The noise of the wooden wall cracking and snapping filled Anna’s ears. Her heart instantly began to pound away in her chest. Wiping her sweaty hands on her pants, she took a deep breath and then gripped the pistol she had been given tight in her hand. Turning her head, she tried to see if there was another way out of the building. She didn’t want to die like a rodent trapped by a cat. Seeing a door at the far end of the building, Anna reached over and tapped Bruce on the arm and then with her head, she indicated to the far door.
Bruce nodded his head but doubted they would do any better outside the building than inside. He whispered to her that they would have to take their chances like everyone else and pray that Shaw didn’t let them down.
Suddenly, the world around them exploded. With a mighty roar, the beast leapt forward and smashed its way inside the barracks. Tables, chairs and lockers piled against the wall all flew back from the savage onslaught. A flashlight held by one of the soldiers shone on the great beast. Its massive head, shoulders and right arm filled the gaping hole smashed into the side of the building. Men screamed in panic while others opened fire at point-blank range at the beast trying to force its way inside. The sound of weapons firing inside the barracks was deafening. Steiner tried to get the soldiers to fire as one, but they were too scared to listen or even hear him. Wildly, they fired their weapons into the beast, but nothing they did seemed to slow it down. Gnashing its teeth and swinging its arm at the soldiers, the beast fought its way ever further inside. One man who didn’t move quickly enough away from the beast was bloodily brought down by the powerful arm of the beast slashing from side to side, his intestines spilling out onto the floor. A second later another soldier’s arm was slashed off by the razor-sharp claws of the beast. With a deep growl, the beast dug in its hind feet outside of the barracks and continued to force its way inside.
The attack on the barracks was precisely the opportunity Shaw had been waiting for. Hearing the firing coming from inside the barracks, Shaw knew he needed to try and kill the beast before it forced its way inside. Seeing the beast halfway inside the building, Shaw took a deep breath, dashed out into the open, dropped onto one knee, pulled the haversack from his shoulder and then reached inside. Pulling out a bomb, Shaw lit the gasoline soaked rag and then like a pitcher at the World Series, he hurled the bomb at the beast. Shaw watched it land squarely onto the back of the enraged beast. Bouncing off, the bomb landed on the ground beside the beast and then exploded in a bright orange and red fireball. A second later, flames licked at the creature’s side. A howl of pain split the air. Quickly digging out the remainder of his bombs, Shaw lit another one and then as hard as he could, he threw it onto the ground beside the beast. Instantly, the bomb exploded, showering the beast’s fur with burning gasoline. Like a man possessed, Shaw hastily reached down, lit another bomb and then tossed it towards the beast. Landing underneath the beast, the bomb exploded, sending a wave of flames onto the beast’s unprotected belly. With a pained cry, the beast dug its hind feet in and began to pull its burning body free from the wrecked building.
Looking down, Shaw realized that he only had two small bombs and the full jerry can of gasoline left. Seeing the beast struggling to back out of the building, Shaw bent down and undid the lid to the jerry can. With all his might, like an Olympian throwing a discus, he spun about on his heels and then hurled the full can of gas at the beast. Seeing it fall short by a few yards, Shaw swore loudly. Cursing himself, he watched the precious gasoline spill out onto the wet snow.
With a pained growl, the beast finally pulled its head free. Stepping back a few yards, the beast tried to escape the burning flames licking at its body. Swinging its head around, it saw Shaw standing there in the open. Its eyes narrowed and instantly focused in on the man who was causing it so much pain. Taking a step forward, the beast growled and then prepared itself to strike.
Realizing that he had one chance remaining, Shaw scooped up both bombs in his hands, lit them and then with a yell of anger and rage at the beast on his lips, he threw them at the ground directly in front of the beast.
