Silence grew between the two opposing groups, the crows pecking on the remnants of the undead, the wind becoming more audible. At first, both had their weapons pointed at each other and engaged in a standoff, but after a minute of reconciling, both parties agreed to stand down
Karl: So, the zombies tried to eat you as well huh?
The man who uttered those words is Karl Fairburne. Word on the street is that he is claimed to be the deadliest sniper of the entire Second World War, both by Allied and Axis forces. Armed with his Springfield M1903, he partook in many missions from the sandy dunes of North Africa to the Mediterranean villages of Italy, then here in Germany. However, even an experienced veteran like Karl himself is in a state of shock right now after the entire country erupted into terror and unholy violence
Eren: What… zombies?
?: Pfft, looks like you're a newcomer here, da?
The second man is Boris Medvedev, another veteran dragged into this damned scourge. Not much is known about his background other than him serving the Red Army and having to dodge bullets from the NKVD for his "insubordinate" acts, barely sliding past them
Karl: Take it easy now Ivan, remember the last time when we met Doc over here
Boris: The only reason I haven't blown his head yet is because him and I are running away from the same monsters
?: If it wasn't for these damn creatures, I would've shot both your knees
The third man, Dr. Efram Schweiger, is more on the "softer" kind. Possibly because that he was a former researcher who aided the Germans in researching occult magic in an attempt to drive out the Allies from home soil. When the zombies began wandering the earth, he blames himself for this, thinking he was the one who started this unearthly pandemic. He now aims to put an end to this before it consumes all of Europe, whether it'll cost his own life or not
Boris: Oh, I'm sorry. Did I accidentally fracture your "pacifism", Herr Schweiger?
Efram: Eat my ass, Soviet mongrel
Karl: Hey, hey, cut it out, both of you. The last thing we want, is all four of us shooting at each other down here
Jean: What do you mean four?
Another person came out of nowhere, possibly part of Karl's team
?: Path is clear, had to kill some stragglers. We should have a clear shot to the church
The final man is Hermann Wolff, an officer of the Wehrmacht, Germany's military force before the apocalypse. Unlike the other three, he seems to be dressed more formally for the job, wearing a tidy uniform and a black trench coat, accompanied by a pretty looking officer cap. Considering that his very own country is being subjected to such horror, he's the kind that will not back down from this fight
Hermann: Who are these people?
Boris: Like I said, newcomers
Efram: Show some respect
Boris: What's so disrespectful about that?
Karl: Well, please forgive us for our "interesting" relationship towards one another
Jean: Uh-huh
Efram: Dr. Efram Schweiger, and this is Boris, but he prefers to be called swine
Boris scoffs at the German's reply
Hermann: Just call me Hermann
Eren: The name's Eren, these are my fellow comrades, Jean, Mina and Marco
Efram: Why not friends?
Eren and Jean looked at each other for a brief moment
Jean: It's a long story
Karl: Right, so where you kids heading?
Eren: Yeah, we have no clue where we are now
Boris: You're not from here?
Eren: No, we're pretty much lost
Karl looks back at his two comrades
Karl: Should I tell them?
Boris: Whatever, you're the boss
Efram: But it might be too risky for them
Boris: As long as they know how to hold a gun, fine by me
Karl: Alright then
Karl looks back at the young cadets
Karl: Remember when I told you we were heading for Berlin?
Jean: Yeah, and the way you said it as if you were the fairytale hero of some sort
Karl: Well, we have no idea what's going on here either, and I figured, you kids wanna come with us?
Jean: Why should we trust you?
Boris: We have guns and you don't
Karl: Maybe he's right
The cadets think about it, one thing's for sure is that at least they won't be fighting alone here but at the same time, they fear these other people might screw them over one day. Either way, whatever choice they make is gonna be risky
Eren: Karl…
Karl: Yes?
Eren: We'll come with you
Karl: Well, let's get moving now
Marco: uhh, where are we going?
Hermann: The town church, if I'm correct, it has the only running truck parked there
Mina: What's a "truck"?
Boris and Efram looked at each other with confused faces
Boris: Da, you're definitely new here
Karl: C'mon, no time to waste
Boris: Also, reminder that we won't be your knights in shining armor all the time
With a newly formed alliance, the group head to the church to find their only means of escape. Meanwhile, Marco and Efram have a short discussion regarding the Titans and the Walls
Efram: So, these "Titans", they just simply sprouted out of nowhere and starting eating all of mankind?
Marco: Yes!
Efram: And the Walls that were supposed to protect you from these Titans, one of them is broken?
