Operation Lockpick I: Skeleton Key
40 years after the Great War
Londinium
Operation Revolving door consisted of several meticulously planned stages. First came Operation Fog and Sun, in which the world was fooled into believing the Empire was preparing a desperate assault in the north when in actuality they were withdrawing to set their deadly trap.
Next came Operation Shock and Awe, a cunning plan utilising mages and the astounding breakthrough in rocketry to decapitate the Republic's Rhine command centre, deep behind republican lines. It is believed the Eleventh goddess was entrusted with this herculean task although as we've reported in the past, records of this legendary figure are sketchy at best.
Once this was complete, Operation lockpick was launched in which thousands of hidden explosives destroyed much of the lines once inhabited by the Empire's forces and resulted in the annihilation of the forwardmost Republican troops. They would then surround the confused Republican forces and finish them off with the infamous attack plan 177.
During Operation Lock Pick, an assault was also launched on the highly fortified Maginette line. The Imperial army had been unable to place explosives in this area and Imperial commanders knew that even with their command structure disrupted, these near-impenetrable fortifications would be the centre of allied resistance. They believed this dire threat must be dealt with while the republic was still disorientated or it would risk everything. This important mission would be given to The Saint. – Andrew WTN Special Correspondent.
May 24th Unified Year 1925
Offices of the Abwehr, Berlun
Vice Admiral Fredrich Canaris considered himself a patriot, although his loyalty did not lie with the government, or even with the Kaiser. These institutions were necessary for the running of their great country but were too easily corruptible to deserve his unwavering support. He was a servant of the Vaterland, he had quietly served the Empire for nearly 40 years in one way or another and could say with absolute certainty that he had helped keep it safe and make it the world power it was today.
He had joined the Imperial Navy when he was 17, the country had been very different back then, it was still young having been freshly formed from the fractured states of central Europa. In the beginning, it lacked unity but gradually a strong spirit began to evolve and soon everyone was keen to make the new Empire a great nation. Early in his career, he found he didn't make a great sailor, but he did have a talent for data analysis, so he soon found himself quickly rising through the ranks of naval intelligence.
Later he had been taken under the wing of Gustav Stresemann, head of the then newly formed Abwehr and learned the importance of framing and managing the information he analysed in order to make the best use of it. He found that if used correctly, information could be used to make people far more malleable and was useful for keeping people in check without causing too much of a fuss. Using these skills, he helped regulate both domestic and external threats to the empire. He was a silent shield protecting the Vaterland and it'd interests, even from those who professed to be loyal to them.
Now the Empire now stood at a crossroads in history, soon the Vaterland would find itself either completely dominating the continent or swallowing the bitter pill of defeat as it would be forced to sue for peace in order to protect its industrial and economic heartlands. He wasn't overly concerned about the latter of those possibilities, however, his agents reported that the Republic had fallen for the ruse completely and it was unlikely that they would be able to respond quickly enough to counter Zettour and Ruddersdorf's devious scheme.
The Legadonia Entente Alliance had already fallen under the mighty jackboots of his countrymen and was now under military occupation. Imperial bureaucrats had already been sent north to set up regional governance in the areas the Empire planned on demanding as war reparations, they deserved compensation for the Entente's aggressive actions. To the east Dacia had been utterly subjugated and a pro-Empire regime installed under Baron von Sigmaringen. The once-proud nation was nothing but a satellite state of the Empire now, a just punishment for trying to stab its neighbour in the back.
Finally, in the west, a plan was being enacted that would rob the François Republic of its will to fight once and for all. They too would be punished for their presumptuous attempt to take advantage of the Empire while it was distracted, just as their erstwhile allies had been. With the enemies of the Empire defeated, they would be forced to compensate the Vaterland for the iron and blood that it had been forced to spend in self-defence, not to mention a great deal in financial reparations.
The Foreign Office, along with the Finance and Industrial ministries had been looking at the map of the world with greedy eyes since the war started. The Empire was an industrial powerhouse and it was hungry for the reserves of iron, oil, timber and innumerable other natural resources the defeated countries and their colonies could provide. They would soon be re-drawing the borders of Europa, Afrika and maybe even the Far East in order to provide the Empire's economy with the fuel it desired. The Allied Kingdom would no doubt object, but they chose their fate when they ignored their own treaties and secretly worked to undermine the Empire. Now was the time to look to the future, a future that would be shaped by the Vaterland.
It was with this grand future in mind that the spymaster stared at the latest batch of intelligence reports collated from the various agencies that were looked after by the Abwehr. He fully expected there to be problems with control once the dust settled over their new hegemony and he was pre-emptively looking for the potential new threats to his homeland. Already resistance movements were beginning to form in Legadonia for instance and there were worrying communist activities in Dacia, problems such as these needed to be dealt with quickly and carefully.
His colleagues in the High command would no doubt be happy to send the military to intervene in any trouble in any of their new holdings, civilians often mistakenly believe that is what soldiers are for. As a military man himself he considered that approach to be unwise unless it was absolutely necessary, the Empire's armed forces were proud of their history and valued their honour, being sent to bully civilians would upset both soldiers and commanders alike. More importantly, it would place yet more power and influence with the General staff, something that the Admiral could not abide and would try to avoid at all costs.
Canaris believed there were better ways to deal with such problems, he had been dealing with various threats to imperial interests his entire career and knew that more often than not a light touch will work far better than a heavy hit. Deploying the army to quell unrest or ordering the arrest and deaths of hundreds of people may have been the tactics favoured by his barbaric contemporaries in the Russy Federation, but such things were frowned upon in the civilized world.
