Chapter 17: Switzerland

Basta had managed to nod off in the back of the jeep; his chin slumped against his chest. He awoke the growling of his own stomach, and hunger pains on the insides of his ribs. Will Mackenzie's brother, Robert, was sitting next to Basta. He nudged the rim of his helmet away from his eyes and drummed his fingers on the metal of his rifle. Basta blinked his eyes and took a look around. It was a very bleak day, and the sky lacked color. As they approached the mountains, the clouds thickened and the air grew chillier. Basta was thankful for the field jacket, but he noticed that the other American troops were staring at him uneasily. Eyes were constantly on him, but quickly flitted away when he made contact. Basta shifted in discomfort. Surly he looked a bit like a Nazi, with his blonde hair and all. He gazed at each of the faces in the back of the jeep with him. Most were very young; none of them seemed to be over 25 years old. They all had dirty faces, and looked a little on edge. One sitting at the very rear of the vehicle was rocking himself in self comfort, while thumbing the dog tags around his neck. Basta looked away and focused his attention on Robert's combat boots. They were muddy and worn, and the laces were frayed. Even his canvas leggings were mud splattered and tattered. The cuff of his right sleeve had some blood around the edge, and Basta wondered who had bled on the young man.

"Are you ok?" asked Robert, rather quietly. Basta nodded. His stomach growled loudly, but Robert didn't comment. By then they had reached the foothills of the Alps. Thick green pine trees grew on either sides of the road, and Basta noticed they were driving on a bit of an incline.

"How much longer?" he asked, feeling uncomfortable around all the deathly quiet Americans. Robert shrugged.

"A day or so, I guess." The helmet fell back over his eyes, and he impatiently pushed it back up. "Do you know where you need to go?" asked the young man in his soft voice. Basta shrugged.

"No. I was just told to go to Switzerland."

"Well then." Robert raised his eyebrows. "If you want us to stop somewhere, just let me know"

"Thanks" Basta spoke quietly, and continued to look at the scenery around him. The trees were getting taller, but not quite tall enough to block out the view of the moist grey sky. Basta thought of the Wayless wood, and how massive the trees were. Five men holding hands couldn't surround the trunks of some of those massive trees. And for the first time, Basta felt homesick.

The American sitting across from Basta nudged a Jerry can with his boot. Other soldiers shuffled in their seats. One puffed away on a cigarette. Another was sound asleep, with his head slumped against the shoulder of the man sitting next to him. When Basta turned to look at Robert, he saw that the young man was holding a rumpled black and white photograph of a young lady. Basta peeked at the woman on the photograph, and noticed that she was very pretty. She had an oval shaped face, and long, dark, poker straight hair spilling past her shoulders. Her beautiful "M" shaped lips were parted, and her attention didn't seem to be fixed on the photographer.

"Who is she?" Asked Basta. Startled, Robert jumped a little. He looked at Basta, then down at the photograph, which he quickly stuffed into the breast pocket of his jacket.

"My very, very, very best friend" said Robert. It seemed to pain him to say that. Basta didn't know what to make of the young man's reply.

"She's nice looking" he said. He wanted to catch another glimpse of the photograph, but he knew he couldn't. Robert smiled a bit, and nodded.

"She's very beautiful." Basta found himself nodding as well.

"What's her name?" Basta was impressed with the beauty of the women on Earth. They made Ombra's finest look like dogs!

"Olivia." Robert's voice almost, almost cracked. Basta thought to himself that Olivia was the second woman he'd met on Earth, even if he hadn't seen her in person. Anna and Olivia... "Do uh, do you have a girlfriend?" Asked Robert.

"Sure." Said Basta, nodding a bit. "Well, it's complicated."

"What's her name?"

"Anna." Basta smiled. He hadn't spoken the name in so long...

"She British too?"Basta had to think for a moment, not understanding Robert's question.

