Twenty-Five Past Three Summary

Thomas's company is sent to the Wipers now and not their quiet sector that they are used to. The entire village is in ruin, and there are more animals than villagers left. The trenches here are terrible. They are not well made, and there is water and worse in the bottom. They have a new company commander, a young lieutenant who seems to know less about fighting a war than the regulars do. One day, the bombing starts, and doesn't end for two whole days. They all sit in the trenches, huddled in their own private misery, waiting for the bombardment to stop. They all know that once it stops, the Germans will soon arrive, with their machine guns and gas, but they all are fine with it, as it means that the earth around them must at least...