Thus, the Kaiserreich Fought There!

by KlockB

Following her victory in the Second Weltkrieg, the German Empire and her allies of Mitteleuropa find themselves in a three-way Cold War between themselves, the League of American States and the Empire of Japan. In the midst of a fragile peace in 1948, a mysterious gate open in the heart of Berlin. The rest, as they say, is history.

2. The Battle of Berlin

Hey folks, we are kicking off the actual story. The Gate opens, and the nation on the other side have awoken a sleeping giant. But first, as I promised, the answers for your questions!

096: Firstly, in the current version of the game, Savinkov actually starts off as leader of the Russian Republic, and true, I did set him to win the power struggle in the game rules, but I think that is the most likely outcome for Russia in the Kaiserreich timeline.
As for your second question, you misunderstand. Both Russia and Germany had professional soldiers at the Eastern front during the war. What I meant by 'experienced' was that the troops in the Western front had actual hands-on experience on how to conduct offensive operations along a wide front.

Thirdly, it wasn't just Germany which had forces freed up with the fall of the Commune and the Second Peace with Honor. Besides Germany, Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania and the Baltic Dutchy fighting on the Eastern front already, Sweden, Switzerland, Flanders-Wallonia and Italy also had their Western fronts freed up, which contributed to the Reichspakt's victory. Mind you, it was still a rather slow one, as it took months to force the Russians out of Ukraine and the Baltics, and only a year later did Moscow fall, so it's not that much of a rapid shift in the front.

Finally, the status of Russia is a little complicated. Technically, it was only a conditional peace between Russia and the Reichspakt, as it was pretty much impossible for them to occupy all of Russia, and they had bigger problems with Japan and were still wary of the US, so the Reichspakt could not afford to be bogged down in Russia. Technically, Russia is independent and neutral, but it is a disarmed nation and it's independence is guaranteed by Germany. In the game, Russia was remade into a Republic and the liberal Kadety party won the elections, but in my headcanon, things are different. The Russian Republic is still somewhat democratic, however it only really controls the Western part of the country, as well as major Siberian cities like Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk and Irkutsk. Everything else beyond the Urals is in a state of anarchy more or less as Savinkovist remnants, socialist revolutionaries, ethnic minority groups and Admiral Kolchak's rebellion in Transamur are fighting against the Republic and each-other in a free-for-all.

Berlin, 12th of April, 1948.

It was a pleasantly warm, sunny mid-spring day in Berlin, with a gentle breeze blowing through the streets. After the First Weltkrieg, the city was seen by many as the center of the world, and with the end of the Second Weltkrieg, it was no longer a matter of perspective. Not only was the city a cross-section of Germany itself, but also of it's allies and partners. Workers were heading to and from the factories in the buses and trams, rural farmers were selling their produce in one of the many open-air markets that were held on this Friday. Representatives were heading to one of the myriad restaurants to eat lunch and unwind after a long session. German business owners met with their French counterparts, while dozens of representatives of the member states of Mitteleuropa were wrapping up a several days' long conference in the Parliament of Mitteleuropa. Tourists from all over Europe were already visiting the city in droves, marvelling at the Imperial Palace and the Brandenburg Gate, among other sights, and the universities in the city were attended by students from as far as Morocco or Vietnam alongside the many European nationalities. It wasn't rare to see Polish, Lithuanian, Belarussian or Ukrainian guest workers in the city either, though their numbers were nowhere near as high as they were during the Weltkrieg, when they took the place of conscripted German workers when there weren't enough women to fill in the vacant spots, or training them would have taken too long. Many Americans that had fled from the Civil War and MacArthur's dictatorship had found their new homes in Berlin. On seldom occasions, one might even meet a British or Canadian Exile, though they preferred to keep to the Entente nations, mainly Australasia and some in France, though a fraction of them decided to start a new life in Germany or one of its allies. Truly, the city lived up to the moniker that some used for it; die Welthauptstadt, the "World Capital".

As the hustle and bustle of the capital that served as the home of a rapidly growing population of over five million people went on, with many people spending their free time near the popular Brandenburg Gate and the expansive Tiergarten on picnics and walks, a strange phenomena caught the attention of the Berliners. The air started shimmering, like a mirage at the end of the Tiergarten. Given that the pleasant spring temperatures were nowhere near enough to cause such an event, and the fact that it seemed to be expanding on it's own gathered quite an audience of awed onlookers. Then, suddenly, the 'mirage' began to become more and more opaque, until suddenly it solidified into a building, to the shock of all onlookers, as if it has always stood there, right in front of the Brandenburg Gate. It looked reminiscent of a temple from Antiquity, with the Doric-style columns holding up it's vast white roof. What set it apart from any ancient Roman or Greek temple or neoclassical building was the large turquoise-colored crystals embedded in-between it's columns and another one in the roof, and the gaping darkness under the roof that seemed to absorb any and all light. Even the few police officers on patrol on the Pariser Platz could only scratch the back of their helmets in confusion as to what they are seeing in the middle of the park. Then, the sound of marching feet and hooves, and the clanking of armor could be heard from within the darkness.

Inside the Gate, same time

Legate Tiberius Co Septimus was feeling more powerful than he ever had in his entire life. By the grace of the Gods, the Gate on the Holy Hill of Alnus was opening, and the Emperor had chosen him to lead a mighty army of 15 whole Legions into the lands beyond it, accompanied by demi-human mercenaries in their disorganized mobs and complemented by the famed Wyvern Corps of the Empire, the host he lead was among the largest the Empire had gathered in a long time. It was a sight to behold the entire assembled army on the Hill. Even he had to admit, the conquest of the lands beyond the Gate was a big gamble, but the potential rewards- territory, resources, slaves- were well worth it for the Empire, and himself. If his campaign was successful enough, he could get more than a few Senators on his side. Perhaps one day he'd look back on when he entered the darkness of the Gate as the start of his path to become the Emperor himself.

He smirked to himself as he saw the light at the end of the long tunnel, and focused back on the here and now. He was riding at the head of his army among his mounted bodyguards. His men needed that show of bravery to plunge into the unknown. He of course, wasn't at the very tip of the spear, that role was reserved for the demi-humans. No harm was done by having them take the first blows their potential enemy might deliver. There were always more of them eagre for battle to replace those that fell. Finally, they emerged on the other side of the Gate, and were welcomed to the sight of a large square, surrounded by buildings that felt both similar to those he had seen in Sadera and yet alien, especially the large archways in front of it. Its columns and the comparatively small statue of a woman riding a chariot atop it was eerily familiar. Everywhere he looked, the buildings seemed to go on endlessly, and he could even see some taller towers or domes rising above the rest of the buildings. Some soft-hearted Senators back home, had they seen the buildings these people had wrought, would have advocated to negotiate with them, surely telling themselves that they couldn't be as barbarous as they may have seemed. Fools. The Empire does not "negotiate" when she can take what is rightfully hers. And as Tiberius laid his eyes on the wide-eyed crowds of people that some blue-clothed individuals with black helms -the City Guards of this settlement, perhaps? -tried to keep away from the Gate, he saw that he had the element of surprise, and these savages could offer no resistance to his mighty host. Indeed, these lands were ripe for the taking.

