German settlers in Pennsylvania. I did not know that they built the first paper mill in North America. There are no such buildings of that time remaining in Der Vaterland. You yourself must have known Herr Rittenhouse very well. I would be interested to know what he was like. Perhaps we can stay longer and discuss history.”
“He was a fine patriot, and I think you’ve stayed long enough already,” Franklin tested.
The Doctor capitulated, “Very well, but I have noticed that you have brought many friends. I’m sure they are all people I would like to meet. Mein Herr has foreseen that together we could be a great brotherhood. As Forevermen, we could reshape the world.”
“That,” Washington idealistically stated, “is the privilege of those whose mortality is dependent on the state of the world.”
The Doctor disagreed, “I do not think so. It is unfair that they should use up the Earth in which we must always live. Instead of leading, we will be forced into subsistence in a few generations. If they are not here to see the consequences, why would they alter their wastefulness? The mortals must be judged for the decisions they make during their lives.”
Will’s fervor faltered as he found a sincere concern in the Doctor’s greedy sophistry. Assuming that his prejudices towards certain ethnic groups hadn’t changed, his intended rhetoric was murder. However, as Washington and Franklin remained quiet on this point, Will was worried they were holding back the urge to agree on some level.
“In any case, let us adjourn for the evening,” the Doctor said with a grin. “Consider my proposition. Perhaps we can help each other. Let us meet again in two nights. I will bring your daughter. You will bring me the Grail and if you like, you need never see us again.”
“Let us hope,” Franklin insulted.
“Even still,” the Doctor said, “I will enjoy the chance to get better acquainted with you, Herr Mith. There is something about you that I cannot tell. You killed one of my men. He was a close friend of mine. Such is the life of a soldier, but I will not forget this.”
The Doctor nodded and backed away. Once falling in line with his two peers, they turned and rejoined their men. The glowing eyes disappeared in the background as each vampire turned away and stalked off into the blackness.
Will, Washington and Franklin waited for them to leave. Once alone, they quit the field and headed back to the car at a harried pace. As their exodus hastened the Doctor’s final promise rung in Will’s ears.
Washington quizzed Franklin, “What was that about David Rittenhouse?”
“The old village is still there, just outside of Germantown,” Franklin explained.
“I recall, though not fondly,” Washington remembered. “I didn’t realize there was anything left to see.”
“There are a few colonial homesteads and the battle reenactment,” Will added. “There are a lot of old mansions and derelict municipal buildings along the avenue.”
“Do you know of any historic property there being broken into recently?” Washington insinuated.
“None,” Franklin replied.
“Interesting,” Washington thought, “something to keep in mind.”
Knowledge Will Forever Govern Ignorance
“Come on!” Professor Mith yelled at the television. “Swing and a miss.”
Startled, Will looked up from his laptop where he had been busy typing.
“Unbelievable,” Professor Mith said with a groan. “Come on, Ashburn!”
“Ashburn?” Will asked quizzically.
“I mean,” Professor Mith stammered, “you know what I mean. It all starts to run together after a while.”
“If you say so,” Will replied.
Will went back to his research. The search engine hunted rampantly as he dredged the depths of 1940s history. As he eagerly clicked link after random link, his work took him in troubling directions. He followed the trail to Nazism, the Holocaust, concentration camps, resistance, Nazi hunters and the Odessa conspiracy. He then studied Hitler’s suicide and body identification.
Will whispered to himself as he read, “Hitler’s burned body was identified through dental records provided by his dentist, Hugo Blaschke. The body was discovered by the Soviet army, though there is speculation over the truthful identification of the corpse.”
“That was a strike!” Professor Mith yelled again.
Will nearly jumped from his seat at the intrusive protestation from his father. Annoyed from the incidental fright, and amplified by his curiosity, Will inhaled loudly and gulped down the scare. He shot an unnoticed glare at his dad and went back to studying.