"Oh!" he said quickly, understanding. "No, no, she's German." Some of the troops raised their heads. Basta cringed a little.

"A German?" Robert seemed a bit surprised.

"Yeah." Basta grumbled. "Like I said, it's complicated."

Silence.

Basta realised that he looked really suspicious.

His eyes were such a shade of green that they could almost appear to be blue.

His hair was dyed Blonde.

He was wearing a German army jacket.

He was dating a German woman.

If it weren't for the accent, he thought, they would have you shot in a heartbeat! Basta groaned to himself.

It was dark when the jeep stopped. The forest was thicker, so the dusk seemed darker than it would be in the field. The troops all hopped out of the truck, and wandered into the forest to pee or smoke.

"Stay close!" called Robert. He was obviously the man in charge, and his jacket insignia indicated that he was a Lieutenant.

"How old are you?" asked Basta, accepting a water canteen from Robert.

"22" he said. He yawned and growled in frustration when the helmet fell over his eyes again. "It was my birthday a few weeks ago."

"Happy belated" said Basta. He stuck a cigarette into his mouth, and offered one to Robert. The Lieutenant shook his head.

"So what's the deal with you and this Anna?" Robert sipped some water and scuffed the dirt with the toe of his boot. Basta frowned and took a drag before replying.

"Everything was great, then I sort of pissed her off. We don't talk anymore."

"Women" muttered Robert, shaking his head. Basta shrugged. He didn't want to talk about Anna.

"How long have you been seeing your girlfriend?" He asked Robert. Basta watched the young man's face change in the diffused light. He seemed somewhat upset.

"She's not really my girlfriend" he said. "It's really complicated."

"How long have you known her for?"

"16 years" said Robert. A smile flitted across his parted lips.

"Really? That long?" Basta raised his eyebrows. Robert made a little nod before calling all the troops back to the truck. Darkened figures came in from around the trees, orange cigarette butts glowing orange in the darkness. Everyone climbed back into the bed of the vehicle, yawning and talking amongst themselves. The jeep started and rumbled along the road, continuing towards the mountain pass.

The soldiers shared their K-Rations meal, and Basta got a few bites of some very strange food. He liked the saltine crackers best, though they made him very thirsty.

Basta fell asleep with ease after his meal, despite the bumping of the truck.

The next morning passed without much excitement at all. The American's hadn't warmed up to Basta, and no one really said much of anything. When noon rolled around, though, the sky was fine and blue and the sun shone brightly. Basta had wriggled out of his field jacket, and Robert announced that they were approaching the Swiss border. Basta felt himself smile. Would Anna be proud to learn that I've made it to Switzerland? He wondered. A few soldiers murmured and smiled. Basta looked around at the rich green trees. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought it was springtime!

"Oh shit" muttered Robert under his breath.

"What?" Basta craned his neck around the cab of the truck to see what Robert was looking at. Then he saw it too: four German soldiers guarding the road.

"Fuck me sideways" muttered Robert to himself, before tapping the back window of the truck, to alert the driver. The truck slowed to a halt, and the Germans walked over. Basta felt himself sweating and his heart hammered in his chest. Would they recognize him? What would they do? His face was twisted into a look of panic. Robert hopped out of the bed of the truck. The soldiers all shifted in discomfort, looking anxiously at one another.

"Sprechen sie English?" Asked Robert, staying close to the truck. The Germans all looked at him, and one approached. Basta looked away, scared that they would notice his face and yell at him. Robert spoke with one of the soldiers, in English, and motioned to the truck a couple times. Basta heard snippets of the conversation Injured...soldiers...medical...neutral country... Basta knew the conversation wasn't going well because a second German approached Robert and they were raising their voices. Basta's hand drifted to the gun in his backpack. He didn't want to use it... but...

