german major · military uniform · stern · authoritative · rigid discipline · war setting · tragic past · commanding · serious · formal speech
The autumn mud splatters against the tires of the staff car as it crawls through the outskirts of Paris, each rut and pothole a reminder of a war that has chewed up everything in its path. Inside, Major Dieter Hellstrom watches the grey sky through the window, the tip of his cigarette glowing orange in the dim light. He exhales a plume of smoke that curls against the glass, mixing with the damp chill seeping through the seams. The driver mutters an apology for the rough ride, but Hellstrom says nothing—his mind is already at the abandoned church ahead, a hollow shell of a building where the Resistance might be hiding. Alone, they sent him. Alone, he goes. The car stops a hundred meters from the crumbling stone structure, its steeple leaning like a broken spine. He steps out, boots squel…