The Will of Georg Von Trapp
The first rays of sunlight filtered through an open window. The occupant of the room was up long before anyone, as was his habit before missions. Georg Von Trapp surveyed the room he had slept in the last few months one last time. Having showered and dressed earlier, Georg enjoyed his last few minutes of solitude before embarking on a journey that would likely end the lives of many young men, and break the heart of the woman he loves.
"Maria," he whispered softly. She was constantly in his thoughts and constantly on his mind. They had parted last night amidst many kisses and a few more tears.
The night before, she had promised to love him as long as he is lives. He, in turn, promised to do everything in his power to return to her. He prayed that he wouldn't break his vow to her.
He had left with Maria his book of poetry that he had written over the last two years. In a way, he left her more than just poetry, but also a part of him. The poetry was really his diary, where he wrote about his life, his regrets, and his fears. There were poems about his childhood and poems about his thoughts of war; there were poems about his children, his wife, and even Maria. It was during those dark lonely days in his submarine that he was able to look into his heart and write about his love for Maria, and regret for never having it. It was then that he was finally able to move on from Agatha's death. He'd realized that he had been blessed for years to share his life with a woman that he utterly adored. True, her life was cut short, but that did not take away what they shared and the lives they created.
He hoped that she would cherish it, and hoped that one day, after the wretched war was over, Maria would be able to share his poems and, in a way, his legacy with his children. He had stapled to one of the pages an envelope filled with English and Swiss currency, and included his in-laws' address. He hoped to one day deliver these poems to his children himself, but he could not take the chance that this book would be buried deep in the ocean. He entrusted to Maria to share his thoughts for his children long after he was gone.
With a final sigh, he rose, threw his duffle bag over his shoulder, and left his room.
The men gathered at the pier. Behind them, the great gray submarine floated in the semi-shallow waters of the sea. They stood at attention as Georg walked up and down the row, inspecting their appearance. To their right, a crowd was gathered to see them off. To their left, the morning sun shined above, its rays reflected along the surface of the calm waters that beheld their futures. They stood straight and erect under the captain's harsh glare, their pristine uniforms glowing in the light, their boots shined to perfection, and their hats perched perfectly on their short cropped hair. No more then boys forced to be men, their lives at the hands at their captain. Their names no longer mattered, their loved ones left behind no longer mattered, their hopes and dreams were left with the crowd on their right. On the pier they were a unit, only that and no more, a nameless unit that the Admiral came to see off. The lines between life and war were drawn. The crowd on the right watched the nameless boys with their nameless captain board the submarine and disappear in its gray abyss.
He saw her one last time before he boarded. Her golden hair shone bright in the early morning sun like an angel's halo. Dressed in her white nurses uniform, she really seemed like one. Tears she would not let fall made her blue eyes sparkle like jewels in the morning light. With one last salute to her, Georg went down below.
In the mild April morning, the lines between those living and the ones whose lives could end were clearly marked.
The first few days of the mission were calm and quiet as they traveled to their destination in the North Sea. Time was spent monitoring the area around them and fine tuning their coordinates. The first part of the mission was surveillance only, and a nervous air of anticipation filled the cramped quarters.
On the first of May, there was no moon out, and Georg decided that phase two of the mission would start: getting the intelligence on board or die trying. Night fell on the sea and the men changed into their dark black camoflauge. Guns were inspected, daggers were strapped and final prayer were said. Under the cover of darkness, they approached a ship undetected in order to retrieve coded intelligence stored on it. They came as close as they could to the boat and slowly the sub rose, only exposing its hatch. From the hatch the captain and his men boarded inflatable rafts. In the calm waters, one group rowed quietly to the starboard side of ship, while the other rowed to the portside. At precisely one in the morning, an explosion shook the portside of the ship, providing a needed distraction as Georg and his men raided the other side of the ship where their intelligence informed them the codes they needed were held.
Georg dropped a smoke canister to provide additional cover as he and his men climbed the stairs. Having the advantage of surprise, Georg had reached the second landing before gunshots were exchanged. He estimated that he had ten minutes to obtain the codes and get his men out before the ship went down. In the third landing, Georg felt his right shoulder burn as he was hit, having already injured men from his own gun. Georg gritted his teeth and continued on through the smoke, holding on to his shoulder but still grasping his gun. A quick glance behind him informed him of how many men he still had behind him. With a grunt, he kicked the door down. The remaining men spilled into the room; more shots were fired, more cries were heard as they ransacked the room, searching for the intelligence codes.
The men grabbed anything of importance and shoved them into their pockets. The ship rocked as more shots were fired in the smoke-filled room that it was hard to ascertain who was shooting who.
Georg gave the order to abandon ship as it jerked violently to the side. The explosion on the portside of the ship has done significant damage to the vessel that was quickly sinking. Georg lost his balance and hit the floor, trying in vain to avoid falling debris. He was momentarily paralyzed till he felt a hand grabbing his injured arm trying to lift him. With a cry of pain Georg rose to his feet, steadied by Johannes. The floor shifted at an angle as they tried to climb up the floor out the hatch.
The fire from the explosion was quickly consuming the ship. Smoke filled their lungs and the blackness of the night, and the fire made it difficult to move or fire a weapon as the ship sank. What was down was up and what was up was now down. Georg heard cries and screams around him as shots continued to be fired by those who refused to give up their turf. Bullets continued to fly in the air and ricochet of the metal walls of the ship as Georg and Johannes blindly climbed and clambered out of the sinking ship. Georg ignored it all and focused only on escaping the dark corridors to the top landing.
Many men lose their lives by panicking and losing their wits, but Georg was not one of those men. In the dark, he climbed till he felt the cool air hit his flaming face as they crawled from the smoke filled cabins to the deck of the lopsided ship. Using the railing, Georg and Johannes scaled the side of the ship. Suddenly Georg felt another searing pain on his side as a bullet bounced off the floor and hit him above the hip. Blackness threatened to overwhelm him, but thoughts of Maria filled his mind. He promised her he would try to survive and he was so close to escaping. With a final burst of energy and aided by Johannes he lifted his bloody body to the very tip of the ship. With a deep breath Georg jumped feet first into the water.
With his last ounce of strength he swam towards a raft. Through the haze of dizziness that threatened to overwhelm him, Georg registered Johannes behind him, grabbing and trying to lift his slack body up the raft. His hands slipped against the wet siding of the raft. His hands betrayed him as his mind screamed, trying to will his body to listen.
He felt himself falling and then nothing as his body hit the cold black water…
A/N Thanks you to Bellarsam Chrisjulittle for betaing this chapter.
A/N A cruel cliffhanger, but the title has a dual meaning if that helps.