With a casual flick of his wrist, the bugler by his side blew a long note from his horn, signalling the beginning of the attack. The all-too eager demi-humans and cavalrymen immediately began their charge, scattering the barbarians in front of them, and the first Wyvern Riders took to the skies above this new world. As his army went forth to teach the savages their rightful place, take slaves and raise the Saderan banner, Tiberius took out a scroll, and with a confident and loud voice, proclaimed to the new world the text written on it:

"Hear me, hear me well you savages! We, the Saderan Empire, in the name of His Imperial Majesty, Molt Sol Augustus, declare the conquest and dominion of all these lands!"

Close by

Karl Schmidt has just been relieved of his duty from guarding the Imperial Palace. He never would have thought that his actions near Paris would lead him to being promoted into the Garde du Corps, and the Corps keeping him after the war on their payroll. He only had to do the usual soldiery he did when he was drafted and in addition stand around the Palace in Berlin and look pretty when he wasn't doing the former. He could deal with it after years of fighting the Syndies, and the Russians, and even some Japanese. But he absolutely loathed the ceremonies that came with the latter. Tedious march and inspection drills by the Guard Captains, endless hours of staring straight ahead without moving a muscle. But the pay was better than many veterans got after settling back down for civilian life, and the added privilige of visiting all the libraries and museums of Berlin free of charge in his spare time he liked, made him endure guarding the Kaiser. Right now, he just wanted to go to the library next to the Tiergarten, get some new books, go back to his barracks, flop down on his bunk, and read.

He was brought out of his thoughts when a large, dark blue shape swooped by in his periphery. He stopped in his tracks on the street, trying to see if he could still catch a glimpse of it again. And what he saw made his blood run cold. Above Berlin was a dragon, an honest-to-God dragon being ridden by what looked like a human in plate armor and wielding a shield and a steel-tipped lance. He watched the creature descend down below the buildings and quickly emerge with something in it's mouth that looked too much like a human before a few bites squeezed out a torrent of blood from the unfortunate victim. Looking down the street he was on, he could see people fleeing from the direction of where the Brandenburg Gate was, the glimpse of another of those blue-dragon riders swooping in towards where the Reichstag was.

"Oh shit oh shit OH SHIT" His mind raced as he looked around, seeing that there was a large crowd gathered around the Komische Oper, for some event. He did not care what it was, all of those people had to get away from here to avoid a massacre. He saw a few stunned-looking police officers just now noticing the danger they were all in. Without hesitating, he ran up to them, not even remembering when or how the booklet containing his military identification got into his hands from his coat.

"Officers! Officers, attention, please! Start evacuating the civilians to the Imperial Palace immediately!"

Reichskanzlei, Wilhelmstraße

Chancellor Hermann Müller was working at his desk in the Reichskanzlei, as he did almost every day since his appointment as Chancellor in 1936, and later his election in 1946. He always imagined that leading Germany was hard work, together with coalition partners with different and conflicting needs and views, no less, but the last decade has now seriously took it's toll on the aging SPD-politican. Nevertheless, he kept diligently doing his job to the best of his abilities, as he did in war. So did he in peace. Right now, his attention was focused on the report in front of him. Japan had increased its support to the Transamur Government in Vladivostok and was planning on expanding further into the chaos of the Russian Far East. He needed to figure out a way to deal with the situation before Germany was forced into yet another war to abide by the Treaty of Moscow and protect Russian statehood. Perhaps the Savinkovist rebel groups? They hated Germany, sure, but they had no love for Japan either that was occupying Vladivostok via proxy...

He was so preoccupied with the issue that he only now heard the loud pops outside that were unmistakeably gunshots. Before he could get up from his desk, a soldier burst into his office, an assault rifle in his hands, bayonet fixed to the barrel.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, Herr Kanzler but we need to take you to safety." He said as the startled Chancellor fixed his round glasses around the rim of his nose. "Wh-What... What is going o-" He managed to say before a shout from beyond the open door to the office suddenly interrupted him.
"Shit! They are breaking through, we need to go! Now!" Followed by three short bursts from a Sturmgewehr. That was enough to get the aging Chancellor to forget about everything he was doing minutes ago, and follow the soldiers down the stairs of the Chancellery. He had just entered the wrong side of 70, but he descended down the stairs at a pace that easily hid his old age. He knew that the brisk pace would cause pains for days in his aging muscles and bones by tomorrow morning, but in that moment adrenaline had the greater sway over his body. He led his country through the war, had witnessed more than one air raid over Berlin, yet no bomber bearing the Torch and Hammer put as much fear for his safety into him as the panicked shouts of the Chancellery guards, the bursts of gunfire and the monstrous howls, growls and roars that should not have belonged to anything of this Earth. Thankfully it ended sooner than he expected when he was ushered into a tunnel beneath the Chancellery and the sound of fighting ceased when the last Guard closed and locked shut the steel bomb-proof blast door beind him.

Close by the Pariser Platz

Friedrich von Rossler stepped out of the Gallery, fond memories of his comrades filling his head. He had been invited to attend the opening of a photo exhibition of the Gardes du Corps of their years of service in the First and Second Weltkrieg. It was good to wear his old cavalry uniform, the familar weight of his old cavalry saber on his side as he walked. He hasn't donned them for many years, not since he made the transfer to the Guards' Panzer Division, but the old Junker had always been a cavalryman at heart. He strolled through the streets at a leisurely pace, enjoying the pleasant weather when he looked up to see... something. Something with deep blue scales and a pair of great wings soaring through the skies, with some armored figure riding atop it. He rubbed his eyes. Surely this couldn't be someone riding a dragon, right? He shook his head. Surely, just some circus trick with acrobats in costumes. He was getting on in the years but he wasn't senile enough to actually believe that there were dragons flying above Berlin.

He looked up at the flying 'attraction' again, just now noticing how lifelike it was, with it's scales aligning next to one-another flawlessly, it's wings flapping like how he imagined a giant bird to do so, and deep red eyes peered out at the world. It then swiftly descended, far faster than any balloon had the right to without deflating. It was followed by some distant screams before it swooped back up again, something red flowing from the creature's mouth. Some more screams and then... gunshots. There was gunfire in Central Berlin. He could see people running in the direction of the Museuminsel. Deciding they knew more than he did, he joined the mass fleeing for their lives. He must have been running for a good 10 minutes at least, his hand on his saber hilt moreso to reassure himself, than for any practical reason. There was no way he could fight off the numerous flying creatures that were now terrorizing the city with just a sword.

