“So the dead army were created and I assume the machine worked...” Hawkins prompted Leballieur to continue.
“Indeed. The first subject to walk was a German officer named Sebastien Frank, a young man cut down in his prime by the most meagre of wounds that proved fatal. You see, to be used successfully the cadavers needed to be in good condition neurologically. Any candidates with brain or spinal injury were rejected. Frank died from a small lesion to the throat, a piece of glass I believe which severed his carotid artery. He was perfect. Young, intact. When I saw him walk again, his eyes black and lifeless, there was a euphoria followed by a savage guilt which is hard to bear. Like you Colonel, I have played a part in the downfall of Mankind and I am not quite sure how to compensate for my crime. I only hope this information will prove useful. Anyway, I have digressed. It was quickly established that the candidate who took control of Frank was none other than Von Hummel himself. He had taken a substantial risk in 'joining' with Frank. No one could have predicted the possible effects of combining living brain tissue in a symbiosis with a lifeless hulk of tissues which only sustained themselves initially with complex regulatory machinery. As you have no doubt seen, the experiment was successful and as in the human body, Von Hummel’s brain patterns were sufficiently significant that he subconsciously could regulate Frank's autonomic nervous system as well as his voluntary movements by the power of his thoughts. Naturally, we were astonished but even more so when it was established that the goal was to control more than just one of these walking dead simultaneously. Many of us thought it impossible but once again, we were proved incorrect as Von Hummel seemed to be able to multi-task to an efficient degree and still be able to 'detach' himself from the connection at will. The experiments continued at frantic pace around the clock. There was a perceived understanding that the Allied invasion grew close. Plans had been put into place to create a small army of these things which by now had acquired superb motor skills and although their active usefulness was short due to the need for regular intake of nutrition, they were in essence living robots, the lifeless machines you see today. Something else had become apparent as more and more pressure to perform was being loaded upon Von Hummel. He himself grew weary and day on day; the toil of remaining in control appeared to be taking a negative effect. He became withdrawn to the other scientists and seemed to be protected more by his closest aides. The Nazi's were pushing at every juncture, they knew the Allied forces were about to strike, they could not afford to miss the opportunity to repel them before they took a foothold in continental Europe. I was in receipt of more and more cadavers every day. The surgical procedures and conditioning of each body were becoming more efficient on a daily basis but it still took time, precious time they did not have. The Germans became fractious and cruel in their custodianship. We became less like 'guests' and more like slaves. The pressure to find enough suitable candidates for the procedure was telling and there was even talk about people being rounded up and brought in for 'conditioning'. Morally, it is one thing performing these procedures on people who have died a natural death or were a casualty of war and then there is another when warm bodies begin to turn up with blue lips. It seemed as if the Germans had gone mad, lost their sense of perspective. Such was the power of these beasts that the Nazi's felt they were their only hope of salvation. Then, yesterday morning, it all came to a head as you would say. We awoke in the dormitories to the sounds of gunfire and mayhem. Men were screaming and shouting, the alarm was sounded. We were, as a rule, always locked in our rooms at night. With exceptional panic, we could only wait for the door to open and accept our fate whatever that may be. Fortunately for me and a number of other prisoners, a gravely wounded German soldier that we had grown fond of found the strength and the honour to release us before he died. Bestowing upon us the information that the 'soldier's' had become rampant and lawless, he allowed us the fighting chance to live. I cannot begin to tell you of the horrors that occurred within those corridors as we were all but slain by our very creations.”
“Yet you have escaped?” Genevieve asked cynically, breaking Leballieur's rousing account.
“Indeed and only by the most incredible luck. As I ran aimlessly through the dark passageways, I knew that the main exit was not usable. I hid under the dead bodies of my colleagues as the soldiers walked past and when it fell silent, I found myself in the office of the Commandant. It was there that I found a door, clearly once concealed that seemed to have been left ajar. Further along a crudely mined passageway, I found his body. He had crawled almost twenty metres, mortally wounded. A fitting end perhaps. Astonishingly, the steep passage way ended at a small opening which upon inspection opened out into the scullery of a small butchers shop on the edge of the town centre. I can only guess that this tunnel was created for clandestine activity or perhaps for the very purpose of escape if the Allies threatened capture.”
“That is interesting.” Bauer noted. “As long as the tunnel has not been compromised, this could prove very advantageous.”
