A Black Sun Rises

by Bronycommander

Chapter 6 Training

Chapter 6: Training

Neither Fletcher nor the children said a word as Konrad led them through the forest, still trying to process through what they just went through.

They wondered where the man was taking them, it seemed like hours before Dinky broke the silence. “Where are we going?”

“To the outpost Karl got deployed after the Allied attack. I know from the terrain where it is, on the other side of this forest.”

“I hope the others are doing well after this,” Katja mumbled with worry.

“I’m sure they are. Fletcher, you surely want to know what happened and what you missed, but can this wait until we are there?” Konrad asked the stallion, who nodded.

“No problem.”

“What happened to you, Konrad?” Blau asked him.

“Well, a German patrol found me and took me to a German base, where I was standing guard until Steiner called me. He I was also informed where my squad mates were, but couldn’t find out anything about you though.”

“We’re escaped with the help of two allied soldiers. They’re…” Dinky couldn’t finish, sniffing.

“Children,” Fletcher started, looking at them with a weak smile. “If it hadn’t been for their efforts, you had never made it, coming this far. They knew the risks.”

“I guess you have a point…” Dinky mumbled with a weak smile of her own.

“And there we are,” Escher announced as they came out of the woods to a checkpoint, a small town was in the distance behind it, together with what looked like a Viaduct in the middle of the Viaduct.

“Who goes there? Identify yourself!” A male voice shouted and they saw themselves faced by an officer, together with a soldier, weapons trained on the group.

“It’s me, Konrad.” The Sergeant replied and both men lowered their weapons.

“Fancy meeting you there, Konrad.” The officer holstered his pistol. “Same for you, kids.” They recognized him, it was Karl.

“Indeed it is. May I introduce Fletcher Fray to you?” Konrad pointed at the stallion and Karl smiled.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. Lieutenant Karl Vogel, at your service.” He gave Fray a salute, which he returned.

“Likewise.”

“The kids have told me a lot about you. But for now, take some rest. Conti, would be so kind?” The officer looked at the other soldier.

“Of course.”

“Wait, Conti? I thought…” Konrad said in surprise as the Italian waved a hand.

“You aren’t mistaken, I was arrested too. But Rommel was my salvation. As he overlooked some of the captured Italians, he noticed me and ordered my release. Official, I am serving under German command and supervision, in that case under Karl. Unofficial, he got me out because of my actions in Africa and to keep you three safe.”

“That was very nice from him.” The little unicorn said with a grin.

“Yes, it was.”

Fletcher and the kids ate some fresh bread with a salad, enjoying the meal as the stallion got told what he had been missed and what had happened. “Congratulations to your promotion, Konrad. My condolences about Frank though. And I am also happy to hear that your friend Günther has become a father.” Fletcher said with a forced smile, feeling uneasy about knowing that the former had survived and lived in an alternate Equestria and that Günther’s family would meet a tragic fate two years later. He had never told Dinky and the siblings about the family of his creator, fearing they wouldn’t take it well.

“Thank you and its fine. Say, do you ever had a lover?” Konrad asked, catching him off guard.

“N-not really. I was never much interested in marriage but had a few mares here and then in my long lifetime.” Fray replied, but his subconscious betrayed him and a certain mare popped in, causing him to shake his head.

Of all mares, not her!

“You’re okay?” Escher asked confused and Fletcher slowly nodded.

“Yeah, it’s just, ever had a moment where you think of something you want to forget immediately?”

“Yeah, I know what you mean.”

In that very moment, he had to think of how Wagensroll had told him how he met James.

---

With an aching head, the Earth pony came to, holding his head. What just happened? Where am I? Wagensroll looked around, finding himself in an alleyway, also noticing it was raining. “Okay, stay calm, panic won’t get you anywhere.” He spoke to himself before noticing something odd as he looked at himself.

“I am a colt now? Uhh…” He stared in confusion and shock before a loud thunder came, causing him to shriek.

“Hello? Someone there?” A male voice sounded in his ears, apparently having heard him.

“Uh, yes, I appear to be lost.” Wagensroll replied in confusion, it just slipped out.

The colt slowly stepped out of the shadow, seeing a silhouette of what looked like a human at first.

He froze completely at the silhouette was completely visible.

It was a human indeed. A man in what appeared to be a high-ranking officer uniform, looking slightly surprised at him.

