she appealed hard for both the government and the military to increase the rotations “when the situation permits”. General Albrecht had some reservations about it, but the OHC agreed in principle, and since the fronts had been quite calmer now, they were now finally rotating out the tired troops that had seen the war since day one and replacing them with fresh new recruits.
Still, Amelie feared that even with these rotations, these men wouldn’t really find much meaning from it. By the looks of things, many of them were simply being dropped in an environment they had no ties. A place where they didn’t belong. The stream of them simply passing through the onlooking crowds of women with their heads lowered showed that.
It’s…almost as if they’re ashamed of their own selves even. Amelie didn’t understand why, but all it did was send her even more messages that perhaps her scheme wasn’t working as intended. Still, this…should probably be better than nothing.
“There he is!” Nia said, pointing at a young soldier holding a piece of paper, looking around with a confused expression. Nia ran to him, and Amelie followed closely through the crowd before she tackled him with a hug. “Josef! It’s me, your sister!”
“Nia?” Josef said, a little bit weakly it seemed. “Oh…I…well, I guess I’m…back?”
“That’s such a silly thing to say to me after months of you being gone. How are you doing?”
“I’m fine?” He shook his head, while Amelie smiled at seeing the two reunite. “Is…that…”
“Long time no see, Josef,” Amelie said. “You’ve grown a bit, huh?”
He lowered his head. “Y-you too, Your Majesty. I just…” Amelie looked at him. She remembered him as a meek young guy back during her time at University, as she and Nia always met him at Nia’s home. A quiet “nerd” who always stayed, according to Nia, in his room after school. While he did act meek as always, Amelie could see that his softer features were almost gone.
He now had an unkempt mustache, and rough hair, and she could see a darker undertone in his eyes. And the way he looked down unnerved Amelie. Especially when he referred to her that way.
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“Hmm, Josef? It’s still me, Amelie. You don’t need to refer to me that way. Even Nia doesn’t.”
“Well…I’ll keep that in mind then.”
Before he could say anything further, Nia almost tackled him to the ground. Amelie laughed at the sight, all while William looked away, feigning disinterest.
+++
The two of them soon parted ways from Amelie and William when they left the station. Nia said she’d be back at the November Palace by 6:00 PM, which left many more hours for Amelie to burn without much to do. Their delirious stamping of every paper they could find for four days straight did a number on her workload after all…by almost completely wiping their desks off it.
Now, she found herself without much to do. There were no meetings or appointments scheduled either, and so for quite the first time in a while…she had free time. Free time to do what? She wondered for something as she and William walked through the pedestrian. The day was calm as always, save for the occasional presence of rotated troops that seemed to be mingling around Eutstadt’s streets.
“Hey, William,” Amelie said, looking at one of the soldiers who stood alone in front of a clothing store. He seemed to be staring at the building listlessly, his hands stiffly holding the shoulder harness of his brown backpack. “What do you think…is he doing?”
“Eh, don’t mind him,” he waved it off as they continued on. “Could just be having an internal crisis, or whatever. It happens.”
“He’s going to be alright, won’t he?” Amelie asked, looking back at him a bit. Most of the pedestrians simply gave him glances, before continuing on their business. But the way he stood out of the busy crowd, merely staring at the building alone created such a striking contrast for Amelie’s eyes.
It was as if to him, he was frozen there, as the world moved on around him.
“If he isn’t, someone else will take care of it,” William said. “Amelie, you don’t need to worry about every little detail.”
Amelie frowned. “That guy was a human being, William. Just like you and me. He’s not just a little detail. Just because he’s a guy does not mean he’s just a number to me.”
“But in practice, he is.” William stopped, as he looked down on the ground. “Look, I emphasize with that guy, but the reality is the reality. Just like me, he’s just another dude facing a crisis. And just like me, he’s just a number for those with the power to use him.”
“William…you’re not just a number to me,” Amelie said. “Quite frankly, I consider you as a friend. A close one even. And…if you ever feel like that guy, I won’t just leave you by the wayside.”
“Amelie…why do you really keep me in this position?” William asked. “I often wonder, who I really am to you? Why am I your guard? Why is it not her, Lady Lubaine? Why…why did you turn me into the commander of JTF-Ludendorf?”
“Hmm…the 16th had mostly served me well though, William,” Amelie answered. “And you did win the Battle of Halia too. But more importantly, I think it’s because you’re one of the guys that I do know closely.”
“And that helps you how?”
“This conflict is about the division between women and men, is it not? Then tell me, without you giving me insights about men’s experiences and views…how exactly would I have an idea of how to manage this entire…circus properly?”
“I see…I guess I had acted as your de facto adviser already.” William laughed. “And I thought I was just your driver and bodyguard.”
“Well, you could be all three.” Amelie chuckled. “And as far as I can say, you’re doing a spectacular job at that, though…you do seem quite a bit of a downer at times though.”
“...If you hired me for being an optimist, then that’s your first mistake.”
“I know, I know. Still, I think you get the drift. Again, I hired you for many things, especially since you do well in your job…” Amelie sped up her pace a bit at walking, catching up to William. “But also, as I’ve said, you’re my friend. Like Nia. And you help me well. I really hope that answers your question.”
He looked down, chuckling a bit. “Quite frankly, I never would imagine that a woman would see me as a friend. But even weirder…I think I consider you the same too, Amelie. I wonder how that happened.”
“Why, can’t men and women have a positive relationship with each other?” Amelie asked. “Don’t you think it’s simply destructive that we somehow drove humanity to the point where men and women are by default…in opposition?”
“They say it’s supposed to be the opposite. Yet, when you look around, it’s as if it’s impossible.” The two of them stopped in front of a cafe. Young women came in and went out without much care, smiling and joking with their friends as they did. But on the side, three soldiers looked at the cafe distantly, seemingly mentally debating whether or not they should come in, soon, they dispersed away in an almost retreating fashion.
“But I guess that’s just what happens when men’s world is radically different to women’s,” William said, pointing at them. “Look at it, just a simple pleasure of buying something…one finds it easy to obtain, but the other struggles. It’s as if they’re conditioned already to not even seek it, but fear it.”
Amelie smiled. “Do you want to have something from there?”
“No, not really,” William staunchly said. “I was just nothing an observation of mine to answer your question. I hope it’s satisfactory.”
“Hmm…I think you were also eyeing some of the good stuff in the posters outside,” Amelie grinned. “You know, we can come in together inside. I think I’m in the mood for some sweet drinks as well.”
“I have my own lunch and food in the November Palace.”
“You don’t really choose what you eat and just take whatever’s on the menu,” Amelie pointed out. “Don’t lie, you literally just eat whatever the staff prepares for the day.”
“Eh, choosing is a pain. Food is food.”
“Did you pick up that habit from the trenches as well?” Amelie asked, and William stopped. “Hmm…you know what, I think we should break that habit down. William, this time, you’re choosing what drink you would like.”
He crossed his arms. “Water.”
And Amelie shook her head. “No, a better one this time. That you chose. William, you have to live life too, to be honest. You’re not in the trenches anymore. You’re here. Please…heal yourself.”
Amelie took his hands, now fully pulling him straight into the cafe, while William reluctantly followed. “I’m not…”
“You don’t belong in the frontlines where you can’t choose. William, you belong here. In a life where you can choose.”