For Peace
By: ShadowHawk (SapphyreBird)
A lone man stood, shivering in the winter landscape to which he had been condemned to. Punished for a crime he did not commit. Sentenced to the Russian Front. Sentenced to die by the hand of the enemy.
But who really was the enemy? It used to be so clear to him; it was the Allies. That's who he had been told to hate. His leaders did their utmost to ensure they pounded that into the minds of their people. Brainwashed into slaughtering all who opposed the Führer and his beloved Third Reich. Led into the extermination of all who were not part of the master race, for they were the vermin standing between Hitler and the world.
But now... Now this man finally began to see the truth. He finally began to see through the lies that tied his nation together.
So many times, the innocent was blamed while the guilty was left to roam free. Free to incriminate more innocense. Free to brand them as traitors. Free to push them into the waiting arms of the most morbid of deaths... if fortune smiled down upon them.
In these dark times, Death was considered a salvation. A deliverance from a life filled with fear and plagued with injustice. A savior from the life that they created for themselves.
Freedom from the consequences of desperation.
The less fortunate would fall victim to their own people who would torture them in the most horrid ways. By his very own countrymen. Brothers turning on one another out of fear.
The man never realized how strong the instinct of self-preservation really was. Even he himself fell victim to its wrath. He too had been caught in the wave of corruption, forcing him to choose between his own personal safety or the safety of others... And instinct always prevailed. The plague of fear was always stronger.
It was Hitler's plague that turned friends into enemies within the blink of an eye. And now, this lone man saw just how strong a plague it was.
So there he stood, enveloped in the swift, snowy flurries. He was briefly confronted by the freezing winter wind as it swirled around him. In defense against the sudden gale, he hugged himself tightly, attempting to shield as much of his body as possible from the biting, frigid air.
Almost as quickly as it arose, the wind died down to nothing more than a faint whisper, allowing the snow to continue its gentle fall. He looked at the mournful sky. The soft snow drifted peacefully in its descent from the heavens above.
... Heaven...
Suddenly, an odd thought crossed his conscious. If he were to die, who would claim him? The beautiful, magnanimous angels? Or the infernal demons of conflagration? Eternal tranquility? Or everlasting damnation?
The nagging thought relentlessly pestered his soul. He had always feared the unknown, and now found himself standing on its foreboding edge. The absence of his knowledge only distressed him further, his soul becoming increasingly distraught with terror. Faith was now challenged by this trial of the nameless. He struggled to find adequate answers that would melt away the creeping horror that was slowly consuming his soul.
He clung to the hope and prayer of survival to satisfy the growing desperation... and it somehow managed to soothe his frantic mind. Perhaps it was also this hope that encouraged him to step into the unknown... to venture forth into his blackest nightmare.
The snow was coming down heavier now. It was becoming harder and harder to see what was in front of him. Perhaps if it were lighter, he would have seen what lay ahead of him; the ice, the cliff.
The icy wind began to pick up again, impaling his body with its frigidness. His face stung from the winter gales as he hugged himself tighter and tighter in an attempt to obtain some warmth. He continued trudging through the snow wearily, each step becoming harder and harder to complete.
He was so tired.
He knew not what he was searching for, nor did he know why he still persisted on fighting. Sooner or later, Death would catch up with him and claim him as its own. Yes. Death. The enemy he ran from and feared for so long, he now felt himself wishing for its friendly embrace.
He began contemplating on his predicament; How did this all come about? It all happened so quickly.
His reflective memories were suddenly interrupted as the ground went from heavy and thick to wet and slippery. He fought a lost battle to maintain his balance, but found himself losing quicker than he had anticipated. He gave in to the cruel laughs of winter and felt himself lose all control. His back slammed against the cold, solid ice as he slid downward. Before long, he felt himself airborne.
Temporary confusion numbed his mind until he realized what was transpiring; he was spiraling deeper and deeper into the dark chasm, where the salivating jaws of Death awaited him. He knew that this was the end… And he accepted his fate.
The windy arms suspending him above the earth soon vanished, letting his body crash upon the snow-blanketed ground. The force of the impact tore through his body, shattering the bones and shredding the flesh. Overwhelming agony screamed in his mind as its reverberating shrieks echoed throughout his being.
A warm, sweet, metallic liquid began flooding his mouth, choking him as countless images flashed before his tired eyes. The same sticky crimson seeped out from his broken body, staining the pure, innocent snow.
He now understood.
He wasn't strong enough, wasn't worthy enough for life. And, within the unprejudiced arms of Death, he found his final salvation, beckoning him. From the deepest depths of his soul, it sang with the everlasting tranquility he had longed for his entire life. At last, he found peace in the warm embraces of Death. It kissed away the fiery shackles that condemned him all his life to an eternal living hell.
The agony ripping through his body soon began to subside with a pleasant numbness. The pain slowly began melting away. Darkness would soon overcome the light. The rapid memories replaying themselves before his clouding eyes were slowly drowned out by a descending veil of shadow.
"It's time," softly whispered the echoes of Death.
He felt the light abandon him, betraying him to his dark, grim fate. He laid motionless, his body half-embedded in the ground as the drifting snow lazily accumulated upon him.
He closed the steel blue eyes that once sparkled with life for the last time. One more final thought breathlessly rang through his mind.
"... For peace..."
And then Colonel Wilhelm Klink surrendered to the serene shades of ebony.
Forever.
One more death for the Fatherland.
One more number among millions.
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Disclaimer: I do not own Hogan's Heroes, unfortunately... This story is just for the amusement of fans like myself. So there's no copyright infringement here!
I welcome all feedback. Please review and tell me what you thought of it! Also, if you have any advice or constructive criticism to give, please do so!! Thanks!
ShadowHawk