With a loud snarl, the beast made ready to leap at its prey when a wall of flames suddenly engulfed the creature. The snow around it had turned into a deadly sea of flames. The fuel from the last two bombs had ignited the jerry can. The conflagration cooked the beast alive. A horrible shriek filled the air as the beast tried to escape the flames. No matter what it did, the flames seemed to follow it. In that instant, the beast knew that it was going to die. Its unarmored skin boiled and cracked under the scorching flames. Moving on pure instinct, the beast decided to take one last victim down before it died. Charging forward, the beast opened its tooth-filled maw, intent on taking Shaw with it.
Seeing the flame-covered beast run towards him like some horrible beast rising up from the pits of hell, Shaw tried to pull his submachine gun from his back. The beast was too close; he knew he wasn’t going to make it. Closing his eyes, he awaited his fate.
A loud snap like a bullwhip snapping above Shaw’s head cut through the cold night air.
Opening his eyes, Shaw saw the beast stagger forward for a couple more feet and then suddenly stop. Swaying from side to side for a moment, the beast collapsed onto its side, dead, less than a yard from Shaw. The unpleasant smell of burning fur and flesh filled his nostrils. Staring at the beast, Shaw couldn’t believe that he was still alive. Carefully, he stepped back from the carcass burning at his feet.
A second later, Zach emerged out of the swirling snow with a satisfied grin on his face. Stopping beside the creature’s head, Zach took a quick look at his handiwork.
“How the hell did you do that?” said Shaw, amazed that he was still alive.
“When it turned to attack you, I laid my sight on its left-hand eye and then took the shot,” explained Zach.
“Thanks,” said Shaw.
“I didn’t do it for you,” said Zach coldly. “My men were under attack. Now that the beast is dead, give me your weapon, Captain.” With that, Zach ejected his spent casing and loaded a fresh one into his rifle. Turning the weapon to face Shaw, the serious look on Zach’s face told him that he meant business.
Slowly, Shaw removed the submachine gun from his back and handed it to Zach. Shaking his head, Shaw knew that their struggle against the imposter was far from over, but for now, their war was on again.
“Walk ahead of me and let’s see how bad things are inside the barracks,” said Zach to Shaw.
Opening the side door to the barracks, the smell of cordite wafted outside. Stepping inside, Shaw could see several men were lying dead on the floor. The room was a mess. Destroyed furniture and pieces of the outside wall littered the floor. The light from the burning carcass flickered in through the hole in the wall.
A friendly voice called out, “Oy there Captain, glad to see you could come to the party.”
“My invite was held up in the mail,” replied Shaw as he carefully made his way over to Bruce and Anna.
Seeing weapons in their hands, for a brief second, Shaw entertained the idea of escape, but it was not meant to be. With a loud voice, Zach ordered their weapons to be taken away and that the prisoners be placed under guard once more.
Anna reluctantly handed over her weapon to the nearest German soldier and then turned to check on Vogel. His skin was clammy, his breathing labored. He didn’t have much time left.
Shaw stood by and watched Anna care for Vogel. Shaw knew that the only man capable of keeping the soldiers from turning on them was going to die soon.
Raising his hand, Vogel motioned for Shaw to bend down.
Dropping to one knee, Shaw placed his head beside Vogel’s mouth.
“You have to stop whatever is killing my men,” said Vogel, his voice weak and pained. “If you don’t the SS will flood this valley and lay waste to it and everyone in it.”
“I’m a prisoner once again,” said Shaw. “I’ll be lucky to get out of this alive myself.”
“You have to try…”
Shaw waited for Vogel to say more, but his voice had turned silent. Turning his head to look at Vogel, he saw his eyes staring vacantly up at the roof. Placing his hands over Vogel’s eyelids, Shaw closed them and then stood up.
Bruce respectfully removed his cap and said, “What did he say?”
“He asked me to stop his men from dying,” said Shaw, looking about the room at the terrified German soldiers moving to block up the hole in the wall with anything they could get their hands on. He had to admit to himself that he felt nothing for them. They were the enemy; still Shaw didn’t wish to anyone else die, killed by things he didn’t truly comprehend.
“What are we going to do now that the major is dead?” said Anna to Shaw.
