Dormitory, Berlin, Bäckertag 33. Sigmarszeit

Nathan and Ermine balanced a kid on their knees each while the TV-show ran its course. Nathan used the remote to increase the volume when the next segment came up while Ermine tried to shush Heinrich. "Look, daddy is in the TV, watch."
The slender astronaut was dwarfed by "Jumbo" Schreiner, a bald, jovial-looking giant of a man. The wall behind them displayed a mass of girders that ended in a cone on one side and a couple of bell-shaped nozzles on the other one.
When the twins had quieted enough that the TV could be heard the two were through the greeting and the opening statements already.
"You know, this reminds me of something, but I cannot say what."
"Did you ever watch "Moonbase Alpha"Jumbo?"
"Yes, but a long time ago."
"The "Polarstern" (Polaris) looks a bit like the "Eagle" ships in that series. Cannot land anywhere of course."
"So you say this is a fully reusable spaceship. Didn`t they say the same about the Space Shuttle?"
"Yes, they did. The big difference is that "Polarstern" will never be subject to strong acceleration-0.1 G is already pushing it. It will also never be subject to the stresses of a reentry into the atmosphere. If something goes wrong we can repair it at leisure and will not crash and burn."
"And the fuel you use is water? Can I do that in my car?"
"Only if you have an engine with the Rune of Fire, and these are rare. I would be surprised if more than a hundred runes of these are made a year, only very few runesmiths can cut good ones. Water is used as a propellant, as a mass we heat up and then eject to gain thrust. This setup gives us twice the ISP-sorry the efficiency-of a conventional engine with storable propellants and we hope to be able to get water from the Sage-17 satellite in the long run."
"So what are you going to do with the "Polarstern?"
"Question is more what not. Red crew-that is me, Manfred Bettin and Erik Bär completed her and ran the first tests. Black crew will install additional sensors and do a flyby of more Sage satellites and Gold Crew will use it to place the first satellites in a higher orbit."
"How do you do that?"
"Behind the hab module we have several pallets open to space we use to carry payloads. We just release them when the correct orbit is reached. We might retrieve faulty satellites that way and repair them at Koperikus."
"So you have three crews that rotate through the space station?"
"Yes, Black, Red and Gold crew."
"So what will you do when you are back."
"Well, if everything works out-a big if since the Polarstern is so new-then we will do a flyby of Mannslieb."
"Did I get that correctly-you will fly to a moon?"
"Around it, big difference but yes, this is what we will do."
"Wow, just wow."

Mirror Room, Versailles, 3rd may 2018

Maris VanderSchanz had been in this room several times now to gain visions of Germany. The room was still the same in all of its glory, but everything else was different. Gone were the TV crews and their cameras, instead a bunch of scientists readied their instruments. Gone was also the feeling of struggling with something that should be easy and was not due to the lack of power. Instead he used a skull that was clearly not a human one made from crystal. It had been given to him by Lord Mazdamundi and contained great power for him to use. A green disk that was worn by many hands had a crude break through its middle. If the great Slann had told the truth it should serve as a beacon. Glyphs on it had started to glow a few days before and now it was time to see if all the preparations would pay off.
Intoning the chants he had learned his mind went to the place that was reserved for those with the gift.
He was in a place that was hot and cold at the same time, filled with colors he could not describe and sounds that he did not really hear. He was drawn to a light and before long faced something vast.
"You are in time, good. Let it begin."

The mage would not see the mirrors this time, Lord Mazdamundi was handling this part. The mirror that was watched by so many instruments suddenly filled with the picture of another one, old also but different. It only displayed a range of lens-like instruments as well and a couple of colorful light points. The instruments analyzed them and excited babble could be heard from behind the partitions where the scientists and technicians mostly resided. VanderSchanz also did not see the dots which appeared on the mirror below the first ones-or heard the jubilations when the signal just sent was replayed from another universe.
Four lasers transmitted information in a format described in the CDs the Germans had left behind. Marius VanderSchanz was not up to keep the connection for more than 30 minutes, but it did not matter, especially as this would not be the last time.
4.3 Terrabytes of information were exchanged during these minutes.

Leading article, Bild newspaper 4th Brauzeit

The end of the Euro! D-Mark sole money of Germany again! Rolling change starts next Markttag!

