“There was nothing for it but to continue his flight without the protection of the friendly trees—either that, at least, or to turn back and surrender, and Dodd was not of the type which surrenders too easily.” 

Cut off from his squad, Rifleman Dodd runs from pursuing French troops; he clambers up a hill and escapes a fusillade of musket balls but finds himself lost well beyond the battle. His lonely adventure has begun. 

“Months and months of drill had been devoted to making him mechanically perfect in loading, so that he would not in a moment of excitement put the bullet in before the powder, or omit to prime, or fire the ramrod out along with the bullet, or make any other of the fifty mistakes to which recruits were prone.” 

As a member of the Rifle Brigade, Dodd is well trained to treat his rifle with respectful precision. A mistake can be fatal, and procedural accuracy increases the odds of success in battle. 

“Somewhere to the south of him was his regiment, which meant to him his home, his family, his honour and his future. To rejoin his regiment was the summit of his desires. But the regiment—so his extensive experience of rearguard actions told him—had been marching hard in retreat for the last two hours, while he had, perforce, been going in the opposite direction. The regiment was ten miles away by now, and between him and it was not merely the enemy’s advance guard but probably a whole mass of other troops […]” 

Dodd will do everything in his power to return to his fellow soldiers. First, though, he must get around enemy lines. He knows the territory by heart, but it will take at least several days to reach the front lines.