While Wagensroll knew what humans were due to the adventures of his relative and had met two of them before, in this case, Katja and her father, he never thought he would see one again.

The man started to smile. “Hey there, little guy. Come with me, you’re freezing out here.”

Of course Wagensroll knew he couldn’t trust a stranger, but something told him the man was honest. “Okay, sir. Where do you live?”

“Not far from here.” The man replied and gently took him on his arm and walked, the streets were deserted, so he reached his home without anyone seeing the Earth pony.

Wagensroll shivered a bit from the cold weather as they got in and the human got a towel to dry him. “Thank you, sir.” He thanked the man.

“You’re welcome. My name is Jessie Günther, but you can call me James.” Now, Wagensroll was able to see him fully. Jessie was a young man with blond hair, blue eyes, having a round face and narrow chin, with a slightly muscular build.

“Pleasure. My name is Wagensroll.”

“A nice name. Would you like a hot chocolate to warm yourself up?” Jessie asked with a smile and the colt nodded.

It was done in a few minutes and Wagensroll enjoyed the warm taste to the fullest. “Much better!”

“I am pleased to hear that. Now, can you tell me what a boy like you ends up lost in an alleyway?” Günther asked, sounding rather curious and Wagensroll tried to remember what happened.

“As far as I can remember, I, together with my relative Fletcher, his two friends Midnight Blade and White Wolf, along with my friend and colleague Purple Patch helped Princess Luna to try out a new portal spell, but something went wrong. I woke up in that alleyway, being turned physically into a colt for some reason.” He explained in embarrassment.

“I see, could have been worse. I take it the princess is your ruler?” James asked and the colt nodded, although slightly surprised. “Educated guess, as a princess is mostly the ruler a kingdom.” He added calmly.

“That's right. There are actually two rulers. Princess Luna, being in control of the moon and her older sister Celestia, being in control of the sun in Equestria. I am an Earth pony but there are also Pegasus and Unicorns.”

“Interesting. I take you are actually an adult?” Günther asked and again, Wagensroll nodded.

“Yes. My relative, Midnight and Wolf are actually the specialists of Princess Luna’s bodyguards, the Eternal Knights.” The Earth pony explained and James smiled slightly.

“Sounds like you can be proud of your relative.”

“Of course I am.” The green colt replied with a grin. “He’s like a brother to me. If I am not mistaken, I am on Earth and you’re a human, right? Fletcher had a few…adventures on Earth, so I am a bit familiar with it.”

“Fascinating and you are correct indeed. Now, how about dinner?” Jessie suggested as it was getting late.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t mind that.” Wagensroll replied and his host made some cooked potatoes with salad, which both enjoyed. “It tasted very well, thank you.” He said after having finished and struggled to suppress a yawn.

“You should get some sleep, it was an exhausting day for you. I got a guest bed.” James smiled slightly at the colt.

“Yes, I should.” Wagensroll agreed and got tucked in by his host.

“Goodnight, sleep well.”

“You too, James. I just hope the others are alright.” His guest had a worried expression and he patted his head.

“I’m sure they are. Hope dies last.”

In response, Wagensroll smiled weakly. “Yes, it does.”

After getting comfortable, he saw how James walked out as suddenly, music came from his jacket pocket and he reached for what looked like an i-phone, if Wagensroll remembered correctly.

“Ah, always on time, my tea-drinking friend.” He heard James mumbling before falling asleep.

The little colt, while worried for his relative and friends, slept quite peaceful this night, hoping they were okay.

In the next morning, Wagensroll stirred in his sleep as the sun shined on him, having slept well, stretching himself.

“Looks like it’s going to be a wonderful day outside.” He commented and went to the kitchen for breakfast, eating some oatmeal, then checked on James. He was still asleep, getting the colt an idea. “I should make breakfast for him, I’m sure he will like it."

Günther awoke as a fresh smell entered his nose and the door opened. “Good morning!” The green colt greeted as he carried a breakfast board, a toast with strawberry Jam and a glass of juice on it.

“Thank you.” Jessie smiled, appreciating the generous action.

“It’s the least I can do to repay you for your hospitality. You are a soldier, like my relative, aren’t you? Your uniform and the pictures of you in the living room hint it.” The colt asked, as he had said the pictures of James in uniform in the living room, and the man chuckled.

“Correct. How much do you know about Germany’s history?”

“A lot, as I am from Farmany, the pony counterpart of it.”