Marco: Yes, unfortunately
Efram: Fascinating. I'm surprised the Germans haven't discovered of this
Marco: Why so?
Efram: We have a habit of, let's say, discovering "unnatural" things
On the other hand, Eren and Karl also have a conversation
Eren: That gun of yours, how can you fire many shots out of it?
Karl: This? It's a good 'ol Springfield, gets the job done in and out
Eren: We don't have that kind of gun
Karl: What do you mean?
Eren: Back at our place, we were only trained using muskets, not "rifles"
Karl: Oh, so you've shot a gun before, just not a proper rifle?
Eren: Uh, yeah
Karl: See, Boris. I told you the kid can pull a trigger
Boris: Just not the kind you're used to
Karl: Don't worry, if I find a spare Kraut rifle, I can teach you the basics
Eren: Really? Well, thanks
Karl: No need to, the same goes for your friends
Hermann suddenly halts the group
Hermann: There, more of the damned things
Hermann points at a group of undead Germans
Hermann: Should we?
Boris: Da, there's only like seven or eight of them. Can't be that difficult unless you're these children
Jean: Hey!
Karl: Alright. Eren, why don't you and your friends here stay back. We can deal these guys for you while you just watch our backs for us, okay?
Eren: Yeah, we can do that
Karl: Alright, y'all know what to do
Boris: Davai
Karl holsters his rifle and pulls out his Thompson SMG while Boris loads a fresh magazine on his PPSH. The pair began shooting down the undead group, one by one, making sure all of their shots land at the heads
Efram: More coming from the houses
More zombies sprawl out of the houses but Hermann easily cut them down with his STG-44. A zombie tried to jump on the cadets from behind but Efram popped the undead Kraut with his Webley Mk IV
Efram: I thought you were supposed to watch our backs?
The cadets were in a nervous state that they couldn't reply back
Karl: Alright, coast is clear, time to move
The group continue to venture into town. They eventually made it into the church and find the place ruined by the undead remains
Town Church, 10:47 PM
Efram: Dead bodies everywhere, looks like someone came here before us
Boris: From the looks of it, I don't think they held off long enough
The group searches the church and its surroundings. Boris finds something in the corner covered in tarp, he takes off the tarp and finds a still functioning Opel Blitz truck
Boris: *chuckles* Looks like Fritz was right after all
Hermann: Told you, I've been in this place before and I know the layout
Boris gets inside the truck and checks to see if it's still working or not
Boris: Good news, she can still run. Bad news, she needs gas
Hermann: Shit, well surely there would be some fuel cans lying around here
Boris: Then go find it Fritz
Hermann: Whatever
While the Russian and the German search for fuel for the truck, Karl and Efram search inside the church for other supplies
Efram: Karl, check this out
The two open the crate. Inside are a bunch of Kar98k and MP40s, as well as ammunition and stick grenades. Karl grabs one Kar98k from the crate
Karl: You reckon Eren will like this one?
Efram: I don't know, you tell him, not me
Karl walks over to Eren with the rifle
Eren: Oh, what is it Karl?
Karl: Managed to find you and your friends some guns
Karl hands Eren the rifle
Eren: What is this?
Karl: Kar98k, Germany's finest. I'll teach you how to use. And the rest of you, listen along
Jean: Okay?
Karl taught Eren and the rest of the cadets in using the German rifle. From pulling the trigger to chambering the next round to loading a new clip to fire again. To Karl, it's no rocket science, but to the cadets, it felt a bit confusing but it does have a simpler mechanism than their traditional muskets. Karl also thought the cadets on using the MP40 and the stick grenades
Marco: So, we basically have five shots on the rifle before reloading?
Karl: Yes, and you load the new clip after firing all five shots
Marco: And we have to pull the bolt every shot?
Karl: Yeah, it's not that hard
Marco: Okay, this is manageable, I hope
Mina: We'll make it out of here, I know we can
While the cadets arm themselves, Boris and Hermann returned to the church, exhausted and barely gasping for air, while carrying the fuel cans
Efram: The hell happened to both of you?
Boris: The… things… they were… Fuck, they were all over
Hermann: But we got the gas
Boris: Hermann tried to convince them not to eat us, it didn't work
Hermann: Fuck off
The group hear a loud gory shriek in the distance, alerting the undead
Karl: Alright, I hope that brief training helps you
Marco: Yeah, we can do it ourselves
Eren: Let's go
A platoon of undead Wehrmacht soldiers surrounds the church and the humans make their ground
Karl: Boris, you fill up the truck, we'll cover you
Boris: Da, I'm on it
Hermann: I'll help
OST: Zombie Army Trilogy OST – Village of the Dead
Boris and Hermann rush to the truck. The Russian quickly unscrews the truck's fuel cap and starts filling it up with gasoline. Some of the undead started vaulting over the church's stone fence and Hermann started shooting them back, Karl set up a vantage point at the second floor of the church and started picking off any zombies one by one, Efram made use of his Gewehr 43 and shoots more of the undead Germans
Efram: Hey kids, a little help here?
