- 1940. Berlin, Germany -
Armin Mattias, an SS-Sturmmann in the SS Honor Guard of the Reichstag. He was 29 and devoted to the Fuhrer and everything he said. This man would do almost anything, should it be asked of him. He was like many others, devoted to the man that brought them honor and saved them from the depression they were left in. Now, he stood to watch in the damaged building. The Reichstag was rarely, if ever, used by this point, and stood more as a prized building instead of a government building. It was a stamp of history, how Germany was once ruled. The only reason it still stood was simply because it was a monument, so to speak. Hence the Honor Guard, S.S. soldiers ordered to defend the building against anything from simple robbers to the virtually impossible attack against Berlin itself. Most of them knew this, but this didn't change the fact that they would stay here and died if it was asked of them. Many of them never expected combat. This thought was, however, proven wrong come January of 1940. A meager three blocks from the great building, a gate appeared, virtually from nowhere. From within came an attack they believed impossible. An army attacked, striking the people of Germany. Before the Honor Guard even knew what was happening, the enemy was at their doorstep.
...
The MG-34 continued to roar as it sprayed down the steps of the Reichstag. It tore into the enemy, killing them with ease. They were, however, just replaced by another, and the MG-34 simply did not have that much ammo. This was the only one they had, due to the fact no one expected this. Armin popped out from cover, firing down the stairs with his Karabiner 98k. He didn't know if he hit anything, but it didn't matter. Just as long as he kept them down, he was doing his job. The highest ranking officer ordered Armin, among others, to hold the enemy off as long as possible before retreating. Everyone else was setting up in the main entry hall. The Honor Guard in the building at the time of the attack was under 50, Armin guessed 40, or so. Their enemy greatly outnumbered them, but something was... off. They were not armed with guns, much like their other foes. Instead, they had swords and bows. Such objects had little hope of getting close to their rifles without numbers. Sadly, they had numbers, and the Honor Guard were low on ammo. Armin fired the last round from his magazine. He took a knee, grabbing for another. Just his luck, that was his last magazine. He didn't have to go far, though, to get more ammo. While the enemy was armed with bows, that did not mean they were incapable of killing the SS. They had killed two, injured a third soldier. Armin dropped his rifle, taking a fallen soldier's Karabiner.
"Sorry, friend. I'll send my condolences to your wife..." He poked his head out again, firing. He saw this round, taking a certain pleasure in seeing one of the enemy soldiers falling backward. Finally, the MG-34 fell silent. The SS-Rottenfuhrer pulled out a whistle, blowing on it.
"Fall back! Fall back!" He yelled, waving everyone to the door. The MG man and his loader picked up the '34, quickly running in. Those closest moved is, while those furthest gave covering fire. Armin and another soldier ran back to the door. Unluckily for the other soldier, though, his lucky number was up. an arrow whistled through the air and drove into the left side of his neck. He gave a gurgled cry, falling to the ground. Armin jumped over his fallen body, and through the door. The last soldier made his way in, and the doors were closed. They quickly barricaded it was tables or anything in reach. The Rottenfuhrer took the lead, taking everyone to the main entry hall. It was a grand room with a dual staircase looping around to a door that entered into the main meeting room. The highest ranked officer put everyone into position, the remaining 36, two of which were injured, prepared for combat. The '34 was reloaded and put at the top of the stairs, where they met and went to the main hall. They could hear loud crashes, repeated over and over as the enemy tried to crash through the door and into the building. Armin was next to the machine gunners, watching over the room. A minute passed as they slammed on, but it felt like an hour. The tension was high as the men grew anxious. Their foe, with their superior numbers, could smash the remaining guard to smithereens if they so felt. Armin looked left to the loader of the MG. He held a cross to his mouth, whispering hurriedly.