He heard the sound of hooves clopping on the pavement behind him, and turning around he saw a horse galloping down the streets, its rider, a policeman, dragging lifelessly behind it from a stirrup, his body riddled with arrows and his head bounding off the kerbstones. Friedrich stepped in front of the horse, prompting it into a sudden stop as it let out a terrified neigh and rised to it's hind legs. He jumped back a little, though still tried to calm the animal.
"Ho! Ho! It's alright! Hey!" He said to the horse in a confident tone as it's front hooves impacted on the pavement in front of him. Once he saw that it wasn't trying to move away from him, he got behind it and as quickly as he could untangled it's former rider from the stirrups. He quickly got up into the saddle with practiced ease, and started galloping down the street towards the Imperial Palace, stopping along the way to help a terrified woman who looked even older than him and couldn't flee anymore up into the saddle before he continued the gallop towards safety.

Berliner Stadtschloss, some minutes later

Hauptmann (Captain) Gerhard Schneider of the Gardes du Corps was truly out of his element. First, he heard that there was some commotion down at the Brandenburg Gate, then suddenly gunshots, and smoke started rising above the city skyline from the direction of the famous archway before civilians started fleeing to the Museumsinsel. He would have thought it was some Syndie terrorist cell, no doubt supplied by the Reds over in the British Isles. That was until he saw something that looked like- no it was a dragon ridden by a goddamn knight of all things- swoop down towards the Palace and snatch one of his men away in it's jaws, showering the palace grounds with blood. It would have gone for dessert had it not been welcomed back with rifle fire that luckily managed to shoo it away.

He was in the middle of the chaos that was the Gardes' attempt to organize the defence while attempting to direct the panicked civilians into some kind of order as they crossed the bridges to the Museuminsel. He called up every able-bodied Guard he could to get a rifle and some extra ammunition in their hands. Currently, a frightened corporal that barely looked past the age of 20 was on the receiving end of his panicked anger.

"What do you mean Heinrich's Platoon is still changing?! Doesn't he realise this is an emergency?! Get back to their barracks and tell them to haul their asses over here 5 minutes ago, I don't care if they show up in their bloody boxers! Just make sure they have rifles!" He shouted, prompting the corporal to sprint out of sight. Gerhard looked at the chaos around him, the police and Guards in a mix of ceremonial and combat uniforms trying to make some kind of barricade with abandoned cars at the bridges over the Spree river, more guards hauling what few boxes of ammunition they had at the palace out to the courtyard, civilians flooding in, a Guard cavalry officer from the First Weltkrieg among them... -wait, what?

He blinked a couple of times to make sure he wasn't just seeing things, but no. An actual Guard cavalryman in full First Weltkrieg dress uniform, cavalry saber at his side and all, was nearby, helping an old frail-looking lady down from the saddle. Their eyes met and Gerhard could take in the man's appearance. He looked to be on the wrong side of 40, at least with a few wrinkles and a scar-knotted gash on the right side of his face that ran from chin to cheekbone. His brown hair and moustache were beginning to gray, yet he had a steely resolve in his eyes as he walked up to Gerhard.

"You! Who's in charge here?" The older man asked.
"That would be me. Hauptmann Gerhard Schneider." Gerhard said, extending a hand which he shook.
"Oberst (Colonel) Friedrich von Rossler, before the 2nd Weltkrieg ended, at least. I assume you're already aware of what's going on?"
"I only know that some fairy tale fucks showed up out of nowhere and started attacking people."

Friedrich nodded along. "What do we have here to defend with?"
"Around a single company of guards, most with carbines from the 2nd Weltkrieg, maybe a dozen Sturmgewehrs, and probably as many police as guards. A thousand rounds of ammo between them all at best." Gerhard said, shaking his head. "Not much of an army..."
Friedrich furrowed his brows, grabbing his chin with his index finger and thumb as he looked down and thought. His eyes fell on the saber by his hip.
"Were mounted guards on duty here before the enemy attacked?" He asked, bringing his gaze back up to Gerhard.
"Yeah, a squadron at least. I told them to get their horses out of the way and grab rifles. Why?"
"Well tell them to mount back up."
"Wait, you're not actually suggesting-"
"I'm suggesting exactly that, son. We need to buy time for the civilians to escape. Those bridges are bottlenecks, the police can't hold the attackers off for long and if they push on to the bridges, there will be a massacre. I will lead the cavalry on a counter-attack and buy time for as many people to get here as they can." Friedrich said, turning around to get back up on his horse before a hand from behind him grasped his shoulder and made him turn around.
"Are you insane?!" Gerhard exclaimed, getting up into Friedrich's face. He suppressed a small chuckle.
"Insane? I charged Cossacks with less just the same and we didn't have fancy cuirasses to protect us then. And I will be damned to Hell if I let these savages kill more of the people I swore to defend. I lived like a Guard, and I'm going to die like a Guard. So you can either help me save lives, or brand yourself and the entire regiment as cowards."
"Alright." Gerhard said, through gritted teeth. "I'll get those volunteering ready. Godspeed, Herr von Rossler."

Unter den Linden

Karl's lungs were burning, his legs throbbing with a numb pain. He was helping the police officers and the bunch of civilians he saw at the Adlon Hotel get to the hopeful safety of the Imperial Palace. Whoever these invaders were made that difficult. One of those dragon riders kept stalking their group from the air, so they had to take many a detour into and through the various alleyways where the beast couldn't get in. They were still in one, and the only way further to the Palace was through the open space of an intersection. Behind them the sound of fighting, killing and looting was getting closer and closer. He glanced up at the sky, trying to see if the beast was still following them, to hear the sound of it's wings flapping. He couldn't see or hear anything yet, but Karl didn't want to take any chances. That was until he heard a roar some ways behind him and the sound of the door to a house to their rear being violently ripped off.

"We can't stay here." He told the two police officers and the disproportionately large group of civilians they were escorting, looking into their fearful eyes, trying to look calm for them.
"Us three go out to the intersection, check if it's safe. If it is, we'll bring the civvies out and make a run for the next alley. Got it?" He got a few nods in response. He ran out first into the open, scanning the roads, buildings and the air with his Luger he grabbed from a fallen police a few minutes before, the two policemen doing the same with their revolvers. They couldn't see any movement, so Karl waved the civilians over. Just as the first of them stepped out, he could hear the now all-too familar screech and the sound of wings flapping. Snapping his pistol up in the direction of the noise, he saw the huge dragon-like being swooping down towards them in his weapon's sights, it's rider couching the lance beneath his armpit. He and the policemen opened fire, one of the uniformed officers emptying all six rounds in his gun in desperation. At least one of them hit the rider as he tumbled down from his ride, the beast, now riderless, flying away. Karl was about to check if the armored rider was still alive, when he suddenly sprung up and rushed towards one of the policemen as he pulled out a short sword. Karl could see that policeman was fumbling with his revolver, trying to reload it while the other was too stunned to do anything. He didn't have enough time to shoot the charging warrior with his own Luger, so he dropped the pistol and tackled the armored man to the ground. Karl managed to get a chokehold around the struggling man's neck with one of his arms, the warrior trying to break free desperately. Karl reached out to the sword the dragon-rider dropped, grabbing it's hilt as he slit the invader's throat with one swift motion. He let go of the lifeless body, trying to catch his breath.

