{"id":253,"date":"2020-05-06T18:40:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-06T18:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/?p=253"},"modified":"2022-01-13T02:55:20","modified_gmt":"2022-01-13T02:55:20","slug":"die-glocke-short-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/2020\/05\/06\/die-glocke-short-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Short Story"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/download-4.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-255\" width=\"636\" height=\"334\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/download-4.jpg 632w, https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/download-4-300x158.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px\" \/><figcaption>Photo Credit: WeskerX<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<meta content=\"text\/html; charset=UTF-8\" http-equiv=\"content-type\"><style type=\"text\/css\">ol{margin:0;padding:0}table td,table th{padding:0}.c9{padding-top:0pt;text-indent:36pt;padding-bottom:0pt;line-height:2.0;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:center}.c0{padding-top:0pt;text-indent:36pt;padding-bottom:0pt;line-height:2.0;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:left}.c2{color:#000000;font-weight:400;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\";font-style:normal}.c1{padding-top:0pt;padding-bottom:0pt;line-height:2.0;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:left}.c11{padding-top:0pt;padding-bottom:0pt;line-height:2.0;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:center}.c13{padding-top:0pt;padding-bottom:0pt;line-height:1.15;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:right}.c6{padding-top:-1pt;padding-bottom:-1pt;line-height:1.0;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:left}.c3{background-color:#ffffff;font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\";font-style:italic;font-weight:400}.c8{color:#000000;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;font-style:italic}.c12{color:#000000;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline}.c5{font-size:12pt;font-family:\"Times New Roman\";font-weight:400}.c14{max-width:468pt;padding:72pt 72pt 72pt 72pt}.c10{font-style:italic}.c7{height:11pt}.c4{background-color:#ffffff}.title{padding-top:0pt;color:#000000;font-size:26pt;padding-bottom:3pt;font-family:\"Arial\";line-height:1.15;page-break-after:avoid;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:left}.subtitle{padding-top:0pt;color:#666666;font-size:15pt;padding-bottom:16pt;font-family:\"Arial\";line-height:1.15;page-break-after:avoid;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:left}li{color:#000000;font-size:11pt;font-family:\"Arial\"}p{margin:0;color:#000000;font-size:11pt;font-family:\"Arial\"}h1{padding-top:20pt;color:#000000;font-size:20pt;padding-bottom:6pt;font-family:\"Arial\";line-height:1.15;page-break-after:avoid;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:left}h2{padding-top:18pt;color:#000000;font-size:16pt;padding-bottom:6pt;font-family:\"Arial\";line-height:1.15;page-break-after:avoid;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:left}h3{padding-top:16pt;color:#434343;font-size:14pt;padding-bottom:4pt;font-family:\"Arial\";line-height:1.15;page-break-after:avoid;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:left}h4{padding-top:14pt;color:#666666;font-size:12pt;padding-bottom:4pt;font-family:\"Arial\";line-height:1.15;page-break-after:avoid;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:left}h5{padding-top:12pt;color:#666666;font-size:11pt;padding-bottom:4pt;font-family:\"Arial\";line-height:1.15;page-break-after:avoid;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:left}h6{padding-top:12pt;color:#666666;font-size:11pt;padding-bottom:4pt;font-family:\"Arial\";line-height:1.15;page-break-after:avoid;font-style:italic;orphans:2;widows:2;text-align:left}<\/style><div><p class=\"c13\"><span class=\"c5\">Mendelson <\/span><\/p><\/div><p class=\"c6\"><span class=\"c2\">Die Glocke<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c6\"><span class=\"c2\">Devin Mendelson<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c11\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">13.10.1938<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">Somewhere in the Owl Mountains, beneath the rows of harmless spruce trees, the old 19th-century Wenceslas Mine felt the weight of human feet for the first time in decades. Dozens of trucks with no head or rear lights had slowly and quietly arrived near the mine\u2019s entrance in the dead of night. Over one hundred men had gotten straight to work. Lights were installed in the long-forgotten tunnels. Controlled explosions created new rooms and passages. Some of these rooms would be turned into barracks; others, research labs. Machinery and equipment were brought down through the shaft by both hand and wheel. Sections of the rocky walls were smoothed out to prop up rectangular red banners with white circles and ominous black swastikas. At the end of the main tunnel, there was a long, large rectangular chamber full of old mining equipment. In the following weeks, the chamber was repurposed. Schutzstaffel hopefuls hauled out the old equipment and flattened the walls and floor. They installed a dozen large, steel, oblong-shaped vats in two rows, six on each long side of the chamber. Sturdy, steel pipes emerged from the tops and bottoms of the vats, and all of the pipes connected to each other, hugging the walls and ceiling. To the human eye, the ultraviolet glow of Xerum 525 that illuminated the dark chamber appeared as ordinary purple. The violet, mercury-like liquid that filled the vats and pipes ultimately made its way to the center of the chamber, to serve as fuel for the bell-shaped device that would one day fundamentally alter the outcome of a war that hadn\u2019t yet begun.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c11\"><span class=\"c5\">18.4.1945<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c3 c12\">Obergruppenf\u00fchrer Kammler, sir!<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c3 c12\">I am transmitting this message to inform you of a scientific breakthrough that will be most beneficial to the war effort. I respectfully insist that you see it with your own eyes.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c3\">Heil Hitler!<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">Backing away from the Enigma machine, recently-promoted Obergruppe<\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">nf\u00fchrer Hans Kammler wiped the sweat from his brow. He was under stress. To say that they were losing the war would be an understatement. The Allies had an iron grip around the Reich\u2019s throat, and now they were crushing its windpipes. The Red Army was attacking Berlin, where his pregnant wife and seven children lived. Kammler glanced back at the reports and sighed. Defeat seemed inevitable. But not all hope was lost. Not after what he\u2019d just heard. As Steiner\u2019s transmission had reminded him, reforming the Luftwaffe was not the only thing he\u2019d received managerial authority over&#8230; Under normal circumstances, he wouldn\u2019t be so inclined to jump at what was likely just another shadow, but there was something that he\u2019d heard in Steiner\u2019s voice: hope. The fact that Steiner hadn\u2019t specified what it was that they\u2019d uncovered was curious &#8211; to say the least. He knew that Steiner didn\u2019t trust the encryption of Enigma. Could it be that whatever they\u2019d found was so significant that Steiner didn\u2019t want to mention it in his message? Kammler shrugged off the thought: it was most-likely just wishful thinking. Regardless, he was going to pay Steiner a visit. However, it was nearly midnight, and Kammler didn\u2019t trust a pilot to have the necessary focus at this hour &#8211; especially one woken up in the middle of the night &#8211; on top of all of the extra hazards of flying in the dark. No. Instead, he\u2019d leave for the Wenceslas Mine first thing tomorrow morning. He made the necessary arrangements for a flight at dawn. Desperate times called for desperate measures, and this was the most dire time of his life.