I would love to be in the room watching Margot read that book. The facial expressions would be hilarious.
I might be biased because I'm a Kat fan though.
Stupid Luck and Happenstance, Thread II
- Thread starter Peabody-Martini
- Start date
I might be biased because I'm a Kat fan though.
Her eyes would get larger and her face more pale as she read, interspersed with interludes where she felt her neck and hyperventilated.
I honestly think she just thinks its wrong that a woman can be as successful as Kat has been....
I wonder how Kat is handling the trip to Canada so far?
I have no doubt that she is being inundated with invitations, requests for personal appearances, and to give talks to various groups.
The outside of the Blackwood home is probably like a spy convention with every possible intelligence agency setting up some kind of surveillance on Kat, and I wouldn’t put it pass the stupid ones to try to put a listening device in the Blackwood home.
I have no doubt that she is being inundated with invitations, requests for personal appearances, and to give talks to various groups.
The outside of the Blackwood home is probably like a spy convention with every possible intelligence agency setting up some kind of surveillance on Kat, and I wouldn’t put it pass the stupid ones to try to put a listening device in the Blackwood home.
Bah! Nonsense, the Mounties will scare any one else away.
Look at that threatening swag.
Part 89, Chapter 1386
Chapter One Thousand Three Hundred Eighty-Six
4th August 1960
Moscow, Russia
After a night of sleeping in a real bed at the hotel, it was time for them to pay the Piper if they were going to manage to complete this journey within screaming distance of the original timetable. Emil did find the whole thing amusing as he look in the mirror at the suit that he would wear tonight when he went to go to the dinner party that the Russian Czar had invited him to. He had dispensed with the grey and black dress uniform of the Fallschirmjäger forever when he had retired. That meant that the considerable number of medals had gone with it as well. It was something that Emil realized that he simply didn’t need anymore.
Even if it meant spending an extra night in Moscow, turning down an invitation from the Czar was something that anyone with an ounce of sanity didn’t do. While Georgy wasn’t the lunatic like many of his ancestors had been, staying in charge of a country like Russia for as long as he had required being a complete bastard to some extent.
Zella looked cross when she stepped out of her room which was hardly a surprise. She was wearing the formal dress that Maria had insisted that Emil pack without telling her. Considering that it was Zella’s phone call to Jehane Alexandra that had gotten them out of the official tangle that they had found themselves in, it was the least that she could do because Emil didn’t like doing this sort of thing any more than she did.
“If it makes you feel any better” Emil said, “You do look nice when you put in a bit of effort.”
“This dress is something that Momma would wear” Zella said.
Emil felt that Zella was being a touch overly dramatic. Maria was a beautiful woman and she had put up with Emil for the last two decades. Zella could do far worse than to wear a dress that her mother had picked out.
“You want the truth?” Emil asked, “It makes you look a bit like how your mother looked the first time I saw her. She had gotten dolled up in an effort to get a story and I inadvertently stole my Aide-de-Camp’s date because of that.”
Zella had heard the story of how her parents had met many times. Her mother’s efforts to get around the security of a Luftwaffe Airfield where her father happened to command the security detachment. They might have started out as adversaries but being frequently in contact with each other had led to other things. Like two great children and twenty years of marriage.
“Oh” Zella said, she was still at an age when she didn’t like to be reminded of how much she resembled her parents.
“Just get through tonight without pouting too much if you can and we can finally get back on the road again in the morning” Emil said, “Besides that, this will be a great addition for your next dispatch to the Berliner.”
“I guess” Zella replied, “And I don’t pout.”
“Whatever you say” Emil said, knowing otherwise.
Near Montreal, Canada
It was a pleasant afternoon, and this was a lovely place. They were in a field that was next to a river where they had been enjoying a picnic lunch in the shade of willow trees. Sir Malcolm had said that there was something special that he wanted her to see and the best place to see it would be in the State Park where they were spending the afternoon, but he had been vague about exactly what that was. So, Kat was watching the children play on the riverbank and waiting to see what Malcolm had in store.
Marie was laughing and chasing after Tat and Kol in an impromptu game of tag in the manner of children since time out of mind. Jo considered herself too dignified at fourteen to join into the game. It was nice to see Marie happy. Since they had arrived in Montreal, Marie had been unusually quiet for her. Normally she was a chatterbox but around her grandparents, Marie had just clammed up. It was something that had left Kat and Douglas concerned because it was so out of character for her. Sir Malcolm had assumed that it was because Marie was shy, and there was a coldness that Margot had towards her. It was that last thing that made Kat accepting the invitation to speak at the Women’s Literary Society that Margot was a member of something that she looked forward to and she intended to talk about a whole lot of things that were not in the book.
