"Wir sind das deutsche Afrikakorps,
des Führers verwegene Truppe.
Wir stürmen wie die Teufel hervor,
Versalzen dem Tommy die Suppe."
"Rommel Marsch" - The Marching Song of the Afrika Korps
Another day breaks for German Hauptmann Hans Dietrich, as he wakes up in his current commanding location in a small oasis town in Lybia. Whether the Germans will still be holding the town by the end of the week is unclear, as will be his orders for the day except for the usual logistics and supply tasks. As he steps out of bed, a soft yelp greets him which quickly turns into excited barks, as the small dog that the Rats have once dumped on him rises on its hind legs and begs him to be petted with its big dog eyes filled with affection and adoration. "Ruhig, Fritz. Sitz!", Hans Dietrich orders the enthusiastic animal to be quiet and sit down. The past weeks spent with the strict German officer have indeed shaped Fritz' behaviour, as he sits down obediently and stares at his master with unerring adoration, while its tongue lolls out at the left side of his snout. "Brav, Fritz!", the Hauptmann praises him, while he turns to wash and shave, before putting on his uniform.
Fritz obediently follows at the German officer's heel, while he walks toward the mess hall. Once inside, the dog runs off toward the kitchen where it is reliably fed with scraps the kitchen crew lovingly put together for their unit's mascot. Meanwhile, Hans Dietrich sits down for breakfast next to his second in command, Oberleutnant Wilhelm Wagner, a tough, honest and straight-forward young Bavarian officer. "Guten Morgen, Herr Hauptmann", Oberleutnant Wagner greets him with an honest smile showing his sympathy for his commanding officer. "Guten Morgen, Oberleutnant Wagner. Ist alles in Ordnung bei den Jungs?", Hauptmann Dietrich asks for the current situation, while pouring himself some coffee into a mug. "Alles in Ordnung, Herr Hauptmann. Keine Ratten weit und breit", he adds half jokingly that there are no rats anywhere near. Dietrich almost chokes on his coffee, swallowing with a grimace that clearly speaks of him not sharing the humor of the statement. "Verschreien Sie es nicht, Oberleutnant. Die Ratten suchen uns früher heim, als uns lieb ist", Hans Dietrich sighs already envisioning that the Rat Patrol will be harassing them soon enough again.
After breakfast, Hauptmann Dietrich inspects the troops, facilities and supplies. Once, he has assured himself that all is in proper order, he gives his men the orders for the day, training, patrols, requisition of provisions and so on. As the only one able the speak Arabic and some of the local dialects of the Bedouins to a certain degree, Hauptmann Dietrich is typically in charge of buying additional provisions at the market, haggling with the vendors and using the chance of buying some intel in addition to fresh food to extend the nutritional value of their tinned rations.
Before leaving Oberleutnant Wagner in charge of the fort, Hauptmann Dietrich checks with his aide who serves as his clerk and sometimes driver of his staff car. "Leutnant Brunner", he addresses the thin young man from Berlin who looks up at him with almost the same expectant expression as Fritz, their dog mascot. "Gibt es Nachrichten vom Hauptquartier?" Brunner shakes his head indicating clearly that no news from HQ has arrived. Dietrich nods contemplatively. "Dann bleiben die existierenden Befehle in Kraft. Halten Sie Kontakt und melden Sie, dass ich in der Stadt bin zur Ergänzung der Nahrungsreserven und Auffrischung unserer Informationen über die Alliierten", he informs him on his intentions of gathering provisons and information in town. "Jawohl, Herr Hauptmann", Brunner salutes swiftly which Dietrich answers with a salute of his own, before leaving the office.
"As-salamu 'alaikum", Hauptmann Dietrich greets the leader of the Bedouins who has traded food and information with him for many times in the past months, whenever the Germans held the oasis town or were camped nearby. "Wa-'alaikumu s-salam", Sheikh Sulaiman greets the Afrikakorps officer with his typical reserved smile. Neither party trusts the other fully, yet they both profit more from collaboration than antagonism and thus have kept their truce ever since the arrival of the Germans. After learning from his own mistakes, Hans Dietrich has made sure that his men would always behave well enough and not harass the locals in any way to keep this state of affairs intact which has served him well.
