By late 1996 I was into Vampire: The Masquerade and had just played my first of a few Vampire LARP. I was in my last highschool years here in Germany and would have remained so probably.
Since I was living with my single mom her fate would have decided my fate as well, at least to a good degree. Turning 18 in the summer of 1999, I would not have been drafted till the very end. But given the situation in Western Germany post-exchange, I might have joined the army - which I historically did in 2000 - after becoming 17 years old. Germany is one of very few states to sill allow this, but parental consent is necessary.
My mother would not have given consent, but should she have died (she got cancer treatment in 1996), it's unclear who my legal guardians would have become; possibly my grandparents though. They would not have allowed it either, but since they lived in Cologne, they might have been dead, too.
Other close relatives would have been my father, but it's difficult to tell, if he would have gotten custody. If so, volunteering would have been not unlikely, if I would want to. Depending on the legal situation, I would have earned a middle-school diploma (1998) or a limited high-school diploma (1999), the later making me eligible for officer candidate selection.
So, I see multiple choices really: I die during post-exchange collapse of German society, or I join the Bundeswehr in 1998 or 1999 at the latest. The latter gives the option to start some form of officer career, whatever that means in mid-1999. Joining in 1998 with a lower school diploma might still make me eligible for a NCO career, but looking at my grades back then, probably only in the infantry. Most likely, I'll then die in Operation Reset.
Bottom line: German teenagers from Western urbanized areas likely don't last long. There is no place to run, when the bombs start falling and joining the army late in the war isn't exactly raising chances. Still better though, than fighting early. I figure, losses were the highest early in the war.
So, if I join the army in 1999 or even in 2000 (if smacked some sense into), I probably survive.
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Liber et infractus
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