After several attempts in the aftermath of the Weltensprung, which came to naught due to the succession of crisis we found ourselves in, now the Euro gets finally dismissed. The old notes and coins will be exchanged when they are removed normally from circulation as too old and will be exchanged on a one-to-one basis. According to new Minister of Economy Bernd Lucke from the Freisinningen, "The Euro finally gets onto the rubbish heap of history it belongs. The chain around our necks, forced onto us as a price for reunification is fully broken now. We have come to accept that we no will likely not return to the midst of Europe. There is simply no reason to keep the Euro and we can return to the "Mark" that Germany was rightly proud of.
Anyway, the vast majority of Germany is not sad to see the Euro go. For some of those who are, like Martin Schulz, former President of the EU-Parliament, I have arranged a workshop about the Euro in the town of Buckow in the Empire´s Ostermark province.
We others keep on working hard to bring our economy on track again. Even now, there is a lot to be done to bring us to the point before the Weltensprung again."

Karak Kadrin, Peak Pass

Hans-Olaf Henkel, former BDI-President and newly minted Minister for Procurement allocation and storage of raw materials was extremley glad for the Imperial sorcerer in their entourage. Getting rid of a binge drinking headache like this was great!
Drinking excessively was part of most negotiations with the Dawi, especially if the King in question had taken the Slayer Oath. Karak Kadrin stood watch over Peak Pass, one of the few and thus important passes through the World´s Edge Mountains. At the same time it made the Dawi stronghold an important market place.

The Weltensprung had hit Germany hard. And while the nation hauled itself out of the pit with ingrained diligence and ability, it still was not easy. Especially the resource situation was a problem. Well, many needs could be met again six years after the Event, but in some areas availability was scarce or simply not possible.
Therefore, with the comparatively quiet at the moment, with the new government a new ministry was introduced. The "Ministerium für Rohstoffbeschaffung, Verwaltung und Lagerwirtschaft" (Ministry of Procurement allocation and storage of raw materials ) or as everybody shortened it: Rohstoffministerium (Raw materials Ministry)

Due to Hans-Olaf Henkel´s industrial ties and his membership in the minor coalition party,he became the first minister of the new ministry. and there was a lot to do.
One major task was the warehousing of all imported raw materials as a strategic reserve. This sounded a lot easier than it was. Not only had Pre-Weltensprung Germany already stockpiles of several crucial raw materials like oil, these stockpiles had been among the larger of any industrial nation. For instance Germany had a 3 months supply of oil and gas.
After the Weltensprung and all that happened, cautious Germany wanted to broaden the range of materials stockpiled and increase the amount. Equally easier said than done.

While for instance Coltan was important to several industry branches, a five year supply could be stored on a dozen big trucks, if need be. That was child´s play. Equally storing more seeds needed only a modest enlargement of existing warehouses. The same applied for many materials old and Warhammer-new.
But even a single year supply of oil was a big deal. How and where to store it was a problem of massive proportions. In the end, after months of brainstorming, wizards were called into it. Their task should be helping to seal underground storing facilities like old salt stocks, for example in Gorleben. It were tasks like that which reminded the Earthers about the power of Magic. With pure technological methods several potential repositories would have been unavailable.

The Warehousing was an ongoing process, so Olaf Henkel did other tasks. Currently he was visiting important markets to secure business deals in conjunction with industry delegations and to find old and new stuff.
Despite the books on Warhammer Germany had and the six years here, the researchers had only scratched the surface of everything. Only few days went by without a new discovery or finding announced in the news.
So risking his braincells in negotiations with Dwarfs for exotic new things was part of the job description. Only here on Warhammer, thought the minister, only here this is something that happens.

Athel Loren, close to midnight, Solistice

The Worlds Oak was impressive. Lit by countless fires that burned in the glade below its upper reaches blotted out the stars that shone brightly above in the midnight sky. Hundreds of riders, Glade Guards,
War Dancers and Dryads watched the ceremony from the edges of the glade. Despite so many participants, despite Great Stags and horses present, despite being in the midst of a great living forest the only sound to be heard was the occasional crackling of wood while it burned to ashes. Every living thing was silent in awe. In front of the oak the source of this awe stood in front of the shrine. More than three meters high, with rippling muscles under green skin, a royal head adorned with antlers Orion prepared himself.
On this night Orion, the avatar of Kurnous was at the peak of his powers and passions before they would wane again before his inevitable death in winter. Yet this was far away and now he was lovingly adorned with his weapons by his wife Ariel. The Cloak of Isha, seemingly woven of living leaves and twigs would protect him. The great bow and the Spear of Kurnous would bring his anger to the enemies of the Asrai and his hounds fend off the lesser attacks.

