Shadow of the Past

The ride to Alexanderplatz had been uneventful. The man driving had taken them around a large building at the plaza and had parked behind it, next to a few other Kubelwagens lined up next to a dry fountain. Kapitan Strauss had helped them out of the car and had led them into the building, which apparently served as the headquarters of the Deutsche Kommunists.

As they'd been led inside Hans had cast a glance East, reminding himself that Fernsehturm was just across the tracks, the ruins of the tower partially visible over the buildings around it. It struck him as funny, how going there had changed his life as much as Hilda's. He'd never imagined even once that when he rescued that little redhead that she'd one day end up being his close friend and wife.

Of course, someone else had been with him when he'd gone to Fernsehturm. An even closer friend, who was no longer with him. One of many friends who hadn't survived Munich. A friend sorely missed.

Kapitan Strauss led them through the halls of the building at Alexanderplatz, which seemingly used to be a gallery or shopping center of some kind. Most of the building had an open floor plan, broken up by repurposed shelves and tables. Market stalls, bars, diners, a school, and so on. It wasn't crowded, but it was a busy place. Everywhere they were led Hans saw Deutsche Kommunists in uniform, plus normal people. Kids, pregnant women, the disabled, even a few ghouls and a seemingly friendly Sturmutant, who all received dirty looks from Hilda.

Strauss brought them to the center of the building, where a lattice of escalators waited. She took them up to the second floor, stopping at the top of the steps of the long-dead escalator. "Papen and Jaeger will take your wife to the clinic, to treat the stab wound in her arm. I'll take you to see the boss, and then bring you to her when you're done. Deal?" Strauss asked.

Hans shared a look with Hilda, who looked hesitant. And angry. "Fine. No choice, anyway."

Strauss nodded at Papen and Jaeger, who grabbed Hilda by the arm and prepared to lead her off. "I love you," she said to Hans.

"And I love you." With that they parted, Strauss leading them up another dead escalator to the third floor, the shops and schools giving way to dorms, apartments, an inn, and the building's security office. Strauss led him to said office, instructing him to take a seat and relax while she talked with her boss, leaving him under the supervision of a very bored-looking guard.

Hans had to appreciate the chance to just get off his feet, at least. What a cock-up the day had turned out to be. Between their misadventure at Potsdamer Platz and the BMW building on the Spree Hans felt he had more questions than answers. His wife, Hilda, was 'the Monster of Munich', whatever the Hell that meant, and Sturmutants all across Berlin were hunting her down to please the whims of one Queen Ilse, whoever the Hell that was.

He leaned forward in the chair, his hands still cuffed behind his back. So much had happened at Munich, most of which Hans would've preferred to forget, that it was hard to pin down just what had the Sturmutants in Berlin so pissed off they'd name and hunt down just one human for it. The war between the Final Order and the Bavarian Coalition had brought plenty of fighting to the city, not that Hans had seen many Sturmutants there. The only ones he could think of were the ones he and Klara Edmund had fought at the amusement park, and there hadn't been anything particularly special about them.

Kapitan Strauss came out of the room she'd gone into, knocking him from his thoughts. He stood as she approached, and she fished out her keys. "The boss wants to see you," she said as she uncuffed him. Hans rubbed his wrists and nodded. "Go on in."

Hans stepped past her and approached the open door, and Strauss closed it behind him. The office was small, dominated mostly by filing cabinets and a bookshelf. Two windows adorned the wall opposite the door, a table between them, a dead potted plant on top of it. By the right-hand window was a desk, a man seated in it with his back turned as he rummaged through a drawer. "Just a moment, please."

Hans just stood before the desk, hands folded in front of his lap. He never imagined he'd be standing in the office of the leader of the Deutsche Kommunists, either as a guest or a prisoner. He was neither, at the moment, but he knew he certainly wouldn't be allowed to just walk out. Maybe, if what Strauss had said was true, he would be able to broker some kind of peace between the stations and the DKs. At least until their allegedly mutual Sturmutant problem was taken care of.