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c11\"><span class=\"c5\">19.4.1945<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">Daniel Schapiro was lying down on the pile of hay he\u2019d grown accustomed to calling his bed. The cell was small, claustrophobic. It used to house fourteen Jews when he\u2019d first arrived. Now he was the only one left. Once every month or so, one of his cellmates had been dragged out of the cell, screaming for his or her life since it wasn\u2019t hard to connect the dots: a day or two after someone was taken, the Nazis had the remaining prisoners clean up the bloody mess around the swastika-engraved giant bell. At first, they\u2019d also had to clean up some warm purple puddles beneath the vats on either side, but that hadn\u2019t happened in months, not since the guards grabbed Geraldine. Those who were dragged out were never seen again. Cleaning up had been a hassle for Daniel the last time around, given that he and Anne were the only ones left to do so. But it hadn\u2019t been as bad as he\u2019d expected: there was a lot less blood that time. Daniel didn\u2019t know what to make of it all, nor did he care to &#8211; not anytime soon, anyways. His mind was preoccupied with Anne, who\u2019d been taken the previous night. Later today &#8211; or sometime tomorrow, Daniel would be summoned to rid the bell of her blood, to cover up more of the blood on the Nazis\u2019 hands. Daniel didn\u2019t know if he could stomach it. Not just because it never got easier &#8211; especially as the number of helping hands decreased, and not even because this time he\u2019d have to do it alone, but because of how much Anne had meant to him. Over the past dozen-or-so months, he had grown attached to her. Daniel yawned, recalling his initial reluctance, given the knowledge that their days together would be numbered. But over time, he inevitably fell for her. How could he not? Anne had the most beautiful blue eyes, and the waviest dark blonde hair. In the past two months, since he and Anne were the only two prisoners remaining in the cell, he became much more intimate with her. Since it had gone for over a month without either of them being selected &#8211; which was unprecedented, Daniel foolishly began to believe that they were inseparable. Last week, in lieu of a ring, he\u2019d proposed to her by etching a heart into her clothing\u2019s yellow star. And she had said yes. When Anne was taken yesterday, Daniel had begged them to take him instead. When he\u2019d argued that he\u2019d be the better sacrifice because of his brown eyes and black hair as opposed to Anne\u2019s blond hair and blue eyes, the guards had burst out laughing. It sounded silly to Daniel, too, but it was no joke &#8211; it was a last-resort plea to save Anne. And it had failed. With Anne gone, he had lost everything. There was nothing left to live for &#8211; or die for. Daniel gazed at the jagged rock ceiling before closing his eyes, struggling to forget about his woes and grumbling stomach.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c11 c7\"><span class=\"c2 c4\"><\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span><span class=\"c2 c4\">The trip to Wenceslas Mine took just a couple of hours by plane. When Kammler landed, he was greeted with a Roman salute by Hoffmann, Steiner\u2019s right-hand man. The two men got in the back row of the Mercedes-Benz 770. Hoffmann gave the driver a nod and the engine sprang to life. The drive was only half an hour long, and soon they were there. Hoffmann escorted Steiner down the gray, dusty tunnel. A rodent scurried past Kammler\u2019s feet. Spread every ten meters apart were lightbulbs dangling from the rock overhead. As they went further into the interior of the mine shaft, the echoes of their footsteps grew louder and louder. They approached a guard standing by a large pair of steel doors, rifle raised.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cOh, it\u2019s you,\u201d the guard said, lowering the muzzle. Then he immediately stood up straight and gave a Roman salute, as had been done when Kammler had greeted Hoffmann. The two men returned the customary salute to the guard &#8211; though by then the guard was already working on getting the massive metal doors open. The guard grunted and leaned his back into it. The door gave, but not without also letting out an awful-sounding screech. Kammler grimaced at the noise.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cCould use some oil,\u201d the guard said apologetically, \u201cbut you know how thin supplies are these days\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Kammler somberly nodded. Hoffmann just shrugged.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">\u201cCome, Obergruppenf\u00fchrer,\u201d Hoffmann said, \u201cWe&#8217;ve arranged a demonstration for you.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c9 c7\"><span class=\"c2 c4\"><\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">There they were. The footsteps. Daniel could tell that it wasn\u2019t simply a guard coming to give him soup &#8211; his ears could distinguish three different sets of feet. But that didn\u2019t make sense &#8211; it had always been two guards that came when it was clean-up time. The only time three guards ever came was when\u2026 when they came to drag out a test subject. Daniel\u2019s heart raced, but he ignored it. They must\u2019ve cleaned it up themselves. Perhaps they recognized that doing so would be far more efficient than a single weak prisoner cleaning it up all by himself. But why another trial so soon? Daniel shrugged the question aside. It didn\u2019t really matter. It was more of a blessing than anything else &#8211; he\u2019d had enough of living. His wife, Gretchen, and baby daughter, Eva, had been dead for at least two years, but the memory was always fresh, as if being shoved into the separate line of healthy men had happened yesterday. All of the women, children, and elderly had been put in the other group. Daniel had heard his daughter crying, and so he\u2019d looked over his shoulder. <\/span><span class=\"c3\">Shut it up or I will!<\/span><span class=\"c2 c4\">, a guard had said to Gretchen. But Eva kept crying, and the guard silenced her, permanently. Daniel had wanted to scream, but his throat was too dry &#8211; he\u2019d given all the water he\u2019d had on the journey to his wife and child. Gretchen had reacted to Eva\u2019s death hysterically, and for that, she had been murdered, too. After years of anguish, Daniel had forced himself to come to terms with their passing. And now Anne. He didn\u2019t want to suffer through the emotional torment again &#8211; even if it was only for just a month. So Daniel was ready to face death. He wouldn\u2019t give the Nazis the satisfaction of flailing and begging for his life. Instead, he\u2019d face his demise like a man.