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alternatehistory.com
Reviving an old project of mine, since my writer's block won't allow me to write Alternate Fallout. F*** you, writer's block.
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Greatwar 1964
The Delayed First World War and Beyond
For 50 long years, the world has been on the brink of a great conflict that would have enveloped every major nation on the planet. From an insurgency in the Austro-Hungarian province of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 1910s, to the colonial wars of the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s, to the collapse of Austria-Hungary in 1938, and to the arms races of the 1950s and early 1960s, it was a surprise to many that widespread warfare did not spread across the world earlier, like many had believed.
However, on one fateful day in the year 1964, everything would change for the worse.
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1200 hours February 22nd, 1964 Ukerewe Astrodrome Ukerewe Island, German East Africa
Hugo Gäbler, a high-ranking officer in the Imperial German Air Force, stood with a proud posture and his space helmet held underneath his right arm, and stepped out of the elevator and onto the launch pad. Today, he was going to make history for the German Empire by becoming the first man in space. Looking at his surroundings from the top of the launch pad, he could make out much of the island and of Lake Victoria. He was 50 meters above ground level right now, but in a couple hours, he’d be in space, looking down upon the earth as his spacecraft entered orbit. Gäbler was nervous about this, since he was told that he could die in launch, orbit or re-entry, but regardless of the outcome, he would be proud of being the first man in space. If he was to die, he would make his country and his family proud, and he would be immortalized in the history books; that would be enough for him.
Gäbler walked forward towards the rocket, putting his helmet on as he made his way across the launch pad. Once he got up to the rocket, he took a deep breath before pressing the button on the control panel in front of him that would open the hatch to the rocket’s compartment. The rocket’s hatch made way for Gäbler to be able to get inside it, letting off some steam as it opened. Hugo then took a step inside the rocket, then another, and then laid down in the seat of the cockpit, closing the hatch afterwards. He inspected the controls of the spacecraft for a couple minutes before pushing a button that sent a message to the command center that he was ready for lift-off.
“T-minus 10 minutes until lift-off,” said a female voice in the speakers.
Gäbler waited in anticipation as the countdown began. With each minute that passed, Gäbler grew a little more anxious, but he knew that it was too late to turn back. A couple minutes later, the final countdown began, and Gäbler swallowed some of the spit in his mouth. It was time.
“Five... four... three... two... one...”
The spacecraft rumbled and Gäbler shook in his seat as the rocket took off from the launch platform. Britain may have invented the atomic bomb in 1949, and Russia may have put the first satellite into orbit in 1961, but Germany was destined to put the first human being in space. Today, it was finally going to happen.
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1210 hours February 22nd, 1964 Ukerewe Astrodrome outskirts Ukerewe Island, German East Africa
“Keep your sights on that rocket, Uhuru, and don’t fire until I say so,”
On the orders of his fire team leader, known by his nom de guerre of Nyambo, Uhuru kept an even steadier aim on the rocket with his man-portable surface-to-air missile launcher, a prototype stolen during a night-time raid on the Imperial German military’s main HQ in East Africa, located near the city of Dar es Salaam. According to documents captured during the same raid, this missile launcher was capable of locking on to sources of heat, such as the engines of a rocket in this particular scenario.
“The rocket should be launching any time now, so stay focused,” said Nyambo, keeping a watchful eye on the rocket through his binoculars.
Just as Uhuru took note of Nyambo’s command, a strong rumble shook him and the shrubland around him as the rocket began taking off.
“Now, fire now!” ordered Nyambo.
With a split-second delay after Nyambo’s order, Uhuru pulled the trigger of the weapon, and after a brief second of beeping emanating from the launcher’s acquisition speaker, the missile launched, homing in on the rocket. When the missile made contact with the rocket a couple second later, the two objects exploded, creating a shockwave that could have been felt on the ground. Immediately, as a siren blared from the astrodrome, the two men picked up their weapons and made their way east to meet up with their comrades at the entrance.
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1215 hours February 22nd, 1964 Ukerewe Astrodrome Ukerewe Island, German East Africa
Konrad Busch merely observed through a reinforced glass window in awe as the remains of the rocket that was meant to bring the first man into space fell all around the astrodrome in scattered locations. He was absolutely dumbfounded by what had just happened before his eyes. He wondered, how had the men that launched that missile manage to get anywhere near the astrodrome? How did they get their hands on such advanced technology? Just then, an explosion shook the building, adding to the panic and chaos that took the astrodrome by storm. Busch now knew that this wasn’t just a single attack; this was a full-out raid. And just as a nearby soldier drew his rifle towards the direction of the explosion, a large-calibre bullet shot straight through the reinforced glass and scattered the soldier’s brain matter all around him. Busch was quick to run down the staircase from the catwalk to the ground level, out of sight of the sniper that shot the soldier. To his left was the soldier’s rifle, a standard-issue G53 7.92 mm assault rifle. Expecting whoever is attacking the astrodrome to appear at any moment, Busch picked up the rifle and ran over to the door behind him, which was being held open by another one of the astrodrome’s personnel.
“Get in here, they’re gonna be here any time now!” shouted the man holding the door open.
Busch swiftly entered the doorway, with the metal door behind him closing shut and locking, so as to keep out whoever was attacking the astrodrome. Behind the door, Busch could hear men shouting in Swahili and firing gunshots. And then soon after, there was a strong bang on the metal door. The men attacking the base must have known that there were people behind it.
“Open the door or we’ll blow it open!” said one of the men behind the door in German, but with strong African overtones.
“Don’t listen to them, we have to make a run for it!” said the same man that held the door open for Busch.
As soon as Busch and the 2 other men with him began running away from the door and through the hallways, a rocket-propelled grenade was fired and it blew the metal door open. A piece of shrapnel from the blast killed the man in the back. A left turn and a right turn later, Busch and the other man found themselves at the door to the outside. Busch went to open the door, but just as he did so, one of the guerrillas attacking the astrodrome rushed at him and knocked him over. He then pulled out a machete, ready to hack at slice at Busch. But luckily for him, the other man with him rushed in to save Busch and managed to land a punch on the guerrilla, but not without the large black man recovering from the blow and slicing the man’s right hand off. The man screamed in agony as blood ran from the stump where his hand used to be. The guerrilla fighter prepared for a finishing blow to the man, but returning the favor that the man did for him, Busch was able to grab his rifle and put a round in the guerrilla’s head. Busch then got on his feet again, and helped the other man to safety behind a nearby bush, where they were out of view. Busch then wrapped the right sleeve of the man’s worksuit around the bloody stump where his hand used to be.
“Never really got a chance to meet you in all of that chaos,” said Busch. “Mind if I get to know you a bit more?”
“My name is Theophil,” responded the man. “Theophil von Stolp.”
“Konrad Busch. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Theophil,” said Busch. “I really do appreciate how you saved my life back there.”
“Don’t mention it. You saved my life too, so I am in your debt as well,” said Theophil.
“Are you going to be okay without your right hand?” asked Busch.
“I’ll be fine. I’m left-handed anyways,” answered Theophil.
“Alright. Now, let’s try and get to Nansio before the guerrillas find us. There should be a doctor there than can check you out,” suggested Busch.
“Sounds like a plan. Let’s head out of this hellhole,” responded Theophil.
With that, the two men ran as fast as they could from the guerrilla-occupied astrodrome, slowing down as they reached the road leading to Nansio. However, despite being in relative safety now, they could feel that the world was about to be dragged into the great war that has been boiling for half a century, and the rest of the world would then feel it in the days to come. The world stage was about to drastically change.