Stupid Luck and Happenstance, Thread III
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Part 151, Chapter 2750
Chapter Two thousand Seven Hundred and Fifty
8th January 1979
Heligoland
It was bitterly cold despite the rare clear day. They had been told that they had the afternoon off as a reward, though no one was sure what it was for though. Not that there was much to do or anywhere to go really. Erich had joined the others on the bleachers of the football pitch that had been bult on what was probably the only level ground of the whole island. He needed to have a word with Dreher anyway. Too much of what he had done had been reacting to events outside of his control. That needed to change, the trouble was that Erich was still totally in the dark.
“As soon as you disappeared, our friend, the Hauptfeldwebel with that damned clipboard appeared in the barracks and said that he had big plans for us that afternoon” Dreher said, “You can see the results for yourself.”
There had been thirty-eight men left in the Platoon when Erich had been thrown into the hole. Now though, it wasn’t much more than a Squad, with there only being a dozen men left.
“I wouldn’t have let that happen” Erich replied.
“Yeah” Dreher said, “Why else do you think they did it that way? Do you want to know what the worst part is, Hauptfeldwebel Clipboard said that they had a specific number they were trying to reach. You had already passed their tests, they just wanted twelve men from the Other Ranks at the end of this stage of the program.”
“Did he say what we are doing next?” Erich asked.
“No” Dreher replied.
“It would have good if he had blabbed about that” Erich said as he retied the laces on his left boot.
“He isn’t a Bond villain” Dreher replied.
“No, that would be the Oberst” Erich said, “Herr Clipboard is the henchman who gets it in the second to last act in the movie. When James Bond drops a helicopter, submarine, or something on him and says a quip before going after the big boss.”
“Are you looking for volunteers?” Dreher asked, “Because I would love to do that. How do you drop a submarine on someone though?”
“Fuck if I know” Erich replied, “Go ask James Bond, or the screen writer at MGM who would come up with that.”
Berlin-Brandenberg International Airport
It was debatable which caused more headaches that morning. Preparing Arno for the flight and making sure that his paperwork was in order. Or keeping three children, Kiki’s Personal Secretary Steffi Bader, the children’s minder Vũ Mai, Benjamin, along with Kiki’s personal security all moving in the same direction in the airport. Kiki really missed Fianna Dunn. It wasn’t just because she made this sort of thing seem effortless, but she was one of the few people who Kiki knew she could trust without reservation. Fianna had wanted to return to her home in Ireland and Jack Kennedy had arranged for her to mind his daughter Jacqueline and Marie Alexandra von Mischner-Blackwood. The minor detail that both of them were theoretical adults spoke volumes, it reminded Kiki of her father once saying that some people needed longer to grow up than others when the subject of her sister Rea came up. That move was entirely because of Marie’s fainting episode, someone needed to get her to stop neglecting her health. The irony of Kiki finding herself lecturing Marie about that was not lost on her.
Kiki had told Nina and Lutz to hold Ben’s hands. At seven, Nina felt she was far too old for that and with four-year-old Lutz staying out of trouble would be completely out of character for him. The airport was a million distractions and the last thing Kiki needed was for her children to wander off. She didn’t have to worry about Elene doing that, an advantage of her not being quite old enough to walk yet. Still, Kiki could see that her youngest was sitting in her stroller, looking around intently. If Lena were older then Kiki would know that expression on her face would mean trouble brewing.
When Kiki had made the arrangements for this flight, she had been exploring her options when Freddy had informed her that because of her increased visibility due to her retirement, he would appreciate it if Kiki booked a flight with the National Carrier, meaning Lufthansa. It was that same visibility that had made her consider other options when she had learned that details of her future plans had leaked. Kiki didn’t want photographs of her children to appear in the tabloids and had taken great pains to make sure it didn’t happen. Still, places like airports were chokepoints and you never knew who might be lurking in the main concourse. Kiki’s security detail working with the First Foot and Airport Security had made sure that the worst sort of pests had been removed before she had arrived.
