Behavior Report 41

Dearest Love,

Madam Teuflisch leaps onto me and knocks me onto the ground. My helmet does little to break the fall. There’s no time to think or worry about the pain. Her weight crushes my legs and shoulders as if she too were made of the marble that built the keep. She snarls and growls and shows her teeth.

I reach around the floor for a rifle or my sword or anything to help me. Madam Teuflisch uses her right hand to press against my throat.

I can’t breathe.

I can barely think.

Through her razor-sharp teeth, she snarls, “You … will … fail …” 

No matter what I try to do, roll to one side, push her arms off, kick and punch, Madam Teuflisch keeps her grip tight. Her weight and stranglehold wear me down. My lungs scream for air. Stars appear on the edge of my vision. I know that I only have moments left. One last effort is all I have before I pass out. I desperately search the ground around me for anything that could be used as a weapon. My hands slide back and forth as if I were making a snow angel.

And then, I hit something.

Something metal.

It’s not my sword, but the gauntlet we kept to fulfill Bob’s promise. I slide my hand into the steel and with the last vestiges of life I have, I direct all my strength and focus into my gauntleted hand and … swing.

The impact sends an explosion throughout the keep. Madam Teuflisch flies off and slams into the wall. I painfully sit up and cough. The monster does the same. The gauntlet vibrates just like my sword. I feel power pulse through my fingers.

Madam Teuflisch shakes her head as if to ward off the pain and stands. I jump and run to pick up my sword. We stare at one another in a standoff.

“You … are … only … delaying … the … inevitable,” she says. “Give … up.”

She takes a step forward and I counter with a step back.

“My … soldiers … are … well … on … their … way.”

She stretches her hands outward with each finger extended like the talons on a hawk. We move about the keep; she takes a step in one direction, and I take the opposite step. She stands maybe ten feet tall. I can’t swipe high without exposing myself to her claws. Swiping low at her feet won’t do enough damage to prevent a counterattack.

Rage burns in her eyes. Her entire presence is devilish. Staring down Alek and the monster in the cave as well as the muscle-bound treasure keeper in the Stone City felt less threatening than this hellish woman.

“We stick together,” Earls says to my right.

I quickly look and find Earl standing next to me holding one of the Kraut’s rifles. He pulls the bolt to reload it.

“And keep our heads on straight,” I respond with a smile.

And that is all I need to clear my thoughts and bring back the memories of all the boys in our squad. Lieutenant Talbott appears on the other side of Earl. George walks up to my left. Everyone else joins in with their rifles.

“Might be hard to keep your head on straight with all these guys showing up though,” Earl says.

“You can see them?”

He nods.  

This may sound strange, My Love, but their energies, their personalities, their dreams, their hopes, and their promises all course through my body. Each heartbeat brings their memories about a little brighter than before. I recall the moments in the past when I saw their ghosts and recoiled in fear. I was wrong to be afraid of their presence. They were not there to scare me. They were attempting to help, to give me courage, and to motivate me to fulfill their promises. Had I only known or accepted them from the start, maybe these letters would tell an entirely different history.

My grip upon my sword tightens.

Madam Teuflisch screams and then runs toward me in a rage. Before I can react, she’s upon me, swiping her claws back and forth. The first swipe glances across my chest, leaving rips in my shirt and searing hot marks on my skin.

Gunfire crackles like a piece of pine set on a fire. Bullets crash into Madam Teuflisch but do little damage. She roars and charges with arms swiping. One arm knocks Earl off his feet. The other arm slams into me like a massive hammer. Instantly, she’s on top of me with both arms raised. She swings them down and pierces her talons into my chest and through my back.

There is no way to describe the absolute misery I feel.

I scream.

Her talons turn and twist inside me.

Earl takes several shots at her face, but the bullets barely affect her. He changes tactics and swings the butt of the rifle at the monster, but she swipes Earl away like a fly.

The rest of boys begin to attack by affixing their bayonets and stabbing the monster. She screams and attempts to take out the ghostly soldiers. Their resolve is strong, and she can do nothing to them.

My Love, I can barely move. The pain is too much. I don’t think she hit my heart, but I can only take short, shallow breaths. ‘This is it,’ I think. ‘If I fail, everything is lost.’

Madam Teuflisch stands and fights the boys with no success. Somehow, in some way, I get to my feet. My head feels as if it’s spinning. I can barely feel my legs. I raise my sword over my head and step toward the monster. Darkness wraps around the edges of my sight until all that is left is a pinhole focused on Madam Teuflisch. I swing the sword down with all the backing from the boys and strength left within me. There is absolutely no resistance in my swing until I hit the ground, creating a great ringing echo.

‘I missed.’

The boys all back away from the monster, taking slow, deliberate steps.

I fall to my knees, barely able to stay conscious.

Lieutenant Talbott runs over to me and says something I can’t understand.

But before I can respond, I pass out …

“Frank”

“… give him more water …”

“Frank, can you hear me?”

I feel cool liquid splashed on my chest. My head raises and water pours onto my lips.

I find myself in our hallway leading to the kitchen where you and Junior are facing away from me.  

“When’s daddy getting home?” Junior says.

“Soon, honey,” you respond.

Something is cooking in the oven, something savory. Garlic permeates the air. My favorite pork roast? I feel like a cartoon sniffing the air and letting it draw me to you. Sunlight shines through the windows and caresses your contours. It’s wonderful. It’s bliss. It’s absolute happiness. Junior’s voice stays with me, the pitch, his funny little accent that makes him sound like he’s from Brooklyn.

