Orion (Chpt 1. Pt.1) "Jacob enters the conflict"

[Willi Von Klugerman]

It was another night in the observatory in Berlin,doing the usual boring task of searching for anything new.I,Jacob Schloss,came from a slightly poor family,my father working as a bar tender (though he does get a sum of money during October fest).I ended up in the astronomy buisness because their wern't anything else of my taste in this capital.I knew their was a war going on,its been going on for three years.

I really wasn't too keen in the conflict,I had thoughts of joining,but quickly loose interest.All that however,changed by an unexpected visit by my old friend,Fritz Vanderlich.Fritz came from a more richer family,his family owned a local bank.He said to me "Jacob my old friend,guese what I've done?".I jokedly replied "Found your 5th girl for the week?".Fritz then laughed and said "I've joined the Jastas,at last I will continue my families military tradition".My mind paused for a moment,Fritz is one of my many friends,and the few remaining.Most of my school friends joined up,many of them to end up killed or wounded.

Its quite shocking to think that most of your friends that you been with most of your life are dead.For instance,Rolf Jacobs joined the army in May of 1917,two months latter,he got killed by a sniper in Verdun.Karl Buckler joined the air service December of 1916,scored 2 victories,but died pittifully when his Albatros crashed in the Marne river,and drowned.And Franz Gerlich,a good friend of mine,who helped me of my schoolwork,was killed when he and his comrads ran into an enemy barrage.I couldn't afford the same thing happening to Fritz.

I told him "Are you sure,you know what happened to the others".He replied,"I know it is a shame,but I have a sense of duty now Jacob".I then nodded,no point in stopping him if he already joined.He then said "You know,your not going to get any girls respect spending endless hours looking through a large telescope".I said "You think Im gonna get a bunch of women being in the service".Fritz replied "Of course,take our great Manfred Von Richthofen for example".He had a point,Manfred visited Berlin a few months ago and women poured to the streets to meet him,and it is getting a bit boring and eye straining looking through a telescope.I then told him that I'll think about it.He then said "Good,you'll sleep it off and then decide".I then nodded and he proudly left the observatory.

I then thought about it a bit,thinking that if I should join or not.Though my thoughts were interupted by the observatory master.He said "Quit drifting into space and start looking at it!".I quickly decided and said "You know what,I had enough of looking through an eyepiece,Im joining up".

I then left the observatory,with the observatory master in utter shock,and ran out to catch up with Fritz.When I found him,I told him in excitment "Guese what Fritz,I decided to join the air service with you!"
He then happily said "Wonderful,we shall both fight this war in the air together!" and patted me on the back.He said "C'mon,I'll take you to the recruiting station!".We then sang all the way to the recruiting station.I looked up at the cold,December night sky and looked at the constellation of Orion (the hunter) and nodded,knowing that I have a huge adventure ahead of me.

To be continued
Please comment!

[Willi Von Klugerman]

I was finally at the recruiting office.I grew nervous,as I didn't feel ready to do this.The officer there said to us "Are you two joining?".Fritz said "I already did,but he is,were both going to be fliers!".Then the officer nodded and said "Good,after a short physical to see if your fit and I'll get the forms!".After I passed the physical,he then opened his drawer and pulled out a form for me to sign.

I signed my name,with thoughts running through my mind,thoughts like "What am I doing".But I done it anyways,I didn't want to dissapoint Fritz.The officer then stamped the form and then exclaimed "Congratulations,you are now ready to fight for the fatherland!".Fritz shook my hand and said "You did it old pal,you are going to make your family proud of you!".I then thought in shock "My family,I forgot all about them,my mother would surely faint if I told her that I joined".Then the officer said "You will be taking a train at midnight tonight,so you better be packing up!".Fritz then said that he was also taking the same time.

