In the summer of 1942, one hundred and sixty miles south south west of El Imayid, a concerted push by the Allies was forcing the Afrika Korps into retreat. One such push against an enemy base deep in the desert was being spearheaded by L Detachment, Special Air Service Brigade. Not mentioned in the official records of that action are the efforts of a small team of enhanced individuals to hold a narrow pass through the desert hills. That team consisted of Mademoiselle Mimi Dubois, La Résistance fighter and mistress of skills; Miss Madeline Forsyth, SOE operative and a living shadow; Sven Hyse, Norwegian Resistance soldier and shapeshifter; and Doctor Jackal, timid physician with his less than timid friend Mister Hades.

Western Desert, Egypt, July 1942
Eventually, we can all see a small squad of German troopers moving in a loose formation towards valley B8. As they approach from the north they begin to slow down and make their way towards a particularly large boulder that sits at the mouth of the valley. The troopers hunker down behind the boulder, and moments after they are in position two of the troopers begin to move slowly forwards using the available cover to scout out the valley. I remember thinking that they were probably trying to work out where the smoke was coming from.

We bide our time and allow them to search unmolested, they move down as far as the wreckage of the motorbike and sidecar and with the mystery of the smoke solved they have a brief conversation. From my hiding place, no more than a hundred feet away, I could just about make out what they were saying. One of them was suggesting that they should scout further down the valley to make sure that it was clear. But his colleague, who seemed keener to get moving, replied that they were only ordered to locate the smoke and then report back. The second trooper won the discussion and they moved back towards their comrades.

After what must have been a brief report, the squad of German troopers move out from behind the boulder and begin to head into the valley. I imagine that there was a small click as the lead trooper stood firmly on one of the land mines that I had placed at the north end of the valley. The mine was designed to be used against armoured vehicles and it’s effect on a group of foot soldiers was utter devastation. As the dust cloud settled it revealed the terrible price paid by the German troops. There was the sound of a whip crack that echoed down the valley as Sven spotted the head of a trooper looking out from behind the large boulder and placed a bullet from his rifle between the man’s eyes.

After the cacophony of the rifle shot and explosion all goes silent. We wait. After five minutes, Sven transforms into a desert hawk and takes to the skies. From his lofty view point he can see that all of the troopers are dead. He circles higher, and ventures further north to see if we have any more German’s heading in our direction. He spots the last of the German base’s personnel evacuating towards Captain Stirling’s air strike valley. He then spies the last vehicle, a half track, turn in our direction. He swoops back towards us to let us know what is coming. Sven and Madeline then both move further along the top of the ridge so that they can get a good line of sight behind the large boulder at the head of the valley.

After what seems like an eternity of waiting we hear the sound of a large engine moving towards the mouth of the valley. Then the half track comes into view. From her advantage point Madeline can see that the half track is being driven by an infantry officer, which is unusual, and the main gun is being manned by an infantry trooper. The back of the half track contains a number of people in uniform, but not troopers.

The half track comes to a halt twenty yards short of the bodies. A heartbeat in time and the sound of a rifle shot rings out, the German gunner slumps dead in his station. Another heartbeat and Madeline lobs a grenade into the rear troop bay of the vehicle. A heartbeat, the German officer slams the half track into reverse just as the grenade detonates. A heartbeat, Sven’s rifle whip cracks once more and the half track slews to a halt as the officer dies where he sits. A heartbeat, silence descends once more across valley B8. Four seconds have elapsed.

When nothing moves for a couple of minutes, Sven changes shape into that of a raven and flies down the the half track to make sure that everything is clear. He notes that the Germans in the back of the half track are sappers and engineers, and based on the fact that they don’t appear to have any kit with them they must have left in a hurry. Sven finds that one of the sappers is alive, he quickly transforms back into his human form and carries out emergency first aid. He also shouts for Doctor Jackal.

Henry scrambles down the scree slope towards the half track and I jog up the valley to meet up with him. As soon as he sees us coming, Sven once again transforms himself into a desert hawk and takes off north. Henry reaches the half track first and clambers into the back of it, he quickly assesses the situation and ascertains that the German sapper will die unless he receives immediate attention. So Doctor Jackal rolls up his sleeves and get to work saving the sappers life. As I arrive at the half track, Madeline appears out of the shadows below the vehicle. She begins to search the cab and the officer for orders, and I begin to disarm the remaining mines to make them safe for transport once again.