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c7 c9\"><span class=\"c2 c4\"><\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">Obergruppenf\u00fchrer Kammler walked past the vats and bell to the far end of the large rectangular chamber, through a metal door into a small observation room that had a glass panel which gave a clear view of the bell. Steiner was waiting in that room. Steiner threw up a Roman as Hoffmann locked the door behind them. Kammler and Hoffman returned the greeting. Steiner grinned and shook Kammler\u2019s hand. It had been a long time since Kammler had seen Steiner and his sky-blue eyes. His sun-blond hair wasn\u2019t graying despite nearing 60 &#8211; yet another example of Aryan superiority. Kammler himself had blond hair, but it was dirty blond, and his eyes were a light brown. He sometimes had difficulty hiding his jealousy. But Kammler took solace in the fact that Steiner\u2019s daughter, Leni &#8211; who shared her father\u2019s features &#8211; was his wife. Kammler had first met Leni at Adolf and Vera Eichmann\u2019s wedding back in 1935. He couldn\u2019t believe how lucky he\u2019d gotten with meeting Leni. She was the perfect Aryan woman: serious and determined with a resolve like no other. Like Kammler, she was dedicated to the Reich, and she wanted to start having children as soon as possible. He dated her for less than a month before proposing. Now, they had been married for nearly a decade, with seven kids to show for it, and an eighth on the way. Leni was back in Berlin, raising the kids. He couldn\u2019t have been more proud of her, and neither could the Reich. Soon, she would receive a golden Cross of Honor, the greatest gift that could be bestowed upon a German mother. She\u2019d been working hard raising their children in the proper National Socialist manner. She had more than earned it. Their eldest son, J\u00f6rg, would soon be old enough to join the Jungvolk division of Hitler Youth. In a letter Kammler had received shortly after receiving Steiner\u2019s Enigma message, J\u00f6rg had asked him if he could be there for his first day <\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">with the Jungvolk<\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">. Kammler had responded with cautious optimism. \u2026<\/span><span class=\"c3\">However, if I\u2019m not able to make it, I want you to know how proud I am of you<\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">.<\/span><span class=\"c3\">&nbsp;<\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">He remembered when J\u00f6rg was born: Kammler, Leni, and Steiner had all been ecstatic when they saw his bright blue eyes and light-blond tufts of hair for the first time. It had been strange to think of Steiner as his father-in-law, but it was something Kammler was getting used to. Though they\u2019d been friends since Kammler joined the Party in 1931 when Kammler was 30, Steiner had 15 years on him.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cDue to the severity of the situation, I suggest we get straight to business,\u201d Steiner said. \u201cThe F\u00fchrer\u2019s vision of a 1,000-year Reich isn\u2019t dead. Things may look grim out there, but none of that matters now. Observe.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Steiner pressed a button on the wall. The steel doors on the far end of the chamber opened and three uniformed men accompanied a prisoner toward the bell-shaped device that sat in the middle of the room. The soldiers opened a hatch on the side of the bell and pushed the prisoner in. After sealing it shut, they walked back the way they came in, closing the steel doors behind them. Steiner pressed a different button, and the chamber began to glow a subtle purple. The vats trembled, the lights flickered. Kammler felt the vibrations tickle his toes. But he paid his feet no mind &#8211; his eyes were focused on the bell. The dome-like top of the bell began to glow a vibrant violet through its evenly-placed square holes. The rings on-and-below the lip of the bell began to spin, each ring rotating in the opposite direction of its adjacent rings. The most unnatural, metallic sound Kammler had ever heard thrashed his ear drums. He clutched his ears, but forced his eyes to stay open to see this thing through. The rings were moving faster than his eyes could track, and the bell lifted off the floor and hovered two meters aboveground. The bell floated there for less than a second before a brief flash of purple energy burst out of the dome and scattered in every direction. Immediately after the burst, the bell abruptly fell back into the ground. The energy pulse evaporated into thin air before it even came close to reaching the chamber walls. Then it was over. The glow of the dome quickly faded. The vats stood still. The bell sat motionless where it had been &#8211; as if nothing had happened.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cMein gott. Does the F\u00fchrer know?\u201d Kammler asked.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cHe\u2019s aware of Die Glocke, but he doesn\u2019t know that we\u2019ve gotten it to work.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cAnd why not?\u201d Kammler asked.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Steiner pondered for a moment, then ordered Hoffmann to leave. Steiner had Kammler wait for the steel doors at the far end of the chamber to close with Hoffmann on the other side.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cBerlin is under attack. The F\u00fchrer has more immediate concerns. But none of that matters. The F\u00fchrer gave me a special code phrase when this project began in 1938. He told me that if we are ever to achieve time travel, we must go back in time and contact him with a very long list of critical information about the past however-many years &#8211; or future years, depending on how you look at it. We can prevent Barbarossa, we can stop the deception of D-Day. We can alter the course of history, my friend. The thing is, the F\u00fchrer instructed me only to send someone I can fully trust &#8211; given the damage that can be done if there\u2019s treachery. And, naturally, he strictly forbade me from sending myself\u2026 Son\u2026\u201d Steiner started, but was at a loss for words. And Kammler knew why. Steiner wanted to send him. His thoughts immediately turned to Leni and his children. If he was sent back to 1938, he\u2019d be seven years older than the 1938-version of himself. To prevent breaking the space-time continuum, he\u2019d have to wait seven more years until the past-version of himself left on this journey in the Die Glocke before he could see his wife again. Altogether, it would mean that he would nearly be the same age as Steiner is now by the time 1945 rolled around again! His wife would be half his age! Would he still be potent enough to produce more children? He might not even live to see his grandchildren! What would Leni say if the next time she saw this version of him, he was her dad\u2019s age? No, Kammler couldn\u2019t do that. There had to be a compromise.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cDo I have to travel all the way back to 1938? The next time I see Leni, I\u2019ll be your age, and she\u2019ll still be 28.