Then the officer gave me a grey aviators tunic,trousers,a pair of boots,and my documents.I told that I had to hurry to my house to pack and that I will quickly return.I ran as fast as I could and made it to my house,everyone seemed to be asleep,so I had to quietly walk up the stairs and to my room.I got my breifcase out to pack up,then I realized,theirs nothing much to pack.Theirs no point in packing my civilian clothes,so I packed a few personal items.Like my toy pistol that I used to play cowboy with my now deceased friends as a child,photo of my friends and family,and a set of postcards of our countries air heros (incase I happen to bump into one of them and get them to sign it).

I also left a note for my family,it reads "I just joined the air service,and left at midnight on a train to a flight school.It isn't your fault and it was of my own decision.Don't be angry at me,be honored that your son is fighting for the fatherland.I will write to you every opertunity that I have.Best wishes to you Mother,Father,Helen,and Max.Your brave son,Jacob Schloss".

I put on my uniform,it was a perfect fit and was quite confortable.I then quietly ran to the recruiting office,where Fritz,already in his tunic,was impatiently waiting for my return.As soon as I got their he exclaimed,"What took you so long,we have only twenty minutes till the train departs!".We knew we couldn't get there by foot,and waited for someone to drive by.We waved for a car to pick us up,fortunetly it stoped and we got in it and thanked the driver.The driver then asked us where he should take us.I looked at my ticket and said "Savignyplatz railway station!".The driver then exclaimed,"Ah,good,we'll be their in no time,very little traffic tonight!"

The driver then said,"So,your fliers?",I replied,"We've just joined".Then the driver exclaimed,"My son was a flier" he then sighed and continued and said "Unfortunetly...he was killed,crashed in a river and drowned".I felt my blood turn cold.I then said,"Your son dosn't happen to be by chance Karl Buckler?".The driver then apeared to have "jolted" from his seat in shock.The Driver then said,"How did you know?I then replied,"He was a good friend of mine,his brother told me about his death from the letter your family recieved,Im terribly sorry about it".He then said sadly,"It happens when your in war,he died for our country honorably".

We made it to the station fifthteen minutes latter.The driver said as we got out,"Good luck the two of you!",we then thanked him and then he saluted to us,we saluted back.We watched as he drove off,I couldn't believe I transitioned from a bored 18 year old that looked through a telescope every clear night,to a pilot,in one night.It felt like I wen't through two nights in a matter of hours.Fritz then said,"Well,now we wait for the train".We then saw a couple of very attractive girls in nice dresses.They looked at me and Fritz and smiled,we waved at them,which flattered them and gave a soft laugh.It was an odd feeling,as no woman has ever done that to me before.Its ironic how a man that was totally ignored by girls can gain their attention by just wering a uniform.

Our train arrived on time,gave them out tickets,got into the train,and were off to the journey that is ahead of us.

To be continued

[Willi Von Klugerman]

As soon as we entered the train,we were tired yet excited.We searched for our cabin,had to flatten our backs against the walls at times due to uncoming "traffic" in the halls as people were searching for their cabins.Eventually,we found our cabin,and we ploped in our seats in exsaustion.

Fritz then said,"Quite an night huh?".I then replied,"Yes,quite an epic night!"."Are you excited Jacob?" said Fritz.I replied,"Yes,I oddly feel like a child on Christmas night!".Fritz then said,"What made you think of joining so quickly,minutes after I left the observatory,you came running along shouting to me that you decided to join".I then said,"Well,I beleive it was because I was fed up with my boring life and being in that observatory".Fritz then said,"I thought you love astronomy".I replied,"I do but it gets rather tedious being told what area in the sky to look at,I wanted to do my own thing and use the telescope for my personal use".Fritz then exclaimed,"Well,forget about the boredome's of your life,thats history,your an aviator now,the excitment in your life begins now!".

We eventually got a chance to sleep for the night.Fritz quickly dosed off,but I couldn't sleep.I was too excited with my mind running with thoughts of medals,meeting with air heroes,air battles,and two girls linked on each arm.I was also curious about flying,I see aircraft flying over Berlin and wondered what it was like.I eventually wen't to sleep around 2:00 a.m.I then woke up around 11:00 a.m. when our train came to a stop.Fritz,already suited up in his uniform,said,"Quickly get yourself dressed my friend,were here!".I quickly put on my tunic and boots and we grabed our luggage.
We stepped out and noticed that most of the people that stepped out of the train were new recruits and officers.