As we all work we hear the sound of propeller drone drawing closer, we look up and see a squadron of RAF Mosquitos flying above us towards the air strike valley. Not long after they have moved out of sight we hear the sound of rippling explosions echoing back to us.

Madeline’s search doesn’t turn up anything. In fact the German’s don’t appear to be carrying anything of any note at all. They definitely left in a hurry. Sven returns and tells us that we should not expect anymore troops moving in our direction, and we inform him that we will have to remain in place until Doctor Jackal has finished saving the sapper’s life. We set up a defensive perimeter and leave the doctor to work. A short while later we hear a shout;

Incoming friendlies!

Madeline challenges them and receives the correct response. It is the team that were tasked with taking out the southern outpost. As they come into sight it is clear that they are a man down. There is no discussion of what happened, just a knowing that it happens in war. They instruct us to cripple the half track and move out as we have to rendezvous with the troop column. Doctor Jackal has finished his work and agrees that the sapper can be moved on a stretcher to the back of the jeep. Madeline places a grenade inside the half tracks engine compartment and as we walk away there is the crump of an explosion that will make moving the half track very difficult indeed.

We rejoin with the smaller of the two troop convoys and continue to make our way north east. We stop for a break a few hours before dusk and one of the column’s officers visits us to quickly debrief us on our part of the mission. He makes notes of what we encountered and then tells us to be ready to move out at dusk. Two hours after dusk we meet up with the main column, who have suffered minimal losses, and continue back to our main base of operations.

We pull into our camp just after midnight. Our prisoner is transported to the field hospital and Doctor Jackal accompanies him. The rest of us head straight for bed. The doctor on duty at the field hospital is very impressed with Henry’s work and asks if he would mind doing some rounds at the field hospital to help out. Henry is delighted with the distraction and agrees.

El Imayid, Egypt, August 1942
The following morning the camp is busy with activity as everyone carries out the jobs that always need to be done post mission. I get stuck in to giving our jeep a service and by mid morning I have finished. I jump into the drivers seat and turn the key. Nothing. I try again with the same result. I sit there for a moment and think about my options. I eventually decide to take the easy option, I lift up the bonnet and stand back a bit. In a slightly raised voice I say;

Well I don’t know what’s wrong! I wish that there was someone here who could help me!

I am not short of volunteers to assist me, and after a short while the jeep is up and running once more. Men are so predictable, it’s lovely!

That afternoon we are summoned to Captain Stirling’s command tent for a full debrief. After Madeline has relayed all of our encounters Stirling informs us that the overall mission was a success and that a large proportion of the German column were destroyed. Next he questions us about our prisoner, and this time Doctor Jackal relays the procedure he carried out to save the sappers life. Sven asks if we are doing the wrong thing by bringing in prisoners, mostly because we seem to be the only ones that do. Captain Stirling points out that we are the only team with a skilled doctor, and perhaps that is why.

Captain Stirling goes on to tell us that he has been in contact with Captain Ledman, and they are in agreement that we are ready for a more important mission. He asks us to visit him at eighteen hundred hours tomorrow when he will be in a position to give us a full mission briefing.

That night the camp celebrates. I drink. I laugh. I dance. And I sing. In short we have an amazing time, even Henry’s limericks are greeted with laughter. As loud and fast paced as the evening is, the following morning is quiet and slow. It seems that everyone is feeling tender, if a single German trooper had turned up I think that we might have all surrendered.

The day is spent dozing and rehydrating, the later being insisted upon by Doctor Jackal. Just before six in the evening I gather Henry from the field hospital and join Madeline in the command tent. There is no sign of Sven anywhere. Captain Stirling once again confirms that he and Captain Ledman have been impressed with our conduct and that they do indeed have a special mission for us, but he believes that it should be discussed with the whole team. We don’t let on that we do not know where Sven is, but tell Stirling that he is investigating something. Fortunately, due to his orders, Stirling does not press for more information and agrees to meet us at oh nine hundred hours.

An hour after the sun has disappeared behind the sand dunes, Sven walks back into camp from the desert. I tell him that he missed the meeting with Captain Stirling, he genuinely looks apologetic. It seems that he had been flying to clear his head after the previous evenings activities and had lost track of time. The following morning we are all prompt and present at the command tent for our mission briefing.

