Welcome to Africa (21. Panzer Division)

[Werner von Maybach]

(Open for all members of the 21. Panzer Division)

Country: City of Tripoli, Libya
Current Time: 09:00
Weather Conditions: dry and hot

Africa!
When Werner first heard about getting send to the North African front, he did not know what to think about it. Of course he read about the glorious German Afrika Korps and their commanding officer, the famous Generalleutnant Erwin Rommel. Known in the whole world as the German “Wüstenfuchs” (Desert fox).
And of course he has seen the pictures of the great raid on El Agheila in the German Wochenschau.
But on the other hand some comrades told him terrible stories about the heat, the sand and the biggest of all problems, the never ending thirst. And if the German campaign in Africa is that successful, why isn’t Tobruk already fallen?

And it all started out the worst way possible. The shipping to North Africa was very risky at the moment because British submarines and the R.A.F. got quiet active in the last time.
The transport convoy wasn’t guarded at all and so a sweet target for the allied bombers.
The ship Werner was on, got a direct hit by a bomb and sank. Luckily Werner managed to catch a lifeboat while drifting in the ocean. Nearly half of the passengers had not been that lucky.

When the ship finally arrived at the harbour of Tripolis, Werner couldn’t believe how beautiful and how completely different this city is. But also he quickly noticed how poor the people here must be. He saw an old woman with some kind of a carriage, selling things he really was not able to identify. There were even children playing with nothing else then dirt.

After getting out of the ship Werner walked around in the city for some hours. He completely lost orientation and needed to ask a German Leutnant, that he luckily met in the streets, to find his way back to the German HQ. All this new impressions were a bit too much. So Werner was even thankful, when he arrived at the army- HQ. It was like a small German Island in the middle of nowhere.

Werner walked inside the small barrack and knocked his head because of the very low ceiling. It was very dark and there was a strange smell in the air. Something that Werner couldn’t identify again. In the middle of the room there was a small table with a big map of North Africa on it. Around the table there where standing some German officers discussing the current situation. After springing to attention, Werner stated loud and clear: “Unteroffizier von Maybach meldet sich wie befohlen zum Dienstantritt.”

Translations:
“Unteroffizier von Maybach meldet sich wie befohlen zum Dienstantritt.”
„Unteroffizier von Maybach reporting for duty as ordered.

[Heiko Alkema]

Ah, Afrika! What a wonderfully dismal and irrelevant place! Full of nothing but sand and Britin. Why was this forsaken continent even being fought over? Heiko knew the answer but the climate drove him absolutely mad so he felt justified when he asked this question and he did so quite often. If Afrika were to fall into Allied hands they could easily mount an assault on Italy. Heiko had no faith his brothers-in-arms to the south of the Fatherland, they'd proven themselves fools at almost every opportunity. And now, because of the softness of the Italians, Heiko was stuck in the ass end of world.

Heiko was currently reclining in chair on the roof of the make-shift, two-story barracks. An old, ragged Regenschirm fastened crudely to one arm of the chair was keeping the sun out of his eyes and providing a little bit of cool shade. Heiko had cut the arms of his tropical uniform off at the elbows to compliment the shorts the effect of which did help keep him cool in this desert hell, but at the cost of protecting his limbs from the merciless Sun which were now a bright pink because of it.

All around him the city of Tripoli stumbled over itself in every direction. Few building were taller than the one beneath him, that along with the fact that the Germans had chosen a slight hill in the middle of the city for their in-city base meant Heiko could see for miles in any given direction. This did not mean there was much to see however. To the north the Mittelmeer threatened to drown the city if it drew any closer. The south however was surprisingly green but it didn't extend any further than a hundred kilometres after which the vegetation was strangled by the Sahara. That was it. Heiko's entire life now consisted of only three colours: Dunkelgelb, Blau, and Grün, two of which only occurred near water...

A man in dress uniform down below caught his eye. "Armes schwein," thought Heiko out loud. That uniform made his place an even more miserable hell than it already was; he must be a new a replacement because he wasn't covered in sand and dust. Even in this city with running water and hot showers available it still wasn't possible to remain clean for more than a few hours.

Seeing as he had nothing else to do, Heiko decided to go meet this new man who was presumably a sergeant like himself if he had seen his shoulder boards correctly. Heiko stood up with a grunt and reached under the chair to pick up a folded sheet of paper which read "Unbefigte werden scheißen sein." and placed it in his chair, a mischievous grin on his face as he did so. Heiko stared at his rifle for a moment before deciding to take it with him, slinging it over his left shoulder and proceeding to the stairs near the back of the roof.