"Dear lord, let us see the end of this day. Please allow us to push back these slaughterers of the innocent and avenge them. Please allow us to serve the Fuhrer to best of our abilities... Ame-" A deafening crash filled the building, fear entering all their hearts again. They could hear cries, war cries. The enemy was here, and the remaining guard prepared. It didn't take long, the route from the main door to the entry hall was pretty direct. The moment the first hostile past the door, bullets began to fly. Armin flinched as the MG-34 roared back to life, shredding the hostiles down below. It was a blood bath, bodies piling on bodies. Limbs and viscera flying every which way. Cries of war turned to cries of anguish as they were slaughtered. The slaughter didn't end there, alas, the Honor Guard still held another trick up its sleeve. When the MG stopped firing to reload, two more soldeirs moved up. They were armed with flame throwers. Some of the reserves had fallen back, bringing the deadly weapon. Before any foe could get fire, jets of flame flew out over the door. Screams came, men flailing to try and put themselves out. It was a horrifying sight, but a necessary one. This was for the people of the Reich, for Germany, for the Fuhrer!
The MG fell down to its last belt, the flame throwers were out, and they were almost out of rifle and SMG rounds. The enemy seemingly didn;t end, still throwing themselves endlessly at the slaughter pit. Up to this point, they had found no other way around to reach the upper area. Armin now leaned against a pile of sandbags placed at the stairs. His rifle was out, the only thing had now was a Luger handgun. The MG burst out rounds as rifles continued to put down others, but the enemy was gradually making their way in. The front line pulled back to the second, and then to the third. Now the men were beginning to retreat up the stairs. They were down to 27 now, and very limited in ammo. The 27 Honor Guard were falling back to the 10 reserves waiting. They were only armed with Karabiner 98ks, as well, so they could only fight for so long. The senior officer waved his gun, barking an order. He stood on the other side of Armin, his own empty MP-38 laying forgotten.
"Fall back, fall bac-" An arrow flew from across the room, hitting the man square in the chest. He flew backward, falling flat on his back. Armin leaped up, quickly returning fire. He didn't even check if he hit anything, just sliding to the man's side. Armin knelt by his commander, who grabbed his shoulder. The man let out a heavy cough, blood spurting from his mouth.
"A-Armin? Armin, boy... Go... Get your..." He coughed heavily, trying to sit up. Armin instantly pushed him down.
"Sir lay down! You're hit! you need a medic! MEDIC!" He yelled, looking around frantically. The man, however, was having none of that. He grabbed Armin by the collar with his other hand, pulling back around.
"Boy, I'm dead. Go... Fall back and leave me!" He let out, before falling back, his breathing labored. Armin, bound by his oath to follow orders of his superiors, nodded.
"Yes, sir." He stood up, grabbing the officer's whistle. He looked at it, the markings of the SS insignia etched into its side. He put it in his mouth, blowing as hard as he could.
"Full retreat! Full retreat!" He yelled at the top of his lungs. The men didn;t question it, and didn;t complain. They turned and ran. This was, however, their unlucky moment, as doors on either side of the stairs burst open, more foes flooding in. They cut off the bulk of the remaining Honor Guard. Only 15 would be able to get to the door without trouble. The rest were trapped. The MG men struggled to bring the gun up, the belt getting caught. One of the enemy soldiers ran, sword arm readying the run one of the through. Armin was faster, however. He brought the Luger up, putting a round in the man's arm and chest. He hit the railing, sliding down. He was dead and gave the machine gunners time to get the gun free. They all retreated, closing the last set of doors to the main hall. The reserves were waiting, downright terrified.
"What happened?! Where is the Sturnscharfuhrer?!" One demanded, running around the group, looking at the battered and exhausted Honor Guard.
"Dead. they got him..." Armin said plainly, limping to a place he could sit. Disbelief filled the younger man's face, but he knew it was the truth. The Honor Guard just sat down, laid down, or leaned against a wall. They were a meager 25 strong, armed with half a belt of MG ammo, a few rifles, and a couple MG-38s. In the backroom hid several civilians, children, the elderly and women.
"You... You aren't giving up, are you?" The man asked Armin. The soldier merely leaned back, letting his head rest. The man gained no answer, and realized the worst; the Honor Guard's moral was broken. They were wiped out, out of ammo, battered and without a leader.
