Gunshots ravaged Pier’s ears as he cowered in the trench He knew that the soldier’s life was not for him. If it were not for the large debt he owed back in his, he would never have enlisted into the British Army. At first, the war was a godsend to him. He knew that the debt agency couldn’t touch him once he was outside of the colony, and it would help even more to be outside the Empire. But now, the war was a never-ending nightmare to Pier. He wanted nothing more than to escape it and return to Saint John, even if that meant having to pay the debt. Pier’s hearing came back just in time for him to hear a cannonball soar over his head which hit the soldier directly to his left, leaving a large hole in his chest.
 “What have I gotten myself into?” Pier thought, as he slowly crawled to the back exit of the trench. Pier did not like fighting, not one bit. He’d rather be sitting at his home, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and sipping upon his tea. Pier stuck close to the back wall, to avoid bumping into firing soldiers. Whilst crawling, Pier’s captain, Josef, caught him attempting to desert. Josef, staring at Pier, walked up to him.
Josef, looking pier dead in the eye, said “What do you think you’re doing, private Charleston?”
Pier, worried that he would be labelled a traitor, quickly responded “I was just…. going back to the armoury to replenish my ammo.” Josef appeared suspicious of it at first, which startled Pier.
“Any chance is better than a 0% chance”, Pier thought to himself, crying internally. Lying was not Pier’s specialty.
After thinking about if for a moment, Josef responded, “Let me see your cartridge box, then”. Pier slowly took the cartridge box from his side, and handed it over to the Captain. He had fired a single round during his battle, and it was clear to the Captain what he was doing.
“What are you really up to?” Asked Josef.
“I… I was attempting to flee. I can’t take this. So much death, so much suffering, so much cruelty. Why are we fighting? There is no point whatsoever. All that comes of it is suffering, and I’ve had enough.” Pier said, in a confident tone. Josef looked at him for a moment, and then began walking north.
“Come with me.” Said Josef, sounding a slight bit happier than when he had caught Pier attempting to escape. They walked down a makeshift path that went to from the trenches at the top of the hill to the makeshift army camp at the bottom.
“You know,” Josef said to Pier, was walking several feet behind him, “I’m glad that I ran into you.”
“And why would that by, sir?” Pier asked, in a curious tone. He was surprised to hear that Josef was not furious at him, considering that the act of desertion is normally highly frowned upon in the British Army.
“It just so happens that I was planning on doing the same.” said Josef, surprising Pier, “I’ve lost several of my closest friends and family here, several of them less than an hour ago. I don’t want to end up like them, leaving this god-forsaken planet early. So, I’ve written up a plan to escape to Petites, not 300 Kilometres from where we are standing at this very second.”
Pier knew exactly where Petites was. It was where he lived in his early 20s. To Pier, it was a wonderful place, and he only moved back to Saint John due to being homesick.
“How can I help?” Asked Pier, hoping to join him on the journey.
“I just need one thing from you.” said Josef.
“Doesn’t sound too hard”, replied Pier.
Josef said, with a serious look on his face, “First, I need you to fire a flintlock directly into my shoulder. Second, you need to tell a Major that I’m being transported to Petites for medical care, and that you’re coming along to stop me from bleeding out on the boat ride there.”
“Wait, why, sir?” asked Pier. He knew that he would not have the courage to assault his new friend like that, even with permission.
Josef look behind him, and then looked Pier in the eyes and said “This way, I really will need medical attention, and I won’t have to lie. Do you know much of a coward you would appear to be if you just deserted a battle like that?”
Now came the hard part, shooting him in the shoulder. Pier had never actually fired a gun, and didn’t understand why he was not taught in boot camp, but knew the basics.
“Let’s see, just insert the gunpowder, load the bullet, aim, and pull the trigger.” Pier said to himself.  Josef began to hand him the flintlock, but stopped before putting it into Pier’s hand.
“You do know how to use one, right?” asked Josef, wondering if the person who fled on his first day as a soldier could actually use a ranged weapon.
“Of course, sir!” Pier responded, hoping that he would not accidently shoot the Captain’s face off. He was not very fond of such weaponry. He preferred the classics – steel swords, iron daggers, etc. Pier loaded the gun, and kept flashing his eyes onto the Captain’s, checking to see if he looked worried. This way, he would know if he was loading it right or not. He grabbed a cartridge from the box which was strapped to his side. He slowly inserted it into the barrel of the small gun, trying to not drop onto the moist ground. To his surprise, he managed to load the flintlock properly. Josef seemed rather impressed, surprised to see that Pier could actually do it without shooting himself.
Pier raised the flintlock and stated “Here we go, sir. Any second thoughts?” Pier hoped that the Captain would decide to not go through with it. Although he truly wanted to escape from the treacherous battlefield, Pier did not know if he could shoot someone, let alone someone on the same side.
“None whatsoever” replied Josef. Pier, finger trembling, pulled the trigger on the flintlock. A loud noise was emitted from it, startling Pier, even though he knew that it was coming.
Pier, eager to leave the dreaded place, agreed immediately. He ran over to Major Adam, who was in his personal tent at the time, and told exactly what Josef had instructed him to. Major Adam, doubting this, asked for proof, not expecting it to be true. Pier showed him Josef’s wound, shocking Adam.
“Alright, go ahead. Sorry I doubted you.” Major Adam said, waving goodbye.
“Isn’t it immoral” said Pier, “to lie like that?”
“We didn’t lie, I really was shot.” Responded Josef, “I never said it wasn’t a friendly that had actually shot me. Withholding information is not lying.”