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OOC: I just felt like being an ass with the random German words

Britin - Britons
Regenschrim - umbrella
Mittelmeer - Mediterranean Sea
Dunkelgelb - Tan

"Armes Schwein,"
- "Poor bugger,"

"Unbefigte werden scheißen sein."
- "Trespassers will be shot."

[Jonas Merhoff]

At last, water! The fresh, nourishing slid down his parched throat. He set down the small glass of water before him relieved of the burning, dry sensation within his throat. He stood with two Lieutenants discussing the Rommel's plans for the 21st. His hardened, cold blue eyes gazed at the map of Africa as well as Southern Europe. What started as a plan dominate the Mediterranean through control of Gibraltar and the Suez Canal in order with a strike north to the rich oil fields of the Middle East from Africa had failed miserably. Instead of cutting off oil supplies to the Allies and increasing the oil supplies for the German war machine, they were now sitting in Tripoli to receive supplies and reinforcements from Europe only to have them decimated by British submarines and the RAF. And all of this, because of the incompetence of their Italian comrades.

The blame for Jonas and his men resting in this hellhole city in the unforgiving African desert all rested on the shoulders of Italian General Graziani. Had he not been a fool and a coward to advance forth from Cairo, Operation Compass would have never happened. A force of 36,000 Brits managed to nearly destroy a force of 200,000 Italians. What seemed like a quick and easy success in Africa had now escalated into something far worse. But if the German Generals wanted a job done right, they should have sent Germans in Africa long ago.

Jonas Merhoff had been in North Africa ever since the Afrika Korps under Erwin Rommel was sent to reinforce Libya. Rommel had merely been ordered to hold the line, but he was far better strategist to do simply that. An offensive from El Agheila managed to finally push the Allies back into Egypt, except for Tobruk. All was going well until Operation Crusader which recaptured all of the British territory acquired by the Germans and their... Italian comrades. Now once again, just like when Jonas had arrived in Africa, the front line wast at El Agheila.

"Nachdem wir unsere Verstärkungen im Auftrag erneut beliefern und erhalten, möchte Rommel von EL Agheila noch einmal angreifen. Sobald wir die Verbündeten bei Gazala besiegen und schließlich Tobruk gefangennehmen, fahren wir mit dem Momentum fort und drücken die achte Armee zurück über den Rand von Ägypten und weiter innen bringen voran. Von dort… " He was interrupted as a Unteroffizer stumbled into the HQ, allowing more sunlight into the dim room.

"Unteroffizier von Maybach meldet sich wie befohlen zum Dienstantritt." Jonas eyes glanced upwards to the new Sergeant before him, whose uniform seemed brand new and in good condition unlike Jonas's own. He had removed his decorated olive green M1940 tropical tunic due to the severe heat and now only wore an olive green shirt with his sleeves rolled up. He still wore his flared breeches and high laced tropical boots, but his M43 cap was resting with his tunic over on a chair in the far corner of the main room of the Tripoli HQ. This man's face seemed pale, but rosy bright in contrast to Jonas's own skin which had been burned by the sun into a deep tan that glistened with sweat.

"An der Mühelosigkeit Soldat. Sehr gut Unteroffizer, sind wir in Tripoli gesetzt worden, um erneut zu beliefern und zu erfassen, welche Verstärkungen wir von dieser verhängnisvollen Reise über dem Mittelmeer reinigen können, also alle nehmen wir Sie mit den geöffneten Armen hier an. Jedoch don' t entwickeln sich gewohnt an dieses… zu Juwel in der unfruchtbaren Landschaft. Wir werden Tobruk bald… sehr bald weitergehen. Ich benötige einen neuen Sergeant, zum des 3. Zugs 1. Panzergrenadier Company zu führen. I' m sicheres Unteroffizer Alkema hilft Ihnen, bekannt zu erhalten. "

Glancing over his shoulder, he spotted Sergeant Alkema making his way down the stairs with his rifle slung around his shoulder. Alkema had been there to serve with the Hauptmann for most of the North African campaign and seemed anxious to greet a new Sergeant... not many NCOs were lucky enough to survive the perilous journey across the Mediterranean, but at least one was here to bolster the 21st size. "Unteroffizer Alkema, Treffen Unteroffizer Maybach. Er ist, Verstärkung vom Vaterland ein neues und ich wies ihn zu, um Gebühr des 3. Zugs zu nehmen. Zu… machen Sie sie zurück zu voller Gesundheit wieder gut. Verstehen Sie? I' d wie Sie, zum er zu erhalten machte bekannt und vereinbarte innen."


