Braving the North Atlantic skies, EUFOR troops back on a special mission to Fulda.It has been over a week since the last time EUFOR Central Command (ECC) had made contact with officer En Aeon, back when the bombings in Eichenzell began. First time since Operation: The Only Solution which forced the evacuation of troops (based in Heaney Air Force Base) out of Fulda, a previous order to send non-European personnel back to their home country has been revoked. All troops are to re-establish military presence in the German city to counter reports of an increased number of people moving in and around Eichenzell in the dead of night.
EUFOR Central Command (ECC) suspects N.E.B. (New Eastern Bloc) taking advantage of a signed truce, to establish their position in taking over the desserted German town. A directive to block all human traffic around Eichenzell is to be enforced ASAP. Unaware to the ECC of the horrors (resulting from the KV Virus outbreak) that would greet its forces.
12th of January, 2009: 0730 hrs
Saving EUFOR Troop En Aeon...
The sound of a chopper hovering nearby aroused the troop from an inconvenient slumber as he struggles to gain consciousness. He feels his feet are soaked in water but does not seem to know the reason why. Dazed with his eyes tightly shut, he attempts to make sense on what was going on around him.
"I hear thunder... it's getting louder... (grunts) I'm wet! Has it rained down on me?... who put out the lights?" (moans)
Taking off his gas-mask, exposing his face to the morning sun: "It's getting warm, I can feel it on my face... is it the sun?... Have I fallen asleep?!..."
"Arghh! the light!... it blinds!..." Still confused and seemingly exhausted, he rests his head on damp soil. "Where am I?... Where is this place?... Am I dead? I can't be dead!... I just can't die... not now... not yet..."
"Who's there?... Who are you?..." He sees a faint silhouette of a person, and tries to reach for his rifle in which he struggles.
"Anybody out there?... Arghh! my eyes... too bright... help!..." He hardly recalls what exactly had happened before, but his instincts tell him he must survive.
He gets flashbacks and the last thing he now remembers was being chased down by creatures in the dark. "Stop right there!... Befördern Sie nicht… mich sagte Anschlag!... Please stop... or I'll... I'll... unghhh"
Standing next to him is a familiar face he thought he would never see again. Lizzy Mornington came back to rescue her man. Her instincts convinced her to jump ship when the AWACS that would take her back to Australia went for a logistical stop-over at the RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, England. Intuition made her believe that something was not right, and that she must find her way back to Fulda immediately.
While putting together a plan to rescue En, a new memorandum from EUFOR Command Central (ECC) was released, authorizing the re-deployment of EUFOR troops back to Fulda. It would be in response to a suspected N.E.B. (New Eastern Bloc) troop build-up in Eichenzell.
This would be the moment Lizzy was waiting for: a free-ticket back to no-man's-land.
An angel of the morning. Just in the nick of time, Lizzy saves En from untimely death who was severely suffering from hypothermia, dehydration and starvation.The last time she and En were together was at the infirmary, before her sudden departure back to Australia. Her heart sank at the poorly sight of her man, beaten down by nature.
Like a scene from the La Pieta, Lizzy cradles a semi-conscious En as troops drop down from a UH-60 Black Hawk chopper: part of a redeployment effort of EUFOR troops to Fulda."Everything is going to be alright hun... it's all going to be okay..." Lizzy tries to comfort and reassure En as she cautiously look in the woods that surround them, aware of the abomination that may be lurking in the shadows.
10th of January, 2009: 1910 hrs
More than 48 hours EARLIER...
... as gunfire proved to be unsuccessful in holding back the advancing mutants, En leaps instinctively off a bridge behind the patrol outpost. It was the only way out as he was being swamped by a multitude of these ghastly creatures.
He screams as he came crashing down the cold seawater, as howls and growls echo above him. The water breaks his fall as he scrambles himself to safety, disturbing a herd of deer in the process. He struggles to keep himself afloat with all the attached military gear dragging him down the deep water.
A close call. En leaps off a bridge before an overwhelming crowd of mutants, bent on ravaging the lone EUFOR soldier.10th of January, 2009: 1925 hrs
In an inlet just outside Eichenzell...
Shocked and exhausted, En swims safely to shore. The company of wildlife seems to give him a sense of security, as the calmness of these wild animals would mean the absence of savages in the area. Nature starts to take over as the bitter-cold breeze smother him... he feels very tired... dazed and ostensibly confused.
Tired and exhausted, En could barely move or more so react at the curious nipping of marine life, least notice the presence of a prying wild fox.With dawn taking over the night sky, a full moon still beaming above him... he lays motionless... staring blindly into space. He feels very cold, shivering not because of fright or fear but of hypothermia that seems to blister the warmth away from his very core... he now feels very-very tired.
"Must not sleep... must stay awake... cold... bitter cold..." he mutters to himself as random thoughts besets him.
"Lizzy... you there?... Where are you?... Why did you leave me?", a feeling of abandonment takes over this once brave soldier as anger, frustration and even despair conquers him. Disoriented, he seems to blame everybody for what has happened to him... he blames God... he blames himself.
"What the bloody hell are you looking at!...", swearing at the sight of a taunting full moon. "Leave me alone... just leave me alone... leave me... alone... " he whispers as he sinks into sloom.