"Are you okay?" He asked as both the police and the civilians looked at him fearfully, as he was now covered in blood from the neck down. Receiving no answer, Karl picked up his Luger, deciding to keep the sword in his left hand, just in case he had to fight up-close again. Turning back to the direction they came from, he caught some movement at a street corner. And what he saw stopped him in his tracks. The beings he now saw could best be described as animal-people or trolls from fairy tales. There weren't two of the same kind of beings, but all were vaguely human-shaped with some having the head of pigs, wolves and various other animals, while others' heads resembled more of a Neanderthal or a hairless ape, their hate-filled eyes betraying their wild, brutish nature. They were clad in mismatched leather and iron armor and carried weapons ranging from daggers to short spears to giant hammers. They let out a terrifying chorus of roars, growls, howls, squeals and a dozen other sounds that all promised a violent death as they charged down the street, prompting the humans to flee for their lives. Karl heard the sound of hooves in front of him and thought they had been surrounded by the invaders' cavalry, their deaths now just a matter of time.

He could not believe his eyes for what must have been the thousandth time that day, as he saw the hundred-man-strong cavalry formation rounding the corner in front of them was not of the invaders' but were wearing picklehaubes and cuirasses, curved sabers held in their hands.
"What the hell are the mounted guards doing here?!" He exclaimed, almost forgetting to run from the horde behind him before he heard the very much German war cry from the leading horseman who appeared to have an outdated First Weltkrieg-era uniform.
"ADALHEIT! ES IST SOWEIT!" (Nobility! It is time!) He roared before spurring his horse into a full charge down Unter den Linden, the rest of the horsemen letting out their own war cries. Karl and the two police officers did their best to get the civilians clear to the sides of the street. This was absolutely, thoroughly, insane, Karl thought as he watched the hundred horses race past him, and yet it was working as they impacted the disorganized mob with a sound that reminded Karl of a nasty car crash he witnessed once. The horsemen charging at full speed were easily able to break the mob apart, hacking and slashing at the monsters and forcing them back.

"Go, get the civvies to the Palace!" Karl shouted to the police, watching them lead the somewhat relieved civilians away before he turned around, and with sword and pistol in hand waded in after his fellow Guards. He ducked away just in time to avoid one of the falling beast-men as it tried to get behind one of the horsemen, only for it to get a swift kick in the jaw from the horse that made it fall flat on it's behind. The thing tried to get up, but it was quickly stopped by Karl shooting it in the head with his Luger. On closer look, the horsemen didn't all have their ceremonial uniforms, some had more appropriate combat uniforms on and Karl could spot a few mounted police among them as well. By the time Karl could push to the front, the mob of fairy tale creatures was now turning (often their literal) tail and fled, with some of the horsemen that had pistols or revolvers taking potshots at them.

"That's it, men! They are falling back!" He could hear the man that led the charge say. "Let the dogs run and lick their wounds!"
"Whew... Thanks for the save." Karl said as he caught his breath while walking up to him, just now realising how much older he appeared than he would have thought. "I was sure we were goners, Herr...?"
"Oberst Friedrich von Rossler of the Gardes du Corps." The cavalry officer said, eyeing the lone, blood-covered man on foot with pistol in his right and one of the invaders' short swords in his left.
"Leutnant (Second Lieutenant) Karl Schmidt..." Karl said before he was interrupted by one of the cavalrymen near the two.
"Karl?! Karl, thank God you're alive!"
"I'm okay, Hans. Barely..."
"Ah, a fellow guardsman? Heh, now it makes sense why you'd join the fight with us on foot all by your lonesome."
Karl could only nod his head to Friedrich's comment.
"Listen, Karl, you were heading towards the Tiergarten, right? That's where these things are coming from, right? Do you know who the hell these bastards are and why are they killing people indiscriminately?" Hans asked.
Karl shook his head. "No clue man. I was just walking and then I saw one of those dragons or whatever they are in the sky swoop down and fuckin' snatch someone up, like some oversized eagle. I took what police and civvies I could with me to shelter in the Imperial Palace before these assholes caught up to us." Karl said, delivering a small kick to the head of one of the pig-headed beast-men that lied on the ground around them.
"Then we are on the same page, Leutnant." Friedrich commented. "We've been keeping the invaders away from the bridges leading to the Museuminsel so people could flee and take shelter there."

Before anyone could say anything else, a loud horn was sounded nearby and more horsemen appeared in front of them, however it was clear that those belonged to the invaders, if their Roman-esque armor, round shields, lances and the fact that they were charging the German mounted guards with loud screams was anything to go by.
"Looks like the pig heads called their friends!" One of the German cavalrymen exclaimed.
"Shit! To me, men!" Friedrich shouted as he raised his saber above his head while giving it a few twirls. "We must break them before we can fall back! Charge!" He ordered, and without looking back, spurred his horse into a full gallop, followed by the mounted Germans. Karl quickly ducked behind a nearby car and tried to shoot some of the charging invaders with his pistol before the two sides met. Karl thought the Germans' previous charge sounded bad enough, but the two cavalry formations with equal numbers crashing into one-another sounded even worse, and was even more gruesome. Riders from both sides were thrown out of their saddles, some not moving after they landed on the pavement, while those who lived continued their fight on foot. Men and horses were falling in droves on both sides as sabers, swords, spears and bullets tore into the flesh of German and invader, man and animal alike.

Karl quickly loaded his last magazine into his Luger before he lept out of cover and ran into the melee, trying to help out his fellow soldiers. He saw Hans struggling, surrounded by three riders of the invaders, the German Guard slashing and hacking wildly with his saber at anything close by him. He dispatched two of them with his pistol, while the third met his gruesome end when Hans' saber cut the man's throat open, dropping him from the saddle. Before Karl could do anything else, another warrior who had just freed himself from under his horse lunged at him with a sword, screaming bloody murder in his tongue. Karl tried to block his strikes with the sword in his left hand, but it was clear he was an amateur and the man trying to kill him had been fighting with a sword his entire life. Karl's block was quickly followed up by a flurry of slashes and blows It was only thanks to dumb luck and quick relfexes that Karl either managed to dodge or block the enemy's strikes. He rolled away to dodge the warrior's overhead strike and saw his opportunity. He lifted his Luger and sent 3 rounds into the warrior's chest, punching through his armor, the bullets finding their way through his liver, lungs and finally his heart, ending his life shortly after he dropped to the floor.

