No ownership of the Hogan's Heroes characters is implied or inferred. Copyright belongs to others and no infringement is intended.

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"So how's life under Captain Eichberger, Schultz?"

Hogan walked around the compound with the Sergeant of the Guard, taking advantage of the bright sunshine to bring some color into his pale face. It had been too long since he had spent time outside, and he savored the slim warmth of the day as it seeped into his cold body.

Schultz shrugged. "It started out terrible. But now, it is not so bad. He is a fair Kommandant."

"Anything like Klink?" Hogan pressed.

Schultz tut-tutted. "Nein, Colonel Hogan, nothing like the Kommandant. I know this sounds crazy, but I miss him."

"Not so crazy, Schultz. You worked with him for a long time."

"Ja, three years. I wonder where he is. But mostly, I wonder if he is well." Schultz sighed and stopped his walking momentarily. "This may surprise you, Colonel Hogan, but the Kommandant was not as fit as I am." Hogan raised an eyebrow. "I walk around all day, back and forth around the camp. The Kommandant, he sits in an office, and calls people to himself. He is not like you, Colonel; he does not fraternize with his men. That is not acceptable in the German military."

Hogan pursed his lips. "Schultz, I wouldn't have it any other way. My men are worth hanging around with, and no difference in rank can make me think otherwise."

"Ja, I can see that. You know they feel the same way about you. They were very upset when Major Hochstetter came that day and..." Schultz let his voice drift off, remembering the shock he had felt himself when the Gestapo officer had had Hogan dragged from the morning line up.

Hogan shifted uncomfortably and absently rubbed his abdomen, a frown creasing his features. Schultz started walking again. Hogan kept pace, meticulously studying the ground. "Yeah, well, that was a bad day," Hogan said huskily.

"Colonel Hogan, you were away for a long time," Schultz said in a low voice. "Were you really hiding in the woods, as I have heard? Or were you someplace else?"

"What do you think, Schultz?" Hogan asked.

"Your friends, they knew where you were," Schultz told him. "They were angry about what the Major did to you. But, they did not tell me anything else."

"I thought you always wanted to know nothing, Schultz," Hogan reminded him.

"That is true," Schultz admitted. "But I was worried about you. You have always been a very nice enemy, Colonel Hogan."

Hogan smiled softly. "Thanks, Schultz." He sighed. "Do you really want to know?"

Schultz paused. "I am not sure."

"Take your time; think it over," Hogan suggested. "Then, if you still want to know, I'll tell you."

Schultz nodded as Hogan turned to leave. "Colonel Hogan?" he asked.

Hogan stopped. "Yeah, Schultz?"

"Is Kommandant Klink in the same place now that you were then?"

Hogan didn't answer right away. As much as he wanted to reassure Schultz—and he found himself in that frame of mind often—he wasn't sure the Sergeant could be trusted with such sensitive information. Not with Eichberger around, and not with Hogan not yet completely trusting the Captain not to use the guard in some ploy to trap Hogan and the operation. "Think it over first, Schultz. Sometimes it's better to know nothing."

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"Another success, gov'nor. A couple of patrols, but they're not likely to trace anything back to us."

"That's right, Colonel. We side-stepped them easily and made short work of that tunnel," Kinch added.

Hogan nodded and took another sip of the coffee that had been sustaining him for the past three nights. "Good. That's one more thing that's been made a bit tougher for the Krauts."

Klink seethed inside. Although he had started to get used to the idea of being kept prisoner under the camp that he had once commanded, he still found it hard to accept that his senior prisoner of war could so easily set about destroying German armaments installations. He decided to speak up. "Colonel Hogan, may I have a word with you?" he proposed, still feeling the need for formality, even in this stark and unusual setting.

Hogan exchanged quick glances with his men. "Go on up, fellas. There's coffee on the stove, and I think Le Beau's put together a midnight snack. I'll be up in a minute." He watched them disappear up the ladder before he turned to Klink. "What can I do for you, Colonel?"

"Colonel Hogan, I am appalled at the ease with which you send your men out to destroy German targets."

Hogan tried not to laugh. "Why should that be so hard to figure out?" he asked. "It's not like I'm on the side of the Nazis. I'm in this war to help defeat the Germans, remember?"

"But people could be killed—innocent civilians as well as your own men."

"That's a chance we have to take. Believe me, I am fully aware of that every time I send one of my men out."

"And just how do you justify this?"