Captain Stirling asks us to settle down and then asks his adjutant to leave us. He tells us that the following information is highly classified and must not be discussed with anyone outside of those present. Military Intelligence has learnt that the German army are planning to replace their main battle tank, the Panzer IV, with a new medium tank designated the Panzerkampfwagen V Panther. Command are very interested in getting their hands on one of the prototypes.

Four of these Panthers have been delivered for testing in desert conditions to a German compound two hundred and fifty miles behind enemy lines. Command believes that a small unit could infiltrate the compound, recover one of the Panthers, and make a run for a point on the front line and cross back into allied territory. The crossing point is guarded by a bunker that would need to be neutralised before the crossing could be made. Captain Stirling knows that it is a risky mission, and that the dash for the front line is just as tricky as getting the tank out of the compound.

Captain Stirling shows us a map detailing the location of the compound, he also shows us a hand drawn map of the compound itself. He has further detail on the exit route and the location of the crossing point bunker. He informs us that none of the information may be removed from the command tent, but that we are allowed to view it at any time for planning purposes.

Captain Stirling also informs us that Military Intelligence has acquired the papers for a German officer, Oberstabsrichter Hammelsdorf, who is working for the Wehrmacht carrying out an audit of the Afrika Korps resources. The papers dictate that he is travelling with an Unteroffizier acting as his driver, and a civilian in the post of his personal secretary. Command believe that it would be a simple matter to add another individual to the papers.

Captain Stirling asks us if we need to meet with the local armoured division for a refresher, he tries very hard not to ask us directly about our actual knowledge of tanks, and we agree that it would be very useful. Stirling summons his adjutant back into the tent and asks him to drive us to meet with armoured division command. We are met by a tank crew and their commanding officer and are taken through a run down of tank basics in their Mk4 Sherman.

We spend what is left of the morning and the whole afternoon working with the tank crew. Sven and Madeline both take turns in driving the tank, with Sven doing much better than Madeline. While Sven is driving I make sure that I am sat near the tank crews main driver, not a difficult thing in the tight space of the tank’s belly, and grab his hand as if I am scared. While I hold his hand I ‘borrow’ his driving skill. When it is my turn to drive I’m like a natural. The tank’s crew seem impressed.

With the help of the tank crew we all come to terms with our designated positions. Doctor Jackal takes the commander’s chair as he will be navigating. Sven acts as the driver, and Madeline and myself take the positions of loader and gunner. We are a bit rough around the edges and so we arrange to spend the following day with the Sherman crew.

That evening we settle down in Captain Stirling’s command tent and start to formulate a plan.

In the heat of the Egypt’s Western desert, in an unnamed canyon, in the shadow of World War II, four unique individuals are investigating the archeological activities of a group of German troops. Mademoiselle Mimi Dubois, La Résistance fighter and mistress of skills; Miss Madeline Forsyth, SOE operative and a living shadow; Sven Hyse, Norwegian Resistance soldier and shapeshifter; and Doctor Jackal, timid physician with his less than timid friend Mister Hades.

Western Desert, Egypt, July 1942
Having dispatched four of the German troops that had come to check on their hidden truck, Sven decides that it is time to leave the next group a nasty little surprise. While the rest of us hide two of the German bodies, the other two still being propped up inside the truck’s cab, Sven booby traps the doors of the truck with a couple of our grenades. We then all sneak up to the southern canyon top so that we can get a good aerial view of the German’s camp.

We get to about halfway along the canyon top when Madeline spots five German troops and their officer heading away from the camp and towards their truck. We quickly duck out of view and, leaving Sven and Doctor Jackal at the midway point, Madeline and I continue until we are above the cave mouth. We both meld into shadow form and slide down the cliff face and behind the two guards stationed outside the entrance.

Not long after we have slid into the cave mouth we hear the sound of an explosion. The two guards are suddenly very alert. Then there is another, even louder explosion which I remember thinking at the time must have been the trucks fuel igniting. For some reason, and for the life of me I cannot remember why, the two German guards look into the cave mouth with their weapons raised. Madeline makes sure that they don’t see anything by controlling the darkness and making it as black as a mine shaft on a moonless night.

