He tries to do something, but the world blinks out.

When Graeber returns to his senses, he’s back in the tent with the copycat-Natasha. Her plate is empty, and his cock is swelled in a pool of its out white delivery. He is also covered in sweat, and his eyes are weighted down. Once he exhales, he sees Natasha smug with a cat-like curve of her lips.

He exhaled and felt a strong sense of embarrassment and guilt. His face was so hot it felt like he was running a high fever. His heart was also pounding. “What happened just now?”

Natasha smiled so sharply that she looked like she just discovered a million-dollar secret. “You gave me one Hell of a time, Graeber. And if we weren't so pressed for time, I might have considered letting you go a little longer,” she glides her eyes over him seductively, but she noticed he was still pale.

“Fiiiine!” She growled. “Maybe I can arrange a little fake date with your girlfriend, Katarzyna. Would you like that?”

Graeber leaned in, feeling his stomach do repeat summersaults. Alicen reached out and touched his forehead with her index finger, and an immediate health reaction came over him. He looked up and saw her smiling. “I’ll take care of Josef and the other men, the others that are at least still loyal to your goose-stepping parade. In the meantime, I can take you back to your, erhm, friends?”

She took him outside, and they both walked out like regular human beings. No one stopped them, not even when they hopped in and crawled out of a trench. In the forest, Graeber felt more potent than ever and only got better when he loomed near to her.

“Can you tell me anything useful about the war?” Graeber managed in the dark.

Alicen hummed. “It’s dark in here. You can grab my tail so you’re not so lost.”

Graeber saw a dull glowing thing in front of him, and he reached for it. It was warm to the touch and very fiber-like in his hand. He felt the nerves in her tail twitch as it tried to sway. “What do you want to know?” Alicen asked.

“Anything,” he says. “Anything at all useful.”

“For your sake, I’ll warn you that the Russians are coming for you in 2 days. Tanks, men, supported with planes and tiny armored trucks,” Alicen doesn’t stop. “I won’t let you die so soon, though. You’ll make it through without getting killed and if you get captured again. I’ll get you out.”

An apple pitted his throat. “How about the rest of the unit?”

“That Felix kid is cute,” she muses. “I’ll make sure he lives too! But I won’t spare him from being captured if you fail to defend your little village.”

“What time?”

“6 in the morning,” Alicen confirms. “Tell your Hauptmann and tell him you escaped with the help of a Nazi sympathizer. You Germans love that idea, don’t you? Turncoat Soviets?” She giggled.

Graeber didn’t find humor in his situation, and honestly speaking, it felt like she **** him to **** Natasha in their last moment of intimacy if you could call it that even. However, he could not complain, for she did save him, heal him, and now promised to keep Josef and some of the others under her watch… whatever that meant for them, he was not sure, but he was sure she’d get something out of this deal too—more sex, and pleasure at the very least.

…

…

When Graeber returned to his unit, there was a brief discussion about how he managed to escape. Somehow, Graeber found it easy to make up a story about his exit— it almost seemed like Alicen was behind him whispering a story that wasn’t just believable but also filled with information that would be useful for a counterattack. Not to mention the time they could suspect a Soviet attack to happen.

The others who had been with him clamber around to ask some questions, making him feel welcomed amongst his peers in uniform. He was granted a whole night's rest and even got some extra rations. The morning rotated with new troops arriving and exciting dog fights in the air between the Luftwaffe and local Soviet air reconnaissance aircraft.

The morning was spent enforcing their trenches and becoming more familiar with the area. Graeber and the remaining factor of his squad were liquidated and were simply instilled by another team. Of course, there were a few familiar faces in these ranks, so there was no need to meet formally. There was Bruno, Heinrich now mingling with Felix, and the Romanian named Donn.

They knew the Soviets were coming, but they could do nothing besides prepare and wait. It was the bitter routine that all men, especially Graeber, were now acquainted with. Some of the most grueling parts of the war aren’t so much the fighting, but it was waiting…The waiting allowed thoughts to creep in and memories to be remembered.

Graeber wasn’t necessarily bothered by the possibility of being killed, but the thought of getting mauled by either a bomb or machine gun made his stomach tighten with unease. He’d seen enough dead Germans and demolished Russians to know what these weapons of warfare could do to a man, and whenever they were issued an ****, he figured he might end up as one of those bastards he passed by. He’d used machine guns to see people in half, had the unpleasant experience of bayoneting someone, and used countless grenades to stun the opposing ****. He dreaded to know that he might be on the receiving end of that outcome now. Regardless of whether Alicen was watching over him or not, the threat felt more real than the sex he had with her.

With Lukas on furlough, Gerhard in Africa, and Emil most likely dead in Stalingrad, Graeber was left with Felix as the only person he knew longer than anyone else in the unit. Granted, there were people like Heinrich, Donn, Bruno, and so forth, but there was no relation or established trust between the characters. Graeber didn’t enjoy being around Felix, but there was no denying that he could handle himself and that he was now experienced in frontline maneuvers. Speaking of Felix…

“I thought you were as good as dead when I heard those red rats got their hands on you,” Felix patted Graeber on the shoulder as they drank from their canteens while digging deeper in their trench. “If any of those mother fuckers that got you cross our kill zone, I’ll let you get your **** on them.”

Natasha comes to mind. His expression hardens, and he nods. “I’m only after one Russian in particular. The others couldn’t give a damn about it.”

Felix perked at this mention. “Who is it? Who’s the one I have to save for you? I bet he’s a real piece of work!”

“It’s a girl,” Graeber corrects. “A ruthless bitch sniper. I hate snipers, but there was something about her in specific that I can’t get my mind off.”

“A girl?” Felix almost rolls his eyes. Graeber is surprised to see this mockery of his mention. “What’s a girl got to live for out here in uniform? Better off whoring themselves for their monkey man than to fight us, I’d say, at least.”

“Watch your tone,” Graeber warns. “Whoring herself or not while she’s not fighting doesn’t make her any less dangerous. She kept us occupied and even shot me when I chased her. She earned me a real ass-kicking from her pals and then made a mess of me while imprisoned.”

Felix’s tone adjusts, heeding his warning instantly. “I’ll keep an eye out for any girl snipers then. What’s she look like anyway?”

Graeber’s face heated at the thought of the last time he kind of saw her, getting raw-dogged in the forest while she was Alicen’s mimic. Then, he remembered why he hated her so much and why Alicen used her form. “Red hair. Green eyes. Smaller framed– like a dancer, but without the lust a man might have for such a broad.”

Felix nodded. “If you really hate her that much, perhaps we could lend her off to the company?” He laughed, but Graeber knew he wasn’t joking. He’s no doubt picturing someone he’d love to bed with.

“If I get my hands on her, there won’t be anything for the company to enjoy. I’m going to tear her apart when I get my chance.”

Felix’s smile fades, understanding there is no room for humor in the conversation. “Noted, Graeber. Jesus. After all this is done, what should we do?”