The private sent to inform the platoon leader returned to the front line.
He did not complete his mission; a sudden barrage of artillery didn't kill him but knocked him out. When he woke up, he found the communication line down once again. The platoon command post was empty, all reserves had been sent to the front line, and unable to find anyone, the private decided to return on his own.
The sergeant had told him to come back and collect the bodies. The private thought, once he finished collecting his brothers' bodies, he would stay on the front line with them.
When he returned to the front line, the sergeant was gone. Apart from the five or six men desperately firing in the trench, there were only two burning Mecha wreckages and dozens of bodies, both theirs and the enemies'. The burning Mecha could still be made out in shape, the private knew this kind of Mecha was called [Holy Armor] 22, belonging to low-level Mecha, but for infantry, such Mecha were a nightmare.