I give them their dues, the guards did manage to get a few shots off. But shooting shadows in the dark is a difficult thing. And when those shadows are alive and trying to kill you it is even harder. Once again, Sergeant McKay would have been proud of the knife work displayed by his two students. At the sound of the first shots, the civilian working with the German troops ran like a frightened jack rabbit west towards the exit from the box canyon.

Not long after Professor Aldermann starts to run west towards the German’s truck, the last remaining German trooper decides that being near the truck is the last place that he wishes to be and so he sprints east into the box canyon and towards the German’s camp. Unfortunately for him, sprinting east brings him straight into Sven’s crosshairs. Just as Professor Aldermann catches sight of the trooper running towards him there is a sound like a whip crack and the trooper falls flat onto his face. As Sven chambers another round into his rifle, the Professor decides to seek cover.

Doctor Jackal spots the Professor ducking into cover, which he considers to be an eminently sensible idea when guns are being fired, and so decides to go and introduce himself. Sven heads back to the truck to check if there are any more troops left alive after his little surprise, and Madeline and I secure the cave entrance and the camp.

When Sven gets to the hidden truck he is greeted by a scene of destruction. The bodies of four German troops lay in impossible positions around the exploded vehicle, he also spots the German Leutnant slump against a rock attempting to administer first aid to his badly bleeding midriff. Ever so slowly Sven’s features begin to change. His body also changes, becoming slightly shorter and less broad. And finally, his clothing changes, becoming a dusty German troopers uniform. Where Sven once stood there now stands one of the original German troopers who came to investigate the truck.

Trooper Sven rushes over to the German Leutnant, who is relieved to see a friendly face, and begins to wrap a field dressing around his injured abdomen. Once trooper Sven is sure that the officer isn’t going to bleed out, he punches him unconscious. Which came as a bit of a shock to the German officer.

Whilst trooper Sven is dealing with the officer, Doctor Jackal is taking a far more civilised approach to dealing with the Professor. He locates his hiding place and greets him in German, he introduces himself and discusses some of the intricacies of the ancient Egyptians and their burial customs. In fact they engage in a very friendly discussion as they head back towards the camp, and Henry convinces Professor Aldermann that he is in no danger.

Doctor Jackal walks Professor Aldermann back to the camp and discusses the Professor’s work with the German army. Henry learns that the German’s are investigating ancient Egyptian tombs looking for artefacts of the occult, he also confides that he has yet to find anything of that nature. He tells Henry that they discovered several chambers, most of which he considered to be false trails, and then they finally discovered a hidden door that led into a treasure room. That doorway was trapped and one of the German troopers lost their lives when a massive block of stone fell on him.

We secured the area and Sven returned to the camp with the unconscious officer, who he tied to one of the beds. Doctor Jackal, Madeline and the Professor proceed with the search of the tomb while Sven and I man handle the bodies of the German troops into the first chamber of the tomb.

Where the German’s were struggling with the painstakingly slow search of the tomb, Madeline’s special skills allowed her to swiftly discover any hidden passages. Being a living shadow means that every gap is a potential doorway. Doctor Jackal watched the Professor, who was happy cataloging finds while Madeline worked. Madeline then showed the Professor where the hidden areas were and they were able to disarm the traps that they discovered.

Madeline’s investigations led the team to the real treasure room and the actual tomb. The Professor reported that the tomb was clearly that of an important merchant and that at first glance it did not look like there were any materials relating to the occult held within the treasury. By this time Sven and I had returned all of the bodies to the outer chamber and I took over from Henry keeping an eye on Professor Aldermann, while Henry and Sven checked on the German officer.

Henry discovered that the officer was once again conscious, and as soon as he saw that Henry was wearing the uniform of a British officer, he quickly surrendered. Henry made sure that the Leutnant’s wounds were bandaged with a clean dressing and then pumped him full of enough morphine to give him happy dreams.

With the realisation that there is very little else to be learnt from the German camp or the tomb, we begin to make ready to leave. Madeline makes sure that she gathers up all of the documentation and papers relating to the German’s mission, and Sven makes sure that he gathers up as many expensive looking grave goods as he can carry.