A Representative from the Airline had facilitated their trip from Loading to International Departures. Kiki and Ben had made sure that everyone’s paperwork was in order before they had even left the Winter Residence, so that was one less headache. As they waited at the gate for the plane to start boarding, Kiki noticed that Ben was looking out the window. Across the runway was the flightline of Ben’s old Air Wing, the fighter-bombers gleaming in the morning light.
“Do you miss it?” Kiki asked.
“Sometimes” Ben replied, “But that was always a means to an end.”
“Did you get there?” Kiki asked, “To that end?”
“Yeah, but found something better along the way” Ben said before the boarding announcement was heard over the PA.
8th January 1979
Heligoland
It was bitterly cold despite the rare clear day. They had been told that they had the afternoon off as a reward, though no one was sure what it was for though. Not that there was much to do or anywhere to go really. Erich had joined the others on the bleachers of the football pitch that had been bult on what was probably the only level ground of the whole island. He needed to have a word with Dreher anyway. Too much of what he had done had been reacting to events outside of his control. That needed to change, the trouble was that Erich was still totally in the dark.
“As soon as you disappeared, our friend, the Hauptfeldwebel with that damned clipboard appeared in the barracks and said that he had big plans for us that afternoon” Dreher said, “You can see the results for yourself.”
There had been thirty-eight men left in the Platoon when Erich had been thrown into the hole. Now though, it wasn’t much more than a Squad, with there only being a dozen men left.
“I wouldn’t have let that happen” Erich replied.
“Yeah” Dreher said, “Why else do you think they did it that way? Do you want to know what the worst part is, Hauptfeldwebel Clipboard said that they had a specific number they were trying to reach. You had already passed their tests, they just wanted twelve men from the Other Ranks at the end of this stage of the program.”
“Did he say what we are doing next?” Erich asked.
“No” Dreher replied.
“It would have good if he had blabbed about that” Erich said as he retied the laces on his left boot.
“He isn’t a Bond villain” Dreher replied.
“No, that would be the Oberst” Erich said, “Herr Clipboard is the henchman who gets it in the second to last act in the movie. When James Bond drops a helicopter, submarine, or something on him and says a quip before going after the big boss.”
“Are you looking for volunteers?” Dreher asked, “Because I would love to do that. How do you drop a submarine on someone though?”
“Fuck if I know” Erich replied, “Go ask James Bond, or the screen writer at MGM who would come up with that.”
Berlin-Brandenberg International Airport
It was debatable which caused more headaches that morning. Preparing Arno for the flight and making sure that his paperwork was in order. Or keeping three children, Kiki’s Personal Secretary Steffi Bader, the children’s minder Vũ Mai, Benjamin, along with Kiki’s personal security all moving in the same direction in the airport. Kiki really missed Fianna Dunn. It wasn’t just because she made this sort of thing seem effortless, but she was one of the few people who Kiki knew she could trust without reservation. Fianna had wanted to return to her home in Ireland and Jack Kennedy had arranged for her to mind his daughter Jacqueline and Marie Alexandra von Mischner-Blackwood. The minor detail that both of them were theoretical adults spoke volumes, it reminded Kiki of her father once saying that some people needed longer to grow up than others when the subject of her sister Rea came up. That move was entirely because of Marie’s fainting episode, someone needed to get her to stop neglecting her health. The irony of Kiki finding herself lecturing Marie about that was not lost on her.
Kiki had told Nina and Lutz to hold Ben’s hands. At seven, Nina felt she was far too old for that and with four-year-old Lutz staying out of trouble would be completely out of character for him. The airport was a million distractions and the last thing Kiki needed was for her children to wander off. She didn’t have to worry about Elene doing that, an advantage of her not being quite old enough to walk yet. Still, Kiki could see that her youngest was sitting in her stroller, looking around intently. If Lena were older then Kiki would know that expression on her face would mean trouble brewing.
