The Origins of Waldetrudus August Of Hertals - PART 2

https://app.warera.io/article/6a27225d1b7622dffbf5ec85
Be sure to check part 1 in this ongoing adventure!

Consciousness returned to Waldetrudus in painful, flickering waves as the steady downpour hit his face. He was heavily anesthetized, his internal systems heavily compromised, but through the haze of localized "Smurf Strong" medical fluids and sparking wires, he looked up at his saviors.

It was a surreal group working in perfect synchronization to patch up his exposed cybernetic chassis. Standing stoically at the center was the towering Akimbo the Panda in full naval dress uniform, flanked by the intensely mustachioed Smurf King and the Stern Smurf Louis Georges Boulanger. Surrounding them were the trusted inner circle members who would later go on to form the historic Nieuwe Regering van België. Right beside him, a remarkably healthy-looking corgi watched over the repairs with keen, intelligent eyes. They didn't treat him like an alien anomaly; they treated him like a brother-in-arms left behind on the cobblestones.


Boot Camp and Steady Progress

Once the emergency welding held and his cybernetic lung stabilized, the humble soldier quietly requested to be put to work. He didn't look to pull rank or preach about the terrors of 2126; he just wanted to pull his weight. He was assigned to a local Military Unit (MU) that, while deeply devoted to the cause, was noticeably disorganized and struggled with overall operational effectiveness.

The unit's leadership faced unique hurdles in streamlining their forces. Commander Barto ran operations with an abundance of unpredictable, high-energy enthusiasm, while Commander Siphlex—a massive, round, pink Kirby-like entity packed tightly into a military helmet and tactical combat gear—had a physics-defying presence that frequently left the fresh recruits trying to find their footing. Between Barto’s unconventional strategies and the unusual nature of the command structure, turning the uncoordinated volunteers into a well-oiled fighting squad was a steep uphill battle. Instead of stepping over them or showing frustration, Waldetrudus quietly spent his evenings in the mud, helping young soldiers clean their gear, sharing maintenance tips, and patiently helping the squad build cohesion.

Hope in the Undead Century

During his first few months, Waldetrudus had to entirely recalibrate how he viewed warfare. The grand strategic map looked familiar—the Anglo-Germanic Coalition, the British, and their Swedish allies were still the primary adversaries pressing hard against the borders—but the grim, ash-choked finality of his past was nowhere to be found.

This alternate 2026 was far from a destroyed wasteland. The cities still stood proudly, the fields were green, and a stubborn, infectious sense of hope thrived among the civilian population. People didn't fight out of hollow, apocalyptic despair; they fought out of a genuine, joyful belief that their communities were worth protecting. For a man who had only ever known a dying planet, seeing citizens smiling through rationing lines gave him a profound, quiet sense of purpose.

Forging the Vanguard

Waldetrudus never sought a promotion, but his decades of survival experience in a high-tech war zone couldn't be hidden. During unexpected border skirmishes, he instinctively predicted corporate drone patterns and defensive lines before the enemy could even deploy them. His steady, calm voice under fire naturally kept panicked lines from breaking.

When the call came, he reluctantly accepted the role of Commander simply to keep his comrades alive. He restructured the MU around practical, common-sense drilling, integrating Siphlex’s unique capabilities into defensive formations meant to minimize casualties.

The transformed MU soon found its perfect counter-weight on the battlefield. Together with Belgium's legendary elite fighting force—the actual, heavily armored, pint-sized infantry seen in afbeelding2.jpg known as the Smurfs—and a ragtag, not-yet-fearsome squad called the Belgian Black Devils, Belgium rapidly made a massive name for itself on the international scene.

With an unbreakable defense doctrine and an unstoppable, blue-skinned vanguard, this unlikely alliance was about to take the global stage by storm—initiating defensive stabilization campaigns that would lead them all the way across the oceans to Cuba and the Maldives...

But little did he know that the war would turn into chaos. Overstretching, massive battles and inevitable regroup and retreat. Can the future soldier come back from another defat??

See you for the next part!