Monschau, Germany, same time

The plaza in front of the old castle was filled with the audience that enjoyed a classic version of "Aida" under the stars. Hundreds of people watched and listened when Amneris ordered Aida to accompany her to the general`s triumph. Nary a could sound be heard but for the "Fu la sorte dell' armi".
The cloudless sky and the night made for chilly temperatures. Erich Hamann sorted the scarf around his wife's neck. She canted her head to put her cheek against his hand and smiled like she had done for so many years.

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Athel Loren, close to midnight, Solistice

Orion was filled by great passions, such as only the avatar of a god would be able to hold. Love for his wife, compassion for his people, the need to protect the holy forest and the hate for its enemies. The hate that seared through his veins and that threatened to consume him, the hate that would kill any lesser being, the hate that purged any conflicting thoughts from his mind. A hate that threatened even Orion and that could be contained only in one way. By slaying Athel Loren`s enemies wherever they might be. The only thing that was present in his mind besides the hate and the need to slay the enemy was the beacon. The ancient beacon that pointed him to his enemies, that showed him the way towards those who would threaten him. They were far away this time, he could feel that, yet they could not avoid the retribution of Kurnous. He needed to act soon before his passions would overwhelm him.
He kneeled before Ariel, his wife, who gave him her blessings before standing up to his full height, stretching his arms towards the starry sky.
Lifting his horn to his lips he blew. The sound was not heard by the onlookers, it was felt with body and mind. Those present were filled by a weak shadow of Orion`s passions, as much as mere mortals could hold. All of them were filled by the need to hunt and slay the enemy. All were about to join, none could imagine to hold back.
The Wild Hunt was on and woes betide the enemies of Athel Loren.

Monschau, Germany, same time

The break had come and gone and now the audience listened when Aida waited for her secretive meeting with Ramades. This was the quiet before the grand finale and so the listeners were at peace with Qui Radames verrà. Adele Hamann happily munched the granola bar her husband had given her.

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The woods around Orion and the Wild Hunt were had been full of the sounds that all forests made at night. The rustling of leaves, the calls of birds and the scurrying of night life. Now it had all fallen silent, in awe and fear of what had appeared in their midst. Orion stood in the midst of hundreds of Wild Riders and turned his head like a hound about to take a spoor. The paths of the Worldroot had not brought him to his target, he could sense it far off easily. The paths led from the World Oak to many places, even far-off Naggaroth. The roots were open to those with knowledge of the lore and would transport them to the farthest reaches with a few steps. Yet in this strange land that had appeared from nowhere the roots had yet to reach. Until that time Orion and the Wild Hunt were forces to move through the real world instead of stepping through a gate and simply being there. The beacon drew him in with its promise of bloodshed and retribution even here. The horn went to the lips again and the call went out. The Wild Hunt had begun for real and all in their path would die.

500 meters AGL, Close to Aachen, German border

The crew of NZ-31 was about to settle for the second half of their shift. Caffeine-laced drinks were making the rounds, bread rolls were taken from containers and plans for the next barbeque were hatched. The Lt. in charge of the sensors was debating whether he could accept an invitation when an operator called in.
"Leutnant, you need to see this. Strong pulse at 178. Never seen anything like it. One second nothing, next second-this."
"This" turned out to be a huge spike of magical energies, enough to tax the indicator to its limits and then a steady flow of magic that the indicator could not classify. And the bearing moved, even if slowly."
"Captain, this is sensors. We have something at 178-now 177 degree. Very strong, so mixed we cannot identify any Wind-and it moves."
The Zeppelins pilot contacted control who found that they were out of helicopters they could send in a quick way and so NZ-31 accelerated to its not-so-considerable top speed to investigate.