El Imayid, Egypt, July 1942
And so, three days after we left camp Sven parks our jeep outside Captain Stirling’s tent. We had drawn a lot of looks as we had driven through the camp with our two prisoners, and we get an even more surprised look from Captain Stirling himself when he hears our initial debrief. He has the prisoners taken away and begins to leaf through the documents handed to him by Madeline. He suggests that we rest up for a bit and that he will carry out a full debriefing once he has reviewed all of the paperwork.

The following morning we are summoned back to the command tent and sit through a full debriefing with the Captain. He congratulates us on yet another job well done and informs us that there is a big push to the north where the Allies are trying to take Tobruk, as part of that undertaking there is a large mission in three days time that he could use our assistance with as his resources are stretched. He tells us to get our kit prepared and dismisses us.

The following afternoon Sven spots Captain Stirling walking towards him. Stirling tells him that there is a German encampment that they are going to attack, and that they have enough teams to cover most of the exits. However, they have a single valley that they do not have a team to cover and there is a small chance that some of the German units might attempt to flee that way. The plan relies on the German troops being driven to use another of the exits so that they can call in an air strike. He is concerned that we are not a combat unit and that he does not want to, nor does he believe he has the authority, send us into a combat situation that we cannot deal with.

Sven gathers us together and informs us of the mission. Knowing that some of our colleagues could die if the valley is not guarded we all volunteer to take part in the mission. Even Doctor Jackal. So we join all of the other teams at the mission briefing. The target is a large German base approximately one hundred and sixty miles south south west of our current location. Mission go is dawn in two days time and the attack group will leave at dusk tomorrow.

As the briefing continues, Captain Stirling informs each team of their specific mission and target. When he gets to our group he lets us know that we will need to hold valley B8 if possible, and if not then we are to make sure that the main force are made aware if any forces do make it through the valley. We will travel with another team whose mission will be to move through the valley and take out the southern outpost before the main force attacks.

We are issued with four land mines and a tripod mounted Bren gun. I spend a short while with the companies best gunner and get him to talk me through the subtle nuances of using the Bren gun, while he is telling me I lean in and touch the back of his neck and ‘borrow’ his ability. I also take some time to make sure that the jeep is serviced and restocked.

At dusk the following day we head out, it is a massive convoy of trucks and men led out by Captain Stirling and his teams. After four hours the convoy splits and we travel with around one hundred other troops for a few more hours. Finally we split yet again and ourselves and the team tasked with taking it the southern outpost head in to valley B8. The valley is fifty foot deep in most places and has large scree slopes that narrow the bottom of the valley to thirty foot. The valley bottom is strewn with large boulders and rubble.

We hide both jeeps in the depths of the valley and the other team heads forwards to their objective. We begin to prepare our ambush by placing two of our mines at the northern entrance to the valley, we then set up a trip wire attached to a third mine buried in the scree field, and we place the final mine where the valley channels to it’s narrowest. I set up the tripod mounted Bren gun on a boulder just behind the final mine with a clear field of vision northwards.

Madeline takes up a position at the top of the west side of the valley, and Henry and Sven set up opposite her at the top of the east side of the valley. An hour after we are in position we can hear the sounds of the initial attack on the German’s base begin. Sven and Henry, from their vantage point, spot vehicles starting to leave the German base and begin to head in the direction of the air strike valley as Captain Stirling had predicted. As they watch, a small dust cloud breaks from the main group and heads towards valley B8. We hear the sound of an engine and not long after Henry can see a motorbike and sidecar racing it’s way towards us.

We all watch as the motorbike approaches the northern end of the valley and then passes straight between the first two mines. It then ploughs into the trip wire and triggers the mine hidden in the scree. The following explosion blows the mangled wreck of the bike and the bodies of the German troops into the wall of the valley, where is lays burning.

Sven transforms himself into a desert hawk and takes to the sky. From his lofty position he spots a unit of troops approximately a mile and a half away heading for the valley, he circles once and heads back. We settle in and wait.

In the heart of Egypt’s Western Desert, four unique individuals are investigating the mysterious activities of a group of Nazi troops. Mademoiselle Mimi Dubois, La Résistance fighter and mistress of skills; Miss Madeline Forsyth, SOE operative and a living shadow; Sven Hyse, Norwegian Resistance soldier and shapeshifter; and Doctor Jackal, timid physician with his less than timid friend Mister Hades.

