He paused for dramatic effect, watching his little audience carefully and monitoring their response. Had he been playing to a fresh crowd he might have had greater success, but after their long confinement the group was too fractious to respond well. Mutters rippled around the room, questioning what Purdue was talking about. Undaunted, he continued.
"First I must tell you a story," he said, settling onto his rolled sleeping bag. "Some of you will be familiar with the tale of Captain Alfred Ritscher, will you not? Nina? Professor Matlock? Oh, even you, Mr. Daniels. That's good. For those who are not, the hero of our little story began his career as a mere cabin boy, flew reconnaissance flights during the First World War, and by 1934 was executive officer in command of the German Navy. There he was entrusted with a very particular task by Herr Goering himself — to lead an expedition to the Antarctic, claim New Schwabenland for the Fatherland, and chart this desolate terrain so that it could be colonized.
"In 1938 he made an extensive aerial survey — the planes were brought from Europe by ship and had to be launched by means of a catapult because they had no adequate runway, can you imagine? I would have loved to do that… Where was I? Ah yes. The expedition was a secret to all but the German high command and a select few at Lufthansa Airways, who provided the ship, the Schwabenland.
"But why, you may be wondering, would anyone want to colonize such a remote, inhospitable place? The Nazis had no interest in Dr. al-Fayed's algae. The answer is twofold. First, the extensive conquests made by other nations, primarily the British, left them very few options for empire building. Antarctica was there for the taking. Second, whaling. Whale oil was a valuable commodity and one that Germany had to import. With war looking ever more likely, the official story was that they wanted to secure their own supply. This is clearly nonsense. Why, in the event of war, would it make sense to transport such a precious resource such a long way through hostile, submarine-infested waters? Surely it would be more sensible to channel their efforts into creating suitable substitutes, rather than into the costly and inefficient process of establishing a whaling base out here?
"No. The true purpose of the base they wished to establish was much more interesting. This was where the Nazis planned to build their impregnable fortress, their Shangri-la. It would be their fallback position should the tide of the inevitable war turn against them. It would be their first base of operations for the conquest of South America should things work in their favor. Controlling the northern hemisphere from Berlin and the southern hemisphere from their unassailable ice station, there would be no limits to their plans for expansion. While the Allies concentrated their forces on the war in Europe, Nazi scientists could work undisturbed in the Antarctic to develop military technology of a kind the world had never seen. This place would prove essential to the establishment of the thousand-year Reich.
"Of course, that is not how things worked out for them. They lost the war before their plans could come to fruition. However, there have always been questions about what happened to particular German treasures and indeed to a large portion of the U-boat fleet. More than fifty U-boats simply disappeared at the end of the war. Perhaps they were patrols that never made it home, blown up by mines or sunk by accidents and small natural disasters. There are many terrible things that can happen at sea. But could that account for so many? I doubt it. There are theories that the submarines that disappeared were evacuating Nazi personnel and treasures, spiriting them away to somewhere they would never be found. And where better than Antarctica? Where better than a series of secret tunnels hidden deep beneath an icy mountain range on a continent unoccupied by man?
"By 1945, rumors about this place were already circulating among the Allies — but when Germany surrendered in May of that year, there were more important things to do than investigate such rumors. Then, a few months later, a Nazi U-boat — U530—surfaced at Mar del Plata in Argentina. The commander was a tall, blond man who gave his name as Otto Wermuth, but he could produce no papers to verify his identity. Neither could his crew. Neither could the German female civilian who was inexplicably aboard.
"Soviet agents reported that the woman was Eva Braun and that Adolf Hitler was concealed among the crew. These reports were largely dismissed because the burned body found near the Führerbunker was believed to be Hitler's, but you may remember that a few years ago, DNA testing revealed that the corpse was in fact that of a forty-year-old woman. Where, then, was Hitler? Possibly Argentina.
"During the two years that followed, an incredible number of Nazi U-boats and other vessels appeared in the waters surrounding Argentina. Some surrendered, including U977. Others were sighted and vanished, with no convincing explanation given for their presence. Then, in 1946, the US Navy began Operation Highjump, which they described as a 'purely scientific expedition.' Now, perhaps the scientists among you can tell me whether this is a standard complement for a scientific expedition: an aircraft carrier, several destroyers and icebreakers, submarines, thirteen warships, fifteen heavy transport aircraft, long range reconnaissance aircraft, and about five thousand men? Our own operation feels dreadfully ramshackle by comparison.
"Anyway, Operation Highjump was beset with difficulties. Within three weeks, several aircraft and their pilots had been lost. A 'ship-unloading accident' killed numerous men and curtailed the Americans' intention to build an airstrip on the Ross Ice Shelf, roughly where the Pegasus Field would eventually be. Admiral Byrd ordered a sudden withdrawal of forces and they made a hasty retreat to the United States, leaving nine of their planes behind, just sitting on the ice. I'm sure you'll all agree, that is a particularly disastrous end for a 'scientific expedition.'
"I believe, as many others do, that the true purpose of Operation Highjump was to attack the Nazi fortress, which had been steadily developed here over the course of the Second World War. I believe that when the Americans realized that there truly was a Nazi base here, they saw the threat it posed to them and set out to neutralize it. I also believe that they failed, and that the reason they failed was that the technology they encountered was so advanced that their own forces were inadequate. They were driven out of Antarctica by superior might in the hands of the last remnants of the Nazi forces.
"For some reason, although they were able to withstand attack, those Nazi forces were never able to regain sufficient power to go on the offensive — and so much the better for the rest of us, perhaps. Yet there is no evidence to suggest that anyone dismantled the ice station — no sign of its equipment or transport being dumped or sold or otherwise disposed of. Which would suggest that it is still there, and that somewhere deep in the Antarctic there is a trove of Nazi technology, weapons, and treasure just waiting to be found… and as luck would have it, we are almost on top of it. Here," Purdue jabbed a pencil into the map, "is our current location."
Sam stared at the map. Sure enough, the little square marked Wolfenstein was just millimeters away from them.
"This," Purdue dropped his voice to a whisper, "is our true destination."
Chapter 13
Alexandr was the first to laugh. "Very good, Mr. Purdue, very good!" he cried, slapping Purdue on the back. "Better even than my Ke'let story! Excellent!"
Fatima was sitting bolt upright beside Nina, her body quivering with tension. She gave a nervous chuckle. "You had me worried for a moment there, Purdue," she said. "I thought you were actually planning to change our destination in mid-trip! Your storytelling skills are amazing."
Delicately, Purdue adjusted the cuffs on his sweater. "Dr. al-Fayed, that is exactly my intention. Rest assured, we shall make it to Neumayer. Your research will not be abandoned, just slightly delayed. That is why, when we first corresponded, I was so keen to know whether your work was in any way dependent on the seasons. We could have gone to Neumayer first, but who could wait longer than they had to for discoveries such as these?"