We then saw a driver with a truck,and asked him to take us to JsSch II training school.The driver then said,"Sure its not too far off,I'll be happy to take you,hop in the back!".We thanked him and went to the back of the truck.We then were off to the flight training school,and around half the way through the trip,I heard a sound of an engine of an aircraft,and was curious to know what aircraft it was.Poked my head out of the canvas flap on the back and couldn't see it.I then stretched out further,but as soon as I did that,the truck hit a pot hole and I fell out.I fell on my head,but quickly got back up and ran towards the truck with all my might,with Fritz shouting for the driver to stop.The driver stoped,I brushed off the dirt on my tunic and got back on the truck.I then said to Fritz humorously,"It was an Albatros C.III!"

Twenty minutes latter,we were at the training school,and as we got out of the truck the first thing we saw was a line of 2-seater aircraft,huts,and tents.Then,an officer came up to us and said,"Are you new recuits?",we then nodded.He then said,"You must be Fritz Vnderlich and Jacob Schloss,welcome to JsSchII!".He then showed us to our quarters.As we settled Fritz then said "This is going to be a -,then was interupted by a loud crash.We ran outside to see what was going on.We then saw a crashed Albatros C.I,the pilot flew too low and hit the tree's.Both crewmen were in critical condition,and were quickly sent to a hospital.One of the flight instructors said to us,"That would happen to you if you don't listen to what we tell you!".Thats when the reality kicked in and knew what we were about to deal with.


To be continued

[bboelke]

Great start. it looks really like a good story. but if I was writing i would start in an airbattle. then flash back to him joining. but this is still great!

[Sagittarius]

That would give a contrast, weve already talked a bit about conrasts between civil-life and war.
I think it depends on the storyline itself. & its also possible to put an action sequence at the beginning later on, if it seems necessary

[Willi Von Klugerman]

The crash was a mess,the aircraft crashed the tree so hard that it literaly cut the tree in half.The nose was half buried in the ground,wheels broke off,most of the wings were torn off from the tree,ect.It turned out that the pilot was a novice on his first flight,but got confused and crashed into the tree.The pilot unfortunetly,died half-way into the trip to the hospital,they said he died from internal bleeding.The instructor survived,but was in too bad of condition to instruct anymore.

Fritz then said as the ground crew towed the wreakage away,"Well,this is going to be "fun"!".My thoughts started to be of nervousness,that could happen to me.I never was good at school,easily distracted,failed to do any school work.I was afraid that I would do the same thing here at training school,not paying attention and missing details.This time,missing details and lessons won't result in bad grades,it will result to injuries...or death.

It was 4 p.m. and me and Fritz were walking around getting to know the place and observing the aircraft in wonder.We were told that an instructor would show us how an aircraft works and operates.Fritz then said in frustration,"Its just like school,the teachers always have to explain everything before we get to the good part!".I then said,"Well now Fritz,maby their is some good parts to tomorrow lessons".Fritz grumbled,"It better be,I want to get to fly those honeys!".

I then,wanted to spark a conversation of times of childhood,so I pulled out of my pocket,the toy pistol that I played cowboy with.Fritz had a glare in his eyes when he saw it.He said,"I remember that!You used to use that when we played our games in the streets!Its been years since I've seen that!".I then exclaimed."Well,it was one of the few toys that I had as a kid.You had a toy when you wanted one,and you lost all your toys!".Fritz then said,"Well,those were the good days weren't they.I remember we pretended to play war,and look at us now,were in it!".I nodded and said,"Yes,this won't be any street game thats for sure!".

It was night and everyone was asleep but me,I was still in the astronomy habit,and quietly ran up to the nearest hill.I looked up into the cold winter sky and watched the countless numbers of twinkling stars and the bright Moon shining.My eyes were watery due to the cold.It was a time for me to think alone,thinking of my family.Who are problably shocked and nevous of me joining without them knowing.I was sitting there thinking for about ten minutes till I saw a dark figure ahead of me.I stood up,nervously wondering who it was.The identity of the figure became apparent from the moonlight.It was the officer,who lowered his pistol and shouted,"What in tarnations are you doing here this time of night,get back to bed this once!"I saluted and ran down the hill in embarassment.I quietly went back to my barracks,went to bed and quickly dozed off.