"Every job has its risks, Kommandant," said Hogan, starting to feel that anger that built up in him whenever Klink questioned his purpose in camp. "We try to minimize unnecessary loss of life. But we do what we do because we have no choice. If the Krauts weren't so determined to make a mockery of human existence, we wouldn't have to be here at all. I know I'd much rather be sitting up in my B-17 dropping bombs anonymously than facing all of this in person on the ground."

Hogan's outburst surprised Klink and himself. Until he said it, Hogan had not fully realized how much he missed being in the air with his men. Then a fleeting, strong memory of his crew passed through his mind, and another, equally powerful image of the mess that led to them having to bail out of Goldilocks implanted itself in his brain. He remembered the devastation he felt when he found out the fate of his crew, and the overwhelming relief when his "Baby Bear," Mark Bailey, had defied the odds and shown up at Stalag 13. In this split second of memories, Hogan turned away from Klink. "But I wasn't given any choice when I was shot down. And so I'm fighting the only way I can," he added quietly.

"You are still talking about my homeland, Hogan."

"And you're still talking about mine." Hogan crossed and uncrossed his arms angrily. "Look, Klink, we might as well come to an understanding about this. Your part in this war is over, at least from the Nazis' point of view. All you can do now is hopefully save a lot of lives on the side of the Allies."

"What makes you so sure I want to do that?" Klink asked, also starting to get hot under the collar.

"I think you want to do that because you feel unfairly treated by your own kind. Since when has any of the brass treated you with the respect you deserve? Since when has anyone but you been concerned with the Geneva Convention? Since when has anyone ever even considered questioning the ideologies of that Bubblehead Hitler?"

"Hogannnn...."

"Let's face it, Kommandant, when it comes right down to it, you're a little fish in a big pond. But only on the surface. To the Allies, you are now one of the most important people in the war. The information you have could save countless lives—for all I know, my own name is in that thick skull of yours, not to mention the names of any German who's even thought that Hitler's moustache looks stupid. I send my men out to do their jobs, but they're all volunteers. Not a single one of them has ever been forced to stay. That's gotta tell you something about what they think of your Master Race garbage."

"That does not mean that they are right."

"Do you think they're right?" Hogan stopped his tangent, and watched Klink carefully for his reply.

Klink opened his mouth as though to respond right away. But he seemed to think better of it and waited. After a moment, he said, "I cannot say that I am happy with you going around Germany and destroying bridges, tunnels, convoys... Colonel Hogan, the German way may not be a way that you are happy with. But Hitler brought this country hope that it had not had in years. A sense of pride that we had lost before he became our leader."

"That was before the war. And now? Can you say you're honestly proud of the Fatherland?"

"Now?" Klink's voice trailed off as he considered. "Now... we have beautiful artworks..."

"Stolen from the best museums in Paris."

"And lovely music..."

"But without a lot of stuff that you enjoy—like swing, and American band music!"

"And bright, dedicated children..."

"Who're expected to 'Heil Hitler' at least fifty times a day, just like everyone else."

"So we are not perfect, Hogan," Klink said. "But we are human."

"And you're scared." Hogan shook his head. "When's the last time you felt comfortable standing up to Burkhalter, telling someone higher up that you thought their decision might not be the right one?"

"That is not the German military, Hogan. We have respect for our superiors."

"Even if it means destroying yourself."

"I stood up for you. I warned you of the trouble coming. I took my life in my hands, Hogan."

"And I appreciate that," Hogan answered. "Really, Colonel, I can't tell you what that warning meant to me. I know it was hard to give." Hogan's voice softened. "Maybe we need to agree to disagree. Never discuss politics with friends, right?"

"Friends, Hogan?" Klink asked warily.

Hogan shrugged. "You stuck your neck out for me; we stuck our neck out for you. There must be an element of friendship there somewhere."

"Not just something done for military gain?" Klink said doubtfully.

"No, Kommandant," Hogan replied. "If that were the case we'd just get someone to come here to get the information from you, hypnotize you all over again, and feed you back to the angry mob looking for you at Gestapo Headquarters." Klink shivered. "Somehow that just didn't sit right with me."

"Now that's something we can agree on," Klink said, starting to relax.

"In time, maybe you'll understand why I do what I do."

"I think I do, Hogan. You are a soldier doing his job. Believing in your cause. I just can't get used to the idea of it. I always thought somehow I would survive this war."

"You'll survive, Kommandant. I'll see to that myself."