"*What can I do for you, Hauptmann?*", Sheikh Sulaiman asks in his local dialect with the sly tone of an experienced vendor preparing for the haggling to come. Dietrich gives him a non-committal smile, before answering in the same language with a slight German accent: "*I would like to buy some of your chickens and goats for meat and a few sacks of dates.*" The legend among Bedouins says that some water and 5 dates are enough to keep a man alive for a day in the desert. Hans Dietrich remembers well enough when he has had put this theory to the test, only hoping that it will never happen again. However, given the amount of supplies regularly destroyed by Rat Patrol, he would rather err in the direction of caution by gaining additional food supplies for his men. The Sheikh spreads his arms and gives him a wide grin. "*Ah. Of course, Hauptmann*", he struggles a bit with the pronunciation of the German word of the other's rank. "*Our animals are the best you can find all around.*" The German officer keeps himself from rolling his eyes at the boastful statement which is part of the local haggling process. With no competition around, his animals would undoubtedly be the best which still does not say anything about them being good or well-fed.
Keeping up his polite half-smile and non-threatening appearance, Hauptmann Dietrich proceeds with the typical haggling answering exaggerated praises of the goods with cautious counters which yet must not affront the Sheikh. He always feels like treading a verbal mine field in these situations. Finally, they come to an agreement over the prize and Hans Dietrich intends to use the now more satisfied atmosphere for inquiring about any news regarding the Allies, as the sound of vehicles makes him spin around and reach for his side arm instinctively. Knowing he has not ordered any of his men out with the vehicles to save fuel, the arrival of the Rat Patrol is his first thought triggered on instinct by now, whenever he hears the whirring sound of motors. After a few seconds, Dietrich realizes that the noise sounds not at all like a Jeep, but also not like any of his half-tracks or tanks.
A black limousine turns around the corner and slowly, almost manacingly drives toward the central square where the Captain has met with the Sheikh. At the sight of the small flags marked with the Nazis' Swastika symbol, Hans Dietrich swallows involuntarily and his eyes narrow. "*You better leave, Sheikh Sulaiman*", he warns the other man with as calm a tone as he can manage. "*We will conclude our deal later.*" The Sheikh has observed the situation with growing anxiety and suspicion and is clearly relieved by the German officers words to let him leave with his dignity intact. Ordering his men to retreat to their caravanserai, the Bedouin leader leaves the Germans to their internal affairs.
As the car stops next to him, Hauptmann Dietrich straightens his posture rising to his full height. Raising his hand to his cap in a crisp military salute, he observes cautiously, as two SS officers and two armed guards get out of the back of the vehicle with a driver and third armed guard staying in the front of the car. All of them bear the Swastika armband marking them as members of the NSDAP, actual Nazis unlike Dietrich himself. "Heil Hitler!", the SS men greet him with the classical Hitlergruß extending their right forearm and frown in annoyance as the Captain is clearly unwilling to answer this with anything but a neutral military salute. The older man is in his mid-forties with a balding head and piercing grey eyes which speak of neither humor nor mercy. The younger officer is likely ten years older than Dietrich himself and about as much younger than his superior officer and looks the the role model Arier with piercing blue eyes and blond hair cropped in a military cut.
"Sie sind der befehlshabende Offizier?", the older man asks whether Dietrich is the officer in charge. "Jawohl", the Hauptmann answers and introduces himself: "Hauptmann Hans Dietrich, 5. Leichte Division des Deutschen Afrikakorps." Both SS officers eye him suspiciously, before the older one answers with an introduction of their own: "Sturmbannführer Friedrich Waldheim und Hauptsturmführer Hermann Metzlich." Dietrich swallows hard. Not only is their presence reason enough to worry, but also does one of them outrank him. This situation could turn bad very quickly and he has to tread cautiously.