It was noon,and we were seated in front of an aircraft that had nothing on it besides the frame,engine,and wires.The instructor was seated in the cockpit,telling us on how to use ailerons and rudder.He then said,"This is how you use the rudders",and pushed the pedals left to right with his feet,and saw the rudder move.He then continued to show us how to move the ailerons with the control stick,and saw the flaps on the wing move up and down.It was like school for me,as I was distracted because I kept starring the aircraft as they took off,flew,and landed.The instructor noticed me looking and yelled,"Schloss,pay attention!You'll get to fly soon,but you must pay attention to this lesson!".Most of the students there laughed,and I rubbed the back of my neck in embarassment.

We then learned lift,drag,how to pull out of a stall,tactics,moves,ect.And then he told us something that made us nervous.He said,"Boy's,I know you will be a bit scared when I tell you this,but your going to have to learn the reality of war.He continued,"When your aircraft is hit and on fire,you don't have much of a chance.You either stay with it and burn,jump out of it thousands of feet above and die on impact,or painlessly shoot yourself with your revolver,your choice!".I wouldn't stop being nervous,I had the "what if" feeling.I looked at Fritz,I could tell he was nervous.

But on a lighter note for me,we would be in an aircraft from the back seat.

[Willi Von Klugerman]

It was the big day for me,I was to be in the rear seat of the aircraft (to get the feeling of flight).It was 1 p.m. and everyone was geared up with their flight gear,some wearing leather jackets and some wearing thick fur jackets.I had to wait for my turn,I watched in jealousy and impatience as the others got to go.Then about 15 minutes latter,it was finnaly my turn.The pilot said,"Your up next Schloss!"and I ran torwards the Albatros C.I with excitement.The engine started,the ground crew removed the wheel blocks,and noticed the aircraft started to move forward slowly.And as the pilot increased the throttle,we were soon aloft into the air.I felt a rush of energy within me from excitement.I saw Fritz,jumping and cheering me on and I waved my arm to him.

I saw the view of the world that I had never seen before.I felt a sense of achievement,something that nobody in my family has never done.Everything seemed small yet vast,the fields looked like patches of a quilt,the tents and hangars of the flight school looked more like a toy set than structures.The rivers looked like a long snake,stretching to long distances.It was very cold,but it didn't bother me,I was too excited.

The pilot turned back and lowered altitude.We slowed down and there was a big thud when the wheels touched the ground.As soon as the C.I came to a complete stop,I hoped out and me and Fritz patted each other on the back in jubilation.I said cheerfully,"I did it Fritz,I did it!".Then the pilot said,"Fritz,its your turn!".Fritz ran to the aircraft as quickly as I did.I cheered Fritz on as he went up.I watched as the C.I circled around the area but then I heard strange noises from it.It made a brrt sound and started to dive.

I had a terrible feeling in my stomache,it felt like I punched.Then,the pilot nosed back up,but the propeller wasn't moving,and the pilot attempting to land.I watched nervously as its wheels touched the ground.The land it was on was uneven and rocky,which made the aircraft bump a bit.Then the left wheel ran over a rock which made the tire burst.The aircraft spun around and flipped over.I was in shock and ran towards the crash as fast as I could.Then,one of the ground crewmen in a truck said to me,"You'll be worn out getting there on foot,hop on!".

It took us only a few minutes to get there and hoped out of the truck,only to find Fritz and the pilot standing,barely a scratch.Fritz then said,in his usual humor,"Well,that was something!".I laughed pat him on the back.It was a close call for him and the pilot,and according to Fritz,he fell out of the aircraft as it fliped over,didn't put on his seat strap.