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cI know\u2026\u201d Steiner said, again, at a loss for words. <\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cWhat about 1941? Before Barbarossa? I can tell the F\u00fchrer to call it off,\u201d Kammler said. Steiner paused, and scratched his chin, deep in thought.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cYou know what, that just might make more sense, anyhow: we were winning before we declared war on the Reds. I\u2019ve always believed that deciding to fight a two-front war is what turned the tide against us.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Kammler nodded. He was about to say that he agreed when two uniformed men burst through the steel doors, shouting Steiner\u2019s name. Steiner opened the door and met their approach so that they all stood halfway between the bell and the observation room. Kammler walked up from behind Steiner to join them.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cWhat is the meaning of this?\u201d Steiner demanded.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cWe-we found something, sir,\u201d the taller one said, nervously. Steiner raised a blond eyebrow expectantly.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The shorter man held up two ancient-looking scraps of cloth, each with a faint yellow star.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cWe found them in a room that had been thoroughly searched years ago,\u201d the taller one said. \u201cWe told the scientists first, as t-to not disturb you.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cThe scientists looked through their algorithm, found the error, and told us that the non-scientific way of explaining it is that the date was set to 1889 instead of 1000,\u201d the shorter man explained.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cIf-if it makes you f-feel better, the scientist responsible for the miscalculation has been executed,\u201d the taller one said, twiddling his thumbs.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cWho was it?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cHalterman.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cThe one with a Jewish great-grandmother?\u201d Steiner said.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Kammler scowled in disgust.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cUm, I-I think so, sir, but sir, I\u2019m not sure-\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cDo you really think it was a mere miscalculation?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cOf course it\u2019s a Jew,\u201d Kammler chimed in. Steiner raised a hand to quiet Kammler before glaring at the taller guard.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cListen, Klaus! Just tell them to fix their calculations or they\u2019ll be lined up for a firing squad!\u201d Steiner scolded, shooing them away. When they were gone, Steiner turned to Kammler, anger flashing in his blue flame eyes.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cWe were supposed to send them further back in time than the mine\u2019s existence so the instant they emerge on the other side, their bodies would be crushed into billions of pieces by the un-excavated rock,\u201d Steiner explained, \u201cthe damn fools sent them to the year the mine shutdown.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201c1889, he said? Isn\u2019t that the year the F\u00fchrer was born?\u201d Kammler said.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Steiner\u2019s eyes grew wide, and he nodded.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cWhen those rats find out what year they\u2019re in\u2026\u201d Kammler started to say.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">\u201cWe can still stop them. The space-time continuum is malleable right now. Their prison garbs appearing out of nowhere is tangible proof of it. We just need to get you back to 1941\u2026\u201d Steiner said, gesturing towards the steel doors, \u201cLet\u2019s go have a chat with the scientists.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c11\"><span class=\"c2\">19.4.1889<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Daniel\u2019s whole body felt numb as the giant bell that he\u2019d been thrown into disappeared before his eyes. The bell\u2019s floor vanished from underneath him, and he fell a couple meters before awkwardly landing feet-first on the rigid rocky floor. His head felt heavy. Unusually heavy. A possible side effect of whatever just happened? There was no way to know. <\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Daniel looked around. He was now in an underground chamber similar in size and dimensions to the bell\u2019s room, but it lacked the smoothed, polished walls and flattened floor. His instincts told him it was the same room, but his eyes painted a different picture. No bell, no vats, no purple hue. Instead, there were wheelbarrows, pickaxes, helmets, and dynamite scattered around the room. The bright electric lights were gone, too. The room was dimly candlelit. Still, the room felt oddly familiar. Then, something caught his eye to his right. A patch of cloth embroidered with a yellow star. He stumbled over to examine it. It had a heart etched into it. The same heart that he had etched into Anne\u2019s star! She was here &#8211; or at least nearby. She had to be. But why would she get rid of his heart? Then it dawned on him that the heart wasn\u2019t the problem; rather, the problem was the Jewish Star it had been carved on. Daniel ripped his Star of David off of his chest and tossed it next to Anne\u2019s. As he walked toward the now-doorless exit, his head felt even heavier, and it started throbbing with pain. He lowered himself to his knees, and then the world went black.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0 c7\"><span class=\"c2\"><\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cI found another one, unconscious and all,\u201d a rusty voice said.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cAnother woman?\u201d a gravelly voice asked.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cNo. A man.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cHow do they keep sneaking down the tunnel unnoticed?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">\u201cI don\u2019t know. What I do know is that we should haul him up to the boss.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c9 c7\"><span class=\"c2 c4\"><\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Above the depths of the Wenceslas Mine was a mountain coated in layers of grass, shrubbery, and spruce trees. Atop the mountain, next to the mine shaft\u2019s entrance, sat a large red-brick house, the makeshift-headquarters of the Wenceslas Mining Company and home of its boss, Ludvig von Liebenau, who was currently tending to his guest. When she had returned to consciousness, he\u2019d provided her with a fresh set of clothes and one of his guest rooms. Now, having changed clothes in her room, she elegantly walked down the stairs to the dining room in the emerald-green dress. She smiled at him as she took a seat at the table.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cCan I get you something to eat? You look like you haven\u2019t eaten in years, madame\u2026 um\u2026 How should I address you?