Marco: On it
Eren struggled to load the clip on his rifle, desperately trying to remember what Karl taught him. He didn't realize that a zombie was lurking behind him but, at the last moment again, he was saved by his ally when Karl sniped the zombie
Karl: I thought you understood everything?
Eren: Uh, sorry, I was-
Karl: If you're going to reload, at least watch your surroundings
Eren: I will
Eren finally loaded the clip on his rifle and rushes in to help his allies. He finds one zombie, a Wehrmacht rifleman wearing a field cap and his uniform and gear torn and shredded apart, his face the palest it can be and his eyes as reddish as the human blood. The undead soldier shrieked and shifted its focus into Eren, the boy slowly pointed his rifle at the thing, trying to focus his aim, controlling his breath, keeping a firm grip and slowly squeezing into the trigger. Finally, he pulled the trigger as much as he can and fired the rifle, the round shot through the zombie's skull and it dropped to the ground dead. Eren can't believe it, his first kill wasn't a Titan, but a decaying humanoid creature called "zombie"
Jean: Eren, stop being dramatic again and help us over here
Eren: Shit, I'm coming
Marco used his MP40 to shoot the zombies but was rocked by the recoil, while Mina was nailing headshots with her Kar98k. The group kept killing more zombies until a unique zombie appeared from the fog. He was wearing full SS camo uniform, he has a swastika armband tied around his forehead, and lastly, he had bundles of dynamite strapped around him
Jean: I got him
Jean emptied his mag on the zombie but he barely landed his shots. The zombie yelled the words "Tötet Sie" in an ear-piercing volume and ran at the group in a frantic frenzy, flailing his arms around while holding a grenade on his hand
Jean: Oi, oi oi oi
Before the zombie gets close, Karl landed a shot on the zombie's head, killing it
Marco: You think that was-
The zombie suddenly exploded, startling the group
Efram: Oh scheisse
Karl: There! More of the things, don't let them get too close
More of the suicidal zombies appeared and sprinted towards the church
Jean: Kill those goddamn things
The group started shooting at all flanks to kill the suicide zombies. Every time one of them dies, they turn into a human dynamite and explode into bits
Boris: One more can and we're out of here
Hermann: Hurry up, I can hear more of those damn things
As Mina was about to shoot one of the suicide zombies, she forgot to reload and her rifle clicked. Out of panic, she tried to load a clip on her rifle but the zombie was getting closer. But this time, Eren is the savior, and he shot the grenade off of the zombie's hand, causing it to explode
Mina: Thank you, Eren
Eren: Are you okay?
Mina: I'm fine, that was way too close
Meanwhile, Boris finally filled in the last can for the truck while Hermann jumped into the driver's seat to start the truck
Boris: Alright, try her out
Hermann hotwires the truck and after some attempts, manages to get the truck going, Boris celebrates with a laugh
Boris: Everyone in! We are getting the fuck out of here
Hermann: Next stop, Berlin. Otherwise known as shit
The group gets in on the back of the truck. Karl leaves his vantage point and regroups with the team, a crawling zombie tried to bite Karl's leg but the American sniper pulls out his M1911 and double taps the undead Kraut, then proceeds to the group
Boris: I take front seat, da?
Karl: Fine by me
When Boris entered the front seat, Hermann drove the group out of town, beginning their long journey to Berlin
Efram: You sure we have enough fuel?
Hermann: It should be enough to get us at least into the inner part of Berlin. What worries me are the roadblocks ahead
Meanwhile, the cadets take a moment of silence after that such carnage
Jean: So, we're gonna be stuck awhile with you people?
Karl: Don't worry, we'll try to find a way to get you kids back to your "home"
Efram: Well, I did research on some studies and theories regarding alternate timelines before all of this, shit I suppose
Marco: So, it's possible we can find our way back?
Efram: Not quite, I still need some further research and maybe some more occult readings, sadly most of your answers and our answers lie beneath Berlin
Jean: What's going on with this "Berlin" anyway?
Efram: Oh, you'll see my child, you'll see
The group finally makes it out of town but this is only the start of their challenges. Their true sufferings will begin in Berlin, but for now, they deserve a time of peace and tranquility