Chapter 3!


Special Thanks (-kind of-)

xMechaSheikx - Glad I had you hooked so thoroughly, it makes me smile big :) Anyways, Maxis is digging his grave indeed and I had no idea that your b-day was that close lol. I love weird coincidinks like that! I hope this chapter has you just as hooked as I like it myself. Also, thanks for your input on my questions, I am considering redoing my first chapters to where they don't have accents. Oh well, no biggie. I will figure it out

YourBestFriendAizen - That's so true :) And don't worry, no one in their right mind would flirt with Maxis, that was just one reason why Richtofen didn't like her.(And Sophia's dumb. I don't like her myself) Also, I think you will catch a glimpse of what's gonna happen next...ahem...

CiaraJacobs - :) Richtofen was in love with Emily. Don't know if anyone's concluded it yet, but she is dead. It was just one more thing to make him become a bitter military person. I'm considering doing a oneshot off this story for that to explain their relationship better, but oh well. Who knows what I will do!

xRosexInxThexSnowx - Definitely making more and be assured that there's still plenty of chapters to come for this story.

PurpleKillerPanda - Thanks for following my story and for the review. I'm glad you liked my ideas!

Thanks all of you awesome reviewers! I love reviews, they are one of the coolest things ever. They let you know how others are feeling about your story and so far I've only gotten positive feedback which is really awesome! I want to give you all virtual hugs and cookies for your support which I would have a hard time updating without.

Seriously, you guys are epic and incredible!


III. Project Verrückt

The long black train rattled into Berlin, slowing, steam puffing into the air from the dark train engine pulling approximately a dozen passenger cars. It bore four scientists, all of which had a mission. Their mission was Project Verrückt, so it was little surprise that General Edward Richtofen was thoroughly unhappy on the blazing hot day.

Richtofen stared out the window of his compartment sullenly. It was way too hot to be anything but sullen. He had met Dr. Rafael Groph mere hours ago for the first time just before they had boarded the train out of Breslau.

He was an interesting man for sure. He was older, with short, graying hair and smile lines on his face. He was about average on the height and size. His clean-shaven face was orderly and concise as if his small nose, eyes, and mouth had all measured the distance from each other to get in the right spot. His eyes were a gentle sea green and he seemed to be quite the opposite of Dr. Maxis in everything from his looks to his natural easiness.

There were only four scientists going in all. Dr. Richtofen, Dr. Groph, Dr. Schuster, and Dr. Harvey Yena, another American. Richtofen was certain the cons outweighed the pros by far.

Harvey seemed to be trying to get as far away from his fellow scientists as he possibly could; shrinking into his corner of the compartment and staring at the ceiling. Attempts to start a conversation with the sharp-faced, bearded, black-haired man were shrugged off with 'mm-hmms' and 'aws'.

Richtofen had a strange sense of déjà vu about the ride. It reminded him of the time he and four others had ridden to France to uncover secrets of the strange element, so long ago. Now it was a train ride that was only a couple of hours and the men were different. Very different. Also, the weather could not be more opposite with the sun beating down fiercely and the air thick and hard to breath.

Just sitting down was enough to make sweat beads roll and one to shift in misery. Richtofen, for a small amount of comfort, wore a military style dress, but had long since taken off his tan coat. He was irritated at the weather and at Maxis. Almost to alleviate it, and unbeknownst to the others, he also had placed a combat knife in his boot, frustrated at the fact he was unable to sneak in a pistol. There was just no room for one. He would have to make do, though.

As they rode in the train, Richtofen spoke to Dr. Groph to learn more of his new 'boss'.

"So, why'd you join Group 935?" He asked the man.

"I just want to learn the machinations of life. I believe there are higher sciences that primitives may have referred to as magic. Thus, magic is real. It's simply a science that hasn't been tapped by the human race, something I want to do." Dr. Groph had stated, looking fairly excited as he'd spoken.

"And you think this project will...do that?"

The man shrugged. "Every project here is on that very goal. I just wanted to head one for once. I like the idea of being a head scientist when something ground-breaking is discovered. Especially since I have great faith in Group 935." He smiled. "And this project is a very promising one."

Richtofen nodded his understanding. "I see. Do you know how many other private off-branches of Group 935 Maxis is organizing besides Der Riese and this one?"

"I've heard rumors of others...but nothing confirmed. Why?"

"I would just like to know why Maxis is hiding things from us that's all."

"He fears spies and rightly so. Just check out how many nationalities have already involved themselves in this. No offense, Dr. Yena." He nodded apologetically at the man in the corner.

The man's response was to grunt back.

"Well, I'll take that as an 'okay'." Dr. Groph muttered.

The men finally exited the train and stood in a train station of milling people. The area was thrown in a harsh light from the burning hot sun, and everything felt incredibly sluggish. It was rather miserable. They cast their gazes about, hoping to find their ride which was supposed to be there. Indeed, it arrived in the form of a newer black car not long after the men had gathered their bags and began walking to the street nearby.