Monschau, Germany, same time

The audience was in thrall of the performance now that Amneris was in front of the court. Hundreds of people, many in the twilight of their lives, listened to the L' aborrita rivale a me sfuggia.
Erich Hamann watched a tear run down Adele's cheek and removed it gently with a kerchief.

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Upper Rur Valley, Close to Monschau

Orion was a connoisseur of forests, his natural environment, his chosen battlefield the source of his nourishment and when all was said and done his liege. Yet he had not seen a forest such as this in his life. The borders were straight, the trees of roughly the same age and they displayed illnesses that he had never seen before. It was like something had poisoned the trees long before and now they were on the mend. There were plenty of hares, a few boars and stags, yet there were neither wolves nor bears who would normally take advantage of such bounty. The fields the forests bordered were huge, far bigger than any farmer could sensibly care for and connected by roads paved by an unknown black material.

All of this was deeply unnatural- not Chaos-infused, that he would sense right away but all of this existed obviously only at the sufferance of the humans he could sense nearby. And the beacon drew him towards the town he could see on the horizon. He would show them that nature was not to be suppressed in such ways.
He pushed his Great Stag to greater speeds now that the road allowed and blew the horn. The cheers of the Wild Hunt drowned out all other sounds, including those made by three diesel engines a few hundred meters above them. Calls were made and within minutes men and women were roused from their sleep, the engines of war readied and warning sent.

Monschau, same time

Aida and Ramades had just accepted that they would die, buried alive but together to the end with "O terra, addio" when the sirens started to wail. The warble cut through the music, through the confused voices and the sleepiness. While the locals made their way towards shelter or home the visitors from out of town had to look for the nearest one. Many of the older ones had a hard time moving past the many benches and up the incline, while others tried to find their friends and relatives before they went for whatever shelter there was. Some moved with urgency while others were pretty sure it was just the latest exercise and dragged their feet accordingly.

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The plaza was still filled with people when death entered it. Death in the shape of green-clad cavalry that punched spears through any human in range. Death in the shape of archers who hit what they shot at and killed what they hit. Death in the shape of huge hounds that ripped limb from body and life from the Germans, but most of all death had the shape of Orion. Towering above all he shot arrows that never missed, used a spear that always killed and his ride trampled those whom he did not think worthy of attention.
Orion could see was next to no resistance. Some black-clad men had shot their pistols at the Wild Riders, killing a few before they were taken down. Some humans stood before others when they tried to gain any shelter that might be found only to be pierced by arrow and spear. Would Orion not be in the midst of the raging lust for killing that was the hunt he would have been disappointed that there was no worthy enemy, but that might come later when the Hunt was finished in this place the beacon lured him onwards anyway.
And when all was said and done, any puny human outside was fair game when the Wild Hunt was about. The peasants of Bretonia had learned that lesson long ago; it was time to teach it here.

Above them the crew of a Police helicopter could just watch in horror as the massacre under them unfolded. The streets and plazas of Monschau were small and had few exits as they were very old. Panic had broken out and the attackers were taking full advantage of it. Murdering with spear, sword and bow they killed as fast as they could and trampled the bodies of those already slain to get to those still clinging to life. At the entrance to the old castle a few shooters tried to keep the attackers back so that the crowd behind them could gain entrance into the castle proper. Flashes could be seen that emerged from the stage where somebody fired on the advancing cavalry, yet they became fewer by the minute.
It was more than obvious that the few defenders would die soon and that even more people would die. Before the Weltensprung there were only very few things the crew of the helicopter could have done but observe, now different rules applied.

"Peter, Markus-we give these assholes a pass or two. I will turn, then we fly down that road over there, shoot anything that is on a horse."
Turning wide over the city and the small industrial area the pilot felt the wind and noise increase when his two observers opened the doors and moved half out of the small aircraft. He adjusted the course so he flew down the road that led to the stage and lit the area with his high-powered searchlight. Many of the riders paused when hit by the bright illumination and the cracks from the cabin showed why the first of them dropped from the saddle. The pilot slowed a bit to give his crew more time for their attack. He saw it just for the briefest of moments, the green giant that rode from behind a building and that threw something in his direction. Before his hands had moved the stick enough to change course the spear that had accelerated even after leaving the arm pierced him, the cabin and fuel tank behind him before vanishing and appearing again in the hands of the giant. Fuel mixed with hot turbine parts and the helicopter dropped to the ground in a flaming wreck, landing at the far end of the plaza. The wreck burned fiercely and blocked the way to the plaza from this side for Asrai and humans both.