He then turned his attention back to the rest of the fight, firing off the last three rounds he had. Luckily, by the time his gun clicked empty, the invaders had given up and galloped away. Seeing it, Karl rested his hands on his knees for a few seconds, taking deep breaths before he looked up to take stock of the situation. The German cavalry was badly mauled by the fight, at least half their numbers were now lying dead on the street, and half of those that lived suffered some sort of injury. He looked up at Friedrich, his left cheek practically split open, blood pouring down onto his uniform, yet the man kept a stoic expression.
"Are you alright, Oberst?" He asked the old Junker atop his horse as he looked up.
"Oh, this?" He gestured casually towards the deep gash on his left cheek before turning his head, revealing the old scars already there on the right side of his head. "It is merely a beauty mark." He said without the slightest care for the blood flowing down his face and staining his uniform.
"A-Are you sure, Sir?" Karl asked. "With all due respect, it looks like they got you good..."
"Bah! I looked much prettier before Ukraine. Handsome before the Marne. This was just a cheap shave from a poor barber compared to the Russian Cossacks." Friedrich said, waving Karl's concerns away.
"We can't stay here." He added after glancing down at the dead. "The enemy will be back here in full force soon, we need to get back to the Museuminsel." Friedrich said just as a loud roar caught the attention of the Germans. Another pair of the dragons appeared from behind a taller building and was swooping down towards them.
"Fall back! Fall. Back!" Friedrich shouted as he pulled Karl up behind him into the saddle with surprising strength, the other cavalrymen doing the same with those that lost their horses and the Germans started fleeing for their lives.

5000 meters Above Ground Level, 75 kilometers from the outskirts of Berlin

Erich Hartmann gripped the stick of his Hb-179 fighter jet, nicknamed "Turmfalke", (Kestrel) by the pilots that flew them, lightly as he cruised above the skies of Berlin at a leisurely speed, the jet gently vibrating as it passed some currents of air. He looked around to his left and right, his three other wingmen soaring abreast and slightly behind his plane as Staffel 2 "Elster" (2nd "Magpie" Flight) of Jagdgeschwader 73 (73rd Fighter Squadron) were returning to their air base in Cottbus after an exercise. The pilots, both Weltkrieg veterans and green pilots, performed above his expectations with their new planes. In fact the test was as much of the jets as it was their pilots and both man and machine passed with more or less flying colors. He liked the new jet fighters made by Hansa-Brandenburg much more than his "old" Bf 262. The improved HeS 011 engines were built into the V-shaped fuselage for starters, so he didn't have to worry about a bumpy landing totally wrecking the plane's engines or said engines melting the landing gear, like the first iterations of the 262. The turning rate was improved by the sweepback wings and the placement and capacity of the fuel tanks were tweaked, letting the 179 stay in the air for longer. The end result was a plane that was nearly 200 kilometers per hour faster than the Bf 262 and had almost twice it's range while being able to be launched from aircraft carriers as well.

Suddenly his radio squawked to life.
"Command to Staffel 2. Radar is detecting unidentified blips appearing above Berlin at random at low altitude, bearing 178 to 302. Oberst Hartmann, your flight is the closest one to Berlin. Check whether our radars are on the fritz and intercept the unknowns if necessary."
"Roger Command. Alright, Magpies, you heard the man. Turning now." He instructed his fellow pilots as he pulled the stick to the left, turning his Kestrel towards Berlin and decreasing his altitude to 3000 meters gradually. It would take them a few minutes to reach Berlin at cruising speed, so the pilots could chat a little.
"So what do you all figure?" Asked Kurt from the Number Three jet in the flight.
"About what?" Erich responded.
"Any ideas what the radar could be detecting?"
"I sure hope it's not another flock of birds. I swear Command has been seeing a Brit spy plane in everything that shows up on radar that isn't ours these days." Leopold, the Number Two in the squadron commented.
"What if it is a Brit spy plane?" Kurt asked in response.
"That wouldn't make any sense. Even if they somehow managed to sneak past our fleet and the radar stations up in the North or through the Low Countries, we should have detected them way before they are where they are above Berlin when they started their descent for whatever reason." Leopold explained.
"Maybe they really are just bird flocks then. Some migratory birds, maybe?" Kurt pondered further.
"We are in that season, afterall." Came the strikingly smooth and soft sound of Elvira, the fourth pilot in the Flight over the radio. "Migratory birds are still coming in from Africa. It is weird how there's a big flock of them above Berlin, apperently." She added. Leutnant Elvira Hildegard was a bit of an oddity in the Deutsches Luftstreitkräfte (German Air Force). Following the end of the war in 1946, the auxiliary roles women were able to perform in the armed forces were expanded by the SPD-led government, and women were allowed to become pilots in 1947. Though Erich initially had his doubts about the few women who did take the opportunity, Elvira managed to prove him wrong and turned out to be just as home in the sky as her male counterparts fresh out of training.

"Can it, Magpies. We are approaching Berlin's outskirts." Erich said as the 4 jets were now passing above increasingly densely-packed buildings. Below and in front of them the city spread on in every direction for kilometers, almost seeming endless. He looked around the expanse of civilisation, trying to see if anything was out of the ordinary, until he noticed columns of black smoke rising above the city center. It wasn't an unusual sight, there were many factories and power stations in Berlin that could produce such smoke, but they were all on the outskirts of the city, and that worried the veteran pilot to no end.

"Staffel 2 to Command. I'm seeing smoke above the city center." He spoke into the radio of his plane. "We're gonna check it out."
"Copy Staffel 2." Came the monotone voice of the air controller.
"You think it's bad, boss?" Kurt asked.
"Guess we'll find out, 3. Follow me, we are going to circle above the smoke, see if it's something serious." Erich said, receiving acknowledgements from all three of his wingmen. He descended to a kilometer further, and started doing lazy circles above the city centre. What he saw sent a chill down his spine. Buildings were on fire, blocks of what looked like ancient foot soldiers and warriors on horseback marched or rode throughout the city center. Once he descended a bit and slowed his plane down, he could make out the armored figures killing people fleeing for their lives or dragging them away towards some kind of white marble structure in the Tiergarten.
"Boss! At three o'clock! What the fuck is that?!" He could hear Kurt holler into his radio in disbelief. Turning his head he saw a huge bird -no, it was scaly with leathery wings, a giant flying lizard... a dinosaur?! A dragon?! Being ridden by a man in armor?! He watched in horror as it dove down into a street and snatched up a horse together with it's white-clad rider up that looked too much like a Palace Guard. Looking around, he saw more of them around the city center. He immediately reached for his radio.