The next day,we started taxiing,which finnaly gave me the chance to get in the controls.It was very simple really,all I to do was add enough throttle for the aircraft to move.I "drove" the aircraft to the end of the field,applied right rudder and turned around back to where I started.

But tomorrow,I will finally fly solo!

To be continued

[Willi Von Klugerman]

It was midnight,everyone was asleep,but I was yet again,still awake.I was thinking too excited to sleep,for it is flight solo for me this afternoon.But I was also nervous that I might do something wrong,but I was sure that I wouldn't mess things up.It was noon,and it was the moment I have been waiting for.We were going to fly a Fokker DVI for our solo flights.After brief instructions,we were all set,each of us taking turns.Fritz went on before me and he did very fine job.Three pilots latter,it was my turn.The DVI was a nimble looking bird,it took a short time for it to take off as I noticed.

I sat in the cockpit,waiting for the mechanics to check the engine,after that was done,I turned the contact switch on.As the the propeller was swung,I had that excited feeling again.I moved the rudder pedals and looked back to see if it moved properly,and moved the stick to see if the aileron were okay.Then I signaled the ground crewmen to remove the wheel blocks,and imedietly,the aircraft moved forward,and soon,I was aloft.It was an incredible feeling to see the aircraft move when you move the stick by your own.I then flew upside down and waved to the guys below.Then I did something that I shouldn't have done with a rotary.I became foolish with excitment,and flew straight up,trying to make a loop.I noticed the aircraft was loosing speed,and stalled.

Thats when I knew,that I made a mistake that could be fatal.Fortunetly,I payed attention to the instructor when he told us how to stop a stall.I had enough altitude to recover,so I let the stick go and let the aircraft do its thing for a second.Soon,the aircraft gained airspeed,and things went normal,a big relief to me.After that,I landed and as soon as I stepped out of the cockpit,the instructor yelled,"You stupid little boy!Have you listened to me about the behavior of rotary engines?!Don't ever do that again!!".An hour latter,we got the results,me and Fritz wanted to know if we passed.

It turned out,I passed despite my little mistake earlier and Fritz passed as well.We were both very excited,and wondered what was going to happen next.We would find out what squadron we will be in tomorrow,which made us both wonder if we would meet again.It was a strange feeling,I spent the duration of our journey with him,and now it seems we would have to go on our own.

The next day,all of us new pilots woke up,dressed up,and waited to see what squadrons that we were assigned to.Fritz was in front of me,and when the officer came out,he sai,"Fritz,there has been a change of plans,you have been assigned to Boghol 3 bomber squadron!".Fritz replied in confusion,"B-but I thought I was going to be in a fighter unit!".The officer then exclaimed,"It happens,but I didn't made the order,but don't worry,its just as good".Fritz looked dissapointed,then the officer called me and then he said "Jacob Schloss,you are to report to Jagdstaffeln 38".I felt excited,but felt bad for Fritz not being in a Jasta as he wanted.

It was a sad moment for me and Fritz,we were going to be in in seperate units space so far apart from each other.Fritz said,"Well old friend,this is it,you think we will see each other again?".I replied,"Im preety sure we will,were in the same military branch you know".He nodded,then their was a lorry waiting for him.I helped him carry one of his luggage for him to the truck,we shook hands and told me to "Stay alive".I sadly watched the lorry go off,then the I heard a voice call to me.It was a driver,who said to me,"Are you Jacob Schloss?".I nodded and he told me hop on in the back.I was set for the long journey to the aerodrome of Jasta 38.

To be continued

[Willi Von Klugerman]

I was miles into my journey to the squadron,I then took my first look at war and its destruction.We passed through a French town that was comlpetley torn apart,with fatigued troops passing by.We then passed by a casualty staition where I saw men with missing arms and legs,and the docters and nurses with blood soaked clothing.I had never seen such a thing,which made me look away,but the smell was just as bad.I could hear men screaming in extreme pain from them being treated or amputated.

We finally were out of the town and could drive faster now without troops slowing us down.Thats when I saw a formation of three Albatros' above us.They were painted in preety colors.The lead one appered to have a purple tail,one had a green wings and a white tail,and the other one was completly colored in sky blue.I watched them till they disapeared in the low clouds.It made me excited looking at them,I couldn't wait to get a piece of action.