"Ah, here we are. I'm terribly sorry about the wait," the man said, and swiveled around in his chair. He looked up at Hans, Hans looked down at him, and his heart stopped. The man dropped the sheet of paper he was holding, the sheet falling gently to the floor. He didn't even lower his hand, his arm frozen at his side as he went through the same shock and disbelief Hans was currently going through.

Sitting in the chair before him, the sun outside illuminating his dirty brown hair and tweed shirt, was none other than Friedrich Ademar.

"Herr Eckhart..."

"This isn't real," Hans said matter-of-factly. "You're not real. This is a joke."

"I'm afraid that if it is a joke, I can't find it in me to laugh," Friedrich Ademar said.

"Fuck you, I should walk out right now," Hans said. "What sick twist of fate forced our paths to cross again? Whoever's responsible is going to get their ass kicked, either in this life or the next."

"Oh calm down already, Herr Eckhart, I'm just as appalled as you are at this situation. This certainly isn't how I thought this day would go, either," Ademar said.

"No fucking kidding," Hans said. He leaned forward and put his hands on the desk, staring straight into Ademar's blue eyes. "Hilda is here with me and the second she learns you're still alive she's going to come straight here and put a bullet between your eyes."

"Hilda? Fraulein Muller? Didn't she disappear? Or am I misremembering?"

Hans sighed and sat down, his left elbow on the chair's armrest, his hand on the side of his head. "No, she didn't disappear. I lied to you back then about that. It was part of my mission for the Final Order," he said.

"Mmm, and look where that got you. Look where they and Projekt Natursturm got all of us," Ademar said.

"Again, fuck you, you bleeding-heart commie fuck. I told you that what I did for the Order was for the greater good, and I'd do it all again if given the choice."

Ademar waved his hands around in circles. "Yes, yes, I know. Look, Herr Eckhart, the past is done and buried. We have much more important things to deal with. We can sit here all day and argue over something that happened years ago, or we can talk."

"What is there to talk about?"

"Why you and Fraulein Muller were at the BMW building by the Spree, for one. And why the stations and the Deutsche Kommunists have been at war for the past several months, for another," Friedrich said.

"We've been at war for months because you lot can't seem to understand the simple concept of paying for what you want. As for the BMW building, not that it's any Goddamn business of yours, Hilda and I were there investigating the Sturmutants. They've been attacking the stations for several weeks now."

"I see. And why do you suppose the Sturmers are attacking the stations?" Friedrich asked.

"You tell me, seeing as how they've been attacking your comrades, too. At least if Captain Strauss is to be believed," Hans said, and Ademar gave him a look.

"Fraulein Strauss brought you here? Did she recognize you?"

Hans tilted his head. "No. Should she have?"

"Mmm. Fraulein Strauss served under me in the Bavarian Coalition. She's one of the few who survived the battle at the Eagle's Nest."

"Christ's sake," Hans said, and rubbed his temples. "I've always wanted to know, by the way; how the Hell did you hit us the way you did at the Eagle's Nest? Where did you get all those soldiers?"

"Separatists from the Order, Herr Eckhart, who objected to what those Nazis wanted to do to Formers. As for the assault on the Eagle's Nest, there'd been a few functional vertibirds at Installation 14. I half-expected the Order to shoot us out of the sky as we approached, but I suppose they assumed any helicopter in Munich was one of theirs. Quite the error, if you ask me."

Hans sighed. "Agreed. Not that it matters anyway, since Projekt Natursturm didn't even fucking work... What the Hell's a Former?"

"Former Humans, Herr Eckhart. Ghouls. Rotters. Or zombies, if you're especially bigoted," Ademar said. "We're getting off track again. Sturmutants. They've been attacking your stations, and they've been harassing us here at Alexanderplatz. I suspect it's for the usual things their lot wants; food, water, land. Do you think they might have a camp near Pariserplatz?"

"Yes. A rather large one, I think, judging by how many stations have been attacked."