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Ludvig was intrigued by her. A mysterious, young woman shows up out of nowhere down in the mine wearing nothing but scraps of cloth. She\u2019d been found early this morning in the storage chamber. When his employees brought her up, Ludvig had decided to take her in under his care. Of course, a part of him knew that his kindness was due to how attractive she was. She was dirty blonde and had the brightest blue eyes, and she couldn\u2019t be more than ten years younger than him. He noticed that she had a set of numbers etched into her arm, and as tempting as it was to ask, something in him intuitively knew that it was better not to.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cYes, please. And thank you, kind sir,\u201d Anne said. \u201cFor everything. Oh &#8211; and the name\u2019s Anne, by the way.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cNice to meet you, Anne. They call me Ludvig. Now, about that meal\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Ludvig smiled, and snapped his fingers to summon his servants. But the sound of his snap was drowned out by a loud knock and shouting at the door. Ludvig sighed.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cYes, come in, M\u00fcller.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c4 c5\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cSir, we\u2019ve found another,\u201d M\u00fcller said, holding up an unconscious man who wore the same scraps of clothes that Anne had been wearing.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c11\"><span class=\"c5\">19.4.1945<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cWe\u2019ve triple-checked, sir. Everything is in order. Die Glocke is calibrated and ready to take a traveller to April 19th, 1941,\u201d a scientist said.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cIt better be,\u201d Steiner said, handing Kammler the backpack filled with a long list of important information regarding the past four years of the war.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cWhy April 19th?\u201d Kammler asked.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cWe can only adjust the year. It\u2019ll take <\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">you to exactly<\/span><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;four years ago. We\u2019re still months if not years away from being able to pinpoint a specific date,\u201d the scientist explained.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cIt\u2019ll have to do,\u201d Steiner interjected, turning his attention to Kammler, \u201cThat gives you just over two months before Barbarossa begins. Contact the F\u00fchrer using the special code as soon as possible. But first, before you leave the mine, talk to the past-me and inform me of Halterman\u2019s treachery, and, to be safe, tell past-me the names of those two Jews, so that when they arrive, I\u2019ll have them killed on sight. If those Jews get their filthy claws on the baby F\u00fchrer before you find me, the very existence of the Reich will be undone. That\u2019s why we must assume that the Jews will seek out the F\u00fchrer. Do you understand? We don\u2019t fully understand how the space-time continuum works, but the fact that we are still here means there\u2019s still time. Come! I will send you off in Die Glocke. We must waste no time!\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c11\"><span class=\"c2\">19.4.1889<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Daniel awoke in the most comfortable bed he&#8217;d slept on in a long time. Anne was by his side, her dreamy eyes gazing at him. Daniel thought he was in Heaven, despite not believing in such a place. Anne was dead. Was he dead now, too? Shouldn&#8217;t his wife and kids be around?<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&#8220;Anne, are we dead?&#8221;<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Anne shook her head. &#8220;No. We are in April of 1889. I caught a glance at our host&#8217;s calendar downstairs.&#8221;<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&#8220;Impossible.&#8221;<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&#8220;I thought so, too. But then again we were thrown in the bell. Perhaps this is what it does. I wonder if the others made it, too.&#8221;<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Daniel shook his head, doubtfully. &#8220;I don&#8217;t think there was any blood when you left, and I reckon there wasn&#8217;t any blood when I left either. I think we were the first successful test subjects. We just got lucky, Anne.&#8221;<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Anne stared at the floor, then sighed and shook her head. \u201cLuck had nothing to do with it. I can\u2019t lie to you anymore. I wanted to tell you sooner, but I needed you to be convincing when you begged for my life.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cWhat are you talking about?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cI was never going to die.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cI don\u2019t understand,\u201d Daniel said, with a hint of annoyance.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cOkay. I\u2019ll explain. Just please don\u2019t hate me. I love you.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cI love you, too. That\u2019s not gonna change &#8211; don\u2019t worry. Just fill me in. Please.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cI was in contact with one of Project Sieg\u2019s scientists, Doctor Halterman, well before test subjects were needed for trials. The doctor\u2019s secretly a member of the resistance. So am I.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cWait. What? How was a Nazi scientist helping the resistance?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cHis goal was to delay Project Sieg as much as possible. He undermined the project for as long as he could, and he bribed the guards to not pick me. Our relationship was obvious to those who paid attention, so I can only assume he knew about it and paid them to spare you, too.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cSo the other prisoners had to die to delay that thing\u2019s success?\u201d <\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cSaving the other prisoners would have been impossible. As soon as two subjects successfully travel, the others get executed. So it was either two randoms or someone who was trained to stop the Reich before it began plus one random.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cAnd I\u2019m your \u2018plus one random?&#8217;\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Anne shrugged. \u201cUnlikely random. I\u2019m almost certain he knew about us.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cSo I owe him one.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cThe world will owe him one if we succeed.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cAnd if we fail?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cThe Reich wins the war and establishes a world government.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cSo, what\u2019s the plan, then?