“If you are going in, then you should also know this. I am sorry; I talk a lot without saying anything. What I meant to say was that despite their heavy losses, we have seen with our own eyes the soldier's gathering the bodies of slain Germans and townsfolk. They drive around in trucks, throwing the corpses into them like dead calves ready for the butcher. It is not beyond my imagination to expect that Von Hummel might be harvesting more materials with which to bolster his numbers. The fact that he killed those that made it possible seems irrelevant. If he possesses the time and the knowledge acquisition to allow him to use his forces and begin multiplying, then we are all in very serious trouble indeed.”
“If that is the case, why run? Can't you see that it's now or never?” Hawkins said adamantly.
“I know, I know.” Leballieur replied with regret. “I was rather hoping that someone else more qualified would do the job for me.”
“You can still help us Jean-Paul, you can take us to the secret tunnel.” Bauer pleaded, he hoped he did not have to insist.
“To do this, you will have to cross the town and risk detection. This will be very difficult indeed as we have seen patrols roving about looking to eliminate stragglers.”
“We have killed them before, we will do it again.” Genevieve said confidently. Hawkins laughed at her attitude which seemed rather heroic. Maybe he had underestimated her again.
“Oh, I don't doubt that. You must be aware of this however, if you become a threat to Von Hummel, he will no doubt send everything he has at you. Once you have breached the inner laboratories, he is defenceless. If one of those monsters lays eyes on you in there, it is game over.” Leballieur seemed sure of himself and Hawkins did not quite understand his meaning.
“I don't get it.” The Young Brit remarked.
“Don't you see my young friend; the eyes of these creatures are the eyes of Von Hummel himself. He sees all; he controls them as one entity. Once he deems you as a threat, he will no doubt combine his forces and ensure you are eliminated. He does not need to send out a telegram to communicate your location.”
“Then we need a distraction.” Bauer said analytically.
“I wish I could help.” Leballieur whined as if he indeed was devoid of any more defiance.
“I am sure you can.” Bauer replied bringing a furrowed brow to the round faced French man and a wry smile to the German's.
CHAPTER 22
Whilst remaining conscious of the time and the dwindling daylight, Leballieur scouted the house to find a child's crayon from beneath the rubble of the upstairs bedrooms. Using the bare floorboards of the living room, the scientist began to draw from memory a fairly accurate representation of the research facility. Bauer, Hawkins and Genevieve all sat around gathering the information, watching carefully whilst Leballieur's minions scurried around keeping watch for any roving patrols.
“And this is a secure section that we were never allowed to access, perhaps a strategic area, armoury, communications e
tcetera.” Leballieur relished giving out his description; indeed his intelligence was well presented.
“Leballieur, how long do you think it would take to 'condition' more soldiers?” Hawkins inquired, it was on everybody's mind that the evening was drawing in and one more night's undisturbed sleep would be beneficial to all.
“For us it was a number of days, I would not bore you with the processes but the tissues must become acclimatised to a number of chemical stimulants. I would suggest that the soldier's numbers will not have increased as yet. Von Hummel must firstly be able to learn the required techniques.”
“This buys us a little more time to prepare, good.” Bauer said thinking ahead.
“Do you think Von Hummel knows what he is doing?” Hawkins asked. It was a good question that Leballieur could not know the answer to.
“I believe that there is a chance that he is quite unaware of his surroundings, his own mortality. He has become a slave to the machine.” The scientist was no stranger to conjecture.
“This is possible.” Bauer added. “When I used the machine, I felt no compunction to leave the body of the creature I inhabited until I was torn away by its death. If Von Hummel is still aware of his actions, then not only is he clearly deranged he might also be negotiated with. It is something we must consider.”
“Negotiate?” Genevieve jumped in. “Only a fool would stand before one of those things and give it a chance to blow your head off. To kill them we have already seen that striking first, striking hard is the only way.” Genevieve was adamant that diplomacy was lunacy, experience had clearly dictated that these beings were unthinking yet relentless in their quest for blood.
“I believe a tactic of frontal assault would prove very detrimental to your health. In the town centre, there are several thousand bodies of men who have already tried that method.” Leballieur's tone grew serious. “In my opinion, you must get in without detection and somehow make your way to the laboratories. There is a central chamber where the machine is situated...here.” Leballieur pointed out a round room on the map. “As I have mentioned previously, if one should detect your presence then Von Hummel will unleash hell upon you. You must somehow draw the soldiers away from the laboratories and buy enough time for you to access the complex.”
“We don't have the manpower for such a feat. We have to assume that Von Hummel is not an idiot, he will surely detect such an obvious ploy.” Hawkins remarked drawing a reply from Bauer.