Erich Hamann pushed his wife Adele forward as fast as he dared without toppling her. The dear was a bit slow and body these days. He knew that he should not, but could not keep himself from looking backwards. He could still not understand what had happened, half an hour ago he had celebrated Adele`s 90th birthday by visiting her favorite opera and in such a nice setting. He was sure he had seen her smile several times. It had been so good to see that she could still understand some things. And then the sirens had come, just like the air raid warning of the old days. They had been quick to go, both remembered that it was important. Now all the people that had been behind them were slaughtered by green-clad elves, by a giant and their hounds. A man with an assault rifle hid behind a pillar and shot at them every so often, a green coat hinted that he might be Landwehr to Erich. He had been hit at least once already when he had not ducked in time and besides him were two others who did no longer move.

Hamann stumbled suddenly and he cursed himself for not looking forward. Then he realized that Adele`s shoulders were no longer there and she had dropped to the ground. He was to lift her when he saw the arrow sticking out between her shoulder blades. The face of his wife, the face that he had seen for nearly every day during the last 60 years was distorted mask of pain and confusion and the mouth that had told him that she loved him for as long filled with blood.

It took him four long strides to reach the spot where one of the rifles had been dropped by its former owner. When he lifted it he found it not so different from the STG44 he had used when he and a different world was young, yet he did not take cover like the Landwehrman before him. Standing upright he pointed the rifle at the Elves that were so few meters from him and pulled the trigger as fast as his arthritic fingers allowed. From such a distance he could not miss and his cold hate hid the pain the recoil caused in his shoulder from him. He had worked himself through most of the magazine when something slammed at his head and he dropped to the ground. He was not really out, he could just not move for a few eternal seconds. It took all his hate and grief to move again, to stretch out his arm and grab the other rifle that was no longer needed by its former owner. He barely managed to come to his knees and when he did he did not understand what he saw. Only when he lifted his head more he saw that before him the green giant that topped him by more than two meters and shot a bow at the fleeing humans with incredible speed. The rifle felt like it weighted a ton and he needed so long to get it up. When he fired he was surprised at the burst that broke from it and every shot hit higher than the one before. Even so nearly every shot in the magazine hit. The rounds ripped into the huge tight, vanished inside the heavily muscled stomach, ripped a cheek and clipped off the end of an antler.

A roar filled the plaza unlike anything heard there before. A roar that contained more than human pain and anger, a roar that shook walls and broke windows as well as minds. Erich fell on his back and was drenched in green blood that covered his coat and face. It was the last thing he saw and before he could move in any way a thong of Asrai surrounded him. He was hacked into pieces by an enraged mob that wanted to avenge the attack on their god and many struggled to get their attack in. By the time they were finished the castles doors closed behind the last of the audience who had managed to make their escape.

Three Kilometers from Monschau, 45 minutes later

Orion watched the scar in his lower arm disappear by the minute and his spirits started to rise again. So far it had been a poor hunt, there had been few sport in killing the humans in their city. The wounds he had received did not speak against that, the attack had been treacherous and without honor. Yet there were better things to come, he was sure of it. The beacon burned a bit more brightly with every meter the Hunt rode through the moonlit landscape. It was till far away, but it promised glorious bloodshed and the vanquishing of hated enemies. He would get into the hunt again and then this poor beginning would be forgotten.

The sound was faint and unlike any that he had ever heard. It was like a scream, like the tearing of enormous cloth and other things that he could not place. Yet even his eyes could not find anything at the source of it. For a brief moment a shadow could be seen against a dark sky and then the world exploded. The shadows passed above the Hunt, barely preceded by the scream. A flickering fire burned below them and wherever they passed explosions rose from the ground. They went along the hunt nearly faster than Orion could comprehend and wherever they went doom befell the Wild Hunt. Wild Riders dropped from their saddle, horses screamed, whined and kicked about them or entangled themselves in their entails. And before the avatar of a god had comprehended what had happened it ended. Now he found the time to feel the hurt, now he had to balance not to fall of the back of his Great Stag that suddenly swayed and then dropped.
He put his ride out of its misery and then took stock of the Wild Hunt. Where before hundreds of riders had effortlessly rode on their magnificent horses only few survivors walked about in a daze. Blood and the stink of opened intestines was everywhere, but there was no enemy to account for such a massacre.

