U-4714 by Robert F. Clifton (best ereader for graphic novels txt) 📕

see our operation strictly to refuel and replenish the attack boats', said Reinhardt.

“Bravo Dresner. You are now the Executive Officer of a floating petrol station, offering diesel oil, fresh bread and vegetables to those doing the actual fighting. Look at it this way. When the war is over you and I can open a petrol station on the autobahn. With the experience we shall have we can't miss”.

“How much fuel will we be transporting?”, asked Dresner.

“Four hundred and twenty eight tons. The attack boats will pull up along side of us and refuel, just like a new born calf sucking its mothers tit. That's why they call us, Milch Cows.”

“The British and Americans have surface submarine tenders with machine shops capable of making repairs. They even carry relief crews,' said Dresner.

“True, but those same old bastards that represent our surface fleet are afraid to put a ship of the like out in the open”.

Both men turned to see someone else descending the ladder into the boat. Once inside the navy officer, a junior lieutenant stood at attention and saluted. “Wilhelm Keller, reporting to Kapitan Arner as ordered”, he said. Arner and Dresner returned the salute.

“Welcome aboard Keller. I want you to meet Reinhardt Dresner, Number One. As you know you will have the second watch”. Said Arner.

“Yes sir. May I ask when we will be under way?”,asked Keller.

“Oh, you can ask, but the answer beats the hell out of me. We will load what we are ordered to carry. Next, we will wait for the arrival of our experienced crew of cooks and bakers and the doctor who in all probability will take up needed room below decks as well as eat our rations”, Arner answered.

The three men turned and looked up at the sound of a voice that came from the deck. “Hello? Will someone tell me how I get down inside this boat?”, said the voice.

“Keller, go topside and show the man how to get below. It has to be the doctor”, said Arner.

“Yes sir”, Keller replied.

Several minutes later, a short, heavy set man with a red face and attired in a navy uniform that needed a lot of tailoring stood trying to catch his breath. When he finally did he said, “I am Doctor Gerhart Zimmer. Which one of you are Kapitan Arner?”

“I am Arner', said the Captain.

“Very good. My orders are to report to you as the medical officer on this ship. If you would be good enough to show me to my quarters I will unpack. After that I will inform you of my duties and what I will expect from the crew,”said Zimmer.

“First of all Herr Doctor, I use the word Herr due to the fact that without an insignia on your uniform I actually don't know your rank. Nonetheless, as Captain here, no one out ranks me. So that's your first lesson today. Your next lesson is that this is not a ship. It's a boat. Now, you will not inform me of your duties. It is I that will inform you of your duties. You will have no quarters. The only one who does have quarters is me. As far as what you might expect from the crew is that you had better hope that they accept you as one of them. If they don't, then you are in for one hard isolated cruise. Do you understand?”

“Yes, but”.

“There is no but. In your hand are your orders from U-Boat Command. When I'm ready I'll read them. Hand them to Oberleutnant Dresner. Keller show the good doctor to a bunk, any bunk”

After Keller took the doctor back to the aft compartments Arner turned to Reinhardt and said, “I can see where this doctor fellow is going to be a pain in the arse”.

Later, Captain Arner met with Dresner and Keller. “As you know, our orders are to meet refuel and replenish those U-Boats at sea. We are now loaded with diesel oil and fresh food. I intend to sail at 0600 tomorrow morning. I will not risk the boat to the British air force. Instead of using the English Channel we will leave Germany, travel around Scotland and Ireland and then into the Atlantic. After that we will wait for orders from U-Boat Command. While going around the British Isles we will do so at night on the surface. During the day we must be on constant alert. It is my understanding from what information I have been about to pick up in the Offices Club, the British are kicking the Luftwaffe's arse. It seems that they have excellent radar and know when our planes are on the way. If they can do that with aircraft they probably can due it with any boat on the water. I can not stress enough how important it is that your lookouts are vigilant. At the same time we now have cooks and bakers with little or no experience on U-Boats. Every member of this crew must know and understand not only the inner workings of the boat, but each members assigned responsibility. Dresner, you will see to it that they are trained.”

“Yes sir, Captain”, Reinhardt answered.

“Keller, once we are at sea you will train the gun crew. With no targets to fire at I suggest you come up with something like shooting at seagulls”.

“May I ask if you know what our destination is?, asked Dresner.

“No, not yet. We'll get our orders once they know we have arrived on station, which is one hundred degrees south east after clearing the British Isles. Any questions?”

“Yes sir, what about the doctor?”, asked Keller.

“What about him?”

“Well, I'd like to know if he outranks me”.

“You are a Junior Officer, an Ensign. Everybody outranks you. However, let me say this. He is not one of us. We are navy men. The good doctor was drafted and forced into the Kreigsmarine so it can be expected that for the moment this is all very new to him. He is to be treated with respect. He will eat with the officers Mess. Make sure that members of your watch understand that. At the same time the Kreigsmarine, in its wisdom has assigned a doctor to the U-Boat Command who's specialty is Chiropody. You would think that he would be with the Infantry”.