The Empire was not a dictatorship, although some of its detractors would claim otherwise. It was a federal monarchy with democratic representation within the Diet, as such the public would not stand for the secret police and death squads the vile communists used. Canaris worked within the confines of the law instead, for the most part. Although the powers he was granted technically gave him the authority to take people for questioning, he preferred to have the field gendarmerie and civilian police forces do this where possible. It was usually better if he and his agencies simply found or created the evidence so that the proper authorities could do their jobs and come to the correct conclusions. Although he did have a number of less pleasant options available if the situation called for them.
For the most part, he found he didn't need to remove people in such ways anyway, at least not the people at the top, they were often more useful where they were. Removing important individuals caused its own problems, like the brain drain suffered by the Federation due to their purges. It would be unforgivable to deprive the Vaterland of its greatest minds even if their loyalty was questionable. So, he chose to take alternative measures.
Canaris often found that even if people were guilty of something, they could still be useful tools, it was just a matter of knowing how to control them. True they should perhaps be punished for their transgressions, but it didn't need to be official and it should never be at the expense of the continued success of the Empire. Knowledge is power as the saying goes, and as the leader of the Nation's intelligence network he had access to a lot of both and it was with this he maintained his control over people. For the good of the Empire of course.
It went without saying that various other parts of the government and military needed the information that his intelligence agencies provided. The problem was they were all headed by individuals and groups that had their own goals and ideals. This was why he couldn't be loyal to the government, there were too many personalities with their own agendas and too much scope for corruption. It was no coincidence that the industrial minister owned a large share in all the newly liberated oil fields in Dacia, the man's greed was insatiable. This greed made him very good at his job, however, so while he still performed his duties to benefit the Vaterland, Canaris had decided it was in the Empire's interest to leave him where he was.
Most other Imperial organisations, such as the General staff, wanted to work for what they believed to be the betterment of the Imperial cause. A man of lesser experience might believe that this meant they should be provided with as much help as possible from his intelligence agencies. This would be a mistake however, the gaggle of generals excelled in the art of war but if given too much free reign they would bankrupt the country. If he allowed them all the information he had at his disposal, they would plan contingencies for the impossible and blow through the budget in their quest to protect the Vaterland from everyone and everything.
It was because of this he rationed the information given to each of the government departments, to him it was no different from 'trimming the fat' off of the reports to his superiors, as he had at the start of his career in Naval intelligence. The military was given enough to keep everyone focused on their tasks without distracting them with superfluous information.
The other loyal but misguided departments were given information to make them come to the conclusions that he felt they should be making for the good of the Empire. This was also how he kept the Emperor from interfering too much, he technically had the power to overrule everything but as long as he wasn't given anything to worry about, he left well enough alone. Meanwhile, the disloyal but useful entities could be blackmailed with information obtained by his agents to keep them in check, anyone else could be quietly removed.
He had even managed to achieve this with the Empire's external foes. The John Bulls were no doubt very pleased that they had managed to place an agent so deep within the Abwehr, the Allied Kingdom and their commonwealth of cronies were insufferably proud of their intelligence network. How foolish would they feel if they knew he had allowed it? The Allied Kingdom's spy wasn't a double agent per se, he was just a dupe passing along the information that Canaris wanted him to. This was usually just enough to make them believe their mole was loyal but not enough to cause any harm. It's good to know what the enemy is thinking, but it's better if you're the one putting the thoughts in their head.
This was how he had been keeping the balance in the Empire, true he sometimes used his influence for his own gains, but he saw that as compensation for his efforts. Regrettably, there had been some missteps along the way, it was getting more and more difficult to filter through the ever-increasing mountain of information and even some of his most trusted underlings had started to miss some important intelligence.
The two most galling of these failures had been the initial invasions by both the Legadonia Entente Alliance and the François Republic. The former in the north he could almost forgive, he'd seen that intel, it was foolish, downright stupid for them to try to take Norden but astonishingly that is precisely what they'd tried to do. Even their allies the Republic had been stunned at this bizarre turn of events, it was like a rabbit attacking a bear, it shouldn't happen.
Perhaps this is why his operatives had misread the Republic's intentions and had failed to report their mobilisation as the grand army moved north to punish Legadonia for its foolish transgression. Or perhaps it was the enemies he had on the inside that were trying to bring him down, they had at the very least tried to take advantage of the situation.
These failures had embarrassed him and hurt his standing in both the Supreme high command and the Imperial court. Fortunately, he had managed to allocate most of the blame to those he was sure had been trying to undermine him but there were still whispers in the halls of power that he was past it and it was time he stepped down. The fools, the Empire would have collapsed long ago if not for his tireless efforts. He had become too complacent, now his enemies had begun to coalesce around his once protégé and that boy.
Prince Wilhelm von Hozollern was perhaps the only failure he could admit was truly his, he had completely misread the boy and couldn't fathom his motives. He was without a doubt a very intelligent child and highly skilled at manipulating and dissembling, and with his relation to both the imperial and Letzenbourg royal families, it was clear he could be a useful piece on the board at some point. The boy was wilful and rebellious however, he'd defied his brother and shocked everyone by persuading the Emperor to allow him to join the military, even at such a young age.
Initially, Canaris thought this could be turned to the Empire's advantage, Letzenbourg was a tiny stain on the map that would be much better off under imperial stewardship. If the little prince wanted to play soldier, he could do it from the safety of Berlun by using that so-called genius of his and by looking good for the newspapers. As far as Canaris was concerned Royalty were convenient puppets to be wheeled out to when necessary, they were good as a symbol to rally the populace but otherwise, they should be kept out of the way. Prince Wilhelm could sit in the rear, be given some medals to give him the right look and then later Canaris could use the little prince to unify the two nations. This had not gone the way he expected, however, and it soon became clear that the boy was hell-bent on fighting at the front lines. It seemed the boy needed to be brought to heel.
