Re: Blood and Iron

Erich's death hit Bruno hard, harder than he reasonably wanted to admit… But everything that had occurred had been plotted perfectly from the moment he tasked his most loyal and beloved of friend's to begin this fateful endeavor.

Even though he had a hard time accepting the natural consequences as he stared them in the face, Bruno acted swiftly to secure his position. From the moment Erich was killed, he called in the "attack" and had the man's body secured.

The event acted as a catalyst, a domino effect if you will. It was the signal for the preparations which Bruno had long since made to begin going into effect. The Feldgendarmerie, under his authority immediately moved into surrounding the Federal Police in their headquarters, in their field offices, in their homes, and anywhere else they may be found.

A purge had begun, and the Imperial Police found themselves on the losing end of their gamble. Any who had even attempted to flee the country falling the deaths of their last backers, were already eliminated in silence by Bruno's many other agents hiding in the shadows.

As for Bruno, his wound was quickly treated, where he was eventually released from the hospital and allowed to return home, waiting for the signal to be given that all had been concluded in accordance with his scheme.

The Imperial Police were most certainly shocked to find themselves besieged and given orders by the German Military Police, even more so when despite being given a verbal chance to surrender, their locations were immediately stormed by the men outside.

Bruno not wanting any evidence to remain of what he had done, quickly dispatched the most loyal of Feldgendarmerie to eliminate the Imperial Police and its members under a litany of severe charges. Including but not limited to high treason, espionage, unlawful coercion, obstruction of military justice, and abuse of authority.

You see as a Generalfeldmarschall during a time of war, Bruno's authority was second only to the Kaiser, he could effective wield the Reich's military police as a weapon against military or civilian targets depending on whether or not their crimes were deemed "a threat to the war effort."

From the moment Bruno put this plot into action, he accounted for the fact that German law enforcement agencies could potentially be bought and paid for by his enemies and used against him.

Ironically enough, the Police entering Bruno's home without a warrant, yet coercing their way inside by intimidating his staff, as well springing an interrogation on Bruno within his own office "over shared drinks" were the actions that gave Bruno full authority to mobilize the Feldgendarmerie.

And all of their sins were quickly uncovered. Thus, while threatening the weakest members of Bruno's staff into applying a wiretap, and stalking him while he was in Berlin had been seen by the agents of the Federal Police as their silver bullets.

They were, in actuality the trap that Bruno had prepared for them all along. Even they didn't realize that the staff member had bugged Bruno's phone under his own permission, and only after receiving it. Experience exclusive tales on My Virtual Library Empire

Bruno had, after all carefully vetted everyone near his family, and their loyalty was without question. All along the Federal Police, the moment they revealed themselves as the agents of the Reich's enemies hidden in the shadows, had been playing into Bruno's hands.

And because of this, they now found their headquarters being stormed, and their employees being gunned down under the guise of "armed rebellion!" After all, the evidence Bruno had compiled classified them as enemy combatants, since they were officially operating under the orders of the Rothschilds and other foreign interests Bruno had since eliminated.

Making any perceived attempt to resist arrest during a time of war an act of "armed rebellion." Thus, there was not even a need for an attempt to arrest the men, as the Feldgendarmerie whose leadership was largely composed of veterans of the Iron Division would declare their actions under such circumstances.

Because of this, any evidence that existed of Bruno's supposed connections to Erich, and the murders of German citizens. Were immediately shredded and burned by the Feldgendarmerie, while new evidence was quickly forged to tie the Imperial Police to Erich.

Officially, the story became that Erich had been threatened and coerced into operating on behalf of the Imperial Police to assassinate members of the German Military, as well as prominent figures in German society such as politicians, bankers, industrialists, etc.

Yes, all the people Bruno had killed that were German and Austro-Hungarian citizens were officially said to have been done by the Imperial Police who used Erich as their blade. All the while, the murders Erich had committed in France, Britain, and the USA were left untethered to him.

And with Bruno's partial ownership of the press, this propaganda became the official story following the chaos that briefly unfolded as a result of this coup. As a result, Bruno sat in his office, pouring two drinks. One for himself, which he was quick to down as humanly possible.

But the other remained seated across from him completely undisturbed. He simply stared at the amber liquid with a bittersweet expression on his face. Eventually, after multiple drinks, Bruno finally said the words he was thinking about with such a solemn gaze.

"We did it old friend… We won the war… Victory is all but guaranteed now… And though I had to besmirch your name for the time being… I promise you, even if it is the last thing I ever do in this world, I will have you exonerated.

One day, you will be known as the legendary figure that you were, a man who sacrificed his life for the sake of routing out and destroying enemies within the German Reich who if left to their own devices would fester and rot until everything became ruin…

The future I build going forward, an era of peace, prosperity and global hegemony for Germany and its people. It is all thanks to your heroic sacrifice…. Though I have no idea if your martyrdom will be looked kindly upon by our father in heaven, I pray for your soul's safe passage to heaven, even if you are deemed unworthy in the eyes of the Lord.

And should I find out you were destined for a far more terrifying place, I will rally my banners and march into hell itself to liberate you... Goodbye for now, Erich, and may we one day together meet again…"

After saying this, Bruno reached forward and grabbed the glass he had poured for Erich and slowly sipped its contents. And it was only after he had finished it that a call rang forth on his phone.

Wiping the tears from his eyes, and taking a moment to choke back the despair in his heart so that he was in a presentable face, Bruno accepted the call while listening to the voice on the other end.

It was the voice of the leader of the Feldgendarmerie who stated one of three simple words before hanging up.

"It is done…"

Upon hearing this, Bruno hung up his phone, silently standing up and approaching his office's mirror where he straightened his collar before placing his cap on his head. With the recent chaos that unfolded so suddenly, Bruno now would have to answer personally to the Kaiser about what he had done, and why he had done it.

Not that was an issue for him. Nevertheless, the groundwork had finally been laid for the German Army to push into Paris without a thought in regards to the enemies lying behind them, as they had already been thoroughly eliminated.

And in the coming days, any rats who may have been able to escape the trap laid for them would be hunted down and eliminated by the operatives of Military Intelligence, and the Kaiser's Secret Police.

One might look back upon this event in the future and remark that it was a flawless coup. Something that was a bit of a rarity throughout history. As for the fate of the Imperial Police, it would be reorganized in the coming months into an institution that Bruno indirectly had control over.