"Command we have an emergency! Berlin is under attack!"
"Say again, Staffel 2?"
"Berlin is under attack by an unknown force! The city is on fire! What looks like dragons are flying above Berlin and killing people!" He shouted.
"D-Dragons? Repeat again."
"Yes, they are dragons! This is not a joke or any bullshit! The capital is under attack!"
"He's saying the truth, Command. We can all see them." Leopold added to help his flight leader make his point.
"Oberst Hartmann, you cannot be serious." Command insisted.
"I am dead serious, Command." Erich said. "We need to act now to save the city. Even if they aren't what they seem, I just watched one of them kill a Palace Guard."
"A-Acknowledged, Staffel 2. You are cleared to engage. Do what you can while we get more Staffels to Berlin. Godspeed, Oberst Hartmann." The monotone voice from the other side now sounded quiet, almost a whisper.

"Magpies, engage those things. We got to do what we can until reinforcements get here." He said as he turned the radio over to transmit to his flight. Receiving three acknowledgements, the 4 jets separated, looking for their individual targets. They were all taught by Erich, and knew their flight leader's preferred ambush tactic by heart that had him survive the entirety of the war on the Eastern Front while becoming one of Germany's most successful aces. See-Decide-Attack-Reverse. He picked out one of the flying lizards above what he assumed was Unter den Linden. The enemy was flying low, and seemed to be unaware of his presence for now, giving him all the advantage he needed. He dived towards the creature, the turbojet engines whining as he gained speed. By this time the rider must have realized something was wrong as he heard the sound of his jet and was looking around, confused. He was already too late when he looked up to see Erich's Kestrel diving towards him. In about half a second, Erich judged he was within 20 meters from his target, their comparatively slow speed meant he only had to lead just slightly in front of the head of the enemy dragon with the crosshair in front of him. He pulled the trigger for just another second at the top of his stick, sending dozens of 30mm rounds from two MK108 autocannons built into the nose of his plane, shredding the bodies of both rider and dragon, sending them tumbling down towards the ground as Erich pulled up hard, the G-forces plastering him into his seat before he leveled his craft.

"One down, one down. We can take these things." Erich said into his radio, watching from the corner of his eye as Leopold scored another kill.
"Boss, I got one on my tail, seems like I pissed him off. Mind doing me a favor?" Kurt radioed with some amount of glee in his voice. Looking out to his left, a few hundred meters in front of him Kurt's jet was chased by another flying beast. He could tell Kurt was intentionally slowing his jet down and keeping it below the other planes of the Staffel to keep the dragon and it's rider chasing him, and thus presenting an easy target. Erich dived down once again, and the dragon and it's rider met the same fate as the one he just shot down. Kurt then turned sharply to intercept another dragon that was trying to help it's comrade out before it was too late. A quick burst once again took the life of another beast.

"Woo-hoo! Yeah! Eat lead you stupid lizards!" Kurt whooped in triumph as he flew over the cloud of condensed blood spray he just made.

"You know, when they said we'd be the new knights of the sky, I don't think they expected it to be quite this literal!" Leopold exclaimed, having to dodge another flying lizard whose rider tried to skewer him with a lance before Elvira clipped it's wings from behind.

"Less yapping, more fighting, Magpies!" Erich said to get his pilots' minds back to the actual fight. He couldn't blame them, this was one of, if not the easiest aerial battles he had so far, even the training exercise they completed just before being ordered to fly over Berlin was easier than this fight. But underestimating their opponents got many pilots killed in the Weltkrieg, and Erich was not about to make that mistake with his Staffel. But he had to admit, he enjoyed teaching a lesson to the invaders about not showing up with flying lizards to fight jet-powered aircraft that could break the sound barrier if they really wanted to. His only concern was their ammunition, having used up roughly half of it during the training exercise. But if his Staffel kept it up like they did now, they could take down many a dragon before running dry.

Undisclosed location below Berlin

Chancellor Hermann Müller was being led through what felt like an endless stretch of tunnels. He, of course knew that such underground infrastructure was built under every major German city after the end of the war, with the US well on course to develop it's first nuclear bomb by 1951, and the likelyhood of Japan too developing its own nuclear arsenal in time becoming greater and greater, the expansion and modernisation of Germany's bomb shelters was seen as increasingly vital. It was a different experience to go into the often claustrophobic tunnels that stretched on for kilometers for the Chancellor. Hermann had no real clue where within Berlin they were as he followed the soldiers guarding him, but judging by the distance they travelled and the number and direction of the turns they took, he suspected that they were somewhere below Schöneberg, a few kilometers south of the Defense Ministry.

Finally, after passing what must have been the hundreth reinforced door, Müller was let inside to an impromptu underground war room in a small bunker. Phones were nearly constantly ringing, aides carrying reports scurried to and from all small patches of space in the bunker. In the middle of it all a map of Berlin was spread out, small red flags and markings placed on and around the Tiergarten and the Brandenburg Gate in at least a few square kilometers of area. Hunched above it, besides some members of his government were figures he had come to recognise very well during the years of the Weltkrieg. They all stood to ramrod attention when they noticed him entering the bunker and saluted, together with all the aides handling the telephones and reports.

"Carry on, gentlemen." Hermann said curtly as he walked up to the table having tired of the officers' pomp and performance during in the Weltkrieg. The room returned to it's previous activities, except for those around the map. All eyes of the leaders of the German military were on him. He looked down at the map and took a deep breath.

"What in all the hells is going on out there? How and why is there an invading army in the middle of Berlin?" He asked the assembled officers.
"We are still trying to determine that, Herr Kanzler." Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt said.
"How? There should have been some signs of an impending attack, yet the Abwehr reported nothing like this. They couldn't have just appeared out of thin air."
"From what we know, Herr Kanzler, that may be the case."
"What?" Hermann asked incredulously, though he knew none of the officers in front of him would have said such a thing unless they were absolutely certain of it.
"What we gathered so far is that police reported a case of rioting in the Pariser Platz at around 11am today." Manfred von Richthofen, Chief of Staff of the Luftsreitkräfte said, taking half a step forward. "Our radar stations picked up various contacts at low altitude above Berlin at around the same time. We thought it was a coincidence at first, but we still sent a flight of jets that was returning from a training exercise to see what those contacts were. That's when we first learned of this attack, and said Staffel engaged the enemy as long as their ammo and fuel allowed them to while we scrambled other Staffels. They managed to also take some aerial pictures." Manfred said, handing some black and white pictures to Hermann. They depicted large blocks of infantry and wedges of cavalry advancing on Berlin's streets, the city being aflame in places, dragon-like flying lizards that appeared to be straight out of a fairytale above the city, a grizzly scene of one such flying lizard being torn to pieces by a German jet.

