Chapter 5: The Route
After more than half an hour of dreary waiting, Lynn's hands on the helm were sweaty, and the wounds on his shoulders and legs alternately throbbed. Fortunately, sitting still made the pain barely bearable.
Finally, the only person on the boat who smoked a pipe but never seemed to light it spoke up: "Retract the periscope, maintain course, full speed ahead... Surface!"
Although he had never found it particularly pleasing in movies before, this was the first time Lynn felt that the command to "maintain course" sounded so melodious. But without trials, there would be no growth. How could he have become a combat elite and an outstanding squad leader without the baptism of cruel battles?
"You all did very well just now!" The captain's praise reminded Lynn of what directors often said to actors and crew after completing a scene in a film. But this time, there was no hint of irony. Then, he felt someone walking up behind him. Turning his head, he saw the person with the unlit pipe, staring expressionlessly at him.
Out of respect, Lynn stood up immediately, and the SS sergeant next to him followed suit.
"Both of you... Although not very professional, your performance just now was very brave! Four years ago, when I sat in this position, I couldn't help but tremble at every command!"
For Lynn, such a soft and friendly consolation was more motivating than harsh criticism. Perhaps he should use his brain more often instead of always leading by example—while it helped establish a good image, the downside was the numerous wounds, both healed and unhealed, and as his rank increased and he gained more subordinates, this approach might not be as effective.
Taking the pipe in his hand, the submarine commander with the silver oak leaves Iron Cross medal said gently, "In fact, it's unfortunate that we have to share our duties with you. When we received the orders yesterday, we had just returned from the Atlantic to Kiel, and the sailors were exhausted after five weeks. According to the orders from Naval Headquarters, we mobilized without rest, leaving behind only volunteers with strong wills and relatively good physical condition. We all know that this voyage will be unprecedentedly difficult, even..."
"We understand!" Lynn straightened his back and answered in a firm voice, "Therefore, we salute our Navy brothers!"
The captain and the others around him responded to Lynn's salute with indifference, and the captain himself only returned the gesture symbolically. Perhaps... the stubbornness of the German Navy had gradually formed a precious asset since the Second Reich, but unfortunately, their spiritual strength did not guide them to victory. What they left to the world was the sharpness and helplessness of the U-boats, as well as the tragic fate of ships like the Bismarck, the Scharnhorst, and the Tirpitz.
Soon, the submarine resurfaced. Leaving with a "Start the diesel engine," the captain took his pipe, hurriedly put on his waterproof coat, and climbed up to the conning tower.
As Lynn sat back in his seat, although it was only a temporary job, the perfunctory attitude disappeared after the conversation just now, replaced by a heavy and firm sense of responsibility.
At that moment, the engineer whispered, "Captain Weitz is a very charismatic commander, we've always thought so!"
"The captain's surname is 'Weitz'?" Lynn asked curiously. The name sounded familiar, but he wasn't sure if he had seen it in the list of German ace submarines.
The engineer replied, "In the Von Weitz family, the branch is somewhat famous. The captain's great-grandfather fought in two wars against Austria and France. Since his grandfather's generation, they entered the Navy and witnessed the rise and fall of the German Navy. But... the captain's two elder brothers were unfortunately killed—they were both submarine commanders too!"
Lynn subconsciously turned his head to look at the ladder leading to the hatch. No wonder that guy with the pipe was always so serious, it turned out he carried such a heavy family background.
"That's really unfortunate!"
"Unfortunate? Isn't the best destiny for a soldier to die in battle?" The engineer suddenly said with a tragic tone. Lynn was reminded of the "Rainbow" incident at the end of World War I, when German naval officers and men sank their ships in Scapa Flow Bay to prevent them from falling into enemy hands, and at the end of World War II, as news of Germany's surrender spread, many German submarines sailing on the high seas, after sending out the "Rainbow" radio signal, were scuttled by the crew themselves.
"If war is considered the only mission of soldiers... perhaps!" Lynn expressed his thoughts in a tactful manner, but the engineer didn't seem to understand the meaning behind his words. He walked to the navigator's side with a helpless look on his face.
After the captain went up, as long as no alarms were sounded, the sea should be normal. About 20 minutes later, Lynn received the first normal turning instruction, and this time he completed it smoothly. Half an hour later, the official helmsman returned, looking a little better, but before he could speak to Lynn, he was reprimanded by the engineer. However, he didn't show any frustration or sadness, but instead smiled like a child. Finally, he leaned over to Lynn's ear and said, "Hey, SS comrade, enjoying being at sea?"
Lynn didn't like it when others spoke to him in such a strange tone, so he shook his head and said, "Seasick, stomachache, slow reaction, and almost got a scolding from Captain Weitz! Here, the seat's all yours!"
The helmsman sat down without hesitation and said somewhat gloatingly, "Haha! No one who has just joined the boat can escape Captain's scolding, but... you're not official crew members, so he shouldn't be that harsh on you!"
"Is that so?" Lynn felt like he had learned a bit more about leadership, but he wasn't sure if he would have the chance to practice it in the future—the answer would only be revealed when this mission ended.
As he walked towards the torpedo compartment at the stern, Lynn deliberately leaned to the left side. There were replacements for the helmsman, sonar operator, and radio operator, but it seemed that the navigator was the only one left alone on duty. On the square navigation platform, a partial world map centered on the Atlantic Ocean was pressed under a transparent panel, extending from the east coast of the United States on the left to the entire Baltic Sea on the right, with a snowy white top and extending down to the coast of Spain and the Strait of Gibraltar at the bottom. Apparently, the regular operating range of this submarine was still mainly in the North Atlantic.
Seeing the map, Lynn squinted, trying to find the destination of this voyage. A blue solid line connected the base of the Danish Peninsula to the Stettin Bay in northeastern Germany, and from there to the Danish Strait, half solid and half dashed. Obviously, the solid line represented the submarine's route, and the dashed line represented its planned route. The green dashed line crossed the Danish Strait and then ran north along the west coast of Norway, ultimately extending to the northernmost part of Norway—because there were red and yellow lines along the way marking danger zones and minefields, Lynn couldn't see very clearly from his position, plus the lights on the navigation table reflected on the transparent panel, so he had to get closer to try to confirm what he saw. Just then, the engineer called out, "Lynn," and then calmly said, "Watch out for your leg injury, take it slow, and wish you a speedy recovery!"
With no choice, Lynn turned his head and thanked him, leaving the command cabin with a lingering sense of regret for the final step. All the way, he kept thinking about that green dashed line. Could the endpoint of this journey really be the northern part of Norway? It was cold and desolate there, with the most prominent feature being the naturally formed fjords. The "Tirpitz" had long hidden there during the war and was eventually bombed by the British Royal Air Force near the Lindesnes fjord near Trondheim.
These fjords, formed during the glacial period, were indeed marvels of nature and could be used to conceal ships during wartime. But with the end of the war, Norway would return to Norwegian hands. Were they using submarines to transport the leader and these loyal SS troops there? Could it be that there was a secret base in northern Norway or Finland?