Gallipoli
"Come one and all and enroll into the royal Irish regiment. Yes you could help further the British Empire and destroy the Hun." Shouted the old officer with a thick Scottish accent.
It was a fine spring day in the lively city of Belfast, Ireland. The sun stood high up in the sky as residents of the city bustled through the streets. The laughter of women and the greeting of old friends hovered in the air. J
John-Patrick Barter was among the young men standing in line on front of a building with big letters reading "Recruitment Office." He had blond hair that resembled the wheat fields of Saskatchewan. Green eyes that outshined emeralds and made the Irish grass look like insignificant regular old lawn. He had a perfectly chiseled face. John waited, he could hardly contain his excitement, in a couple of minutes his name would be one of the millions to go down in history as one of the soldiers of the Triple Entente.
"John, John, there you are, I gave been looking all over for you." Said Eddie
"Well here I am" he said
Eddie looked up for a moment
"So you just couldn't ignore it? Even after I told you about all the horrors of this war" he said.
"I'm sorry ED but this is the chance of a lifetime. We could become heroes!"
"We whoa there John I think you should get that noggin checked out because I have absolutely no interest in joining this war!"
"Fine then but don't come begging me to help you find a girlfriend when there all with the war heroes." Said John
"Oh come on like that's going to happen, I'll have you know that the ladies have a knack for Eddie Brown" he said
John rolled his eyes and said "Yeah sure but it really will happen if you're not a war hero"
Eddie looked at John like if he was an idiot. John did not speak for a couple of seconds.
"Ok so maybe I made that up but you'd be considered a hero by everyone, and think of the stories we'll be able to tell.
Eddie thought for a moment looking confused and baffled. Finally he answered.
"Ok I'll do it, with the exception that you promise we'll become heroes"
"Deal" said John"
About half an hour passed and it was almost their turn just one more person to do.
"Name?" said the officer
"Stewart Pewdershmitt" said the boy
"Age?"
"Uh 14"
"Sorry can't let you in"
"What why not" asked Stewart
"Army regulations no one under 16 is allowed, now please step aside"
"Great we're doomed were not 16" said Eddie
"Relax" Said John "I have a plan"
"Next please" said the officer
"Name?"
"John-Patrick Barter"
"Age?"
"16"
"Are you sure"
"Of course I'm sure"
"All right then here's you're uniform and rifle you're battalion is the 16th and you leave in two days.
"Thank you sir"
"Next" shouted the military official
John waited outside the building over looking the harbor. In the distance a huge transport capacity. John could see all the men boarding the ship.
"Pretty soon I'll be with them" he thought
Eddie walked out, no expression sat upon his face.
"Well did you make it are you in? What battalion are you in?"
"Yes I made it but I'm not in the same battalion as you"
"What? Well which battalion are you in?"
John asked disappointed
"The 16th army" said Eddie
"What there's no such thing is as"
And before john could finish his sentence Eddie burst out laughing. John gave him a light punch to the shoulder,
Eddie was the type to always joke about everything. He had a great sense of humor and the fact that John had fallen for that trick was utterly embarrassing. But the fact that Eddie could make you laugh even if you were in the foulest mood he would cheer you up. That was one of the main reasons him and John had become such good friends that and the fact that they shared the same interests. Eddie had jet black hair and brown eyes. He wasn't very tall but he was strong.
"So what battalion are you in" asked John
"The 16th"
John's face lit up
"We're in the same battalion and were going to war in two days."
"Yeah that's great well I'd better go pack"
"I'll see you bright and early on Monday" said John
Monday morning John woke up bright and early, he put on his kaki brown uniform tightened his belt strapped his gun around his shoulder and made his way downstairs. He quickly filled up his canteen grabbed a slice of toast and left a note to his parents explaining about him joining the army John lightly opened the door and tip-toed out of his house. Tears of both joy and sorrow filled his eyes. He was sad because he was leaving his family and life in Belfast but at the same tome he felt proud for he was about to become a hero for his country. John hailed a taxi. A black car stopped and John got in.
"Where to?" asked the taxi driver
"John Samuel Graham Shipyard"
As the taxi drove away from his house John began to question if he was willing to do this. The cabby pulled up in front of a colossal ship. John got out and saw Eddie
"You ready for this?" asked John
"Yeah" said Eddie
As the two 14 year old boys climbed up the ramp that look back upon the city that had raised them, they realized they might never see home again. They took a deep breath and entered the ship.
End of part 1