Presently, Sir Malcolm was asking Jo questions about her life in Berlin, her school, her friends and whatnot. “A pretty girl like you must have a boyfriend” Malcolm asked, clearly amused by Jo blushing as she stammered to give him an answer.
“There is a boy that she fancies back home” Kat said, “But he cares too much about Football to notice Josefine.”
“I didn’t think you had that there” Malcolm said.
Kat thought for a minute about the proper choice of words. “I meant Soccer” She said.
“Oh… I see” Malcolm replied, “He’s still more interested in sport than in girls. Boys are usually that way until they lose the distraction when they get a bit older.”
“This is Hans’ boy, Manfred” Kat said, “He’s already drawn the attention of some of the clubs as someone they want to keep an eye on and see how he develops over the next few years, so it will probably be a long while before he pays attention to anything else.”
“Tante Kat!” Jo said sharply. she was completely mortified, until this moment she’d had no idea that Kat had known most of that.
“You need to learn some subtlety as opposed to mooning after someone” Kat said, “What you’ve been doing has been obvious for some time.”
With that Jo fell silent, outraged about getting caught out like that and how Kat and Malcolm seemed to find that funny.
They sat in silence for several minutes until Kat noticed that Sir Malcolm was checking his watch. “Any minute now” He said. Then there was a thundering roar that was growing louder, and a fighter plane streaked overhead. It was followed less than a minute later by a second one. The sound of the third and fourth was growing louder even as Kat was watching the first two streak past. The children were looking up with a mixture of surprise and awe.
“This scramble is a scheduled drill” Sir Malcolm said with his voice raised to be above the din. “Remember those technology transfers that you arranged a few years ago? These Arrow fighters are one of the results of that.”
4th August 1960
Moscow, Russia
After a night of sleeping in a real bed at the hotel, it was time for them to pay the Piper if they were going to manage to complete this journey within screaming distance of the original timetable. Emil did find the whole thing amusing as he look in the mirror at the suit that he would wear tonight when he went to go to the dinner party that the Russian Czar had invited him to. He had dispensed with the grey and black dress uniform of the Fallschirmjäger forever when he had retired. That meant that the considerable number of medals had gone with it as well. It was something that Emil realized that he simply didn’t need anymore.
Even if it meant spending an extra night in Moscow, turning down an invitation from the Czar was something that anyone with an ounce of sanity didn’t do. While Georgy wasn’t the lunatic like many of his ancestors had been, staying in charge of a country like Russia for as long as he had required being a complete bastard to some extent.
Zella looked cross when she stepped out of her room which was hardly a surprise. She was wearing the formal dress that Maria had insisted that Emil pack without telling her. Considering that it was Zella’s phone call to Jehane Alexandra that had gotten them out of the official tangle that they had found themselves in, it was the least that she could do because Emil didn’t like doing this sort of thing any more than she did.
“If it makes you feel any better” Emil said, “You do look nice when you put in a bit of effort.”
“This dress is something that Momma would wear” Zella said.
Emil felt that Zella was being a touch overly dramatic. Maria was a beautiful woman and she had put up with Emil for the last two decades. Zella could do far worse than to wear a dress that her mother had picked out.
“You want the truth?” Emil asked, “It makes you look a bit like how your mother looked the first time I saw her. She had gotten dolled up in an effort to get a story and I inadvertently stole my Aide-de-Camp’s date because of that.”
Zella had heard the story of how her parents had met many times. Her mother’s efforts to get around the security of a Luftwaffe Airfield where her father happened to command the security detachment. They might have started out as adversaries but being frequently in contact with each other had led to other things. Like two great children and twenty years of marriage.
“Oh” Zella said, she was still at an age when she didn’t like to be reminded of how much she resembled her parents.
“Just get through tonight without pouting too much if you can and we can finally get back on the road again in the morning” Emil said, “Besides that, this will be a great addition for your next dispatch to the Berliner.”
“I guess” Zella replied, “And I don’t pout.”
“Whatever you say” Emil said, knowing otherwise.