At exactly 0600 the next morning the boatswains on deck tossed the

Lines that held the boat to the dock and from the conning tower Arner gave the orders that made the U-800 pull away and out of the pens of Hamburg. On deck, Dresner began training a young navy baker, turning him into a boatswain's mate. As did the U-800 moved slowly on the Elbe making its way to open water.

Below deck Junior Officer Keller took the canvas mailbag that had arrived before they shoved off, placing it on top of his bunk.

As the U-800 made its way towards the tip of Scotland Captain Arner stressed the need for the lookouts to be alert. Ever since the sinking of HMS Royal Oak by U-47 in 1939 The British had made their naval base at Scapa Flow more secure. Arner was also aware of the possibility of floating magnetic mines and the ever present radar. Fortunately, most available radar units were being used on the English East coast detecting German air raids. As the boat made its way Reinhardt lay in his bunk reading a letter from Hedda.

“Dearest,

There are not enough words that I can say that would let you

know how much I miss you. I regret everyday that we did not marry while you were on leave. I know that in your heart you wanted to wait until after the war, to spare me the same worry that German wives have day after day as this war continues. But, dearest, even as your fiance' I worry just as much as if I was your wife.

I received a letter from your mother. She and your father are fine.

Like me they miss you and like me they worry.

Things here in Flensburg are the same. There is not too much business here at the bookshop. People are much to busy working for the war effort and unable to take leisure time to read. However, we will survive. I will close now my dearest. I carry our picture taken together with me all of the time,

with much ,much, love

Hedda

 

Reinhardt put the letter back into its envelope and placed it with the two he had written to Hedda. Hopefully, they would meet a boat that was going back to port and he could give them to someone on board the returning U-Boat and they could post them for him.

At the officers mess, Reinhardt and Captain Arner sat with Doctor Zimmer, who because of constant sea sickness was unable to eat. “Doctor, at least drink some coffee. You must know that you need something in your stomach in order to throw up. Otherwise, you will have the dry heaves', said Dresner.

Doctor Zimmer did not answer. Instead he slowly got up from the table and walked slowly through the narrow, pitching, passageway returning to his bunk.

The U-800 was between the Orkney Islands and the northern most city of Thurso, Scotland when Ensign Keller called, “Alarm! Dive! Dive! Take her down!” As he was coming down the ladder Captain Arner and Dresner headed for the control room. “All hands, action stations. What do you have Keller?”, asked Arner.

“What appears to be a Corvette”, the Junior Officer replied.

“Position?”

“North, north east”.

“Periscope depth”, ordered Arner.

“At periscope depth”, said Dresner.

“Up scope”.

Arner turned his white peaked cap allowing him to peer through the lens of the instrument. “Corvette, coming fast. Coming right at us. Oh how I wish I had torpedoes. I could sink this bastard with one shot. All I can do now is throw a stale biscuit at him, Dive! Take her down to three hundred feet”.

Reinhardt watched the depth indicator. “Fifty fathoms Captain”, he said.

“Level off, all engines stop, silent running”, said Arner.

Three hundred feet under the surface of the water the U-800 hung motionless as the sounds of the Corvette's engines came to the crew of the submarine. They waited for the sound of the surface ship's sonar, but nothing came, no sound, no ping, ping, ping, just the sound of an oil fueled

engine running at top speed. Then, they heard the enemy ship directly overhead and they held their breath anticipating a depth charge attack. None came and the sound of the Corvette seemed to be going away from them. “Bring the boat up to periscope depth”, ordered Arner.

Once Captain Arner was able to focus he watched as the corvette, now with its stern in view kept heading east. “We'll maintain silence until he is out of radar range Then we'll surface. Keller?”

“Yes sir?”

“Good job”

“Thank you sir”.

Later, at about midnight Reinhardt decided to check on doctor Zimmer. He found the man asleep but noticed specks of dry blood on his lips. He reached for and took the doctors wrist and felt for a pulse. It took him awhile but when he found it, it was weak. Captain Arner was asleep in his bunk. There was no sense waking him to report the doctors condition. It could wait. There was nothing anyone could do for the man. Zimmer had to eat and drink. He was dehydrated from all of the vomiting day after day. Reinhardt turned and walked to the bunk he shared with Ensign Keller. He flipped the leather covered mattress, climbed in and went to sleep. As he slept the boat under the command of Keller ran on the surface now on the western side of the Outer Hebrides.

Karl Arner climbed out of his bunk and headed for the control room. Once there he ascended the ladder that took him to the bridge in the conning tower. From there he went down on deck, turned his back to the wind and took a long, satisfying piss. As he buttoned the fly on his trousers he yelled up to Reinhardt