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0 c7\"><span class=\"c2 c4\"><\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">Ludvig was disappointed to learn that Anne and Daniel <\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">were<\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">&nbsp;a couple. <\/span><span class=\"c3\">Daniel\u2019s my husband, Ludvig<\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">, Anne had explained,<\/span><span class=\"c3\">&nbsp;I\u2019m sure you\u2019ll find a lovely lady. <\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">Ludvig was an honorable man. When Daniel came to, he was upstairs chatting with his wife &#8211; though whatever words had been said were inaudible to Ludvig from his chair by the fireplace. When they\u2019d finally come down for dinner, Ludvig was a bit reluctant to believe Daniel\u2019s story that their unsuccessful chase of a wolf brought them deep into the mine in the middle of the night, but, given that the wolf had apparently attacked and murdered Anne\u2019s mother, their motive for chasing the animal was understandable. Over dinner, they were so excited simply to see each other alive. It was <\/span><span class=\"c5 c4\">quite touching. He let them both spend the night at his place. They were already upstairs. Ludvig tried his best to tune out their moans and the thumping noise. He sat alone in the living room, yet again, staring at the flickering embers of the fireplace. Tomorrow morning, he would have his well-traveled coachman, Adolf, take the couple wherever they wished to go. He would also promise them that he and his men would shoot any wolf they might come across. The fire was dying down, the couple\u2019s moans were subsiding. Then silence. It was getting late. Bed time.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c11\"><span class=\"c2\">19.4.1941<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c5\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span><span class=\"c2\">Kammler banged on the hatch and shouted to whoever might be able to hear him on the other side. He\u2019d successfully traveled &#8211; he knew that much at least because he\u2019d felt the bell lift off the ground, but never felt or heard it crash back down. Instead, he\u2019d felt the floor of the 1945-bell vanish beneath him as he\u2019d bumped his head against the ceiling of the stationary-bell. He\u2019d quickly felt his bodyweight fall to the floor of the stationary-bell &#8211; though he\u2019d managed to land on his feet. Kammler continued to bang and shout, and finally someone opened the hatch. It was Hoffmann.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cIdentify yourself!\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c5\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201c<\/span><span class=\"c2 c4\">Obergruppenf\u00fchrer Hans Kammler,\u201d Kammler said as he hopped out of the hatch. \u201cI suggest you mind your tongue when speaking to your superiors. Where is Steiner?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Hoffmann saw Kammler\u2019s uniform and became visibly uneasy. He tried to mask his discomfort and fear by putting up a Roman salute, to which Kammler responded in kind.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cMy deepest apologies, Obergruppenf\u00fchrer. Steiner didn\u2019t tell me anyone was coming to inspect Die Glocke\u2019s progress. Had I known, you would not have gotten stuck-\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cNever mind that. I must speak with Steiner!\u201d Kammler prompted.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cHe just left for his daughter\u2019s birthday.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cSteiner never leaves his post for Leni\u2019s birthdays!\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Hoffman hesitated. \u201cShe\u2019s also very pregnant. Maybe that has something to do with it.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cScheisse!\u201d Kammler swore. He knew his daughter Klara\u2019s birthday was on April 25th, 1941, but Kammler didn\u2019t realize &#8211; and Steiner obviously hadn\u2019t remembered &#8211; that Steiner had left so soon to see his granddaughter.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cCan we make contact with him?\u201d Kammler pressed.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cNot at the moment, but if we hurry, we can drive to the landing strip before he takes off.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0 c7\"><span class=\"c2 c4\"><\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Kammler cracked his knuckles as the vehicle sped and swerved down the road. Hoffmann hadn\u2019t bothered waiting for a driver to get ready. He\u2019d jumped into the driver\u2019s seat with Kammler in the back. 25 minutes later, they zoomed towards the landing strip only to see the rear wheels of the plane lift off from the ground. Kammler desperately looked around to see if there was another plane lying around. Nothing.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cWhen does the next plane land here?\u201d Kammler asked.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cTomorrow morning.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cWhere is the nearest airport?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Hoffmann shook his head. \u201cToo far. It\u2019s best to wait till tomorrow.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cScheisse,\u201d Kammler cursed. \u201cCan you get me in contact with the F\u00fchrer in the meantime?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">Hoffmann nodded. \u201cWe can use the Enigma back at the mine.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c9 c7\"><span class=\"c2\"><\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c5\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span><span class=\"c5 c10\">Mein F\u00fchrer! The bees have left the hive! The bees have left the hive! Steiner sent me. I have the list! My name is Obergruppenf\u00fchrer Hans Kammler. I must meet with you.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c8 c5\">&nbsp;Heil Hitler!<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c9 c7\"><span class=\"c2 c4\"><\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5 c8\">Obergruppenf\u00fchrer Hans Kammler, you have done well. Don\u2019t bother coming to me. I will come to you. This takes precedence over everything else. I will be at the mine by tomorrow.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5 c10\">Sieg Heil!<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c11\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span><span class=\"c2\">20.4.1889<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span><span class=\"c2 c4\">Daniel had been surprised by Ludvig\u2019s generous offer that morning, just as the coachman, Adolf, had been surprised when Daniel told him where he and Anne wanted to go. Braunau am Inn was a full day\u2019s trip in the horse carriage, but Adolf had worked swiftly, getting them there before sundown. Per Anne&#8217;s instructions, Daniel had lied to Ludvig and Adolf, telling them that his sister in Braunau was expecting a child any day now. And now, with the sun setting over the lightly frosted mountainscape, they were almost there. <\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cIt\u2019s going to feel wrong, but it must be done,\u201d Anne whispered.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cI know. It\u2019s just so hard to fathom that a helpless, innocent baby could turn into a monster.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Anne shook her head. \u201cIt\u2019s not innocent. You admitted it yourself. It turns into a monster.