Near Montreal, Canada
It was a pleasant afternoon, and this was a lovely place. They were in a field that was next to a river where they had been enjoying a picnic lunch in the shade of willow trees. Sir Malcolm had said that there was something special that he wanted her to see and the best place to see it would be in the State Park where they were spending the afternoon, but he had been vague about exactly what that was. So, Kat was watching the children play on the riverbank and waiting to see what Malcolm had in store.
Marie was laughing and chasing after Tat and Kol in an impromptu game of tag in the manner of children since time out of mind. Jo considered herself too dignified at fourteen to join into the game. It was nice to see Marie happy. Since they had arrived in Montreal, Marie had been unusually quiet for her. Normally she was a chatterbox but around her grandparents, Marie had just clammed up. It was something that had left Kat and Douglas concerned because it was so out of character for her. Sir Malcolm had assumed that it was because Marie was shy, and there was a coldness that Margot had towards her. It was that last thing that made Kat accepting the invitation to speak at the Women’s Literary Society that Margot was a member of something that she looked forward to and she intended to talk about a whole lot of things that were not in the book.
Presently, Sir Malcolm was asking Jo questions about her life in Berlin, her school, her friends and whatnot. “A pretty girl like you must have a boyfriend” Malcolm asked, clearly amused by Jo blushing as she stammered to give him an answer.
“There is a boy that she fancies back home” Kat said, “But he cares too much about Football to notice Josefine.”
“I didn’t think you had that there” Malcolm said.
Kat thought for a minute about the proper choice of words. “I meant Soccer” She said.
“Oh… I see” Malcolm replied, “He’s still more interested in sport than in girls. Boys are usually that way until they lose the distraction when they get a bit older.”
“This is Hans’ boy, Manfred” Kat said, “He’s already drawn the attention of some of the clubs as someone they want to keep an eye on and see how he develops over the next few years, so it will probably be a long while before he pays attention to anything else.”
“Tante Kat!” Jo said sharply. she was completely mortified, until this moment she’d had no idea that Kat had known most of that.
“You need to learn some subtlety as opposed to mooning after someone” Kat said, “What you’ve been doing has been obvious for some time.”
With that Jo fell silent, outraged about getting caught out like that and how Kat and Malcolm seemed to find that funny.
They sat in silence for several minutes until Kat noticed that Sir Malcolm was checking his watch. “Any minute now” He said. Then there was a thundering roar that was growing louder, and a fighter plane streaked overhead. It was followed less than a minute later by a second one. The sound of the third and fourth was growing louder even as Kat was watching the first two streak past. The children were looking up with a mixture of surprise and awe.
“This scramble is a scheduled drill” Sir Malcolm said with his voice raised to be above the din. “Remember those technology transfers that you arranged a few years ago? These Arrow fighters are one of the results of that.”
Avro Arrows? I assume they are using the Velvet Glove, since I don't think anyone will consider an air-to-air nuke.
Scratch that... It will be a whole herd of them.
It also will make once again several heads roll in Langley, as being surprised by the Canucks revealing a highly advanced Fighter with ample capability to act as both Interceptor & Attacker and that pretty much outperforms everything in the American Air Force for at least the next few years.....
With the British Empire still relatively powerful at this point it complicates things. ITTL Australia and Canada made deals for technology to be transferred in a similar manner to OTL because they weren't thrilled with getting treated like the younger children by London and getting nothing but hand-me-downs. The difference was that in OTL WW2 played a very different role for those two Commonwealth Countries.
Probably Canadian counter intelligence is hugging itself with glee. Kat's visit has no implications for Canadian national security but a lot of the funny people they take an interest in won't know that and will be taking a look. Which gives them a shed load of opportunities to get these interesting people on their radar.
..... (facepalm)....... As things go now, the Arrow and the collaboration also in Tanks its to have a solid defense... From the US.
Considering the behavior of the US Government and the American society from the 40's, the Canadian Government its of the opinion that having an extended hand, AND a very Good Gun in the other its a better stance to the hour of speaking to the Americans than an extended hand alone...
Moreover, the Arrow and the other projects of Military hardware, leave the Canadian industry in a prime position to be a primary provider of said advanced material to the British and the Commonwealth nations.....
Indeed, nations will more likely look into defense procurement as an instrument of national industrial policy (among others) and eschew the interoperability mandates required by entities such as NATO and Warpac. I would expect a huge variation (on a theme) between nations military hardware.
It is a licensed german engine, a independant developement, does it have british texh with it(rolls royce engine weren t so bad.)
