Chapter Four
Oberst
Silence pervaded the desert.
Scratch that.
Silence pervaded the shithole. A breeze flurried by, echoing through the hollowed cavities of the dead. A worn photograph flitted across the battlefield. It was pinned to the ground by a shiny black boot.
Ulquiorra bent down to pick up the photograph. He examined it, his finger tracing the edge of the hole in the center.
"What you looking at?" Fuchs skipped over. He had the soldiers spread out and search for clues, survivors, and most importantly, the American soldiers.
Someone should have warned him that this leech would be tagging along. It was probably the general's way of punishing him for his defiance at the meeting.
"They were here," Ulquiorra said.
"How long ago?" Fuchs asked.
Ulquiorra flipped over the photo, where blood coated the back. He spread his index finger across the dried blood, feeling its bumpy texture. "Several days," he said. "See if more of them died here."
"More?"
Ulquiorra tapped the photo. "This one is dead," he said.
He folded the photograph and placed it in his pocket. "The report said it was a small platoon. Not many should be alive. At the most, three."
Dietrich approached them with a fox-smile on his face. "What did you find, Oberst?"
Ulquiorra stayed silent. Three officers on the operation, he thought. What a waste.
"Well, I found something," Dietrich said cheerfully. He held a piece of shrapnel between his long fingers. "Interesting piece of rubble."
Ulquiorra stared at the piece of shrapnel. He immediately gathered the squad. "Search for snipers," he ordered.
"Why snipers?" Fuchs questioned, raising his eyebrows.
"Dead ones," said Ulquiorra. "The Americans moved into German territory. Find the corpses and confirm what direction they're heading at."
While the soldiers spread out in search of the dead snipers, Ulquiorra observed Dietrich, who had a complacent smile on his face. Dietrich had transferred to their headquarters a few weeks ago, unnerving everyone with that creepy smile and slitted eyes. But Ulquiorra suspected there was something else behind that smile.
"Oberst!" a sniper called out. "We found something!"
The soldiers huddled around a trench. Fuchs poked a corpse riddled with shrapnel with his foot. "This must have been one hell of a fight," Fuchs said.
Ulquiorra examined the dead snipers. They were killed by one soldier, he realized. Who…?
His green eyes scanned their surroundings. He spotted several dead bodies missing their uniforms. "How far away is the nearest town here?" he said to Fuchs.
Fuchs looked taken aback. "Er…About a day's distance? Wh—" Comprehension dawned on his face. "But how?" he demanded.
Ulquiorra indicated at the stripped corpses. "Their uniforms were taken," he said. "The Americans are trying to enter a town disguised as German soldiers."
There was furious outcry from the soldiers, who fumed at the thought of Americans impersonating them. "They're hungry and tired, eh?" Dietrich said.
"How boring," a soldier said. He was a small one, with short black hair and a feminine face that was warped in a mocking expression. "Oberst Schiffer, we should just go and kill them."
Ulquiorra memorized the names of all the soldiers. This one was a noisy idiot named Krake. He often challenged authority.
"We'll camp out here tonight," said Ulquiorra.
Krake was about to protest when another soldier stopped him by placing a hand on his arm. Krake pushed the hand off. He rolled his eyes and turned to follow the other soldiers who settled in the trench.
While the soldiers made a fire, Ulquiorra looked through the trench. The First Aid kits are all gone, he thought. He climbed up the ladder and traced the steps of the dead sniper.
A few meters away from the trench, he found something new. It was a crimson puddle. The blood caked around the dirt, not completely dry. There were streaks of it nearby, as if the wounded had tried to drag himself, spilling blood.
"What is it?" Fuchs asked, peering over Ulquiorra's shoulder.
"A pool of blood," Ulquiorra said. "One of them is severely injured."
"How do you know it's American?"
"There are two dead bodies near the trench. One has a broken neck. The other was killed by a grenade. That," he pointed, "came from a bullet wound."
Fuchs stared at the blood.