Western Desert, Egypt, July 1942
With Sven at the wheel and Henry navigating we made good distance heading south towards the canyon. Half an hour before dusk Sven pulled the jeep into the lee of some rocks and I started covering it over with camouflage netting. Sven got changed into his special clothes, and a few seconds later was soaring into the sky in the guise of a falcon.

We set camp and hunkered down to eat cold rations as the temperature began to drop. Madeline suggested that I ‘borrow’ her ability to see in the dark so that we can take the middle watches when the night is darkest. Not long after the sun had disappeared behind the endless sand dunes a falcon landed near the camp, it slowly transformed into Sven and he told us that there was nothing in sight for miles around.

The night passed uneventfully and after a cold breakfast we set off once more in the direction of the canyon. As we get to within four miles of the canyon, assuming that the maps we have been given are accurate, Sven stops the jeep and again takes to the sky as a falcon to scout out the land ahead of us. I take over as driver and start to use the lay of the land to muffle the noise of our approach, I stay below the top of the dunes and wind my way through the gullies. Unfortunately, that is also where the deep sand is and I manage to beach the jeep.

As the wheels slip the engine revs loudly and I end up digging us in deeper. Madeline and I begin to dig us out with shovels while Doctor Jackal walks around the jeep mumbling to himself. The odd snippets that I catch imply that he is doing some kind of mathematical equation. Once we have managed to dig away enough sand to clear all four wheels, Doctor Jackal points at two locations on the underside at the rear of the jeep. He tells us that we should use the pick axes as levers on those two spots while he drives the jeep out. He assures us that he has carried out the calculations and it will work. We follow his instructions and it does indeed free the jeep.

Just as we are about to get back into the vehicle a falcon lands on the rocks behind us. After a moment, Sven joins us and taking pen and paper from the jeep draws out a rough map of what he has spotted in the canyon.

The information that we had been given was correct and there is a small group of Nazis doing something at the end of a box canyon off of the main canyon. Their truck is pulled in behind some large boulders almost two miles away, it looks like that is as close as they can get it, and at the end of the box canyon they have set up a number of tents. We select a location, to the north edge of the main canyon, to hide the jeep and while we are moving into position Sven takes to the sky once more to get a better look at the target.

I managed to get the jeep to our chosen destination and we proceeded to get it covered once more with camouflage netting, we take more time over it and make sure that it will not be picked out from the sky as well as from the ground. We had no idea how long we were going to be there, we definitely didn’t have any idea how quickly things would escalate at that point, and so we made sure just in case we were bedded down for a few days.

A couple of hours after we had finished a falcon dropped out of the sky and transformed into Sven. He joined us under the netting and described what he had discovered. He had checked out the truck first and said that it was unmanned and well hidden, I remember that it was at that moment that we decided that it would make a good staging point for our infiltration of the Nazi camp.

Having made sure that the truck site was clear, Sven then made his way to observe the camp from the box canyon ridge. He discovered five tents for sleeping, a latrine set away from the camp, and a large awning canvas over a number of tables. The camp was set up near a cave mouth that was being guarded by two German infantry troops, and while he was watching couple more troopers in shirt sleeves and braces exited the cave mouth carrying objects of some kind in their arms. They deposited the objects under the awning.

The proceedings under the awning appear to be directed by a civilian. Sven told us that by this time he was a raven, and he hopped down onto a rocky outcropping to get a better look. Under the awning the tables were festooned with a variety of objects, Sven noted that it reminded him of the press clippings he had seen about the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb. Doctor Jackal chimed in that it was Howard Carter who had discovered the tomb, and that he only died three years ago.

Sven told us that he hopped down from the rocks onto the ground and then became a desert hare, he really is a remarkable individual, and hopped towards the smaller tents. He burrowed in under the edge of the tent and had a look around inside, there were four camp beds and the usual possessions that you would expect from a soldier’s barrack tent. There were also the troop’s jackets and rifles. Sven told us with some glee that he filled the barrels of the guns with grit and sand.

As he was hopping from the first tent towards the second a German officer exited one of the smaller tents and walked to the large awning where he had a brief conversation with the civilian and then entered the cave mouth. Sven found three tents in total that were clearly used by the German infantry troops. Another of the tents belonged to the civilian, it contained a number of reference books and note books. Sven then hopped to the tent that the officer had left, inside he discovered the officers orders.

