Beach Invasion

Well, are you ready to go on a grand adventure? I'll let Marin tell this one, as she's the expert on this time period...

The cold snowflakes brushed against my cheeks, and I pulled the collar of my coat closer. I shivered, the chilly air closing around me as I tried to keep warm.

Everywhere I looked I saw snowflakes, water- and millions of ladybugs. Courtesy of our favorite time traveler, Trevor Trekker.

The ladybugs were a bit out of place on this cold beachfront, and they didn’t look that happy. Or very much alive.

“Did you really have to bring those bugs with us, Trevor?” I asked. Another cold gust whipped at my jacket, and I huddled in a ball. “Dobrota! It is cold here! Remind me again why we came?”

“Too many questions,” Trevor grunted, staring through his binoculars.

“Pardon?”

“You. You ask too many questions. Why don’t you just wait and see?”

I wrinkled my nose. “You could at least tell me why we brought these poor little ladybugs here. They’re freezing. It’s not very nice.”

“I didn’t bring the ladybugs here, 4T must have transported them from that sanctuary in South Dakota we visited last. Anywho, it’s not my fault if they die.” He gave a sideways glance at the bugs and glared at them. “I hate ladybugs.”

“Oh křen, Trevor!” I admonished. “Ladybugs can’t hurt you.”

He didn’t reply as he continued to stare through his binoculars at the ocean.

It was dark and very late. I wasn’t sure what year it was, or even what month. For all I knew we could be in Antarctica, enjoying a nice warm summer snowfall. Not my cup of tea. But I hadn’t been so nice to Trevor lately and I’d agreed I’d go with him to make up for my bad attitude. I was still feeling guilty over how I blew up at him when he shot something up my nose with an air gun- while I’d been asleep.

“Ty velký průměr blbec ! Jdi ode mě pryč !” I’d yelled.

Trevor had been standing over me, the gun in his hand and a confused look on his face. “What?”

“Leave me alone!”

“But you said you wanted a translato-”

“Go away!”

I’d then promptly resorted to throwing pillows and whatever I could find at him, the pain in my nose and head adding to my anger.

It was only once I’d calmed down that Trevor informed me he had, in fact, given me the universal language translator I’d told him I’d like to have. He’d just  failed to mention he had to shoot it up my nose into my head so I could understand any language someone spoke.

I grimaced at the memory and shook my head. Though it hadn’t been the nicest thing to do, I realized Trevor meant it with good intentions. Though I still hated the thought of some weird device in my head that made me understand other languages. I didn’t even bother to ask Trevor how it worked or what it did, I was too worried to find out if it had side effects.

“There. There! There it is!”

I jerked my head up in attention as Trevor began to jump up and down on the beach, pointing at something. “It’s over there! I see it!”

Without warning, he grabbed my arm and dragged me into the cover of the trees at a run. I yelped in surprise, staggered to my feet while he continued to drag me on the wet snow, and began to run with him.

“You could have told me we needed to run,” I panted.

Slam! I ran into his back as he stopped dead in his tracks and whirled around to watch the beach again.

“Oww…” I groaned.

“It’s really there! I can see it!” He put the binoculars up to his eyes again, doing a little happy Scottish jig in the underbrush beneath the pine trees. “Oi, this is so exciting!”

“Uh huh,” I managed, standing up and brushing snow off my body. I winced and put my hand to my head, knowing I’d have a headache before too long. “What are we excited about again?”

“U-1230, of course!” Trevor replied indignantly. “Weren’t you paying attention at all?”

“You didn’t mention anything about where we were going or why,” I offered up. “So no, I have no idea what’s going on.”

He blinked, then scratched his head. Then his face broke into a sheepish grin, and he chuckled a little. “Oh, I did fail to mention that, didn’t I?”

“Yes, you did.”

“Well-” he stopped, then glanced back towards the beach. “Why don’t I just show you?”

Trevor handed me the binoculars, and I raised them to my eyes. It took a minute for me to focus, but I finally caught sight of what he was excited about.

And then I knew.

“I’m leaving,” I announced, handing him the binoculars and marching into the woods.

“Whoa whoa whoa, where are you going?” Trevor exclaimed, running after me. “What’s wrong?”

“That’s a Nazi sub!”

“Yes, isn’t it exciting?”

I put my hands on my hips. “No, it’s not.” I shook my head. “Nazi submarine, Trevor. Nazi. Who lives during this time period?”

“Ah, but you see, you haven’t lived during this particular part of the war,” Trevor corrected, determined to find a way for me to stick around. “This is 1944, you started traveling with me in 1939.”

“Trevor, I don’t think you’re getting it. That’s a NAZI SUBMARINE!”

He cocked his head a little and stared at me. “You don’t need to shout, I’m right here.”

I threw my hands up in defeat.

“Besides, they might hear you,” he said, glancing over his shoulder. “They’re coming ashore.”
Now I was out of there.

“Wait!” Trevor called after me as I ran through the brush, going in whatever direction was away from the beach. “This is history!”

I knew that, and I didn’t want to be a part of it. Not this. Sure I stuck around when that deputy had tried to shoot us down. Yes, I’d braved a brush with a rattlesnake. But Nazis? I knew too much about them, I remembered it all too vividly. The school, the laws, the constant threat of being discovered that I’d escaped from their retraining center. My parents.

I slowed down from my run and looked behind me. Trevor wasn’t there. He’d decided to stay behind and watch the sub.

Oh Trevor, I groaned inwardly. Why? Why did he want to be here? Where were we anyways? And what was he so excited about? This was the Nazis, they surfaced their submarines all the time!
I sat down on a stump and contemplated what to do. Should I wait for Trevor or go back to him? He’d said they were coming ashore. I shuddered at the thought. Flashbacks overtook my memories.

Herr Kimpling, the guns, the barbed wire. I began to breath hard and I tried to clear my thoughts. The soldiers, dragging my mother away. Mom crying. The shop being destroyed. No, no! I couldn’t think about this right now, I had to conquer the fear! Father, slipping away while I was being dragged off.

“Dear God,” I managed, hardly able to breathe. “Dear God, help me!”

And just like that, they were gone.

I closed my eyes and held my head in my hands, my heart beating against my chest. Thank you God, thank you, I prayed silently.

It was too painful. Too scary. I wanted to forget it forever.

So I decided I’d wait for Trevor to come to me. I’d rather do that then go back to the beach and face another onslaught of those horrid flashbacks.

But what if those Nazis find Trevor? I wondered. What were they doing here anyways?

At that second I heard footsteps approaching. Oh, he’s back! I leapt off the tree trunk I’d been sitting on and ran towards the sound. “Trevor, are you okay?” I called. I spotted his figure before he had a chance to reply, and I raced towards him. “Please tell me you didn’t let those Nazis see you-”

I skidded to a stop and stared at the man in front of me, who in turn stared at me. That’s. Not. Trevor.

And there were two men, not one.

My feet reacted before my brain did and I found myself fleeing in the opposite direction, the sound of cursing in German right behind me. My heart flew into my throat and I choked in terror as I ran as fast as I could. Must get away from here!
“Du hast!” A hand grabbed my arm and jerked me back. I screamed, but he covered my mouth. “Now what am I going to have to do with you?”

Come back next week for part two!