For years stored inside Erich's closet was a memory of melodies. He brushed off the dust from his vintage guitar he managed to buy at a garage sale.
It still had the names of his friends written in ink scribbled all over it. He brushed over Steiner's and Felix's names as he reminisced about the days before the draft. The sky was golden orange and the wind was blowing so the grass whistled. The children of Wien ran around on the streets playing. Erich and his friends stood together having a mini concert. This exact guitar, he played so many times for the people of Wien as a teenager. He adjusted the strings to the right note before giving it a light brush to test the sound. Even without being used, the melody that his guitar played was still filled with life.
He took the guitar to Erika's office and sat down before Selina and played her Blood moon. His fingers remembered every single note, every single melody, every single lyric and played the song perfectly.
His hand rested on the guitar, caressing his fallen friends' names. Another song was played, then another, and another, until the skies began to darken. Erika who had just gotten back from her errands stood there by the doorway with their mom in a wheelchair watching, unnoticed by Erich.
Instinctively her mom leaned forwards. Her hand trembling as she tried to get closer to Erich.
Erika put down her mom's arm and told her that Erich was performing again. A grand smile formed on their mother's face as the song that had been ingrained into her as a kid was played.
♩Embrace the gentleness of our mother♩
Mother and daughter leaned against each other moving their heads along with the melody.
♩For the moon I live♩ both of them sang quietly by the doorway.
For Erich it felt like the soldiers never died. They continued to live alongside him, watching over Wien. Filling Wien with their spirits, filling this song with their love. But nevertheless he wished that the moon would one day put them to rest after watching over Wien for so long.
Erich finished the song and stood up smiling at Selina, before greeting his sister and mom.
"Seems like you are still that music man after all."
Erich scoffed before heading back to his room. He dug through his old clothes and found some inconspicuous clothes that he could wear.
His sister leaned against the doorframe asking where he was planning to go.
"I want to see the moon tonight," he said.
His sister uncrossed her arms before walking into his room and started to sort through his clothes before handing him some casual looking clothes that wouldn't make him stand out.
"I will go out with you," she said.
"Sorry sis, but I want to enjoy this time alone," Erich reached out his hand and began patting Erika.
The sincerity on his face managed to convince his sister. After a few stern warnings from her he ventured out into Wien in the dead of night. Dark was the night and bright were the stars. The cold winds from the east hummed and brushed against his skin.
The streets were unchanged despite 9 years going by. It was as if Wien had been frozen in time. Maybe it was the moon who was showing him the things he missed the most. The bakery he would visit every morning. The house of Steiner that was now completely barricaded with wooden planks. Faint lights from windows lit up the streets as Erich made his way through the city.
There was a hole he and his friend dug as kids that allowed them to slip through the city walls without dealing with those pesky guards. The hole was most definitely not his size anymore but he tried to squeeze himself through anyways.
Now covered in dirt and mud he made his way to the cemetery. The gravestones stretched as far as the eye could see but he wandered through, muttering all the names of the fallen as he passed.
Steiner's and Felix's graves were next to each other. He was glad that his soldiers allowed their graves to be next to each other. He took out a bottle of alcohol he had in his bag. It was their comfort booze, and his personal favorite. Wienian brandy.
Under the moon's gaze and the stars' light he poured a quarter of the bottle to each one of his friends. He sat between their gravestones and began drinking as well.
"You are home now. Enjoy your rest."
He then put the alcohol bottle with a little liquid left in it before venturing further away from the city. It was a hill, an empty hill, filled with grass and flowers. The moon above, the city by his side, the wind whistling to him.
As much beauty as one can have, the moon had. He thought of a wish, a wish for the moon. He still wanted to protect the sacred city which he held in his heart. But there was nothing left for him to do.
The sound of the tip of her quill marking the papers with words of hope echoed under the dim light of a candle. As if sensing that the person whom she had sworn to protect had left her side, Selina's hand pulled on the blanket on her and her eyes violently fluttered open.
Hearing the sound of rustling in her bed Erika turned around in shock seeing Selina sitting on the bed. She was staring at her like a dragon who had just awoken from her slumbers. Her next words were serious and direct, asking where the Generalleutnant was.
Erika hurriedly made her way over to Selina urging her to lay down and not to move too much. Her body had atrophied and needed to rehabilitate.
"I won't ask you again. Where is Generalleutnant."
Erika stayed quiet and hoped for Erich's return soon. But as the silence grew so did Selina's impatience. She grabbed onto the IV tubes and ripped them out of her veins and threw the blanket off of her.
"I can't let you go," Erika blocked her path out of bed.
Blue loxes began to flow into Selina's right arm and filled her hand. A crystal gun was pointed at Erika and Selina violently coughed up blood. Erika backed away and told her that Erich would come back soon.
Selina stumbled onto the ground after getting out of bed.
"Both your legs are not yet healed, you can't go anywhere," Erika said sternly.
Selina dragged herself forward on the floor, her eyes scanning the room frantically.
That's when the door to the café opened and Erich entered the room covered in dirt. His eyes wandered to Selina on the floor and to a concerned Erika standing in the middle of her office.
Selina's head tilted up and the lox gun dematerialized.
"Generalleutnant," she said with a content smile before her vision turned black.