The orders were issued to Leutnant Herman Klinsman and in essence stated that they were to escort and assist Professor Aldervan in finding Egyptian tombs and recover any items of interest. In particular they should be recovering items that may be connected to the occult or paranormal. Sven had made a mental note of the Leutnant’s regiment as it was not one that he recognised, having listened to Sven’s description Henry stated that they were an infantry unit but that they were not front line troops but specialists of some kind, Sven continued with his debrief and told us that he had then hopped towards the latrine.

Midway between the awning and the latrine, against the wall of the box canyon, Sven noticed a disturbed mound of dirt and a crudely constructed grave marker. Having made sure that the latrine was indeed just that, Sven once more became a raven and flew swiftly back to the rest of us.

With Sven’s extensive scouting information relayed, we quickly decided that we would stealth in a far as the German’s truck and set up our staging point there. It was a good six mile slog across the canyon, and we moved slowly to make sure that we were not spotted. And so three hours later we carefully approached the truck to find it as Sven had stated, unmanned and well hidden.

Madeline headed up the incline, which was to steep for the truck and so a clear reason why the Nazis had left it two miles from their camp, to watch the route from the camp. It was at that moment that I made a decision that could have blown the mission, or just chose the way in which we would execute it. I decided to rig the German’s truck for a quick hotwire, my theory was that if we were running using the German’s own truck would not only get us out quicker but would also strand the Germans in the canyon.

Not long after I had prepared the truck, Madeline came back down the slope to us and informed us that there were two German infantry troops wandering in our direction. We all hid. Doctor Jackal went behind the rocks furthest away from the truck, Sven slipped in behind the middle rock, I slid into the shadow of the northern most pile of rocks, and Madeline turned into shadow and his under the truck itself.

We could hear them slide down the slope towards the truck, as they were coming I distinctly remember hearing a snippet of one of the troopers conversation;

…even if they do find this damn door they are only going to end up getting crushed like poor Heinrich…

By that stage we had heard the door of the truck open and someone climb into the vehicle. Then there was a shout. They had discovered what I had done to their truck. They were instantly on guard, and discussed what they should do. They decided that they should return to camp and tell the officer. I realised that I couldn’t let them leave. I slowly, and quietly slipped my Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife out of it’s sheath and waited for them to pass by me on their way back up the slope. I recall hoping that someone else would have a similar idea.

Everything seemed to slow down. I slipped from behind the rocks and stepped up behind the trooper that was slightly at the back of the pair. I placed my hand over his mouth and plunged my knife upwards under his rib cage to the left of his body seeking his heart, just as Sergeant McKay had taught us. The Nazi barely made a sound, just a sort of gurgle, before his weight fell against me and I lowered him to the ground. But the gurgle had alerted his comrade.

As the other trooper began to turn towards me, a shadow behind him became the solid form of Madeline. She too had her blade unsheathed, and she quickly drew it across the troopers throat. The Nazi dropped to his knees but he was not done for, that was until Madeline stabbed him once more in the back of the neck.

Years later, someone said that Sven had commented that it was like watching two extremes of the reaction to death. Madeline, who had just taken her first life, rushed behind a rock and was sick. Mimi, who no one knew at the time had also just taken her first life, plunged her knife once more into the Nazi at her feet. Sven recalled that there was just a hint of madness in Mimi’s eyes.

Madeline, still looking a little grey, heads back up the incline to keep watch while Sven has the idea of placing the bodies in the front seats of the truck. Doctor Jackal avoids looking at the bodies, and seems to feel uncomfortable with our actions. Sven questions him about this, and Henry admits that he understands that sometimes there is no other course of action. He still doesn’t seem comfortable with it.

An hour after the first couple of troops appeared, Madeline informs us that there are two more troops heading in our direction. With Madeline’s permission, I ‘borrow’ her ability to turn into shadow and we both lay in wait at the top of the incline. Sven climbs up on top of one of the rocky outcroppings and gets his rifle ready. He keeps the infantry men in his sights as they approach the truck.

The two Nazi troops get to the top of the incline, and seeing their comrades in the truck, shout at them to gets their backsides back to the camp. There is a moments pause as they wait for an answer that would never come, and in that moment two shadows become solid behind them and two of Sergeant McKay’s students prove that they were paying good attention during training.