Translations:


"Nachdem wir unsere Verstärkungen im Auftrag erneut beliefern und erhalten, möchte Rommel von EL Agheila noch einmal angreifen. Sobald wir die Verbündeten bei Gazala besiegen und schließlich Tobruk gefangennehmen, fahren wir mit dem Momentum fort und drücken die achte Armee zurück über den Rand von Ägypten und weiter innen bringen voran. Von dort…"
- "After we resupply and get our reinforcements in order, Rommel wishes to attack from El Agheila once more. Once we defeat the Allies at Gazala and finally capture Tobruk, we will continue with the momentum and push the Eighth Army back across the border of Egypt, advancing further in. From there..."

"An der Mühelosigkeit Soldat. Sehr gut Unteroffizer, sind wir in Tripoli gesetzt worden, um erneut zu beliefern und zu erfassen, welche Verstärkungen wir von dieser verhängnisvollen Reise über dem Mittelmeer reinigen können, also alle nehmen wir Sie mit den geöffneten Armen hier an. Jedoch don' t entwickeln sich gewohnt an dieses… zu Juwel in der unfruchtbaren Landschaft. Wir werden Tobruk bald… sehr bald weitergehen. Ich benötige einen neuen Sergeant, zum des 3. Zugs 1. Panzergrenadier Company zu führen. I' m sicheres Unteroffizer Alkema hilft Ihnen, bekannt zu erhalten. "
- "At ease, soldier. Very well Unteroffizer, we have been placed at Tripoli to resupply and gather what reinforcements we can scavenge from that disastrous journey across the Mediterranean, so we will all accept you with open arms here. However, don't grow to accustomed to this...jewel in the barren landscape. We will be moving on Tobruk soon... very soon. I am in need of a new Sergeant to lead 3rd Platoon of the 1st Panzergrenadier Company. I'm sure Unteroffizer Alkema will help you get acquainted."

"Unteroffizer Alkema, Treffen Unteroffizer Maybach. Er ist, Verstärkung vom Vaterland ein neues und ich wies ihn zu, um Gebühr des 3. Zugs zu nehmen. Zu… machen Sie sie zurück zu voller Gesundheit wieder gut. Verstehen Sie? I' d wie Sie, zum er zu erhalten machte bekannt und vereinbarte innen."
- "Unteroffizer Alkema, meet Unteroffizer Maybach. He is a new, reinforcement from the Fatherland and I assigned him to take charge of 3rd Platoon. To...recuperate them back to full health. Understand? I'd like you to get him acquainted and settled in."

[Werner von Maybach]

The first thing Werner noticed was, that both the Hauptmann and the Unteroffizier who just walked in, wore very dusty and dirty uniforms. If you could even call it a uniform, because it looked more like everybody was just wearing what he likes the most. It was absolutely unlike everything Werner had ever seen in the German Wehrmacht. But after just some hours under the African sun, he could imagine that war here is quite different to other places.

Werner was feeling very tired now and found it hard to keep his eyes open. Also he was quiet thirsty, because he realised that he didn’t had anything to drink since he left the ship. After his eyes became accustomed to the darkness, Werner started to look around in the small house, the HQ of the 21. Panzer Division was situated in. Besides the table with the map, there were only two wooden chairs and some ammunition boxes in the room. In one corner there was a collection of bottles. What a surprise. There were only the best brands of English Whiskey. This Whiskey was even illegal in Germany. Werner’s interest awoke quickly and he couldn’t resist staring at the bottles for a short moment.

The air was very thick and Werner had some problems with breathing. He answered to the Hauptmann,: “Vielen Dank, Herr Hauptmann. Ich würde sehr gerne heute noch die Männer meiner Gruppe kennen lernen, wenn dies möglich ist.“

He salutes and turned to Unteroffizier Alkema. This man looked like he already collected some experiences with war in the desert. He reminded Werner of a young Leutnant, he met back in Poland. This Leutnant was one of those officers, who really cared about his soldiers. He never ordered something that he wouldn’t do by himself. The kind of man, a young soldier can only wish to have as commanding officer.
Unfortunately he got heavily injured by a grenade and lost a leg at the German assault on Brest- Litowsk. There was a cold shiver, every time Werner remembered.

“Herr Alkema, es freut mich, Sie kennen zu lernen. Das ist ja alles recht abenteuerlich hier. Besonders die Überfahrt war alles andere als erholsam. Wie lange sind Sie bereits in Afrika stationiert?“, said Werner.

Translations:

“Vielen Dank, Herr Hauptmann. Ich würde sehr gerne heute noch die Männer meiner Gruppe kennen lernen, wenn dies möglich ist.“
“Thank you very much, Herr Hauptmann. If it is possible, I would really like to meet the soldiers of my platoon this very day.”