Orion was still taking stock of what had happened when the next sound he could not place was to be heard. A thrumming unlike anything he had experienced closed quickly from at least two directions. He used the horn to gain the survivors attention and when they looked for him he pointed at the next copse of trees.
"Gain shelter my people from the magic of this land. Be swift and….
And then there were more explosions, different ones this time. Something flew on flames from the sky and a group of Wild Riders disappeared in fire and smoke. There were blinking light where the sound was coming of and other members of the hunt were ripped apart by something he could not understand. Two of these explosions were far too close for comfort and his cloak rustled from the magic it had used to protect him. And then he finally saw his tormentors. Angular shapes that had no place in flying in any sane world darted around and they shot his people somehow. Finally he could fight back and protect his hunt. He would show them why the mortals feared Orion.
The great arm bend behind his back and then launched a spear that a human would be unable to lift at one of the shapes. It accelerated even when he had released it and flew true as it should. It impacted squarely against the side of one of the shapes and struck. The shape wavered for a moment, righted itself and then flew off.

The spear appeared in the hand of the giant again as if it had never left it. The gunner of the "Apache" helicopter was too busy to wonder at the miracle as he had to light his target up with the laser that swiveled under the nose of the ugly attack helicopter. Anything that survived the attack by MW-1 bomblets that had just been dropped over the bad guys had to be tough, so he triggered one of his few "Hellfire" missiles. It dropped minutely from the pylon before igniting and streaked unerringly towards its target.

The missile impacted squarely on Orion`s great chest. It was a very mundane weapon that hit the avatar, yet it had been designed to kill well-protected tanks in another world. The explosion worked on the cooper liner and pushed it forward at more than 8 kilometers a second. The metal liner was no longer a solid body, being heated to the point where the constituent atoms had been stripped of their electrons and were now plasma.
Orion chest was filled by a fire hotter than any he had ever encountered. The forces that made him alive lost their hold on the body in that instant and a great heap of ashes would be found where the avatar had made his last stand.

Chancellory, Berlin, Sigmarstag, 3. Vorgeheim

The Security Council had many new members, yet the room was still the same windowless one that was supposedly proof against eavesdropping.
The picture that was projected against the back wall displayed several very slender, intricately curved swords and bows, it was a follow-up to another that had a three-pronged arrowhead in it where the grey metal sported a slightly greenish tint. Markus Söder, the new Secretary of Defence consulted his tablet again before speaking.

"Both the henbane-tipped arrow as well as these weapons indicate that the attackers were of the Asrai, the Wood Elves."
"Do we already have an idea how they were able to penetrate our surveillance so easily?"
"Thomas, we have to rely on the info from the Games Workshop here as well as some comments by the Asurian ambassador. They both agree that the Asrai have access to a system of teleporting gates known as the "Paths of the Worldroot." It looks like at least one of them terminates very close to the old German border and from there the attackers were able to get to Monschau before the Quick Reaction Forces were alert or the Landwehr had any chance to assemble."
"So this could happen again?"
"We are pretty sure that there are no termini inside Germany as of now. But close to the old borders there might be any number of them, and we would have a hard time to defend several towns. We have to review the decision not to fortify settlements close to several borders I am afraid."
"Any indications why the Wood Elves committed these murders?"
" Currently we have next to no contact with them, they have not answered to our suggestion of exchanging ambassadors, and we have next to no trade or visitors and no common borders. Our intelligence about them is a lot of third hand and aerial recon, and especially with them this is not very much. We have received no threats or demands before and no claims of responsibility after the raid. So moment there is only speculation, but well-founded one as we have several indicators to a possible motive."