“I see. I fought in the Great War and in the Second World War, yes. In the former, I met my future wife.”

“I hate to interrupt you, but how comes you still look so young?” The pony wondered curious.

“It’s a long story, can I tell this another time?” James replied a bit embarrassed about it.

“Sure thing.”

“Okay. As you can see on the pictures, I was a pilot in the Second World War and had a son. But sadly…” James took a deep breath, slightly trembling. “He and my wife were killed in the final stages of the war.”

“Oh…” Wagensroll slightly gasped. “I’m so sorry to hear that. Forgive me that I woke bad memories.” He lowered his head in shame and guilt.

“Wagensroll,” Jessie patted him with a weak smile, “It’s fine, you couldn’t know that.

With a weak smile, slowly nodding, the colt spoke, “...Okay Reminds me, my other colleague, Dawnwind, a deer, managed to get away in time if I remember correctly. She’s very serious when it comes to her family, but otherwise a nice and good friend. Still, my parents think she has a crush on me, despite having a friendly and professional relationship with me.” He told with embarrassment in his voice. “My friend Patch hasn’t it any better with his parents, due to being befriended with a mare called Nancy.”

“Well, that’s how parents are, embarrassing their children.”

“I guess.” Wagensroll let out a sigh. “Are you still a soldier?”

“Kind of. After the war, I volunteered for the military until my service was over. Yet, I failed at weaning myself from the battlefield. So I founded a PMC.”

Wagensroll shivered slightly. “In Equestria, we don’t have good experiences with PMCs.”

“You have nothing to fear from me. It was never about money. It was opportunity.” James countered.

“And how?” The colt wanted to know.

“In the final stages of the Second World War, I heard rumors about secret weapons beings stored somewhere underground. After the War, I investigated it and discovered they were real. When I discovered it, I knew at once they couldn’t be allowed to fall into the heads of the soviets. And with that, I founded my own PMC, using the secret technologies to keep the German WW2 equipment updated to today’s standards. Originally a militia that operated within the Federal Republic, it became known and respected, changed into the PMC it is today. I only pursue the goal to make the world safer.”

“That’s…amazing!” The colt’s eyes sparkled. “How did you manage to accomplish all of this?”

Again, Günther chuckled. “Wasn’t easy, I can tell you that.” He then swallowed, noticing his throat was a bit dry. “Could you get me a glass of water?”

“Sure thing!” Wagensroll replied and walked into the kitchen, getting a glass of water as told and walked back into the living room, noticing that James was holding a picture in his hand. “There you go.”

James looked up with a surprised expression before smiling. “Ah, thanks.”

As he was drinking, Wagensroll asked, “What’s that?” And pointed at the picture his host was holding.

“Oh, that? Nothing important.” James quickly replied.

“Still, can I see it?”

“You don’t have to know everything, young stallion.”

“Please?” The colt asked with an innocent grin and Jessie sighed.

“Fine.” He gave it to his guest and Wagensroll saw what looked like a wedding picture of Günther and a woman with dark-brown hair and green eyes, both smiling happily.

“Is that…”

“Yes, that’s my new wife. I got to know her when I was inspecting a base over in the USA. She lives there, waiting for me. I guess I miss her too.” James explained with a hint of sadness in her voice.

Wagensroll understood, James’ job made it difficult to be with his wife regularly. “She looks very pretty.”

“I know, at first, it started just as a good friendship, but eventually, it became more. Just please, would you keep it for yourself? I don’t want that it gets too public.” In response, the colt made a zipper gesture.

---

“I wonder though, if this SS-officer was tasked to pick us up, why tried her to…kill us?” Dinky shivered, feeling uneasy to speak of killing, tearing Fletcher out of his thoughts.

“I guess he wanted to cover up your escape attempt and his failure, but it’s over.” Karl calmed her down “I will arrange that Hans, Tim and David can join us. In the meantime, would you look over the new recruits we got?” He asked Konrad, who nodded.

“Sure, thing.” The sergeant turned to the ponies. “Would you come to? You could pass the time.”

“Sounds good to me.” Fletcher replied, the kids nodded.

“Alright, follow me.” He led them to a Meadow near a river, where a group of dour soldiers waited. This will be your final exam. I will wait for you at the final gathering point. Good luck.” He said to the recruits and they saluted.

Escher then took his friends to it, which was a small Forward base next to a Railway bridge, they could overlook the recruits perfectly as they swam on the other side, hearing one of them commenting, “Good! The water’s warm today.”