“Herr Alkema, es freut mich, Sie kennen zu lernen. Das ist ja alles recht abenteuerlich hier. Besonders die Überfahrt war alles andere als erholsam. Wie lange sind Sie bereits in Afrika stationiert?“
“Mister Alkema, I am glad to meet you. Everything here seems to be a little adventurous. Especially the shipping wasn’t very relaxed. How long are you serving now, here in North Africa?”

[Heiko Alkema]

With the poor circulation of air in these buildings the air grew thicker the closer you were to the ground, which is why Heiko generally spent any free time he had on the roof. In the bigger buildings you could nearly choke on the air it was so thick. Thus Heiko was extremely relieved when he reached the bottom of the stair well and Merhoff ordered Heiko to give Maybach a quick tour of the area. It was a wonderful excuse to get away from the oppressively stagnant air. "Jawohl, Herr Hauptman," replied Heiko with a curt nod.

“Herr Alkema, es freut mich, Sie kennen zu lernen. Das ist ja alles recht abenteuerlich hier. Besonders die Überfahrt war alles andere als erholsam. Wie lange sind Sie bereits in Afrika stationiert?“ asked the new man. The question stumped him for a moment. Heiko had no idea of what day it was, or even the month for that matter. He'd been here since the start in February of '41... it was January of '42 now. After a slight pause "Ich bin heir fuer wenig als ein Jahr gewesen. Es felt wie es ist gewesen viel länger. Lässt Sie erhalten gekannt diesen Platz."

The let crisp outdoor air sweep over him for a moment, he still preferred the roof but even the hotter air down here was better than inside. Heiko turned to Maybach as he stepped out of the small house, "Deine einheitliche Fledflasche ist unbrauchbar heir. Sie muessen ein grosseres bei den Bazar kaufen. Sie ist sehr billig." Heiko pointed off the to east toward the nearest Bazaar."

Heiko began walking north around the HQ building, down a small alley. Once they reached the other side, Heiko drew attention to a elongated one-story building across the dusty street, "Dieses Gebäude ist hier die Waffenkammer, Handfeuerwaffen nur offensichtlich. Die schweren Waffen sind in einem Depot auf den Stadtränden der Stadt. Sie haben auch Wiedereinbauuniformen, wenn Sie ein benötigen."

Heiko again moved off, to the west this time toward a rather shaky looking two-story building. "Und dieses ist die Kasernen für die zweiten und dritten Züge des Erste Panzerkompanie; die ersten und sind viertens um die Ecke. Wenn ich das Hauptmann richtig dann you' hörte; bezüglich des neuen Führers des dritte Zug. Sie sind gute Männer. Der letzte Sergeant wurde durch einen Aufenthalt getötet, der von einem britischen Crusader rund ist. Sie sind im ersten Stock."

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Translations:

"Ich bin heir fuer wenig als ein Jahr gewesen. Es felt wie es ist gewesen viel länger. Lässt Sie erhalten gekannt diesen Platz."
- I have been heir for a little less than a year. It feels a lot longer. Let's get you acquainted with this place."

"Deine einheitliche Fledflasche ist unbrauchbar heir. Sie muessen ein grosseres bei den Bazar kaufen. Sie ist sehr billig."
-"Your standard canteen is useless heir. You must buy a bigger one at the Bazaar. They are very cheap."

"Dieses Gebäude ist hier die Waffenkammer, Handfeuerwaffen nur offensichtlich. Die schweren Waffen sind in einem Depot auf den Stadtränden der Stadt. Sie haben auch Wiedereinbauuniformen, wenn Sie ein benötigen."
-This building over here is the armory, small arms only obviously. The heavy weapons are located in a depot on the outskirts of the city. They also have replacement uniforms if you need one.

"Und dieses ist die Kasernen für die zweiten und dritten Züge des Erste Panzerkompanie; die ersten und sind viertens um die Ecke. Wenn ich das Hauptmann richtig dann you' hörte; bezüglich des neuen Führers des dritte Zug. Sie sind gute Männer. Der letzte Sergeant wurde durch einen Aufenthalt getötet, der von einem britischen Crusader rund ist. Sie sind im ersten Stock."
-And this is the barracks for 2nd and 3rd Platoons of die Erste Panzerkompanie; the 1st and 4th are around the corner. If I heard the Captain correctly then you're the new leader of 3rd Platoon. They are good men. The last sergeant was killed by a stay round from a British Crusader. They are on the the second floor.