He obviously couldn't act against him directly, so he had tried several techniques in order to prevent the boy from his suicidal attempts to fight on the front. First, he'd appealed to his family and those he was closest to, in the hope that they could dissuade the boy from such a foolish course of action. He was just a boy, after all, he was probably just swept up in the romantic idea of being a noble soldier, he remembered feeling the same in his youth. Unfortunately, they seemed utterly enamoured with the child and the Emperor insisted on allowing the young prince to do as he wished. The only one that had agreed with him was the Letzenbourg Regent Ludwig, but he was far too suspicious of Canaris' motives to be any help.
Others were understandably concerned however, none of the generals were particularly happy about the prospect of having the prince under their command. Everyone knew the blame would soon travel if anything were to happen to the boy. The members of the high command and even the Diet were not comfortable with the idea either, unlike most of the royal family he spent a great deal of time out visiting the general populace, this meant he'd built up quite a popular support, especially amongst the working class. If he were killed or injured, it could cause a major blow to civilian morale. Despite their misgivings, they were not prepared to defy the Kaiser on this issue just yet, so Canaris had to try something else.
Next, he decided to use the prince's fears against him, the boy was paranoid after the communist attack on a few years prior and believed his brother wanted to harm him too. Canaris tried to use these against him, he arranged for a few near misses while the boy was in the war college to frighten him, before arguing that he could keep him safe if he remained in Berlun. Again, this didn't go as expected, maddeningly the prince believed he'd be safer on the front lines, he argued that very few would be aware of his precise location at the front so he'd be harder to find and that he'd already been attacked in Berlun so couldn't be safe there. It made no sense but somehow, he had managed to persuade everyone again. At least it helped turn him further against his brother, he seemed to believe that the attacks were his doing.
He found himself wishing that his predecessor's plan had succeeded, no doubt the boy they'd planned on exchanging all those years ago would be much more agreeable. It was not to be though, Operation Doppelgänger had been a failure, ten years prior their operative had been discovered before he could make the switch, soon after the young prince had made a miraculous recovery from his bout of illness. Doppelgänger was quietly shelved, and all imperial involvement covered up, everything about it had been destroyed. He only knew of it because Gustav told him before he passed away.
He considered faking the evidence and blackmailing the boy, but he considered it dangerous to do so. The Regent obviously knew of the failed attempt and although he'd kept quiet about it, there may have been evidence left connecting the Empire to the plot. He couldn't be sure how Ludwig would act; he wasn't convinced that the man hated his brother as much as the little prince believed. Besides, if the information somehow became public, Wilhelm's usefulness would be negated and he didn't want to lose his new pawn.
He'd had no choice but to continue to quietly assert his influence in order to bring everyone to their senses and get them to bring the boy back. He'd had some unexpected help in that quarter, Ludwig seemed to be fighting tooth and nail to have the boy brought back to Letzenbourg. This was not something he could allow if he wanted to use the little prince, but the extra pressure made it increasingly difficult for Prince Wilhelm to continue resisting. For him, it must have seemed like he was fighting against the flow of gravity, something even a mage couldn't manage forever.
It didn't stop him from trying, however, by now the boy had been deployed and had proven to be an unexpectedly skilled aerial mage, he'd started getting quite a lot of praise and soon became named, earning himself the appellation of 'The Saint.' This meant he was gaining yet more support from the people and the army, as well as an appreciation from the generals in the Rhine theatre, who were thankful for his battalion's finesse at breaking open enemy positions. It wouldn't be enough though.
It was during this time, around when the boy had finished creating his volunteer corps, that the boy had approached him directly and his reasons for doing so had almost made Canaris laugh. The young prince was certain that his brother meant him harm and had concluded that one way or another Ludwig would have to be dealt with. He shared with him that part of the reason for his fighting on the front lines, was in order to undermine his brother and gain support, he hoped that one day his brother would be forced to abdicate and Letzenbourg could be part of the Empire. He couldn't believe it, they'd had the same goal all along.
Canaris was still suspicious however, the boy and Sophia may have guessed his involvement and been trying to placate him with what he wanted to hear. So, he decided to put the pressure on. He told him that it wasn't an option, they would have to prepare to take the regent down by force and Wilhelm would have to figure out how.
By this point though, the boy had all but ran out of options to keep himself at the front, or so he thought. The sneaky brat managed to pull off a scheme that got him rescued by white silver herself and get himself attached to her command. How his own agents had missed all this was an infuriating mystery to him, he could only assume they'd used Sophia's understanding of the workings of the Abwehr to hide it. Ultimately, it proved to Canaris that the boy was too dangerous to be allowed to act unchecked.
The boy soon delivered his plan on how to take down Ludwig and Canaris felt his suspicion grow further, it involved leaking information suspiciously close to some of what had been part of operation Doppelgänger to the Allied kingdom. This proved that the boy must have known about the operation and he was flaunting that in front of him, Canaris was glad he decided not to fake the evidence after all. The Allied Kingdom would then pass it along to Ludwig, who would have no choice to abdicate or switch sides, if it were the latter, Prince Wilhelm would lead the 203rd to take the city until reinforcements arrived.
It was a good plan if not for two problems. Operation Revolving Door was already being planned and this could compromise it if they were not careful so Canaris began making contingencies for this. Secondly, Prince Wilhelm still wasn't under his control and this plan would give the boy too much influence. To prevent this, it would be better if the boy failed, he'd lose prestige and popularity but that would be a good thing, humbled he would sign anything and would no longer have the power and influence to act against him. Canaris would sabotage him.