"What we suspect so far, is this is the attackers' point of origin." Manfred said, handing the one picture he still kept in his hands to the Chancellor, of a building inside the Tiergarten, a great white roof held up by white marble columns. "That building inside the Tiergarten, a few hundred meters from the Brandenburg Gate simply appeared this morning. It wasn't there last month, it wasn't there last week, and it wasn't there yesterday either."
"But now it's there." Hermann completed for the famed Red Baron. "And it spewed forth an invading army." He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "What's the current situation, then?" The Chancellor asked.

"The enemy has caught us completely by surprise." General Heinz Guderian said from the right of von Rundstedt, looking down at the map. "It took us a good hour to fully realise what was going on exactly and the police were overrun despite their best efforts to contain this mess. The attackers have spread out from the Tiergarten, and have advanced to Yorckstraße and Nollendorfkeiz in the South, Charlottenburg and Wilmersdorf in the East. They have captured Moabit to the North and are advancing in the direction of Sprengelkiez. Heavy fighting is reported in and around the Charité hospital. They have advanced up Unter den Linden and Lepziger Straße before the Gardes du Corps managed to halt them at the bridges leading to the Museuminsel but we don't estimate them to hold for much longer." He explained, pointing out the enemy's advance on the map. Hermann could only slowly nod.
"What about the Kaiser?"
"The Guards report he is alive and the Museuminsel has been turned into a refuge for civilians fleeing the invaders."

"What is our response?"
"The Garde Panzer-Division, 12th Mechanisierte Infanterie Division and the 1st and 2nd Garde Infanterie Divisions were stationed the closest to Berlin and are on their way from the Southwest and Northeast respectively, followed by elements of the 3rd Fallschirmjägers. The 5th Infanterie-Division is expected to follow-up from the Northwest in support of the defenders at the Charité and the Museuminsel." Heinz said, now pointing at the blue flags and markings on the map coming in towards the red.
"Civilian air traffic in Germany has been put on halt. Fighter and close air support wings are being scrambled as we speak to secure the skies above Berlin and support our pockets of resistance." Manfred added. "Strategic bomber squadrons armed with nuclear bombs are now waiting orders above Germany and the North Atlantic."
"The armed forces have been put on high alert and the borders have been closed. Luckily, nowhere else are such attacks reported within Germany or the Reichspakt so far." Marshal von Rundstedt said.
"The majority of the Hochseeflotte was stationed to the North, docked near Stavanger or patrolling, but they have been recalled and are now sailing towards Hamburg, Stettin and Königsberg respectively to provide carrier-based air and shore bombardment support if needed." Admiral Erich Raeder said.

Hermann nodded again, looking back down at the map as the aides kept moving the red and blue marks around as a constant stream of fresh reports streamed in.
"Very well, gentlemen. Do what you need to do to defend the city, but keep collateral damage to a minimum if possible." He said, looking back up at the assembled officers.
"Is there a radio transmitter for this bunker? I need to make an address to the country." He said after a moment of silence as the military machine that won two Weltkriegs stirred into action to defend Germany once more.

After a few minutes, Hermann found himself in an auxiliary room of the bunker, a microphone in front of him connected to a transmitter station a few kilometers from Berlin's outskirts. He waited until the technicians confirmed that he was on air, and all government and civilian-owned radio stations were receiving and transmitting his words all across the country, and by extension, the world.

"People of Germany! This is Reich Chancellor, Hermann Müller speaking to you. I regret to inform you that today, at 11am local time, a hostile armed force has attacked our capital city, Berlin. The attackers' allegiance is unknown at present, but their intent is obvious, which is the overthrowing of the lawful, democratic German government, and Kaiser Wilhelm III. I declare a state of emergency for the duration of this crisis. Our troops are fighting the enemy. The government and the Kaiser remain in their places in Berlin."

Museuminsel, same time

Karl Schmidt felt the familiar kick of a Sturmgewehr 44 against his shoulder as he sent a short, controlled burst towards the wall of rectangular shields that tried to advance up the bridge. A few minutes ago, he was praying to God -something he rarely did- that the horse under him and Friedrich was fast enough to outrun the pair of dragons chasing them. His prayers were seemingly answered in the forms of four German jets that showed up above them and tore into the lizards that were chasing them. He couldn't help the cheer he let out at the sight, seeing the beasts that terrorized him and claimed the lives of many innocents falling from the sky in bloody bits and pieces. After their successful escape with the cavalry guards to the Palace, things moved quickly as he was given the rifle he held in his hands now with a few magazines for it and his Luger, and told to man the barricade of a few cars and bits of furniture they managed to pile on and around the vehicles with 20 other men, guarding the bridge.

He could hear the familiar screech of the enemy's 'flying cavalry' again, another of the blue-scaled beasts appearing before he heard the roar of a turbojet engine and watched the Kestrel fighter jet gun down the creature and it's rider. He spared the falling monster only a glance as he fired a few more bursts before his gun clicked empty. The invaders must have realised that they were losing their advantage and stepped up their attacks on the Museuminsel ever since the Luftstreitkräfte began to sweep the skies above Berlin clear of their fliers. The formation they have been trying to halt let out a war cry and charged towards the barricade. Karl quickly reloaded with a curse before he fired more bursts into the charging warriors, their close proximity meant that even if he missed his intended target, the bullet would hit one of the invaders. The closer the sword-and spear-armed warriors got, the deadlier their fire became as the defenders favored volume of fire over accuracy at shorter ranges. It didn't take long for them to lose hundreds of men and break off their attack, taking casualties all the while. Karl lowered his rifle, releasing the breath he didn't know he was holding.

He didn't have much time to relax, as more armored figures could be seen amassing on the other side of the bridge, among their more bestial troops. He could not see any shields or swords in the professional-looking soldiers' hands. He squinted his eyes a bit and saw that they had bows and arrows. He could see them pulling the strings back and letting their arrows loose in unison.

"Incoming! Get to cover!" He shouted as he ducked behind the car he was using as cover, the arrows soon impacting around him, clattering against the frame of the car and the pavement, and the odd German who screamed in pain.
"AAAARGH the bastards got me! Shit!"
"I'm hit! Fffuck it hurts...! Fuck...!"
"We got a man down here!"
"I got him, I'll patch him up! Cover us!"