Once on the other side, they came to a fence with a gate, but it was closed from the other side. Quick thinking, one of the recruits crawled through a hole in the wall and opened the gate for his comrades.

Then they climbed up a ladder, vaulted over a fence, coming to a shooting range, where they fired K98 rifles, MP40s, MG42s and sniper rifles on the targets.

“For recruits, they are very precise with their weapons.” Blau commented as they were very accurate with their shots.

“Yes, back during the ideas of the German Empire, it was recognized in having the most efficient army in the world, emphasizing high-quality training, while maintaining a high number of experienced officers. The Wehrmacht continues this.” Konrad explained with pride in his voice. “And I’m sure the Farman army was just like that?” He asked Fletcher, who just grinned.

“You should have seen them, they were very efficient, no matter the task.” As he said this, the recruits moved to another shooting range where enemy tanks made out of woods were parked and threw grenades on them, destroyed every target. They did then threw grenades into pits.

The last part before the bridge was a small ruin of a backyard, littered with wooden tanks and targets. The recruits used squad tactics to deal with everything systematically, then used suppressing fire on the last group of targets before moving to the bridge.

“Well done. Goodbye and good luck.” Konrad dismissed the recruits.

“They did done well.” Fletcher added.

“Yes, they did, I hope they will survive this war.” Escher said as a truck pulled up and his three squad mates stepped out. “Glad you could make it.

“Likewise. And we are all happy to see you’re okay, children.” Hans replied with a weak smile.

“I am glad to see you’re okay too. Is the commander alright?” Dinky asked worried.

“He’s fine. With the death of Steiner, none of us has anything to fear, we covered up by saying he got killed by Partisans.”

Blau Streifen let out a sigh of relief. “I was worried we would get you into trouble. Is there anything we can help you with?”

David took the word. “Yes, we are bringing supplies, you could help carry them to the base on the other side of the bridge, including two portable radios.”

“Okay.” Blau said and looked at one of the radios. “May I?”

“You sure about that?” David asked, “They are heavy.”

“No problem.” The colt assured.

“Fine.” The soldier then grabbed the radio and carefully strapped it on Blau’s back, the foal got slightly pushed down by the weight but still managed to stand.

“Can I take the other?” Dinky asked and David shrugged, strapping the other radio on her back, getting also slightly pushed down, before putting the caps with headsets on their heads. “And here we go.”

The two foals walked towards the bridge, it was wide enough to walk alongside the tracks if a train would come. Katja followed, carrying a box of ammo.

Fletcher looked after them, about to join as Vogel walked up to him. “Say Fletcher, are you familiar with fencing?”

“A bit, yes. Why?”

In response, the officer grinned, holding a fencing sword. “As you know, I am very skilled, wanna train with me?”

Fletcher switched to his spear. “So am I. En Garde!“ The German struck first with swift strikes, which Fletcher blocked easily and returned the attack, but his opponent blocked them too.

The stallion wasn’t as specialized in melee as his fellow knights, but still was a very skilled fighter when he had to.

As the kids walked, Dinky took notice how Blau was slightly staggering, causing his sister to ask, “You sure that radio isn't too heavy for you?”

“Not at all! I'm an earth pony after all and they are strong!” Her brother replied with confidence before tripping and falling over from the weight, waving his legs like a fallen over ladybug as he tried in vain to get up. “Okay, maybe not.” He added in a defeated tone as his sister and friend helped him up.

Halfway there, Dinky walked past a transport deport, noticing that one of the soldiers had goggles on the helmet and a flare gun in a second holster, before a horn was honked, startling slightly.

She turned around to see a SdKfz. 222 coming from behind, having honked the horn so Dinky would step aside, which she did and the armored car drove past her.

After that came the base, most noticeable by the large radio tower that could be seen in the distance and she asked one of the soldiers, “You need this?”

“Yes, thank you.” The soldier, together with two comrades took the radios and ammo from her and the siblings, with the ammo carrying soldier inspecting the box, his expression became one of surprise.

“Well, didn’t expect to see one of these.” He held up a very tiny pistol, comparable to a coin in size.

“What’s that?” Blau asked completely puzzled.

“It’s a Kolibri, named after the same bird, made by a watchmaker. It was thought as a lady self-defense weapon as it was compact enough for a handbag back in 1914, but as you can imagine, it was a failure due to the very small cartridges. Still, many soldiers liked it as souvenir. I guess your friend Fletcher could like it.”