They arrived at the Wittenau Sanatorium about a half hour later after struggling to weave through crowded streets. As asylums go, it was rather big; a square complex of rooms all behind a high fence and gate, bleached white from years of exposure to the elements. The place already felt wrong and it was rumored that the Fuhrer came to visit the patients here moments before they were euthanized.

Richtofen had seen much in his lifetime, but this place gave him the creeps just from looking at it.

The others seemed just as unsettled as their car was allowed through the gates by two guards and they rolled to a stop in the main courtyard where an intricate fountain spewed a steady stream of gentling water. To Edward, it only made the entire situation worse. One of his annoyances was anything with the pretense of something, when it was actually something else completely different.

Like a calming cool fountain, when Richtofen was sure there was nothing calming or relaxing about this place.

American Dr. Peter McCain soon came out to greet them as their ride left. He had light brown hair and face that looked once normally easy-going like he'd once had a ready smile, but his eyes looked haunted, as if his work had deeply disturbed him.

The general did another take on the Asylum surrounding them. What horrors had been seen within? He was already uneasy and the thought of what lay within was very worrying. It wasn't so much that he feared it, but felt it would somehow effect.

"Aw, I was sent a memo that you'd be arriving today." Peter greeted Dr. Groph. "Dr. Groph, correct?"

"Yes that'd be me."

"I apologize that I can't give a more hearty welcome. I'll be honest, there's nothing warm or heartening about this place."

Richtofen thought he imagined it, but he swore he heard a bone-chilling scream from within the walls. But the looks on the others' faces told him he hadn't been imagining it. He glanced up unto the window and thought he caught a glimpse of icy blue eyes, but he blinked and they were gone.

Dr. McCain winced. "Not all of the...patients...are...cooperative." He explained hesitantly. It was as if he feared judgment from the new arrivals.

They walked into the cool building and the general wished he hadn't. The coolness was the only comforting aspect about it. Edward could practically smell the horror from the ancient building as they entered the main door. It was the smell of too many cleaners; bleach and lye. Too much, as though to cover something. If he were to guess, he'd say that many atrocities had been seen here. Many wrong-doings. He was ready to leave this place. There was no way he was staying until November.

He'd once thought that the military was bad, that zombies were terrifying, and that the stories that escalated about these kinds of places were lies and rumors. Folk superstition. He was sure though that this place was the most horrifying thing he'd ever walked into.

It wasn't something you could see upon first glance. The walls were plain white and clean, but it was obvious they had once been dirty and possibly bloodstained. The checkered red and white floor were the same. The yellow, dim lights gave them a sickening creamy hue. But it was in the air and the mood of the men where it was thickest. The workers who were walking through the main lobby were silent for the most part, calmly doing what must be done. They made little eye contact and said even less. The occasional scream echoed down the hallways and drilling sounds followed.

"What exactly are you doing here?" Richtofen snapped before he could stop himself.

Peter McCain's eyes glittered with understanding. "We try to help the...unfit. Some of the patients think that we are trying to harm them, even if all we are doing is trimming their hair. Their screams are of fear, not pain." He tried to explain.

Richtofen had meant Project Verrückt. Was the man trying to hide it from the other scientists, or from the workers and nurses at the sanatorium. Either way, that made it worse.

As they walked onward, staring around at their surroundings, Richtofen swore he felt the pressure of fierce eyes glaring at him from somewhere. When he turned to look though, he saw nothing out-of-place. He knew he was being jumpy when he thought he saw a shifting shadow. Peter began speaking about the project, but Edward could not concentrate on what he was saying, he was too busy letting his military instincts get the better of him and keeping an eye out for trouble.

Richtofen glanced down another hallway where a door slammed shut rather suddenly and loudly. The others were listening to McCain and didn't seem to notice the odd occurrence. Richtofen, who had fallen a few feet behind the others, stopped and stared down the dim hall, frowning as blood roared in his ears. The others were already on the move and took no notice of his halt, turning a corner and disappearing from his view.

Richtofen instantly grabbed the knife from his boot and began to walk slowly down the hall, listening carefully for noise. He approached the door, breathing evenly. He reached it and tried to look within. Unfortunately the lights inside the room were off and he could see nothing.

"I'm not sure what it is you are looking for, but it's not in there. Only a dead body is." said a lilting voice calmly behind him.

Richtofen whirled around as it spoke, knife raised and ready to fight. He was mildly surprised to find himself staring into an all-to-familiar but unpleasant face. It was Walram Fleischer.

"Seems you finally landed yourself in a fitting place." The Illuminati man continued evenly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Richtofen asked guardedly, angry to be snuck up on for no apparent reason.

