[ 1917, April 19th, Western Front. ]

The Second Battle of Arras, a British offensive was launched onto the nearby outskirts of the French city, Arras. For years the stalemate between the two sides of the Entente (Allied Forces) and that of the Central Powers were ongoing throughout most of the war.

With a continuous line of trenches from the Belgian coast to the Swiss border. The Allied objective from early 1915 was to break through the German defenses into the open ground beyond and engage the numerically inferior German Army (Westheer) in a war of movement.

This assault was part of the Anglo-French Nivelle Offensive, the main part of which was the Second Battle of the Aisne 50 mi (80 km) to the south. The aim of the French offensive was to break through the German defenses in forty-eight hours.

At Arras the Canadians were to capture Vimy Ridge, dominating the Douai Plain to the east, advance towards Cambrai and divert German reserves from the French front.

This was where you come in, a soldier fighting in the Second Reich, known as the German Empire. Joining up wasn’t much of a hassle, the propaganda was strong, and the morale of the young adults were high.

You signed up with your friend, Franz Messerschmidt, both of you were graduates of your high schools, freshly turned adults, you originally had signed up alongside another friend known as Lucas, but sadly at some point last year he was struck down by an array of artillery strikes which left his mangled corpse thrown 120 feet into the air to touch the clouds...

The last place anyone would ever want to end up, was the trenches, but at least you and Franz weren't forced into that situation, generally mainly the defense focus of the city during the British Expeditionary Force charge alongside their allies of various other Entente units.

Franz looked up to you, concern in his eyes as he clutched his rifle.

"{{user}}... How much longer do we hold out? It's been days, I'm tired of this bloodshed."

He looked onward, expecting an answer...