When Kiki had made the arrangements for this flight, she had been exploring her options when Freddy had informed her that because of her increased visibility due to her retirement, he would appreciate it if Kiki booked a flight with the National Carrier, meaning Lufthansa. It was that same visibility that had made her consider other options when she had learned that details of her future plans had leaked. Kiki didn’t want photographs of her children to appear in the tabloids and had taken great pains to make sure it didn’t happen. Still, places like airports were chokepoints and you never knew who might be lurking in the main concourse. Kiki’s security detail working with the First Foot and Airport Security had made sure that the worst sort of pests had been removed before she had arrived.
A Representative from the Airline had facilitated their trip from Loading to International Departures. Kiki and Ben had made sure that everyone’s paperwork was in order before they had even left the Winter Residence, so that was one less headache. As they waited at the gate for the plane to start boarding, Kiki noticed that Ben was looking out the window. Across the runway was the flightline of Ben’s old Air Wing, the fighter-bombers gleaming in the morning light.
“Do you miss it?” Kiki asked.
“Sometimes” Ben replied, “But that was always a means to an end.”
“Did you get there?” Kiki asked, “To that end?”
“Yeah, but found something better along the way” Ben said before the boarding announcement was heard over the PA.
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With pinache my dear friend, with pinache.
Smooth Ben, very smooth.
Eh, with how well screwed on my head is today I'm lucky I didn't type pancakesYou mean panache...
From Heligoland it is now off to Judenbach for Close Combat and Weapons Training, then off to if they have not qualified for it, Airborne/Air Assault Training, SCUBA/UDT is then next followed by Language and Customs, Desert, Jungle, Mountaineering Training, Advanced Combat and Tactics, just to scratch the surface of what they should expect over the next eighteen months.
It would have been much easier and justified if Kiki & co. had the entire First Class section reserved for them.
It would have been much easier and justified if Kiki & co. had the entire First Class section reserved for them.
And now I have an image of Hauptfeldwebel Clipboard getting clobbered by a submarine packed full of maple syrup covered pancakes.
It is usually easier to drop someone onto a submarine, let them go from sufficent altitude and the effect is much the same, terminal!
Eric is not in the Sealions itself. This is the other side to them like the SBS or Force Recon is to the other Special Forces units. Can they blow things up, yes, can they shoot really good, yes, but what they do really really good is these things: Know when not to shoot, know when not to blow things up, know how to do things with quiet and stealth and people wonder why are we missing<insert item or person here>and do without anyone knowing they even exist other than rumor. These are the Sealions version of the Schreckgespenst, otherwise known as the boogie man or what you look under the bed before you go to sleep at night.
Part 151, Chapter 2751
Chapter Two Thousand Seven Hundred and Fifty-One
12th January 1979
In transit, Rural Thuringia
Erich could think of few times he had been happier to leave somewhere. Fortunately, the experience of spending the night in an open landing craft was not repeated. Instead they had been herded onto a transport plane during the day, which wasn’t exactly an improvement because flying through the weather over the North Sea during the winter was not for the faint of heart.
Now a couple hours later Erich was able to see out one of the small windows of the high-winged Turboprop twin that was popular with the Luftwaffe these days for missions that didn’t involve heavy lifting. He could see hills, forest, and what were presumably farm fields covered in snow as the plane landed on a strip on the top of a ridge. The sound of hydraulics as flaps and slats deployed was alarming enough, it was Erich realizing that he could see straight down the runway from his seat out the window as the plane crabbed in for a crosswind landing. Straightening out its course at the last possible second, the plane hit the ground hard and the howl of the propellers reversing themselves filled the cabin.
Eventually the plane skidded to a stop.
“Everyone out!” The Loadmaster yelled at them over the engines as the ramp at the back of the cabin was lowered. Erich noticed that there were several crates rolling down the ramp as they made their way down it. No sooner were they out than the plane taxied away from them before turning around in a surprising small space and was rolling down the runway as the ramp was being retracted into the fuselage. It then spun around again when it reached the far end, Erich was wondering what the pilot was up to as the pitch of the engines changed again. The plane was accelerating down the runway, Erich saw as the plane hit a deep puddle, sending a wave of muddy slush into the air. It was also coming right at them. Erich and his men scrambled to get out of the way as the plane seemed to pass centimeters over them as they were hit by the propwash. The snowfall that was getting heavier swilling in the navigation lights.