"Thank you, Hogan." Klink stopped for a moment to absorb everything. "Have you really been doing this since you got to camp?"

Hogan shrugged. "We started a few months after I arrived."

Klink shook his head, still amazed. "I can't believe I never saw... never suspected... Hogan, you are a very, very clever man. You are a credit to your country."

Hogan inclined his head modestly. "Thank you, sir."

Feeling uncomfortable, Klink decided to abruptly change the subject. "What do you think of Eichberger?" he asked.

"Not sure yet. He seems okay. I'll be having a meeting with him tomorrow to see what he's got up his sleeve." Hogan rubbed the back of his neck tiredly. "I'd better hit the sack. That coffee's the only thing that's been keeping me going the last few days, and if I have another cup I'll float away."

"You are recovering, Hogan?" Klink asked. It amazed him that Hogan had survived the attacks by Hochstetter and his men at all. That the American seemed to be able to function without lasting side effects was mind-boggling.

"Getting better every day, Kommandant." Hogan put his left hand on the ladder. Klink noticed once more that Hogan still favored his right hand, putting very little pressure on it and avoiding gripping anything with it. Once in awhile, he had spied Hogan, when he didn't think he was being watched, pulling up short and quite obviously dealing privately with some discomfort, drawing his hand to himself and silently breathing his way through pain. But Klink always said nothing, sensing that Hogan did not want to share this experience with anyone, least of all his enemy. "Thanks for asking."

Klink nodded. "That's the least a friend can do, Hogan."

Hogan grinned. "Don't worry, Kommandant. I'm sure I'll find plenty for you to do soon enough."

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"There have been more acts of sabotage in the last couple of days around this area, Colonel Hogan," Eichberger said to the American the next day.

Hogan put on a look of surprise. "Have there?" he asked.

Eichberger smiled like a naughty boy. "Come now, Colonel. You're not going to suggest that you didn't have any part in it?"

Hogan shrugged his shoulders. "You're the one who said the locals have been acting up. That has nothing to do with me."

"Either that or your own men are following your orders. Is that not possible?"

Hogan just stared back at Eichberger. "Who says I have men working for me?"

Eichberger smiled again, broadly. "Oh, now, Colonel Hogan, remember I know something about your operation. Now which was it—them, or the local Underground?"

"I wouldn't have a clue. I've been a bit indisposed."

"You never give up, do you?" Eichberger observed, amused. "Well, no matter. I have the information on that ammunitions and fuel convoy. It is passing so close to camp that it would be a crime not to do something about it."

"So why don't you do it yourself?"

Eichberger laughed. This Hogan was indeed an entertaining man! "And how do you suggest I do that?"

"You're the idea man, Eichberger. You tell me."

"You still don't trust me, do you, Colonel?" Eichberger shook his head. "I can only think of one thing to convince you, and that is to help you do this job myself." Hogan crossed his arms and looked at Eichberger steadily. "The convoy is scheduled to pass by on the main road at about oh-two-hundred hours, day after tomorrow. I will organize to have explosives available outside the fence from midnight onwards. Then you and I will set about making sure the trucks don't reach their destination."

Hogan merely raised an eyebrow. He was getting used to letting Eichberger do the talking.

"Are you amenable to this, Colonel Hogan?" asked Eichberger.

"It sounds intriguing."

"But you are still not quite convinced of my sincerity," the Captain concluded. He sighed. "I can see why you have been so successful for so long, Hogan. Your natural wariness must stand you in good stead. But really, this time you are worrying over nothing. I will help you. We can work together."

Hogan considered for a moment, then said, "Okay, we'll try it. I have nothing to lose here, and everything to gain, right?" Eichberger nodded. "Give me a meeting point. When the time comes, you'll have the explosives ready to go. We'll work on my mark, and then get back to camp on the double. No fancy stuff, no funny business."

"What about an escape plan for you? Shall I organize it?"

Hogan shook his head. "I'll take care of that myself."

"Maybe I should meet you in the tunnel. Where does the system begin?"

Hogan felt his stomach muscles tighten. He had never revealed the details of the tunnel network to Eichberger. "The less you know, the better."

"Shouldn't I go out with you?"

"No, I'll meet you there. You just name the place."

"There is a small woodshed about one hundred meters away from the main gate. You must have seen it when you returned to camp last month." Hogan nodded. "There is protection from the camp's searchlights there. It seems like the most logical place to meet. We can go from there to the convoy road. Meet me there at oh-one-hundred."

"I'll be there."