Part 89, Chapter 1387
Chapter One Thousand Three Hundred Eighty-Seven
6th August 1960
Jilin Provence, China
“Our fight isn’t in wars between nations” Father Lehmann said, “Our fight is against the tools of the Devil himself; fear, ignorance and disease. If we combat those with everything that we have then we are in fact preventing wars from having to be fought. There is no higher calling for those in the Medical Service than what I am asking for volunteers for.”
Kiki had volunteered, but not because of Father Lehmann’s sermon. It was because the mission itself sounded interesting. Crossing to the other side of the Yalu River with three lories of medical supplies and offering treatment for anyone in need who wanted it seemed crazy. However, as Lehmann had said they were not at war with China yet and their entire job was to save lives without question. Let the politicians quibble over the political garbage. They had a serious job to do.
When she found herself sitting on a lorry getting scrutinized by Chinese soldiers armed with machine pistols on their side of the bridge was when Kiki realized just how her choice had been driven by idealism and naivety. Unfortunately, it was a bit late to change her mind by then. Though they had been waved through, the nerve-wracking day had only just begun.
They had driven many kilometers down twisty mountain roads as directed by their local guide. Kiki was certain must have doubled back around on themselves because she knew that field hospitals were usually located just outside artillery range behind the lines. She assumed that it was in an effort to confuse any Intelligence Officer who might be among the small group of Surgeons and Sanis who had crossed the river. Tomorrow morning, they would get escorted back to the bridge. So, they had to get as much done as they could during that time.
Once there, Kiki had found herself sorting out who was most in need from those who could wait. To her surprise, most of the Chinese soldiers were grateful for her efforts though she had trouble communicating with them. As she did quick examinations on the soldiers, she pulled out the “federal” tags and tearing them off at the appropriate line after writing a brief description of what she thought was going on. Seeing a solder with severe case of the immersion foot syndrome of the sort that they had been battling on their own side of the river, Kiki realized that this man would be lucky if he only lost his toes. She tore off the tag at the red bar and she saw the instant look of fear on the man’s face. Even across languages and cultures the meaning of those tags was well known. Moving on, she noticed that one of her minders was another westerner. He had an slight olive cast to his skin, making her wonder if he was a Spaniard. On his head was a green beret with a parachutist’s badge. Sewn to the sleeves of his uniform were a rank insignia, an eagle with a single arc over it. She tried to remember what she had been taught about the uniforms of foreign armies. He was a Specialist 2nd Class, roughly equivalent to a Stabsgefreiter.
“Can I help you with something?” Kiki asked.
“Jonny, uhm… Sergeant-Major Casey, I mean… He said to keep a close eye on you” The American said nervously.
“You can keep a closer eye on me if you help as opposed to standing around gawking” Kiki said to him, “Fahnenjunker Fischer, by the way.”
“What?” The American asked.
“My name” Kiki replied, then added “And my rank.”
“What exactly is a fawnenyunker?”
Kiki didn’t laugh at the absurdity of that question and how he had mangled that word. “Probationary Officer Aspirant” She replied. That was as close to a translation as she could think of at the moment. She them went to the next patient; this one was complaining of abdominal pain. Kiki took a close look and wrote that she suspected that he had tape worms, one more thing that she had become familiar with in Korea. She tore off the tag at the yellow bar.
“I thought you were just a nurse” The American said, he was nervous again. “I’m Richard Valenzuela, my friends call me Ritchie. I’m a…”
“Specialist, 2nd Class” Kiki replied, “I already knew that, and I wouldn’t say that I am your friend Specialist Valenzuela.”
----------------------------------------------------------------
It was absurd, Jonny thought to himself.
For lack of anything better to do at the moment, his Squad had been tasked with keeping an eye on some Kraut Doctors and Nurses. Then it had gotten complicated. This one German girl, a Medic by training had gotten the Runt to help her. Then Simon and Huck had gone to see what he was up to. Before they knew it, they were helping the girl like Ritchie was. Shortly later, the rest of the Squad followed along.
“What the Hell do you think you are playing at Cadet Fischer?” Jonny asked.
“I am not in the Kaiserliche Marine” The girl said indignantly, “I am only attached to one of their units at present.”
“The what?” Jonny asked getting a look of annoyance from her.
“His Majesty’s Navy” She replied. She would probably would have been a pretty girl if she had put in the effort. Glasses, curly hair pulled back into a braid and a thin face, she looked like someone’s little sister. That was how she had been able to get Jonny’s men to help her. She was the sort who men wanted to help, and she wasn’t afraid to ask.
