Private Morlane glanced at the watch that he'd taken off and left on the small table by his cot, rubbing his sleep-weary eyes as he noticed what time it was. Fifteen minutes until dawn, or at least until when dawn was slated to be, according to all of the records that he had read over the last few mornings.

The last few mornings had been early ones. They were camped next to a large farm, with a broken-down wooden fence surrounding the grounds, where a large rooster loved to perch at sunrise and crow so loudly that every living thing within thirty miles was all but forced to wake.

But not this morning. Before they had all fallen asleep the night before, they had agreed that something had to be done about this eager rooster. Something had to be done to allow the already exhausted regiment sleep in just once.

Quickly pulling on his uniform, Private Morlane slipped out of his tent and through the camp as quietly as he could. If he had woken them all up before they rooster had, it surely would have been his head on the chopping block and not the rooster's. With one leap Private Morlane had made it over the rotten wooden fence and into the private field, searching around for where the rooster may have been.

Taking and holding an incredibly deep breath, Private Morlane made his way toward the chicken coop, where he would have only assumed the rooster would have been, pulling his empty duffel bag off of his back as he spotted the large cock strutting out of the hen house like he owned the place.

And he looked like he was ready to crow.

Private Morlane knew that he could never let that happen.