“Maybe. Mind if we take a look around?”

“Feel free to do some.”

“With that as reply, the three children did a walk, enjoying the warm sun and fresh air, with other soldiers greeting them as they passed by. The friends came past a small house, as suddenly, the sound of fluttering pater greeted their eyes and they saw a letter getting thrown out by the wind, Dinky used their magic to catch it and placed it back on the table, but the content was tragic.

Dear Viktor,

I hope this letter finds you well thought I must be the bearer of bad news.

The bombing has been terrible over the past week. Last time they hit a gas main. Took out the whole street.

Your Mum and Dad were in the shelter but in the end it wasn’t much protection. It was awful.

They found their bodies in the morning. They were hugging one another.

Viktor, I’m so sorry. There was nothing anyone could have done.

Lyssa.

“Oh dear…” Dinky’s eyes went wide in shock and sniffed.

“I dread to imagine finding Mama and Papa like that…” Katja shivered at the thought, her brother nodded before they moved on, coming to a small camp, noticing another letter in the tent, dated 19^th June.

Dear father,

I killed a partisan today. There were a group of them, trying some half-arsed attempt to destroy the Railway gun. Couldn’t believe it when I turned over the body. He was younger than me, maybe 18. Looked a bit like Helmut. He was still alive for a while, crying for his mother. I thought I should shoot him in the head - put him out of his misery - but the others wouldn’t let me. They wanted him to suffer. One of them even kicked him.

Shouldn’t bother me, I know. I'm a soldier, and he was attacking. It’s just...I don't know what. I hope this war is over soon.

Your loving son.

Arnulf.

“Oh, my…sounds like Matteo’s children were right. But how could they let a young man suffer just that for the action of others?” Blau asked. “it’s just wrong.”

“I couldn’t watch something as this,” Dinky added in disgust.

They then decided to get back to Fletcher, seeing how he was fencing with Karl, one of the two seemed to gain the upper hand before Karl blocked a strike and pushed Fray’s spear away. “A good fight. You really are familiar with fencing.” The German complimented him.

“Experience is the best teacher,” Fletcher replied and saw how Tim came to them with a letter.

“I found this, Lieutenant.” He gave it to Vogel and they all read it.

Allagran Liberator

The Fascists starve us, torture us, hunt us down.

Even the Allies accidently drop bombs on us. We will not be beaten. There will come a time when we will push our oppressors back, when we will make them pay for what they have done.

And when we have dealt with them, we will build a new Italy, where poverty and persecution become distant memories, where man, woman and child irrespective of class, creed and religion, will be treated equally.

Remember the victories! Remember the Risorgimento!

“A Partisan news-Sheet. The landing on Sicily surely gave them hope. Question is how much it will be enough.” The officer wondered as suddenly, the young colt cried out in pain as another letter was blown into his face by the wind.

“You’re okay?” Dinky asked concerned.

“I’m fine,” Blau replied as he took a look at the letter.

Dear Ingemar,

I have something to tell you my love. The RAF attacked Krefeld. We headed for the shelter but Lula wasn't fast enough and a section of the wall collapsed on her.

We dug her out but they couldn’t save her leg. She bares her injury bravely but I feel so guilty. I should have been faster but the bomb came out of nowhere

I'm so sorry, my love.

Your wife,

Beate.

“That must have hurt.” Katja winced at the thought. “But at least she has survived.”

“Yes, but the pain of the lost leg and her mother blaming herself for this will be there for the rest of their lives,” Fletcher added with a small hint of sadness in his voice. “I have seen it too many times already.”

“I believe you that. Reminds me, one of my comrades wanted me to give you this.” Konrad reached for his satchel and pulled out the same Kolibri the kids had seen earlier.

“A Kolibri? I have read about that. You want me to have it as souvenir?” He concluded and the Sergeant nodded. “Alright, not that it would have much use to me anyway.” He put it in his saddlebag.

Maybe this could suit Fleur de Lis...Though knowing her, she's already got one.

He slightly jumped into the air by the sound of a train whistle, and they all turned around to see a train coming to a halt on the middle of the bridge, a very large gun was pulled by it, mounted in a cart, the barrel several meters high.

“What’s… that?” Blau Streifen looked at it in awe.