As the noise from the plane’s engines faded in the distance. Erich was aware that they were being watched by men along the edge of the runway. “I wouldn’t be too sore about that” One of them said as they grabbed the crates. “Those flyboys are always hotdogging it, especially the ones who are flying Kranich or Marabu transports. They love to brag about how they can get in and out of even the smallest airfields in the worst conditions.”
“They bring four engine planes into here?” Erich asked in disbelief. The plane they had flown in was a Kranich, the larger Marabu was built by the same company, in theory it retained the same short take off and landing capabilities of its single and twin-engine predecessors. Erich had never been interested in being aboard while the pilots put that to the test. Apparently they did that at this muddy airstrip in the middle of nowhere.
The man just gave Erich a smug grin as he joined the others loading the heavy crates onto a waiting lorry.
Buenos Aires, Argentina
The children were confused by the sudden change in the weather. The idea that seasons were reversed, so it was midsummer in South America. Even Nina was bewildered by the long days they were suddenly experiencing. In a perverse twist, the children had bounced back from the radical change in time zones far faster than the adults. They also found the hotel they were staying in until they made the next part of this journey to be one of the most exciting things they had ever encountered.
All Kiki wanted to do was sleep, but it seemed like the whole world was coming to their door. Stefi had already told Kiki that she had received several social invitations for while she was in Buenos Aires. The Mayor of Rio Gallegos had asked if Kiki and her family were planning on coming there at some point. There was a similar inquiry from the Governor of the Tierra del Fuego. There was a substantial and growing German population in the two southernmost Argentinian Provinces. Kiki visiting them was a way of letting them know that the “Old Country” as it were had not forgotten them. There was also an invitation from Raul Martínez for Kiki and Ben to dine with him. No one in their right mind turned down an invitation from el Presidente, but Kiki realized that all of that was a distraction from the real reason they were in Argentina.
They were supposed to be traveling on to Neuquén so that Ben could scout locations that had been selected from satellite observation. Kiki understood what interest Martínez had in this project. He wanted the flow of European currency into Argentina to continue because despite the victory against Chile years earlier not everyone was thrilled with him continuing on as President of the Republic. Like always, despite years of robust economic growth things in Argentina were precarious. Martínez was one bad day away from being ruthlessly deposed. That was just how things worked in South America. Everything was good until it wasn’t and then it got bad in a hurry.
12th January 1979
In transit, Rural Thuringia
Erich could think of few times he had been happier to leave somewhere. Fortunately, the experience of spending the night in an open landing craft was not repeated. Instead they had been herded onto a transport plane during the day, which wasn’t exactly an improvement because flying through the weather over the North Sea during the winter was not for the faint of heart.
Now a couple hours later Erich was able to see out one of the small windows of the high-winged Turboprop twin that was popular with the Luftwaffe these days for missions that didn’t involve heavy lifting. He could see hills, forest, and what were presumably farm fields covered in snow as the plane landed on a strip on the top of a ridge. The sound of hydraulics as flaps and slats deployed was alarming enough, it was Erich realizing that he could see straight down the runway from his seat out the window as the plane crabbed in for a crosswind landing. Straightening out its course at the last possible second, the plane hit the ground hard and the howl of the propellers reversing themselves filled the cabin.
Eventually the plane skidded to a stop.
“Everyone out!” The Loadmaster yelled at them over the engines as the ramp at the back of the cabin was lowered. Erich noticed that there were several crates rolling down the ramp as they made their way down it. No sooner were they out than the plane taxied away from them before turning around in a surprising small space and was rolling down the runway as the ramp was being retracted into the fuselage. It then spun around again when it reached the far end, Erich was wondering what the pilot was up to as the pitch of the engines changed again. The plane was accelerating down the runway, Erich saw as the plane hit a deep puddle, sending a wave of muddy slush into the air. It was also coming right at them. Erich and his men scrambled to get out of the way as the plane seemed to pass centimeters over them as they were hit by the propwash. The snowfall that was getting heavier swilling in the navigation lights.