I reach out to touch your shoulders. I want to come up from behind and hug you both.  Neither of you hear me and continue to talk.

“I miss him,” Junior says.

“I do too.”

My steps become more difficult the closer I get to you. It almost feels as if something has grabbed ahold of me and is pulling me back. I fight to take the last few steps. My fingers are mere inches from touching you. The sunlight grows brighter, almost heavenly. I push harder but whatever has me, pulls even harder.

“Frank!”

With the very last bit of strength I have, I try to at least brush my fingertips on you.

My Love.

My Light.

My Everything.

“I think he’s coming to.”

Suddenly, the kitchen disappears, but remnants of the pork roast aroma linger.

“Frank. Can you hear me?”

The next thing I see is Earl kneeling over me with a Kraut canteen in his hand. He forces me to drink.

“Dear god please. Frank, please come back,” Earl says. “You’ve got to come back.”

The water is warm and tastes like I’m drinking a handful of nickels and pennies. But as the water enters my stomach, I can feel energy, electricity, spanning across my body. The wounds from Madam Teuflisch’s claws don’t hurt anymore. I can take a deep breath.

“He’s waking. He’s okay!”

“I told you that those Krauts were drinking the river water,” George says. “That’s how they could get up all the stairs so quickly.”

“Nice catch,” Lafe adds.

I sit up and wonder how the boys remain in my presence after losing all consciousness. Has something changed? Have they become something greater, something that doesn’t require my absolute focus?

“No,” Lieutenant Talbott responds. “We’re here because of Earl. He’s kept us present.”

“What happened?” I ask.

“Take a look at your handy work,” Earl says and points.

I sit up. Two lumps lay on the floor just beyond my feet. My Love, be careful if you are reading this to Junior, because what I am about to tell you is nightmare inducing. On the left side is one half of Madam Teuflisch with one arm and one leg. On the right is the other side. There’s no blood because the speed at which I forced the sword down was such that it cauterized the wound. The sword that cut stone with ease had sliced through the demon without any hinderance.

Quinten clears his throat and says, “Remind me to never annoy Frank again.”

“Your sword is half buried in the marble floor. You swung it so hard that the blade not only cut that monster in two but slammed the blade into the ground,” Earl says.

“You’ll need King Arthur to pull it out,” Quinten laughs.

I feel like an exhausted heap of bones and skin, but I have enough energy to laugh. I fall onto my back and let out a long sigh. I can’t believe that I did it. I can’t believe that I stopped the monster.

“What are you doing laying on the ground?” George says.

“Yeah,” Quinten adds. “This ain’t no time to take a break!”

Others chime in as well until Earl says, “Guys, I think it’s time we give him a moment to catch his breath. The poor chap was dead a few moments ago.”

“There’s no rest for the weary. I hate to be like this, but we’ve got to find a way to stop that Kraut Division,” Lieutenant Talbott says.

“Yeah, you also have a promise to fulfill,” George says. He points to Lieutenant Talbott’s flag on the ground.

Bob and Walt help me to stand. Earl picks up the flag and we head toward the ladder. A wave of dizziness overtakes me, but the boys keep me upright. I continue after a moment.

Strong winds blow outside. There are no railings or anything to prevent someone from walking off the side and falling to their doom. The marble is cut smoothly like the rest of the keep and shows signs where water sits from time to time after a rainstorm. The flagpole stands directly in the center, clanging as a blood red flag catches the wind and displays evil. Earl unravels the line and draws down the Kraut flag.

“Wait,” Walt says before Earl can throw the flag over the edge. “Keep it. That can be my promise.”

“Yes. Everyone should sign it,” I say. “That’s how we can show Walt’s family that he made a lot of friends.” I hand my pen to Earl to start.

I affix Lieutenant Talbott’s flag to the pole while the boys take turns signing the flag.

“Atten-shun!” George yells.

Everyone stops, stands up straight, and salutes while I raise Lieutenant Talbott’s American flag. They continue to salute for an entire minute once the flag reaches the top.

“That is a thing of beauty,” Bob says. “God bless it.”

Lieutenant Talbott has tears in his eyes and I can understand why. His letter describes how each piece of fabric represents a different person in his life. When sewn together, they create a symbol of hope.

My Love, I don’t know how else to say this other than that I finally feel like I did something right. It may not have been pretty, but I did it.

Earl hands me the Kraut flag and says, “Just needs your signature to make it complete.”

All the boys signed their names and hometown within the white circle. I read each one and then write my own.

Frank Kaplan

Racine, Wisconsin

Earl and I fold the flag to fit in my pack. We stuff it between the other things that we’ve gathered on our journey.

“All that’s left is to pick up a piece of wood for Surplis’ bat and a marriage proposal for Emil,” I say.

“A marriage proposal?” Quinten laughs. “Emil, you promised a marriage proposal? How’s he supposed to do that?”

Emil blushes and starts to open his mouth but is interrupted by the screech of a hawk circling overhead. Instantly, it divebombs the keep and we all drop to the ground. The bird swoops back into the air for another pass.

“To the ladder!” Lieutenant Talbott yells.

Earl and I crawl down the ladder while the rest of the boys focus on protecting us. Once inside, we gather again to catch our breath.

“You can never rest in this place!” Earl says in between breaths.

“I hate to say this,” George says, “but we need to keep moving. There’s a whole Kraut division on its way to surprise our guys.”

“They’ve got a big head start. How are we going to get to them?”  

“By any means possible,” Lieutenant Talbott says.

His words strike a chord inside me, and I add, “I have an idea.”