"We... We're all dead..." The man murmured, his eyes wide, all the color leaving his face. Some of the reserve soldiers were trying to barricade the door, which began to shake as the enemy attempted to force their way in. Heavy slams shook the frame of the door. The man dropped to his knees.
"No... Nonononono... NO!" He cried, his head in his hands.
"I don't want to die!" One of the Honor Guard stood up.
"Stop crying, you sniveling coward! Don't you think we are scared, too?! If you want to cry, go back there with the civilians, and stop bothering us!"
"What are you talking about?! You've given up!"
"At least we have enough fucking honor to face out death, not curling up into a ball, begging god to save us!" The argument grew more heated as Armin's clouded brain fought to make him move. Exhaustion filled every inch of his body, from head to toe. He didn't want to move, to fight, he just wanted to rest. However, he could not.
He had to do what was right. The man's eyes shot open, looking up towards the ceiling of the great building.
"- while we were fighting?!"
"Staying back here, protecting the innocent, LIKE WE WERE ORDERED TO!"
"ENOUGH!" Armin yelled, already on his feet. The whole room fell silent, exclueding the banding outside the door. Armin used the momentary silence to gather his thoughts, then began. He pointed to the reserve trooper complaining.
"You! You want to follow orders so badly?! Help the MG men set up on the podium, protect THEM at all costs." He pointed to two Honor guard, two of the best shots of the group.
"You two, take some scopes and go up into the balcony." He motioned to everyone else.
"Everyone else, find cover. If you don;t have a gun or ammo, there are some in the back! Every able bodied man fights, no matter what!" The silence came, everyone still looking at him in shock. The complainer gave him an insolent look.
"Who put you in charge?" This was answered by one of the other Honor Guard, who hit the younger man in the back of the head.
"You heard him, move it!" The older soldier barked. They would need compliance and order to win this fight or to at least survive. The group of soldiers quickly set up. Men and the older boys, at least 16, were also armed with rifles. Everyone was set up either high up or in the back. The door began to crack as it was torn to shreds by the oncoming horde.
"No one fire until the '34 is out! We have to maximize the effectiveness of what we have left! We are the last line between the innocent and our aggressors! Do not falter, do not surrender! Woman and children, unable to defend themselves lie upon us! For the Fatherland! For the Fuhrer!" The Honor Guard gave cheers, along with the reserves and the armed civilians. The door finally blew open, splinters flying everywhere. Like before, those in front were met with the fully automatic '34. The gun sprayed dwon from the head podium, tearing them apart. Soldeirs fell over eachother, trying to get past the hail of bullets. This lasted for about ten seconds, then the gunner yelled.
"I'm out!"
"OPEN FIRE!" Armin yelled, and the machien gun fire was replaced by the MP-38s and Karabiner 98ks. Armin put down several hostiles, but this was not enough. The enemy made their way to the back bleachers, spreading out. This made it harder to take them out individually. However, the enemy attack came to a fatal point, as they passed beneath the snipers. The two men dropped their grenades dwon on them, blowing holes in the attackers. They then just began dropping bricks, bleachers, and other pieces of rubble down. The front lines retreated under the cover of the second one. Sadly, the Karabiner was not designed in pumping rounds very fast, more on accuracy. This showed as the untrained civilians and undertrained reserves didn;t fire even half as fast as the Honor Guard. They had only two more MP-38s, which simply didn't have enough stopping power or a high enough fire rate to make much difference. The enemy made it about half way down the bleachers. They had tried formations remincent of those that Romans were thought to have used, but their shields were no match for rifles. No, they moved cover to cover, learning that being picked out by these magical weapons was a death scentence. When the first 'I'm out!' was heard, Armin knew that they were running out a time. Mere minutes later, most of the soldiers and civilians were out of ammounition, hanging back and watching the approaching death. They had no bayonets, so the only way they could fight would be hand to hand, something most of them were not trained to do. Evem the Honor Guard would have trouble, as the enemy used swords, adn they had blunt istruments or daggers. Volleys of arrow bared down on those at the podium. One of the reserve soldiers went down, his rifle taken up by one of the Honor Guard. Armin's own rifel clicked, signally he was finally finished. He threw it down, drawing his Luger. One of the enemies climbed up the stand, only to be shot down by that very gun.