“It’s a railway gun. They are basically large-caliber guns with long ranges. They are designed to destroy massive fortifications and fight bunkers, another field of action is the shelling of strategic targets or deployments behind the enemy's frontline that was beyond the reach of ordinary field artillery.” Konrad explained.

“So that's a railway gun...Strange, the artillery in Equestria is so much more...shiny.” Fletcher mumbled as he looked at it.

“You mean you had similar artillery back then?” Hans asked him.

“Not directly, but Earth pony engineers had similar ideas in the civil war. There was a bit of bad blood there, on both sides. When Princess fought Princess, the villagers outside of the capital were going ignored. When famine and crime grew worse and worse, they looked for a new savior. That was how Solomon became so popular. It worked best when they'd only heard of him, this wondrous leader who cared for all who served him. An ordinary pony, born from nothing, who could stand against Nightmare Moon and do what Celestia could not. They revered him like a god. To those, who actually knew him, to those who had looked into his eyes and seen the madness lurking within...it was different…” Fray shivered at the memories.

“I see. Better cover your ears, this will be very loud.” The German warned as the Railway gun was loaded and about to fire, all did as told but nothing could prepare them for the shot.

It was extremely loud, making their ears ring and the ground shook from the recoil, making them almost lose their balance, staggering for a moment. “My poor ears!” Dinky whined as her hearing returned.

“Yes, it’s really is loud, let’s get some distance,” Karl recommended before he noticed how Fletcher cast a spell on them all.

“A sound-softening spell to conserve our hearing.” The unicorn explained as they walked away before shortly afterward, the railgun fired again. This time, it was much more bearable, hearing only the bang of the shell being fired as echo, but it was still loud enough to suppress other sounds.

They all walked towards the checkpoint they had come from, noticing a squad of Fallschirmjäger. Instead of MP40s, they were armed with what looked like a more bulky SMG with a slightly curved magazine.

“They look well-armed,” Katja commented with a hint of fear.

“You got that right. As far as I know, this weapon is a prototype of a rifle that combines the compactness and fire rate of an SMG, called the Maschinenkarabiner 42 or MKb 42 for short. Those men have the honor to test it in the field. Due to being respected and feared, as well as being amongst the most efficient and brutal of Germany’s specialist troops, we call them Jäger. In the military, it’s a term originally referred to light infantry, but has come to have wider usage.” Karl explained as he paused for a moment.

“In German-speaking states during the early modern era, the term Jäger was used to describe skirmishers, scouts, sharpshooters and runners. Jäger came to denote light infantrymen whose civilian occupations made them well-suited to patrolling and skirmishing, on an individual and independent basis, rather than as part of military unit. And those men do their job well, being less chatty than everybody else.”

“My trigger finger is itching.” One Jäger mumbled, only for another Jäger to reply,

“Be quiet, I need to focus.”

It showed that the lieutenant was right, yet it reminded Dinky of something. “I saw a soldier with a flare gun, is he a scout?”

“Why yes, for the artillery, using the flare gun to signal its strikes. This reminds me, the Railway gun is targeting Partisan hideouts. A bit of a waste for a gun like this if you ask me, but orders are orders.”

Suddenly, a high pitched sound greeted their ears and they saw something fast in the sky. “What is that?” Katja asked before her eyes went wide as she realized with all others what it was.

A burning plane going down towards them.

“Watch out!” Fletcher yelled and they all barely managed to dive out of the way, becoming dazed from the loud impact.

Konrad’s ears ringed, his vision was blurry as he slowly got up, noticing how three soldiers checked the wreck before getting shot, seeing a slightly wounded pilot climbed out of the cockpit, an American by the looks of the uniform.

The pilot was running away, firing his pistol in an attempt to suppress the Jäger troops as one of them shouted “Halt! Halt!”

The moment Konrad could clearly see again, a Jäger took aim and fired, scoring a clean headshot on the pilot and the American fell to the ground in a puddle of blood. Yet Escher was only focused on one thing.

“Anybody hurt?” He asked his squad mates and kids as they also got slowly up.

“I’m fine,” Fletcher replied.

“Count me in,” Dinky added, the siblings nodded, with Karl and the others waving a hand.

“That was a close call.” The Sergeant added as he inspected the plane, a white star in a blue point was pointed on it, making it clears it belonged to the US Air force. “Never saw anything like this before.”

Me neither. It appears to be a prototype recon plane, having been shot down.” Karl said as he inspected the pilot, having what looked like a film canister.”