6th August 1960
Jilin Provence, China
“Our fight isn’t in wars between nations” Father Lehmann said, “Our fight is against the tools of the Devil himself; fear, ignorance and disease. If we combat those with everything that we have then we are in fact preventing wars from having to be fought. There is no higher calling for those in the Medical Service than what I am asking for volunteers for.”
Kiki had volunteered, but not because of Father Lehmann’s sermon. It was because the mission itself sounded interesting. Crossing to the other side of the Yalu River with three lories of medical supplies and offering treatment for anyone in need who wanted it seemed crazy. However, as Lehmann had said they were not at war with China yet and their entire job was to save lives without question. Let the politicians quibble over the political garbage. They had a serious job to do.
When she found herself sitting on a lorry getting scrutinized by Chinese soldiers armed with machine pistols on their side of the bridge was when Kiki realized just how her choice had been driven by idealism and naivety. Unfortunately, it was a bit late to change her mind by then. Though they had been waved through, the nerve-wracking day had only just begun.
They had driven many kilometers down twisty mountain roads as directed by their local guide. Kiki was certain must have doubled back around on themselves because she knew that field hospitals were usually located just outside artillery range behind the lines. She assumed that it was in an effort to confuse any Intelligence Officer who might be among the small group of Surgeons and Sanis who had crossed the river. Tomorrow morning, they would get escorted back to the bridge. So, they had to get as much done as they could during that time.
Once there, Kiki had found herself sorting out who was most in need from those who could wait. To her surprise, most of the Chinese soldiers were grateful for her efforts though she had trouble communicating with them. As she did quick examinations on the soldiers, she pulled out the “federal” tags and tearing them off at the appropriate line after writing a brief description of what she thought was going on. Seeing a solder with severe case of the immersion foot syndrome of the sort that they had been battling on their own side of the river, Kiki realized that this man would be lucky if he only lost his toes. She tore off the tag at the red bar and she saw the instant look of fear on the man’s face. Even across languages and cultures the meaning of those tags was well known. Moving on, she noticed that one of her minders was another westerner. He had an slight olive cast to his skin, making her wonder if he was a Spaniard. On his head was a green beret with a parachutist’s badge. Sewn to the sleeves of his uniform were a rank insignia, an eagle with a single arc over it. She tried to remember what she had been taught about the uniforms of foreign armies. He was a Specialist 2nd Class, roughly equivalent to a Stabsgefreiter.
“Can I help you with something?” Kiki asked.
“Jonny, uhm… Sergeant-Major Casey, I mean… He said to keep a close eye on you” The American said nervously.
“You can keep a closer eye on me if you help as opposed to standing around gawking” Kiki said to him, “Fahnenjunker Fischer, by the way.”
“What?” The American asked.
“My name” Kiki replied, then added “And my rank.”
“What exactly is a fawnenyunker?”
Kiki didn’t laugh at the absurdity of that question and how he had mangled that word. “Probationary Officer Aspirant” She replied. That was as close to a translation as she could think of at the moment. She them went to the next patient; this one was complaining of abdominal pain. Kiki took a close look and wrote that she suspected that he had tape worms, one more thing that she had become familiar with in Korea. She tore off the tag at the yellow bar.
“I thought you were just a nurse” The American said, he was nervous again. “I’m Richard Valenzuela, my friends call me Ritchie. I’m a…”
“Specialist, 2nd Class” Kiki replied, “I already knew that, and I wouldn’t say that I am your friend Specialist Valenzuela.”
----------------------------------------------------------------
It was absurd, Jonny thought to himself.
For lack of anything better to do at the moment, his Squad had been tasked with keeping an eye on some Kraut Doctors and Nurses. Then it had gotten complicated. This one German girl, a Medic by training had gotten the Runt to help her. Then Simon and Huck had gone to see what he was up to. Before they knew it, they were helping the girl like Ritchie was. Shortly later, the rest of the Squad followed along.
“What the Hell do you think you are playing at Cadet Fischer?” Jonny asked.
“I am not in the Kaiserliche Marine” The girl said indignantly, “I am only attached to one of their units at present.”
“The what?” Jonny asked getting a look of annoyance from her.
“His Majesty’s Navy” She replied. She would probably would have been a pretty girl if she had put in the effort. Glasses, curly hair pulled back into a braid and a thin face, she looked like someone’s little sister. That was how she had been able to get Jonny’s men to help her. She was the sort who men wanted to help, and she wasn’t afraid to ask.
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