"Fight to the last!" He yelled, taking out his dagger. The remaining grenades were lobbed over the podium, into the gallery. The resulting explosions were very effective, but not enough. Many of the men resolved to death, but were prepared. They would die for those who could not fight, and die well. Everyone was out, all pushed back to the door. Armin held up his dagger.
"This is where we die! take as many down with you as you can! For the Fuhrer!" They all cheered as the Imperials closed in. One Imperial rushed Amrin, he ducked away from his chop. The soldier ran his dagger into the man's neck, kicking him away. Another tried, only to get bashed in the face by the stock of a rifle. The bigger Honor Guard grabebd the man's sword, slashing it through a second. Armin saw, far on the otherside of the room, the grey uniforms of the reserves. The cavalry was here, and they had ammo. Machine guns roared to life, mowing down all stll not on the stage. Those on the stage realized their situation. One, who had been trying to attack Armin realized this quickly, throwing down his weapon in an act of surrender. Once one did this, they all did. Upon their surrender, the day was won for the Reich. The reserves quickly spread out, detaining the aggressers, taking them somehwere Armin did not care to ask. He was tired, so, unblievably tired. The officer of the reserves stepped forward.
"Who is in command here?" Armin blinked his eyes back open, looking around. He found that everyone was looking at him. Taht was all Armin saw, though. He fell forwards, passing out from exhaustion.
- Two Weeks Later -
Two weeks after the initial attack, Berlin was healing. The gate that the enemy had come from was now surrounded and under watch by the Reserves, and several MGs and tanks. However, today was a time of celebration. The 14 remaining Honor Guard, 7 remainig reserve defenders, and the 5 surviving armed civilians were awarded all they could be at their current rank. This was done by the Fuhrer himself, Adolf Hitler.
"The 1st Honor Guard of the Reichstag! You defended your father land from invaders to the last, losing many good men in the process. You have brought honor to yourselves and and the Reich as a whole. I am honored to present you with the title of 'Heros of Berlin'!" Cheers filled the area, applause following. Arminw as beaming, him and his allies. They were recognised by the Fuhrer, a man they had devoted their lives to, as heroes. It only got better from there, though.
- The office of the Fuhrer, moved to Leipzig -
"Herr Armin Mattias, it has come to my attention that, upon the death of your officer, and all the other soldiers present, you took command. is this true?" Armin stood in the office of his Fuhrer, among other high level officials.
"Yes, sir."
"In the Reichstag, we expect regualr acts of bravery and loyalty. What you have done, however, is beyond that. Tell me, have you heard of what the Reich intends to do witht he Gate?"
"Only that we are going beyond the Gate, into the new lands, sir."
"Hmm... Tell me, Herr Mattias, do you want to go there?"
"Sir? I guess so."
"I don't want to know if you guess so, do you want to?"
"Yes, sir."
"Well, this fits perfectly, then." The Fuhrer snapped his fingers, a folder being placed in his hand.
"You, the remaining Honor Guard, and a few other SS soldiers will be sent to the other side to represent the SS in the new world." Armin accepted the folder, shock on his face.
"We will be the only SS there?!"
"No, no. More SS soldiers will be deployed, but you will be there as the SS in a political sense."
"But... sir! I am only a Sturmmann-"
"Ah, yes. that rank if not fitting for someone who is so natural in command... Perhaps an Obersturmfuhrer?" Armin gapped, shock filling his face.
"O-Obersturmfuhrer?!"
"Oh, is that not acceptable? Perhaps that is too low... Very well. Hauptsturmfuhrer Armin Mattais, you are now in command of the recently established the 1st SS Armoured Politcal Envoy." he offered his ahnd to the stunned Armin, who took his leaders hand eagerly. As they came to an agreement, tanks, soldiers and vehicles prepared to march on into the new lands, to set up an explore...
And get the revenge the people so desired.