The theories on escaped Nazis continued as he perused the article. Apparently even famed Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal had some doubt over the authenticity of the confirmation of Der Fuhrer’s death. In the same paranoid vein, Will hovered over an unknown link included amongst Blaschke’s patients. Warily, he clicked on the underlined text, “Martin Bormann”. The article appeared, headed by an unmistakably familiar portrait. Without question, the uniformed photograph above the text was that of one of the men who stood behind the Doctor at Valley Forge. Will shifted uncomfortably in his seat as he read the article about the party head and personal secretary to Hitler.
Unable to contain his fear, he read quietly, “Bormann allegedly committed suicide along with Hitler’s personal physician, Dr. Ludwig Stumpfegger, after abandoning Der Furherbunker as the Soviets invaded Berlin. Both men’s deaths, as they tried to penetrate Soviet lines, were accounted for by Hitler Youth leader Artur Axmann, who claimed to have seen the bodies as he also fled. Decades later, a postal worker reported that Soviet troops ordered him to bury two officers near the location Axmann reported last seeing Bormann and Stumpfegger in the aftermath of the battle. However, the bodies weren’t exhumed until a construction crew uncovered corpses matching dental records provided by Hugo Blaschke.”
Dr. Stumpfegger did not look familiar. Werner Naumann, head of the Propaganda Ministry, who escaped to Argentina, but was reported dead in 1982, did not look familiar. According to the article his movements were shrouded with long lapses of time.
Will clicked again with a short gasp that caught his dad’s attention. This page was a biography of Alois Brunner, Aldolf Eichmann’s second in command during the Holocaust. Though the pictures weren’t clear, he bore an uncanny resemblance to the other man who accompanied the Doctor. Brunner escaped to Syria, lived under protection, was pursued by Israeli intelligence, but never extradited. As a result of package bombs sent to his home, he lost an eye and part of his left hand. The entry ended with a quote from a 1987 telephone interview, “I have no regrets, and would do it again.” Will shivered.
“Found something more interesting than the game?” Professor Mith asked.
Will looked up confusedly and then replied, “Just curious about an article I saw the other day. Actually, you probably know something about it. Something I saw about World War II.”
“I may,” Professor Mith beamed knowingly. “Go ahead, test me.”
“Well, I was under the impression that all of the head Nazis were eventually captured,” Will inquired, “but this story claimed that some disappeared completely.”
“That’s true to some extent,” Professor Mith confirmed.
“I guess it’s just a conspiracy,” Will subtly prompted, “but apparently there is some doubt that the body discovered after the Battle of Berlin really belonged to Hitler.”
“Don’t tell the department head, but I would be inclined to agree with that,” the Professor admitted reservedly. “The bodies of several top officials were only identifiable through dental examination. Of course those profiles came from Nazi records, which as a historian, I would argue are worthless and probably intentionally falsified. It is possible that Hitler lived out his days elsewhere after sacrificing some lesser official in his place. Keep in mind, that the passive conflict following the Second World War was defined by other leaders trying to validate their claims in Europe. The Soviets announced their discovery of Hitler
’s body, but no other Allied forces were able to corroborate the finding since they weren’t present when Berlin fell. It was a great accomplishment for the communists, which is also suspect. It would have been a bit of an embarrassment otherwise. The Soviets must have known that, politically, Hitler’s death was the key to victory and staking popular ownership of Eastern Europe.”
“The same for Martin Bormann and Ludwig Stumpfegger,” Will added.
With surprise, Professor Mith responded, “Yes, that’s right. There were a lot of rumors surrounding the whereabouts of top officers in the Third Reich. Adolf Eichmann as well, but he was eventually captured and executed in the sixties. The most notorious flight was Josef Mengele. He was sighted many times in South America.”
As his dad was speaking, Will was typing in the search box and trying to absorb every word. The resulting images sucked the oxygen right out of Will’s lungs. There he was, Josef Mengele, the Doctor.
After an angsty pause, Will said, “Sounds familiar. Who was he?”
“An absolute sadist. He was a research scientist in the SS, styled as an early geneticist,” Professor Mith recalled. “Operated out of Auschwitz I believe. He ran a lot of experiments on prisoners, particularly twins. He wanted to use science to prove Aryan superiority.”
“What happened to him?” Will asked.
“Never captured, but reported dead in Brazil. Drowning or something I