An hour latter,I finally made it to the aerodrome of Jasta 38.I got out of the lorry with my legs a bit strained from not moving for 2 1/2 hours.It was quiet,cold,and cloudy.What stood out from the grey and gloomy winter day was the brightly colored Albatros',all lined up,waiting for its owners to take it up for another sortie.One Albatros had red/white diagonal stripes on the top wing and tail,another with a yellow top wing and a yellow body,and another had a thick black and white band all over it.

Thats when a I felt someone pat me on the back and a friendly voice say to me,"Good looking birds aren't they?".And looked back to see a smiling pilot,he shook my hand and said,"Im Leutnant Frank Blume,you must be Jacob Schloss.We were expecting you!".He then said,"Very elegant looking aircraft the Albatros DVa is!".I replied,"Yes,they are!".Then he said,"C'mon,I'll show you mine!".I then followed him along the line of the vibrantly colored Albatros'.He then showed me his Albatros,it had a completly blue body and bottom wing.Except,the top wing was white and in white letters on its sides read Kyoko.Curious,I said to Frank what it meant and he replied,"Its my Japanese girlfriends name.

I was quite confused,as Japan declared war on us in 1914 when Britain pitched in.He told me the story,he said that,"She came from a wealthy Japanese family.Before the war,her parents moved to Germany along with her sister Komiko and her younger brother Ichiro (who has a strong interest in aviation).They moved to my home town of Halberstadt,and lived in the same street as me,we both were wealthy.He then continued,"I seen very preety girls in our country of Germany,but when I first saw her,my limbs went num by her incredible beauty.And indeed,she made alot of men turn heads and admire her looks.

He then said,"I was so afraid that someone would take her that I forced myself to meet her before anyone else gets her.She was friendly of my presence and surprised to hear that she spoked German"."Her family was really nice to me and I got to know her culture and soon enough we fell in love"."But unfortunetly,it was cut short,as Japan declared war on Germany and the family forced themselves to move to a nice mansion in a quiet country outside of Halberstadt"."Luckily,I got her address and been writting to her since".He then pulled out his wallet from his pocket and showed me a photo of her.And he was right,she is attractive,and it was the first time knew what a person from Asia looked like.

Then I heard a distant drone of engines coming from the west.It was a flight of Albatros',returning home from a patrol.Then,groups of ground crewmen came running out,some carrying wheel blocks with them.One of the aircraft was trailing black smoke.The ground crewmen grabbed the tails and positioned the Albatros' in a line.It appeared that every one of them had bullet holes in them as though a wood pecker got a hold of it.One of the pilots got out of his cockpit and colapsed as soon as he touched the ground.

Every pilot had blackened faces from the smoke.One pilot vomited right in his cockpit,much to the ground crewmens frustration as one of them had to clean it up.The Hauptmann came up to me,took off his helmet,and said to me,"Ah,you must Schloss!"shook my hand and said,"Welcome to Jasta 38,hope you come to like us!".Then I notice a pilot who seemed happy for something as an oderly gave him his weekly "mail".He quickly opened it,and it revealed to be dirty postcards,"Scented by the finest purfume in France".Then Frank came to me and said,"Thats Julius Fraizer,he collects stuff like that".

I asked the Hauptmann,"Herr Hauptmann,when will I be participating on my first mission?".He replied "Tomorrow morning!".

To be continued

[Willi Von Klugerman]

Frank led me to the mess hall,but as soon as I was about to enter,two huge Great Danes leaped at my chest,which mede me fall on my back.Frank then shouted,"Rumpler,Morane get off of him!!shoo!!go on!!".The two mammoth dogs stoped licking at my face and ran.Frank then helped me up and said,"Don't worry,they only do that to new members,thats their friendly way of introducing themselves".He then led me to the mess,it was quite decorative,the walls hanging with propellers,British and French roundels that were cut from crashed aircraft,and images of the Kaiser,air heros,19th century French tapestry.