"They have a camp near us as well, from which they've been ambushing our patrols and caravans," Ademar said. He tapped his finger on the table for a few moments. "So, here's the deal, Herr Eckhart. The stations and the Deutsche Kommunists have been at war for too long, while God-knows-what lurks in Berlin. We have a mutual problem in the Sturmers, so help us help you. If you take care of our problem, I'll help you take care of yours. Afterwards, the stations will agree to work together with the Deutsche Kommunists. Does that sound fair?"

"Sure, but what's stopping Hilda and I from walking straight back to Pariserplatz when we leave?" Hans asked, and Ademar smiled. He leaned back in his chair and folded his hands in his lap, and Hans had a sinking feeling he wouldn't like what he was about to hear.

"Simple, Herr Eckhart. I'm coming with you."

Hans blinked. Once, twice, three times. "Are you a fucking retard?" he said. "Your Coalition destroyed Projekt Natursturm, destroyed the Final Order, you killed Klara, your stooges have been harassing the stations for months, and you expect us to work together? Did you forget what I said about Hilda? She believed in the Order's mission more than any of us, and when she sees you she will kill you. What on Earth makes you think this'll work?!"

"You don't really have a choice, Herr Eckhart. The stations can hold the Sturmers off, sure, but you can't defeat them on your own. There are other factions in Berlin you could maybe work something out with, sure. The Church of Bismarck the Unifier, the Prussian Knights, there's even a few emissaries of the New Austrian Empire somewhere in Berlin, I believe. Do you really want to take a chance with any of them, though?" Ademar said.

Hans leaned his head back and dragged his hands down his face. "I'm taking a chance with you, if I agree to this. I let you live when, judging by this conversation, I clearly should've shot you in the head."

"You can leave, I won't stop you. Just consider your situation, Herr Eckhart."

Hans cradled his face again, his elbow on the chair's armrest. If it was just a Sturmutant problem then he'd absolutely walk out right then and there, but it was more complicated than that. They were hunting Hilda. Him too, from the sound of it. It was personal, apparently. And, if Ademar could be trusted, then once the Sturmutant problem was taken care of the conflict between the DKs and the stations would be over as well. Two birds with one stone.

"For God's sake... Fine." Hans stood, and Friedrich stood as well, grabbing his gun as he did so. An H&K G3. "My God, Hilda is not going to like this." Friedrich stepped past Hans, gestured to the door, and the two of them walked out of Friedrich's office and into the waiting room. Kapitan Strauss was waiting for them there, leaning against the doorway. She pushed off as they approached, her arms folded over her chest.

"Get everything settled, Herr Ademar?" she asked.

Friedrich looked at Hans and nodded. "Yes, that's right. Herr Eckhart and I are going to collect his friend, and then we're going to go on over to the Mitte to deal with our mutual problem. While we're gone you'll be in charge, Marlene. Can I count on you for that?"

Strauss nodded. "Of course, sir. Everything will be in order when you return. Good hunting."

With that Hans and Friedrich left the security office and made their way down to the building's second floor, where the clinic apparently was. Hans followed his old enemy as he led them across the concourse to where their clinic was, passing by a few dozen people on the way. As they neared the clinic Hans slowed down, dreading what was coming.

Friedrich stopped by the door to the clinic and turned around to face him. To Hans' relief, he didn't say anything. Just stood there by the door, hands on his belt. He seemed to be enjoying the situation, as far as Hans could tell. The door to the clinic was already open, a few people inside talking.

Fuck me running, nothing good will come of this Hans thought. He was in the middle of preparing himself when he saw Hilda come out of one of the clinic's rooms, talking with a nurse. Well, the nurse was actually talking to her. Hilda was just sulking, already peeved about... Well, everything. About being separated from Hans, about being held as a 'guest' of the DKs, about being partially strip-searched. The nurse talked with her, or at her, for a few minutes before she was apparently dismissed. She turned to the door, saw Hans, and smiled as she approached.

"Hi, Hans. I'm glad these commie pricks didn't hurt you. Who's th-" she said, stopping when she saw who was standing in front of Hans. Her eyes widened, her mouth a thin crease, her brows raised. She looked furious. She looked at Hans and grabbed him by the arm. "We need to talk, now."