Unfortunately, the prince had managed to defy expectations once again and managed to turn his defeat around. He returned to Berlun battered and bruised but he managed to turn that to his advantage, people didn't see the defeated child he had hoped they would, instead they saw the defiant prince that refused to give up and his popularity continued to grow. He'd managed to sway the General staff to his cause, securing a position in which he could redeem himself in the eyes of the world. Worse still the boy had decided to turn his ire on him and was purposely stalling with the Charlemagne treaty while using Sophia to gather his enemies against him. Canaris had had enough.
He didn't like using more extreme measures, especially against children but it was time that the boy learned he couldn't always get his way. Still, he'd been a gentleman about it, he was dealing with this personally and had been kind enough to deliver a warning to Sophia. If the boy didn't start behaving as instructed, something he cared about would be taken from him, if he continued, he'd lose them for good.
A flash of auburn hair and the smell of sweet perfume entered his mind as he thought of his once Protégé, Sophia Zerbist. She had only served with him for the short time her master was at the war college, but her presence had truly been a treat for the ageing admiral. The sight of her tall slender body with its hourglass figure and ample supple breasts were almost too much for a man of his age. It had felt exhilarating as he had grabbed her silky hair and seen her squirming beneath him at the church, it had taken all his self-restraint not to go further. One of his biggest regrets was not being able to make her his own like so many of the others he'd taken as compensation for his service to the Empire. Perhaps he should make that part of his negotiation with the prince, she always said she'd do anything for the boy.
She would not be the target however, she was being far too sloppy with her attempt to provoke him, it was an obvious trap. She and her master had no doubt worked up some scheme, it was rather precious really, but he'd been doing this far longer than they had. He had a different target in mind, someone obviously dear to the prince and one that it would usually be unwise for him to target.
Tanya von Degurechaff had made quite the name for herself and was very well respected by the General staff. She and her unit were also their favourite counter to any unforeseen and difficult situations that may appear, taking her out of the picture during wartime could be disastrous. But the war would be over soon, soldiers aren't needed when the fighting stops but that treaty must be signed, and he would make the little prince do it. Prince Wilhelm will wield no power and can live his life in a country estate somewhere, knowing that Canaris could hurt him again at any time.
He found himself smiling at his impending victory, perhaps he deserved a treat after all. He licked his lips as he thought of his young secretary outside, she was only eighteen, so young, so innocent, he could almost feel his hands making their way up the girl's skirt. He'd been working very hard recently, perhaps he should bring her home, it shouldn't be difficult to persuade her, she wouldn't want anyone to know about her little secret, would she? Better still, his wife was away at her sisters in the country, he could have his secretary alone for the entire night, it'd be just the thing he needed to refresh himself for the High Command meeting tomorrow.
xxxxx
May 25th Unified Year 1925
Rhine Front 04:00
Will suppressed a shiver as a cool breeze swept through the wet and muddy forward trench line while cradling a metal mug of soup in his hands in an effort to keep himself warm. It was an unusually chilly morning for the time of year, it had drizzled with rain throughout the night leaving dampness in the air that allowed the cold to seep deep into his bones. As a mage, he would usually use magic to warm and dry himself but out here on the battlefield, his mana field could be detected by the enemy and he could unwittingly bring down a barrage of artillery fire down on them, so, for now, he had to remain cold. He knew he wouldn't have to worry about that for too much longer, however, they'd receive the signal soon and then things would heat up very quickly.
He had spent most of the night finalising the preparations for the attack as well as seeing to the morale of the other troops in the sector as a favour to General von Falken. He'd spent several hours meeting the soldiers, posing for propaganda pictures and giving rousing speeches assuring everyone he'd do his best in the name of his Uncle and the Empire. He'd also promised to try to get the enemy surrender before the follow-up troops moved in, he had his reputation as 'The Saint' to consider after all and he was famous for such acts of mercy. In truth he had no intention of offering any quarter to the enemy, there was too much at stake for him to do that, but the troops appreciated that sort of thing and he'd found it was always advantageous to nurture the heroic image of 'The Saint' when he could.
He sometimes wondered if they justified their own acts of industrialised murder with the dubious excuse that he had already offered their foes mercy. Was that how they kept clear consciences? He wasn't sure how he felt about that. But did it really matter? This war was always going to happen, their enemies were as good as fated to die anyway, at least that is what he liked to tell himself.
Most of the soldiers were not aware of the entirety of the plan currently being enacted for obvious security reasons. The more seasoned amongst them were understandably nervous about being given orders to attack the Maginette line again, they'd been slinging shells at the defensive structure for nearly 2 years and had yet to succeed in breaking it. Unsurprisingly, this meant that many were somewhat cynical about the promise that this time they would smash right through and keep on going and some of the officers were concerned about how this defeatist attitude was affecting morale. In response, Will had volunteered to chivvy up the troops a little bit, he didn't really mind, he knew he wouldn't get any sleep anyway and it wouldn't hurt to have some of the other officers owe him a favour.
It had gone well, for the most part, it seemed his reputation hadn't been damaged amongst the common soldiers, despite his failure at Letzenbourg. Some actually seemed relieved to have him around, as though his presence would somehow be a deciding factor in the coming battle. He was quite happy to allow them to continue believing this fallacy, it made the job of encouraging them easier and made him look good to boot. Besides, the extra attention helped keep his mind off things.