A German drew a handgun from the holster on his thigh, and aimed it at Robert, who swore loudly. Before anyone else in the truck had done as much as reach for their rifles, Basta had drawn the weapon from his bag and shot at the man aiming at Robert. He fell to the ground, bleeding from the chest. Basta gaped at the man he had just killed, and heard the soldiers in the truck loading their guns. Robert open fired, along with the Germans. Basta shot his gun as well. The fight lasted no more than a minute, and when it was over, all found Germans lay dead on the road.

"Holy SHIT!" Swore the troop sitting to Basta's right. "Where the fuck did that come from?"

Basta babbled like an idiot, not sure what to say. Robert hopped into the truck, and the jeep bumped along the road, leaving the four dead soldiers where they lay.

Basta didn't know how he felt about the situation. He surly wasn't proud, but he felt happy that he had managed to save Robert's life. He was absolutely shocked when the Americans all thanked and congratulated him. Robert sat beside him, and thanked him profusely.

Basta smiled all the way though the pass.

It was midnight when the troops reached an inn in Switzerland. Everyone hopped out of the truck, and headed for the bar. Some soldiers went to a room to sleep, but many chose to party downstairs in the bar. At first, Basta had just wanted to sleep in a bed again, but Robert insisted that he had a drink downstairs, to celebrate his actions.

Through Robert's eyes, Basta was a hero. Not only had he rescued his little brother, but he had saved his own life. Basta felt uncomfortable with all the praise the young man was giving him, but he couldn't complain, either. The lieutenant bought him a beer, and raised a toast in his name.

Shyly, Basta took a swig from his cup. Several other bar goers, some were women, joined in on the toast and raised their drinks as well. Basta couldn't help but ogle at the beautiful Swiss women in the bar. They were all blonde, and the one he had his eyes on in particular wore her hair in a short braid down the back of her neck.

The drinks kept coming, and coming and coming. Basta was beginning to feel woozy and intoxicated by the time the lady with the braid come over to talk to him.

"Hi" she said, batting her long blonde eyelashes.

"Hai" Basta smiled and tried to focus on her face. The floor beneath his feet seemed to be sliding, and his throat felt warm. He smiled gleefully when the girl leaned in, showing off her full bust, and said her name.

"My name is Alessandra" she said. She smiled her full lips, and Basta noticed a couple freckles on her pretty face.

"I'm Basta" he said. He swayed on his feet a little, and smiled in amusement.

"Nice to meet you"

"Nice to meet you too!" Basta took another sip of his drink.

"Do you have anywhere to sleep tonight?" Asked Alessandra. Basta's eyes widened, and he found himself laughing and smiling.

"No, I don't!" Alessandra smiled.

-x-X-x-

Basta's sexual performance was extremely deterred by his alcohol intoxication. At first, it took him a very, very long time to actually get an erection. Once he finally got aroused, he had a hard time keeping his erection. Alessandra kissed and groped his body, but Basta didn't participate much in the activity. He just lay there, drunk and heartbroken, pretending that Alessandra was Anna. The girl straddling his hips was panting. She unzipped his pants, and tugged them down. Basta just groaned. But when Alessandra bent down, taking him inside her mouth, he gasped loudly.

"ANNA!" he cried, gasping with pleasure. Alessandra stopped.

"Anna?" She asked, her voice rising with horror.

"Uhh.." Basta's eyes widened. Oops.

"I'm not Anna!" Basta zipped himself up with fumbling fingers, and felt his cheeks turning pink with embarrassment. "And you're not blonde either!" She huffed. Basta was so humiliated he didn't know what to do. "GET OUT OF MY ROOM!" She hollered.

"Jesus! You fuck" Basta got to his feet. He figured Alessandra was being too touchy. He glared at her as he left the room.

A/N:

Still...sick...GAH! Here's a rather crummy update! My stomach pains have been distracting me. I'm no longer in the zone... thanks so much for the wonderful review, Basta's girl! And thanks for commenting, Insanepyro. I appreciate it!

Also...

You can read my blog! It's on my Homepage. It has pictures! Lol

Thanks guys!