Switching into Norwegian, Shaw said, “We wait until morning and then assess our chances. I still want to try an escape if we can.”
“And if we cannot escape?”
“Then we are going to die like all of the other men in here,” said Shaw. “It doesn’t want anyone to survive. Trust me, we’re not finished dealing with the creature responsible for everything that has happened to us to date. ”
33
Weather Station
January 22nd, 1942
The long night faded as the cold light of dawn crept over the camp. An hour earlier, the snow stopped falling. Snowdrifts as tall as some of the soldiers blocked the doors of the barracks. Taking turns, the Germans began to dig themselves out of their frozen tomb. As soon as the snow stopped, a cold front swept in and the temperature plummeted, bringing with it a thick wall of ice fog that reduced visibility to less than a couple of dozen yards.
Shaw, Bruce, and Anna had been moved to a quiet corner of the barracks, guarded by a soldier who had been injured during the beast’s attack. After killing the beast, the German soldiers treated Shaw with less hostility than before and with a noticeable measure of respect for saving all of their lives. When their NCOs weren’t looking, they made sure that the prisoners were as well taken care of as they could be. Blankets, food and hot coffee was provided, making the long wait until dawn arrived somewhat tolerable. Anna, lying down on an empty cot, had a fitful sleep; several times she called out for people killed at the camp. Shaw felt for her, Anna and her friends had volunteered to help him and had paid the price with their lives. No one could have foreseen the nightmare they had all become trapped in. Unable to sleep, Shaw and Bruce sat at a table, sipping coffee, quietly talking about what had happened after Shaw was taken by the imposter to be killed and what it all meant.
Bruce said, “So Captain, if I’m following you, you’re saying this fellah, or whatever he is, can make people like me, but not you, see whatever he wants us to.”
“I’m just repeating what it said,” replied Shaw. “Where I would see my brother, you might see a German soldier or perhaps even Anna.”
“I hope not because that would mean that Anna was dead,” said Bruce glancing over at Anna while she slept. “After all you said it likes to pretend it’s the person it just killed to better blend in with us.”
“Yeah, bad example,” said Shaw, regretting his poor choice of words. “But you understand what I’m getting at.”
Bruce took a sip of coffee and then continued. “You know this sounds a lot like that show on the radio…you know the one I mean. The Shadow, that’s the name of it. You know Lamont Cranston and his ability to cloud men’s minds.”
Shaw shook his head and his friend’s constant use of cinema and radio plays to get his point across. However, Shaw knew that it wasn’t as farfetched as it sounded. The imposter had admitted as much.
“Enough doom and gloom for a couple of minutes,” said Bruce, changing topics. “Do you like football, Captain?”
“Ours or yours?” asked Shaw, taken back by the odd question.
“Please, Captain, there is only one kind, and it is played with a round ball and is kicked about on a football pitch.”
Shaw chuckled. “I only went to one game with some of the officers from the mess before commando training commenced. We had a few too many lagers at the local pub beforehand. I suspect that with all our shouting and carrying on in the stands that we made quite the spectacle of ourselves. I didn’t mind the game, but I still prefer football as it’s played back home.”
“Who was playing?”
Shaw shook his head. “I honestly couldn’t tell you. I was as drunk as a skunk that afternoon.”
“My team is the Rangers. If you’d watched them play, I know you would have remembered the game.”
“If you say so,” replied Shaw with a grin on his face. He was certain that in his alcohol-induced haze that he would have forgotten them as well. Turning his head, Shaw saw Zach walking towards them, his rifle cradled in his arms.
Stopping at the table, Zach looked down at Shaw and said, “Captain, I’m going to take a look around outside. I cannot account for almost a dozen officers and men. I want your word that you won’t try to escape while I am gone.”
“Corporal, it is the duty of all prisoners to try to escape,” replied Shaw honestly. “Even you would have to agree with me on that.”
“Captain, I can easily have you and the two other prisoners tied to your chairs until I get back if that is what you wish.”