“John, Von Hummel is an intellect; he is neither a strategist nor a soldier. He has a fundamental weakness in that his forces cannot respond to a changing situation; they rely on his input only. He may be well guarded but his position is weak when facing guerrilla tactics. The crucial aspect is the secret passage. If it has been undetected, it is a back door into the heart of the complex and his undoing.” Hawkins nodded and felt comforted by the Colonel's confidence.
“We can sneak in there and put a bullet in Von Hummel's head before he even knows we are there.” Genevieve said most eloquently.
“Indeed.” Bauer chuckled.
“So how can we draw the soldier's attention away from the labs? In order to get to the 'machine room', we would, if this map is anything to go by, walk across half the tunnels in the bunker to get there. You can guarantee that Von Hummel will have some kind of personal guard.” Hawkins asked knowing that anyone who triggered the 'distraction' would be in serious peril.
“More importantly, is there an easier way to kill these bastards than using magazines of bullets?” Hawkins continued remembering his sobering experiences of engaging them hand to hand. Leballieur put his thinking cap on.
“The soldiers are technically dead already. They do not breathe in a conventional way. Their blood is replaced with an oxygen rich chemical compound that is far more efficient than our haemoglobin. The nutrition they take in does not get digested in the normal way. It slowly disperses energy and invigorates their 'blood' at the same time. The operating efficiency of these soldiers diminishes quickly when their food supply is cut short. Unfortunately, in the bunker there is enough nutrition to last several months. It was believe it or not, quite easy to manufacture. Clearly a siege would not work. Bodily harm will of course be detrimental to their fighting performance but as they do not feel pain, they will continue with their mission until fluid loss begins to take its toll. Even with half its body missing, the soldiers still operate quite well and would be still a deadly foe. A toxic dose however, a nerve agent of some kind would diminish their capacity significantly as it would you or I.”
Bauer sighed and leaned back to the wall stretching his long legs out.
“It is unlikely that we could indeed find the materials for, deploy and survive a chemical assault. It is a shame however as the bunker is not only their fortress but also their weakness. Escape from such an attack would be unlikely.”
“Chemical assault?” Hawkins inquired, this was news to him.
“Unfortunately, the use of cyanide gas is something my German comrades have explored in recent times.” Bauer looked grim.
“Zyklon-B?” Leballieur asked solemnly. Bauer looked amazed that the scientist was aware of the compound.
“Yes, it would have the desired effect but I highly doubt that there would be any in the Caen base.”
“Indeed, I hear that you save that pleasure for the Jews.” Leballieur remarked bitterly. Bauer looked up in surprise but also great shame.
“A great many horrors have been committed in the name of my people, I for one do not condone them, and in fact I abhor them. Let us do our utmost to prevent another and not dwell on the past.” Bauer was clearly upset by Leballieur's home truths.
“Is it not better to take the knowledge we have learned and use it? Get out of this town and communicate with your command, tell them about what's happened here and prepare them for what's to come. Like you said, we don't have the ability to take them down in numbers.” Hawkins was getting nervous about what was being asked of him. Genevieve sat crossed legged on the cold floor.
“No, we must act now Hawkins. Our path is clear; we have already seen the Germans have failed. The entrance to the bunker is clearly well protected. We must use stealth. In the resistance, we achieved a great many victories through the use of our brains not our guns.”
Hawkins looked over to Genevieve; she had shamed him with her courage.
“Then let me be the one who stirs up a diversion, I was never one for sneaking around anyway.” Hawkins announced with bold abandon.
“No, we stick together. Our friend Leballieur and his little team of soldier's will do that job quite nicely.” Bauer dictated much to the behest of the French scientist.
“OK, we will go along with your plan but we will not stand toe to toe with those monsters. I have a guilty conscience to appease but my boys here do not deserve to perish at their hands.”
Bauer nodded with acceptance, he did not for one minute expect Leballieur's child soldiers to go into battle and face certain death.
“None of you will battle the soldier's; however, it will be a long night.”
CHAPTER 23
When darkness fell it the blackest of nights. Heavy cloud cover darkened the skies and Bauer’s makeshift squad of misfits ventured out of the house and into the deserted streets of Caen. Their mission was to find and collect anything that could be reasonably used as an explosive or indeed anything that would even make an impressive noise. Lightly armed and taking no chances, each of the familiar three companions were accompanied by one of Leballieur's little soldier's and their agile command of moving around the town undetected was apparent. They had quickly adapted to the conditions and learned the routes the cold soldiers used to patrol the town.
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