Chapter 11

Commander Koenig, Alan Carter and Paul Morrow sat in the bleak cell in the cooler of Stalag 13. The floor was cold and the mattress was almost intolerable. They were not sure of their next move. Koenig noted that the security in the camp was pretty ineffective. The guards ran the same routine over and over, and he figured they could work at a way to escape in pretty sure order. The problem was they didn't have the time to make it happen. Three days, thought Koenig, before the Moon would be stuck here. He wasn't sure how much after that until they all fell to the de-synchronization syndrome they have started to experience.

"Punched him, huh?" chuckled Alan. "I am surprised you didn't get shot."

"Well, Klink's record shows that he does not participate in the worst behavior of the Nazis," he sighed," still, I thought I was going to get piled on. It's almost as if the guards were kind of enjoying it. If they went looking for Hogan that was going to be an issue. Only thing I could think of," Koenig smirked at the other two Alphans. "It worked."

Suddenly there was the sound of a metal lock being opened. The door creaked and the large German Sergeant who had taken them prisoner stepped in. He was accompanied by a smaller man who seemed to be wearing gloves and a bomber jacket. The smaller man was carrying a tray with food.

"Okay back up, here is your meal," said the German in respectful English. He seemed tired and annoyed about the effort. The Alphans took a step back and watched in amazement as the large German soldier propped his rifle against the wall. The other man did not even seem to take notice of it as he did so. The smaller man stepped in and placed the tray on the small table in the room.

"Don't eat that," he whispered, "LeBeau is not here but we can get you something better in a bit. Who are you guys?" he whispered. He seemed to have a middle American accent.

"We are working with Hogan," said Koening. Not entirely a lie, he tried to convince himself. "We will be back in a couple of hours. I had to give him time."

"That was great when he hit the Kommandant!" exclaimed the young sergeant. "My name is Andrew Carter. We'll be back in a few," he said more quietly.

"Carter, do not congratulate this man for hitting the Kommandant. That was an afront to the German people," the large guard said sternly. Then his voice dropped. "It was a pretty good hit though," he chuckled.

The two left and Koenig Carter and Morrow looked at the "meal" that had been left. There was some meat and bread that looked like it had saw dust in it. The poked at it a bit but none of the men ate particularly much. After about an hour, they heard what appeared to be a some shuffling in the wall. Perplexed they went over the that area and suddenly one of the stones opened to reveal a tunnel. Koenig was shocked. He had read the reports about the tunnel system but this was insane. The prisoners seemed to have full access to all areas of the camp.

Andrew Carter stepped through with a tray of food that smelled markedly different than what was on the table. Fresh meat, bread and was that wine? He took a quick look to make sure there were no unexpected guards but did not seem too concerned about it. He put the tray on the bed and took off his hat.

"Boy you guys are something," he said. "Who are you?"

The Alphans looked at each other uncertainly. Finally Koenig said, "I am Commander John Koenig. We are in a secret mission that involved Colonel Hogan." He tried to leave it at that.

"Well, the Colonel didn't say anything to us." He stood pondering this information. Carter suddenly realized that he was in charge and was not sure what to do. He was worried about the Colonel and other POWs. He had to admit that this Commander had bought them some time.

"Colonel Hogan should be back by Roll Call. In the meantime, we need to find a crystal that is causing some trouble. It might be used with a radio or…"

"radar," Finished Carter. He regreted is soon as he said. "I gotta go!" he said a dove back into the tunnel. The Alphans tried to grab him but he was too fast. At least they knew somebody figured it out. Suddently they heard a loud whistle and a German yelling, "Raus, Raus, alle und sofort. Schnell!" They looked at each other. Roll Call. Did Hogan make it back?