Hilda led him over to the mezzanine that ran alongside the escalators, where few people were. She cast one final look at Friedrich, who was watching them, and looked at Hans. "What the fuck is this?!"

"Let me explain."

"Explain? What is there to explain?! You told me he was dead, you told me you killed him and kicked his body off the mountain. I've been studying medicine since I was nineteen; I'm pretty sure people don't survive getting shot in the head and kicked off a mountain. I think the only thing more certain to kill someone is setting them on fire and throwing them into a canyon. So why is he here, alive and well?" Hilda asked. "And why did you lie to me?"

Hans opened his mouth, unsure of where to even start. Hilda had always been a little bloodthirsty, a true tit-for-tat kind of woman. Likely from her unresolved trauma, as far as Hans could tell.

"Do you remember what it was like there, at the top of that mountain, standing around the destroyed Natursturm device?" Hans asked. "Knowing that, even if it hadn't been destroyed, it wouldn't have mattered anyway because it didn't work, and the GECK was irradiated? I didn't kill Friedrich because there would have been no point. It wouldn't have changed anything."

"The Coalition destroyed the Natursturm device. One of them killed Klara, Commander Wolfgang, Chancellor Dietrich, and everyone else we knew. He was in charge of the Coalition. It doesn't matter that killing him wouldn't have cleansed the GECK or made the device faster; he deserved to die," Hilda said.

"OK, so go shoot him right now. Will it change anything? Will it help our situation?" Hans said. "Projekt Natursturm and all that was years ago, we've moved on. Here, in the present, we have present problems."

"Fine, whatever, but why did you lie to me?"

"Because if I'd told you I'd spared Friedrich you would've gone after him. You would've chased him all across Germany, no matter how long it took, just to kill him. Revenge is not a road that ends in happiness."

Hilda scoffed and walked away. "Fuck you, Hans. You don't get to make decisions for me," She approached Friedrich. "By all rights, you should be fucking dead, asshole," she said to him. "I promise you, I wouldn't have hesitated. I don't know what you told Hans to make him sign off on this horseshit, but it better have been good."

"A truce. You and him help me with my Sturmutant problem, I help you with yours. Afterwards, the stations and the DKs enter an alliance. Believe it or not, we want the same things. Stability and prosperity for Germany" Friedrich said.

"Sure. Sure you do," Hilda said, and looked at Hans again. "What's stopping me from just shooting him in the back and saying the Sturmutants did it?"

Friedrich shrugged. "Nothing. But I like to think you two wouldn't do that. We already have a deal in place; if I die, then you'll have to barter for a new one with Marlene, Kapitan Strauss. If I die, then I die, but I'm offering you two a chance to solve both your major problems, and we're a lot more agreeable than some of the other factions in Berlin."

Hilda chewed her lip, her hands on her hips. Hans just stood there, watching the two of them. He had his own misgivings about the whole situation, particularly if Friedrich learned that Hilda was Public Enemy No.1 in the eyes of the Sturmutants. Worse still if they all learned why she was on the top of their shit-list. But it wasn't as if Hilda was wrong about what had happened at the Eagle's Nest, though Hans got the feeling she was more pissed off that he'd lied about it.

"Fine," Hilda eventually said. "Fine. Where are we going and what are we doing?"

"Amtsgericht Mitte, a short hike away. Before The Bomb, it was the headquarters of the Berlin Polizeirevier. There's a sizable contingent of Sturmutants there, who have been bothering us for quite some time. I tried a more peaceful resolution a few times, of course, but they wouldn't have it. Now, I'm afraid, the time for force has come," Friedrich said. "When they've been eliminated, the Deutsche Kommunists will be free to help the U-Bahn stations quell their Sturmutant problem."

"Let's go, then," Hilda said, and Hans nodded. Friedrich led them back to the security office to tell Kapitan Strauss the terms of their plan and what they'd be doing, and to retrieve the duffel bag containing their weapons. He then led them back down to the first floor. They followed Friedrich across the first floor's concourse, through the back halls, and out the door they'd entered the building through. Instead of climbing into one of their Kubelwagens, though, he took them out onto the street and they began the supposedly short hike to Amtsgericht Mitte.