Walram shrugged, staring out a window to the courtyard below. "In with the crazies. That's what I mean. There will come a time when you understand that being crazy is the most powerful thing you can be. Controlled insanity, chaos. There is nothing more perfect than an insane man who can control his desires. Wouldn't you agree?"

"Is that how you view yourself?" Richtofen asked.

"Yes. Everything is perfect insanity. These humans try to force order on a world whose natural state is insanity. In this way, the Nazis are very amusing."

"You speak like you aren't even human."

Walram laughed. "Yes. You said yourself that Schneider spoke of who I truly served, for I mistakenly let him in on a secret. The truth though, is that I serve the Masters of Chaos. No one else. I'm in with the Illuminati so that I can see just what the elites of Earth plan. This world and others have been at war with themselves because they still do not understand that mayhem is the only way."

"Why tell me all of this? Why the attitude change? You seemed pretty angry last time I mentioned it."

"True. But my Masters have had a convenient...change of heart. They have decided that you will be apart of us one day."

Richtofen stared, speechless, at this apparently wacko man. He wondered vaguely if he was hallucinating all of this, which seemed likely considering where he was at. He was pretty sure that this asylum was going to be the end of his mind, which he'd once been very proud of.

"Join you?" He managed.

"Yes."

"Why would I even want to?"

Walram turned to leave. "Because of your true identity. Because of the Masters. Because this world will one day need us to show it the way. That's where you will come in."

Richtofen called, feeling confident. "I'm not going to, Walrus!"

"You say that now. Things will change faster than you can blink and when it does, you will have nothing left but true power." He seemed to fade from view which reinforced the general's belief that it had been a simple hallucination.

Richtofen went looking for the others, frowning as he felt lost in the hallways. He no longer felt worried though, only extremely annoyed and vexed. He couldn't understand what had just happened. Had it been his own head playing tricks, or something else?

He rounded a corner and nearly ran into Kline Schuster. The man jumped hard, his young face taut with fear and jumpiness.

"Where have you been? Peter is going to do a presentation soon and Dr. Groph sent me to find you." Kline said as soon as he recovered from his initial shock.

"Kline. Do you think it would be possible to teleport with a machine using the element 115?" Richtofen said, ignoring the man's first statement. Then he himself paused. It was a strange thing to ask, since he hadn't even been thinking about teleporting. In fact, he was pretty sure the last time he'd given that topic serious though was years ago, when he'd been working on stray projects and designs when he was bored.

The younger man gave him a strange look and then smiled suddenly. "I don't know, Element 115 is said to be able to do strange things."

"Doesn't matter. Come on then, let's go find the others." Richtofen said, wondering at his own sudden strangeness.

They turned and began walking the way Kline had come from. After a few minutes, they arrived at the room where the 'presentation' would take place. Upon entering, Richtofen noticed about three things all at once. One, was a patient strapped to a hospital bed under a window on the other side in a small room. Two, was the scientists standing-no crowding-around the unfortunate, crazy man, making the room feel even smaller. Three, was that Peter McCain was poised over the patient, a syringe in his hands with a glowing blue liquid in it. The scientists' eyes flickered the two newcomers.

They didn't wait for us, the thought flashed through Edward's mind.

The patient eyed Peter McCain with wide eyes. The American was carefully preparing the needle, flicking at it and making sure it was right.

"Don't do that, Dr. McCain!" Cried Richtofen in horror once the scene registered in his head. He saw confused looks from his colleagues as the man plunged the needle in the patient's arm and pressed the liquid into the crazy man's veins.

The man in the restraints thrashed violently in agony, screaming. Terror flooded Richtofen as the man's skin took on a sickly grey hue. A familiar look on his face that Richtofen remembered seeing on Karl Kommer's face. Void and desolate, lacking all but the most basic primal instincts. The screams turned into unnatural howls as the beastly eyes began to glow dangerous red. Then the struggling stopped and the patient's mouth lolled open, face strangely loose. The creature hesitated a moment and then moaned loudly as the men stared at it. All of sudden it resumed its thrashing, but this time it looked like it wanted to make the men surrounding it into a meal.

"Shit! Same result!" Growled McCaine as he whipped out his pistol and shot the zombie's head. The gunshot rang loud and harsh in their ears.

Yena and Groph cringed and looked away in time when they had seen the pistol, but poor Schuster vomited right there on the floor, too naïve to have looked away in time. Richtofen was as pale as a ghost and looked mortified by the grotesque display, but he hadn't looked away.

"Zombie." He whispered, paralyzed and thinking of France with bitterness and regret.

He was certain Maxis was out for revenge on him. Somehow the man had known this would get to his head, Edward was sure.

"Gentlemen, welcome to Project Verrückt." Said Peter McCain grimly, wiping blood off his gun.


End of chapter 3!

Creepy stuffs huh?