There were a few that wouldn't stop asking after Tanya however, it seemed they thought she and him were joined at the hip nowadays, he hoped it wasn't the fault of those rumours about them. He'd managed to mostly play off their concerns with a vague answer that she was serving the Vaterland in her own way, but some still seemed to harbour a genuine concern about her absence. He supposed that it would probably seem strange that one of the Empire's rising stars wasn't on hand for a big operation like this. Little did they know that she was playing the most important part of it, but that would probably be kept classified for many years, in the meantime, he would likely get the lion's share of the credit for the coming victory.
He'd also been somewhat surprised and a little alarmed to find that the survivors of Letzenbourg had been assigned further along the front with the force that would follow up and take the ground behind his spearhead. He had feared they would loathe him for losing the city but strangely they had been excited and relieved to see him again, they had even begged him to lead them in the liberation of Letzenbourg city. He couldn't help but wonder if they'd gone mad, perhaps they were still dealing with the shock of losing their homes, when they came to their senses, they'd likely want to string him up.
He had refused them of course, citing his promise not to return to the city until the war was over, he couldn't go back, the people would despise him, he was sure of it. The soldiers would too when they saw what had become of their home. After some convincing, they eventually accepted his refusal with a strange and grim determination before declaring they would retake the city in his name. He didn't know how to reply to that, so had wished them luck and privately hoped the people of Letzenbourg wouldn't turn on them when they returned.
Once he had finished his tour of the front, he held a meeting with his temporary command. His spearhead, known as the 'Nachschlüssel Kampfgruppe' was made up of a reinforced mage Battalion, an armoured division, and several motorised infantry units. Breakthrough and speed were the only considerations for the battlegroup and Zettour seemed to have provided him with the best the Empire had to offer.
He'd been pleasantly surprised to find that the infantry was entirely motorised, even down to its support units. Despite the Empire's propaganda showing the Imperial army fielding more than enough vehicles for everyone, the truth was that they were still heavily reliant on horses to transport almost everyone and everything that moved outside its formidable rail system, with only 20% of its forces truly mechanised. That he had an entire force with access to trucks and half-tracks was a huge bonus and meant that their overall speed would remain constant and they wouldn't need to stop to rest or replace the horses.
Speed was also the primary concern for the armoured division commanded by Captain Ahrens, who was possibly the most enthusiastic Tanker Will had ever met. The armoured force was entirely made up of light and medium tanks, sacrificing the extra punch of the heavier models for speed and fuel consumption. Will wasn't overly concerned about the loss in firepower however, they'd have the heavier tanks of the other units in the sector around for the initial breakthrough and theoretically, once they were behind the enemy lines, there shouldn't be anything that could mobilise quickly enough to threaten them. If there was, the mage battalion should be able to deal with it.
The Mage battalion was by far the most pleasant surprise the General staff had gifted him with. Not only had he been reunited with the surviving company of his own volunteer corps, but he had been assigned the remainder of the 203rd as well. He'd been equally pleased to find that the 203rd had been put under the temporary stewardship of one Major Ihlen Schwarzkopf, a combat veteran who it had turned out had been Tanya's Commander when she had first served on the Rhine. This not only had the advantage of endearing the man to the remaining members of the 203rd and thus making the command transition easier, but it also meant Will had the opportunity to pry out some stories about Tanya. He didn't expect there'd be anything too embarrassing, she was too strait-laced for anything like that, but it would at least be gratifying to see the annoyed look on her face when she found out they'd been talking about her.
He'd not needed to do an awful lot in regards to looking after his new command, his officers were all very capable and took to their new duties quickly. Captain Ahrens organised his tanks and the mechanised infantry with enthusiasm and efficiency, even managing to find time for his mechanics to extract a little more speed out of the engines of the vehicles. Meanwhile, Major Schwarzkopf had already reorganised the mage battalion to cover its missing personnel and since Will's own company had worked with them before there was no problem in integrating the units. All he had to do was say a few words of encouragement to the men and wait for the signal.
It had turned out there was a slightly ulterior motive for the composition of his temporary mage Battalion, the General staff wanted to perform a field test and it had unsurprisingly been partly Tanya's doing.
During his time serving with the 203rd, Tanya had been quietly evaluating him and his combat methods and doctrines while writing her conclusions up in a report, which the General staff had kindly allowed him to read. Surprisingly it had started with praise for both him and his old battalion, stating that they "served as effective storm troopers adept at overrunning enemy positions." Considering the amount of grief she'd given him, he'd found himself wondering if it was her idea of a joke but he quickly dismissed the thought, knowing she wouldn't mess around when it came to work.
The report went on, however, to question the need for an entire battalion of mages to fulfil this role, arguing that aerial mages were a limited resource and over specialisation amongst their ranks risked diverting these resources unnecessarily. She also claimed mobility was becoming ever more important in modern warfare and that the close-quarters doctrine Will and his troops used limited their effectiveness in other areas of warfare.
She stopped short of recommending discontinuing the specialisation entirely, much to his surprise and instead suggested adding specialised support companies to existing mage battalions when necessary. She argued that this would allow commanders to benefit from the specialisation when they needed it without sacrificing the versatility offered by the standard battalion composition. The General staff had thought this the ideal time to test the idea, not only was this a mission that would need both mobility and the ability to break through enemy positions but his assault battalion needed reinforcing after its' recent losses, so this meant they could efficiently make use of their available assets.
Will found it hard to disagree with her reasoning, his combat doctrine was an effective counter to trench warfare but in a mobile engagement it would be much harder to close on the enemy, even with his more manoeuvrable flight gear. He'd already been working on changes to his doctrine and had even commissioned Elenium arms to work on what they were calling Project Shroud to help counter some of these problems, but he supposed Tanya's suggestions worked just as well under the circumstances.