As the noise from the plane’s engines faded in the distance. Erich was aware that they were being watched by men along the edge of the runway. “I wouldn’t be too sore about that” One of them said as they grabbed the crates. “Those flyboys are always hotdogging it, especially the ones who are flying Kranich or Marabu transports. They love to brag about how they can get in and out of even the smallest airfields in the worst conditions.”
“They bring four engine planes into here?” Erich asked in disbelief. The plane they had flown in was a Kranich, the larger Marabu was built by the same company, in theory it retained the same short take off and landing capabilities of its single and twin-engine predecessors. Erich had never been interested in being aboard while the pilots put that to the test. Apparently they did that at this muddy airstrip in the middle of nowhere.
The man just gave Erich a smug grin as he joined the others loading the heavy crates onto a waiting lorry.
Buenos Aires, Argentina
The children were confused by the sudden change in the weather. The idea that seasons were reversed, so it was midsummer in South America. Even Nina was bewildered by the long days they were suddenly experiencing. In a perverse twist, the children had bounced back from the radical change in time zones far faster than the adults. They also found the hotel they were staying in until they made the next part of this journey to be one of the most exciting things they had ever encountered.
All Kiki wanted to do was sleep, but it seemed like the whole world was coming to their door. Stefi had already told Kiki that she had received several social invitations for while she was in Buenos Aires. The Mayor of Rio Gallegos had asked if Kiki and her family were planning on coming there at some point. There was a similar inquiry from the Governor of the Tierra del Fuego. There was a substantial and growing German population in the two southernmost Argentinian Provinces. Kiki visiting them was a way of letting them know that the “Old Country” as it were had not forgotten them. There was also an invitation from Raul Martínez for Kiki and Ben to dine with him. No one in their right mind turned down an invitation from el Presidente, but Kiki realized that all of that was a distraction from the real reason they were in Argentina.
They were supposed to be traveling on to Neuquén so that Ben could scout locations that had been selected from satellite observation. Kiki understood what interest Martínez had in this project. He wanted the flow of European currency into Argentina to continue because despite the victory against Chile years earlier not everyone was thrilled with him continuing on as President of the Republic. Like always, despite years of robust economic growth things in Argentina were precarious. Martínez was one bad day away from being ruthlessly deposed. That was just how things worked in South America. Everything was good until it wasn’t and then it got bad in a hurry.
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Kiki with the help of Steffi should be setting some immediate boundaries on what social engagements she will be accepting and when.
Of course having dinner with President Martinez is first on the agenda, but all others comes at Kiki's convenience, as she needs to settle in with her family first.
For Erich and his squad, they are now in Hellcat Territory as they train with SKS, and Alpine candidates in which their competitive instincts has to be tempered with the need for cooperation, and that is going to take leadership to know which one to turn on, and which one to damper, and when.
Of course having dinner with President Martinez is first on the agenda, but all others comes at Kiki's convenience, as she needs to settle in with her family first.
For Erich and his squad, they are now in Hellcat Territory as they train with SKS, and Alpine candidates in which their competitive instincts has to be tempered with the need for cooperation, and that is going to take leadership to know which one to turn on, and which one to damper, and when.
Welcome to the Tigress's Playground, Erich.
So many people struggle to understand this concept.
Now THAT is what you call foreshadowing.
And that absolutely isn't going to lead to accidents, now is it?
From a pothole that's slightly deeper than expected meaning the Crane to take them out can't?
Of course that attitude leads to accidents, it is totally insane, but that is actually considered a desirable trait among pilots who fly Tactical Transport Aircraft. IOTL the largest and heaviest plane to land on an Aircraft Carrier is a C-130 Hercules. It takes a special sort of crazy to do that sort of thing.
Landed and then took off. Takes a "SPECIAL" kind of crazy.