Shaw knew that the man was a cold, efficient killer and wasn’t bluffing. With a grin on his face, Shaw said, “That won’t be necessary Corporal, we will all be here when you get back.”
“I thought you’d see it my way,” said Zach, turning to check on the soldier guarding them.
“One thing Corporal,” said Shaw, “whatever you do, don’t let anyone you find out there get close to you. Keep them, regardless of rank, at arm’s length. I’ve seen what it can do, and it would snap your neck like a twig if it gets the chance.”
“I’ll be careful,” replied Zach, bristling at Shaw’s unwanted advice.
“I’m serious. Don’t trust anyone.”
Feeding a round into his rifle, Zach walked past the table and then stepped outside into the bitterly cold ice fog.
Bruce said, “That sounded serious…what’s going on?”
“He’s going to look around the camp for some missing personnel.”
“By himself! Is he nuts?”
“Well, one thing is for certain.”
“And what’s that?”
“From now on we cannot trust Corporal Zach to be whom he appears to be. In fact, anyone who leaves your sight even for a few seconds is to be considered a potential enemy,” said Shaw, his voice serious and sober.
“Aye, I was thinking the same thing.”
A shudder ran down Shaw’s spine as he sat there wondering what lay ahead. Was it all going to end that day? Were they finally going to abandon this frozen hell and try to make a run for it, or were they doomed to remain where they were until one by one they were all killed off by the imposter?
An hour passed. Anna woke up and then rubbed the sleep from her eyes. With a warm smile, she was handed a fresh cup of coffee by Bruce, who also made sure that there was a handful of crackers left for her meagre breakfast. While she happily ate her meal, Zach returned. Shaw saw that from head to toe, the man was covered in frost. He looked like old man winter. Small icicles hung from the scarf wrapped around his mouth as well as from his eyelashes.
Must be bloody cold outside, thought Shaw.
Zach unravelled his long scarf from his face and then stomped his feet to warm them up. With him were the SS Major, Lieutenant Beckers and two terrified looking soldiers.
Standing, Shaw moved over beside the gaggle of German soldiers clustered around the newcomers and listened. As expected, Wagner was found cowering in the headquarters building, while Beckers and the two soldiers who had been on sentry at the time of the beast’s attack had barricaded themselves inside the mess hall. All of the men looked like they were suffering from exposure. Blankets and warm coffee were handed to the men to warm themselves up after a long night in the freezing darkness.
/> Zach saw Shaw standing there. Placing his rifle down on a cot, he removed his heavy greatcoat and then walked over beside Shaw. Looking past him, Zach saw Bruce and Anna sitting at a table chatting with one another. Taking Shaw by the arm, he led him away from the remainder of the soldiers. With a serious look in his eyes, he said, “The person who was following you last night…who was he?”
“Corporal, I doubt that you would believe me if I told you,” replied Shaw.
“Try me Captain.”
Taking a deep breath, Shaw collected his thoughts and then told Zach everything that he knew about the imposter.
Zach turned his head and uncomfortably looked back at the men he had just brought into the barracks. Looking back at Shaw, he said, “Captain, I still consider you and the others to be prisoners of the German Army, but after what you did last night, I feel that I can trust you. When I went to out to try to find out what had happened to our missing personnel, I came across the tracks of the man whom I shot at last night.” Zach paused for a moment trying to find the right words. “The storm last night erased almost all of the tracks out there. However, I was able to find some footprints leading away from where I wounded the man, or whatever you want to call him. They were unlike any I have ever come across. They were larger than a normal man’s footprint and much deeper in the snow than the average weight of a man. I would judge that he weighs in excess of three hundred pounds, yet when I lined him up in my scope, he did not look to me like a heavyset man at all. To be honest, I thought I was going to kill Freytag.”
“Could you see where the tracks led?” asked Shaw, praying that the imposter had left the camp.
“I found footprints some behind the headquarters building and the mess hall,” explained Zach. “Lieutenant Beckers told me that the men with him came in individually after the beast attacked the camp. If what you say is true, then I may have brought inadvertently it in here with us.”
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