There was one part of the report that irked him however, her recommendation that no officer needed to carry a blade longer than 12 inches was an obvious jab at him and his sword. Sometimes it seemed like she was obsessed with getting him to part with it. Fortunately, the Generals seemed to have glossed over that particular part of the paper and nobody had tried to make an issue out of it.
"I don't know Sir, it looks pretty well defended. Sarge says we haven't been able to breach before" said a young private for what must have been the dozenth time that morning.
The man was a fresh recruit and had yet to be blooded in battle, usually, he would expect him to be overeager, but he'd obviously been talking to some of the veterans and had gotten spooked. He was clearly worried as he felt the need to peer out through the periscope at the firmly entrenched enemy positions every few minutes or so, before repeating the same phrase at him over and over again. Before staring at him with pleading eyes, desperate for reassurance that it would all be ok. It was beginning to grate on Will's nerves.
He could understand his concern however, the Maginette line had been constructed with the express purpose of keeping the Empire out. It was a network of several lines of concrete forts trenches and bunkers, all bristling with weaponry that wouldn't be out of place on a warship. The part of the line the private was looking out at was probably one of the most defended areas with a plethora of machine-gun nests, field artillery, pillboxes and barbed wire to get through. It no doubt looked quite imposing, although he'd not seen it himself as he was too short to see over the trench, even with the periscope.
That weaponry wasn't the true strength of the fortification however, that lay in its multiple layers of defence. Past the first level of defence were several other rows of equally difficult fortifications to get through. This allowed the republic to pull back to another line if things started to look bad, then they could dig in until they could muster the forces to retake the lost line. This had been the repeating story in this theatre throughout the conflict.
To say that they hadn't had any success in assaulting the defences was untrue, they had managed to capture the first row of fortifications several times over the past few years. The problem was, the forts had been designed to only be defensible on the side facing the imperial lines, to the rear they were horribly exposed to the guns of the secondary and tertiary defensive lines. This meant that when a counterattack came it wasn't too difficult for the republican forces to recapture them, the imperials didn't have enough cover and were forced to withdraw or be slaughtered wholesale.
There would be no counterattack this time though, there would be no one to coordinate it, Tanya was seeing to that. Then his breakthrough force would smash a hole in all the defence lines, allowing the troops to seize all the defensive lines before the enemy could react.
"Don't worry," said Will, putting on his most childlike of acts while shooting the man a reassuring smile, "It'll be easy I promise, I've done this sort of thing before."
It was a sneaky trick, reminding those older than him that he'd been out here fighting usually shamed them into acts of idiotic bravery in order to save face. The private was different however, the man smiled and looked slightly more confident for a while, but the spell soon broke and his worry returned, before long he turned to stare back out through the periscope again. They had repeated this several times now, every time Will managed to perk the private up, he'd end up staring back out at the enemy and demoralised himself again. It is said that battles are first won or lost in the mind, if this is true the private had already lost, and nothing he could say would change that.
Will ignored him and took a sip of the warm broth in his hands in an effort to inject some heat back into his body. He wasn't particularly hungry but knew he would need the energy soon enough and the potato soup provided by the infantryman was surprisingly tasty. It was certainly better than that vile excuse for sauerbraten he'd been forced to choke down in the Army dining hall back in Berlun.
He assumed the military must be suffering food shortages, what other reason could there be for the terrible food the command staff were eating? The chefs employed by the General staff must not have been used to making use of sub-standard ingredients, that was the only explanation as to why the food was so awful. Still, it spoke volumes for the skill of the front-line soldiers who could make the food edible, and Christina for that matter, the food situation was no doubt just as bad at home, he'd have to make sure to praise her for all her hard work when he returned.
"Will we be attacking soon?" the soldier asked eventually, obviously trying not to sound nervous. Will glanced at his wristwatch, it had been a pain to get a decent one that fit him, apparently, there wasn't much demand for militarily precise timepieces to fit a ten-year-old. He'd had to have it specially made.
"It'll probably be a little while before we get the signal" he replied calmly. According to the timetable, it would likely be another hour or so yet, but he'd been told to keep quiet about that, just in case things went wrong.
"Signal?" the man said looking confused.
"Trust me, you'll know it when you see it," Will smirked, imagining the apocalyptic explosion that would soon be seen further along the line, before ordering someone to fetch his flight gear and wandering off towards the closest empty dugout.
He was fed up with the repeating cycle of questions from the man and wanted some time to himself. He had his own worries about this mission, and it had taken all his skill at dissembling to hide it from the other soldiers and officers. He needed some time away from everyone if he wanted to keep it that way.
He found himself almost wishing Tanya was around, true she was disrespectful and argumentative towards him, but he didn't need to pretend with her. She saw through the lie that was 'Prince Wilhelm, the Saint of Letzenbourg,' and it was strangely liberating not needing to keep up the act around her. It was perhaps because of the attitude she had, that he liked having her around, the Zerbist sisters were largely aware of his act but they trusted him implicitly and never questioned him. Tanya, however, was always challenging him and as frustrating as that could be, for the most part, he found he enjoyed it.
"No, it's better you're away from me for the moment" he murmured to himself while rubbing his wrist subconsciously.
It was uncomfortably soggy in the dugout, the mud and putrid water had made its way in here as well and apparently, the water pump used to drain it had broken leaving small pools of liquid in the shelter. He dearly wished there was somewhere that was dry, but he was out of luck in that regard, the entire forward trench was like this.
He sighed, the cold and damp seemed to make his whole-body ache horribly. Despite the expert care he'd received from Christina, he had yet to fully recover from the wounds he'd received at Letzenbourg and his body still felt stiff and sore. Magic could seal the wounds up, but it didn't heal them completely and it did nothing about the pain caused by the injuries. That was another thing he had to hide from everyone but at least he had some painkillers to help with that.