More arrows fell around them, and beast-men on the other side let out their animalistic roars and charged down the bridge.
"Gimme a fuckin' break..." Karl groaned as he peeked out from behind the car, pouring his fire into the charging mass again. They were faster than the previous bunch and more determined. Karl fired off his entire magazine into the attackers, each bullet claiming a life, yet they kept on coming.
"Last magazine!" He shouted as he reloaded, many others around him repeating him. He aimed down the bridge again, now seeing the approaching beastial mob in more detail than he would have liked. He sent a three-round burst through the chest of a sword-wielding troll before having to fire at least ten into its much larger friend. All the while the invaders kept peppering their barricade with arrows. By some miracle the defenders repulsed the attacking creatures, and once they made sure they gave them enough parting shots to drive their point home, they turned their attention to the archers. Fortunately for the Germans and unfortunately for the archers, their rifles were much more accurate than the enemy's bows at that range, and the Germans took them out one-by-one until they finally fell back. Karl counted that he had now less than 10 rounds in his magazine, others around him were completely out of ammo and had to borrow some from those that did. They could not hold off another assault.

"Where are those damned reinforcements?" Karl asked from no-one in particular. He glanced out from his cover, only to see hundreds of enemy horsemen lining up on the other side of the bridge.
"Oh, fuck... Fuck, that's not good..." He muttered to himself as he stared death in the face. The Germans around him were low on or out of ammunition, and when those horsemen charged they would easily cross the distance between them and massacre the defenders. He could see more archers and warriors behind the cavalry too, the coming coup de grace that would finish them off after the cavalry charge. He was about to call for a retreat, to abandon the barricades, maybe hold up in the Palace if they could reach that, even. But when he turned around, what he could see almost made him cry in relief. Rushing up to the barricades behind him, he saw soldiers, soldiers carrying rifles, machine guns and grenades. German soldiers with stahlhelms. Reinforcements.

"Move it, move it! Up to the front! Get those machine guns set up!" An officer, carrying an MP-40 shouted as he ran ahead of his troops, the rest not far behind him as they hurried to take up positions among the beleaguered defenders as the invaders, seeing that their enemy was getting reinforced, began their charge while they still had the numerical advantage. A machine gun team set up their MG-42 right next to Karl, resting the bipod on the hood of the car. The order to fire soon came, and the fresh soldiers unleashed a storm of lead into the charging horsemen. Sturmgewehrs and MP40s roared in fury, filling the air with bullets, while marksmen with scoped Kar98k carbines picked off the enemy officers, making sure that no one was about to take charge amidst the chaos of the battle-turned massacre. The machine gun next to Karl unleashed it's fury, a soldier helping to feed the hungry killing machine's ammo belt into the weapon firing more than a thousand rounds per minute. Every fifth round was a bright red tracer round that helped the gunner aim, though he did not really need to, as the massed formation of enemies was an unmissable target. Karl had a front-seat view of a visceral demonstration as to why the MG-42 was called the "Kaiser's Buzzsaw", as it tore entire limbs off. It was the most beautiful thing Karl ever saw as he fired off the remaining few rounds in his own weapon.

Faced with the overwhelming fire, and their ranks in panicked confusion as to how a mere few dozen men could unleash such carnage, the invaders fell back in a rout, the German's fire pursuing them, dropping hundreds of them as they fled.

"They are falling back! Advance!" Karl could hear the officer from before, and the troops surged across the bridge in pursuit of their enemies, a Do335 passing above them to strafe the enemy and drop a bomb into the midst of them. He let out a deep sigh of relief as he slumped down on the ground, his back resting against the car. He let go of his empty weapon and reached inside his coat for a box of cigarettes. He did not smoke very often, but he kept a box of the higher-quality stuff on his person, for special occasions. He pulled one out and put it into his mouth before he fished out his lighter from his coat's pocket. He lit the end of his cigarette and inhaled deeply, letting the nicotine take it's effect before he exhaled the smoke. It was over, for now. They held the line.

Pariser Platz, some time later

Legate Tiberius Co Septimus increasingly felt uneasy at the situation. First, his Wyverns, those that did not go off chasing glory and bothered to report back, said that the city stretched on for leagues to all sides, dwarfing even Sadera itself. Despite the city's enormous size, his army encountered little resistance, the blue-clad militiamen armed with what his centurions described as 'strange, loud repeating crossbows' stood little chance against the Legions and they spread out in the city for leagues in every direction, except for a small island in the river not too far from where the Gate opened, where the barbarian defenders held the bridges stubbornly, even managing to route some of his demi-humans and cavalry with their own horsemen in a counter-attack before falling back to their island. No matter, he thought, his Legions had secured the bridges leading over the river elsewhere and it would only be a matter of time until he surrounded them and crushed them.

Then the enemy has summoned their flying arrows. Riding on an orange flame that spewed out from behind them, they were incredibly fast and loud, a sound like tearing cloth. He watched helplessly as they decimated his Wyverns, suddenly appearing without warning to rain death at them, flying circles around his helpless aerial knights easily while the screaming metallic beasts swatted them out of the sky one-by-one. That was his first clue that the enemy had reinforcements. He ordered his Legions to halt and prepare to defend their gains while he sent reinforcements to finally take the island before the barbarians could use it as a staging ground for their counter-attack. They failed, and the enemy was now pushing from all directions.

Panicked messengers came to his makeshift camp where prisoners and loot was brought to be sent back home through the Gate at a rate that was increasing at a frightening pace. All his legions were being pushed back, the messengers telling of green-clad mages with terribly loud staves that killed men in an instant, of big metal-covered boxy monsters that crawled on the ground with a loud, trundling noise, some even resembling elephants with trunks that roared with a mighty boom, smashing aside all that was in front of them. He would have called them insane if he hadn't seen the enemy's flying monsters before. It wasn't long before most of his legions were in total rout, the messengers he was sending back with orders now finding only warriors that were fleeing for their lives, with entire cohorts wiped out to a man as the sounds of the loud pops and booms the enemy's weapons made were getting closer and closer.

He was about to call a retreat when he turned to the sound, and saw one of the enemy's grey iron elephants, trundling down on the street, it's long trunk settling on him. Behind it was one more of it's kind, and another that did not have it's trunk. Among them were the green-clad men, pointing staffs of iron and wood at his warriors that spewed loud death, the otherworldly force crushing all resistance his brave Legions could offer. He was rooted to the spot for an eternal second before he tried to run for the darkness of the Gate when he suddenly heard a boom and was thrown into the air.

He landed with a thud, his ears ringing, pain shooting through nearly all points of his body, his blood painting the pavement red as it flowed from deep cuts in his arms, legs and torso. He tried to get up, but he found his legs not moving. He was seeing double as he tried to crawl to safety, the loud growling of an enemy iron elephant getting through the ringing in his ears. His vision cleared as he turned on his back, the elephant trundling straight towards him as he helplessly laid on the ground. The last view he had of the world was the descending treads crushing his body into the pavement below.

And that's a wrap for now. Next time we'll see how Germany reacts and the starting phases of this new war Germany finds herself in. Please leave a review, it helps immensely. Huge thanks and shoutout to my friend, Yorath for proofreading and giving me ideas for this story. Take care. I'll see you all in the next episode!