"Was kann ich Für Sie tun, meine Herren?", he tries to gain information while appearing as nonchalant as possible. "Sie haben hier den Oberbefehl über die Truppen?", the Sturmbannführer answers the Hauptmann's question with another question of his own about whether Dietrich was in command. "In Abwesenheit eines höherrangigen Offiziers der Wehrmacht", Dietrich insists on pointing out that he would only bow to the order of a higher ranking officer of his own military unit, "habe ich den Oberbefehl." The younger man now speaks instead of his superior: "Sie haben den Befehl von Berlin zum Umgang mit Juden erhalten?", he spits out the word 'Jew' while asking about the orders from Berlin.
Hauptmann Dietrich is well aware of the attitude the headquarters in Berlin have about Jews as well as other minorities and races they considered inferior without knowing anything about them or their culture. Yet, like any other officer of the Afrikakoprs he listens to Generalfeldmarschall Rommel's orders rather than Berlin's and Rommel is no supporter of the Nazis and their crazed racial politics, especially when he and his troops rely on good relations with the local native tribes in many regions. Dietrich does not fail to point this out to the two SS officers resisting the urge to sneer at them: "Ich gehorche den Befehlen von Generalfeldmarschall Rommel und hätte von ihm keinerlei Befehl erhalten, der mich zu Handlungen jedweder Art zwingt."
The older SS officer regards the insolent young Captain with a look that classifies him as something like a nasty insect, while the younger officer just glares at him. Despite their hostile attitude, Hauptmann Dietrich holds himself proudly meeting their eyes with a steady and determined gaze. Priding himself on his sense of honor and chivalry, he would not bow to the Rat Patrol and Allied troops and just as surely would not cower in front of the SS. "Hauptmann, Sie werden Ihre Männer beordnern, alle Juden zusammen zu treiben und ein Erschießungskommando aufzustellen." For a moment Hauptmann Dietrich breaths in heavily, as he hears the command to order his troops to rally and shoot all Jews in the oasis. "Das werde ich nicht tun", Dietrich refuses stubbornly and continues with an explanation of their reliance on the collaboration with the natives. "Wir sind auf die Kooperation die hiesigen Stämme angewiesen, wenn uns wegen Versorgungsengpässen nicht nur das Bezin sondern auch die Nahrung oder Wasser ausgehen. Dann brauchen wir die Unterstützung der Stämme hier, um Fleisch, Datteln und Zugang zu Wasserstellen zu bekommen. Es wäre Wahnsinn, das Leben ganzer deutscher Einheiten wegen ein paar Juden zu gefährden."
"Sie sind eine Schande für die Herrenrasse, Hauptmann. Wie ein Wurm vor diesen dreckigen Wilden im Sand zu kriechen!", the SS Sturmbannführer shouts at him in anger. Hans Dietrich does not take being called a shame for his people and a worm crawling in the sand lightly. With rising anger, he growls: "Bei allem Respekt, Herr Obersturmmbannführer, Sie haben nicht die letzten zwei Jahre in einer Wüste mit stets wechselnden Bedingungen verbracht, mit Hunger, Durst und Hitze als mindestens so großen Feinden wie die Alliierten, es sind!" Even though he uses terms like 'with all due respect' and argues with hunger, thirst and heat as more formidable foes than the allied soldiers, his lack of respect for the pair is rather obvious.
Just when the dialogue is about to escalate, they are interrupted by Dietrich's aide. "Herr Hauptmann, ein dringender Befehl vom Hauptquartier", Leutnant Brunner shouts at a distance, before he stops short staring in shock and astonishment, when he sees the SS soldiers and officers surrounding his commanding officer. "Wie lautet der Befehl?", Hauptmann Dietrich asks about the urgent command from headquarters with a sharper tone than his aide has expected. "Sie sollen die Sicherheit von General König gewährleisten, Herr Hauptmann. Die Alliierten sollen hinter ihm her sein." Hans Dietrich feels like he had just jumped from the frying pan into the fire. "The Butcher"'s reputation is legendary - a sadistic man without care for friend or foe. And the order to protect him is the only thing keeping him from falling into the clutches of the SS within the day, as he is already dangerously close to annoy them enough to warrant his arrest. The universe truly has a strange sense of humor.
A spare the readers the recount of the final episode of the Rat Patrol which is meant to take place afterwards, before the next chapters continues its story line.