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Daniel pondered on the dilemma until the sight of Braunau stole his attention. It was a small town. Clusters of one-two-and-three-story-tall buildings here and there in between old-looking streets and flame-powered street lamps. The occasional horse carriage roamed through the streets. Daniel\u2019s eyes honed in on a police officer and his heart skipped a beat before he remembered that it wasn\u2019t a Nazi. He\u2019d grown accustomed to fearing uniformed men in the Reich. It would certainly be a hard habit to break.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cWe have arrived! Send Ludvig\u2019s regards to your sister, Daniel. And mine too, of course.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cThank you, Adolf,\u201d Daniel said, stepping onto the street.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;\u201cHave a safe journey home,\u201d Anne added as Daniel helped her out of the carriage.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5 c4\">Adolf gave them a courtesy smile before they went their separate ways. The town\u2019s small size made it easy to find the Hitler <\/span><span class=\"c2 c4\">household after asking only a dozen-or-so people. Anne managed to pickpocket a knife from a passerby.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cWas that also part of your training?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cYes, this confrontation will go a lot smoother with a weapon.\u201d Anne paused for a moment before adding, \u201cAnd we can\u2019t afford to fail.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Following her lead, Daniel approached the birthplace of the F\u00fchrer. He swallowed a nervous gulp as Anne casually knocked on the door.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Daniel began to hear a thudding sound. He couldn\u2019t tell if he was hearing footsteps from the house or if his heart was pounding louder than he\u2019d thought possible. Then the door swung outwards. A pudgy, grumpy-looking man with a large mustache towered over them.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Anne held the knife in her right hand, which was on the exterior side of the door, out of Mr. Hitler\u2019s line of sight. <\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cHello! You must be Mr. Hitler. We\u2019re your new neighbors. We heard your wife delivered a baby today. We wanted to give you our congratulations.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">Daniel watched as she awkwardly pretended to stretch, slowly-but-swiftly moving her right arm higher along the door frame and closer to where Mr. Hitler\u2019s head was. Before she was ready to strike the single killing blow, Mr. Hitler took a couple of steps further inside and gestured at them to come inside.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2 c4\">\u201cSure! It\u2019s a happy day for Klara and I, so why not share the joy?&#8221;<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Daniel forced a nervous smile. \u201cThank you, Mr. Hitler. You\u2019re-you\u2019re too kind. Is it, um, a boy or a girl?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5\">Daniel made eye contact with Anne, mouthed <\/span><span class=\"c5 c10\">drop the knife<\/span><span class=\"c2\">, and proceeded to follow Mr. Hitler inside.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cIt\u2019s a boy!\u201d Mr. Hitler said.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5\">Daniel heard Anne stepping inside and closing the door behind her, but he kept his eyes forward. Daniel walked through the short entrance corridor and emerged in what appeared to be a spacious-yet-empty living room. Two chairs off to the left faced the right-side wall, and two chairs further back were facing the front door. Klara Hitler was sitting in one of the far chairs, cradling and soothing a bundled newborn <\/span><span class=\"c5\">baby<\/span><span class=\"c2\">. <\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cWhat\u2019s his name?\u201d Daniel forced himself to ask.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cWe haven\u2019t officially reported it yet, but we really like the name Adolf. What do you think?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5\">Daniel walked up to Klara and peered at the little smushed face peeking out of the layers of white cloth. \u201cI think &#8211; I think the name suits him perfectly. <\/span><span class=\"c5\">He &#8211; he<\/span><span class=\"c2\">&nbsp;really is adorable.\u201d It felt weird for Daniel to say, but it was true: Adolf Hitler was a cute baby. <\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Klara glanced up at Daniel and smiled. \u201cThank you, dear. Why don\u2019t you sit down? I overheard your wife say that you\u2019re our new neighbors. What\u2019s your name?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Mr. Hitler sat down in the chair next to Klara and nodded at the two chairs off to the left.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cMy name is Heinrich Himmler and this is my wife, Margarete,\u201d Daniel said as he sat down in one of the chairs. He looked over at Anne for the first time since entering the house. Her hands were behind her back, and were thus hidden from the Hitlers. They were hidden from Daniel, too. He had no way of knowing if she\u2019d dropped the blade.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cMargarete? Care to join us, love?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Daniel looked up into Anne\u2019s eyes and noticed that they were looking at the squished little face on Klara\u2019s lap.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cMargarete, are you alright?\u201d Klara asked, \u201cWant me to get you some water?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cNo, no, that\u2019s okay &#8211; thank you, though. I\u2019m fine. I just, can I get a closer look at your baby? I &#8211; I myself am two months pregnant and I\u2019ve never given birth before and I -\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5\">Daniel was shocked, but he forced himself to bury his emotions for the sake of staying in character. Either Anne had been keeping her pregnancy secret from him, or his beloved Anne was an insanely good liar &#8211; especially for doing so on the spot. Feigning a pregnancy was never part of the p<\/span><span class=\"c5\">lan<\/span><span class=\"c2\">. Then again, neither was the door trick failing. Everything since then had been improvised.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cOh, of course. I understand. I understand completely. You\u2019re scared. I know what that\u2019s like. Come here. Let me show you little Adolf.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Tears rolled down Anne\u2019s cheeks as she walked past Daniel. From his position, with his chair being closer to the front door than the Hitlers, Daniel could see behind Anne\u2019s back while the Hitlers could not. And what he saw horrified him. The knife. He wanted to warn them, but it was too late, Anne was already cutting open Klara\u2019s throat. Blood sputtered everywhere. Daniel jumped up out of his seat.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cStop, Anne! This isn\u2019t right!\u201d <\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">But Anne was too busy burying and twisting the blade deep through Mr. Hitler\u2019s eye socket. The corpse\u2019s arms and legs flailed in response to the electrical jolts from the cold metal slicing through brain tissue. Daniel pushed Anne, which knocked over Mr. Hitler\u2019s corpse and chair. Anne tried to regain her balance, but stumbled over the now-sideways chair leg. She fell with a hard thud, landing on her tailbone. Daniel jumped on top of her, pinning her down with an iron grip firmly on her wrists.