Another squad led by an officer joined them, “Then let us take care of everything, take the kids to safety.”

Vogel nodded in response and led them away, Katja looked at the dead American in pity, trembling bit. “I thought that would be it…”

“We were all lucky.” Fletcher looked at her with a weak smile. “I hope that will be it for the day.”

“I hope so too,” Karl added. The Partisans tried several times to destroy the railway gun, but failed every time. If they attack again, we will keep you safe, you have my word.” He looked at them with an honest expression.

“Much appreciated.” Fray replied as they walked back towards the bridge, the guards around it keeping their eyes open for anything suspicious.

Blau walked near a sandbag wall as he suddenly heard a snap sound, coming from the woods. “Do you hear that?” He asked and stopped, swearing he saw something moving for a second.

“Yes, I did. Careful, men.” Karl drew his Luger, better safe than sorry.

Fletcher stayed with the kids at the sandbags as the squad checked it out, ye found nothing. “Guess it was nothing,” David mumbled as they walked out again.

Clang!

“Grenade!” A guard shouted before an explosion followed, startling everyone.

“Partisans! Take cover!” Vogel yelled and blew his whistle in alert, Fletcher and the kids took immediately cover behind the sandbags, the unicorn had his bow drawn, should he be forced to defend himself and the children, as the squad took defensive positions.

“Enemy in the woods!” Hans called out the resistance fighters and fired his rifle, all others did the same in an attempt to defend the railway gun.

While operating the bolt of his K98, Konrad took notice how Tim was shaking, breathing heavily as he slowly poked out of cover and fired, his shots mostly missed and he reloaded in a frantically manner. None of his friends could blame him, unlike them, he never had seen actual combat. This was his first true battle.

The guards held the partisans back so far, before the Jäger troops with a Halftrack joined the battle, mowing the resistance fighter down, those who survived, retreated into the woods. “That will teach them!” A sniper raised his fist into the air.

“Shall we chase them?” A soldier asked another officer, who shook his head.

“No, we need to keep the railway gun secure. Stay alert.”

With that, the soldiers went back to their posts, Tim was still breathing heavily. “I…I..."

Escher put a hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay. It happened to all of us.” He then turned to Fletcher and the children “Are you hurt?”

“We are fine.” The green stallion replied, his young friends nodded.

“Glad to hear it.” Escher smiled in relief at them. There’s a lake nearby why don’t you go there to get some quiet?” He suggested due to the recent events.

“Sounds good to me,” Fray replied and Konrad was about to lead them to it before a loud clank sound startled them.

They turned around to see that Tim had attempted to pick up a box of ammunition, but had dropped it due to intense hand tremors, showing he was still in shock.

“Poor guy.” Blau felt sorry for him.

“Yes, the first battle is never easy,” Fray added, speaking from experience.

However, the subject quickly as the children giggled. Konrad smiled as he looked after them, seeing how they chased a butterfly into the forest. It warmed his heart to see them happy.

Suddenly he heard a snap of a twig.

"One of those partisans has survived! Get him!" An officer ordered and the Sergeant, along with his Italian friend, his squad, and a Jäger gave chase as the resistance fighter fled into the woods.

The children still chased the butterfly before the sound of running greeted their ears and they saw a man in civilian clothes running towards them, his expression one of panic.

Before they could react, he grabbed Katja’s arm, who struggled. “Hey! Let go!”

“Leave my sister alone!” Blau Streifen yelled and charged at the man, only to get kicked by him, hitting a tree, staying lifeless. Dinky quickly realized she shouldn’t try the same and checked on him. He was still breathing.

Her male friend looked at his sister with fear in his eyes, but had no feeling in his body as the girl still struggled, to no avail.

Deep into the woods, the soldiers caught up to the partisan, only to see that he used Katja as shield. "Put your rifles down-down!" he yelled desperate, Konrad could see that he was no older than 18 to 20. Katja trembled, her eyes filled with fear.

Not wanting to endanger her life, the soldiers, save for the Jäger, lowered their weapons.

Before anyone could do something, the Green Knight stepped forward, having followed the soldiers to make sure the kids would be safe. "I know you're scared, but taking her hostage won't help you. Think again. Do you really think you can get away with this? It makes it only worse for you." The man blinked, his grip became slowly less as he realized that the Knight was right.

The Fallschirmjäger then suddenly started to grin. “Sorry, Katja. But we have orders. And you're in the way.”