The dugout was private at least and the squelch of the mud outside would at least alert him to anyone who approached. Under the circumstances, it was likely the best he was going get for somewhere to straighten out his thoughts. He took some painkillers from a pouch on his belt and washed them down with the water from his canteen before searching for somewhere to rest for a few moments.
Someone had set up a sleeping area in the corner with blankets and a rather dirty looking pillow, he crawled on top of it and tried to get comfortable. It probably had lice, but he tried not to think about that, he was just happy to be off his feet for a while and soon found himself staring up at the ceiling. Like everything else in the trench, it was moist and slightly waterlogged, but it was the closest he would get to luxury in the trench while he waited for the painkillers to do their work, and as he stared up at the ramshackle roof his mind started to wander.
This mission felt uncomfortably strange to him, perhaps it was because he felt so unusually isolated. He'd been forced to leave Christina and Sophia back in Berlun, Sophia was still trying to provoke Canaris into making a move against them and Christina was quietly backing her up. He didn't expect the Admiral to act while he was away, the bastard would want him to see how easily he could hurt him he was certain of it. But he hadn't wanted to risk leaving Sophia alone so had chosen to leave them both behind where they could protect each other.
It was also the first time he'd ever deployed without Hausmann being there and the man's absence made his chest hurt with guilt. It may have been his doppelgänger that killed him, but he was the one that had planned the operation, he had been responsible for the sedition that led to the uprising in Letzenbourg. He might as well have pulled the trigger himself. He found himself thinking of the man's family, no doubt they felt his absence even more keenly, they probably hated him too, just like the rest of the Letzenbourgers.
He sighed and pushed the thought away; he'd never go back to the city and he'd never see Hausmann's family. This was all Canaris' fault, once he had dealt with the treacherous Vice Admiral, he'd sign the treaty handing Letzenbourg over to the Empire, it was better for everyone that way. Meanwhile, he had more than enough support on this mission and he'd be back in Berlun with Sophia and Christina soon enough, he could cope with a bit of loneliness for a while. Ultimately, there were more important things to worry about.
Without thinking, he drew his sword and held it over his head, the light in the room was dim but he could see what he was looking for easily. The number seemed to glow ominously on the blade as if it was the illuminated digits themselves that threatened his continued existence. He felt a wave of depression wash over him and found himself letting out another dejected sigh as he looked at the tally.
"Barely even triple digits" he mumbled to himself sadly, he'd barely even managed a tenth of the total needed to save him from the monstrous God that held him to ransom.
It was frustrating, he knew he'd actually killed more than that. There were hundreds in Arene alone, if not more, but for some reason, they didn't count, and he still couldn't figure out why. Not even every kill he had made with the sword seemed to affect the number, it seemed like there was no rhyme or reason to the rules that governed the sword and it felt like he was being cheated. He was tired of it, he didn't want to do this anymore, he wanted to live quietly and comfortably at one of his country retreats without any cares or worries. He wanted to lose himself in his favourite stories and to fly for fun instead of war, he just wanted the life he knew he deserved.
Is that the kind of life a murderer like you really deserves? A dark voice said inside his head, he hated it. It was the same voice that had encouraged him to try to kill Tanya to protect his secret; if it was part of his subconscious, it was something he wished he could get rid of completely. It was like the proverbial devil on his shoulder only he had no angel to counter it. Worse still since the fall of Letzenbourg it had started to sound different, it sounded like Ludwig.
He tried to ignore the voice, promising silently that he wouldn't listen to it. He wasn't a murderer, this was a war, those people would have died anyway. If anything, he was making sure their sacrifice would mean something, they were saving his life from the evil God that had cursed him, if anyone were at fault it was that monstrous God. He had nothing to be guilty about, right?
He continued staring up at the blade for a few moments more, wondering if there was anything he could do to increase his chances of meeting his deadly quota. Everyone seemed convinced that this operation would essentially end the war, true there would be pockets of resistance and various clean-up operations, but this was supposed to be the lethal blow.
Do you really plan to provide nearly 900 faithful in the next few days? You're awfully confident, aren't you? The Ludwig voice chuckled mockingly at him.
"It won't be over in a few days" Will growled at the voice through clenched teeth. Why was his subconscious torturing him like this? Why had it picked Ludwig of all people? He took a few breaths and tried to calm himself down, he knew he didn't have to worry.
In the thesis he'd written that predicted this war, he'd gone into great detail about the mindset of each of the Empire's neighbours. He'd had to just to make sense of the jumble of events in his head that he was sure would come to pass. He couldn't quite call them memories, more hazy recollections of certain incidents. There were plenty of gaps, but he'd put together all the pieces he could and one thing he felt sure of, was that this would not be the end of the Republic, it just didn't feel right.
For him understanding the mindsets of the people meant understanding how the different nations might react. When he published his paper, most in the Empire dismissed a lot of what he had written, they praised him as a genius, but they didn't take any of what he'd written seriously. Too many of the actions he predicted were illogical they claimed, and the experts couldn't understand why the countries in question would act so counterintuitive to their nation's interests. This was a flaw in the way Imperials thought, they were too pragmatic and forgot that people often act irrationally and emotionally even if it weren't in their best interest. When countries were stirred up by nationalism, nations acted the same way. A nation was made up of the minds of those irrational people.
If this mission succeeded, it would humiliate the Republic, so much so they couldn't give in, their pride wouldn't allow it. It was an utterly irrational thing to do but deep down, he somehow knew this wouldn't break them like the general staff thought it would. Ironically, they would have a better chance of reaching a peace agreement in a prolonged fight rather than trying for a quick end like this, the Republic's military could at least keep it's honour intact that way.