"This one is dying," said Ulquiorra.
Meanwhile, the soldiers all sat around the fire in a circle, chatting and unloading their gear. Dietrich was talking with Krake.
"So your first name is because of that hair?" Krake said. "Silber Dietrich."
Dietrich pulled at his silver bangs. "Maybe," he smiled.
He looked up when Ulquiorra and Fuchs returned. "What'd you find back there?" Dietrich said.
"A dying American," Fuchs replied.
Ulquiorra decided to reveal the photograph. "And this."
The photograph was passed around the soldiers, who glanced at it with superficial interest. Krake snatched it out of a sniper's hand. "My," he said. "She's a looker. I like the hole pricked in her."
A soldier angrily grabbed the photograph. "Take that back," he snapped.
Krake raised his eyebrows. "Take what back?" he said innocently.
The soldier was called Sankt, Ulquiorra recalled. He sat down on some sandbags, paying no further attention since he had little interest in such matters.
"You insulted a dead man's wife," Sankt said. "Take back what you just said."
"Why should I?" Krake demanded. "It was an American's woman. A dead American's woman."
"Just because you look like one doesn't me you have to insult one," Sankt retorted.
The squad burst into laughter. Fury flashed in Krake's eyes.
"All right, break it up," Fuchs intervened. "The Oberst looks like he has something to say."
Ulquiorra stood up, hands in his pockets. "We will enter the town housing the Americans. Snipers will secure their positions inside. The squad will be split up. Several soldiers will accompany us, while the rest will remain outside until they receive orders."
"We're not attacking them directly?" Fuchs asked.
"No," Ulquiorra said. "We will execute them silently without involving civilians."
"You want us to wait for the entire time, Oberst?" Krake said loudly. "Why can't we just kill the Americans the moment we arrive?"
The other soldiers began to grumble as well, complaining about how slowly this operation was moving.
Ulquiorra's expression didn't change. But when he spoke, the temperature slipped down a notch, and everything was stilled as if time itself had frozen.
"This isn't a request," he said. "It's an order."
A shiver traveled through the soldiers. They all lowered their heads and stared at the ground.
"Follow me."
The next day, the squad got ready to leave. They packed in silence, maintaining their respect and keeping their distance. Some murmured in hushed tones about the terror the Oberst instilled in them.
Before they left the camp, Ulquiorra gathered the snipers once again. He gave them specific instructions on how to shoot.
"Snipers aim at the chest," Ulquiorra said. "But I prefer here." He grazed a white finger down to the base of his throat. "When a bullet pierces this area, the target dies instantly. But in the occasion he doesn't, his vocal cords have been damaged. So he cannot cry out and warn the others."
Once the rest of the squad had started the march, Sankt approached him. "Oberst." He and Ulquiorra were the only two left in the camp.
"This should be with you, sir." Sankt handed over the photograph.
"Gather your belongings," Ulquiorra said, "or you'll be left behind."
Sankt ran to the trench, where he had left his gun. Ulquiorra was about to join the squad when he spotted someone slinking toward the trench.
Sankt arrived at an empty spot. "Hey," he said. "Where's my gun?"
He looked up as a shadow fell over him.
Standing at the edge of the trench was Krake. With a mocking smile, he lifted Sankt's gun and aimed it at the stunned soldier's head. "I thought a hole would look good on you," he said.
A shot rang through the air. Sankt slumped to the ground with a bullet through his forehead.
"Ah," Krake said in mock surprise. "Sorry!"
He tossed the gun at its dead owner. When he looked up, he caught Ulquiorra watching him.
Ulquiorra turned around. "How lame," he said.
Reflections
This chapter was short.
But I thought I'd just go with it, rather than drag it on and on.
On a positive note, did you guys catch the new Bleach character(s) I added?
If you can't figure out who's who, I'll reveal it in the next Reflections ;).
Thank you again for the reviews and extra thanks to the people who answered my Q about Grimmjaw's name. You guys are awesome :D.
See you next time.