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cWhat is wrong with you? They were nice to us!\u201d Daniel cried.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Anne suppressed a chuckle. <\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cDo you want to know why I, of all people, was chosen for this mission?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cAre you even listening to me?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cSomeone like you would ruin everything. The resistance needed a psychopath so that morals and ethics don\u2019t put the mission in jeopardy. They wanted that psychopath to be an attractive, young woman to seduce Mr. Hitler. But then I met you in the cell. You were easy to manipulate. You said and did everything I told you to, you pathetic excuse of a man!\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Daniel was on the verge of tears. He\u2019d thought that their love was real. It had to be real! Her story didn\u2019t add up. Daniel shook his head. \u201cIf you were needed to seduce Mr. Hitler, then why would Doctor Halterman send me back with you?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Anne giggled. \u201cThat\u2019s the best part, you idiot. You really did get insanely lucky. I wouldn\u2019t have cared if they chose you first, second, or third. Even in retrospect, I still wouldn\u2019t care! You fool! Did you really think that Doctor Halterman, or any of the Nazis &#8211; for that matter, knew &#8211; let alone cared &#8211; about our relationship? The only people who knew or cared were all killed in the bell.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Anger, confusion, and humiliation swelled up inside of Daniel. She had truly never loved him. She never had any feelings for him, ever. He thought back to his wife, Gretchen, and his baby daughter, Eva. They were his true loves, and they always would be. It was all clear to him now. This thing with Anne was a sexual fantasy-turned-nightmare. Nothing more. Daniel\u2019s eyes wandered from her cackling face to his right hand. <\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cDo you know why I\u2019m telling you this? Because I know you. You won\u2019t kill me. Your petty morals and ethics are too damn important. Worst case scenario you knock me unconscious, but you\u2019re probably too soft to even do that, aren\u2019t you?\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Anne burst out laughing again, but Daniel\u2019s eyes were still stuck on his right hand. And then he processed what Anne had just said, and his eyes shifted further to the right, to the slouched jaw and bloodied mustache of Alois Hitler\u2019s corpse. Daniel took a deep breath and released his grip on Anne\u2019s left hand, instantly yanked the knife out of the corpse\u2019s eye socket, and sunk it deep into Anne\u2019s chest, piercing her cold, heartless heart. It all happened in under two seconds. Anne didn\u2019t have time to stop laughing and react, or maybe she just didn\u2019t want to. Perhaps she thought it was just a threat, or perhaps she didn\u2019t mind dying. Daniel would never know. She\u2019s dead now though. Good riddance. The smells of death wafted through the room, and it made Daniel gag. Daniel stood up. It was time to walk outside, get some fresh air, start a new life, and forget any of this ever happened. Except Gretchen and Eva. He would treasure their memories forever. And who knows? Perhaps without the Third Reich, his wife and daughter will have a fulfilling life with an alternate version of Daniel. Perhaps he\u2019d even live long enough to see them, and admire them from afar. Assuming they survived, they wouldn\u2019t recognize him. Would they even be the same people he knew? All of the time travel stuff made his head hurt. He needed fresh air. Now. Daniel walked over to the front door, but before stepping outside, he heard the cries of a poor, little baby who\u2019d just lost both of his parents.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c11\"><span class=\"c2\">20.4.1941<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">Kammler waited by the air strip with Hoffmann for the F\u00fchrer to land the following morning. Hoffmann looked different. He wore a funny circular hat on his head and his armband was white instead of red. They watched as the plane landed, but Kammler noticed something different about the tail fin. It still had the black swastika, but instead of being inside of a white circle surrounded by red, it was inside of a familiar, white star surrounded by blue. When the F\u00fchrer came up to greet them, he had a beard and was also wearing one of those round hats. <\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5\">\u201cYom <\/span><span class=\"c5\">huledet<\/span><span class=\"c2\">&nbsp;sameach, mein F\u00fchrer! 52 years young! How was the flight from Jerusalem?\u201d Hoffmann cheered.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cIt was a good flight, and thank you. The board has finally agreed upon a final solution for the Negro Question.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c1\"><span class=\"c2\">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Then Kammler realized what had happened. Those Jews didn\u2019t kill the F\u00fchrer! What they did was far worse &#8211; they raised him! The Reich had become a Jewish puppet! They\u2019ve tricked the German Volk into blaming the Negers for the faults of the Juden! He had failed! Panic swept over Kammler\u2019s psyche, and his thoughts immediately turned to his family.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cHoffmann, where did you say Steiner was going, again?\u201d Kammler asked.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cTo his daughter\u2019s birthday and for the birth of his granddaughter.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cWho\u2019s the baby\u2019s father?\u201d Kammler asked, trying his best to remain calm.<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c2\">\u201cMy cousin, Frank Schapiro,\u201d the F\u00fchrer said, smiling, \u201cI\u2019m flying there to meet baby Ruthie after we\u2019re done here.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p class=\"c0\"><span class=\"c5\">No longer able to live with himself, Hans Kammler took out his Mauser and buried the muzzle under his chin. Then he squeezed the trigger.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Die Glocke is a fictitious short story about a German scientific breakthrough in April of 1945 that has the potential to completely alter the course of the war.<\/p>\n<p>Photo Credit: WeskerX<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":255,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-253","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-short-story","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=253"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":743,"href":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253\/revisions\/743"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/255"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=253"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=253"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rid.hamilton.edu\/mendelson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=253"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}