[Werner von Maybach]

Werner was very thankful for having at least a small breeze blowing around his nose again, when they left the small house. “Vielen Dank für den Tipp mit der Feldflasche, ich denke Sie wissen warum. Ich kann mir gut vorstellen, dass die Wehrmachts- Feldflasche nicht besonders geeignet für die Wüste ist.“

When the two soldiers were crossing the street, an Italian truck stopped next to them. Werner heard a lot of jokes about the Italian troops and their combat strength when he got shipped to Tripoli. But when he saw some companies of Italian soldiers in the harbour, he could only wonder about the quality of their equipment. Most of the Italian infantry units were not even motorized. And their tanks looked like coming directly from the last big war. With weapons like that, nobody can fight brave against loads of English Mathildas and Crusaders. Somehow he even commiserated with these soldiers.

The short walk refreshed Werner a bit, but still everything here was so strange to him. All these white buildings and these foreign looking people everywhere reminded him on a fairy tale, he heard back when he was a kid. At the ship, Werner got warned by a comrade, not to trust these Bedouins too much. Some cruel stories were around.

After five minutes of walking they arrived at the barracks of the 2nd and 3rd Panzergrenadier- platoon. The air was as thick and hot as it was in the other building. Some of the soldiers sat around some kind of table and were eating bread. These men didn’t look like German soldiers, more like some bandits waiting for their chance to rob the bank. Nobody here was shaved and the smell was ridiculous. But surprisingly Werner didn’t await something different.

“Alle Mann herhören. Mein Name ist Werner von Maybach und ich werde ab sofort der neue Führer des dritten Zuges sein. Wie ich eben gehört habe werden wir Tripoli bald verlassen, also macht es euch nicht zu bequem hier. Vorerst geht es entlang der Via Balbia nach Osten. Die Tommys werden sich nicht freiwillig ergeben.“

Werner turned to Heiko again. “Jetzt würde ich sehr gerne erst einmal etwas trinken. Und etwas zu essen wäre auch nicht verkehrt. Wenn Sie mir bitte zeigen könnten wo hier die Verpflegung ausgegeben wird?“, he asked and added silently: “Außerdem habe ich verschiedene Gerüchte gehört, über spezielle Damen die für das Italienische Militär arbeiten. Es soll wohl auch den Deutschen Soldaten möglich sein diese Dienste in Anspruch zu nehmen. Wissen Sie zufällig etwas darüber?“

Translations:

“Vielen Dank für den Tipp mit der Feldflasche, ich denke Sie wissen warum. Ich kann mir gut vorstellen, dass die Standard- Feldflasche nicht besonders geeignet für die Wüste ist.“

“Thanks for the trick with the canteen, I guess you know why you told me. I can imagine that the standard Wehrmacht- canteen isn’t very desert proof.”

“Alle Mann herhören. Mein Name ist Werner von Maybach und ich werde ab sofort der neue Führer des dritten Zuges sein. Wie ich eben gehört habe werden wir Tripoli bald verlassen, also macht es euch nicht zu bequem hier. Vorerst geht es entlang der Via Balbia nach Osten. Die Tommys werden sich nicht freiwillig ergeben.“

“Listen up, soldiers. My name is Werner von Maybach and by now I am the new leader of the 3rd platoon. Like I just heard, we are going to leave Tripoli the next days, so don’t make yourselves too comfortable here. We will head east along the Via Balbia. The Tommy’s won’t surrender voluntarily.”

“Jetzt würde ich sehr gerne erst einmal etwas trinken. Und etwas zu essen wäre auch nicht verkehrt. Wenn Sie mir bitte zeigen könnten wo hier die Verpflegung ausgegeben wird?“

“I would really like to get something to drink now and some food wouldn’t be wrong either. If you could please show me were to get provisions?”

“Außerdem habe ich verschiedene Gerüchte gehört, über spezielle Damen die für das Italienische Militär arbeiten. Ich habe weiterhin gehört, dass es wohl auch den Deutschen Soldaten möglich sein soll, diese Dienste in Anspruch zu nehmen. Wissen Sie zufällig etwas darüber?“

“Besides, I have heard some rumours about special women working for the Italian army. I also heard that it should be possible for German soldiers, to make use of these services. Do you maybe know something more about that?”

[liltheo]

[ Sorry to jump out of character -- but was this thread still potentially open? I know it hasn't been posted in since February. If it is, I'll edit this to enter Hans. ]

[Werner von Maybach]

[OOC: Welcome to the site first. And to answer your question, no, actually this thread here died long ago. I would suggest you to open some new ones.
I'm unfortunately in more than enough threads right now, but we'll see what the future may bring.
Cheers.]

[Daniel Brennan]

Mod Post

CP:
Sergeant von Maybach: 6CP

Sergeant Alkema: 5CP

Captain Merhoff: 3CP


~Dan