The picture changed to a blurry video of a huge figure on a Great Stag shot through a night vision device and was followed by a black-and-white one of the same figure that was obviously taken by a surveillance camera.
"This is very likely Orion, Avatar of Kurnous and Co-Ruler of the Asrai. He is known to take his retinue on something called the "Wild Hunt" usually aimed at some enemies of Athel Loren. If there are no enemies nearby then they usually kill any Bretonian peasant who is outside during the night of solstice. For whatever reason the Wild Hunt was conducted inside Germany this time."
"Any chanced to prove this?"
"There are a few survivors, but all in a bad shape. The attackers were all inside the drop pattern for two MW-1 bomblet dispersers and many survivors of that attacked by helicopters of the Brigade West. Disaster Management was severely taxed by the many victims of this attack and so the surviving Asrai received little first aid and that late. Yet the time is right and the attackers match the descriptions of the Wild Hunt. Also, anybody who was inside a building and did not fight the Asrai was spared. All of this indicates that this was the Wild Hunt.
"So the Wood Elves go out and kill innocents on an annual basis?"
"Yes, if no viable enemy is in range they kill civilians."
"Speaking of which, what is the latest figure on.."
"I got the update a couple of minutes before this meeting. Currently we have 544 killed and 283 severely wounded victims of this attack, including 13 police and 9 Landwehr. The Landwehr could not ready them in time, yet some of its members managed to hold the Asrai off long enough to allow hundreds to escape. We have not finished the count of the attackers yet, but we have upwards of 400 dead Wood Elves, a great heap of dead hounds and 15 survivors who will probably make it."

"It gets worse every time I hear an update, why?"
"Ursula, the Asrai use poisoned arrows and even with the best efforts the victims die. A lot of the spectators of the opera were elderly and their chances to survive major trauma are not good."
"The major question is what do we do about this?"
"I've had the Armed Forces Command dust off "Case Green" which deals with the Asrai. It turns out that the Athel Loren would be a hard nut to crack. It starts by being several hundred kilometres inside Bretonia which is allied to the Wood Elves in a roundabout way. It is very unlikely they would allow us to pass and any land campaign would give us two enemies for the price of one. The next problem is that Athel Loren is surrounded by mountain ranges for the most part, so there are few avenues of approach and none have good roads. So if we want to start something by land we first have to start a war with Bretonia, occupy a major piece of real estate and build decent roads and railroads. That would take two years or so before major operations could start. On top of that we have this."
The next picture showed something like a white cross against a green background.

"What is this?"
"This is the picture of a Heron drone that tried to get better pictures of some pieces of the forest. We took the pic by a Hammer Hawk drone when it failed to respond to signals. It seems to be frozen in midair, but in fact it moves about 2 meters per minute. This dovetails with the rumors we have about time not flowing normally in some parts of the forest-and that would bring additional problems. Not to mention the fact that the forest itself might very well fight us. This would be a horizontal repeat of Skavenblight if we are unlucky."
"The public in general and the Bundestag in particular are still too stunned to do anything, but two years will be seen as doing nothing. On top of that going to war for such a long time…."
"Would be disastrous." Professor Lucke was a newcomer to the cabinet but as a head of the minor coalition party a force to be reckoned with.
"If we were to inject more money into the economy via Bundesbank credit we raise inflation. I estimate we are at the ragged edge anyway and we really want to end rationing. And more taxes would just kill off the economic growth we just have. I understand that we have to do something, but it should be quick and cheap if at all possible."

"We have to make sure this was the first and last time the Asrai do something like this and I am not about to risk the lives of our soldiers for doing things on the cheap Bernd, but I agree we have to do something fast. Anything else and we will be seen as a vulnerable target and the voters won't stand for it either."
"Yes Thomas, I hear you. If we want to do anything quickly we should think about a couple of bombing runs into the forest. We could start with high-explosives to get their attention and if they do not get the message after that we can burn Athel Loren around their pointy ears."
"We should try to find out what happened and why before we send the bombers." Christian Lindner was the new foreign secretary and had the feeling of stepping in front of an avalanche.
"We have nobody we can contact directly, I suggest that we drop wireless sets on them and see who picks up the phone. Question is whom we send to negotiate-if this is really Orion then his wife will not be amused."
"I think I know just the guy from the days when I had your job Markus. We should also try to get some help from the Asur, at the very least because of the language problem."
"I will contact Aurelius after the meeting."
"Well then, we try to contact the Asrai, if they do not answer within three days after we drop the sets we send in the bombers. Please make sure we have some proposals for missions to discuss by Markttag then and we need to discuss improved security for the border towns again soon."