A record was playing,and other pilots were drinking wine and having conversations,some doing hand gestures to demonstrate the moves they did in the air.Frank then told me all about fighting in the air,according to him,flight school fails to tell new pilots about it in detail.He told me stuff that flight school never even mentioned,which disturbed me.He told me how to land without wheels,how to lower speed so the enemy pilot would over-shoot,how to fly into a cloud to get an enemy off your tail,ect.

Then a pilot,for no reason,threw a half-full glass into the wall,which made everyone stare at him.He then shouted,"Stop it!!stop it!!,you don't care they are all dead!!.Then threw the table over.The two pilots grabbed him and calmed him down and took him to his room.I then said,"What happened their?".Frank then answered,"Oswald had a nervous breakdown when two of his friends whent down".It hit home to me,because I lost many good friends to this war,so I knew how he felt.

Then a couple of pilots grabbed their chairs and sat in our table.They introduced themselves to me,The man that sat next to me was Franz Wolf,he had a scar on the right cheek from a passing bullet,with 3 victories,the one sat to my right was Kurt Winslow,with 6 victories.I was shocked to find out that Franz is 21 and Kurt 23,for they didn't look like it.They looked like they were in their mid-thirties.Kurt then said,"If you have been fighting long enough,you would look like us!".The reason they looked older than their age was because of constant fighting,fatigue,and stress.

Then Hauptmann Vanderhoff announced,"Tommorow morning,at 0800 hours,the following men will fly a patrol over the front.Scneider,Blume,Wolf,Lindorff,and Schloss".I felt an ache in my stomach when I heard my last name called up for tomorrows patrol.Then Frank saw me looking nervous and patted me on the back and said,"Don't worry,if you stick with us,you'll be fine!".I smilled and nodded,it felt a little better knowing I'll be with veteran pilots.

Before I knew it,it was night.Franz said to me,"Its a good idea for you to get a good nights rest,it gets you ready for the mornings sortie.After all,we don't want you to wake up all grumpy and tired!".I took his advice and went to my room.I then noticed that I forgot to unpack,it was no problem,I could do that tomarrow.I put on my pajamas,and went to bed,and surprisingly,I didn't have a hard time staying up.But I then had a nightmare,it was that I was on a patrol alone,and then a British pilot came out,and shot my tail off,and I spiraled down.Before I impacted on the ground,I woke up from the nightmare all sweaty.That nightmare didn't make things better,as I hardly slept after that.

Finally,it was the moment I had been prepared for.After a couple of cups of warm tea,we were all set and geared up.I wore heavy fur boots (which felt like I had rocks tied on my feet),a heavy fur coat,wool lined gloves,and a leather helmet.It was a quiet,cold,and overcasted morning,the birds chirped on the leafless trees.The ground crewmen giving the Albatros' engines a check up for flaws.We then walked to our Albatros',thats when I noticed the pilots doing their "Pre-flight rituals",Frank kissed the photo of his girfriend Kyoko,Wolf moved the rudder pedals to make the rudder move rudder three times left and three times right,and Franz wore his lucky red scarf.I thought it was a bit odd,but it problably gives them a boost of sprits.

I then sat in my cockpit,straped myself with the should belts,and Franz then shoute,"Contact!".Then the ground crewmen swung his propeller,and then the engine of his blue Albatros"Kyoko",was on.One-by-one,the other pilots Albatros' engines were on,and the quiet morning air was filled with the loud noises of Mercedes IIIa engines.I soon turned the switch and shouted,"Contact!".Then I saw Franks blue Albatros moving ahead,then Franz's,then Wolf's,then Pauls.Then the ground crewmen removed the wheel blocks,and I soon felt my Albatros slowly move forward.It gradualy got faster and I gently pulled the stick back so my aircraft wont nose down.

I was then in the aloft,with the cold winter air rushing at my face.I again,felt the excitement in me like I had during flight training.I saw the aerodrome getting smaller behind me.Frank in his blue Albatros "Kyoko",was lead,I was on right wing,and I was waiting for what was to come on this mission.

To be continued