Chapter 6 (Matthew Williams)
For the first months of training, Matthew remained in Canada – in Regina, where his regiments HQ was located. Much of the basic training was dedicated to stamina, strength and basic survival skills. The other large part of the training were tactical and strategical thinking and knowledge. Obviously, the trainees had to learn as much about the German war machine as possible, especially what Blitzkrieg meant for the defence. But as a rifle regiment, they had to put a focus on rifle skills, both on shooting and on the more technical side.
"Man, I could take that freaking machine gun apart and put it together in my sleep now!" a fellow trainee, Carter Smith, groaned, when – once again – they were told to disassemble and reassemble their machine guns. "Well, at least it's the machine gun this time and not the mortar or the anti-tank guns" Matthew replied quietly while disassembling his machine gun. "You know, theoretically there are engineering troops that would support us in an attack" Carter replied and groaned. "I don't necessarily believe a German would wait for the engineer to get to you, help you and let you prepare yourself again before blowing your head off, but what do I know" Matthew replied sarcastically. "Someone's pissy" Carter remarked. "No man, but I want to get this job done. If I hate it or not, order is order" Matthew answered without taking his eyes off his gun that now lay in pieces in front of him. "Boys, the clock's ticking and time's running out! Those who are not finished in time can do the entire thing again, so get yourselves together!" The supervisor yelled. Matthew pressed his lips together and started to reassemble the entire thing. The Bren machine gun wasn't the only weapon that they had to know inside and out, the same went for the pistols they carried. Furthermore, they had to have the basic knowledge on the mortars and anti-tank-guns so that in case of a mechanical failure, they could react fast.
"Have you heard? Denmark and Norway have fallen, too" one of the trainees who shared the same cot as Matthew. "Who told you?" Matthew asked, hoping it was nothing more than a rumour. But he knew that it was more than possible. "I think they will inform us this evening. I heard our commander discuss with his colleague. Apparently, British troops now enter the war in Europe on land" the trainee replied. "Well, it does make sense in the mind of the maniacs who lead Germany" Matthew stated quietly, "They're always talking about their 'Nordic race'." "Man, that's what I can't understand – how can an entire nation just believe such bullshit?" the trainee sighted. "From what my parents told me, it wasn't 'just'. He came to power in 33, and he came to power by the will of the majority – but not everyone. It took him five more years to change that, apparently" Matthew muttered and lay on his bed: "I don't even care. They threaten our world, they threaten us. Why they do it – that's a question I don't even want to have answered. I don't want to understand them. I just want them to lose." "I just… you know, can't believe humanity could end up like that." Matthew looked at the trainee in front of him: "Then don't. Don't believe humanity can do that. But the enemy can. And that's all that matters for us, they are the enemy. Don't make it harder for yourself by wanting to understand them. They don't understand us, either."
Matthew knew that what he said was not entirely true. He knew and he felt like they were more than the enemy. But he had to push it aside. Even now, where they didn't encounter a single German, there was no room for empathy with them. Whether he wanted it or not, he had to look at them like creatures. Like animals. It was the only way to make him want to pull the trigger. Killing was against everything he was ever told to do. Be kind, be forgiving, be polite. But now, those things had to be put aside, at least for a group of people. It was that either-us-or-them-mentality that Matthew had to accept to become a soldier. But the worst part was, he knew that this is what he was doing.