Oh because of your prophetical paper? The Ludwig voice taunted, half of what you wrote was completely wrong.
Will felt a stab of fear run through him, it was true the paper hadn't been entirely accurate, but he'd been working from half-remembered memories. It was bound to have some mistakes in it, wasn't it?
"What about the Republic and the Entente invasions? I predicted them perfectly, nobody else did!" He argued at the voice, more to put himself at ease than anything else.
What about Dacia? You forgot about that, didn't you? Ludwig's voice said full of scorn, and what about Hiltria? You said they'd want to join the Empire, you were completely wrong about that.
It was true, he'd gotten both of those completely wrong, at the time he'd been sure they wouldn't have any problems in the east until the Federation got involved. The communists had signed a nonaggression pact with the Empire though so there seemed little threat of them interfering for now. But he'd been wrong about everything else in the east, true Dacia had proven to be an easy win for the Empire, but he hadn't seen it coming at all. He was also sure that pressure from Magna Rumeli would force Hiltria to seek support from the Empire, he'd theorised they might even ally with them. None of this happened however, he'd been completely mistaken, Hiltria had even signed a treaty with Magna Rumeli, what if he was wrong about this too?
He felt numb, he couldn't move. The noises of the trench outside seemed to fade away into the distance and the room began to disappear into a black abyss of emptiness. His entire being filled with terror as he recognised where he was, this was where he had gone to when he'd died, when what Tanya called Being X began unravelling his soul into the void.
"Deliver unto me, one thousand faithful souls" a voice cut through the void, it wasn't Ludwig this time, it was Him.
Fear prevented him from speaking, he wanted to scream, to tell the monstrous God that he was trying, he just had to wait a bit longer. Suddenly he began to feel the all too familiar and terrifying feeling of his sense of self unravelling, it was too late. He tried his best to struggle in a vain attempt to escape but as he felt more and more of himself disappear; he knew it was hopeless. As the final parts of his soul began to be ripped from his being, he finally managed to let out a scream.
"Prince Wilhelm?" a voice said and suddenly Will found himself sat bolt upright and breathing heavily in the dugout.
He heard squelching from outside and saw Corporal Litz from his volunteer company enter the shelter with Will's flight gear. Had he fallen asleep? Was it all a dream? Will found himself staring blankly at the intruder as his thoughts struggled to keep up with what was a dream and what was reality. Fortunately, the man hadn't seemed to notice his anxiety in the dim light of the dugout and Will managed to summon everything he had to keep the fear and unease from his demeanour.
"Corporal?" Will asked struggling to keep the strain from his voice while focusing on calming his breathing.
"Ah, there you are Sir," the man replied, "The Major asked me to bring your gear."
Will nodded a thank you and the man soon left to attend to his duties and once again the boy was left alone with his thoughts. He felt a knot of dread in his stomach, what if the Ludwig voice was right? This could be his last chance, if the war ended, he'd have no chance of paying the debt.
"I won't disappear! I refuse!" He growled to himself fearfully. "I'll kill every republican between here and the sea."
He had a horrible feeling that he would have to, he didn't have a choice, the monster demanded it. It was God's Will.
Authors Notes
Hi everyone and thank you all for reading.
As of the time of writing this, this story now has 100 followers and almost as many favourites so thank you all, it means a lot to me.
I wasn't really sure about the Canaris bit for a while, I started writing that a few chapters back, but I wasn't sure I'd keep it but overall, I think it works (I hope). I try not to make characters wholly good or bad because people aren't like that and I think it makes them more interesting, but I must admit I felt a bit dirty as I wrote some the Canaris POV.
Wilhelm's part was fun to write however, he's an A-hole but he's not all bad. I got to drop some names from the wider YS universe in his part, and I got to write another one of his little mental episodes which I always find fun. He really isn't coping too well, poor fella.
Just a few notes below to clear up a few things if you were wondering:
· Wilhelm's attack on the Maginette line isn't as big of a deal that Andrew makes it out to be, like always his information is dodgy.
· Nachschlüssel Kampfgruppe means Skeleton key (or duplicate key) battlegroup.
· Anyone who has read the LN might recognise Captain Ahrens, he ends up in Tanya's Kampfgruppe later.
· Ihlen Schwarzkopf, as mentioned in the chapter, was Tanya's commander on the Rhine and in the manga, he gets temporary command of the 203rd. I don't believe that's mentioned in the LN or anime though, but I liked the idea so it's in.
· The Empire isn't actually suffering from food shortages at this time (not as far as I'm aware anyway), Will is just completely ignorant to the fact that the General staff blew the budget o the dining room so can't afford decent meals.
· Corporal Litz is the soldier that brought Wilhelm's flight gear to him all the way back in chapter 2 (I like to recycle my characters when I can.)
· Part of the reason Wilhelm's kill count is only just triple digits is that from what I've been able to find, most soldiers and pilots didn't actually get huge amounts of confirmed kills. The soldier with the most kills in ww2 was a finish sniper called Simo Häyhä who got 505 kills and as for pilots, it was Erich Hartmann who had 352 aerial victories. Although I could imagine an aerial mage getting more kills than this in their career, not every kill counts on Wilhelm's sword for reasons I'm not divulging yet.
Side note: Is anyone any good at drawing? I thought it might be cool to have a better cover for this story, but I can't draw. I'd be happy to put something towards it (I'm not super-rich or anything but I'm sure I can scrape a bit of something together.) If so, please PM me, if not then hey ho.
As always, I hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading.
Xanen