The Hawaiian Special Forces

Chapter 20

They reached the border of Poland in the middle of the night and discovered something... unpleasant. Aoloa stared at the fence in front of him in disgust. ::Really? An electrified fence? Really?::

They'd been trudging along the length of it for a half hour, now, and were getting frustrated. Trees were cleared away from it on both sides, making it impossible to jump over. Worse, there were cameras periodically along its length. They were often having to duck back among the trees in an effort to remain undiscovered.

As they approached a road, and a gap in the fence, they heard a noise that unsettled them. Engines. Diesel. Not moving. Peering ahead cautiously, they saw military vehicles waiting for them on either side of the fence.

::You know, it's at times like this that I wish we had the pack around to dig us a hole UNDER this damned fence. This is getting ridiculous!::

Hokulani nodded in agreement, staring at the vehicles that were waiting for them. ::What do you want to do? We can go around them and keep moving south. We might be able to go through the Ukraine and around Poland. It's not exactly idea, but it beats getting shot.::

Aoloa stared at the men before him. They were alert, but didn't appear to be aware of their presence. They had lights keeping the area well lit, as it was a checkpoint for goods and visitors. They were also definitely not the standard border guard. There were too many of them, and they were vastly better armed than the guards on the Russian border had been. And there were dogs. Again.

::What do you think the odds are we could negotiate for safe passage with the Polish? All we really want is to cut through their country and be on our way.::

Hokulani stared at him incredulously for a moment. ::What's your plan? Stride up there, past the Belorussian guards, and flash the Polish a heartwarming grin and ask if you can just bop on through, since you don't want to cause trouble? Oh, and don't mind the fur and nudity, won't be an issue? Really?::

Aoloa scowled a bit. ::I was thinking more of using their equipment. We have comms units for a reason, why not use them?::

::That'll kill any chance we have of sneaking past, if the negotiations go south. Also, we'd still have to get past the Belorussians, which they don't appear eager to allow.::

::I was hoping the Polish army could help out with that, a little. Maybe negotiate on our behalf, and all.::

::This is a stupid plan. You know that, right?::

Aoloa paused to think. It is a stupid plan. Looking back on it, the train idea was pretty stupid, too. He sighed deeply. ::What's your idea? Go south and hope for the best?::

::It'll be warmer, at least. I know it's a detour, but we're not all that far from the border to the Ukraine. If there ends up being a fence there, maybe we can use a small tree or something to try to get over it?::

They gave the checkpoint a wide berth and continued south. Crossing the into the Ukraine proved fairly simple, but there was still a fence along the Polish border. They resigned themselves to going around Poland, as it was easier than dealing with the mess of getting over that fence, and then maybe having to get over it a second time.

The blessing in the Ukraine was the hunts stopped. They showed no particular awareness of them, nor an interest in catching them. The result was a slower trip, but one that allowed them to hunt better and eat regularly.

Once they got into Hungary, things got even better. They were able to hitch a couple rides on semis with soft-panel sides. The result was trips where they could easily slip in and out of their rides. Using this method, they quickly traversed the length of Hungary. Austria proved more difficult, pushing them back to traveling on foot until they arrived at the German border.

::The Angela Merkel Memorial Border Fence,:: Aoloa read out loud. ::Is this some kind of a joke?::

::You don't remember the Syrian Immigrant Riots of twenty seventeen?::

::That's just it, she CAUSED those!::

::Yeah, and in memory of her stupidity, Germany built a fence. They even named it after her, 'That none may forget.':: Hokulani reminded him.

::First the built a fence. Then they tore it done. Then they destroyed their borders. Then they built a fence again. What next? Ovens?::

::Who knows. But we're not getting through that.::

She was right. It made the Polish fence look like a joke. It was a double chain link fence with a dog run in the center. Security cameras and sensors ran its perimeter, and it was electrified. All in all, no chance of getting through.

Aoloa checked their maps and groaned out loud before making a rare utterance. "Fucking mountains in winter."

Hokulani nodded, then turned to the side and began traveling. They were about to get slowed down crossing the alps the hard way.